When a religious sister, walking to Mass in full habit gets detained by ICE; why?

 

Prayer key to sister’s release from ICE detention, but foreign-born religious now on edge

written by Gina Christian 

People from McAllen, Texas, are seen walking across a border bridge between United States and Mexico as they are deported into Mexico Oct. 22, 2018, by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (OSV News photo/Carlos Barria, Reuters)

(OSV News) — A woman religious in McAllen, Texas, told OSV News the “power of prayer” was key to the release of a religious sister detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as she walked to Sunday Mass — but foreign-born religious in the area are now on their guard after the incident.

Sister Leticia Ugboaja, a member of the Nigerian-based Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy, was apprehended and held by ICE agents for several hours June 28. 

Known as “Sister Letty,” she had been walking from her residence to Our Lady of Sorrows Church in McAllen, where she serves as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion. 

According to the Diocese of Brownsville, Sister Leticia also works as a registered nurse at a McAllen-based medical center that is part of South Texas Health System. She had previously spent 10 years as a certified nursing assistant at DHR Health in Edinburg, Texas.

‘We were all praying’

Upon news of the sister’s detention, “we were all praying,” Sister Rose Patrice Kuhn told OSV News. The Immaculate Heart of Mary sister provides pastoral accompaniment to migrants in the McAllen-Reynosa, Mexico, border area.

Sister Rose said she and her community members throughout the U.S. rallied their prayers for Sister Leticia’s release, which saw the intervention of lawmakers, including Republican Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz, of Texas’ 15th Congressional District, who announced she spoke directly with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin about the matter.

Those prayers included pleas to “touch the hearts” of all those involved in Sister Leticia’s detention, said Sister Rose, who spoke with the sister at some length following her release.

The Diocese of Brownsville advised OSV News that Sister Leticia was not available for an interview on advice of her legal counsel, and Sister Rose, citing the same reason, also declined to provide specific details regarding Sister Leticia’s hours in immigration detention.

Waited outside sister’s home for her release

However, Sister Rose said that “many” Our Lady of Sorrows parishioners were “crying and praying” outside Sister Leticia’s home as they waited for her release.

“She said to me, ‘I never knew I was so loved,'” Sister Rose recalled, her voice filled with emotion.

Sister Rose explained that she and fellow religious from various orders serving in the Rio Grande Valley are “connected to one another” and joined as one amid Sister Letitia’s detention.

While they rejoiced to see their fellow religious released, “just imagine how it affects the other sisters,” said Sister Rose. “There are many here who are not from the United States originally. There are a good number who are here on different kinds of visas, and who have been here for years, working with the parishes and with migrants and immigrants. Just imagine the extra fear that’s being put into them.”

Sister Rose said, “Even though they have (immigration) documents, they’re thinking, ‘Are they (immigration officials) going to look up my name?'”

She pointed to the Trump administration’s mass deportation policy — the impact of which she sees almost daily as she attends immigration court hearings.

Recently, said Sister Rose, “there were so many” immigration hearing appointments that court officials “would not allow anybody else in, because there was no room. They are putting so many of the people in the same (immigration) situation together so they can deport more people, faster.”

And following Sister Leticia’s detention, the border area’s foreign-born religious are now “cautious,” said Sister Rose. “I’ve heard from a couple of sisters, and it’s really affecting them.”

The Mexican Catholic tradition of the Day of the Dead

 

Mexican Catholics unite faith and tradition for Day of the Dead

written by David Agren 

A file photo shows a woman praying at the grave of a relative during the Day of the Dead commemoration near Mexico City. (OSV News photo/Henry Romero, Reuters)

(OSV News) — Many parishioners at San Antonio de las Huertas Parish in Mexico City remember their deceased loved ones by building altars in their homes for Day of the Dead.

The altars burst with marigolds, are often adorned with colorful “papal picado,” or decorative cut paper, and usually feature food and drink, including Coca-Cola, tequila and beer. People believe their relatives return the nights of Nov. 1 and Nov. 2 to reunite with family.

Practice of building altars

Father Pedro Lira, pastor at San Antonio de las Huertas, supports the practice of building altars. But he also encourages his congregation to pray for their deceased loved ones and to remember the promise of eternal life.

“Upon lighting the candles many people stop and pray the Our Father without really knowing how to pray at the altar,” Father Lira told OSV News. “It’s the confidence of saying, ‘Even after death, I can do something for you?'”

Day of the Dead — famed Dia de los Muertos — marks one of Mexico’s deepest cultural traditions, dating to pre-Hispanic times, in which people commemorate and commune with their deceased loved ones. Mexicans build altars and visit graveyards for candlelight vigils. 

Many Mexicans visit churches, too, where prayers are said for All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1 and All Souls’ Day on Nov. 2.

Commemorating the departed

“The church commemorates, does not celebrate, the faithful who have departed,” Father Lira said. “We entrust them to God’s mercy. We no longer know if they share in his glory, but we do entrust them to God’s providence. And that is why as a church we pray for them.”

Death holds a unique place in Mexican culture. Pre-Hispanic populations celebrated a version of Day of the Dead around harvest time, according to research. Early Catholic evangelists “Christianized” that remembrance of the dead, according to Father Lira, who emphasized, “The Christian message is death as a passage to eternal life. … Mexican culture did not see life after death.”

The tradition has become a spectacle, too — all thanks to the 2015 James Bond movie, “Spectre,” which featured an apocryphal Day of the Dead parade. Mexican tourism officials copied the parade — complete with giant skeleton marionettes — which draws throngs to central Mexico City.

La Catrina costumes

Onlookers paint their faces black and white and dress in La Catrina costumes — elegant skeletons previously used to mock the Mexicans aspiring to be Europeans. Tourists, meanwhile, increasingly make trips to graveyards to witness the festivities, bringing much needed economic activity to downtrodden rural towns, but disrupting commemorations. 

“The people of Oaxaca (state) have managed to create a second Day of the Dead that is exclusively meant for tourists and strangers,” Shawn Haley, a Canadian anthropologist studying the holiday, told OSV News. The alternative Day of the Dead “redirects the strangers focus away from the village celebrations that can then remain restricted to the community and family.”

Observers say a renewed sense of pride in Mexican traditions, along with movies such as “Coco,” have hastened the embrace of Day of the Dead. The renewed interest in Day of the Dead, meanwhile, has largely diminished interest in Halloween, which had been brought back by migrants and had been gaining ground until recently. “It is viewed as a quaint American holiday,” Haley said.

The rise of Halloween

Mexican church leaders have long warned of the rise of Halloween. Father Andrés Larios said a group of young people in his parish in Michoacán even tried to turn the parish event hall into a haunted house — something he used as a teaching opportunity. 

“The church much prefers promoting that one day we will meet our loved ones who died for this world, but who continue living in the other, rather than getting rid of all these things that come from the United States” such as Halloween, said Andrés Larios, a parish priest in the Diocese of Apatzingán.

Practicing Catholics still refer to Day of the Dead as All Saints, which remembers the saints, and All Souls, which remembers all believers, to “distinguish themselves from nonpracticing Catholics,” according to Haley, though “the actual celebration is exactly the same.”

‘Less celebrating, more remembering’

He added, “In Non-Catholic homes, the deceased loved ones are expected to return home. Where in Catholic homes, the altar becomes more of a memorial to the deceased. Less celebrating and more remembering.”

Priests are emphasizing faith, along with remembrance.

“It’s very important to recall the importance of praying for the saints on Nov. 1 and praying for the dead on Nov. 2,” Father Alan Camargo, spokesman for the Diocese of Matamoros-Reynosa, told OSV News.

“The Catholic faith, at its core, is Christ who dies and conquers death,” he continued, adding that “altars to the dead, skulls, those don’t clash with the Christian faith as long as we discover the importance of respect for life and also respect for death.”

David Agren writes for OSV News from Buenos Aires.

Despite his great work at a Texas Catholic Parish, this Priest is forced to return to Mexico

 

Catholic priest forced to leave Texas amid visa backlog and residency denial

Father Alan Sanchez with parishioners at St. Joseph Church in La Pryor, Texas. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Alan Sanchez

By Tyler Arnold

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 27, 2025 

A Mexican-born Catholic priest who has served in the Diocese of Laredo, Texas, for nine years must leave the United States because his application for residency was denied and his religious worker visa is expiring.

Father Alan Sanchez, the pastor of St. Joseph Church in La Pryor and St. Patrick Mission in Batesville, will return to his native country of Mexico on Wednesday, Aug. 27, amid the visa issues. He will be received into the Archdiocese of Monterrey in northeastern Mexico when he arrives.

“Originally, I was hopeful … [this would] be resolved,” Sanchez told CNA.

“I was sad [when I got the news] because of the community I was serving,” he said. “This is a very small and poor community in Texas, and this was my first role as a pastor.”

Father Alan Sanchez displays the Eucharist during adoration. Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Alan Sanchez

Sanchez applied for residency two years ago but said the process was repeatedly delayed and then his application was eventually denied in November 2024. He appealed the denial and later applied for a different visa but said he ultimately “ran out of time.” He still hopes the matter can be resolved so he can return to his parish at some point.

“I spoke to my bishop about it and the attorney, but there’s nothing else that [I] can do except return to Mexico,” he said.

Sanchez said the delay was caused by a backlog of applicants and that he was denied because of a lack of available spots for visas. He noted that asylum seekers and unaccompanied minors were given priority and that priests cannot have a “change of status for residency, because the spots are already taken.

He said the prioritization is “understandable” and “certainly fine” but added that many foreign-born priests also need to transition to residency.

“Because there is no availability, they are just denying it,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez explained that “I don’t think this is political” but rather “this is the process — this is what’s going on.”

“It’s just like the process, the way it is, and of course it’s heartbreaking to see that happening but it seems that it’s out of my hands,” he added.

Sanchez asked the faithful to pray for him and expressed hope that “this can be resolved.” He also said he hopes this raises awareness about issues with the current immigration system and warned that other priests are facing the same struggle, which could ultimately exacerbate the priest shortage if it is not addressed by Congress.

“It’s a call to make awareness that the immigration system needs to be expanded [to] a point and I think there is room for everybody as long as we can do it in a good way,” Sanchez said.

Bishop James Tamayo of the Diocese of Laredo appointed Father Heleodoro Lozano — who is the parochial vicar of St. Jude Church in Laredo — to take over Sanchez’s role beginning on Thursday, Aug. 28.

The diocese told CNA in a statement that Sanchez “will temporarily return to Mexico … until this process is resolved” and that the diocese helped him obtain legal counsel and will “continue to walk with him in prayer and assistance.

“We are profoundly grateful for the generosity of spirit, pastoral care, and joy [Sanchez] has brought to the people of St. Joseph and St. Patrick,” the diocese said.

“His presence is deeply cherished, and we remain hopeful that he will soon return to continue his mission of faith and service among us,” the statement added. “Like all dioceses, we long to keep our priests serving their communities, and we will continue to pray and work diligently so that Father Sánchez may once again minister among the faithful of our diocese.”

Sanchez noted that some lawmakers are trying to address the concern with the bipartisan Religious Workforce Protection Act. The proposed legislation would ease the process for extending religious visas.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview earlier this month on EWTN’s “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo” that President Donald Trump’s administration is “committed” to fixing the backlog.

“I’ve been in touch with a number of our cardinals here in the United States and bishops about that as well,” Rubio said, “and it’s not only the Catholic Church — I mean there are other places that are being impacted, but we’re trying to streamline that process.”

Several bishops have endorsed the Religious Workforce Protection Act and have expressed concerns that without some type of action, the number of foreign-born priests being forced out of the United States will continue to increase.

The Catholic Bishops of Mexico in solidarity with migrants who are suffering persecution and violence in the United States

 

Mexican bishops express solidarity with migrants amid protests in US cities

written by David Agren 

People hold signs during a demonstration in Washington June 10, 2025, as part of nationwide protests in solidarity with Los Angeles protests against federal immigration sweeps. (OSV News photo/Nathan Howard, Reuters)

(OSV News) — The Mexican bishops’ conference expressed solidarity with migrants “suffering persecution and violence” in the United States amid protests roiling Los Angeles.

The conference called for the “dignity and rights of all to be respected” as images of the protests — such as demonstrators waving of Mexican flags — along with arrests, capture attention south of the border and draw expressions of concern from the Mexican government.

‘Result of Massive Raids’

“With pain and concern, we are closely following the complicated situation that has arisen as a result of the massive raids to detain undocumented migrants — and the protests in response that have taken place in Los Angeles, California — that have spread to other places,” said the statement, signed by Bishop Eugenio Lira Rugarcía of Matamoros-Reynosa, leader of the bishops’ human mobility ministry. Conference president Bishop Ramón Castro Castro of Cuernavaca and secretary general, Auxiliary Bishop Héctor M. Pérez Villarreal of Mexico City, also signed the June 10 statement.

The statement cited Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, who said, “We all agree that we don’t want undocumented immigrants who are known terrorists or violent criminals in our communities. But there is no need for the government to carry out enforcement actions in a way that provokes fear and anxiety among ordinary, hard-working immigrants and their families.”

Addressing Immigration Issue

Bishop Rugarcía continued, “The vast majority of undocumented migrants contribute to the good of the communities in which they live and work. … The solution to undocumented migration requires multiple joint-actions. Among them, an immigration system that allows things to be done correctly, without having to resort to other avenues that only end up complicating everyone’s lives.”

Protests erupted June 6 following raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in predominantly Latino parts of Los Angeles. Subsequent protests broke out in cities such as San Francisco.

President Donald Trump ordered the National Guard into Los Angeles on June 7 and mobilized some 700 Marines to join them. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he would sue the Trump administration commandeering the state’s National Guard. “He flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalize the National Guard,” Newsom said.

Hearing on Temporary Restraining Order

A federal judge, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, late June 10 declined Newsom’s request for an immediate temporary restraining order to restrict Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops and U.S. Marines. He set a hearing to consider California’s motion for a temporary restraining order on June 12.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said June 10 he would send National Guard troops to cities around his  state ahead of planned protests.

The raids come as part of a promised Trump administration crackdown on illegal immigration. The Wall Street Journal reported federal officials began focusing on places such as Home Depot stores, where day laborers gather, and arresting unauthorized migrants without criminal histories and those with records alike.

12 Million Mexican Immigrants in U.S.

Mexico has traditionally expressed concern for the welfare of the approximately 12 million Mexican immigrants living in the United States, according to Spanish bank BBVA, which publishes an annual report on Mexican migration and remittances. Mexicans accounted for 45% of the estimated 11.3 million people lacking legal status in the United States, the Migration Policy Institute reported in 2022.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has spoken out in defense of Mexican migrants in the United States, saying that Mexican diplomats there have been providing consular protection. She lauded Mexican migrants as “hard working,” whose toil boosts the U.S. economy and remittances support families back in Mexico.

“Our position is, first and foremost, respect for human rights above all else. We do not agree with these actions that violate the human rights of migrants, which criminalize them, as if they were criminals. They are honest workers who contribute to the United States economy,” Sheinbaum said June 9.

President Sheinbaum’s Comments

Sheinbaum’s comments on U.S. migration enforcement have not gone unnoticed in the United States. 

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said June 10 at the White House, “Claudia Sheinbaum came out and encouraged more protests in LA and I condemn her for that. She should not be encouraging violent protests that are going on.”

Sheinbaum denied inciting any protests in the United States, calling the accusations “false.” 

“We have never called for violent mobilization,” she said June 11. “We have always been in favor of peaceful protests.”

Mexico’s discontent with U.S. migration raids follows Mexico stepping up its own migration enforcement — under U.S. pressure — to stop migrants transiting its territory from reaching its northern border with the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 8,383 migrant encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border in April, down sharply from the 128,895 encounters recorded in the same month of 2024.

David Agren writes for OSV News from Buenos Aires.

Beautiful prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe from St. John Paul II

 Pope John Paul II's Prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe

Story by María Guadalupe Encinas

 

Pope John Paul II had a deep affection and devotion for Our Lady of Guadalupe. During his papacy, he visited Mexico in 1979, where he had a historic encounter with the image of Holy Mary at the Basilica in Mexico City, a landmark moment in his pontificate. Here, we share with you the prayer that the Pope dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Oh, Immaculate Virgin, Mother of the true God and Mother of the Church. You, who from this place show your mercy and compassion to all those who seek your shelter; listen to the prayer that we address to you with filial trust, and present it to your Son Jesus, our only Redeemer.

Mother of mercy, Teacher of hidden and silent sacrifice, to you, who come to meet us sinners, we also consecrate our lives, our work, our joys, our illnesses, and our sorrows. 

Grant peace, justice, and prosperity to our peoples; since everything we have and are, we place under your care, Our Lady and Mother. We want to be entirely yours and walk with you on the path of full fidelity to Jesus Christ and his Church: Do not let go of your loving hand.

Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, we ask you for all the Bishops, so that they may lead the faithful along paths of intense Christian life, love, and humble service to God and souls. Look upon this vast harvest and intercede so that the Lord may instill a hunger for holiness in all the People of God, and grant abundant vocations of priests and religious, strong in faith and zealous dispensers of the mysteries of God.

Grant our homes the grace to love and respect life from its beginning with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God. Holy Mary, Mother of Fair Love, protect our families, so that they may be very united, and bless the education of our children.

Our hope, look upon us with compassion, teach us to go continually to Jesus and, if we fall, help us to rise again, to return to Him, through the confession of our faults and sins in the sacrament of penance, which brings peace to the soul.

We beg you to grant us a great love for all the holy sacraments, which are like the footprints your Son left us on earth. Thus, Most Holy Mother, with God's peace in our conscience, with our hearts free from evil and hatred, we will be able to bring to all the true joy and true peace that come from your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.

Pope offers prayers for various victims of war, natural disasters

 

Israeli bombardment in Gaza  (AFP or licensors)

POPE

• POPE FRANCIS
• GENERAL AUDIENCE
• APPEAL
• PRAYER
• WAR
• UKRAINE
• PALESTINE
• ISRAEL
• SOLIDARITY

Pope prays for war-torn Ukraine, Israel and Palestine

Concluding the catechesis at the General Audience, Pope Francis reiterated his plea for prayers for all those who are suffering due to conflicts across the world.

By Michele Raviart & Linda Bordoni

As he continues to recover from bronchitis that forced him to put off a scheduled journey to Dubai to participate in the UN Climate Conference and that has seen him entrust the words of his catecheses to Vatican officials, speaking personally Pope Francis reaffirmed his closeness to those who are suffering from war in many countries across the globe.

“Let’s not forget to pray for those who suffer the tragedy of war, in particular the peoples of Ukraine, Israel, and Palestine,” he said.

Speaking after the Wednesday General Audience - read, on his behalf by Msgr Filippo Ciampanelli - the Pope reiterated his belief that “War is always a defeat. No one has anything to gain from it, it is a defeat for everyone, except for weapons manufacturers.”

More than 16,200 Palestinians, two-thirds of them women and children, have been killed in an Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip unleased on 7 October. The offensive is in retaliation for a rampage by Hamas militants who killed 1,200 Israelis and abducted 240 others. Israel says it is targeting Hamas infrastructure in Gaza and accuses the organization of using civilians as human shields. A seven-day truce saw the release of some 100 hostages. Still, the collapse of the truce over the weekend, and a renewed Israeli offensive has given way to the fiercest fighting in five weeks of military operations against Hamas militants.

Day of Prayer for Church in the East

During his greetings to the Polish pilgrims present for the Audience, the Pope also recalled that next Sunday, the second Sunday of Advent, the Church in Poland will observe the Day of Prayer and Material Help to the Church in the East.

He expressed his thanks to "all those who support the Church in that region with their prayers and offerings, especially martyred Ukraine. “

Fierce fighting continues between Russian forces and Ukraine’s military with increased attacks around Bakhmut and other areas of the east. It is estimated that at least 10,000 civilians, including over 560 children, have been killed in Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Millions of Ukrainians have been displaced by the fighting.

A recent estimate of Russian losses said the Russian military probably suffered losses of about 70,000 soldiers killed since the start of the conflict.

Victims of Hurricane Otis

The Pope‘s attention was also on those affected by a devastating hurricane over a month ago in Mexico.

More than 48 people were confirmed dead and 48 missing after the massive hurricane that struck Acapulco and a nearby village on 25 October. Thousands of families have been affected and rebuilding is expected to take at least 10 years.

Addressing members of the “Fundacion Telethon“ following the General Audience, he invited them to “collaborate for the victims of Acapulco“ hard-hit by Hurricane Otis more than a month ago, “and not to neglect to include all persons with disabilities in Mexico“.

“Let’s defend the dignity of every person,“ he said.

Immaculate Conception

As we approach the feast of the Immaculate Conception on 8 December, the Holy Father reminded the faithful of how the Virgin Mary “believed in God‘s love and responded with her ‘Yes’.“

"Learn from her how to fully trust in the Lord,“ he concluded, “to give witness to the common good and evangelical love.“

Pope Francis sends condolences and Apostolic Blessing to Mexican victims of Hurricane Otis

 

People walk amid debris left in the wake of Hurricane Otis  (AFP or licensors)

POPE

• POPE FRANCIS
• MEXICO
• TELEGRAM
• NATURAL DISASTERS

Pope sends condolences to victims of Hurricane Otis in Mexico

Pope Francis expresses his condolences for the over two dozen people who have died after Hurricane Otis swept through Mexico’s Guerrero State.

By Devin Watkins

Hurricane Otis, a record-breaking Category 5 storm, swept through Guerrero State in southwestern Mexico on Wednesday.

At least 27 people were killed and four others remain missing, according to Mexican authorities.

In the wake of the deadly storm, Pope Francis sent a telegram signed by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin to convey his condolences to Archbishop Leopoldo Gonzalez, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Acapulco.

Prayers and fraternal charity

The Pope said he was “deeply saddened” upon hearing about the extent of the damage and loss of human life caused by the hurricane.

He offered his “fervent prayers for the eternal rest of the deceased.”

Pope Francis prayed that God might “grant His consolation to those suffering from the hurricane”.

He also urged the Christian community of Guerrero State to be filled with “ardent charity to contribute to the reconstruction of the affected areas.”

The Pope then conveyed his “heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased,” as well as his “paternal concern and spiritual closeness to the injured and the afflicted in the beloved community of Acapulco.”

Pope Francis wrapped up his telegram by imparting his Apostolic Blessing as a sign of “faith and hope in the Risen Christ.”

Fake priests on the loose in Stockton California

 

Roman Catholic diocese warns fake priests are preying on California parishioners

They're charging people "thousands and thousands" of dollars to perform sacraments the church provides for nominal fees.

By Corky Siemaszko

A Roman Catholic diocese in California is warning its flock to beware of wolves in priestly clothes.

The Diocese of Stockton sent out an alert over the weekend to other churches to be on the lookout for people "purporting to be Spanish-speaking Catholic bishops and priests" who charge "exorbitant fees for celebrating the sacraments, teaching classes, and issuing certificates."

"These imposters are misappropriating the identities of genuine priests in Mexico and conducting unauthorized celebrations of baptism, confirmation, First Communion, and house blessings under false pretenses," the diocese said in a news release. 

When challenged, the phony clerics "resort to intimidation tactics against anyone questioning their identity or authority, often threatening legal action for defamation, although these threats lack substance," the diocese said.

Diocesan spokesperson Erin Haight told NBC News the bogus clerics "are charging these poor people thousands and thousands of dollars for things like health blessings for communions and confirmations."

"They're even charging people to use the seats they provide at these ceremonies," Haight said. "The Catholic Church would never do that."

Haight said the diocese reported the scams to police in Modesto after it got about a half-dozen calls from parishioners "asking us if these were people we know."

But when the diocese reached out to law enforcement, Haight said, it was told that only the people who were victimized by the imposters could file complaints and initiate investigations.

"The problem is these knuckleheads are preying on undocumented immigrants, migrant workers, people who might be afraid to go to law enforcement," Haight said. "So we decided to get the word out so more people aren't victimized."

Sharon Bear, a Modesto police spokesperson, confirmed that the Diocese of Stockton has been in touch with the department about the phony priests but that no active investigation is underway because, so far, nobody has filed a complaint.

"We advised them to notify the other churches in the area and encourage people who have been harmed to contact us," Bear said. "There's not much more we can do at this point."

In the news release, the diocese warned: "The imposters in Modesto have been using the names of legitimate priests in Mexico. Two confirmed identities being exploited are Father José Adán González Estrada and Bishop Raúl Gómez González."

Haight said, "These are real priests, but they're in Mexico, not here." She added that the diocese has been in touch with the Archdiocese of Toluca in Mexico and warned it about the scam.

The Archdiocese of Toluca, as well as the priests who are being impersonated, did not immediately respond for comment.

In closing, Diocese of Stockton gave its members some additional advice in case they encounter priests who offer to perform sacraments for money.

"With few exceptions, Catholic sacraments are typically administered within Catholic churches," the diocesan release says. "Celebrations of baptism, confirmation, and First Communion in outdoor locations like parks are not aligned with established Catholic practices."