A Different Kind Of Catholicism Grows In Latino Communities

[rug]

Worshippers are brought to tears at the Wednesday night Charismatic prayer meetings at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in the Bronx, New York City. (Marlon Bishop/Latino USA)

by Marlon Bishop and Maria Hinojosa
January 23, 2014 5:00 AM

In the Saint Anthony of Padua Church in the Bronx, Wednesday night is prayer meeting night.

Fifty people gather in the spare assembly room for a ceremony that looks very different from a Catholic Sunday Mass.

For one thing, the service is led by a woman rather than a male priest. She preaches excitedly while a rock band of young Salvadoran immigrants backs her up.

Some people in the audience hold up their hands; others are swaying gently. There are tears in the crowd.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2014/01/23/262793319/a-different-kind-of-catholicism-grows-in-latino-communities

4:30 audio at link.