Evangelization Requires Bishop's Self-Examination: Editorial

The following is an editorial by Sean Keohane of an Irish Publication entitled Clerical Whispers. In it he examines the responsibility of bishops as the conclusion of the Synod on The New Evangelization. I found it inspiring and challenging:

On Oct. 6, 262 bishops gathered in Rome for the 13th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to discuss "The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith."

One of the gathering's primary concerns, particularly for those leaders of churches in the prosperous North, is how to reach out to disaffected Catholics.

That same day, half a world away in Bethesda, Md., researchers for the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life were telling a gathering of religion writers that two new markers had been reached in the religion landscape in the United States: For the first time since the organization had begun surveying about such matters, the country was no longer majority Protestant, and one in five American adults now claimed no religious affiliation.

Though Catholicism showed no significant drop in overall membership -- thanks in large part to the influx of immigrants -- we also know that Catholics in the United States have been exiting the church in recent years by the millions, the younger ones before they reach age 18.

For years now "the new evangelization" has been lurking about in search of its own identity, more aspirant than actual in its determination to be relevant and "new." The awkwardness that surrounds discussion of the elusive term was captured in a wire service story depicting the setting and content of the synod's opening address, delivered by Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington.

The church must reach out to former members, showing them both the relevance of the faith "without losing its rootedness in the great living faith tradition of the church," Wuerl said.

He was speaking in Latin to a gathering of celibate male clerics. He lamented that too many Catholics don't know basic prayers and teachings and don't understand why it's important to go to Mass and confession. His solution: reach out to them and teach them the contents of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Perhaps that's a plan.

But it sounds, instead, as if the analysis and proposed solution are as lifeless and lacking in blood and imagination as the church from which so many are exiting. The new evangelization will remain a stilted and cerebral exercise unless those most invested in its success are willing to take risks.

Too much of what we hear of "the new evangelization" is a one-way proposition. It's saying, "We have the answers, we know what these poor, lost souls need." By rushing in with answers, we may be missing the questions.

The Pew study made clear that the unaffiliated are not angry at organized religion; they just don't want anything more to do with it. Most "nones" believe in God and many call themselves spiritual. At the synod, Filipino Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila noted: "The seemingly indifferent and aimless societies of our time are earnestly looking for God."

Is it possible that "nones" can teach us something about God? Or at least can we learn something from listening to their questions? The church's challenge is not to supply answers but to accompany people on their spiritual quests.

There were hints around the synod that some realize what needs to be done. Tagle said that for the church to be a place where people meet God, it needs to learn three things from the example of Jesus: humility, respect for others, and "the power of silence."

Tagle said, "Confronted with the sorrows, doubts and uncertainties of people, she cannot pretend to give easy solutions. In Jesus, silence becomes the way of attentive listening, compassion and prayer. It is the way to truth."

Bishop Brian J. Dunn of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, whose diocese was shattered by the sexual abuse crisis, spoke of the resulting "great disorientation that leads to forms of distrust of teachings and values that are essential for the followers of Christ."

Regaining trust requires more than steps forced by an outraged public.

Dunn acknowledged the call for a change in church structures and advocated, in addition, the need for "a profound change of mentality, attitude and heart in our ways of working with laypeople."

Archbishop Socrates Villegas of Lingayen-Dagupan, the Philippines, made an equally strong plea for change. "Evangelization has been hurt and continues to be impeded by the arrogance of its messengers," Villegas said, adding, "When pride seeps into the heart of the church, the Gospel proclamation is harmed."

Some readers will question this editorial, asking why we dwell so much on the bishops. Last issue, after all, we editorialized on being the people of God and finding power in our baptism. We're not walking back from that viewpoint, but we also have to acknowledge that the bishops continue to hold the reins. We have to address these criticisms to them because they have yet to make the laity an integral part of their planning.

The new evangelization, at its heart, asks laypeople to go deep inside and examine their most essential instincts, their yearnings for a connection with the God of life.

It also requires some deep interior digging on the part of the bishops themselves -- the kind of sacramental examination they'd like to see flower again among the faithful.

Providing a model of that kind of work might be a good place to restart the discussion of the new evangelization.

Summary of Final Text for the Synod of the New Evangelization

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 26, 2012 - Here is the translation of the summary released by the Holy See Press Office of the Final Message For the People of God of the Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith. The full Message, once it is available in English by the Press Office, will be available shortly. The following was translated from Italian and it available online.

* * *

At the beginning of the document, the bishops recalled the evangelical passage from John which tells about the encounter of Jesus with the Samaritan woman at the well: this is the image of contemporary man with an empty vessel, who is thirsting and is nostalgic for God, and to whom the Church must turn to make the Lord present to him. And just like the Samaritan woman, who encounters Jesus, he can but become a witness of the proclamation of salvation and hope of the Gospel.

Looking specifically at the context of new evangelization, the Synod therefore reminds of the necessity to revive faith, which risks being made obscure in the context of today’s cultures, also faced with the weakening of the faith by many baptized persons. The encounter with the Lord, which reveals God as love, can only come about in the Church, as the form of receptive community and experience of communion; from this, then, Christians become its witnesses also in other places. However, the Church reasserts that to evangelize one must be evangelized first of all, and sends out a plea - starting with herself - for conversion, because the weaknesses of Jesus’ disciples weigh upon the credibility of the mission. Conscious of the fact that the Lord is the guide of history and therefore that evil will not have the last word, the bishops invite the Christians to overcome fear with faith and to look at the world with serene courage because, while full of contradictions and challenges, this is still the world God loves. Therefore no pessimism: globalization, secularization and the new scenarios of society, migration, even with the difficulties and suffering they entail, they must be seen as opportunities for evangelization. Because this is not a question of finding new strategies as if the Gospel was to be spread like a market product, but rediscovering the ways in which individuals come close to Jesus.

The Message looks at the family as the natural place for evangelization and reasserts that it should be supported by the Church, by politics and by society. Within the family, the special role of women is underlined and there is a reminder about the painful situation of divorced and remarried persons: while reconfirming the discipline with regards to access to the sacraments, it is reasserted that they are in no way abandoned by the Lord and that the Church is the welcoming house for all. The Message also mentions consecrated life, witness of the ultra-earthly sense of human existence, and the parishes as centers for evangelization; it recalls the importance of permanent formation for priests and religious men and women and invites the laity (movements and new ecclesial realities) to evangelize, remaining in communion with the Church. New evangelization finds a welcome cooperation with the other Churches and ecclesial communities, they too moved by the same spirit of proclamation of the Gospel. Special attention is focused on the young persons in a perspective of listening and dialogue to redeem and not mortify their enthusiasm.

Then, the Message looks at dialogue, seen in many ways: with culture, which needs a new alliance between faith and reason; with education; with science which, when it doesn’t close man in materialism it becomes an ally for the humanization of life; with art; with the world of economy and work; with the ill and the suffering; with politics, where an uninterested and transparent involvement towards the common good is asked for; with other religions. In particular, the Synod emphasizes that interreligious dialogue contributes to peace, refutes fundamentalism and denounces any violence against believers. The Message recalls the possibilities offered by the Year of the Faith, by the memory of Vatican Council II and by the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Finally, it indicates two expressions of a life of faith, which are especially meaningful for new evangelization: contemplation, where silence allows for the better reception of the Word of God, and service to the poor, in the view of recognizing Christ in their faces.

In the last part, the Message looks at the Church in the various regions of the world and addresses a word of encouragement for the proclamation of the Gospel to each of them: to the Eastern Churches wishing to be able to practice faith in conditions of peace and religious freedom; to the African Church asking for develop evangelization in the encounter of ancient and new cultures, calling then upon the governments to cease the conflicts and violence. The Christians of North America, who live in a culture with many expressions distant from the Gospel, must look towards conversion, to being open to welcoming immigrants and refugees. Latin America is invited to live the permanent mission to face today’s challenges such as poverty, violence, even the new conditions of religious pluralism. The Church in Asia, even while being a small minority, often placed at the edges of society and persecuted, is encouraged and exhorted to the steadfastness of faith. Europe, marked by an even aggressive secularization and wounded by past regimes, has nevertheless created a humanistic culture capable of giving a face to the dignity of man and to the building of the common good; today’s difficulties therefore must not dishearten the European Christians, but must be perceived as a challenge. Oceania is asked to feel once again the involvement of preaching the Gospel. Finally, the Message closes with trust in Mary, the Star of New Evangelization.

On Gratitude

Among virtues, gratitude is a grace that is at the very foundation of christian life. It teaches us on many levels. At first glance most of us would agree that we make an effort to be grateful for the gifts we have: family, health, work, children, a spouse, a parent, even God.

Genuine gratitude teaches me to remain in the present moment; to pause and to reflect on where I am at this step of life's journey. Many of you are aware that I am a recovering alcoholic. These years of recovery have not been easy but have been grace-filled. One way that I remain committed in sobriety is by cultivating an atmosphere of gratitude.

I can to easily recall the chaos of my life when I was drinking. I can to easily fall into self-recrimination. I can to easily find an excuse to drink today if I am not mindful of the gifts I have this day, this hour, this moment.

Here is a little reminder of the importance of gratitude which I found. I hope you can take a moment to watch it and experience the grace of gratitude.

Giving of Myself TODAY

We all have regrets, don't we? Some of us left jobs or spouses or neighborhoods only to wish we hadn't. Perhaps we closed the door on our family of origin and then felt grief when parents or siblings died. More commonly we regret the instances when our mean spirited behavior or attitude hurt someone else. We weren't always honest and forthright; we didn't always try to help a friend or co-worker who needed our advice. We simply didn't put our best self forward when the opportunities for doing so presented themselves.

Dwelling on the "shoulds" of past years is fruitless. We did the best we knew how to do at the time. The past is gone. Let's quit digging up the bones of old regrettable experiences. All they do is cloud our minds when we're trying to respond to today's opportunities.

I won't have anything to regret tomorrow if I respond to today with my best self.

Philipine's Archbishop Talks Humility As New Cardinal

Archbishop Tagle from the Archdiocese of Manila, Philippines has been named one of six new cardinals in the Roman Catholic Church.

Tagle recently had an intervention at the ongoing Synod on the New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Faith in Rome.

The bishop spoke on the need for humility in answering God's call for teaching in the modern world and stressed the need for silence in order to listen.

Clearly a rising star in the Church, Cardinal-designate Tagle will bring a gift of moderation to the College of Cardinals and will speak of the struggles among his own faithful in meeting daily needs and in seeking a presence of Christ in the world.

It is an invitation to all of us in our daily prayer to be reminded of the necessity of discovering Jesus in both Word and Sacrament. In scripture we find the teaching of Jesus to be timeless and treasured. In Sacrament we encounter the "hands on" touch of Our Lord in the grace of the sacramental ministry entrusted to His Church.

Heavenly Father, watch over your servants entrusted with your Gospel and allow us to imitate your Son in both word and example.

Pope Appoints New Cardinals

This morning during his weekly General Audience, Pope Benedict XVI announced a consistory for the creation of six new Cardinals of the Catholic Church. The announcement was made in front of thousands gather in St. Peter's Square after the Holy Father's catechesis.

"It is with great joy that I announce my intention to hold a consistory on November 24th in which I will appoint six new members of the College of Cardinals. Cardinals have the task of helping Peter's Successor carry out his mission to confirm people in the faith and to be the source and foundation of the Church's unity and communion," the Holy Father said to the crowd.

"The new cardinals fulfill their ministry in the service of the Holy See or as fathers and pastors of particular Churches in various parts of the world."

Pope Benedict XVI proceeded to read out the names of the new cardinals. They are:

- Archbishop James Michael Harvey, prefect of the Pontifical Household who, Benedict XVI said, "I intend to appoint as archpriest of the papal basilica of St. Paul's Outside-the-Walls".

- His Beatitude Bechara Boutros Rai, patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon.

- His Beatitude Baselios Cleemis Thottunkal, major archbishop of Trivandrum of the Syro-Malankars, India.

- Archbishop John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan of Abuja, Nigeria.

- Archbishop Ruben Salazar Gomez of Bogota, Colombia.

- Archbishop Luis Antonio G. Tagle of Manila, Philippines.

The new members of the College of Cardinals will bring the number to 122 Cardinals who are eligible to vote in the conclave. The Pope concluded his address asking the faithful to keep the newly appointed cardinals in their prayers. "As you have heard the new cardinals carry out their ministry at the service of the Holy See or as fathers and pastors of particular Churches in various parts of the world," the Pope said.

"I invite everyone to pray for them, asking for the maternal intercession of the Blessed Virgin May that they may always love Christ and His Church with courage and commitment."

For The More Analytical Among Us

New study fielded effects of Prayer on the brain. It's a worthwhile reflection and informative for those among us struggling with the need of concrete examples in order to believe.

Find the link here.

"Talking About Talking Church"

The following is an article written for The National Catholic Reporter on October 10 2012 by Phyllis Zagano a Professor at Hofstra University. It speaks closely to how I have felt going into this Synod:

I think it was the late Jeane Kirkpatrick, a former UN ambassador and sharp-tongued conservative, who said it. True quote or not, the thought remains: "There's no shortage of people willing to spend a week in Paris talking about poverty."
Now 262 bishops and 94 hand-picked others are spending three weeks in Rome talking about evangelization.

Pasta, anyone?

The 13th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on "The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith" will cost who-knows-what and give the various attendees an opportunity to talk about talking about church. Seven of the bishops and 10 experts and auditors are from the United States. The entire crowd presents all the outlooks in the church from right to far right.

OK, I spotted some moderates, and even maybe a liberal or two on the lists. But I'm not telling. Let the Holy Spirit quietly help them open the windows.

Something's got to give. The Pew Research Center reports that one in five U.S. citizens claims no religion. Other statistics say 12.5 percent of U.S. Catholics are now ex-Catholics. The numbers are echoed around the world. "None" is rapidly becoming the affiliation of choice.

Even so, most Catholics would rather fight than switch. Inside the ropes, the issues line up pretty uniformly: the "official" church is worried about sexual mores while the working church is trying to figure out how to feed the poor. Everybody agrees on helping the needy, and people vary widely on most of the neuralgic issues. But the message of Christ is lost amid sex scandals and financial improprieties. The butler really did do it, but why?

So the new evangelization is supposed to fix things? It's being talked about in one of the world's most beautiful -- and expensive -- cities. The synod's marching orders -- the Instrumentum Laboris -- is about 80 pages of Vati-speak interspersed with Bible verses. Much of it is lovely, if applied to everybody. But it mentions few women: the Samaritan woman at the well, the Syro-Phoenician woman who suffered Jesus' brush-off (feed the children's bread to the dogs?), some prostitutes and unnamed catechists.

There will be no new evangelization until everybody agrees we all are made in the image and likeness of God. That means everybody: the ones who talk back (even the dogs get the children's table scraps); the ones folks love to hate; the whole crowd -- warts and all.

And who will do all this evangelizing? Announcing the Gospel is the deacon's charge. The synod document mentions deacons in the same sentence with women: "deacons and many women who are involved in catechesis." That's not it. The diaconal charge is to carry the Gospel, to announce it in word and in deed, to explore it, to explain it, to teach it, to preach it.

When New York's Cardinal Timothy Dolan met with major superiors of religious institutes and orders working in his archdiocese not long before he left for Rome, one of the four women speakers had the temerity to suggest that women as deacons might move evangelization forward. It's not in her written remarks, but the more than 60 people there heard it. Did he?

What difference would it make anyway? Deacons barely get a mention in the synod's marching orders, which mainly include women as whiners or temptresses or sometime-helpers in the task. And therein lies the tale.

There are two ways of looking at the project of evangelization: 1) the catechism with a smile; 2) living the Gospel. The former involves more rules than real tools of evangelization. The latter takes the other's hand, listens and blesses. The former calls the law the admission ticket to Christianity. The latter is Christianity.

Benedict XVI finds the church at a loss in the face of secularism, and he is correct. The cardinal archbishop of Washington, D.C., Donald Wuerl -- the synod's relator -- blames bad catechesis and worse liturgy. These all play a part, up to a point. If prospective and former Catholics stand behind the barrier of secularism, on the other side they see too many overweight men waving rule books and speaking strangely, calling it prayer.

Maybe the synod will work. Maybe, like the daughter of the Syro-Phoenician woman, the church away from Rome will experience a long-distance miracle. Maybe it will get some of that life-giving water the Samaritan woman sought.

The bottom line is no one is going to follow Jesus unless the messengers act like Jesus. It is just not going to happen.

[Phyllis Zagano is senior research associate-in-residence at Hofstra University and author of several books in Catholic studies. Her most recent books are Women & Catholicism (Palgrave-Macmillan), Women in Ministry: Emerging Questions about the Diaconate (Paulist Press) and Women Deacons: Past, Present, Future (with Gary Macy and William T. Ditewig), (Paulist Press).]

New Bishop for Western Canada

This morning, on the Feast of St. Luke, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Father Paul Terrio, from the Archdiocese of Edmonton, as Bishop of St. Paul Alberta.

Father Terrio was a priest on the formation team of St. Joseph Seminary where I studied as a seminarian.

I found him to be a man who was personally pious and had a strong devotion to our Lord in his own personal and public prayer.

Numerous times, Bishop-Elect Terrio was present to me for my own struggles in formation and possesses a strong love for the priesthood of Jesus Christ.

Join me in keeping him in prayer as he begins to shepherd his flock in the Diocese of St. Paul.

This being said, our archdiocese is still awaiting word on a new bishop for ourselves. Let us hope the "gears" of progress our working in our favour and we receive word of a new shepherd soon.

In keeping with the tradition of this Pope we are still appointing men who are known for upholding the tradition of this papacy. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will call for innovation and renewal within her Church as we begin to seek out contemporary responses to contemporary culture within which our Church must live. We can no longer afford to rest on pre-1960 thinking to address 2012 reality.

Thought for the Day: On Questioning Ourselves

The important thing is not to stop questioning.
--Albert Einstein

We sometimes like to think we know it all. We have grandiose ideas about ourselves. We stop asking hard questions that could cause our fragile world of make-believe and deviousness to come crashing down. We protect ourselves by fleeing from the questions that could start us on the road to growth and fullness of life.

One day the questions flooded in unchecked. Why am I out of control? How come I can't look my beloved in the eye? Why don't I have time for my friends? Why do I get irritated with my children? Why do I feel so bad about myself, so filled with shame? Why can't I cope? Why is my life unmanageable?

Unmanageable? When we feel this question deeply, then we are already on the road to recovery, for we know we can't continue to go it alone. The question suggests an answer; we need others, a different system of support, a direction and purpose for life, we need God, serenity, love.

This is what we really want & need.

Learning to be honest means continuing to ask questions about ourselves and our situation in the world.

Vatican II Being Fulfilled: American Religious Sister

A member of the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist, Sr. Paula Jean Miller teaches theology at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas, and directs its “Living Learning Center” as well as its Catholic Studies program. She’s among the theological experts invited to take part in the Oct. 7-28 Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization.

Miller sat down Oct. 16 for an interview at a residence of her community in Rome, just a stone’s throw from the Vatican, as the synod reached its half-way point.

Miller is among 29 women named to the synod, ten as “experts” and 19 as “observers.” The voice of women at the meeting, and the broader question of the role of women in the New Evangelization, is among the topics she discussed.

Read more here.

Ignorance of Faith Can Create "Cafeteria" Catholics: Pope

Ignorance of the faith puts Christians at risk of following a "do-it-yourself" religion, Pope Benedict XVI said.

People need to become more familiar with the creed because it is there that the "Christian moral life is planted and ... one finds its foundation and justification," the pope said Oct. 17 at his weekly general audience.

Before an estimated 20,000 people gathered in St. Peter's Square, the pope began a new series of audience talks to accompany the Year of Faith, which marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council.

He said he hopes the series of instructional talks, which is expected to run until Nov. 24, 2013, will help people "strengthen or rediscover the joy of faith and realize that it isn't something foreign to or separate from everyday life, but is its soul."

Pope Benedict said the widespread and dominant nature of today's secularism, individualism and relativism means that even Christians are not completely "immune from these dangers."

Some of the negative effects include faith being lived "passively or in private, a refusal to learn about the faith, and the rift between faith and life," he said.

"Often Christians don't even know the central core of their own Catholic faith -- the creed -- thereby leaving room for a certain syncretism and religious relativism," he said. Without a clear idea of the faith's fundamental truths and the uniquely salvific nature of Christianity, "the risk of constructing a so-called 'do-it-yourself' religion is not remote today."

"Where do we find the essential formula of the faith? Where do we find the truths that have been faithfully handed down and make up the light of our daily life," he asked.

He said the answer is the creed, or profession of faith, which needs to be better understood, reflected upon and integrated into one's life.

Christians need to "discover the profound link between the truths we profess in the creed and our daily life" so that these truths are allowed to transform the "deserts of modern-day life."

The Christian faith is not a belief in an idea or just an outlook on life, he said, but a relationship with the living person of Christ who transforms lives.

That is why having faith in God isn't merely an intellectual activity, but something that "truly changes everything in us and for us; it clearly reveals our future destiny, the truth of our vocation within history, the meaning of life and the pleasure of being pilgrims heading toward the heavenly home."

Pope Benedict said faith doesn't take anything away from one's life, rather it is what renders life more just and humane.

Current cultural changes "often show many forms of barbarity, which hide under the guise of victories won by civilization," he said. However, "wherever there is domination, possessiveness, exploitation, treating others as a commodity," and arrogance, humankind is "impoverished, degraded and disfigured."

Faith shows that humanity won't find its full realization unless the human person "is animated by the love that comes from God," he said. The gift of faith then finds expression in "relationships full of love, compassion, care and selfless service toward others."

New Bishop Tells It As It Is

A prophetic voice from Malta - this is from the Vatican's former cleric who dealt with the Church's response to clerical abuse by clergy. Newly appointed Auxiliary Bishop in Malta:

“We have a product which is extraordinary and we have to get our act together to bring it to as many people as possible. The way we [communicate] things at times is a total disaster and we have to be humble and say, ‘we need to do better.’ We need to start using language that people understand.... We need to tell people we are not here to impose, but that we are here to propose.”

        - Bishop Scicluna, Auxiliary Bishop of Malta

If nothing else this provides me with a challenge to look at the manner in which I communicate the gospel to those entrusted to my care. Consider carefully the language we find ourselves using in the new liturgy since November of last year.

I, myself, have trouble comprehending what I am reading in the missal. Lord help those who's first language is not "church legalese." 

Well said, Bishop Scicluna! Congrats on your new appointment. The faithful in Malta are blessed indeed.

Canadian Bishop Points to Accountabilty at Synod

A Canadian bishop whose diocese was rocked by clerical sex abuse crises told the Synod of Bishops that the new evangelization must address the reality of distrust and disappointment the scandal left in its wake.

With the sex abuse crisis, Catholics have experienced "a great disorientation that leads to forms of distrust of teachings and values that are essential for the followers of Christ," Bishop Brian J. Dunn of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, told the synod Oct. 12.

The Diocese of Antigonish has sold hundreds of properties in an effort to raise the money necessary to cover legal settlement and sexual abuse lawsuit costs from before Bishop Dunn's appointment. In 2011, the previous bishop, Raymond Lahey, pled guilty and was jailed on charges of importing child pornography. The former bishop was laicized by the Vatican in May.

The Catholic Church cannot ignore the need to find a way to "evangelize those who have been deeply hurt by clergy who have been involved in sexual abuse," Bishop Dunn told the synod.

One possible way forward, Bishop Dunn said, is to look at the story of the disciples, disillusioned by Jesus' death, who are met by the risen Christ on the road to Emmaus. Christ walks with them and listens to them, the bishop said.

Dioceses must have real structures in place for listening to victims and coming to appreciate "the depth of hurt, anger and disillusionment associated with this scandal," he told the synod.

At the same time, the church needs to investigate the causes of the sexual abuse crisis and ensure measures are in place to protect children and vulnerable adults.

"Those who have been hurt consistently call for a change in certain structures in the church, but it is not only ecclesial structures that must change," he said, there also must be "a profound change of mentality, attitude and heart in our ways of working with laypeople."

The bishop called for the appointment of pastoral teams of clergy and laypeople to administer parishes, for a formal recognition of "lay ecclesial ministers," and for a "deliberate and systematic involvement and leadership of women at all levels of church life."

When church life is marked by "co-responsibility," Bishop Dunn said, "the Gospel will be heard anew, our faith fill be passed on more effectively, we will be renewed in our faith and our witness will become more authentic."

Synod Reflection: Discovering Silence

Perhaps one of the more enlightening interventions so far comes from Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle from the Philippines:

"A young girl asked: “Are we the youth lost or has the Church lost us?” Her question expresses a longing for a Church where she can be found by Jesus and where she can find Him. But for the Church to be the “space” of a faith-encounter with the Lord, she [i.e. the church] must learn anew from Jesus in whom we meet God.

The Church must learn humility from Jesus. God's power and might appears in the self-emptying of the Son, in the love that is crucified but truly saves because it is emptied of self for the sake of others.

The Church is called to follow Jesus' respect for every human person. He defended the dignity of all people, in particular those neglected and despised by the world. Loving His enemies, He affirmed their dignity.

The Church must discover the power of silence. Confronted with the sorrows, doubts and uncertainties of people she cannot pretend to give easy solutions. In Jesus, silence becomes the way of attentive listening, compassion and prayer. It is the way to truth.

The seemingly indifferent and aimless societies of our time are earnestly looking for God. The Church's humility, respectfulness and silence might reveal more clearly the face of God in Jesus. The world takes delight in a simple witness to Jesus, meek and humble of heart."
- Archbishop Tagle,
Archdiocese of Manila, Philippines

I am finding, now more than ever, that our faithful have desperate need of being heard. Perhaps we can draw inspiration from this reflection in devoting our lives in the person of Christ Jesus.

C.S. Lewis Reflection

If you are a Christian you do not have to believe that all the other religions are simply wrong all through.

C.S. Lewis from "Mere Christianity"

I find it enriching to recall how far we have come in the recognition of other Christian faiths. It has been a long struggle of catholicism to meander its way throughout the world and history in seeking communion with like minded christians.

These words of C.S. Lewis speak to me of understanding and tolerance.

I am reminded of our Church's movement to restore unity between ourselves and the Church of England.

Archbishop Rowan Williams recently commented at the Synod of Bishops for the New Evangelization, that sometimes in living faith, "we can't always wait for the other." This was made in reference to some differences in interpretation of tradition between our faiths. In particular the issues of a celibate male clergy and of women's ordination and/or role of leadership within the church. Both of which the Church of England has embraced.

I find frustration that these issues remain so closed to discussion amongst our leadership and yet so relevant to the people they are shepherding.

Can we really, as a Modern Church in 2012 afford to say, definitively, that the final word has been spoken on these issues? I think to believe that is somewhat naive.

How can we afford to lose a strong and reasonable source of wisdom from the women of the world who love and adore Christ and His Church? One hopes that our Church "Fathers" will recognize this at some point and seek to restore the role of women in our faith to a more balanced and collegial role.

Archbishop of Canterbury Addresses Synod of Bishops in Rome

Archbishop Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Communion worldwide addressed the ongoing Synod of Bishops in Rome on the theme of "The New Evangelization."

"Those who know little and care even less about the institutions and hierarchies of the church these days" nevertheless are attracted and challenged by Christians whose lives show they have been transformed by their encounter with Christ, said Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury, head of the Church of England.

The emphasis which Archbishop Williams has towards a personal encounter with Christ is also be highlighted by other bishops from around the world. It speaks to me of a need to cultivate an intimate relationship with our Lord that will effectively change us from within. As the old adage goes, "you can't give what you don't have."

"The face we need to show to our world is the face of a humanity in endless growth toward love, a humanity so delighted and engaged by the glory of what we look toward that we are prepared to embark on a journey without end to find our way more deeply into it," Archbishop Williams told the synod.

I am deeply gratified that Archbishop Williams was invited to address the Synod, which by itself testifies to how far the Church has come in these years. It would have been unimaginable 50 years ago that a Roman Catholic Synod would have permitted such an event at that time.

To read more of what Archbishop Williams spoke of you may look here.

An Interesting Question...

I have been following the upcoming news to both the Synod on the New Evangelization and the Year of Faith that begins on October 11th.

I have noticed that the Holy Father is to celebrate a second mass outside.

I applaud this and welcome it. I also am tempted to ask why we, as priests, are so often put in the position of denying engaged couples their request to have their marriages witnessed outdoors?

Nothing frustrates me more than our shared failure to meet and accomodate the faithful who are reaching out to their Church at a milestone in their lives.

Perhaps we still have more to learn in this "New Evangelization."

A Tribute to Priests: Bishop Strickland

The following is a tribute to all priests which I discovered from Bishop Strickland to the priests of his diocese. It really is for all priests and their parishioners:

A Catholic priest is a man of God but shares all the hopes, fears, dreams, concerns and daily challenges of every other man.

He often finds himself alone but at any moment he may be called into the most significant moments of another persons life. The door bell rings, a cell phone buzzes, there's a knock on the door or the office phone clangs and in a moment he goes from alone and quiet to "ministry mode" congratulating on a new birth, consoling in the midst of crisis, accepting an invitation to dinner, offering comfort at the news of a death, trying to calm a complaining parishioner or simply accepting the latest blurb that MUST be included in the next bulletin.

He often finds himself surrounded by a crowd of people but at any moment transported to a deep and quiet place where he encounters the Lord alone. Often this occurs at mass when the words from a hymn, a glimpse of a familiar face, as favorite phrase from scripture or an oft repeated line from the ritual of the mass cause him to pause and be reminded of the deep purpose of his life.

In between these moments the priest finds himself going about the business of life with all his brothers and sisters. The myriad of normal daily life images that every man encounters from the sublime thoughts of the mysteries of God encountered on a marble altar to the realization that he really does need to see what that "check engine" light on the dashboard of his car is all about.

When priests fail those they are called to serve, when they stumble in their own sinfulness or when their patience wears thin..........remember they are just men.
Men called by the Lord to do great things in the name of Jesus Christ God's own son.

Pray for your priest as they pray for you.

Bishop Joseph Strickland,
Tyler, Texas

Dedicated to the priests of his diocese.

Thought for the Day: The Holy Spirit

Does the Lord guide me?

All our movements, our goings and comings, can be guided by the Holy Spirit. Every visit to help another, every unselfish effort to assist, can be blessed by that same Spirit. There can be a blessing on all we do, on every visit with one who is suffering.

Every meeting of someone in need may not be a chance meeting, but may have been designed by the Holy Spirit.

Think of the endless people we discover each day by simply pausing throughout our lives and enquiring how they are.

Led by the spirit of the Lord, we can be tolerant, sympathetic, and understanding of others and so accomplish a great in deal in the building up of the Kingdom of God.

I pray Lord that you lead me through the power of your Spirit of Love. Use me to build up your Kingdom and allow me to know your peace.

Q&A on the synod for new evangelization

A Synod of Bishops occurs every other year with various themes since the close of the Second Vatican Council in the late sixties. For man of us simple folk the understanding of what takes place within a synod can be daunting.

The National Catholic Reporter is covering this year's Synod in the New Evangelization and will be offering many updates throughout the month.

I have included a link to the Q & A page here.

As Synod Draws Near: Cardinal Wuerl Speaks of "Tsunami of Secularism"

At the Synod of Bishops, which opens Oct. 7 with a papal Mass in St. Peter's Square, some 250 prelates from around the world will meet for three weeks to talk and pray about the new evangelization.

Long after the bishops have expressed their diverse views, Pope Benedict XVI will have the last word in an authoritative document of reflections called a post-synodal apostolic exhortation. In the meantime, none of the participants has a better overview of the Vatican gathering, or of the questions it will examine, than Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl of Washington.

As the synod's relator, Cardinal Wuerl has reviewed preliminary suggestions from bishops' conferences around the world and synthesized them in a speech he will deliver in Latin at the first working session Oct. 8. The cardinal will address the assembly again 10 days later, once more in Latin, to summarize hundreds of speeches by his fellow bishops.

Initiated by Blessed John Paul II and eagerly embraced by his successor, the new evangelization is a project aimed at reviving Catholic faith in increasingly secular societies, especially the wealthiest Western nations.

For Cardinal Wuerl, it is also an opportunity to fulfill the goal for which Blessed John XXIII called the Second Vatican Council: a faithful presentation of Catholic teachings in a way "attractive to a very rapidly changing culture."

It's no mere coincidence, the cardinal said, that the synod overlaps with the 50th anniversary of the opening of the council, Oct. 11, which Pope Benedict has designated as the beginning of a special Year of Faith. Like Vatican II, the cardinal said, the synod will emphasize continuity with the church's ancient traditions.

"There is a continuum of Catholic faith going all the way back to the creed, going all the way back to the apostles," Cardinal Wuerl said. "That continuum is where we find the articulation of our faith."

Although Vatican II was faithful to the church's traditional doctrines, the cardinal said, implementation of the council's teachings in the 1960s and 1970s coincided with a "current of secularism sweeping the Western world," especially Europe.

"It's almost as if a tsunami of secularism washed across Western Europe and, when it receded, it took with it all of those foundational concepts: family, marriage, right and wrong, common good, objective order," he said.

In Europe and beyond, the cardinal said, that secular wave accompanied a loosening of standards in Catholic religious education.

"Somehow we were to be catechizing without content," the cardinal said, describing what he called a widespread attitude at the time. "Somehow there was supposed to be communicated some experience, some idea that God loves us, we love God, but it wasn't rooted in the creed.

"As our Holy Father has pointed out so many times," the cardinal said, "if you are not proclaiming the Christ that the church knows and lives, then you could be proclaiming a Christ that you've created."

The cost of poor catechesis, Cardinal Wuerl said, was a "diminished allegiance from two generations" of Catholics.

A key part of the church's response to that development was the Catechism of the Catholic Church, whose compilation was overseen by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger when the future pope was prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In another non-coincidence, the 20th anniversary of the catechism's publication will also be celebrated Oct. 11.

The cardinal said the catechism has been the basis for dramatic improvement in religious education over the last two decades, especially in the United States. When he and other U.S. bishops met with Pope Benedict earlier this year during their "ad limina" visits, Cardinal Wuerl said he was happy to report the sound state of Catholic education at the elementary and secondary school levels.

"And at the level of the colleges?" the pope replied, with a smile and what the cardinal describes as a "twinkle in his eye."

The church in America has a "long way to go" to bring Catholic higher education back into harmony with church teaching, the cardinal said, and an essential part of that effort is restoring the "institutional identity" of Catholic colleges and universities.

Effective evangelization, he explained, requires that "we speak out of our own identity as members of the church, as Catholics, as people who hold dear the creed, who worship at the table of the Eucharist, and who simply know Christ is with us."

Despite the setbacks of earlier decades, he said he draws hope from the growing interest among youth in the teachings of the church.

"We have a whole new group of young people coming along," the cardinal said, "and they're saying, 'this secular world isn't answering my questions.'

"There is a lot of good happening," he added. "We just have to find ways of tapping into it and inviting those young people to look to Christ for an answer."

Vatican II teachings not optional, ex-Vatican official

As we approach the 50th anniversary of the opening of Vatican II one retired cardinal weighs in on it's significance.

Clerical Whispers: Vatican II teachings not optional, ex-Vatican offi...:  

St. Therese of Lisieux

October 1st is the Feast of St. Therese of Lisieux, a Carmelite nun who died at the age of 24 in France in 1897.

Generations of Catholics have admired this young saint, called her the "Little Flower", and found in her short life more inspiration for their own lives than in volumes by theologians.

Yet Therese died when she was 24, after having lived as cloistered Carmelite for less than ten years. She never went on missions, never founded a religious order, never performed great works. The only book of hers, published after her death, was an brief edited version of her journal called "Story of a Soul." (Collections of her letters and restored versions of her journals have been published recently.) But within 28 years of her death, the public demand was so great that she was canonized.

St. Therese is the patron saint of missions and as such our Archdiocese has a special devotion to her.

In reflecting on our lives as missionaries of the Gospel it is important that we remember her lead in this life, namely by keeping Christ at the centre and focus of our lives. I find a great deal of inspiration in her simplicity of life and in her desire to devote herself to knowing Christ and His will for her and for her world.

For St. Therese this lead to a life of contemplation. For those of us who choose to live within this world with it's hustle and bustle it can be the determination to carve out moments to reflect on God's activity in our lives and dedicate ourselves to learning God's will for us.

St. Therese, bless our diocese with your intercession and lead us more closely to discovering Christ's Presence in our lives.