Baton Rouge bishop suspends Mass obligation due to ICE crackdown

Amid immigration detention sweeps in Louisiana (part of an ongoing nationwide campaign by the Trump administration), Bishop Michael G. Duca of Baton Rouge has issued a dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass for those concerned for their safety. The dispensation, announced in a December 4th statement, applies to Sundays and holy days of obligation, and remains “valid until the individual Catholic determines it is safe to attend Mass again or this dispensation is revoked or amended.” He said that “those who choose to stay at home should gather as a family and spend time in prayer to keep the Lord’s Day holy.”