Be a voice for the voiceless.
Exercise your citizenship as a Roman Catholic voter.
On April 27th, the Bishops of California are leading the 12th annual Catholic Lobby Day at the State Capitol.
I went last year and it was amazing!!! Thousands gathered in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. We heard speakers on each of the pieces of pending legislation. We celebrated Mass. We processed two blocks over to the State Capitol building and held a rally on the front steps. Then we had box lunches on the lawn, and then split up into groups of 30-45 to attend appointments with our own representatives. Many youth and young adults were there as well as older folks. Many diocese brought representatives of the very people affected most by the legislation. Very instructive and inspiring day!
Gather at 9:30am at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, 1017 11th St, Sacramento.
For registration and more information, click on “12th Annual Catholic Lobby Day” at the website of the California bishops: http://www.cacatholic.org/
Here are the California issues that will be raised with our representatives with a link to the Bishops' fact sheet so you can understand the issues and the Catholic Church position.
AB 1642 Food Stamps -- simplify the food stamp process by moving the frequency of reports to every six months instead of once a quarter
SB 399 Youth Sentencing -- after between 10 and 25 years of incarceration, allow for the review and resentencing of some youth who were sentenced to life without parole for crimes committed before the age of 18
SB 1460 Dream Act -- allow California high school graduates who have been accepted into a
California college —both U.S. citizens and undocumented “AB 540” students—to apply for state financial aid
State Budget -- Cuts will have to be made, but we and they must remember that those who are most vulnerable, those who are poor and in need in our communities have the greatest moral claim on our attention and resources
Be an informed, Catholic voter: take the time to understand in depth our Bishops' position -- and then decide for yourself how to contact your own representative about the issue. All of these issues are complex and go well beyond the overly simplistic "sound bites" regularly reported by the media.
“The poor you will always have with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them . . .” – Mark 14:7a
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