Latest news with #MichaelPham
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Mass. residents: We will not be bystanders to ICE thuggery
Advertisement It's daunting, but a powerful counterforce has emerged: communities of faith. They include groups of Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Muslims, and others. Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up The American Catholic hierarchy has stepped up as well. Michael Pham, then San Diego bishop-elect, Here in Boston, the Paulist Center, where we worship, has an active Advertisement Communities of faith are a powerful and growing force for resistance to injustice and the pursuit of the common good. They are worthy of your journalistic attention. Christopher M. O'Keeffe Marlborough Mi-Rang Yoon Malden We need Governor Healey to lead resistance It is not only immigrants who are frightened by the masked thugs of ICE that the rogue Trump administration has loosed upon the US citizenry, in what seems like an attempt to cow ordinary Americans. There are many others throughout the community who view these vicious actions with some trepidation. Indeed, many people of this great Commonwealth stand with indomitable spirit against the illegal and unconstitutional actions of this administration. But we need the help of our governor to continue to do so. The primary duty of our governor is to protect Massachusetts residents from harm. It is within the governor's authority to Governor Maura Healey, please exercise that power and authorize the Guard to monitor the actions of ICE agents and to ascertain that those agents are clearly identified, carry legal warrants, and never, ever use bodily force on peaceful citizens. Bill Tragakis Westwood The Founders must be turning in their graves For the past several years we have been helping two legal refugee families. They were originally expected to arrive in 2016, but that was delayed until Donald Trump left office after his first term. They are thriving: men gainfully employed; women raising children, who are excelling in school; English nearly mastered. Now permanent residents, they eagerly await becoming US citizens. Advertisement We also have been helping those less fortunate, who are undocumented but otherwise hoping someday to become permanent residents. The lack of a legal pathway for these families, who are essential to our economic future, is the fault of the GOP for opposing immigration reform at every turn. The Republican Party began in opposition to slavery; undoubtedly the Founders are turning in their graves as they watch America, the country immigrants have made and continue to make great, be ripped apart for no reason other than one party's hunger to amass power through the politics of fear. Alan Wright Roslindale
Daily Mail
20-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Bishop appointed by Pope Leo descends on California court to persuade ICE not to deport migrants
A bishop appointed by Pope Leo descended on a California court today in an attempt to persuade ICE against deporting migrants. Newly-appointed Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of San Diego, Michael Pham made an appeal on June 11, asking fellow men of the cloth to join migrants at hearings at the federal courthouse on June 20, International Refugee Day. Today, he was among 16 who went to the Southern California Federal Courthouse to support the migrants pleading their cases. In his appeal, Pham said the migrants were in a 'difficult predicament' of being hauled before judges. 'We know that migrants and refugees find themselves in the difficult predicament of being called to appear, which is what the government asks of them, and then being given orders for expedited removal from our country. 'It has been experienced that the presence of faith leaders makes a difference in how the migrants are treated. 'Unfortunately, it will most likely not change the outcome,' he said. A spokesman for the Diocese of San Diego told Daily Mail the religious delegation who sat in court on Friday were not there to confront anyone and had informed judges of their presence ahead of time. It's unclear what impact they had. Dramatic and emotional scenes have played out in courts across the country where migrants who went from legal to illegal in seconds are taken away. In situations where a parent will be deported, their American kids can either be removed from the US along with them or stay behind with family in the US. The migrants most at risk for being caught up in this legal catch-22 are those who have arrived in country in the last two years. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has jurisdiction of new cases for two years. When those migrants are arriving in court, Trump federal prosecutors will inform the judge that they want to dismiss the case. However, that doesn't mean the legal claim can forward. Instead, it means the case is out of the hands of the court and ICE now has jurisdiction to make an arrest. Priests and churches across the country have spoken out against Trump's deportation policies. In Los Angeles, priests stood shoulder to shoulder with anti-ICE protestors as riots exploded earlier this month. When Trump first won re-election, the United Methodist Church issued a blistering rebuke of the president-elect two days after his victory. 'The lessons of teach us the dangers of silence in the face of threats to human rights,' the Council of Bishops wrote on Nov. 7. 'We therefore reject rhetoric, policies, and actions that demean or discriminate against any of God's children and will be vigilant in defending the rights of the vulnerable and speaking out against oppression.' Before becoming the leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Leo had been incredibly critical of MAGA immigration policies. Earlier this year, the new pope called out Vice President JD Vance, calling him outright 'wrong' as viral social media spat about his faith went viral.
Toronto Star
22-05-2025
- General
- Toronto Star
Pope Leo XIV makes first U.S. bishop appointment, fills San Diego vacancy
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV, history's first American pope, on Thursday made his first American bishop appointment as he named Bishop Michael Pham as bishop of San Diego, California. Pham, 58, is currently an auxiliary bishop in the diocese. He fills the vacancy created when Pope Francis named Cardinal Robert McElroy archbishop of Washington D.C. earlier this year.
The Independent
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Pope Leo XIV makes first U.S. bishop appointment, fills San Diego vacancy
Pope Leo XIV, history's first American pope, on Thursday made his first American bishop appointment as he named Bishop Michael Pham as bishop of San Diego, California. Pham, 58, is currently an auxiliary bishop in the diocese. He fills the vacancy created when Pope Francis named Cardinal Robert McElroy archbishop of Washington D.C. earlier this year. Pham, who was born in Da Nang, Vietnam, was ordained a priest in the San Diego diocese in 1999 and was made a bishop in 2023. He was in charge of programming for the dioceses' ethnic groups and as of March had been the main diocesan administrator. The diocese of San Diego counts about 1.3 million Catholics in a total population of about 3.5 million people, according to the U.S. Catholic bishops conference. Prior to his election May 8, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost headed the Vatican's bishops office and in that capacity would have reviewed and vetted Pham's file. In another appointment Thursday, Leo named a nun as the No. 2 in the Vatican's congregation for religious orders, a possible sign that he plans to continue Francis' efforts to promote more women to decision-making roles in the Vatican. Sister Tiziana Merletti, the former head of the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor, is a canon lawyer and now reports to Sister Simona Brambilla, whom Francis in January appointed as the first-ever woman to head a major Holy See office. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Associated Press
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Pope Leo XIV makes first U.S. bishop appointment, fills San Diego vacancy
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV, history's first American pope, on Thursday made his first American bishop appointment as he named Bishop Michael Pham as bishop of San Diego, California. Pham, 58, is currently an auxiliary bishop in the diocese. He fills the vacancy created when Pope Francis named Cardinal Robert McElroy archbishop of Washington D.C. earlier this year. Pham, who was born in Da Nang, Vietnam, was ordained a priest in the San Diego diocese in 1999 and was made a bishop in 2023. He was in charge of programming for the dioceses' ethnic groups and as of March had been the main diocesan administrator. The diocese of San Diego counts about 1.3 million Catholics in a total population of about 3.5 million people, according to the U.S. Catholic bishops conference. Prior to his election May 8, the former Cardinal Robert Prevost headed the Vatican's bishops office and in that capacity would have reviewed and vetted Pham's file. In another appointment Thursday, Leo named a nun as the No. 2 in the Vatican's congregation for religious orders, a possible sign that he plans to continue Francis' efforts to promote more women to decision-making roles in the Vatican. Sister Tiziana Merletti, the former head of the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor, is a canon lawyer and now reports to Sister Simona Brambilla, whom Francis in January appointed as the first-ever woman to head a major Holy See office. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
