A bishop in California has issued disgusting letters bemoaning arrests of lawbreaking foreigners and encouraging anyone afraid of “immigration enforcement actions” to skip Sunday Mass.
Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino bashed Trump’s decision to send the National Guard to address the extremely violent L.A. riots and bewailed arrests of illegals at workplaces and homes, which is in accord with the law, since illegals can be arrested at any time and anywhere for deportation without warrant because they are not allowed to be in the country. What is possibly not in accord with the law is Rojas’s bid to shield illegals from federal authorities.
In a separate letter, Rojas told parishioners not to attend Mass if they think immigration officers might be around. Since the diocese also offers “Immigration Resources,” I suspect it was one of the dioceses that was receiving federal funding to settle illegal aliens, which might be why the bishop is so opposed to Trump‘s policies.
Before I dive into Rojas’s nonsense, I would like to state that not all Catholic clerics are anti-ICE. In my diocese, for instance, a local pastor is praising ICE for raiding a California marijuana farm and rescuing underage workers. Bishop Strickland has also defended immigration enforcement. But Rojas is of a different stamp.
Related: Homan Says ICE Found 10K Missing Kids
In his first letter, Rojas tried to claim that federal officers arresting illegals are not giving the illegals due process, which is false:
We have seen a change and an increase in immigration enforcement in our region and specifically in our diocese. Authorities are now seizing brothers and sisters indiscriminately, without respect for their right to due process and their dignity as children of God. I say once again to our immigrant communities who are bearing the trauma and injustice of these tactics that your Church walks with you and supports you. We join you in carrying this very difficult cross.
While we surely respect and appreciate the right of law enforcement to keep our communities safe from violent criminals, we are now seeing agents detain people as they leave their homes, in their places of work and other randomly chosen public settings. We have experienced at least one case of ICE agents entering a parish property and seizing several people. It should be no surprise that this is creating a tremendous amount of fear, confusion and anxiety for many. It is not of the Gospel of Jesus Christ – which guides us in all that we do.
I ask all political leaders and decision-makers to please reconsider and cease these tactics immediately, in favor of an approach that respects human rights and human dignity and builds toward a more lasting, comprehensive reform of our immigration system.
All of which translates to: He’s a leftist ideologue deprived of the chance at federal taxpayer cash for resettling illegals.
Rojas, in conjunction with Monsignor Gerard Lopez, wrote in the second letter, “In light of the pastoral needs of our diocese and the concerns expressed by many of our brothers and sisters regarding fears of attending Mass due to potential immigration enforcement actions by civil authorities, I, as your shepherd, issue this decree… All members of the faithful in the Diocese of San Bernardino who, due to genuine fear of immigration enforcement actions, are unable to attend Sunday Mass or Masses on holy days of obligation are dispensed from this obligation, as provided for in Canon 1247, until such time as this decree is revoked or amended.”
Canon 1247, which is part of Catholic Canon Law, just says you’re required to go to Mass on Sundays and holy days and abstain from servile work if possible. It has nothing to do with being given Sunday exemptions because you or your friends are criminals.
Besides the obvious moral issue of protecting criminals (and protecting illegal aliens also happens to be a federal crime), the bishop is also arguably committing a sin with the Sunday exemption and is certainly encouraging others to sin. Let me explain what I mean. Catholics are required under pain of sin, except in exceptional circumstances such as severe illness, to attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation (major feasts like Christmas, Jesus’s Ascension, and Mary’s Assumption). This is not only rooted in ancient tradition but in the Bible, of course. “Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day,” Exodus 20:8, and “Observe the day of the sabbath, to sanctify it, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee,” Deuteronomy 5:12, is the third of the ten commandments.
Jesus Christ told His followers, “For where there are two or three gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them (Matthew 18:20).” But He also commanded the consecration of bread and wine by priests to transform them by His power into His body and blood: “Do this for a commemoration of me (Luke 22:19).” And again: “Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you (John 6:54).”
Hence, unless one has a grave excuse, such as being seriously ill or physically unable to reach a church because of distance, Catholics must go to Mass on the sabbath. Praying at home is not equal to or a replacement for the Mass and Eucharist. And if a person misses Mass without good reason, or a cleric gives a dispensation without good reason, that is sinful.
Hence, Bishop Rojas is insulting and challenging the laws of both men and God with his shameful letters. No matter what angle from which one considers his propaganda, material or spiritual, it is stupid, dangerous, and unjust.
