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The growing U.S. Hispanic population is bringing demands for a greater Latino voice in religious and public life, said Hispanic religious leaders at a Washington conference.
Survey results presented at the May 3 and 4 conference sponsored by Hispanic Churches in American Public Life showed that religion plays a key role in shaping Hispanic attitudes and that Hispanics want their churches to take a more active role in social and political issues.
"The survey reaffirms the important role of religion in the life of Hispanics. A serious obligation of our church people is: How do we empower our people in public affairs?" said Fr. Virgilio Elizondo, a priest of the San Antonio archdiocese who is co-director of Hispanic Churches in American Public Life, an ecumenical organization that studies the impact of Hispanic religious attitudes on public policy.
Hispanics have had to struggle to be accepted by the U.S. Catholic church, said Elizondo, founder of the Mexican-American Cultural Center, which trains people for Hispanic ministry. "A lot of Catholic churches wouldn't let us in. But we wanted to stay and be a part of the Catholic church," he said.