Catholic Bishops from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, Hold Joint Meeting Calling for Unity and Prepare for Guadalupe Anniversary
Ahead of the 500th anniversary of the Guadalupan event in 2031, bishops from Mexico, the United States, and Canada gathered in Mexico City for a fraternal meeting and prayer at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Bishop Daniel E. Flores of Brownsville and Vice President of the USCCB, Bishop Oscar Cantú of San José, Bishop Eugenio Lira Rugarcía of Matamoros, and Bishop Pierre Goudreault of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, were among those present.
In the message they wrote:
Source: USCCBThe Fraternal Meeting of the delegated bishops of the Episcopal Conferences of
North America thus leaves a sign of hope for our continent: three nations, one
Church and one Catholic people who, in their diversity, wish to continue walking in
communion. May this meeting not be merely a moment on the agenda of our
Conferences, but the beginning of new paths of collaboration, fraternity and shared
mission — for to walk together is also a way of proclaiming the Gospel.
Today, more than ever, North America needs to hear a message of fraternity,
dialogue, hope and peace. With their gaze fixed on Christ and under the protection
of Holy Mary of Guadalupe, the Churches in Mexico, in the United States and in
Canada renew their commitment to walk together, to safeguard human dignity and
to serve their peoples, making their own the prayer of the Lord: “that they may all be
one” (Jn 17:21).
The bishops carried home tilmas as part of the Novena Guadalupana Intercontinental, a preparation across the Americas leading to 2031. Each diocese will receive a tilma, a third-class relic, for enthronement in its cathedral, followed by two years of missionary activity and catechesis as the image travels to parishes beginning in 2027.
Statement: “Three Nations, One Church, One People Walking in Communion”
A delegation of bishops representing the episcopal conferences of Mexico, Canada, and the United States met this week with a spirit of fraternity, prayer and dialogue.
September 5, 2026
WASHINGTON – A delegation of bishops representing the episcopal conferences of Mexico, Canada, and the United States met this week with a spirit of fraternity, prayer and dialogue. Bishop Daniel E. Flores, vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Bishop Oscar Cantú, chairman of the USCCB’s Subcommittee for Latin American Affairs were in attendance as delegates.
The joint communique released after their meeting stated, “During these days, the social, political, economic and ecclesial realities of their respective countries were shared, and some of the main issues that today challenge the Church in the region of North America were addressed: in a particular way, human mobility and the question of migration, the dignity of the human person in the age of artificial intelligence, evangelization, and the possibilities of pastoral collaboration among the Churches in Mexico, in the United States and in Canada.”
Read the full communique available in English, Spanish, and French.
The bishops carried home tilmas as part of the Novena Guadalupana Intercontinental, a preparation across the Americas leading to 2031. Each diocese will receive a tilma, a third-class relic, for enthronement in its cathedral, followed by two years of missionary activity and catechesis as the image travels to parishes beginning in 2027.
Statement: “Three Nations, One Church, One People Walking in Communion”
A delegation of bishops representing the episcopal conferences of Mexico, Canada, and the United States met this week with a spirit of fraternity, prayer and dialogue.
September 5, 2026
WASHINGTON – A delegation of bishops representing the episcopal conferences of Mexico, Canada, and the United States met this week with a spirit of fraternity, prayer and dialogue. Bishop Daniel E. Flores, vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Bishop Oscar Cantú, chairman of the USCCB’s Subcommittee for Latin American Affairs were in attendance as delegates.
The joint communique released after their meeting stated, “During these days, the social, political, economic and ecclesial realities of their respective countries were shared, and some of the main issues that today challenge the Church in the region of North America were addressed: in a particular way, human mobility and the question of migration, the dignity of the human person in the age of artificial intelligence, evangelization, and the possibilities of pastoral collaboration among the Churches in Mexico, in the United States and in Canada.”
Read the full communique available in English, Spanish, and French.
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