" The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
- Matthew 9:37-38
Encouraging workers for the harvest!
CEMPOC is dedicated to supporting minorities in their work of evangelization in the Roman Catholic Church.
In a world marked by pain, conflict and division there are a few who spend their lives bringing healing, hope and unity. The CEMPOC grant was developed to encourage and support the work of evangelization in the Catholic Church. It hopes to provide financial assistance to missionaries who are actively serving in Catholic Ministry and who identify as People of Color or belonging to an ethnic minority. In so doing, we work to enrich the cultural expression of the Church to reflect its deepest "universal" character and identity.
The Need- Why CEMPOC?
Many young people commit to serving God, dedicating a year or two of their lives in service to the Church. Most ministries require the volunteers to raise funds to cover their salary and living expenses during their term of service. It is a labor of love to serve in this way and a real act of humility to solicit funds from the public to support this work. Many groups start with an expectation to raise more than $20,000 a year.
Too often, minorities (in particular African Americans and Hispanics) have a harder time generating their support. This flows, in part, from 3 primary reasons. First, the communities that they are tapping into may have more limited financial resources or cultural obstacles. Additionally, some, especially AA volunteers, may come from communities that are much less Catholic and less supportive of Catholic work. Finally, racial biases can also limit fundraising success.
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Failure to raise supporting funds should not become an obstacle for anyone who may want to serve in this way and so this grant was established to provide incentive and support to individuals who are facing challenges in their efforts. Through a program of matching grants, we invest in the work of some of the Church's most gifted evangelists. This investment helps to culturally enrich the ministries of the Church and helps to advance its universal, catholic call to all people.
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