By Jay Sorgi • Posted January 17, 2025

Evangelization – to share the Good News with everyone – can take place in subtle, even unexpected settings. One informal setting is sharing a cup of coffee in an inviting atmosphere.

A couple in Northeast Philadelphia is constructing just such an atmosphere at Holy Innocents Parish in the city’s Juniata neighborhood on Saturday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. when El Camino Cafe attracts young adults for a night of hanging out in what co-founder Rafael Nuñez calls a true community cafe.

“The idea is to bring a space for young adults just like us, to have a place to connect,” said Nuñez. “The main idea is to have a space to make new friends, of course, and it’s a very faith-friendly space.”

Those attending the event can look forward to “having a sense of being familiar and feeling close to the people who are close to them,” he said, “as well of connection, and of course, having a cup of coffee.”

For Nuñez, this new ministry is a first step into two areas where he has great passion – his Catholic faith and his love of coffee.

“Coffee is a very traditional thing for Hispanics, especially me being Dominican and Marissa, my fiancée, being from Puerto Rico. As a kid, I always dreamed of having or owning a cafeteria or coffee s

hop where people could gather,” said Nuñez.

The plan for El Camino Cafe is to create a comfortable space for guests to be themselves, especially if they are in an early stage of their faith journey.

“It’s essentially like a third space,” said Marissa Rivera, the other co-founder of El Camino Cafe. “I find that a lot of the Catholic events that I have been involved in have been either within the Church itself or within a location that is related directly and tied directly to the Church.

“While we’re starting with my parish, we plan on decorating it and making it feel like a welcoming space that anyone could kind of just walk in, especially young adults, and feel like they know what’s going on, that they don’t have to feel like they’re apart or astray from the people around themselves.”

Rivera explained that in the Latino community, coffee is often the connection to bring people together, particularly in the evening. Experiencing a cafe in a relaxed atmosphere may open doors for those who might not consider a bold leap into their faith, like immediately going with a Catholic friend to Mass after not attending for a while.

Rivera said she hopes guests can enjoy the café  “and know exactly what the deal is, and just (be) able to sit with other people and talk at Level One and not feel like they’re not included in something because they can’t speak like someone who is Level 10 in their faith,” she said. “That’s something that’s very important for us, and those are the people that are so easy to reach.”

Nuñez and Rivera, who are engaged to be married, said the El Camino Cafe will rotate between Holy Innocents and St. Martin of Tours Parish in  Northeast Philadelphia’s Oxford Circle neighborhood. The first night, on Jan. 18, will be hosted inside Holy Innocents’ rectory meeting room.

What will people encounter when they walk in? Nuñez said to expect a “chill” presence, similar to a traditional coffee house.

“The music is something that we are very related to,” said Nuñez, who with Rivera serves in music ministry at both parishes.

“We’re going to have a very low light setting for people to feel more comfortable … and that could hopefully get them to get closer to others around them,” he said.

“We also are thinking about having things like hot chocolate, just to help people feel more welcome,” Rivera added. “We’re also having bakers bake a couple of things for those people who have a sweet tooth that night.”

She and Nuñez are also planning on adding a guest speaker to connect the Catholic faith with this non-traditional atmosphere, to help people begin to realize God’s presence in such everyday settings.

The speaker will “talk a little bit about their own faith experiences and how it shaped them into the person that they are today,” said Rivera. “They’re also going to be able to relate it back to God and faith, (asking), ‘Where’s Jesus in your story?’ That’s a key question that I think everyone should be asking themselves, even at Level One, because that’s where you start by recognizing that God has always been there for you.”

While Nuñez dreams of someday making El Camino Cafe a brick-and-mortar Catholic cafe in the city, he and Rivera say this method of “chill” evangelization will do the job for now.

“Bring yourself, bring one friend,” Rivera said, “and let God do the rest.”