Editor’s note: The author of this article has previously worked for CatholicVote as a blogger and as a field officer for their 2020 voter mobilization campaign in Michigan.
(LifeSiteNews) — According to CatholicVote president Brian Burch, the Los Angeles Dodgers are turning a deaf ear to what Catholics have to say about honoring The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.
In remarks to Fox News Digital last week, Burch said that he spoke to a high-level executive with the franchise after first sending them a letter requesting a phone call or a meeting. He wanted to know if he should put on hold his planned $1 million ad buy encouraging Catholics to boycott the team.
“I said, ‘Well, if there’s still a chance that you might reconsider your decision, please let me know, and we will withhold the ad campaign,'” Burch commented. “[He] said [he] cannot do that. I asked when we would be able to talk next, and he said in the next couple of weeks — maybe even after Pride night. And so that seems to me to be a signal that they are obstinate in their decision to go forward to celebrate an anti-Catholic hate group.”
CatholicVote President @BrianBurchCV on @FoxNews to discuss the @Dodgers scandal pic.twitter.com/OHtAJ0YHlf
— CatholicVote (@CatholicVote) June 2, 2023
Based in Madison, Wisconsin, CatholicVote is the largest Catholic advocacy group in the United States. It was founded in 2005 by Burch and former Congressional staffer Josh Mercer, who lives in Michigan. The lay-led organization seeks to “inspire every Catholic in America to live out the truths of our faith in public life.”
Several Major League Baseball players have expressed disagreement with the franchise, including Dodgers pitchers Clayton Kershaw and Blake Treinen. Washington Nationals pitcher Trevor Williams, a devout Catholic, also rebuked the team in a statement released on Twitter.
“To invite and honor a group that makes a blatant and deeply offensive mockery of my religion … undermines the values of respect and inclusivity that should be upheld by any organization,” he said.
Asked by Fox for reaction to Burch’s claims, Dodgers senior director of public relations Joe Jareck said the organization has no comment.
“The Dodgers front office is not listening to their fans or to Christian people across the country, including now their own players,” Burch said.
Many Catholic bishops have also denounced the team. Former Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron, who now serves as the head of the Diocese of Winona, Minnesota, has called on Catholics to boycott the franchise. San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone wrote an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal on June 1 arguing that Catholics in California are now “under attack.”
On Friday, June 16, Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland will participate in a Eucharistic procession to Dodgers Stadium in reparation for the Pride Night game, which is slated for June 15. The main organizer of this event is Virgin Most Powerful Radio. The procession is also being sponsored by several other Catholic groups, including LifeSiteNews, Catholics for Catholics, America Needs Fatima, and CatholicVote. LifeSite co-founder John-Henry Westen will also be present and is scheduled to address the crowd. Click here to learn how you can attend.
BREAKING!! Bishop Joseph Strickland confirms to C4C that he will join all the prayerful procession in LA June 16th! God Bless this Shepherd! @Bishopoftylerhttps://t.co/a3Vcxaf2DY pic.twitter.com/C3LY6C5e2E
— Catholics for Catholics (@CforCatholics) June 3, 2023
The Dodgers relocated from Brooklyn, New York to California in the 1950s. They have been one of the most successful teams in MLB history with a total of seven World Series titles. They are currently owned by Guggenheim Baseball Management, a consortium of individuals that includes basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson of Los Angeles Lakers fame. Front office personnel include Mark Walter (owner and chairman), Steve Kasten (president & CEO), Andrew Friedman (president of baseball operations), and Lon Rosen (executive vice president and chief marketing officer).
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