Hispanic 'personal parishes' in the contemporary U.S. Catholic Church

U.S. Catholicism spawned hundreds of national ("personal") parishes, most serving early European immigrants. Hispanics' later population growth, by contrast, coincided with Church leaders' emphasis on integrated, territorial parishes. This paper examines more recent practice around personal parishes with explicit, named service to Hispanic Catholics. One in six new personal parishes serves Hispanics. Hispanic personal parishes' minimal presence among American dioceses, however, does not mirror Hispanics' larger presence among Catholics overall. Findings from an original National Study of Personal Parishes reveal commonalities in diocesan explanations for establishing - or not establishing - Hispanic personal parishes. Personal parishes operate as an alternative, non-assimilative parish structure alongside the "ideal" of an integrated, territorial parish.