Gerald Richard Barnes
Gerald Richard Barnes is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Roman Catholic [Diocese of San Bernardino|Diocese of San Bernardino] in California from 1996 to 2020 and as an auxiliary bishop of San Bernardino from 1992 to 1996.
Biography
Gerald Barnes was born on June 22, 1945, in Phoenix, Arizona, to George and Aurora Barnes. In 1946, the family moved to the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles. The family opened a grocery store, where he and his siblings worked in their spare time. Barnes attended public schools for his primary education, then graduated from Theodore [Roosevelt High School (Los Angeles, California)|Theodore Roosevelt High School] in Los Angeles.Barnes entered California State University, Los Angeles, graduating in 1967 with a Bachelor of Political Science degree. He then attended seminaries in St. Louis, Missouri, Dayton, Ohio and Assumption Seminary in San Antonio, Texas.
Priesthood
On December 20, 1975, Barnes was ordained to the priesthood as St. Timothy Church in San Antonio, Texas, for the Archdiocese of San Antonio by Archbishop Francis Furey. In 1989, he was named by the Vatican as an honorary prelate with the title of monsignor. He also served as rector of Assumption Seminary.Auxiliary Bishop of San Bernardino
On January 28, 1992, Pope [John Paul II] appointed Barnes as the first auxiliary bishop of the diocese of San Bernardino and titular bishop of Montefiascone. He was consecrated at St. Christopher Church in Moreno Valley, California, on March 18, 1992, by Bishop Philip Straling, with Archbishop Patrick Flores and Bishop Curtis Guillory serving as co-consecrators. Barnes selected as his episcopal motto: "Amar Es Entregarse", Spanish for "Love is a total gift of self".With the installation of Straling as bishop of the Diocese of Reno in June 1995, the Vatican named Barnes as the apostolic administrator of San Bernardino.
Bishop of San Bernardino
On December 28, 1995, John Paul II appointed Barnes as the second bishop of San Bernardino. He was installed on March 12, 1996. In his episcopal ministry, Barnes established the 4 Core Values and explained the diocesan vision.Within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Barnes chaired the Committee on Migration and Refugee Services. In that post, he described the "current immigration system" as responsible for "family separation, suffering, and even death" and "is morally unacceptable and must be reformed". He chaired the Committee on Hispanic Affairs from 1996 to 1999.
Under Barnes, the diocese operated three high schools, 23 elementary schools and three pre-schools. In 2001, Barnes inaugurated the annual Bishop's Golf Classic to fund scholarships to families unable to afford a Catholic education for their children. During his tenure, Barnes closed four primary schools in the California communities of Barstow, Banning, Apple Valley and San Bernardino.
In April 2003, the Diocese of San Bernardino filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Boston. The diocese charged that the archdiocese gave them false information on Reverend Paul R. Shanley, a priest who transferred to the diocese from Boston in 1990. Despite Shanley having a record of sexual abuse of minors in Massachusetts, the archdiocese described him to the diocese as "a priest in good standing. Later in 1990, Shanley was accused of abusing a teenager at a hotel in Palm Springs, California. In July 2003, after speaking to the new archbishop of Boston, Sean O'Malley, Barnes decided to drop the lawsuit.
In 2007, the Government of Mexico presented Barnes with the Ohtli award for his service to Mexican citizens living in the United States.In 2014, Barnes, citing economic benefits and good citizenship, encouraged parishioners in the diocese without health insurance to sign up for coverage under the 2010 Affordable Care Act.