WELCOME TO THE JORNADISTA ENGLISH WEB PAGE

We are called "Jornadistas" the Hispanic catholics that belong to the youth movement "JORNADAS DE VIDA CRISTIANA". We live and work in the metropolitan area of New York, above all in the Diocese of Brooklyn and New York, and in some parts of New Jersey. We were born 30 years ago through the inspiration of the Vincentian Fathers under the real inspiration of the missionaries of the Province of Barcelona (Spain), who have been working in this area since 1916. It was Fathers Biosca and Amengual, with the help of the Cursillos de Cristiandad Movement of Brooklyn and the parish of Monserrate (Bedford-Stuyvesant), who initiated in what is today recognized as Jornadas de Vida Cristiana of Brooklyn. Practically from the beginning the Diocese of Brooklyn has accompanied us and with its support it has become a place for evangelizing work in favor of the youth. Without its help and without the direction of its bishops, the Movement would not be what it really is. That is what has marked, from the beginning, the characteristics of the Jornada in Brooklyn. On one side, the vincentian inspiration and its evangelizing initiative; on the other for the help and relationship with the Cursillo Movement of the Brooklyn Diocese.

In reality we could say that the Jornadista Movement, with a membership of more than 10,000 members, is a Hispanic Catholic Movement totally independent and different from the other American movements. We work for the youth of New York knowing that only the youth can effectively evangelize to young people. From our youth we offer illusion and the will to make the Kingdom of God more visible every day.

How do we work?

The movement centers all its life and activities in what we call

JORNADA

a 3-day retreat in which the youth are offered a deep experience of God. Those, who in their parishes prepare themselves to live their Jornada, are called "Pre-jornadistas" (Pre-J's). For the Pre-J's and Jornadistas, aside from having their weekly meetings in their respective groups, there are activities like Caminata, Haverstraw, or the Plegarias.

Caminata is a manifestation of faith for the Hispanic youth which is celebrated through the streets of our Diocese, Holy Saturday, in the morning. It's the proclamation of a faith that will burst that same night in the celebration of the Resurrection of the Lord.

The annual meeting at Haverstraw (New York) is the opportunity to come together and adjourn all the activities of a year's worth of work. A day of encounter between Jornadistas and their families, to share, celebrate, and give thanks for all the gifts received during the year.

The Plegarias are bimonthly encounters of prayer and a coming together. They are celebrated in different parishes and they offer reflexion of our faith to animate and motivate all young people.