Bishop Pham to his new San Diego flock: ‘Serve all people without discrimination’

Huong Pham the oldest of four sisters spoke in Vietnamese to a threshold crowd Thursday seats at St Th r se of Carmel Parish in Carmel Valley After seeing her brother Michael Pham installed as the seventh bishop of San Diego she described a very caring gentle down-to-earth person It s wonderful she narrated Times of San Diego We feel lucky of this day Everyone should pray for Bishop and pray for our family Almost two months after becoming Pope Leo XIV s first choice for a new American bishop Pham smiled throughout majority of of a -minute Mass and cracked a scant jokes But as a leading Catholic activist for immigrant rights amid ICE raids and courthouse arrests Pham used his -minute homily to stress a goal of social justice Citing John s Gospel of the good shepherd laying down his life for his sheep Pham declared In serving others this requires daily dying The nation s first Vietnamese-American bishop revealed We pray that the Holy Spirit gives us the strength and courage to take on the task to serve all people without discrimination especially the poor the homeless the immigrants the refugees the refugees and the voiceless His multi-ethnic and ecumenical audience recited a responsorial prayer with parts in Spanish Tagalog Vietnamese and English Songs throughout the organization also included lyrics in more than one language And his remarks at the -minute Mass repeated themes of diversity We too are sent by Jesus to bring the same spirit of love to the world filled with division and hatred through our progressing participation in justice and peace in forgiveness and reconciliation actualized now in the Eucharist he disclosed in a -minute homily Besides parish priests nuns and Pham s family including parents celebrants included Cardinal Robert McElroy the archbishop of Washington returning to his old diocese and apostolic nuncio Christophe Pierre the cardinal representing the Vatican Also attending were Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles and Jos Gomez archbishop of Los Angeles the nation s largest Catholic society Pham s flock numbers nearly million A small contingent of San Diego police attended as well sitting in different locations at a church Police Chief Scott Wahl attends as his home parish At the invitation-only operation that drew Imam Taha Hassane of the Islamic Center of San Diego and Rabbi Jason Nevarez of Congregation Beth Israel dozens of people lined up to give Pham hugs and share animated exchanges Ever since Cardinal McElroy left for Washington we three amigos Bishops Ram n Felipe and I have been running the show here in San Diego together Cardinal McElroy has taught us well he explained and then sparked laughter We haven t broken anything yet He reported he and the church were sent by Jesus to bring the same spirit of love to the world filled with division and hatred through our current participation in justice and peace in forgiveness and reconciliation In a livestreamed video of the event seen by thousands Pham mentioned peace is accomplishable only when there is justice Justice also requires love and compassion he revealed We are challenged to live justly and bring justice to our society as we are mindful of our sisters and brothers who are being neglected who are being thrown away on the side of the road and who are incapable of defending themselves And so it begins where we are in our local areas He noted true social justice exists only when all sisters and brothers are treated with dignity and respect In this day politics and social interactions shouldn t focus exclusively on differences but rather on the common good of the people Pham noted Pentecost and the first reading from The Acts of the Apostles where people spoke in different languages and yet they understood each other As our Pope Francis pointed out to us listening is the pivotal key to creating synodality in our church he stated Only by listening to the word of God and to each other can we be guided by the Holy Spirit to right the injustices created in in the current era s world due to our human flaws and thus achieve peace Cardinal Pierre read a message from Pope Leo who noted that McElroy has not been forgotten by San Diego sparking laughter Bishop Pham you are well-equipped for this vocation stated Leo s personal message You have clearly shown a genuine zeal as well as skill in what pertains both to pastoral demands and administration After being read the pontiff s official decree made May Pham recited his pledge With faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and with the love of God in my heart I do accept the pastoral care of the people of God in the Diocese of San Diego I resolve to serve faithfully the spiritual requirements of this local church At Michael Pham s installation in San Diego the first Vietnamese-American bishop notes his height like a Yoda in Star Wars Ken Stone kenstonemedia bsky social - - T Z Pham then held aloft the decree an opened scroll as he made his way up and down aisles of the church At the end of his homily Pham spoke briefly in Vietnamese and Spanish Then he took a lighter turn noting his height perhaps a little over feet You may be used to seeing a tall bishop and cardinal at the lead he disclosed to laughter But now you can envision before you a shorter bishop like Yoda in Star Wars getting ready to lead Whether we are tall or short figuratively or literally we all are called to be bearers of hope and beacons of good news to peace justice and love for all