Bishop of Austin concerned about new immigration enforcement

 Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Austin Urges Compassion Amid Texas ICE Raids

The Diocese of Austin oversees Central Texas, including Waco

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - Bishop Joe S. Vásquez, fifth bishop of the Diocese of Austin, home to more than 700,000 Catholics across 25 counties in Central Texas, is speaking out in defense of the dignity of humanity, urging caution in immigration enforcement.

According to a Texas Tribune report, federal agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, conducted coordinated immigration enforcement operations on Sunday in Austin and San Antonio.

A similar operation occurred in the Rio Grande Valley.

“We understand that ICE has been instructed to focus on the deportation of individuals who pose a security risk to the United States. This includes those who are currently incarcerated or are otherwise involved in criminal activities that threaten public safety. At the same time, it is painful to see migrants, seeking refuge to raise their children in a safe environment, distressed with anxiety because of the news and information they hear,” Bishop Vásquez stated.

An ICE spokesperson described these assignments as “enhanced targeted operations” aimed at enforcing U.S. immigration law, ensuring public safety, and preventing potentially dangerous individuals from remaining in communities.

The operations occurred just days after President Trump’s second term began, accompanied by the announcement of mass deportations and several immigration-related executive orders.

These operations are part of a broader crackdown that has led to fear and uncertainty among migrant communities, especially in Texas, which is home to about 1.6 million undocumented people, according to a Pew Research Center Report.

“We call all to exercise caution so that hardworking migrant mothers and fathers are not wrongfully caught up in enforcement efforts. We must never treat people as political pawns, but rather, as human beings deserving of our compassion and care,” Bishop Vásquez said.

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Cardinal DiNardo resigns; Pope appoints new leader for Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

 

Pope Francis Appoints Bishop Joe Vásquez to Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

The Austin shepherd will succeed Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, who submitted his resignation to the Holy Father in May.

Bishop Joe Vasquez of the Diocese of Austin (l) celebrates Mass in the Mountain View Unit prison in Gatesville, Texas, which houses the state's female death row, on Dec. 1, 2023. At right is Deacon Ronnie Lastovica. (photo: Courtesy / Catholic Prison Ministries Coalition/TDCJ Communications)

Hannah Brockhaus/CNANationJanuary 20, 2025

In an important move for the Catholic Church in Texas on Monday, Pope Francis named Austin Bishop Joe Vásquez to replace 75-year-old Cardinal Daniel DiNardo as head of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.

Cardinal DiNardo, who was made a cardinal in 2007 and who led the U.S. bishops’ conference as president from 2016-2019, turned 75 — the standard retirement age for Catholic bishops — in May of 2024.

The 67-year-old Bishop Vásquez is returning to the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, where he served as an auxiliary bishop from 2002-2010. The bishop is coming back to the archdiocese almost exactly 15 years after moving 160 miles to the northwest to lead the Diocese of Austin.

The Mexican-American bishop also served as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Tyler from November 2023 to December 2024, after Pope Francis removed Bishop Joseph Strickland. 

The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston serves 1.7 million Catholics in 146 parishes across 10 counties in southeastern Texas. Houston is the fourth-largest city in the U.S.

According to the archdiocese, the local Church is multicultural, with members coming from every continent. Liturgies are held in 14 different languages.

Archbishop-designate Vásquez, whose seminary education included five years in Rome studying at the Pontifical Gregorian University, was ordained a priest for the Diocese of San Angelo in 1984.

He grew up the oldest of six children in the small town of Stamford, in west-central Texas.

The new archbishop served as a consultant to the U.S. bishops’ conference committee on pro-life activities and as lead bishop for Region X for the V National Encounter for Hispanic/Latino Ministry (V Encuentro).

Vatican orders the end of Traditional Mass in the Cathedral of Tyler, Texas

 

Vatican prohibits Traditional Latin Mass in Bishop Strickland’s former cathedral

The Confiteor at a Traditional Latin Mass. | Credit: James Bradley, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

By Kristina Millare, Tyler Arnold

CNA Staff, Nov 11, 2024 / 15:35 pm

Celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass in the cathedral of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, will cease effective Dec. 1, according to a Vatican-approved order that comes almost one year after Pope Francis removed Bishop Joseph Strickland, one of his most outspoken critics, as head of the diocese.

Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin, who has served as apostolic administrator of the Tyler Diocese in East Texas since Strickland’s dramatic ouster last Nov. 11, announced the move in a letter to parishioners of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Tyler, which has offered a 2 p.m. Sunday Mass in Latin.

A spokesperson for the diocese also confirmed with CNA that Masses celebrated according to the pre-Vatican II liturgical form will also be halted in four other parishes: Mary Queen of Heaven in Malakoff, Sacred Heart in Texarkana, St. Francis of Assisi in Gilmer, and Sacred Heart in Nacogdoches. 

The letter was first obtained by Catholic journalist Diane Montagna who published it on X over the weekend.

“Following the guidance of the Holy See,” Vásquez stated in a letter dated Nov. 6, “celebration of the liturgy according to the liturgical books approved by St. Paul VI and St. John Paul II in accordance with the Second Vatican Council” will no longer be permitted in the cathedral from December onward but will be permitted in only one parish within the Diocese of Tyler.  

St. Joseph the Worker Parish, entrusted to the care of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP), is the only parish in the diocese authorized to “use of the 1952 Missal, according to the provisions of Traditionis Custodes,” the motu proprio Pope Francis issued in 2021 that sharply curtailed the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass worldwide. 

According to Vásquez’s letter, St. Joseph the Worker Parish is a “personal parish” established in 2003 to “pastorally care for all those in the diocese who celebrated according to the older liturgical forms.”

A spokesperson for the diocese told CNA: “Going forward, as the letter states, St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Tyler, a personal parish entrusted to the FSSP, will continue to serve the faithful of the diocese according to the norms of Traditionis Custodes.”

The letter does not specify why Traditional Latin Masses are ending at the cathedral, though Strickland’s refusal to fully implement Traditionis Custodes is widely believed to be one factor that led to his removal. The Vatican has not publicly disclosed exactly why Pope Francis asked for his resignation.

Strickland said in an interview with LifeSiteNews a year ago: “I know I didn’t implement Traditiones Custodes because I can’t starve out part of my flock.”

In his letter, Vásquez indicated that he “recently received a reply” from the Vatican after submitting a letter to the Vatican Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on how to implement the Holy Father’s motu proprio in the local Church after Strickland’s departure.

“While this transition may be difficult for some, my hope is that you will open your hearts and move forward on this path with faith and trust,” Vásquez wrote. 

“I pray you will experience a deepened unity with the whole Church and a greater awareness of the liturgical richness of the ordinary form of the Roman liturgy,” he added.

This article has been updated.

Former Texas and Louisiana Priest is indicted; a most troubling case

 

Catholic Priest Is Indicted on Sexual Assault Charges

Father Anthony Odiong was arrested in July after the police found him with child pornography while investigating a sexual assault claim, according to the Waco Police Department.

St. Peter Catholic Student Center in Waco, Texas, was one of the churches where Father Anthony Odiong served as a priest, from 2007 to 2012.Credit...Google Maps

By Sara Ruberg

A Catholic priest was indicted in Texas on felony sexual assault charges after several victims accused him of sexual and financial abuse, according to court documents and investigators.

The priest, Father Anthony Odiong, was indicted on Thursday by a grand jury in McLennan County, Texas, on two counts of second-degree sexual assault and one count of first-degree sexual assault.

He was arrested in July in Ave Maria, Fla., when investigators found him in possession of child pornography while looking into sexual assault claims reported to the police, according to a Facebook post from the Waco Police Department. He was not indicted on possession of child pornography, but could be in the future, Detective Bradley DeLange said.

The police had been investigating Father Odiong for months because they had received “credible information” alleging he committed a sexual assault in 2012, according to the police. During the investigation, Detective DeLange said, the police found several women with similar stories of abuse as the original victim who had come forward. Detective DeLange discovered at least eight women who claim that the priest groped, sexually assaulted or financially abused them, including one woman who sought Father Odiong’s counsel over her marriage troubles.

Under Texas law, it is considered sexual assault if members of the clergy engages in sexual activity with individuals who depend on them emotionally as a “spiritual advisers.”

Father Odiong served as a priest at St. Peter Catholic Student Center in Waco, Texas, and at St. Mary’s Church of the Assumption in West, Texas, from 2007 to 2012, according to the police, and he also served in Luling, La., from around 2015 to 2023.

Father Odiong was brought to McLennan County Jail on Aug. 6 and is being held on a $2.5 million bond, according to jail documents. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted on the second-degree sexual assault charges and could get life in prison for his first-degree felony charge, according to Christopher King, a lawyer representing several people in a separate civil case against the priest.

Father Odiong’s legal representation did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Guardian reported in February on the allegations, which Father Odiong denied in April in a Facebook post that call them a “false, salacious and one-sided smear campaign.”

Archbishop Gregory Aymond led the Diocese of Austin, Texas, during the beginning of Father Odiong’s time as a priest at that diocese, and he now leads the Archdiocese of New Orleans, where Father Odiong served in recent years. Bishop Joe S. Vásquez, the current leader of the Diocese of Austin, said in a statement in July that the diocese would fully cooperate with law enforcement.

Sarah McDonald, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of New Orleans, said on Sunday that Father Odiong had served there at the request of the Diocese of Uyo in Nigeria.

“When the archdiocese became aware of allegations of criminal activity we reported him to law enforcement and removed him from ministry,” Ms. McDonald said in a text.

In 2020, the Archdiocese of New Orleans joined over a dozen Catholic organizations in filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection amid sexual abuse claims against its priests and church employees. Fifteen Catholic organizations were seeking bankruptcy protection as of June, according to a Penn State Law database.

This summer a grand jury in Williamson County, Tenn., indicted a priest, Juan Carlos Garcia-Mendoza, on several counts of sexual battery, child abuse and other related crimes, according to an Instagram post from the city of Franklin, Tenn. Last year, a Louisiana grand jury indicted a retired priest, Lawrence Hecker, who was charged in relation to claims that he sexually assaulted a teenage boy in the 1970s.

Bishop Strickland relieved of duty as Bishop of Tyler, Texas by Pope Francis

 

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Tyler, Texas, USA 

POPE

• POPE FRANCIS
• BISHOPS

Bishop Strickland relieved of pastoral governance of US diocese

The Vatican has published the Pope’s decision concerning the pastoral governance of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, following an apostolic visitation conducted by two US bishops.

Vatican News

The Holy Father has removed Bishop Joseph E. Strickland from the pastoral governance of the diocese of Tyler, United States of America, and has appointed Bishop Joe Vásquez of Austin as apostolic administrator of the same diocese, rendering it sede vacante.

The decision came after an apostolic visitation ordered by the Pope last June in the Diocese of Tyler, which was entrusted to two US bishops, Bishop Dennis Sullivan of Camden, and Bishop Emeritus Gerald Kicanas of Tucson.

UPDATED

Cardinal Daniel Nicholas DiNardo, Metropolitan Archbishop of Galveston-Houston, released a statement in which he noted that the prelates who made the visit, Dennis Sullivan, the Bishop of Camden, and Gerald Kicanas, Bishop Emeritus of Tucson, “conducted an exhaustive inquired into all aspects of the governance and leadership of the Diocese of Tyler by its Ordinary, Bishop Joseph Strickland.”

“As a result of the Visitation,” the statement continues, “the recommendation was made to the Holy Father that the continuation in office of Bishop Strickland was not feasible. After months of careful consideration by the Dicastery for Bishops and the Holy Father, the decision was reached that the resignation of Bishop Strickland should be requested. Having been presented with that request on November 9, 2023, Bishop Strickland declined to resign from office.” Pope Francis then decided to remove the bishop.

“Pending more permanent arrangements for the Diocese of Tyler,” Cardinal DiNardo said, "the Holy Father has, at the same time, appointed Bishop Joe Vasquez, Bishop of Austin, as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Tyler.”

Cardinal DiNardo concluded his statement, “Let us keep Bishop Strickland, the clergy and faithful of the Diocese of Tyler and Bishop Vasquez in our prayers.”

This story was updated on Saturday, 11 November 2023, at 1:45 pm. 

More public concerns voiced by US Bishops since El Paso and Dayton

Bishop Joe Vasquez - Diocese of Austin

US Bishops Concerned About Racism and Xenophobia

In Wake of Weekend Massacre in El Paso, Texas

August 09, 2019 01:46ZENIT StaffConflicts, War, Terrorism

On August 8, 2019, Bishops from three committees at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) expressed their deep concern about racism and xenophobia that apparently motivated this weekend’s massacre in El Paso and that have motivated numerous other recent mass shootings in the United States. The Chairmen called on our elected officials to exert leadership in seeking to heal the wounds that these shootings have caused and to deal with the scourges of racism, xenophobia, and religious bigotry, including refraining from expressing hurtful, painful, and divisive rhetoric that dehumanizes and polarizes people on the basis of their race, religion, ethnicity, or national origin.

Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin, chairman of the Committee on Migration, Bishop Frank J. Dewane, Bishop of Venice, FL, chairman of the Committee on Domestic Social Development, and Bishop Shelton J. Fabre, Bishop of Houma-Thibodaux, chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism offered the following comments.

“The tragic loss of life of 22 people this weekend in El Paso demonstrates that hate-filled rhetoric and ideas can become the motivation for some to commit acts of violence. The anti-immigrant, anti-refugee, anti-Muslim, and anti-Semitic sentiments that have been publicly proclaimed in our society in recent years have incited hatred in our communities. Hatred and harsh rhetoric were echoed in the El Paso shooter’s explanation about why he committed this weekend’s shooting, as well as being evident in the motivation of the shooters who attacked the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh last year and the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston in 2015. We, therefore, renew our call to all to act swiftly to stop using hate-filled language that demeans and divides us and motivates some to such horrific violence. Instead, we ask our leaders and all Americans to work to unite us as a great, diverse, and welcoming people.”

USCCB issues statement at odds with Trump administration position on family seperation/immigration/asylum

A Statement from Daniel Cardinal DiNardo

 

June 13, 2018

Fort Lauderdale, FL—"At its core, asylum is an instrument to preserve the right to life. The Attorney General's recent decision elicits deep concern because it potentially strips asylum from many women who lack adequate protection. These vulnerable women will now face return to the extreme dangers of domestic violence in their home country. This decision negates decades of precedents that have provided protection to women fleeing domestic violence. Unless overturned, the decision will erode the capacity of asylum to save lives, particularly in cases that involve asylum seekers who are persecuted by private actors. We urge courts and policy makers to respect and enhance, not erode, the potential of our asylum system to preserve and protect the right to life.

Additionally, I join Bishop Joe Vásquez, Chairman of USCCB's Committee on Migration, in condemning the continued use of family separation at the U.S./Mexico border as an implementation of the Administration's zero tolerance policy. Our government has the discretion in our laws to ensure that young children are not separated from their parents and exposed to irreparable harm and trauma. Families are the foundational element of our society and they must be able to stay together. While protecting our borders is important, we can and must do better as a government, and as a society, to find other ways to ensure that safety. Separating babies from their mothers is not the answer and is immoral."

USCCB issues statement denouncing policy of seperating families at the US/Mexico border

U.S. Bishops’ Migration Chairman Urges Administration to Keep Families Together

June 1, 2018

WASHINGTON—The Department of Homeland Security has recently acknowledged implementation of the policy. . . of separating families arriving at the U.S./Mexico Border. Most Reverend Joe S. Vásquez, Bishop of Austin and Chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Committee on Migration, issued the following statement in response:
"Forcibly separating children from their mothers and fathers is ineffective to the goals of deterrence and safety and contrary to our Catholic values. Family unity is a cornerstone of our American immigration system and a foundational element of Catholic teaching. 'Children are a gift from the Lord, the fruit of the womb, a reward.' (Psalm 127:3) Children are not instruments of deterrence but a blessing from God.
Rupturing the bond between parent and child causes scientifically-proven trauma that often leads to irreparable emotional scarring. Accordingly, children should always be placed in the least restrictive setting: a safe, family environment, ideally with their own families.
My brother bishops and I understand the need for the security of our borders and country, but separating arriving families at the U.S./Mexico border does not allay security concerns. Children and families will continue to take the enormous risks of migration—including family separation—because the root causes of migration from the Northern Triangle remain: community or state-sanctioned violence, gang recruitment, poverty, and a lack of educational opportunity. Any policies should address these factors first as we seek to repair our broken immigration system."

USCCB wants legaslative action on Dreamers

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS - Arasmus Photo

US Bishops Call for Legislative Action on ‘Dreamers’

Chairman of USCCB’s Committee on Migration, Bishop Joe Vásquez, of Austin Texas Writes House Members

April 27, 2018 00:31ZENIT StaffPolitics

The chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, Bishop Joe Vásquez, of Austin, Texas, on April 26, 2018, announced support for H.R. 4796, the “Uniting and Securing America” (USA) Act of 2018 as it is currently written. The USA Act is a bipartisan bill that offers a path to citizenship to Dreamers and augments existing border security technology at the U.S./Mexico border.
“We are hopeful our support of the current version of the USA Act, and our continued support of the Dream Act, will encourage Congress to act now and find a humane legislative solution for Dreamers,” noted Bishop Vásquez.
The bishop’s letter to House members.
The USA Act would provide qualifying Dreamers – those born in the United States but with undocumented parents — with protection from deportation, as well as a path to citizenship. Additionally, the USA Act of 2018 would augment border security at the U.S./Mexico border, in part through the deployment of new technology; increase the number of immigration judges and Board of Immigration Appeals staff attorneys, and seek to address root causes and prevent future irregular migration from Central America.
On the need for immediate action, Bishop Vásquez stated: “Every day, my brother bishops and I witness directly the constant anxiety of Dreamer youth and their families, and that experience of urgency moves us to press Congress for an immediate and durable solution to this problem.”