Chapter 11 Court Required Notification

Prison and Jail Ministry

Hope for the Incarcerated

More than 25,000 men and women are incarcerated in 24 jails, prisons, and detention facilities located in the two counties that comprise the Diocese of San Diego.

The majority of the incarcerated population in San Diego and Imperial counties identify as Catholic. The diocese provides pastoral care, offers Liturgy and Sacraments, Bible studies, and other religious programming to the incarcerated population. A cadre of trained prison and jail chaplains, as well as scores of volunteers, are a part of our dynamic prison and jail ministry program.

A long corridor in a prison with rows of empty metal cell doors on the right and a high ceiling. The scene is dimly lit, casting shadows across the floor.
A person holds onto bars against a bright background, with a bird in flight outside.

Ministry and care for the prisoner is one of the seven Corporal Works of Mercy and central to putting our Catholic faith in action. Our ministry is guided by Jesus’ own words:

“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you made me welcome, lacking clothes and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.” Then the upright will say to him in reply, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and make you welcome, lacking clothes and clothe you? When did we find you sick or in prison and go to see you? And the King will answer, “In truth I tell you, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:35-40).

Prayer to Christ, The Prisoner

A crown made of intertwined thorns is displayed against a dark background, casting a shadow on a textured surface.

Lord, because You wanted to save the world, You decided for the following things to happen:

  • YOU BECAME A MAN
  • You were born a human
  • You were rejected by your neighbors
  • You were betrayed by a close friend, a traitor
  • You were cuffed and shackled, and led stumbling to court
  • You were forced to stand in front of judges with no attorney to help you
  • You were accused by lying, paid witnesses
  • You were tortured with beatings, insults, and whippings
  • You had men spit in your face
  • You had sharp thorns shoved into your scalp
  • You were punched in the face, and sticks beat your body and head
  • You were not allowed medical treatment
  • You were blindfolded, had all of your clothes stripped off your body, and forced to carry the cross, the thing you were to be killed with, almost half a mile
  • You were nailed, through your hands and feet, to a heavy piece of wood
  • You hung on the cross, between two criminals, in front of the whole city, and your family, and your friends,
  • You were offered bitter wine to drink, had a spear shoved into your side and left to die, with no appeal.

LORD, you willingly allowed these things to happen, to save the world and to save me. When I think of these things that happened to you, your sufferings, I ask that you bring me to the same paradise that you brought the penitent thief who was killed with you. All he asked of you was to be forgiven. This I ask also you!
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen.

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Catholic Diocese of San Diego

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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