USCCB Fall Assembly 2019

We say: The U.S. bishops probably constitute one of the most resistant episcopal audiences Pope Francis faces in the global church. Nor are they listening to the needs of their flock at home.

Distinctly Catholic: There are deeper problems with the "Faithful Citizenship" document, problems that demand the bishops start from scratch, and not just that the text does not reflect the papal magisterium.

The most intense discussion during the U.S. bishops' Nov. 11-13 meeting concerned whether opposition to abortion is the "preeminent" issue. Others called for attention to immigration and the environment.

One year after the U.S. bishops approved their pastoral letter against racism, the document is hardly just sitting on a shelf but is the basis for listening sessions in dioceses around the country and is an educational tool for individuals, schools and parishes, the bishops were told Nov. 13.

The U.S. bishops, aware of the growing numbers of Catholics in the country who are of Hispanic origin, voted to write a new pastoral plan for Latino Catholics that would be produced sometime between 2021 and 2024.

Global warming is an important issue but not urgent, said the leader of the U.S. Catholic bishops. Abortion, on the other hand, is their preeminent priority. 

A third-party reporting system to field sexual misconduct allegations against bishops could be in place by the end of February, an official of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops told the bishops during their fall general assembly in Baltimore.

In a wide-ranging report on immigration Nov. 12, U.S. bishops heard a grim landscape facing immigrants and refugees trying to find shelter in the United States. But they also heard of the wide network of Catholic organizations trying to help, even as they, too, face challenges.

A new "pastoral framework for marriage and family life" should be ready for a vote by the U.S. bishops by next November at the latest, according to Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia.

The U.S. bishops added their assent to a call to have St. Irenaeus declared a doctor of the church.

Distinctly Catholic: To what degree have the U.S. bishops, and the staff they have assembled at the conference headquarters in Washington, embraced the magisterium of Pope Francis and to what degree are they resisting his lead?

The U.S. bishops voted to approve close to 300 new hymn texts for the Liturgy of the Hours. The Nov. 12 vote was 205-5 with two abstentions.

It will come as no surprise to anyone who has followed Los Angeles Archbishop Jose H. Gomez that immigration reform is at the top of his priority list as the newly elected president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles was elected to a three-year term as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops during the bishops' fall general assembly in Baltimore.

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann sees the day that Catholic parishes can be one of the first places a woman facing an unexpected or challenging pregnancy can turn to for assistance rather than think of seeking an abortion.

In his final address as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston told his fellow bishops that it has been "an honor to serve you, even in the difficult times."

Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles did not just bemoan the fact many young people are leaving the Catholic Church. He said church leaders need to make it a priority to bring them back.

Distinctly Catholic: I continue to regret Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron's insistence on the idea that an impediment to evangelization is the "dumbing down of the faith" he believes has plagued the post-conciliar church. 

The U.S. bishops voted overwhelmingly Nov. 11 in Baltimore on a revised set of strategic priorities to take them into the next decade.

The U.S. bishops voted to approve the budget for 2020 for their conference headquarters in Washington but did not register sufficient numbers to determine passage of a proposed 3% increase in the diocesan assessment for 2021.

The U.S. bishops continued during their fall general assembly to review new materials that would supplement their long-standing guide to help Catholics form their consciences in public life, including voting.

Distinctly Catholic: The U.S. bishops are firm in their commitment to rhetorical mush, steadfast in the defense of compromise, decisive about their indecision, bold in their proclamation of the banal. 

"Our communion with the Holy Father can be expressed in the concrete actions that we take to make his magisterium better known among our people," Archbishop Christophe Pierre, papal nuncio to the U.S., said in his Nov. 11 address to the meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Though most prelates who have resigned or been removed for sexual misconduct or cover-up no longer attend the biannual U.S. bishops' meeting, only one has been formally disinvited. And one convicted bishop continues to show up.

While other U.S. bishops are preparing for their general meeting in Baltimore Nov. 11-13, the bishops of New York state are packing their bags for Rome.

When they meet Nov. 11-13 in Baltimore, the U.S. bishops are expected to vote on a revised set of strategic priorities to take them into the next decade.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, in consultation with the members of the bishops' conference Administrative Committee, has taken the highly unusual step of disinviting a fellow bishop from the conference's fall general assembly.

Barron's Word on Fire gave him experience to bring to chairing the U.S. bishops' evangelization committee — though some say the Los Angeles auxiliary bishop's approach is more about apologetics.

Distinctly Catholic: In the face pressing issues like Hispanic ministry, environment, immigration and emerging schism, the U.S. bishops' conference shows the lack of nimbleness we expect from a bureaucracy.

Distinctly Catholic: Like the church, the meeting is traditional but unpredictable; mainstream society will largely ignore it; and it is difficult to believe in the current leadership.