The following homily, written by Archbishop Jose Gomez for the May 10 Baccalaureate Mass at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio appeared May 17 in the Los Angeles archdiocese paper paper, the Tidings.
Archbishop Gomez received an honorary doctorate from Franciscan “for his fidelity to the Catholic Church, for being the voice of Hispanic Catholics in the United States, and for bringing the Gospel of Christ to people everywhere.”
Like the first apostles at Jerusalem, we live “in between” times. In between the time of Jesus’ Ascension and the time when he will come again. In these times we live by trust in Jesus’ beautiful promise: I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice.
His Ascension begins the time of mission, the time of the Holy Spirit. This is our time. His Ascension is our mission. Jesus has given his Church — he has given each one of us — that task of finishing his mission.
We are called to be his witnesses in the world. We are called to say to our neighbors — “Jesus has come. He is alive. The Son of God has become the Son of Man. And he has come to show us the way to the Father!”
Like St. Paul and the first apostles, we are called to proclaim this good news — in every area of our daily life. As Paul did, we need to teach the Word of God. And as we know, we always teach the best by the way we live.
Not everyone in our world wants to hear this Word. Proclaiming Jesus Christ can lead to violence, to persecution. This was true in the time of the apostles and it’s true today.
Our mission is to continue Jesus’ mission…. To build a world of love, the family of God. And we do that by helping our loved ones and the people we meet every day to find God.
That’s why in every Mass we should give thanks for all the martyrs — known and unknown — who laid down their lives to keep the Christian faith alive in many dark and faithless times. Because of their witness and courage, this beautiful faith, the truth of the living God, has been handed on to us.
In every Eucharist, we should also remember those Christians around the world who are suffering and dying today for Jesus.
Persecution comes in many forms. The Church in our country knows the “soft” persecution of those who would deny us our rights to live our faith in freedom. More and more, we face pressures to compromise and abandon our beliefs as “the price” for living in modern American society.
There is a line in the Acts of the Apostles that seems prophetic of the times we are living in. The accusation is made against St. Paul: This man is inducing people to worship God contrary to the law.
True faith, living Christianity, challenges all the false idols of our society — the idols of the flesh and consumerism, the idols of the marketplace, the idols of individualism and nationalism. So we have to expect that powerful forces will want to keep the Church out of the public square.
We’re living now in a highly secularized society. As a Church, I really don’t think we’ve come to grips with that yet. But it’s true. Our society thinks it has no need for God anymore. That’s not so much a criticism as it is just a fact. And it isn’t going to do us any good to appeal to the faith of America’s founding fathers or to talk about all the ways the Church’s charities and schools contribute to the common good. We are beyond that now in our society.
America is like Corinth in the time of St. Paul — we have become again a society that lives as if there is no God, or as if his existence doesn’t make any difference. In this kind of society, worshipping God — living our faith — is going to be more and more contrary to the law….
To read entire homily, click here.
While this Archbishop may be a holy person, he is WRONG ON IMMIGRATION. I believe he is a political opportunist, and he is following the money trail. He has gone so far as to say, “Well, people broke laws years ago, and because they weren’t called on it, oh well. Let ’em stay.” I find this appalling, and beneath the dictates of an Archbishop. What if we are were to say that? “Oh, I broke the law, but nobody saw, so I guess it’s ok,” and just sneak off an enjoy what was stolen. And, make no mistake about this: People who are here illegally are stealing from the American people. The percentage of illegals on welfare is huge (say, 80 percent), and that is 80% more then they are entitled to. I don’t know about you, but I learned that when I did something wrong, I was supposed to make it right, not just go to confession and say “Oopps, sorry.” Perhaps the dear Archbishop should re-examine his conscious, and come to the conclusion that stealing is wrong and penance should be done. In this case, penance includes leaving our country and coming here legally!!!
“Holy” has to do with “Practice what you preach, so as not to caste the Church as a hypocrite” (Pope Frances to bishops, paraphrased).
Noelle, many of us are children and grandchildren of immigrants. Most immigrants come here to work. Your statement that 80% are on welfare is false. Archbishop Gomez is an immigrant so I think he knows what he is talking about here.
It most certainly is not. Check the facts. And you are right. My grandfather is Sicilian. He came here in the early 1900’s..l legally. He learned to cut hair while standing on a box! He never took anything from anybody, learned to speak the language (he had a 6th grade education), refused to speak Italian because he was now American, owned two homes and supported a family. In order to come to America, he had to pass a medical test, he had to prove he had a family here, or some way to support himself. This is NOT true of most of the people who are now flooding our country. The difference, and read my words carefully, is that THESE PEOPLE WHO ARE INVADING OUR COUNTRY ARE DOING IT ILLEGALLY. Yes, America is a country of immigrants, but the point people like you are missing is that we have laws. We work hard. We need to help poor, but we have plenty of Americans who are working poor who need our help. If you want to take a portion of your salary and give it to the poor, fine; but don’t insist that the rest of us do the same. Look at NUMBERSUSA.com. Time for people like you to be informed and start thinking and not just using useless emotion.
Oh, and yes, Archbishop Gomez is an immigrant, but I can guarantee he is a LEGAL one. I dare say the people who are supporting him are not….Follow the money trail….
Noelle, you are 100% correct in your comments – follow the money – Your also correct when you say the key word is ‘ILLEGAL’ – Also, consider that the predominance of services are now in Spanish rather than English & what really upsets me is the seminars the Church gives to these individuals so that they can figure out a way to stay – Many will disagree with this, but it’s true – Also, has anyone ever noticed how much these Bishops travel around the country/world when they should be home solving the problems that seem to increase every day –
Do you solving problems like Verbum Dei or the Religious Ed. Conference or LMU or…?
My husband is of Mexican extraction. Both his parents and his grandparents did it the legal way. There are responsible, honest folks waiting in line; filling out the paperwork; & waiting their honest turn. I commend them. We shouldn’t reward people who cut into the line & push ahead of others I don’t know why some within the clergy don’t get that.
God bless you and your family for doing it the LEGAL way. My husband’s mother and father were both from El Salvador. They came in legally in the 1960’s, learned English, held jobs, never took a dime from the taxpayer, and raised two boys who are both in law enforcement. See, People, when moral rules are followed, good results can happen…
My family on my mother’s side came here sort of legally, you see there was a massive masonic persecution going on in Mexico, so they just came across the River to what we then had called Freedom. Soon we here may be facing the same kind of persecution, where will we go? My Grandmother gave our Nation, a recipient of FOUR Distinguished Flying Crosses, a veteran of the European Theatre and teo veterans of the South Pacific theatre,not too mention he Sons in Law.
Gomez needs to read “On Blood Stained Altars”, “No God Next Door” and other such books.
When he first came here, I had high hopes, no more! We will be picketing HIS REC again next year!
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
PA you show your naivete once again
Mark, I’ll bet you’ve been told at least fifty times here by just about everyone that we’re talking about ILLEGAL immigration. What you criminal immigration enablers willfully misunderstand is these thieves are stealing from people who are waiting in line and trying to become citizens and play by the rules…rules, remember them? If people don’t obey rules in games they get thrown out or prohibited from playing…there are consequences because it’s not just selfish behavior, but sneaking, thieving and unfair to God and society. Also, they’re stealing from the American people. They’re cheats and liars. And we’re talking serious law breaking here, not just game spoilers. These criminals are going to break all the rules and the criminals in Washington DC, who have no ethics or intelligence for that matter, are going to give them all they want. Why not empty all the prisons and put the prisoners on welfare, as well. Enablers are as guilty as the people they let perpetuate their crimes. You Mark, are condoning the destruction of property, thievery and every kind of crime. You and obama are on the same side. Even the most dense passive/aggressive person gets it, eventually, usually when it’s waaaaaay too late, however. Sorry I sound uncharitable, but I am sick of all this wantoness by belligerent thugs. Look at them all carrying signs and demanding rights. They’ve no right to even be here but they have NO
shame.
Dana,
I am opposed to illegal immigration for many reasons; however not all who come here illegally are miscreants like you portray, most come here out of desperation to feed their families and themselves. They should not be given any tax payer supported benefits, and many don’t even try for them because they know that would be stealing. Those tax payer paid benefits can be laid squarely on the heads of the idiot American voters who have put the Party of Death in to power.
If you had read books like “On Blood Stained Altars” and “No God Next Door” you would know that a good deal of the poverty in Mexico is due to the Masons in America who supported the likes of Calles, Cardenas and others. So in a sense, maybe we do owe them something. I have personally witnessed the gross injustice in the Mexican economic system while visiting my quite well off relatives in Mexico.
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
That is very sweet Kenneth! I know I sound harsh and judgmental but this immigration law is going to create such a burden on people . Jesus would want us to share all we had but that isn’t my complaint. We’re condoning breaking the law. Believe me Kenneth, I am anything but a legalist,but I see this as another move in the Saul Alinski play book of bringing us to our knees. Well, as you know, we both want Jesus glorified. A burden shared is a burden halved, and by verbalizing my frustration it helps to get feedback like yours to clarify or reject thoughts . Thanks, good man!
Mr Fisher my heart opened up as I read your comments, you are right. We must not forget that some in Mexico are truly desperate to feed their families and many do suffer great injustices. Especially many men in that country vow to truly take care of their families, to the point of even risking coming here and they usually send money to their families to support them….they even have it harder here since they are living in fear due to being illegal. Their families miss them also.
I think that some of the real poor there probably forget about that they are breaking a law here but realize that they have a baby and a wife to feed. It’s much more than just illegal immigrants but also their government and the mafia who enslave them deeper. USA may just start doing that to us too because of how much this country is spending, we will not get to enjoy our retirement, we may have to work just to pay our property taxes. It’s so expensive to live in California.
I was remembering the last time I went to Mexico, I remember a little boy was trying to sell me gum, he begged me to buy some and I gave him the money instead. My cousins that are from there, told me not to give them anything because most likely they are part of some kind of organized crimes, they are victims held captives and are used to get money from people and report back. Now imagine a decent man raising his poor family, he will do what he can to make sure his kids don’t get caught up in those things.
I know we can’t save everyone., for scriptural, we do need to take care of home first before we can take care of the rest…the poor we will always have, but we must put more pressure on Mexico to improve and fight these injustices , and we must not give free handouts to illegals also….we need their government to be the one to find solutions to better their people.
I feel for them but I also feel for my family here…my husband works really hard to provide for our family (and I gave up my career to be a stay at home mum) and we struggle too but we hate it when this government wants to tax us more into desperation, just so we can pay for abortions, etc etc… We shouldn’t have to live on Credit cards either.
We are all carrying the load….maybe the struggling middle class more so than others…some people have told us that this government wants to get rid of the middle class…..it is the middle class that make this country great…that we can be better if we work hard for it without depending on others or the rich to help us but it is something we take pride for…how come we can still be charitable, help those less fortunate than us and have good credit to put our selves into debt just so we can try to help our kids also go to college….but being a struggling middle class sure helps us still keep our dignity and not depend on a terrible government but it sure is not always easy….I wonder how will we strive to be fine even when we reach our old age….we have nothing planned to save for our retirement….it’s all for our kids right now. A dollar can only go so far…
Mr Fisher I also concluded too that some immigrants may fall in the line of coveting. They want what we have to the point that they break the law. I’m patriotic yes take pride in my country but since Obama has been in office, I have been kinda losing some of that. The most current immigrants that come here, do not understand nor have true Patriotic values or respect for those historical significance….they do not defend what this country was once great for.
The older generation had immigrants who mostly held moral values and were more virtuous, many now are not that way. Why would some feel the need to burn our flags or even take them off just to replace them with Mexican flags….thy are here with most likely in support from our tares as well and they insult our country with taking down our flag! Many come with the mentality to convert this great country to socialism views!
Take a look at the Bombers….it was made known that they were using our government assistance…..yet they were so ungrateful to consider bombing innocent people. SHAME ON THEM! I know that they were Islamic Russians and perhaps they were given more benefits that some Hispanics would appreciate even more….perhaps it’s this government system that is screwing us all over.
I am definitely for improvements but politics just make it complicated to get something positive done.
Dana you are fine…you are not coming off as harsh or anything like that…you are just passionate about what you feel, at least you have backbone and I like that!
Immigration is a touchy topic, however, there is need for there to be balance. As an immiggrant myself, I find that most south american immigrants have little regard for the rule of law, almost seeing it as a right to walk in and out of the country as they please. This country needs immigration, but it needs to be orderly.
My gripe with the Archbishop has more to do with his priorities. He has pretty much focused on immigration issues while his diocese is in shambles. There is much work to be done in Los Angeles, and its go to do with re-evangelising, not immigration.
Mbûkû Kanyau Mbithûka you conveyed it well….I feel the same way….God bless you….excellent words of common sense here!
Absolutely. You have hit it on the head. The reason people come to America is because it is not only the land of opportunity, it is the land of L-A-W-S (at least before this current administration). What the Church needs to focus on is saving souls. That is where I part company. That is their first and foremost obligation.
So true, Noelle. Doesn’t it feel like we’re voices crying in the wilderness? I would say most Americans, wherever they came from feel the same way. Look how that lovely Christisn German family is being forced back to Germany even though they were granted assylum to live here and homeschool their children. Because they’re Christian Obama admin. Is restricting their rights. I don’t read anyone here mentioning them and yet these are just the sort of immigrants who have made this country great… hard work, family, honoring God and the law.
Illegal immigration is not a touchy subject. It’s a crime.
That is true Dana. Dana I didn’t know about that German family….such a sad story…thank you for letting us know.
What is your data that shows that 80% of illegals are on welfare? Please be specific. It is important that we use real data, and not myths to back up our statements. You could be right, but I would like to see the data.
NUMBERSUSA.COM., BOB. Feel free to enlighten yourself. Sounds like you need it…
Latino-Mexican are the future of the Catholic church in California…Mahony before and Gomez now will promote their causes no matter the means to obtain them…..also known as LIBERATION THEOLOGY…the end justifies the means..
Sorry Walt, but I would not hold by breath on this one – The problem is that the Church will not have any future unless we start getting leaders that open doors to everyone and stop the going after the money which is being done now – In my area most services are now in Spanish and very little in English and the priests are all Latino/Asian and have a very hard time speaking English & this is why people are leaving the Church and its only a mater of time when our Spanish brothers will leave –
walt I;m finding that many Latino Mexican’s as you mentioned are more liberal…even vote liberal….I don’t think they educate themselves well in politics to vote their faith, if they did, we would take back our country….California is very liberal….in case you didn’t notice….many Hispanics here….praise God for His gifts to me, I accepted them and actually took the steps to educate my self and try my best to vote with my faith in Christ, in mind!
Abeca, eres tan dulce y buena persona, hermana en Cristo. I lived in Mexico for awhile in the Peace Corps and I loved the warm and loving Mexican families and their beautiful faith and simplicity, kindness and generosity. How I wish their own country were not being destroyed so they could stay home and avoid our materialism and secularism. I never want you to think I’m prejudiced about the Mexican people, because I’m not. It’s just this country is so beleagured and under such stress and now this immigration bill is going to pass and then it’s all going to happen terribly fast. What a mess!
Dana it’s all good, I am actually in agreement with your views(I’m Patriotic, read my comments to Mr. Fisher)….My dad was also Arabic and an immigrant who came here legally and he and his family worked so hard for what they have, they still work hard and are very honest too.
I’m proud to be a USA citizen and I also appreciate the Christian values this country was build on….their patriotic values as well but not the current ones from Obama…I can’t stand the man, he is destroying our country and what it is suppose to stand for.
Eric, if most of the Masses are in Spanish, why would the Latinos leave? They would feel welcome and stay in the Church.
Mark, in some areas they are leaving now and going to Evangelical Churches of which their are many that cater to their needs more so than than our Church – I notice you are in the great State of PA how many Churches have been closed there in the last few years? What is the Latino impact in your state? – Nothing close to Ca I’m sure –
Eric, I think some of the Evangelicals are better at their outreach due to the fact that they have many Latino ministers. Many of them are married and their wives help with the ministry. We have a big shortage of Latino priests here. I think not allowing priests to get married greatly limits the number of Latino priests. So more Latinos are Catholic but the number of Latino ministers is many times higher than the number of Latino priests. Over the past several years our diocese has closed a lot of churches. They have consolidated parishes. Many of the towns in the Scranton/Wilkes Barre area had several Catholic parishes, many of them were ethnic parishes. One priest that I know well had 4 parishes, an Irish parish, a Polish parish, a Slovak parish and a Lithuanian parish. At one time each parish had a pastor but when the priest that I know well became pastor he had the 4 parishes which eventually consolidated into one parish. Two of the churches were sold and one was torn down so now they just have one parish church. In the same town, whose population had declined to under 10,000 there were also 2 Italian parishes, which have since consolidated into one parish but they may still use both churches. Where I live we have a vibrant Latino community and our community has one of the highest percentages of Latinos in the state. Allentown and Reading have large Latino communities. Our state has had slow population growth in recent years but the Latino population is growing at a healthy rate. Pennsylvania has always been a very diverse state and has been enriched by the various ethnic groups here.
The Future of the Church in California is not Mexicans. This is not a political party. The Future of the Church is holy people, who follow Christ.
Words, words, and more words. The truth will come out in August when the Obamanation mandate will become what some would call Law. Will Gomez stand and accept the crown of Martyrdom, or will he be another decendant of Archbishsop Woolsey and later Cranmer?
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
I guess we’ll have to assume that Franciscan University is blissfully unaware of what goes on in the Archdiocese? Or is this an endorsement?
Isn’t Franciscan University a charismatic Catholic group?
I’m Traditional and Charismatic…..Franciscan University are conservative.
Jesus was charismatic but not traditional.
Skai interesting…..there are the traditions that God handed down to us that is for sure but you are right…maybe that is why the Jews crucified our Lord. Good comments Skai….I like how you make us think…pretty neat!
It’s home to some of the mist prominent voices in Catholic culture today..DrScott Hahn, Regis Martin, Mike Aquilina and many more. Very good academically , as well as in science and the arts and an excellent all round Catholic Univ. I would just say they’re very orthodox!
Dana Amen…..you nailed it, yes they are very orthodox! Pretty neat!
Abeca, I stayed at a dorm there and they have chapels on every floor. The kids are just full of love and enthusiasm for the Church and Jesus. Speaking of Jesus, did you hear Jesse Romero tell the story of when he was working w/LA County’s jail (40,000 prisoners) in the worst section filled with murderers and rapists, and they were always complaining about the food. He was a recent re-vert and on fire for the Lord so he told them he would buy them whatever they wanted to eat…KFC, Big Macs, steak, you name it…all they had to do was say ‘Jesus is Lord”. They were really excited and wanted to do it in the worst way, but they couldn’t do it…not one! These desperate men were not able physically to say those three words. They were under the power of satan. But, I digress…heh heh
Dana how neat that you visited there. Would be nice to visit. I usually hear Jesse speak at our Annual Catholic Conference that we have here in California, we also have many of his tapes, DVD’s. He is really good! We appreciate him so much! I don’t remember if I heard him say that story…but I bet he told it with power!
This article accurately points out the problem with Abp Gomez. He does not know his job. It is NOT his job to be the voice of ILLEGAL immigrants. (That is the job of the Bishops from the Countries in which they legally reside.)
IT IS HIS job to accurately and completely teach the Catholic Faith in conformance with Holy Scripture, the CCC, the Code of Canon Law, and GIRM – to everyone in his Diocese without discrimination (in favor of ILLEGALS instead of Americans and all.)
Even Cardinals and Bishops must adhere to the “Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition”.
CCC: ‘ 888 Bishops, with priests as co-workers, have as their first task “to preach the Gospel of God to all men,” in keeping with the Lord’s command. They are “heralds of faith, who draw new disciples to Christ; they are authentic teachers” of the apostolic faith “endowed with the authority of Christ.”
If all Bishops in the USA publically and actively promoted the reading of the CCC, their feet would be held to the fire to live by Church teachings, because it would be obvious to all if they choose not to (which some of them do not).
After 3 Popes encouraging all Catholics to read the CCC, it is a sin of great arrogance (if not scandal) for some Bishops to ignore them.
.
While Gomez takes it upon himself to be the voice of ILLEGAL immigrants, he is not doing his required job as Archbishop (boss) of Catholics in Los Angelus.
1) He does not publically and actively encourage those in his Diocese to meditate on Holy Scripture and read the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
2) He has allowed Mahony to be “in your face” to all those who have been harmed or offended by his tactical approval of child abuse by recently trying to get a public foothold in the Diocese – confirming and blogging.
3) Catholic Universities in his Diocese continue to violate Church teaching.
3) He does not adhere to Canon 915 and/or 1399 – for all the Catholic politicians and others who publically and obstinately give Scandal and commit Sacrilege within his Diocese.
4) etc.
Let’s start giving awards to Bishops who adhere to Holy Scripture, the CCC, Code of Canon Law and GIRM. Awards to Bishops who take care of their own responsibilities of accurately and completely teaching the Faith.
All this other stuff is merely for show, to fluff up the ego with the sin of Pride.
And if he is giving up his Diocese responsibility to teach ALL Catholics within his Diocese, he needs to resign.
If Abp Gomez wanted to do his best to insure that we all were properly catechized he would preach at the upcoming USCCB Conference in June
the words of POPE FRANCIS:
“In this Year of Faith let us ask ourselves if we have actually taken a few steps to get to know Christ and the truths of faith more, by reading and meditating on the Scriptures, studying the Catechism, steadily approaching the Sacraments.” – (May 15, 2013).
Dan, ever think of becoming the Archbishop of Los Angeles? You would make a FANTASTIC one…
Someone needs to teach Abp that he is not exempt from the CCC in full (as we are not).
Immigrants must OBEY the Law (this does not exclude immigration laws).
We must not discriminate in immigration just because certain nationalities will donate to local “Catholic” Churches. $
Let us not forget that most Spanish American precincts voted for OBAMA by big margins and continue to vote for members in the Party of Death which includes abortion and same-sex marriage in their National Platform.
Abp Gomez if you wish to represent ILLEGAL aliens, please transfer to their Country to minister.
If you want to represent AMERICAN Catholics and legal Catholic immigrants and legal visitors, you are most welcome. I for one am tired of being discriminated against by some Bishops within my own Country.
The CCC editions come and go, translations get revised. Bishops are exempt from faulty texts, bureaucratic renderings of true doctrines, and are subjects of God and not of printed documents. You have to ask yourself if God is with us or not. If not, then of course your authority would be something in writing.
Hey Noelle, everyone has a blind spot, and perhaps immigration is Abp. Gomez’ blindspot. I really don’t know. It seems that it would be a matter of perspective, especially when you’re Latin and living in California. For everyone pretty much knows that Latins in general have a lot of kids. And from the perspective of pro-life, that’s a GOOD thing. So I’ve often wondered if the animus against illegal Latins being here is driven by the (sometimes) Anglo notion of: ” but they have TOO MANY KIDS”. Huh? Can one family really have “too many kids?” Isn’t that the FAMILY that has the kid’s business, and no-one slse’s? It’s occurred to me more than once that MANY Anglo families were in the vanguard of the contraception mentality, both Catholic and non. Well, we all know that there are many of our fellow Catholcs that contracept “religiously.” Right? But I would say that in general among MOST Latin families I’ve observed children are seemingly treasured, just because the love of children is so immense among them. Why is this not so among so many of our Anglo brothers and sister? If I had a dime for every time I heard from these folks over the years, after they’d had their requisite boy and girl, “and that’s IT! No more!” But they’d continue on contracepting as if they’d had SIX KIDS. One of my closest friends from high school, Catholic as am I, once told me that he and his wife searched around to find a priest who’d actually kind of “BLESS” their self-induced contraceptive barreness after having ONE kid. Of course that was in the aftermath of the close of Vatican II, when that kind of thing I guess was more or less routine. It may be different now. Just saying. GOD BLESS ALL, MARKRITE
Markrite, Cardinals and Bishops are not EXEMPT from adhering to ALL the Church teachings in the “Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition”.
We must adhere to all Church, but so do they.
Everyone, learn your Faith by reading the CCC, then hold their feet to the fire. – Especially since they ignore the teachings of the last 3 Popes that we should all read the CCC.
Won’t they be surprised when we call some of them on their public infractions.
Immigrants must OBEY the law. Immigrants must respect our culture, not try to change it to Spanish (which some Bishops encourage). The USA is no longer prosperous; we are living on borrowed money.
Read CCC: 2241 2411.
The Catholic Church has no teaching on guns, like some of them have stated.
And the Catholic Church does not teach that the death penalty should NEVER be used in the USA. See CCC 2267.
Some Bishops must think we are stupid.
To become holy, a bishop has to do a whole lot more than mere adherence to the laws of the Church. That is the minimum requirement for remaining Catholic.
Does anyone remember back in the ’80’s when Amnesty was touted as the last time the country would have to solve the huge immigration problem?
Isn’t this really Amnesty II (despite to political rhetoric)?
Yes, the Federal Law that was adopted into law can be found on the internet.
It is called “IMMIGRATION and CONTROL ACT of 1986”.
In brief the 1986 act :
– required employers to attest to their employees’ immigration status;
– made it illegal to knowingly hire or recruit unauthorized immigrants;
– legalized certain seasonal agricultural illegal immigrants;
– legalized illegal immigrants who entered the United States before January 1, 1982 and had resided there continuously with the penalty of a fine, back taxes due, and admission of guilt.
About three million illegal immigrants were granted legal status.
Yes, and we all know how that worked out. Now, we are doomed if we don’t stop this Shamnisity and stop it quick…
Ladies and Gentlemen, often you may have seen people encourage everyone to read the “Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition” to KNOW our Faith.
Popes John Paul II, Benedict and now Pope Francis have encouraged us to read the CCC to KNOW our Faith.
Many Bishops in the USA do NOT encourage us (a literate Country) to read the CCC. It contains those teachings that we are required to adhere to, not personal opinions.
I find it offensive when the USCCB, or State Bishops Committees, or individual Bishops pawn off their personal political opinions as part of the “Catholic” faith rather than speak the truth.
Therefore to KNOW the truth, you must have a copy of the CCC as a reference.
– – –
These are recent FALSE statements publically coming out of the USCCB, Bishop’s California Catholic Conference, and from some individual Bishops –
1) That there should be gun control.
The CCC is mute on gun control but does discuss killing for legitimate self defense. CCC 2264.
2) That the death penalty in the USA is always wrong.
The CCC clearly allows the death penalty with restrictions. CCC 2267.
3) Approval of ILLEGAL immigration, by preaching amnesty and not protecting our borders from continued illegal immigration.
This is false also see CCC 2241.
Every human being has the right to his person opinions, but not even Bishops have the right to pass off their personal opinions as requirements of the Catholic Faith.
When their opinions are not 100% in conformance with the CCC, they should not use their Religious Title or the Catholic Faith to prop up their personal political beliefs, and write letters to our Politicians using “Catholic” faith letterhead.
I want to publically support our Bishops. But there are times when their abuses of the truth must be made public.
In addition, they have no business being publically involved in the prudential judgment of the Laity.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
If you don’t own a ‘CCC 2nd Ed’ please get one – for the truth of what Catholics are required to believe.
(In the USA CCC’s are dark green and include these words on the cover: “revised in accordance with the official Latin text promulgated by Pope John Paul II”.
The TRUTH is very important. Read your CCC. Give copies of the CCC as gifts to those you care about.
Anne, that was a really brilliant post. Thank you and keep contributing here. Too often I just rant. We need people able to use the CCC and be specific , like you & Catherine, Abeca, Father Karl and others.
Dana I am so humbled by your compliments….You are very sweet. God bless you!
…nah you don’t often rant…don’t be hard on yourself. We can’t always be too serious, there has to be a balance and you help set that balance….your good sense of humor and more…..God bless you!
Awww. Ta ever so, Abeca. lol. I confess I like to laugh and it’s tough sometimes, isn’t it? And not rolling my eyes is another goal I’m trying to achieve…my sister swears there’s a verse in the Bible (probably proverbs) about the sin of rolling one’s eyes…probably a warning to wives to honor their husbands, but sometimes it seems better to roll one’s eyes than say something, don’t you think?…one of those really fine lines we balance when we hear …’stop buying more junk!’ What’s this for? A WHAT???? and our halos start shining as we just smile back without rolling our eyes or saying something sarcastic back.
LOL
Because our bishops choose to play liberal (and Communist leaning) political games, rather than preserve and defend what Jesus teaches through His Church, I choose to not give our bishops any money.
This is easier said than done. The Diocese Bishop takes money (required) from each Parish to support his Diocese offices and activities.
The Diocese Bishop then also pays an assessment to the State Conference of Bishops to pay for their offices and activities, and also to the USCCB to pay for their 300+ employees, offices and activities.
How can we support our own Parish without our money through forced assessments going to Bishops who do not completely adhere to the CCC ?
Archbishop Gomez received an honorary doctorate from Franciscan “for his fidelity to the Catholic Church, for being the voice of Hispanic Catholics in the United States, and for bringing the Gospel of Christ to people everywhere.”
It was inevitable given the culture of open borders in the Church. Catholic colleges now giving honors to anti-American immi-vasion leaders and calling them model Catholics. He sure ain’t a model citizen.
We are only making restitution for the theft of half of Mexico in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo concluding the Mexican War of 1846 to 1848.
And then there is the precedent of the medieval serf who if he escaped to a free town and remained unapprehended for a year and a day became legally a free man.
Ummm, according to the state history I learned here in Texas in the seventh grade, Native North Americans were the inhabitants of the U.S. Southwest, not Aztecs. For example, we drew and labelled maps with the names of the Texas tribes and the regions of the state they inhabited. Mexico only began to count stuff north of Central America as part of theirs because Spain claimed it as part of New Spain. When Mexico became independent from Spain, “Aztlan” — land of La Raza — continued the Spanish claims, not based on true history or indigenous occupation.
A leader of an archdiocese is not supposed to be the voice of Hispanic Catholics; his duty is to be the voice of every Catholic under his jurisdiction! More importantly, he should be most concerned about those immigrants of nature who are still voiceless but growing and developing in the womb of his or her mother. The highest priority of immigrants belongs to preborn immigrants growing in the womb. One would think that the archbishop of the largest diocese in the nation should be most concerned about the greatest problem in his archdiocese, abortion on demand! Unfortunately, the preborn immigrant has been denied his or her right to life by an incoherent Supreme Court and is in constant danger of being killed during his or growth toward birth. What makes the slaughter of our preborn children so diabolical is that God gave the person in utero a soul at the moment of his or her existence and God assigned each of them a guardian angel! Yet, about 25 percent of the immigrants of human reproduction will not make it out of the womb alive; they are killed as they grow toward birth! That has to be the number one immigrantion concern for all bishops! Charles N. Marrelli, Writers for Life
No awards should be given to any Bishop who deviates in any way from the “Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition” .
Know your Faith. Know when you are being told the TRUTH of our Faith.
Very unfortunately, it is difficult to trust some of our own Bishops in the USA due to some of their own public actions and statements filled with partial error.
(Recent errors have been propagated by some Bishops regarding: immigration, gun control, and the death penalty. They have stated that things are Catholic teachings which are not. Those who have not read the CCC will not know the truth.)
“ In this Year of Faith let us ask ourselves if we have actually taken a few steps to get to know Christ and the truths of faith more, by reading and meditating on the Scriptures, studying the Catechism, steadily approaching the Sacraments. ” – POPE FRANCIS 5/13/2013
Give gifts of copies of the CCC to those you love.
Reading the latest Tidings chilled my heart. Archbishop Gomez takes the view that the flood of Illegal Aliens was caused by the government not enforcing immigration laws because cheap labor was needed. This turns the argument on its head. There is no free will and breaking the law does not matter to the Church.
The Tidings also had an article on how the LCWR commie sisters were poorly treated by the previous Vatican administration. Liberals rule LA.
You cannot have affordable food, nice homes, or fast food and also have unions and low wage workers. Union stubborness sent much of our industry to other nations. Now we’ve got steel fitters selling used cars, factory workers on welfare, and middle aged people flocking to colleges for the govt financial aid as it is the only way they can pay their bills. You also cannot have good government when all of them are lawyers.
That’s my song you’re singing skai! America has about 90% of all the lawyers in the world. I think we have about 7 lawyers for every man, woman and child, and a half lawyer for each pet, and 1/10 lawyers for roadkill and various and sundry inanimate objects that may bring remuneration if really ambitious lawyers find an angle. At the rate they’re reproducing and taking over politics, teaching and even tv commentators,etc. in the year 2050 EVERYONE will be a lawyer and the only way they will be able to get basic necessities or maintainance work done will be to sue one another. There should be a new reality show called Dante’s Inferno: the fourth circle of hell, where lawyers compete for the title of greediest bastard. The ACLU can’t take part as they’re considered too conniving and duplitious for regular attorneys and are considered unfair competition. They’ll have their own reality show, “Watch the ACLU stick it to the American people and undermine democracy, family and the American Way!” Parental guidance, recommended, rated R.
Archbishop Gomez is slowly and inexorably shaping up this archdiocese, and getting it into spiritual trim…he has been cleaning up the refuse that was stinking up the seminary in Camarillo, by cleaning out the lavender lad’s…this takes some time senor…The Archbishop will leave a wonderful legacy…unlike his predecessor