Bishop Mark S. Sisk of New York has written the clergy of his diocese that he is taking immediate steps to review and address whether a priest at a Harlem parish is performing liturgical initiations for infants of gang members.
 
Last Sunday, in an article titled “New Blood: Violent Gang Life is Passed Down from Parent to Child,” the New York Daily News  reported the Rev. Luis Barrios, priest associate at St. Mary’s Church, Harlem, had performed the rite of “blessing” for about 300 children as part of an initiation into the Latin Kings gang.
 
“It’s a street organization with the capacity to bring together young people in search of power, collective identity … [and] belonging in the society that’s rejecting them,” Fr. Barrios said, as reported by the Daily News.
 
“If the facts are as reported, this is extremely distressing and completely contrary to the long-held stance of this church,” Bishop Sisk wrote. “I believe deeply in the importance of mission and creative outreach to the community and strongly encourage such initiatives. However, if accurate, the actions as reported in the Daily News are damaging to our common life.”
 
No one answered the telephone at St. Mary’s when the parish was contacted on June 24.
 
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