Most Reverend Gerald Richard Barnes was born on June 22, 1945, in Phoenix, Arizona, and raised in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, where he grew up with five brothers and one sister helping operate his family’s grocery store. Educated in public schools, with religious formation provided by the Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters, he graduated from Roosevelt High School and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from California State University, Los Angeles, in 1967. After seminary studies in St. Louis, Dayton, and San Antonio, he was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Antonio on December 20, 1975, later receiving the title of Monsignor in 1989. Appointed the first Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of San Bernardino by Pope Saint John Paul II in 1992, he was episcopally ordained on March 18 of that year and subsequently served as diocesan administrator before being named the second Bishop of San Bernardino in December 1995 and installed in March 1996. As chief shepherd of one of the nation’s fastest-growing dioceses, encompassing more than 27,000 square miles and over 1.7 million Catholics, Bishop Barnes also held numerous leadership roles within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, including chairing the Committees on Migration and Refugee Services and Hispanic Affairs, and serving on multiple national boards. In recognition of his advocacy for migrants, he received Mexico’s OHTLI Award in 2007. In accordance with Church law, he submitted his resignation upon turning 75 on June 22, 2020; Pope Francis accepted it on December 28, 2020, marking his retirement.
The Coat of Arms of Bishop Gerald Richard Barnes features a red field with a silver band at the top, symbolizing love, zeal, celebration, and the Southwest sunset—evoking his birth in Arizona, upbringing in Southern California, and years of ministry in South Texas. The silver chief honors his ancestral roots, recalling grandparents and great-grandparents who worked the silver mines of Northern Mexico and Southern Arizona. Central to the design are the basin and towel, symbols of Christian service modeled on Christ washing the feet of the apostles, reflecting both the Bishop’s commitment to servant leadership and the hospitality and generosity exemplified by his parents. At the base of the shield appears a gold tilma with three red roses, referencing the tilma of Juan Diego and signifying Bishop Barnes’ devotion to and protection under Our Lady of Guadalupe, identifying himself as a Son of Guadalupe. His episcopal motto, Amar es Entregarse — “Love is the total giving of oneself” — underscores his lifelong dedication to self-giving service through priestly and episcopal ministry. Completing the arms are the traditional symbols of episcopal office: a gold sword with a cross-shaped hilt behind the shield, and above it the green galero with six tassels on each side, denoting the rank of bishop.
The motto further emphasizes Bishop’s aspiration to give himself in wholehearted service to the people through his priestly and episcopal vocation. He repeats the theme of his presbyteral ordination, Amar es Entregarse, “Love is the total giving of oneself.”
