Guidelines for Receiving Pastoral Ministers in the USA

questioning by US immigration officials. Then, they are suddenly released into a world of strange sights, persons, and customs. Their anxiety level is under standably very high. The second consideration to be kept in mind is the quality of welcome extended by the receiving community. If newly arrived international pastoral ministers are to be welcomed as true members of the community, then their welcome must respect their human dignity and their role within the Church. The experience ought to be a personal one that expresses gratitude and happiness at their arrival. Receiving communities naturally hope that those whom they receive will be open and ready to make adjustments to the realities of the local culture. To foster that openness, the receiving communities themselves need to be open to those whom they are receiving, acknowledging, for example, the great sacrifices they make in coming to the United States and the great help they offer as ministers among us. Receiving communities must avoid communicating that min istry in the United States is a privilege. Rather, they should communicate gratitude. Undeniably, some international pastoral ministers may have a sense of entitlement or come to obtain some benefit. More formal and extensive orientation procedures can deal with these attitudes. For the initial moment at the time of arrival, nothing should diminish the quality of the first hello. A well-orchestrated welcome requires effort and organization. Much depends on the size of the receiving community and the number of arrivals. The Guidelines allow for flexibility, so that receiv ing communities can adapt these recommenda tions according to their needs and resources. Still, local communities must understand the need for planning and effort. Although only large commu nities may be able to provide a “hospitality center” or assign staff full time, every community needs to designate responsible parties to plan, organize, and implement a reception process. Smaller communi ties can profitably seek out partners for some of these elements and make use of national or regional pro grams. The following suggestions sketch an ideal welcome that will necessarily need to be adapted to particular circumstances. One or two members of the receiving commu nity should meet the arriving ministers. A “welcom ing committee” might be overwhelming, given the ministers’ fatigue from the journey. Those who do the welcoming should be posted outside immigra tion (not curbside) with a name sign that indicates

the person being greeted. In the car, those who welcome ought to offer the new arrival simple food and drink, an especially important detail in many traditional cultures. Ideally, newly arrived international pastoral min isters ought not to be first brought to the community where they will live or serve. A time of adjustment, outside of that context, can be very helpful. Much depends on local resources and feasibility. There are various possibilities. The receiving community may designate a spe cific site for the first weeks or months of residence for a transition experience. International pastoral ministers can use the transition to work on language skills, to receive cultural assistance with non-verbal communication, and to hone preaching and teach ing skills. The transition period might also include visits to local communities or meetings with other international ministers. The transition offers new arrivals an opportunity to raise questions about US ecclesial culture and the details of daily living in the United States. The transition can foster inter action with the diocesan, eparchial, institute, or society leadership. When a more extended transition is not pos sible, the receiving community can make arrange ments with a retreat house or seminary for new arrivals to have a one to three day “decompression.” This offers an opportunity to adjust to the local time zone and shed the understandably tired look of an international traveler. During this brief respite, new arrivals should be given opportunities for prayer and rest. They can have one or two brief meetings with representatives of the communities to which they will go. Perhaps they might visit their future commu nity, even if briefly, and return for another night to the retreat or hospitality house with an opportunity to reflect on their initial impressions of their future community. Their first impressions of their new com munity will likely differ from what they anticipated, and they may be either disappointed or intimidated. The “decompression” period is an ideal moment for individuals to meet leadership and staff persons from the receiving community. After the days of adjustment, the new arrivals should go to their receiving community. Traditional cultures, from which many international pastoral min isters come, value formality. The welcome extended upon their arrival should be formal. New arrivals should be welcomed by a delegation. A prayer or prayer service is an appropriate way to offer welcome. Rooms that are provided should be clean and fully

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