IPI celebrates achievement of 28 graduates with Mass at the cathedral

(En Espanol)
 

After a Mass at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis on May 21, members of the archdiocesan Intercultural Pastoral Institute’s (IPI) Class of 2026 pose with the certificates they received for completing the two-year pastoral leadership course. Posing with them are IPI administrator Katherine Guerra, second row, fourth from left, archdiocesan Department of Pastoral Ministries director Deacon Thomas Hosty, Archbishop Charles C. Thompson, archdiocesan Office of Intercultural Ministries director Felix Navarrete and Ken Ogorek, executive director of the archdiocesan Secretariat for Evangelizing Catechesis. (Submitted photo)

Criterion staff report

The Church in central and southern Indiana gained 28 Hispanic lay leaders from 10 parishes in May when the 2026 graduates of the Intercultural Pastoral Institute (IPI), a two-year formation program of the archdiocesan Office of Intercultural Ministry, each received a certificate in pastoral leadership immediately following a Mass at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis on May 21.

The IPI was established in 2011. Through a variety of trainings, workshops and formative experiences, it has contributed to the local Church by developing and forming lay leaders and promoting the active participation of men and women Hispanic Catholics in different ministries and apostolates.

More than 200 guests joined Archbishop Charles C. Thompson at the Mass and the celebratory dinner across the street from the cathedral in the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center in Indianapolis.

The IPI program takes place on the campus of St. Andrew the Apostle Parish in Indianapolis. Since the summer of 2025, renovations have made space available for a cafeteria, bookstore and lobby “to provide students with a better place to gather and learn,” said Felix Navarrete, director of the archdiocesan Office of Intercultural Ministry, who oversees the IPI.

“The program of studies also has been reviewed and modified,” he said. The goal of the improvements is “to help students deepen their knowledge and to consolidate a formative experience faithfully rooted in Catholic tradition with a pastoral vision that enables future leaders to better accompany their communities, [and] understanding the great importance of what it means to carry their sacramental character into the life of the Church.”

This year, “after prayerful discernment and attending the signs of the times,” Navarrete added, the IPI launched a new virtual learning experience with a series on Pope St. John Paul II’s teachings on the “Theology of the Body,” with about 30 participants registering.

“This [virtual opportunity] has created a big impact among our communities, especially for those who, because of the distance, cannot attend classes at St. Andrew in person,” he said. “This is only one of many initiatives that we as a staff are currently discerning for the good of our communities.”

The challenging, two-year program might have ended for the IPI Class of 2026 graduates, but their journey as lay leaders is just beginning as they “commit to live and share the good news with those around them—the migrant, the vulnerable, the one who seeks for the truth,” said Navarrete, reflecting on the graduation.

“They are prepared to make valuable contributions to the Church of the 21st century, a Church that is a mother, nurturing, teaching and correcting with charity and patience her children so that we may find our way to the source of all good: Jesus Christ.”

Navarrete is grateful for “all those who show their belief in the mission of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis through the United Catholic Appeal, and for the support that the Office of Intercultural Ministry receives from Archbishop Thompson. Through such support, the institute continues to expand so that all who desire leadership formation can benefit from it.”

He added, “As we embark on this process—which also serves as a way to implement the new archdiocesan pastoral plan—we ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the intercession of our Blessed Mother, to whom we entrust the mission of the institute. May she, the Star of the New Evangelization, bring this program closer to her Son.”
 

(For more information on the Intercultural Pastoral Institute, contact Felix Navarrete at fnavarrete@archindy.org or 317-236-7312.) †