Missionary disciples find inspiration in the life of a Maryknoll priest in Houston, Texas
More than three decades ago, Arturo and Esperanza Monterrubio left their homeland of Mexico to start a new life in the United States.
Esperanza had a degree in dentistry, and Arturo planned to obtain a master’s degree in chemical engineering. They arrived in Kingsville, Texas with their children Daniela, Omar and Fátima.
The family’s first refuge was the Church. The community of St. Martin of Tours Church and the Catholic Newman Center of Texas A&M University welcomed them warmly. They still remember receiving a box full of food for their first Thanksgiving Day celebration in their new home.
These welcoming gestures strengthened Arturo and Esperanza’s faith. They began to serve as catechists, lectors, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion and sponsors for matrimonial preparation.
The couple listened to Maryknoll Father Rafael Dávila for the first time in 1991 when they attended a talk he gave in Houston. “Father inspired us to participate in our community and made us feel like active, living members of the Church,” Esperanza says. “He invited me to participate in the vocations committee in the Galveston-Houston Diocese. Holding a foster baby in my arms, I was the only lay woman attending these meetings. I felt welcomed.”
A missionary thread has been woven in the Monterrubios’ path since childhood. Arturo remembers hearing stories about his uncle, a Marist missioner in Nigeria. Esperanza was inspired by visits with her uncles to the seminary of the Missionaries of Guadalupe in Mexico, founded by the Maryknoll missioner Monsignor Alonso Manuel Escalante.
Getting involved with the Church in the U.S. made the Monterrubios feel that God was calling them to mission and in particular, the permanent diaconate for Arturo. “This call came about after many prayers for vocations that we had committed to daily as a family,” he says.
The Monterrubios became foster parents for 10 babies through Catholic Charities. They would adopt three siblings, Theresa, Joseph and Phillip. “Our family not only grew in number, but also in challenges and joys,” Esperanza says. “Our domestic church grew stronger after welcoming the little ones who taught us to share, to be compassionate and to love in a different way.”
While working at a petrochemical company in Houston, Arturo took classes to become a permanent deacon. During his formation, undertaken with his wife at St. Mary’s Seminary, Father Dávila was their professor and spiritual director.
The Monterrubios gather for Christmas Mass at Saint Paul the Apostle Church. (Courtesy of Arturo and Esperanza Monterrubio/U.S.)
Ordained in 1958, Father Dávila served in mission in Venezuela and the United States and on the Maryknoll Society’s General Council. He regards Arturo and Esperanza as missionary disciples with a distinctive gift for pastoral ministry with families.
“In the class for the diaconate, participants wrote an essay about an aspect of interest, and both of them chose topics related to family and vocations,” he recalls.
“We formed an archdiocesan team called Provomiresa (Promotion of Religious Missionary and Priestly Vocations) that created a vocational discernment retreat called ‘Come and See,’” says the missioner. “This retreat continues today, thanks to the planting of that first seed.”
For the Monterrubios, taking classes with Father Dávila as a couple was a great blessing. “His teachings have helped our journey of faith,” Arturo says. After Arturo’s ordination in 2003, they continued studying for master’s degrees in theological studies.
After 24 years, Arturo quit his chemical engineering career; he felt called to work full-time for the Church. He served as deacon and pastoral associate at their parish, St. Jerome Church in Houston, where Esperanza was director of religious education. Although this decision meant a salary reduction, it allowed the couple to work together in sacramental preparation and family life ministry.
At a national conference on Hispanic ministry with Deacon Eddy Valbuena and Alejandro Aguilera-Titus, assistant director for Hispanic Ministry for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. (Courtesy of Arturo and Esperanza Monterrubio/U.S.)
Arturo also served as director for the Office of Family Life for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. This position allowed him to work closely with his mentor, Father Dávila, to support a Spanish language branch of the Christian Family Movement, Movimiento Familiar Cristiano Católico (MFCC).
The wider Christian Family Movement began in Chicago in 1943 with the mission to help couples and their families live their faith and to improve society through love, service, education and leading by example. Across the United States, and soon in other countries, small family groups began to gather in their parishes and homes.
Father Dávila served as national spiritual advisor of the MFC for many years. In 2005, the Maryknoll missioner, along with MFC presidents, implemented the FUE plan (an acronym for “Strengthen, Unite and Extend” in Spanish). The movement experienced great growth, reaching more than 7,000 families registered in the United States, most of them in the Houston area.
Beginning decades earlier and formalized in 2007 as its own entity, the MFCC-USA works in Latino Catholic communities to promote Christ-centered marriages and family life. The movement holds a national conference every three years, with thousands of families attending.
Father Dávila also helped update the MFCC’s basic course manual and accompaniment manual in 2010.
Father Dávila continues to accompany the Monterrubios in different initiatives and ministries. In fact, they have worked even more closely during the past six years, since the Monterrubios became mission education promoters for the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers. “Father Dávila has been our guide, mentor and a model of missionary discipleship,” Esperanza says. “We have admired his discipline, his organization, his wisdom and humility.”
The Monterrubios meet regularly with Father Dávila to share pastoral experiences and to plan mission formation programs.
They also support Father Dávila’s migrant ministry. They have created a parishioner-led team at Saint Paul the Apostle parish to provide food and resources to Casa Juan Diego, a Catholic Worker house of hospitality for migrants and refugees.
This year, Arturo and Esperanza celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary with their six children, sons- and daughter-in-law and 12 grandchildren. For them, family and mission are fundamental pillars of their life. “We are full of gratitude for the opportunity to be part of the community of Maryknoll missionary disciples,” Esperanza says. “Our mission is to continue accompanying, forming and sharing God’s love with God’s people.”
Featured Image: Arturo and Esperanza Monterrubio and Maryknoll Father Rafael Dávila attend the national convention of the Catholic Christian Family Movement in Denver, Colorado, in 2023. (Courtesy of Arturo and Esperanza Monterrubio/U.S.)
