California bishop suspends Mass obligation due to immigration fears

San Bernardino Bishop Alberto Rojas, who leads more than 1.5 million Catholics in Southern California, has formally excused parishioners from their weekly obligation to attend Mass following immigration detentions on two parish properties in the diocese.

The dispensation is a move usually reserved for extenuating circumstances, like the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. But Rojas says it is necessary because of the fear of being apprehended and possibly deported that has gripped communities, including Catholic churches.

“There is a real fear gripping many in our parish communities that if they venture out into any kind of public setting they will be arrested by immigration officers,” said Rojas, in a statement Wednesday.

“Sadly, that includes attending Mass. The recent apprehension of individuals at two of our Catholic parishes has only intensified that fear. I want our immigrant communities to know that their Church stands with them and walks with them through this trying time.”

Save for a serious reason, Catholics are obligated by their faith to attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation. In May, the Diocese of Nashville in Tennessee issued a similar statement following immigration enforcement actions in the area, excusing those who were fearful of attending Mass from their holy obligation, though it was not named as a formal dispensation.

Rojas is an immigrant himself. He was born and raised in Aguascalientes, Mexico. He has been consistent in his support of immigrants and said when he assumed this role that it would be one of his top priorities.

Last month, as federal agents made arrests and the federal government deployed the National Guard to maintain order amid protests in Los Angeles, Rojas issued a statement calling out federal agents entering parish properties and “seizing several people,” creating an environment of fear, confusion and anxiety.

“It is not of the Gospel of Jesus Christ — which guides us in all that we do,” he said. “I ask all political leaders and decision-makers to please reconsider 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.”

The diocese, which was created in 1978, serves over 1.5 million Catholics in Riverside County, which is 52.5% Latino and San Bernardino County, which is 56.4% Latino, according to the 2020 U.S. Census.

Members of local parishes who are in the U.S. without documents have made positive contributions to their communities “with no other issues than their legal status,” the bishop said.

“Most of them are here because they wanted to save their families; they had no other option. I believe that they would love to be legalized, but who can help them?”

Rojas said he knows these people would be in church but for the threat to their safety and their family unity.

“With all the worry and anxiety that they are feeling I wanted to take away, for a time, the burden they may be feeling from not being able to fulfill this commitment to which our Catholic faithful are called,” Rojas said.

Pastor Omar Coronado with Inland Congregations United for Change, a faith-based nonprofit serving Riverside and San Bernardino counties, called the bishop’s decree “an extraordinary act of moral courage and pastoral care.”

At a time when so many families are living in fear and uncertainty, the Bishop’s voice offers not just protection but hope,” he said in a statement. “We’re deeply grateful for his leadership in reminding us that faith is not meant to hide behind walls, but to stand with the vulnerable.”

The Diocese of San Bernardino is the nation’s fifth-largest Catholic diocese and second-largest in California next to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which is the largest in the country with about 5 million members. Neither the Los Angeles Archdiocese nor the neighboring Diocese of Orange, which serves about 1.3 million Catholics, has issued similar dispensations.

A spokesperson for the Diocese of Orange said they have in recent weeks taken steps to support the immigrant community, including asking priests to bring Communion and celebrate Mass in the homes of those who are fearful of leaving their homes. The diocese has also shared protocols with parishes and Catholic schools to help them prepare and respond properly to the presence of immigration officials on church or school grounds, he said. In addition, the diocese is also coordinating efforts to have priests and deacons accompany and spiritually support people at immigration court hearings.

Parishes under the Archdiocese of Los Angeles are also continuing to “provide outreach to families and individuals that have been impacted,” a spokesperson for the archdiocese said.

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