Jose Antonio Barrientos Jr. says he “cannot stop praising God.” His upbeat outlook is helpful for one of his volunteer positions: Barrientos is a chaplain at Washington Dulles International Airport, where he deals with many travelers every week. The 28-year-old pastor is the only airport chaplain who speaks Spanish. Born in Texas, he grew up in Central America, where his parents were missionaries. Barrientos has lived in the Washington area for about a decade and is a children’s ministries pastor at Community Praise Center in Alexandria. Do you consider yourself to be of a specific faith?
Yes! I am a Seventh Day Adventist, which is a Christian denomination. And what I like the most about this faith is the promise that Jesus is coming soon, the promise that it doesn’t matter who we are, or what we have done. We just come to Jesus, and he forgives everything we have done and gives us a second opportunity. And the promise that soon we will see him in the second coming shows us that the situations we’re going through in this world are just temporary. Soon it will be over. So that’s what I appreciate most — the hope that he gives. He can change things in your life.
What is it like to be an airport chaplain?
Honestly, the chaplaincy ministry in the airport is fast. I must get to know someone quickly, and as fast as I did, let them go. The thing is that in an airport you find different extremes of people. People that are super extremely happy because they’re about to go see their families, people that are really sad, people who are leaving their families behind to go to a hostile situation in a different country, people who are facing critical illness. And at the airport, you don’t have much time. Everything has to be really quick. You don’t have a lot of time to talk to them or to really get to know them. You just come up and have a little introduction and a little prayer. Usually to the travelers I say, “Hi, I hope you’re having a good day, and if you need anything, I’m here to help you.” Sometimes I prayed with people; other times I’ve helped them find a gate. As chaplain you have to be ready, because every single day is a different experience. Also, we have a chapel at the airport and there we have Bible studies, worships and counseling.
Do you see holiday travel stress at the airport? What’s your message to those people?
The rush starts at during Thanksgiving, and it’s very stressful for many employees and travelers. The message is: Depend on God. God is the one that controls everything, and if you’re trying to handle everything with your own power, you won’t accomplish it. Just let God do His thing.
What are good things for people to think about as they travel on Christmas?
That Jesus came into this world to save us, to give us second chances, to bring light to darkness, to bring hope to the hopeless, to bring happiness to the sad. At the moment when you feel that everything is falling apart, hold on to Jesus. He will never fall apart.
And, at the airport, do what you want people to do for you — the Golden Rule. If you lost your luggage, you’d like someone to take the time to help you.
You also work with children as a pastor. What are the main differences between ministering to children and to adults? Do children grasp faith more easily?
I work with little kids and teenagers. Children are honest. They’re going to tell you exactly what they feel. I have an accent and many times, they’ll say, “You speak funny.” They don’t hide anything. There are questions adults might have but they don’t ask, but children just go ahead with it. But teenagers have a silent culture, a technology culture. They need to have electronic devices — there’s no more paper for them. So it’s a different culture. Working with children is one way, teenagers another way, adults another way. And that’s a beautiful thing, because you have to keep yourself up to date.
At your core, what is one of your defining beliefs?
God doesn’t see you for who you are. He sees who you can be when you are in his hands. That just encourages me. God doesn’t see me for my sins, for my difficulties, for my mistakes, but for the things I can do when I let him use me.
– Liz Essley
