INDIANAPOLIS—The U.S. bishops voted on and approved a number of items including, establishing a permanent
Committee for Religious Liberty and the revised Guidelines for the Celebration of the
Sacraments with Persons with Disabilities, during their Spring General Assembly in Indianapolis, June
14.

The bishops voted to approve
establishing a permanent Committee for Religious Liberty. The proposal received
a vote of 132 votes in favor, 53 votes against and 5 abstaining. The USCCB’s
Committee for Religious Liberty seeks to strengthen and sustain religious
freedom by assisting the U.S. bishops, individually and collectively, to teach
about religious freedom to the faithful and the broader public, and to promote
and defend religious freedom in law and policy.

The revised Guidelines
for the Celebration of the Sacraments with Persons with Disabilities were approved
by a 180-1-0 vote. The document is a revision of an earlier version, last
updated in 1995. These new Guidelines
take into account medical and technological innovations of recent years, and
emphasize the importance of the inclusion of all members of parishes. While not
legislative in nature, they will be a helpful resource for dioceses and
parishes. This vote required support of the majority of the Latin Church
members of the USCCB.

The bishops also voted
178-3-0 in favor of a new translation of the Order of Blessing the Oil of Catechumens and of the Sick and of
Consecrating the Chrism. This brief ritual is used each year at the Chrism
Mass, which is celebrated during Holy Week in most dioceses. This vote also
requires a two-thirds vote of the Latin Church members of the USCCB with
subsequent confirmation by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the
Discipline of the Sacraments.

The Bendicional: Sexta
Parte, a collection of blessings in Spanish for use in the United States,
which will complement English texts already included in the Book of Blessings. The proposal received
171 votes in favor, 2 votes against and 2 abstaining, falling short of the
required two-thirds vote of the Latin Church members of the USCCB. Therefore,
the voting will be completed by mail ballot with the Latin Rite bishops who are
not present. After passing, it also requires subsequent recognitio by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the
Discipline of the Sacraments.

The U.S. bishops’ Spring General Assembly is livestreamed
and available at: www.usccb.org/about/leadership/usccb-general-assembly/index.cfm.

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Keywords:
USCCB, U.S. bishops, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, June meeting, Spring
General Assembly, Indianapolis, Ad-Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty,
Sacraments, persons with disabilities, Oil, Chrism, Bendicional

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Norma Montenegro Flynn
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Source:: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops