Bishops, clergy: End affiliation with the Napa Institute
DATE
Bishop/Fr/Dr*** (See list of recipients at end of letter)_________________
Address______________________________________________________________
As the nation struggles with divisiveness and polarization, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops released a / your (if writing to A/B Gomez) November 7th, 2020 statement on the nation's presidential election:
"…Now is the time for our leaders to come together in a spirit of national unity and to commit themselves to dialogue and compromise for the common good…Catholics have a special duty to be peacemakers, to promote fraternity and mutual trust…"
Those words echo the words of Pope Francis in his latest encyclical Fratelli Tutti:
"…Let us dream, then, as a single human family, as fellow travelers sharing the same flesh, as children of the same earth which is our common home, each of us bringing the richness of his or her beliefs and convictions, each of us with his or her own voice, brothers and sisters all. " (8) "The path to peace does not mean making society blandly uniform, but getting people to work together, side-by-side, in pursuing goals that benefit everyone. A wide variety of practical proposals and diverse experiences can help achieve shared objectives and serve the common good…" (228) "…true peace “can be achieved only when we strive for justice through dialogue, pursuing reconciliation and mutual development." (229)
Yet at this poignant time, you serve in an advisory capacity / have given presentations (Note list of "advisors" and "presenters" at end of letter) to support Napa Institute's mission, along with other members of Church leadership. The Napa Institute is an organization where:
Events' agendas include praying the Patriotic Rosary, a prayer invoking Divine "continuance on our cause and our people" using the words of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, for a cause which was the perpetuation of slavery. (http://napa-institute.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Seventh-Annual-Napa-Institute-Conference-Schedule-7.17.17.pdf, http://www.patrioticrosary.com/patriotic-rosary.html)
A 2018 conference on the dignity of work had no voices of workers to articulate their challenges. Napa Institute's founder has stated the minimum wage acts an “anti-market regulation that leads to unemployment” and does “great harm” to workers. (https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/bad-business)
Members work with Church leadership supporting efforts to freely dismiss workers by providing contacts for representation on SCOTUS cases. In the linked video (at minute 36), Tim Busch states Archbishop Gomez came to him about Catholic school employee cases and he connected Archbishop Gomez with the Beckett Fund for Religious Liberty to represent the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Cases the Archdiocese won have far-reaching consequences nationally for employees in "religious entities,” as reported in numerous national media sources. (http://napa-institute.org/highlights/zoom-conversation-with-tim-busch-john-meyer/, https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-07-08/court-rules-catholic-schools-are-free-to-fire-teachers-who-sue-over-discrimination)
Philosophical underpinnings view the future of the Church and reform hinging on apostolates, as the founder of Napa Institute stated during the 2020 online conference, instead of Pope Francis' call for synodality.
In-person events are held at exclusive resorts, with associated food, amenities and activities, far from venues where, as Pope Francis says, one could "smell like the sheep."
Conference fees for in-person events are usually thousands of dollars.
Programming features speakers lacking diversity of voices in the Church, society and politics necessary for a discussion on the common good.
A conference on "woke capitalism” hosted speakers questioning the authenticity of the civil rights movement. (http://napa-institute.org/highlights/tim-busch-on-woke-capitalism/, http://napa-institute.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Virtual-Conference-Schedule-Updated-8.13.2020v2.pdf)
Conference speakers and panelists articulate the COVID-19 closing of churches, businesses, and events as problems resulting from "big government,” arguing that more closings should be expected if progressives expand influence in society, as in Bishop Paprocki's remarks at the 2020 Conference.
Defensive posture without dialogue about the common good characterizes message, events and videos. A YouTube video exemplifies that perspective with an interview of The Benedict Option author on November 5th, 2020
Given the nature, message and objectives of the Napa Institute, I ask that you reconsider and dismiss your affiliation / participation with this organization. To work for the common good, may your leadership transition to convey an essence of solidarity and dialogue with the broader Church and society to promote our nation's healing and reconciliation.
Sincerely,
(your name)
(your mailing and/or email address)
Recipients with advisory leadership representation for Napa Institute:
Bishop Vasa, Diocese of Santa Rosa
985 Airway Ct
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
Bishop Vann, Diocese of Orange
13280 Chapman Ave
Garden Grove, CA 92840
(Note: No longer on advisory board but Napa Institute online conferences taped at diocesan campus studio of EWTN and founder of Napa Institute said Bishop Vann "approved" all material for the 2020 summer conference and supports work of Napa Institute.)
Fr. Robert Spitzer, Co-founder and President of Napa Institute
% Magis Center
Christ Cathedral Tower-Ninth Floor, 13280 Chapman Ave
Garden Grove, CA 92840
Dr Timothy Gray, President of Augustine Institute
6160 S Syracuse Way, Suite 310
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
Archbishop José Gomez, Archdiocese of Los Angeles and President of USCCB
3424 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90010-2241
Archbishop Aquila, Archdiocese of Denver
1300 S Steele St
Denver, CO 80210
Archbishop Coakley, Archdiocese of Oklahoma City
7501 Northwest Expy
Oklahoma City, OK 73132
Archbishop Cordileone, Archdiocese of San Francisco
1 Peter Yorke Way
San Francisco, CA 94109
Bishop Barber, Diocese of Oakland
2121 Harrison St #100
Oakland, CA 94612
Recipients with participation at Napa Institute-affiliated conferences, as speakers and panelists:
Bishop Steven Lopes, Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter
PO Box 55206
Houston, TX 77255
Bishop Paprocki, Diocese of Springfield
1615 West Washington St.
Springfield, Illinois 62702-4757
Bishop David Ricken, Diocese of Green Bay
1825 Riverside Dr
Green Bay, WI 54301
Fr. Michael Gaitley
The Marians of the Immaculate Conception
Eden Hill
Stockbridge, MA 01263
Fr. Francis Hoffman, Executive Director Relevant Radio
1496 Bellevue Street, Suite 202
Green Bay, WI 54311
Bishop Barron, Auxiliary Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Santa Barbara Pastoral Region
3240 Calle Pinon
Santa Barbara, CA 93105
Bishop Coffey, Auxiliary Archdiocese of Military Service
1025 Michigan Ave NE
Washington, DC 20017
Bishop Conley, Diocese of Lincoln
3400 Sheridan Blvd
Lincoln, NE 68506
Bishop Daly, Diocese of Spokane
525 E Mission Ave
Spokane, WA 99202
Bishop Freyer, Auxiliary Diocese of Orange
13280 Chapman Ave
Garden Grove, CA 92840
