Priesthood Sunday USA | October 26, 2008 >> Priesthood Sunday | Priest Stories >> Priest Stories: Living on the Edge

Priest Stories: Living on the Edge By Lindsey Townsend Outside the Border of the American Dream EL PASO, TX—Under the blazing sun of a vast blue sky, 92,000 children struggle to survive here every day. On this most desolate of borders, Father Edward Roden-Lucero, pastor of San Juan Diego Parish outside El Paso, works tirelessly to give Hispanic immigrants a voice in a society that often prefers to ignore them. "A lot of Americans would be shocked to see what's happening down here on the border," Father Ed says. Without access to health care, work or the basic necessities of life, conditions here can rival those of Third World countries. The poverty rate is almost 30%; there are 108,000 people living on food stamps; and more than 3,000 still live without potable water. "Those figures explain why we do what we do," says Father Ed. "There's been poverty and injustice down here for decades, but the Catholic Church is providing not only spiritual leadership but also—in the ancient tradition of the church and as the Gospel demands—helping people with practical things," he says. For the last 17 years the soft-spoken priest has been a Co-chairman of the El Paso Interreligious Sponsoring Organization, (EPISO), part of the community organizing network of the Industrial Areas Foundation. EPISO has spearheaded the ongoing effort to obtain water and wastewater services for the thousands of residents who live in the colonias—neighborhoods marked by poverty and lack of basic infrastructure. It also organizes around other issues that affect the lives of the Hispanic poor. One of the poorest parishes in the Diocese of El Paso, San Juan covers 100 square miles of territory in the high desert east of city limits. Like the other hundreds of colonia parishes in El Paso, it is gripped by poverty, high unemployment, low wages, and neighborhoods without potable water. "That means no water, no sewer systems, no paved roads, no streetlights: nothing," says Father Ed. Father Ed grew up Catholic in Albuquerque, New Mexico and felt the call to service while seeing ads on television sponsored by the Campaign for Human Development. "I clearly remember the images of the work being done by the Church in Appalachia. Having seen poverty in my own town, I started to see the connection between social problems and the Church's teaching," he says. After attending Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Santa Fe, he graduated from the College of Santa Fe with a degree in social science; earned an M. Div. from the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio; a Licentiate in Canon Law from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.; and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Oblate. His roots in Texas run deep. He has served as pastor of La Purisima Parish in Socorro, Texas, another colonia parish; Our Lady of the Valley in El Paso; Director of Communications for the Diocese of El Paso; and is a former Chancellor of the diocese. He dreams of a future where prejudice and false stereotyping of the Hispanic poor no longer exist. "On the contrary, the overwhelming majority of these people are very hardworking and want to earn their own way. They just need a chance to improve their quality of life through education." Such opportunity has become a reality through his efforts. Father Ed is co-founder and Vice-chairman of the Board of Directors of Project ARRIBA, a job-training program founded by EPISO. "ARRIBA is the only long-term, high-skill job training program that assures its graduating participants employment that pays a living wage of $10.50 per hour. There is no other living wage initiative in the city or county," says Father Ed. That's critical in a city where one-third of the workforce earns the minimum wage of just $5.15 per hour. Living wages help create not only healthy families but a healthy tax base. ARRIBA helps people move out of poverty by filling high-skill, high-demand and high-paying occupations, such as nursing and management information systems. "The reason it works and that it's so unique is that we talk to employers and find out what their needs are, then develop our programs around those needs...I consider my work in EPISO and ARRIBA a component of my pastoral work in the parish," Father Edward says. Father Ed believes that empowering parish lay leaders is part of the solution to solving today's problems. He has trained countless local residents in social justice issues such as fair housing rights, Equal Opportunity education, healthcare, and the need for community education. "Obviously, we don't do this work alone. I think priests, more than ever, are called to greater involvement in social issues. This is the prophetic tradition. We must fill the vacuum that exists in society regarding the defense of the poor and promoting their issues," he says. TOP BACK