Chapter 11

Suppression Notice

Immigration

Aerial view of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego Pastoral Center. It is located at 3888 Paducah Drive, San Diego, CA, 92117.

Bishop's Statement

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Call to Respect

The Catholic Church teaches that every migrant — whether a legal immigrant, a refugee, an asylum‑seeker, or an undocumented person — must be received with respect for his or her intrinsic dignity, protected from exploitation, helped to integrate into society, and kept together with family whenever possible. This teaching comes from Scripture, the Catechism, and from magisterial documents issued by popes and by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Prayer

Serving the Most Vulnerable

Court​ Accompaniment

Clergy members and people of faith are invited to accompany their brothers and sisters to their immigration hearings, through the Faithful Accompaniment in Trust & Hope (FAITH) ministry. You can volunteer or request accompaniment online.

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Emergency Plan for Migrants

Catholic Charities is offering bilingual information to help prepare individuals and families for potential immigration enforcement action.

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Matthew 25 Campaign

With Catholic Charities, parishes are collecting donations to provide funds to immigrants to help meet basic needs after a detention or deportation.

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Emergency Food Distribution

Detainee Locator System

Catholic Charities Immigrant Services

“In a world darkened by war and injustice, even when all seems lost, migrants and refugees stand as messengers of hope.”

– Pope Leo XIV for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees

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In the News

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Upcoming Events

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Church Teaching & Report

Catholic Teaching and Immigration

The Catholic Church in the United States is an immigrant Church with a long history of embracing diverse newcomers and providing assistance and pastoral care to immigrants, migrants, refugees, and people on the move.  Our Church has responded to Christ’s call for us to “welcome the stranger among us,” for in this encounter with the immigrant, the migrant, and the refugee in our midst, we encounter Christ.

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The potential impact of deportations on Christian families

This report addresses the profound impact that mass deportations could have on Christian families and congregations across the United States if carried out in the way some policymakers have proposed. It was jointly issued by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Department of Migration and Refugee Services, the National Association of Evangelicals, World Relief, and the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

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How We Serve Immigrants

At the Diocese of San Diego, our pastoral offices provide a range of services to immigrants, from faith formation to workshops to conferences and more. The offices provide information and support in Spanish and Vietnamese, as well as in English. And through the Office for Ethnic and Intercultural Communities, the diocese assists and celebrates faith communities with roots in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America.

 

Catholic Charities Diocese of San Diego has taken a leadership role in recent years humanely receiving migrants legally in the country who are seeking asylum. The agency meets their most basic needs and assists them to reach their destination elsewhere in the country to await their day in court. The agency also assists refugees and immigrants who live in the region to establish themselves and to lead fruitful lives.

Resources

REGIONAL

Catholic Charities
REGIONAL

San Diego Organizing Project
STATE

California Catholic Conference
National

USCCB Committee on Migration
Law and Justice

Justice for Immigrants
Law and Justice

Catholic Campaign for Immigration Reform

Contact Information

Staff

Send Us A Message

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 combines the Diocese of San Diego’s coat of arms on the left side, and his on the right. On his, a red boat on a blue ocean sits on 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 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, 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 communities.

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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