• • CA Bishops Denounce Violence Against Asian American Pacific Islanders
• • Responses to Conviction of Derek Chauvin in George Floyd Death
• • USCCB Denounces Reversal of Limits on Human Fetal Tissue Research
• • State Senate Releases Budget Proposal
• • Vaccinate and Pray in May
• • In The News

Videos of unprovoked assaults on elder Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI), arson at a Chinese church and, literally, thousands of racist and violent incidents against Asian women in only the past year are a horrible and shameful scar upon our society.  The California Catholic Conference of Bishops call for an end to violence and discrimination as we stand in solidarity with our AAPI brothers and sisters as well as all victims of racial prejudice.  May God protect them, console them and keep them safe.

Many Bishops have already issued statements (read all statements here).  We unite with them as we amplify their statements calling for peace, reconciliation and conversion of heart those of us who fail to recognize the dignity and worth of every human being: 

Archbishop José Gomez, Los Angeles: "We pray for a new spirit of fraternity in our society, that we may all come to see one another as brothers and sisters. We are all children of God, who loves us and created each of us in his own image to live in equality and with dignity as one family of God."

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A Minneapolis jury convicted former police officer Derek Chauvin this week of the murder of George Floyd. The jury in the closely watched trial took 10 hours over two days to convict Chauvin of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. He will be sentenced in eight weeks. 

Responses to the announcement have raised attention to the history and impact of racism in the country. According to a statement released by the Minnesota Catholic Conference before the verdict announcement, "To heal the wound of racism, we must open our hearts to allow God's amazing grace to be the light that fills us and the light that we share with our neighbors. As a diverse community, the Catholic Church is committed to changing hearts and minds and to moving the conversation."

The USCCB released a statement saying, "[Today], a jury found Derek Chauvin guilty of the murder of George Floyd. As we receive this result, we recall that God is the source of all justice, love, and mercy. The death of George Floyd highlighted and amplified the deep need to see the sacredness in all people, but especially those who have been historically oppressed. Whatever the stage of human life, it not only matters, it is sacred."

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The National Institutes of Health announced last Friday that it is reversing limits on human fetal tissue research put in place by the Trump Administration. Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City in Kansas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities, issued the following statement in response: 

"The bodies of children killed by abortion deserve the same respect as that of any other person. Our government has no right to treat innocent abortion victims as a commodity that can be scavenged for body parts to be used in research. It is unethical to promote and subsidize research that can lead to legitimizing the violence of abortion. Researchers have demonstrated that we can do effective scientific research and develop efficacious clinical treatments without harvesting tissue from aborted babies. It is also deeply offensive to millions of Americans for our tax dollars to be used for research that collaborates with an industry built on the taking of innocent lives. I call on the Biden Administration to instead fund research that does not rely upon body parts taken from innocent children killed through abortion."

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The California Catholic Conference (CCC) is actively meeting with legislators and staff and tracking legislation as bills are moving around the Capitol. The CCC is also reviewing the State Senate's new "Build Back Boldly" budget proposal, outlining eight areas for "transformative change" in California. The proposals include:

·         Help small business and non-profits bounce back 

·         Create a path to universal 0-3 child care and education

·         Make debt-free college a reality

·         Address homelessness, housing affordability, and homeownership

·         Expand access and affordability of health care 

·         Invest in wildfire prevention and resilience

·         Mitigate the impacts of drought 

·         Improve state systems 

 The budget also includes key subcommittee packages to address K-12 and higher education, public libraries, greenhouse gas and pollution reduction, safety net and aging and public health, equitable recovery, workforce investments, access to legal service resources, and justice reform. 

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All residents ages 16 and older are now eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and in addition to immunization, consider novenas, rosaries, and other devotionals to end the global pandemic. 

Pope Francis has called for a global prayer marathon for the entire month of May, praying for the end of the pandemic.

Each day in May, there will be a livestream from one of 30 chosen Marian shrines or sanctuaries to guide the prayer at 6 p.m. Rome time (9 a.m. PDT) on all Vatican media platforms.

The pope will open the monthlong prayer on May 1 and conclude it May 31, the council said.

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Pope Francis Appoints San Diego's Bishop McElroy to Vatican Board Promoting Human Development

Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego to the board of the Vatican's Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

Making Religious History

In a historic move, six sisters from the contemplative branch of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity soon will live in and serve the Diocese of Orange. 

Their arrival meets one of the key goals of Bishop Kevin Vann's Strategic Plan calling for identifying and inviting "a religious community, with a charism of intercessory prayer, to make their home in the Diocese of Orange in support of evangelization efforts, the pastoral life of the diocese, and vocations." 

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April 23, 2021
Vol. 14 No. 15

California Catholic Conference

 En Español


 

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