Diocesan Announcements and State Policy Updates
As the situation with COVID-19 remains fluid, it’s challenging to keep up with the latest updates. The California Catholic Conference is now posting the latest policy updates each day as well as updates on announcements by arch/diocese in California.
Each policy update includes the latest information from Governor Newsom’s daily press briefings on the state’s response to COVID-19. It also includes information from the federal level affecting California residents.
The CCC is also posting a timeline of events, updates and other information by arch/diocese. These include pastoral messages, live streaming liturgies, information on Catholic cemeteries, and more.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for ongoing updates such as announcements from the Vatican and USCCB.
Online Giving for Parishes, Dioceses and Social Services
Even in the midst of today’s turmoil and uncertainty, the Church and other charities still need our financial support.
Dioceses and parishes are meeting the challenge by scaling up assistance programs for emergency food delivery, organizing volunteers to reach out to shut-ins and developing new ways of evangelizing in the digital age.
We all play a role in making sure our Church ministries continue during and after the coronavirus threat ends.
In “normal” times, the Sunday envelop is part of our Catholic culture and handing a nearby little one something to put in the collection basket is not only fun but teaches young ones the importance of caring for others.
Providence St. Joseph COVID-19 Resource Page
Providence St. Joseph, a national, Catholic, health system, has published a comprehensive COVID-19 resource page.
The site is a hub for resources including information to stay informed, a virtual COVID-19 assessment tool, updates by region, and a blog.
Visit the Resource Page now.
Catholics Gear Up for Emergency Needs
For California’s approximately 5 million food-insecure families, the continuation of food assistance programs during the COVID-19 crisis is vital.
In partnership with the Diocese of San Diego, Catholic Charities has created the Emergency Food Distribution Network to distribute food to those in need as a safe, effective, and reliable manner that complies with COVID-19 social distancing requirements. Through drive-thru food pantries and digital choice home-delivered food package pick-ups from distribution sites each week. Click here for more information on San Diego area locations.
In Los Angeles, the Office of Life, Justice and Peace of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, in partnership with St. Vincent de Paul Society and the Knights of Columbus have launched Hearts to Serve, a hotline in support to all of those in need, especially the elderly, homebound, and pregnant women.
Check with your local diocese for information on emergency programs in your area.
U.S. Bishops’ Pro-Life Activities Chairman on 25th Anniversary of The Gospel of Life
Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City in Kansas and chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities issued an announcement this week on the 25th anniversary of The Gospel of Life (Evangelium vitae).
“As we celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord on March 25, we also mark the 25th anniversary of Pope St. John Paul II’s prophetic encyclical, The Gospel of Life (Evangelium vitae),” Archbishop Naumann said in the announcement. “Here, this saint provides a clear challenge to us: “With great openness and courage, we need to question how widespread is the culture of life today among individual Christians, families, groups and communities in our Dioceses. With equal clarity and determination, we must identify the steps we are called to take in order to serve life in all its truth (EV 95).”
Read more at USCCB.org.
Colorado Ends Death Penalty
Colorado became the 22nd U.S. state to abolish capital punishment this week. The three individuals currently on death row in the state will now have their sentences commuted to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Colorado is also the third state in as many years to abolish capital punishment, as well as the third to stamp out the practice since the August 2018 revision to the Catholic Catechism which declared the death penalty “inadmissible” in all cases. All told, two-thirds of all states have either formally abolished capital punishment or otherwise have not carried out an execution in more than a decade.
March 27, 2020
Vol. 13, No. 11