South Texas Catholic (Corpus Christi, Tex.), Vol. 19, No. 16, Ed. 1 Friday, October 14, 1983 Page: 3 of 16
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State and Local
Page 3
a jk
Laredo priest arrested, receives probation
Transporting illegal aliens
By Kerrie Clos
STC staff writer
A Laredo pa.r>tor, who said his cons-
cience was “caught between the laws of
man and the laws of God,” was arrested
Sept. 29 for transporting 13 illegal aliens
from Laredo to Corpus Christi,
Father Thomas Davis, pastor of St.
Francis Xavier Cabrini Church in
Laredo, and a parish secretary were
stopped by U.S, Border Patrol agents
approximately 10 miles west of Freer on
U.S. Highway 59.
Father Davis pleaded guilty Oct. 4 to
transporting aliens, including seven
Nicaraguans and six Guatamalans, in
two cars to Corpus Christ!.
He and his secretary , Maria Elena
Requejo, were sentenced to one year
probation hv U.S, Magistrate Marcel
C Notzon.
“I felt we had a special obligation to
help these people because the majority
of them were women and children,”
Father Davis said in a telephone inter-
view with the South Texas Catholic.
He said prior to heading to Corpus
Christi with the aliens, the 13
Nicaraguans and Guatamalans had
been staying in rooms at the parish.
“I had a certain appienhension
(about transporting them) because of the
law ,” he said. “But my compassion and
concern about these people was greater.
You have to do something as a Chris-
tian,
“We're caught between the Iav^s of
man and the laws of God, and I those
the laws of God, We couldn’t jus tell
them to get lost. They came here with
absolutely nothing. It cost them $3.0 a
person—even for the babies—to tome
across the border. We just took a
chance.”
Bishop Rene Gracida, who was in
Rome for a papal v isit at the time o the
arrest, tailed Father Davis’ action “a
serious mistake of judgment. ”
“We the church do not transport un-
documented aliens and l think Faiher
Davis made a serious mistake of judg-
ment in transporting these 13 aliens,”
he said.
The policy of the Catholic Church in
the United States is to refrain from
transporting undocumented aliens any
distance “whatsoever because the law is
so clear on that prohibition,” said
Bishop Gracida, who is vice president of
the American Immigration and Citizen-
ship Conference.
“It is a mistake to transport them
because '“bile the Immigration and
Naturalization Service may refrain from
entering our ecclesiastical buildings to
search for undocumented aliens,” the
bishop told the South Texas Catholic,
“they have never failed to vigorously
enforce the law with regard to transpor-
ting aliens.
“Therefore, I would not want anyone
in this diocese transporting aliens,” he
continued. “It is a dangerous, counter-
productive activity to engage in.”
He added that he is “pleased” to
know there are people in the diocese
Father Thomas Davis
willing to help people without regard to
their citizenship.
“VVhile I do not approve of what he
(Father Davis) did,” he said, “I fully
understand why he did it.”
(See PRIEST, pg. 6)
Bishop Gracida to ordain permanent deacons
CORPUS CHRISTI-After three
years of preparation, members of the
largest class ever to study for the per-
manent diaconate in the diocese will
be ordained deacons by Bishop Rene
Gracida Oct. 15,
Nineteen men from across the
diocese will be ordained to the Holy
Order of Permanent Deacon during a
ceremony in the Go' -mm Christi
Cathedral beginning at noon tomor-
row.
Twenty-four men began the
diaconal study program in October
1980, Their formation included
courses in dogma, spirituality,
catechetics, church history, moral
theology, canon law, liturgy and
counseling techniques.
After ordination, Bishop Gracida
will assign the permanent deacons to
a parish where they will serve under a
pastor. Permanent deacons extend
pastoral ministry much like an assis-
tant pastor does.
However, permanent deacons can-
not say Mass, hear confessions or
anoint the sick—functions reserved to
priests.
The future deacons and their home
parishes are: Tony Barbour, Our
Lady of Good Counsel, Kingsville;
Manuel Carranco, Our Lady of Vic-
tory, Beeville; Domingo Castillo, St.
James, Beeville; Michael de Shetler,
St, Pius X, Corpus Christi; Emery J.
Janice, Ss. Cyril and Methodius,
Corpus Christi; Antonio S. Lara,
Sacred Heart, Mathis; Adolfo
Munguia Sr,, St. Joseph, Corpus
Christi; Reynaldo Rodriquez Jr., St,
Therese, the Li’tle Flower,
Woodsboro.
Others are Anton L. Smerke, Our
Lady of Mt. Carmel, Portland;
George F, Smith, Our Lady Star of
the Sea, Corpus Christi; Lupe C.
Vasquez, Ss. Cyril and Methodius,
Corpus Christi: Jerre H. Ledbetter,
Sacred Heart, Rockport; Armando
Botello, St. Joseph, Alice; Ciprian
Martinez, Sacred Heart, Rockport;
Zaragosa P. Morales, Immaculate
Conception, Skidmore; Gonzalo
Rivera, Sacred Heart, Falfurrias;
Stanley Millsap, Most Precious
Blood, Corpus Christi; Frank
Valdepcna, St. Joseph, Alice and
Julio D. Hernandez, Corpus Christi
Cathedral.
r Catholic
Vol. XIX, No. 16
The official newspaper
of the
Diocese of Corpus Christi
Bishop Thomas J. Drury
Publisher Emeritus
Bishop Rene H. Gracida
Publisher
Joe Michael Feist
Editor and Business Manager
Kerrie Cloi Salo Otero
Staff writers
Mary Turner
Cmulation/A dvertis ing
Member of
Catholic Press Association
NC News Service
Published 45 times a year by the Diocese
of Corpus Christi. Price 17.00,
Address all communications to: South
Texas Catholic, 620 Lipan St., Corpus
Christ*, TX 78401. Phone 512 882-6191.
Second class postage paid, U.S. Post Of-
fice, Corpus Christi. Texas. USPS —
540-8601.
Christ the King
This statue of Christ the King has been placed in front
of the new Christ the King Retreat Center in San
Angelo. The $1.6 million retreat center, buiU by the
Diocese of San Angelo, was recently completed and
will be dedicated on Sunday, Nov. 6, 1983, It is the
only retreat center in the Diocese and answers a long-
felt need of the Catholics in West Texas.
The statue is the work of Sister Mary Peter Tre-
monte, O.P. Sister Mary Peter is an internationally-
known artist and sculptor. She is a member of the
Houston Congregation of the Dominican Sisters and
has a studio (Studio Dominico) in San Antonio.
The life-size bronze statue was cast in Italy from
Sister Mary Peter's original design. (Photo courtesy
of the West Tcxa* Angclus)
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Feist, Joe Michael. South Texas Catholic (Corpus Christi, Tex.), Vol. 19, No. 16, Ed. 1 Friday, October 14, 1983, newspaper, October 14, 1983; Corpus Christi, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth840836/m1/3/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .