By George P. Matysek Jr.
gmatysek@CatholicReview.org
Pastoral leaders from the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond will gather in Baltimore Feb. 12-14 for the Mid-Atlantic Congress, an annual event designed to help participants grow in ministry.
“The purpose of the congress is to form pastoral leaders,” said Ruth Puls, director of catechetical and pastoral formation for the Baltimore archdiocese and a member of the Mid-Atlantic Congress executive committee.
“It brings together pastoral staffs,” she added, “so, you might have a pastor, a principal, a director of religious education and a youth minister all coming from one parish – all looking to be built up in the Lord and all looking to see how they can support the mission of evangelization.”
The congress is geared to those who serve as leaders in a diocesan office, parish or school. They include religious educators, liturgy directors, parish nurses, principals, music ministers, parish or school business managers, pastoral council members, justice or outreach coordinators, members of pastoral staff and more.
Participants will attend breakout sessions and listen to keynote speakers, including Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Buffalo; Brian K. Johnson, a Baltimore native and a leader in youth ministry serving in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston; Paulist Father Ricky Manalo, an expert on liturgical music who teaches at Santa Clara University and the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, Calif.; and Sherry Weddell, co-founder of the Catherine of Siena Institute, an international ministry of the Western Domincian Province.
Hosffman Ospino, a native of Colombia who has taught at a variety of academic levels, will give a Spanish-language keynote address.
More than 1,000 people are already registered for the event, which will be held at the Baltimore Hilton Hotel. Puls encouraged pre-registration, although she noted that no one will be turned away at the door.
The Mid-Atlantic Congress is co-sponsored by the Baltimore archdiocese and the Association of Catholic Publishers, in partnership with the National Leadership Roundtable for Church Management.
Visit midatlanticcongress.org for more information and to register. Online registration is open until Feb. 9.