El Obispo de San Diego Robert McElroy Emite Comunicado Sobre el Fallecimiento del Padre Joe Carroll

SAN DIEGO (11 de julio 2021) – A continuación, les compartimos una declaración publicada el día de hoy por parte del Obispo Robert W. McElroy, quien encabeza de la Diócesis de San Diego, sobre el fallecimiento del Padre Joe Carroll, fundador de la organización sin fines de lucro Father Joe’s Villages, e incansable defensor de los pobres y las personas sin hogar de San Diego:

“El Padre Joe Carroll fue un sacerdote que dio vida al mensaje de Cristo de compasión y misericordia en un mundo en el que la mayoría seguido miramos hacia otro lado en lugar de abrazar a los que más sufren entre nosotros. Dada la tarea de rejuvenecer nuestro alcance diocesano a las personas sin hogar desde hace cuatro décadas, el Padre Joe completamente reinventó dicha labor y creó para San Diego una increíble red de programas que irradia una profunda e implacable humanidad y esperanza para quienes no tienen refugio.

“La red de viviendas de Father Joe’s Villages es testimonio de su labor de vida. Pero un testimonio aun mayor es el hecho de que el Padre Joe nos enseñó a muchos de nosotros en San Diego a verdaderamente ver a las personas sin hogar como nuestros vecinos, con igualdad de dignidad y como hijos de un mismo Dios. En este profundo ministerio pastoral, el Padre Joe Carroll se distingue en nuestra región y nación”.

Sobre la Diócesis Católica de San Diego

La Diócesis Católica Romana de San Diego (www.sdcatholic.org) corre a lo largo de la frontera de California con México y sirve a más de 1.3 millones de Católicos en los Condados de San Diego e Imperial. Incluye 98 parroquias, 49 primarias y secundarias, y, a través de Caridades Católicas de la Diócesis de San Diego (www.ccdsd.org), varias organizaciones de servicio social y apoyo familiar a lo largo de la región. También incluye cinco sitios históricos, el más conocido de ellos es la Misión Basílica San Diego de Alcalá, la primera misión establecida en California por San Junípero Serra en 1769.

About the Coat of Arms

Bishop Pulido’s coat of arms is divided into four quarters with wavy horizontal lines from top to bottom. The blue and white lines represent the Blessed Virgin Mary. They also suggest water, which alludes to Jesus washing the feet of His disciples and to the waters of baptism. The red and gold lines represent the Holy Spirit and fire. The colors also can be seen as referring to the Blood that (along with water) poured from Jesus’ side at His crucifixion, as well as to the bread (gold) and wine (red) transformed into the Eucharist. At the center is a roundel featuring a symbolic representation of the “mandatum” (washing of the feet), which he believes exemplifies service to all humanity. The roundel’s outer edge is a line composed of small humps; it is borrowed from the coat of arms of the Diocese of Yakima, where Bishop Pulido served as a priest before being named a bishop.

About the Coat of Arms

Bishop Pham’s coat of arms depicts a red boat on a blue ocean, which is crisscrossed by diagonal lines suggesting a fisherman’s net. This symbolizes his ministry as a “fisher of men,” as well as how his own father had been a fisherman. The boat is also a symbol of the Church, which is often referred to as the “barque of Peter.” At the center of the sail is a red beehive (a symbol of the bishop’s baptismal patron saint, St. John Chrysostom, who was known as a “honey-tongued” preacher). The beehive is surrounded by two green palm branches (an ancient symbol of martyrdom; the bishop’s ancestors were among Vietnam’s first martyrs). The eight red tongues of fire around the boat are a symbol of the Holy Spirit and a representation of the diversity of ethnic and cultural communities. The red of the boat, the beehive and the tongues of fire allude to the blood of the martyrs.

About the Coat of Arms

The coat of arms combines symbols that reflect Bishop Bejarano’s spiritual life and priestly ministry. The main part of the shield shows four wavy vertical lines on a gold background. These represent flowing waters. This alludes to his chosen motto and also symbolizes the graces that come from the Divine life to quench our thirst for God. The upper third of the shield is red because it is borrowed from the coat of arms of the Order of Mercy, of which the Bishop’s patron saint, Raymond Nonnatus, was a member. The central symbol resembles a monstrance because St. Raymond is often depicted holding one. The Eucharist is Bishop Bejarano’s inspiration for his vocation. It was through the Eucharist that he received his call to the priesthood at age seven and which keeps his faith and his ministry going. It represents the call to offer oneself as a living sacrifice. The monstrance is flanked on either side by an image of the Sacred Heart, alluding to the mercy of God and echoing the idea of a sacrificial offering of oneself united to the sacrifice of Christ, and of a rose for Our Lady. It is an allusion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, and highlights the bishop’s Hispanic heritage.

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