How Pope Francis changed the life of a California teen inmate

Los Angeles, Calif., Mar 5, 2016 / 04:10 pm (CNA).- When a juvenile inmate in a California prison wrote to Pope Francis, he did not expect a response.

SoCal dioceses launch drive for citizenship

Garden Grove, Calif.

Forty years ago, Alba Ramiro crossed the border to the United States, leaving Guadalajara, Mexico, to begin a new life in Southern California. An eager 13-year-old, she lived with her mother and sister in Orange County, enrolled in public school and joined a Catholic parish, with dreams of one day working for the government.

Reforma migratoria, historia de un sueño detenido en el Congreso de Estados Unidos

Estados Unidos es una nación de inmigrantes. En el país viven unos 326 millones de personas, y de ellas poco más de 55 millones son latinos o hispanos, el 17% de la población y 37 millones hablan español según datos del Centro de Estudios Pew. Pero 11 millones son indocumentados, no tienen papeles, “ilegales” según algunos que los consideran y tratan como ciudadanos de segunda categoría.

Area basketball and soccer teams find out their Regional fate

With sectional championships in the books, the CIF State office released its Southern California Regionals pairings for boys and girls basketball, as well as boys and girls soccer. Overall, there are 41 area teams that qualified for the Regionals (14 boys basketball, 15 girls basketball, five boys soccer and seven girls soccer). For basketball, the first round for the Open Division is Friday and the first round for Divisions I-V are Wednesday. The second round for Divisions I-V is Saturday. The Regional semifinals for all divisions are March 15. The Regional finals will be March 19 (at the Pyramid for the Open-D2 and at Colony High for DIII-V). The State Finals are March 24 and March 26 at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento. For soccer, the first round is Tuesday, the Regional semifinals are Thursday and the Regional finals are Saturday at host schools.

Pope replies to letter from juvenile gang member jailed in Los Angeles

Los Angeles (CNN)Convicted juvenile Carlos Adrian Vazquez Jr. lost the will to live at age 16 as he began serving an 11-year sentence for involuntary manslaughter.

La carta que el Papa Francisco escribió a este pandillero cambió su vida en prisión

LOS ÁNGELES, 04 Mar. 16 / 03:16 pm (ACI).- Carlos Adrian Vázquez Jr. tiene 18 años de edad, era pandillero, cumple una condena por homicidio involuntario y quería terminar con su propia vida. Una carta del Papa Francisco le dio un conmovedor giro a su historia.

Visiting L.A. Congress 2016 Listening in love, basking in mercy

The Religious Education Congress of the Los Angeles Archdiocese was a sunburst of sensation for two Minnesotans freshly arrived from winter. Visiting L.A. Congress for the first time, we soaked up the experience of 37,000 people in renewal during this Year of Mercy: beautiful liturgies and prayer services; soulful music; thoughtful speeches and talks; and friendly, welcoming people.

Un recluso escribió al papa y Francisco respondió

El papa respondió la carta que Carlos Adrián le escribió desde la cárcel donde cumple una condena por homicidio involuntario.

Utah catechists participate in national congress

ALT LAKE CITY —Dozens of catechists from all over the Diocese of Salt Lake City traveled to California Feb. 25-28 to attend the 60th annual Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, which had the theme “Boundless Mercy.”
Billed as “the largest annual gathering of its kind in the world,” it began as a gathering for religious education teachers, but has grown to include people of all vocations and different faiths, according to the event program.
The four-day gathering at the Anaheim Convention Center was sponsored by the Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles Office of Religious Education.

Meet the California Catholics Supporting Immigration

California’s Catholic Church, inspired by the recent comments made by Pope Francis during his U.S.-Mexico border visit, reaffirmed its support for all kinds of immigrants, both documented and undocumented. This decision was made during a summit which took place at Christ Cathedral. For immigrants in California, American citizenship will lead to a better life and Catholics will help them to do so.