Bishop Lee Piché, in his first official public act after his June 29 ordination as a bishop, joined religious leaders and about 200 people on the Capitol steps June 30 to lament Gov. Tim Paw­lenty’s budget cutting plan, termed “unallotment.”

The group, including parishioners from the Minneapolis parishes of St. Stephen and St. Joan of Arc and representatives from the Catholic Cha­ri­ties Office for Social Justice, walked in a funeral-like procession from Christ Lutheran Church in St. Paul to the Capitol to deliver notes to the governor expressing its concern.

Bishop Piché was among those who spoke, reading from a June 12 letter to Pawlenty from the Minnesota Cath­o­lic bishops [Read the letter in Archbishop John Nienstedt’s column on page 2A.]

“Every state policy and program, including our state’s budget, must uphold the inviolable human dignity, value and worth of every person in Minnesota,” he read, before adding his own signature to that of the other bishops in Minnesota.

In an earlier interview, Becky Lentz, communications director with Cath­olic Charities of St. Paul and Min­ne­a­polis, reiterated the bishops’ concerns.

“We understand and appreciate the difficult and unfortunate situation that the legislators and governor found themselves in, as far as having to balance the budget,” Lentz said. “What concerns us the most is that this appears to impact those who can least afford it,” she said.