Members of the Diocese of San Bernardino were relieved of the obligation to attend Mass and encouraged to take up personal prayer on Tuesday in light of the increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids throughout the state of California.
“All members of the faithful in the Diocese of San Bernardino who, due to genuine fear of immigration enforcement actions, are unable to attend Sunday Mass or Masses on holy days of obligation are dispensed from this obligation, as provided for in Canon 1247, until such time as this decree is revoked or amended,” Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino wrote on the social platform X.
The bishop’s office said the decree will remain in effect until further notice or until the “circumstances necessitating this decree are sufficiently resolved.”
“In issuing this decree, I am guided by the Church’s mission to care for the spiritual welfare of all entrusted to my care, particularly those who face fear or hardship. I entrust this diocese to the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, and invoke God’s blessing upon all the faithful,” Rojas said.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) chimed in on the move, stating First Amendment rights were being attacked under the Trump administration.
“Freedom of religion? Not in Donald Trump’s America. People now have to choose between their faith and their freedom,” Newsom wrote in a Wednesday post on X.
His comments come after weeks of controversy as the state engages in a lawsuit against the federal government for deploying National Guard soldiers against anti-ICE protests.
Democratic lawmakers have alleged that individuals are being detained without due process, deprived of clean drinking water, and electricity.