BRODHEADSVILLE – More than 1,200 Hispanic Catholics from parishes around the Diocese of Scranton gathered in Monroe County on Sept. 19, 2026, to celebrate their faith, culture and heritage.
The sixth annual Hispanic Heritage Mass and celebration brought together families and faithful at Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Brodheadsville under the theme “Unidos Somos Más – United We Are More.”
The event began with Mass celebrated by the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, and concelebrated by 17 priests.
In his homily, Bishop Bambera reflected on Jesus’ parable of the sower, encouraging those gathered to continue planting seeds of faith through their words, actions, service and witness.
“There will always be challenges to our efforts to nurture the seeds of faith that we sow in our world,” Bishop Bambera said. “But by the grace of God, those seeds will take root and will yield a harvest far greater than we might ever believe possible.”
He encouraged Hispanic Catholics to remain united in faith, particularly during difficult times.
“In your willingness to sow the seeds of faith and to live the values of the Gospel, you provide hope to many,” the Bishop continued. “And that, my friends, is all that the Lord asks any of us to do – for together we are more than when we stand alone.”
Nereida Cruz, a parishioner of Saint Nicholas/Saint Mary Parish in Wilkes-Barre, said the celebration provided an important reminder of that unity.
“It is very nice to come together and celebrate the same faith – the Catholic faith,” Cruz said. “It is very nice to see how each country brings a little bit of its culture and a little bit of their beliefs.”
Father Neftali Feliz Sena, Assistant Pastor of Saint Pius of Pietrelcina Parish in Hazleton, said the gathering demonstrated how the Catholic faith transcends language and cultural differences.
“It doesn’t matter the language you speak,” he said. “We just get together as one Church. We all believe in Jesus, and we are the Catholic Church and everywhere we go, we all celebrate our faith.”
The celebration also emphasized passing that faith onto future generations.
“This is an opportunity to pass our faith to the new generation,” Nelson Anaya of Saint Nicholas/Saint Mary Parish in Wilkes-Barre said. “They have the opportunity to see how we got this faith from our grandparents.”
After Mass, a large outdoor festival with food, music, dancing and cultural activities brought the Hispanic parish communities together.
International Catholic evangelist and speaker Salvador Gomez also addressed the gathering, offering a message of faith and hope for families and young people.
The day ended with a youth soccer tournament. Four parish teams competed in the men’s tournament, with Saint Matthew Parish in East Stroudsburg capturing the championship. Three parish teams competed in the women’s division, won by Saint Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Scranton.
Attendees hope the annual celebration will continue, and events might even be held outside Hispanic Heritage Month.
“It would be great to have these types of activities twice per year because we willingly want to share and we willingly want to have a great time,” Anaya said.