A small but diverse group of parishioners gathered Nov. 9 at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church for the Archdiocese of Lousiville’s Asian and Pacific Island Day of Reflection.
The event — organized by the Office of Multicultural Ministry — brought together close to 30 parishioners from Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino and Indian communities.
The day of reflection is intended to help the communities find “common threads” that can pull them closer, said M. Annette Mandley-Turner, executive director of the Office of Multicultural Ministry. “It’s a way to bring the diverse Asian community together so they can enhance their knowledge of one another.”
The group heard from Franciscan Father Linh N. Hoang, a professor of religious studies at Siena College in the Diocese of Albany, N.Y. He shared some ways to implement the U.S. bishops’ 2018 pastoral letter “Encountering Christ in Harmony: A Pastoral Response to Our Asian and Pacific Island Brothers and Sisters.”
Father Hoang discussed cultural elements, such as food, that can be used to help members of these communities have encounters with each other and the wider community.
Father Hoang led with the question, “Why did God create creatures that they might eat, and what does that mean?”
The answer is, “We become dependent on each other, on creation and God. It makes us responsible for creation and for each other,” said Father Hoang. “When we think of that it helps us see where God is going deeper in our lives.”
He said, “Food has been at the heart of Christianity, how it’s developed and continues to inform not only cultural identity but personal identity. … Those are points of encounter that help us engage” as people of faith.
Father Minh Vu, who is pastor of St. John Vianney Church and is from Vietnam, shared his experience of using food to connect different groups of people.
Father Vu said that when he was pastor of St. Athanasius Church, the parish hosted a festival of cultures and foods called “World Taste of St. A. Family Fest” instead of holding a picnic. He said the parish’s cultural groups shared a variety of dishes with the wider St. Athanasius faith community.
“It gave the small (cultural) groups and newcomers an opportunity to be themselves and create a sense of belonging,” said Father Vu. Seeing the members of the parish enjoying their food gave people a sense of pride and strengthened the idea “that everyone has something to contribute.”
Mandley-Turner shared with the group that sharing food “allows for a different type of learning that’s not threatening,” she said. “By eating your food, I’ll learn about you and hopefully, you can learn from me.”
Father Hoang ended by saying that the Gospel account of the Last Supper shows that sharing food is at the center of the Catholic faith.
“With food, we become one,” he said. “In our spiritual life, we share one meal.”
