There’s nothing more invigorating and inspiring than a chat with the Rev. Canon Anthony Guillen (shown this morning at St. Paul’s Commons, Echo Park with the Rev. Canon Thomas Quijada-Discavage, at center, and me).
Missioner for Latino/Hispanic ministries for The Episcopal Church, Anthony and his spouse, Guadalupe, live in the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles and attend St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church Ojai – lucky for us, since it gives my colleagues and me a chance on a semi-regular basis to pick the brains of a cutting-edge leader of the 21st century church.
Anthony told me today that by 2060, one in three Americans will be Latino. He’s a specialist in ministry to English-speaking children and grandchildren of Spanish-speaking immigrants. Evangelical churches are reaching out to them aggressively, Anthony says — but they need Anglican-Episcopal values and community the same as everyone in our secularizing times.
With Canon Anthony’s help, we’re planning a diocese-wide program this fall — he calls it “New Camino” — to give the leaders of our missions and parishes the tools to build relationships with second- and third-generation Latinos. First vital insight: One doesn’t have to speak Spanish to do Hispanic ministry.