Catholic Advocacy Day Backgrounders Now Available
Catholic Advocacy Day is quickly approaching, and background information is now available for the six bills that are the focus of this year’s event on April 24. Delegates from various dioceses throughout California will meet with their elected officials to be a voice for life and dignity in the state Capitol.
This year’s participants will be focusing their efforts on the following six bills, along with local issues of their choosing:
- SB 320 (Leyva, D-Chino) On-campus health centers: abortion medication (OPPOSE)
- SB 1214 (Portantino, D-La Canada Flintridge) Teacher Professional Development (SUPPORT)
- SB 1391 (Lara, D-Bell Gardens) Juveniles: fitness for juvenile court (SUPPORT)
- AB 1862 (Santiago, D-Los Angeles) Immigration Services: grants (SUPPORT)
- AB 2269 (Lackey, R-Palmdale) CalWORKs: eligibility (SUPPORT)
- SB 2701 (Rubio, D-Baldwin Park) Victims of Violent Crimes: trauma recovery centers (SUPPORT)
Click the links above to learn more about each bill or visit www.cacatholic.org for the latest on these and all other bills the CCC is tracking.
Bishops Seek Prayers for National Crime Victims’ Week
Catholic dioceses in California are offering special prayers and Masses in observation of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, an annual event established in 1981 to draw attention to the people and families whose lives have been affected by violent crime. In recognition of those impacted by crime, the Restorative Justice Committee of the California Catholic Conference has issued the following statement. (Members of the Committee are the Most Rev. Richard Garcia, Bishop of Monterey, the Most Rev. Armando Ochoa, Bishop of Fresno, Most Reverend David O’Connell, Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles, and the Most Reverend Myron Cotta, Bishop of Stockton):
No one can learn to hope on their own, because Christian hope needs to be “embodied” in a community of mutual support and loving concern. – Pope Francis
Local church communities are encouraged to walk compassionately and accompany people harmed and those who created the harm on the journey of healing and restoration.
“Many California dioceses have an Office of Restorative Justice formed to provide a safe space for all of those affected by crime and the criminal justice system’s response.
“During National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, California dioceses actively work to promote healing support for individuals and communities. Some related activities include interfaith prayer services, candlelight vigils, and Masses for the intentions of crime victims and survivors.
Church Bells Commemorate Life of MLK, Jr.
Bells tolled around the country this past Wednesday, April 4, paying homage to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy of fighting racial inequality with non-violent resistance.
Catholic churches and cathedrals throughout the country joined in the commemoration, ringing cathedral and church bells 39 times to represent the number of years that Dr. King was alive. The bells rang out at 4:05pm, the exact time that Dr. King was assassinated 50 years ago while speaking to a crowd in Memphis, TN.
In an address to Congress in 2015, Pope Francis praised Dr. King’s life’s work and encouraged the continuation of his legacy, reminding that “Building a nation calls us to recognize that we must constantly relate to others, rejecting a mindset of hostility in order to adopt one of reciprocal subsidiarity, in a constant effort to do our best.” (Find the whole address here.)
Bishops from throughout the state and country offered their own words to recall the legacy of Dr. King on the anniversary of his death.
Fr. Robert Christian Appointed New San Francisco Auxiliary Bishop
The Archdiocese of San Francisco announces last week that Pope Francis has appointed Fr. Robert Christian, O.P., as auxiliary bishop. Fr. Christian is a Friar of the Western Dominican Province and currently serves as Master of Students of the province.
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone said, “I am overjoyed to welcome Fr. Christian back to his native San Francisco. We first met while studying in Rome some forty years ago and we are now all blessed that Bishop-Elect Christian joins us to serve our priests, religious, deacons and all the people of the Archdiocese.”
Robert Francis Christian was born in San Francisco in 1948 to Robert Francis and Gloria Jean Christian. He was raised in St. Brendan Parish and attended St. Brendan and St. Vincent de Paul grammar schools. In 1966 he graduated from St. Ignatius High School and from Santa Clara University in 1970. That year he entered the Dominican Novitiate in Oakland.
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Pope Francis Appoints Msgr. Trudeau as new Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles saw Pope Francis accept the resignation of Bishop Thomas John Curry as Auxiliary Bishop for reasons of age as well as the appointment of Monsignor Marc V. Trudeau as new Auxiliary Bishop in the diocese.
A native of Los Angeles, Msgr. Trudeau was born May 20, 1957 in Hollywood, CA. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences from the University of Southern California. He also attended the University of Southern California School of Dentistry (1981-1985) before entering St. John’s Seminary in Camarillo for Philosophy and Theological studies (1986-1991). He has most recently served as rector of St. John’s Seminary since 2014. Read more on Msgr. Trudeau in the USCCB’s release.
Bishop Curry has reached the retirement age for bishops of 75 and his resignation was publicized in Washington, April 3, 2018, by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.
Bishop Curry was born January 17, 1943, in Ireland. He attended All Hallows Seminary in Dublin and graduated from University College in Dublin with a bachelor’s degree in History in 1963. In 1973, he received a master’s degree in History at Loyola Marymount, Los Angeles, and went on to receive a Ph.D. in History from Claremont Graduate School in 1983. On February 8, 1994, he was appointed as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles by Pope John Paul II and was ordained to the episcopate on March 19, 1994 for the Santa Barbara Pastoral Region. Bishop Curry was a former chair of the Committee for Catholic Education at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Read more on Bishop Curry in the USCCB’s release.
April 6, 2018
Vol. 11, No. 12