Bishop Solis asks for support of annual subscription appeal for 'Intermountain Catholic'

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Most Rev. Oscar A. Solis, D.D. Bishop of Salt Lake City

Dear friends in Christ,

Our Diocese of Salt Lake City is blessed to have the Intermountain Catholic, with its long years of history as an essential source of information for Catholics in Utah. According to historical records, not long after Salt Lake City became a diocese in 1891, the Intermountain Catholic became the official diocesan newspaper for Utah and was first published on Oct. 7, 1899 covering the six intermountain states – Utah, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada and Montana. It debuted as a weekly publication with the motto “A Catholic paper for the Catholic home” and ran for 21 straight years. However, it ceased publication following the Oct. 16, 1920 issue due to the economic downturn after the end of World War One. For the next six years, the Intermountain Catholic was published in San Francisco until its return to Salt Lake City in 1926. Other changes of the newspaper ensued. For years it operated out of the basement of the rectory of the Cathedral of the Madeleine, but in 1981 it was moved to the diocese’s Pastoral Center. Today it operates out of the diocese’s Sacred Heart building and is available online as well as in a print edition.

For 120 years, our diocesan Intermountain Catholic newspaper has provided essential news and coverage of pastoral activities and events, and has shared necessary information to teach the people of God how to learn about, to live and to share their faith. The Intermountain Catholic is published weekly and continues to be a significant tool in our mission of evangelization, reaching out to many Catholics and non-Catholics in Utah and beyond, sharing the Gospel and even garnering several awards for excellence and other honors.

This fact underscores the significant value of the Intermountain Catholic as an effective means of keeping ourselves abreast of the current international, national and regional happenings in our society and in our own local Church in Utah. It is not only a good resource for catechesis, inspiration and spiritual guidance, but it also connects the Church with the faithful and with each other, promoting and enhancing the spirit of unity that builds our communion as the Body of Christ, His Church.

Like many other print media in the country and other parts of the world today, the introduction of electronic news brought a challenge to the operation and maintenance of our printed newspaper. However, not every home and person has a computer, wireless service or providers and other electronic gadgets to access valuable information from printed sources. For this reason, there is a strong practical value and wisdom in publishing the Intermountain Catholic, which remains a relevant and a great Catholic newspaper.

I therefore encourage all my brother priests to promote and encourage all our parishioners to subscribe and get a weekly copy of our Intermountain Catholic. Your financial support is significant to the publication of our diocesan newspaper and to the people who rely on Church information and news with this format. Your support of the Intermountain Catholic helps our diocese carry out her mission of evangelization. Please help us make it available to every parishioner, every family member and friends in business establishments, schools and homes. You will find subscription cards in this issue and the newspaper will be delivered to you all year long at a very reasonable price. Kindly take a moment to fill them out and return them either in the collection basket of your local parish or by mail.

Thank you for your generous support and wishes of God’s blessings for you and you loved ones!

Yours truly in Christ,

Most Rev. Oscar A. Solis, D.D.

Bishop of Salt Lake City