Bishop Moreno dies

Moreno was admitted to St. Joseph Hospital in Tucson Nov. 12 after complaining of a severe headache. That same day he was transported to Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix, where on Nov. 13 he had surgery to relieve pressure in the brain caused by bleeding. When the bleeding started again on Wednesday, Moreno's family opted to discontinue further medical treatment and return the bishop to Tucson where he received hospice care.

"The descriptions we've had of his death certainly are very consoling," said Fred Allison, who has worked for the Roman Catholic Diocese of tucson for 20 years and was a close friend of Moreno. "We Catholics hope for — and all of us hope for — the grace of a peaceful death and from the description of what we've heard it was."

A public service for Moreno as part of the Rite of Christian Burial will begin with a 10 a.m. visitation Nov. 27 at St. Augustine Cathedral, 192 S. Stone Ave., followed by a recitation of the rosary at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 and 4 p.m. A prayer vigil will begin at 7 p.m., followed by visitation until 10 p.m. On Nov. 28, there will be a mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m. followed by burial at Holy Hope Cemetery.

Moreno served as bishop in Tucson for 21 years. When Pope John Paul II appointed him to the position in 1982, he earned the instant attention of the local Hispanic community, becoming the first native of the Southwest and the first Hispanic bishop in Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson history. During his first year, he embarked on a long pilgrimage to visit every parish and school in the huge, nine- county diocese, the fifth largest in the continental United States, covering nearly 43,000 square miles from Yuma to Morenci, and now numbering 350,000 parishioners.

The son of a migrant Mexican farmworker, Moreno succeeded Bishop Francis J. Green. During his time as bishop, Moreno was active in promoting interfaith relations, the human rights of illegal entrants, and issues of social justice, with emphasis on the social teachings of the church.

During the mid-80s, he opened an office to help counsel, educate and pre-register illegal residents who qualified for amnesty under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and encouraged the national Catholic Church to recognize the social and spiritual implications of the massive migration from Mexico. He supported — with local and national church funds — the initiatives that led to the establishment of the Pima County Interfaith Council and the Yuma County Interfaith Council. In that effort, he forged a deep personal connection to the Jewish community in this area, calling the Jewish people "a gift to us beyond measure," in a letter in 2000.

Moreno also worked closely with local law enforcement agencies to address the rise in youth violence, and helped launch Tucson's first- ever gun buy-back program, asking people to turn in their firearms, no questions asked.