National organizations have recently taken notice of the Diocese of Phoenix and recognized four of its employees in one office for their key roles.
Jose Antonio Martinez, Junuee Castro, Eneida Scoby and Armida Escarcega all work in the Office of Evangelization, Discipleship and Spirituality at the Diocesan Pastoral Center in downtown Phoenix, but their influence stretches beyond the confines of the Phoenix Diocese.
The team, led by Director Diane Saunders, has attracted the attention of national organizations, including the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
“Being a new office, we intentionally took time to build bridges and relationships on a national level and on a local level, to really discern the direction that we would take and also to build the alliances in order to grow the mission,” Saunders said. The new office was established by Bishop John Dolan and in a year has grown in scope and strength.
The national recognition of the diocesan Evangelization, Discipleship and Spirituality team is the fruit of hard work, networking across both the diocese and the nation and the many friendships built, Saunders said.
Family life advocate
Jose Antonio Martinez, director of Marriage and Family Life, was invited to speak at the National Catholic Association for Family Life and Marriage conference held in Louisville, Kent. Oct. 10-14.
Martinez, who was previously employed as a cyber engineer, presented on the ethical and moral use of digital technology by parish staff and volunteers.
The conference was held in collaboration with the USCCB and covered a wide range of topics, from improving marriage preparation processes and exploring the catechumenal model, to reflecting on different ways of engaging youth in building strong foundations for family life.
“The overall vision focused on how we can better accompany and support families in their journey of faith,” Martinez said.
“This new opportunity connects me even more closely with our mission at the national level, where I hope to contribute to the ongoing formation and support of families, educators and pastoral leaders.”
Catholic Social Teaching in action
Junuee Castro, coordinator of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, who travelled to Kenya last summer as part of Engage Your Equal, a service immersion program for Catholic young adults, was invited to attend a symposium organized by Catholic Volunteer Network, a faith-based organization that promotes full-time domestic and international service opportunities.
The symposium, “Rooted in Sacred Ground,” took place in Orlando, Fla., Oct. 25-26. Through storytelling, workshops and spiritual reflection, the symposium aims to foster skill-building and promote inclusive models to deepen engagement in service and discipleship among youth.
As she prepared to travel to the symposium, Castro reflected on how it would impact her work for the Diocese of Phoenix.
“I hope to connect with like-minded leaders serving in youth ministry and engage in community and discernment to amplify my vision of faith-inspired justice work for the youth in our diocese,” Castro said.
“Having youth in service and action through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching plays a crucial role in the works of evangelization because they serve as a powerful testimony for their peers and the world.”
Leading catechetical efforts
Eneida Scoby, the Sacramental Life, Catechesis and Faith Formation liaison for the diocese, has been asked to serve on the advisory board for the National Community of Catechetical Leaders (NCCL), a 90-year-old organization that equips, supports and helps connect Catholic catechetical leaders.
Scoby, a master catechist, once served as the Director of Religious Education (DRE) at her parish in the San Diego Diocese and is well-acquainted with the NCCL’s broad influence.
“The NCCL would give us DREs ideas about best practices and how to catechize and not reinvent the wheel,” Scoby said.
Everyone who serves on the NCCL’s advisory board is given a particular role. Scoby’s role hasn’t yet been defined — her term doesn’t commence until 2026 — but with her deep experience in catechetics, parish and diocesan-level work, she brings a wealth of knowledge. Scoby was born in Mexico and speaks Spanish and also has a master’s degree in taxation and accounting.
The NCCL advisory board helps guide catechetical leaders around the nation, identifying trends and priorities in catechesis and fomenting networking within and between dioceses. Scoby praised NCCL Executive Director John Roberto.
“We have a wonderful and very visionary executive director in Roberto,” Scoby said. The grants the NCCL is involved in leading are helping it to “develop, give strength to and help us sometimes reimagine how we do catechesis, which I think is the most important thing, because we need to learn how to serve the times that we are encountering.”
Scoby has worked closely with the NCCL through a grant program, “Parents and Families at the Center of Faith Formation,” that involves two Diocese of Phoenix separate cohorts for English-speakers and Spanish-speakers.
Cohorts have been meeting regularly to learn, discuss and plan future catechetical efforts aimed at strengthening faith formation programs.
Women’s health
Armida Escarcega, diocesan coordinator for Natural Family Planning (NFP), has been an NFP teacher for 30 years.
Escarcega was recently chosen among her peers across the nation to serve on the USCCB’s national board for NFP. There are only eight spots on the board which advises the USCCB on matters pertaining to NFP.
Escarcega has been recognized for growing a robust curriculum within the diocese offering the full course of NFP to all participating in marriage preparation. She was also chosen to serve on the board for Natural Womanhood, a national organization that promotes fertility awareness, NFP and raises awareness about the effects of artificial birth control.
“NFP is not our grandmother’s rhythm method,” Escarcega said. “Modern methods of Natural Family Planning have helped develop evidence-based, restorative approaches to fertility health. These methods utilize a woman’s chart to understand her unique cycle patterns and to help identify the underlying factors that may be affecting not only her fertility, but her overall health.
“Being on the board and being able to share my experience of 30 years in the NFP field is a blessing. I am humbled to be able to help spread our Church’s message of what marital chastity and responsible parenthood truly mean,” Escarcega said.
Saunders said she is proud of her team’s growing prominence and added that the team is ready to carry out the mission of building a culture of evangelization as set forth in Bishop John Dolan’s seven-year pastoral plan, TILMA (the acronymn for Testifica Oh Iglesia a la Luz del Misterio del Amor–Testify O Church to the Light of the Mystery of Love.)
“We worked hard to lay this strong foundation,” Saunders said. “We’ve added new team members, we’ve built this strength on a national network and we’re engaging in partnerships with our local diocesan community.
“We see at the heart of this work the ability to fulfill the mission within the TILMA in collaboration with the bishop, bearing fruit and testifying to the ‘light of the mystery of Christ’s love.’”
