WHAT IS THE DIOCESE OF BROWNSVILLE?

MAY 24, 2008

Recently we celebrated Pentecost, which has often been described as the birthday of the Church. Jesus founded one Church, and this church is formed by the communion of believers throughout the world. Yet, for the purpose of organization, the universal Church is divided up into jurisdictional areas known as dioceses or particular churches.

Our particular church in the Valley is the Diocese of Brownsville. I would like to tell you a few things about it, because I sense that perhaps many people, while they know it exists, may not know how the diocese serves the local church and maintains unity with the successor of Peter.

When most Catholics and other Christians think of “church”, they think primarily about their neighborhood community of faith. Catholics know, too, that they belong not just to a local parish church, but also to the “one, holy catholic, and apostolic” Church under the universal jurisdiction of the Roman pontiff. Catholics also know that they have a local bishop. For Catholics everywhere, the pope is their pope, and the local bishop is their bishop. What is a diocese, though?

The word derives from the Latin language, and it means “jurisdiction”. This word, in turn, was derived from a Greek word meaning to “administer” or “keep house”. The word “diocese” was used by the government of the Roman Empire as part of its territorial organization, and when Christianity was made legal in 313 A. D., the Church adopted the familiar word for her own organizational purposes. A diocese, then, is a church in a particular local area, whose life and activity are overseen by a bishop.

The Diocese of Brownsville is comprised of the four counties of the Lower Rio Grande Valley: Cameron, Willacy, Hidalgo, and Starr. The central offices of the Diocese of Brownsville are located in two pastoral centers, one in Brownsville and the other in San Juan.

What does a bishop and his diocesan offices do? A bishop, who is a successor to the Twelve Apostles, exercises important kinds of authority. Since in the church all authority is for service, it is better to say the bishop offer three forms of service. He represents Christ the priest, prophet, and king (or shepherd). The bishop’s three “works of service”, then, are to be: first, a shepherd who cares for the spiritual and material needs of the people. Second, he is a priest who is chiefly responsible for the sanctification of the faithful, principally through the sacraments. Third, he is the chief teacher who insures that the message of salvation is faithfully proclaimed. To meet these demands, he needs the assistance of others, and that is where the various diocesan offices, agencies, and institutions come in. The Diocese of Brownsville, not counting parishes or parish employees, currently has a staff of over 330 employees.

The various offices of the Diocese form what is called its curia. The curia is divided into secretariats, which in turn are divided into various offices. The Secretariat for Administrative Services is comprised of the following offices: Development, Information Systems, Human Resources, Maintenance, Finance, Insurance, Retirement and Pensions, Building and Property, and Diocesan Relations (with the media and entities external to the Diocese).

The Secretariat for Clergy and Religious Life is comprised of these offices: Episcopal Vicar for Priests, Priests’ Retirement Home, Permanent Deacons, Diocesan Seminary, Vocations, Director of Seminarians, and the Vicar for Religious.

The Secretariat for Evangelization has these offices: Family Life, Propagation of the Faith, Apostleship of the Sea, Communications, Missions, Basilica Ministry, Ecumenism, programs for the new evangelization such as Disciples in Mission, and the Rites of Christian Initiation of Adults.

The Secretariat for Education and Formation has these offices and ministries: the San Juan Diego Ministry Institute (to form laity for service in the church), Youth and Young Adult Ministry, Campus Ministry, Catechesis (Religious Instruction), Deaf Ministry, Media Resource Center and Library, Liturgy and Worship, and Catholic Schools.

The Secretariat for Health Ministries provides these services: Hospital chaplains and Pro-Life Ministry; it also serves as the bishop’s liaison to the  San Juan Nursing Home, Mother of Perpetual Help Nursing Home, Comfort House, St. Luke’s Guild, Holy Family Birthing Center, St. Rosa Clinic, and the Community Hope, Health Task Force.

The Secretariat for Catholic Charities serves these functions: Catholic Social Services, Catholic Campaign for Human Development, Catholic Relief Services, Ministry to the Detention Centers (jails and prisons), Migrant, Immigration and Refugee Services, Church in Latin America (assistance); it also serves as the bishop’s liaison to El Rosario Homes and La Merced Homes, the Saint Vincent de Paul Society, Project Arise, and the Ozanam Center for homeless persons.

In addition to these pastoral and administrative services, the Diocese provides ecclesial judicial services to the parishes and the people of the Valley Church. The Diocesan Canon Lawyers help preserve unity and order in the Church, and directly and indirectly address the needs of the people in regard to the law of the church. The civil lawyers in the employment of the Diocese help represent the diocese in relations with external entities, and insure that all the Church does is in accord with the law of the land.

All the Diocesan services listed above are made possible by the Catholic faithful, through their sacrificial giving to their local parishes. Each parish contributes to the diocese 11% of the donations it receives, so that the Diocese may fund its many operations, which in turn provide vital services to the parishes and to all God’s people. I’m proud of the dedicated people who have committed themselves to faithfully serve in our many diocesan offices and institutions, and I thank the people of the Valley for their generous contributions; they make these forms of service possible.

+Bishop Raymundo J. Peña

last updated 05-Jun-2008 9:48 sitemap