Denver Catholic

6 I World/Nation June 19, 2013 I Denver Catholic Register Pueblo bishop resigns due to poor health PUEBLO, Colo. (CNA/EWTN News)— Pope Francis announced on June 13 that he accepted the early resignation of Bishop Fernando Isern of Pueblo, Colo., effective that day, due to poor health and for the good of the local Church. "In a spirit of prayerful reflection, the bishop recognized that his health may be an obstacle for the growth of the diocese," a source within the Diocese of Pueblo told Catholic News Agency. "He chose to resign in order to entrust his flock to a man with the strength and energy necessary to be an effective shepherd." Bishop Isern was the fourth bishop of Pueblo, and has shepherded the diocese since December 2009. He is 54 years old. Canon law "earnestly requests" that "a diocesan bishop who has become less able to fulfill his office because of ill health" present early resignation from his office. The normal retirement age for bishops is 75. "For some time I have had health concerns that have made it increasingly difficult for me to remain in office as shepherd of this diocese," Bishop Isern wrote in a letter to the Pueblo diocese CNA photo Bishop Fernando Isern June 13. "Out of love for the Church and for the people I have served here, I have discerned it is best for me to step down." The bishop's episcopal motto is "The love of Christ urges us on." That love, he wrote, "will always lead me to place my life at the disposal of the will of God and of My Mother, the Church." He asked that the people of Pueblo welcome his successor as warmly Appeal From Page 3 death penalty this spring, she also aided Republicans who opposed same-sex civil unions. "I would love it if the Legislature were to show more bipartisanship on issues that should not be partisan," Kraska said. "This session was incredibly partisan, to the point that I was shocked and disappointed." She hoped this year to have some Democratic support when she lobbied for language in the civil unions bill that would have protected an important branch of the Church. Catholic Charities arranges adoptions and foster care, placing children only with heterosexual married couples. The Colorado Catholic Conference pushed for language that would protect the religious doctrines upheld by Catholic Charities. The Illinois state government quit licensing Catholic Charities and other agencies that refused to place children with same-sex couples. Without protections in the civil unions law, Colorado could do the same. "I was amazed that we could not get one Democrat—not one—to support our proposed protections for Catholic Charities," Kraska said. "That's what happens when everything becomes strictly partisan." Going forward, after improving the futures of children with immigration problems, the Colorado Catholic Conference will continue its crusade to defend the value and dignity of all human life. The conference plans to fight abortion and will continue pushing for laws to establish greater punishments for crimes that harm unborn children. as they welcomed him, and that "you continue to pray for me as I take up this cross that Christ has seen fit for me to carry." Bishop Isern was born in 1958 in Havana, Cuba. The following year, communist forces under Fidel Castro seized control of the nation, and his family went into exile in 1963. They went first to Venezuela, and then settled in Miami in 1967. After studying business at university, he later entered the seminary for the Miami Archdiocese. He was ordained a priest for the Miami Archdiocese in 1993, and served there as a pastor, chaplain, and high school president, until he was appointed bishop of Pueblo in 2009. He was consecrated a bishop on Dec. 10 of that year by Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., who was archbishop of Denver at the time. While ordinary of the diocese, Bishop Isern instituted perpetual adoration at the Shrine of Saint Thérèse, and made pastoral visits to each of the 53 parishes and 44 missions of the Diocese of Pueblo. A farewell reception for the bishop will be held June 25 at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. The Pueblo diocese was erected in 1941, and serves some 121,000 Catholics, who are about 18 percent of the population of the diocese. 2013 Archbishop's Catholic Appeal What: Donations to support the archdiocesan Church Online: www.archden.org/donate Mail: 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 Questions: Call 303-715-3111 or email joann.baca@archden.org "Even though the Colorado Catholic Conference is made up of the bishops of the state, we depend a great deal on the executive director. Jennifer Kraska is a gem," Bishop Sheridan said. Wayne Laugesen: WayneLaugesen www.twitter.com/

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