Who is Archbishop Jose Gomez? Catholic priest wants Joe Biden to 'repent' for backing marriage equality, abortion
Following an exorcist pastor's recent claims that the Democrats are in "league with the devil" to win the elections, Roman Catholic leaders are now concerned about the Democrats' policies that could allegedly create "confusion" about the Church teachings. The concern came to light after former vice-president Joe Biden emerged as the president-elect.
During a meeting of the Bishops in the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Los Angeles, Archbishop Jose Gomez said that an organization has now been formed to respond to some of the worries the Archbishops had towards the policies that Biden could bring in. "The president-elect has given us reason to believe that his faith commitments will move him to support some good policies. This includes policies of immigration reform, refugees and the poor, and against racism, the death penalty, and climate change," Archbishop Gomez said in the virtual session that took place on Tuesday, November 17.
''He has also given us reason to believe that he will support policies that are against some fundamental values that we hold dear as Catholics. These policies include: the repeal of the Hyde Amendment and the preservation of Roe vs. Wade. Both of these policies undermine our preeminent priority of the elimination of abortion," he continued. The Archbishop then spoke on various strategies and plans such as "the restoration of the HHS mandate" and "the passage of the Equality Act" about which he and the other leaders were alarmed over. "These policies pose a serious threat to the common good. Whenever any politicians supports them," he added. "When politicians who profess the Catholic faith support them, there are additional problems. It creates confusion with the faithful about what the church actually teaches on these questions."
CatholicVote.org, an anti-Biden campaign which was active during and before the elections, also supported Archbishop Gomez's statements and said in a statement, "CatholicVote fully agrees with @USCCB President Abp. Gomez's assessment that many of Joe Biden policies creates "confusion among the faithful" and "pose a serious threat to the common good."
CatholicVote fully agrees with @USCCB President Abp. Gomez's assessment that many of Joe Biden policies creates "confusion among the faithful" and "pose a serious threat to the common good."
— CatholicVote.org (@CatholicVote) November 19, 2020
According to his official website, Archbishop Gomez was born in Mexico and later became a citizen of the United States of America. He is known for his conservative statements. Archbishop Gomez is an avid supporter of the policies related to immigrant rights and refers to immigration reforms as an issue of "conscience" and "national identity". He does not support the "death penalty" and supports ending it in both, California and the country. ''In opposing the death penalty we are witnessing to the sanctity of life. We are saying that even the most sinful and guilty lives are precious to God and should not be taken by others," he said.
He strongly opposes abortion and euthanasia in the Catholic culture in America, and has a very strong opinion against it. ''The fundamental injustice in our society is the killing of innocent unborn life through abortion and the killing of the sick and defenseless through euthanasia and assisted suicide," he says on his website. He has described America as a nation that is "pulling apart" and is becoming "increasingly divided by money, privilege and social class interest".
Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler also urged Biden to "repent" for deviating from Catholic teachings in his support of policies concerning abortion and marriage. "He aspires to the highest office in our land & must be guided by the truth God has revealed to us. I pray for him to find Truth."