Longtime Los Angeles hospital chaplain and social justice advocate Father Chris Ponnet died Oct. 7, 2025. He was 68.

Ponnet had been pastor of the St. Camillus Center for Spiritual Care near downtown Los Angeles for the last 30 years. During that time, he also served as director of the nearby LA County + USC Medical Center’s Department of Spiritual Care, leading an interfaith team of chaplains ministering at one of California’s largest hospitals.

Ponnet’s social ministry included leading the grassroots abolition group Catholics Against the Death Penalty Southern California, as well as serving as chaplain of LA’s Catholic Ministry with Lesbian and Gay Persons and as a member of the Pax Christi Southern California Leadership Team. His advocacy resulted in more than 30 arrests for civil disobedience over the years.

Christopher D. Ponnet was born on Jan. 14, 1957, to Frank Ponnet, and Mary Louise (Breen) Ponnet. He was the youngest of their eight children, and grew up at St. Luke Church in Temple City. He was ordained in 1983.

While serving as a priest in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, these were his assignments:

  • Associate Pastor, Our Lady of the Valley Church, Canoga Park
  • Associate Pastor, Sacred Heart Church, Pomona
  • Associate Pastor, Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Claremont
  • Pastor, St. Camillus Center for Pastoral Care, Los Angeles
  • Chaplain, Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, Los Angeles
  • Chaplain, USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles
  • Chaplain, Keck Hospital of USC, Los Angeles

In 2022, Ponnet was the first pastor in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to inaugurate a specially designed “healing garden” prayer space for victims of sexual abuse. The garden at St. Camillus served as the model for other gardens in the archdiocese and across the country.

Depending on the occasion, Ponnet could be found presiding over liturgies at the L.A. Catholic Worker on Skid Row, attending rallies for immigrant rights, and speaking out against abortion.

He was also one of the most recognizable speakers and exhibitors at the LA Religious Education Congress, known for his workshops on social justice issues and pastoral outreach to gay and lesbian persons.

In charity and kindness, please remember Father Chris Ponnet in your Masses and prayers. To pray for all our deceased priests and deacons, visit angelusnews.com/obituaries/.