(LifeSiteNews) — San Antonio Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller has again taken to social media, issuing a series of infelicitous posts that characterize president-elect Donald Trump as a “tyrant” while laying blame for violent tragedies on Trump’s rhetoric.
In a now-deleted post on X, García-Siller nonsensically proclaimed, “Thanks be to God that trump (sic) is not God. Thanks be God for ever!”
That post was preceded by a fusillade of troubling “tweets.”
Following the news that the New Year’s celebration in New Orleans’ French Quarter had become a scene of human carnage after a terrorist deemed by the FBI to be a radical Islamist plowed into crowded Bourbon Street, killing 15 and injuring many more, the archbishop wrote on X: “The killing today is the result of words and actions that leaders have demonstrated in our recent history. We should not blame others. We need to take responsibility. We need civil discourse and lots of humility and charity.”
Many saw the prelate’s words – often delivered in error-prone English – as blaming the victim rather than the evil terrorist perpetrator.
“By this same logic, ‘She shouldn’t have tempted her rapist by wearing such a skimpy outfit,’” and ‘She shouldn’t have talked back to her abusive boyfriend,’” noted the Lepanto Institute, an organization dedicated to defending the Catholic Church.
“When are we going to hold people accountable for the crimes they commit and stop making excuses for why they commit them?” the Lepanto Institute asked.
“The victims are to blame, then,” concluded Rorate Caeli, a traditional Catholic blog.
“It’s not the Muslim terrorist’s fault. Maybe it’s the fault of his Catholic victims such as Mr. Gauthreaux, 21, alumnus of Archbishop Shaw High, in Louisiana,” Rorate Caeli added, above a heartbreaking photo, brief bio of and prayer for a young man killed in the attack.
The victims are to blame, then.
It’s not the Muslim terrorist’s fault. Maybe it’s the fault of his Catholic victims such as Mr. Gauthreaux, 21, alumnus of Archbishop Shaw High, in Louisiana. pic.twitter.com/yngIzGk8Qr
— Rorate Caeli (@RorateCaeli) January 2, 2025
The San Antonio prelate then doubled down on his defaming aspersions, as reported by Catholic Culture:
On the evening of January 2, Archbishop García-Siller returned to X, tweeting (8:59 PM), “Narcissism should NOT be celebrated. Humility, kindness & respect should be our identity. Forget about greatness, lies and stupidness. We should search for truth, honesty, and what is good and right. We don’t find this in our Government. One person does not represent who we are.”
He then tweeted (9:34 PM), “Do we want peace! Stop all this tyrant words and actions. We want peace! Change your attitude. Attitude does good things if you truly want. Do you want peace? Christ can help you! He is the Prince of Peace! God, God, God.”
After criticizing “one person” and a “tyrant,” the prelate explicitly criticized President-elect Trump and linked him to “these tragedies” – presumably “tragedies” like the terrorist attack in New Orleans.
Archbishop García-Siller tweeted at 9:51 PM, “Why these tragedies? Because elect president’s words in the last few years … If we trigger actions … what do we want? If the leadership speak about hate, we will’ve hate. Hate. If we have actions of love ,we’ll love. Some people does not want to love. They have a problem. Big … ”
Then in a final unfortunate and ill-advised post, the archbishop seemed to be placing blame for the recent tragic deaths not only on Trump but on those who voted for him:
We follow God’s & the US Constitution which follows life values.We’re against those who think & feel that there’re better, controlling the USA Constitution. Beyond the Law? They’re irrational and emotionally sick. It’s sad, people follow them. What a pity! People choose be sick!
Trigger-happy archbishop has history of deleting outrageous, regrettable tweets
The archbishop drew ire in 2020 when he commemorated on Twitter the late John Lewis, a Democrat congressman the National Abortion Federation praised as a “champion of … abortion rights.” García-Siller called Lewis “a great man in the U.S.” who “showed endurance, love and service for all Americans, for all.”
The tweet was deleted.
He got into trouble again more recently when his November 5, 2023, tweet about parental rights led Catholics to doubt his commitment to the rights of the unborn.
“Think about this thought,” he tweeted. “If I am going to have a child, I don’t want the government to have any say on it. It is a gift from God. I want to hear God’s voice and dialogue with my spouse to make a decision according to God. Many dialogues have to take place.”
The tweet, too, was deleted.
After a mass shooting at an El Paso Walmart in 2019, the archbishop took to Twitter in a a series of poorly spelled tweets blaming then-President Donald Trump.
“President you are a poor man, a very week (sic) man. Stop damaging people. Please!”
“President stop your hatred. People in the U.S. deserve better.”
“Please stop racism. Please stop hatred. Please be people of good will. Please stop fake prayer. You have caused Too much damage already, you have destroyed people lives. Stop, stop, stop. Please, please, please.”
After the Twitter thread had become international news, the archbishop deleted it and issued an apology.
Troubling history of skirting Church teaching
Garcia-Siller has a history of contradicting Church teaching. In 2013, he declared that the archdiocese did not oppose the spirit of a local ordinance to add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to the City of San Antonio’s anti-discrimination policy. In 2021, he blocked religious exemptions to COVID vaccine mandates and gave Holy Communion to President Joe Biden while ignoring pro-life Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
The archbishop also canceled the Sanctus Ranch, a Catholic family business, and traditional Catholic priests Father Clay Hunt and Father David Wagner.