.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Sen. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, joins Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, right, and Allen Sanchez, center, of the New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops, for a news conference following passage of Senate Bill 5, the extreme risk protection order legislation, in 2020. (Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal) SANTA FE — A prominent state senator who supports abortion rights said he was denied Communion by the Catholic bishop in Las Cruces over the weekend “based on my political office.” Joseph Cervantes, a Las Cruces Democrat and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he has participated in his parish church and the Diocese of Las Cruces — including serving as its attorney at times — for 50 years, 20 of which have come while he’s served as an elected official.