Shepherd&#039;s Slant

October 14, 2025

My brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus,

This past weekend pilgrims gathered at Kings Market in San Luis, Arizona to begin a solemn procession into Mexico, reflecting that people of faith transcend borders realizing and recognizing that every person is a child of God connected to every other person, likewise a child of God.

Bishop Jose Luis Cerra, newly ordained bishop of Nogales, Sonora and I spoke to the pilgrims gathered in the US on upholding the dignity of the migrant and with a call to both countries to respect the humanity and rights of people fleeing violence or simply seeking a better life for themselves and their families. As Pope Leo XIV expressed in his first Apostolic Exhortation, Dilexi te, quoting from the Vatican II document Lumen Gentium, the Church “recognizes in those who are poor and who suffer, the likeness of its poor and suffering founder.” Pope Leo reflected in this exhortation on the long tradition of the Church of working for and with migrants which continues into today, especially today when migrants and refugees are sometimes considered by some as problems and dangerous. Our role is to welcome them and treat them with respect and love.

We processed into Mexico first stopping to pray at the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and later at a memorial to migrants who lost their lives in the desert before crossing the border. The cross leading the procession was carried by each of the bishops including Bishops John Dolan (Phoenix), Alberto Rojas (San Bernardino), Gregory Gordon (Las Vegas), Felipe Pulido (San Diego), Jose Luis Cerra (Nogales) as we made our way to Immaculate Conception Church in San Luis, Rio Colorado.

Immaculate Conception was filled to capacity by those from the community and many of us who had walked into Mexico for the celebration of the Eucharist. Inside the Church all the bishops and those representing bishops (there were some bishops who could not attend) formally signed a statement that was read to the congregation on the plight of migrants in our two countries. It was a call to action to protect the rights of migrants and to treat them with the dignity and respect they deserve. Following the formal signing of the statement, Bishop Enrique Sanchez of Mexicali celebrated Mass. The statement can be found here: Binational Encuentro

The Diocese of Tucson will celebrate the Arizona Rosary Celebration at two gatherings. The first is a Holy Hour and dinner at Santa Cruz Parish on Friday, October 17th. The Holy Hour begins at 6 p.m. while the dinner is at 7:15 p.m. Tickets are $25 and seating is limited. I am grateful to Fr. Marcos Velasquez, pastor of Santa Cruz, and his community for hosting this Friday evening.

The main celebration will take place this Saturday, October 18 at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish. As always it will begin with a solemn procession from our various parishes and Marian organizations carrying banners honoring Mary. This year’s theme is Our Lady of Guadalupe. Participating in the day will be altar servers from most of our parishes along with many parishioners from across the Diocese. People will gather around 8:00 a.m. and the procession will begin at 10:00 a.m. We will pray the Rosary together and then listen to the homily for the day which will be given by our own Fr. Manu Franco O.Carm.

It is always a festive gathering and an opportunity to be together as a Diocese praying, singing, and growing in faith. I am grateful to the Knights of Columbus who sponsor this event and the committee that has worked so hard in preparing for the day as well as Fr. Ed Lucero, pastor and his community of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton for hosting the day.

I will be celebrating the Sacrament of Confirmation at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Superior, on Sunday, October 19. I look forward to joining the community as some of their young people receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and now are adults in the Church having received the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and First Communion. I am grateful to those who have been preparing them to receive the Sacrament. It is always a joy for me to confirm our young people and adults throughout the Diocese. It is inspiring to meet their catechists some of whom have been teaching religion for decades. Their ministry is such a gift.

Each year the Diocese celebrates what is called a “Red/Blue Mass” honoring and recognizing those involved in the legal profession, elected officials, law enforcement personnel. Their service to our community is exceptional and exemplary for which we are grateful. This gathering is a chance to recognize and thank them for all they do for our community.
This year’s Red/Blue Mass will be celebrated at St. Augustine Cathedral on Monday, October 20^th beginning at 5:30 pm. We will begin the evening with Mass followed by dinner including an awards ceremony recognizing someone from each of these areas for their contributions to our community.

The Thomas More Society which is an organization of Catholic lawyers and elected officials who support those in the profession, sponsor this evening. The tradition of celebrating a Red/Blue Mass goes back decades and refers to the invoking of the Holy Spirit whose gift is meant to inspire, guide and strengthen judges, lawyers, law enforcement officers and public officials and their families. This celebration happens every year.

This year we will be honoring Honorable Paul Tang, Raquel Arellano, Esq., and Officer Jeffrey Schneider.

I look forward to meeting Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of Makurdi from Fr. John Iponko’s community. Fr. Iponko is serving at Sacred Heart Parish in Parker, Az. He also serves a number of missions including Poston, Quartzsite, and Wenden. Fr. John serves all of those communities traveling by car over big distances to provide people with the Sacraments. I am grateful for all that Fr. John does on our behalf.

Today I will be meeting with Fr. Manu Franco, O.Carm., Diocesan Director of Youth Ministry, Fr. Emilio Chapa, Chaplain for the Arcoiris Youth Movement and others to discuss a youth ministry program called Arcoiris which exists in a number of our parishes. While we don’t have a diocesan wide youth program, Arcoiris and Life Teen are two youth programs prevalent in a number of our parishes.

Youth Ministry is both needed and challenging. This meeting will look at the Arcoiris movement to discuss how it is doing, what is going well and what are some of the challenges.
Arcoiris which takes place in both Spanish and English involves the young people in ministering to young people. This peer-to-peer ministry is important and very powerful in encouraging the young to get involved in the Church.

This week is the second of our priest retreats for the year. This week’s retreat master is Rev. Jeff Puttoff, S.J. Father Puttoff earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at St. Louis University, a master’s in English from Loyola University in Chicago, a Master of Divinity degree from the Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Mass., and a master’s degree in organizational dynamics from the University of Pennsylvania. He currently conducts retreats across the country. I look forward to visiting with the priests at evening prayer and supper on Thursday of this week. Our priests are required to have a retreat each year. They can do a private retreat if they choose every other year. The alternate year must be done with their brothers here in the Diocese.

Fr. Charles Keeney, a retired priest from the Diocese of Brooklyn is coming to our Diocese on Friday to fill in for Fr. Nathaniel Mma, pastor of Morenci/Clifton/Duncan while Fr. Mma is on vacation back home in Nigeria for six weeks.

Fr. Keeney is a member of the Mission Committee of The Catholic Extension Society which assists the over 80 mission dioceses, including Tucson, with grants to help support their pastoral initiatives. Fr. Keeney has been visiting and assisting in mission dioceses filling in for priests who otherwise could not go on vacation because they lack help.

This year Fr. Keeney has chosen to serve in our diocese. We welcome him and thank him for his generous service among us. Fr. Keeney has gone on a number of visits to mission dioceses. Catholic Extension Society received a significant grant from the Lilly Endowment to support priests from major dioceses to visit small, rural, mission dioceses who love the work.
Welcome, Fr. Charlie.

As always, I thank you for your support and prayers.

Yours in Christ,
Most. Rev. Gerald Kicanas