"Every death is a wound upon our nation," he said.
Archbishop Carlos Garfias Merlos of Morelia, who heads up the bishops' Working Group on Justice, Peace and Reconciliation, said that while the protocols are designed to respond to violence, they can also be helpful in other emergency situations, such as natural disasters.
"We know there are some places in Mexico every year that due to natural phenomena such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tremors we find ourselves in emergency situations," he said
Bishop Miranda said that there are no plans for "police or soldiers in the churches."
He also clarified that "the protocols are proposals" and "not a law we're putting on the Church."
"These are measures suggested to the priests, bishops, etc. And also according to the capacity of every parish. Where it can be done, it is recommended that alarm systems be put in place. Where it's not possible, at least there should be minimum security measures."
In a June 19 statement, Fr. Omar Sotelo, director of the Catholic Multimedia Center, emphasized that the document published by the bishops "responds to the needs of what's happening in our country."
"It's a security plan, a protocol which one way or another helps prevention," he said.
For Fr. Sotelo, the violence in Mexico "has become widespread, more sophisticated and has touched important sectors of society."
The director of the Catholic Multimedia Center said the document also "calls to the attention of the authorities that they have not done their work effectively."
According to Fr. Sotelo, "some authorities, not all of them, have been corrupted or have been overrun by" organized crime.
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He noted that addressing the underlying issue of organized crime is "very complicated."
"It's hard to change the mentality of thousands of people who unfortunately have become dehumanized and have resorted to organized crime to make their way in life. To transform this kind of a situation it going to take a lot of work."
However, recalling the Gospel admonition to love one's enemies, he said that "we have to make a way to reach these people's hearts."
"Reaching out to these people is a process, an important element that we mustn't neglect," he said.
This article was originally published by our sister agency, ACI Prensa. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.