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Vatican City, Jun 29, 2017 / 11:49 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Newly-appointed metropolitan archbishops from around the world received the traditional woolen vestment called a pallium during a special Mass with Pope Francis on Thursday.

For the three new metropolitan archbishops of American sees, the experience was a reminder of their mission as shepherds of their local Churches, called to follow God and lead others to him.

The Mass, celebrated on the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, was significant for Archbishop Paul Etienne of Anchorage, who told CNA June 29 he was “very mindful of the accompanying presence of these great saints.”

He is inspired by their great love for Christ and the Church, he said, and by the courage with which they went out into the world after encountering the Risen Lord.

“I just ask for as much of that same grace in my life and in ministry, that I can joyfully serve the Lord and present him to the world in a fashion that will be received.”

Archbishop Charles Thompson of Indianapolis told CNA he knows he has a lot to learn and get to know in his new role, but he’s looking forward to serving God and serving the people of God as the shepherd of the local Church.

After the Mass, each archbishop has an opportunity to greet the Pope. For Archbishop Thompson, this was his first personal encounter with Francis. Though the meeting was brief, Pope Francis "had a glow, had a great smile on his face," he said.

"It really made me think about the joy of the Gospel and talking about having the joy of bringing people to Christ. Even though there's also an awesome responsibility that I feel in this appointment, I just sense that the smile on his face was to do with joy."

"Don't let it overwhelm you. Trust in the Holy Spirit. Trust that God gives you the grace to fulfill this mission. And I'm banking on that, because I'm the least worthy of anybody here,” he said.

Archbishop Etienne said that it was "a great privilege and a great honor" to receive the pallium from Pope Francis.

He was grateful for the Pope's homily, which reminded him that they aren't in this for themselves, but that they are "servants of the Lord."

"Our life is to be giving a confession, our own witness to Christ, and we should not be surprised when the trials and the persecutions come our way; and the best way to get through it is to pray," he said, recalling the Pope's words. "So those are all three pretty good points that he made."

For Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, this was his second time receiving the pallium, the first being when he was appointed Archbishop of Indianapolis in 2012.

"It's always a very moving moment to be with the Holy Father, to feel the connection with bishops from around the world and to deepen what it means to be a bishop," he told CNA.

He explained that out of all the vestments he has to wear, his favorite is the pallium, which is a stole made from white wool and adorned with six black silk crosses. The wearing of the pallium by the Pope and metropolitan archbishops symbolizes authority as well as unity with the Holy See.

One significant thing about the pallium, Cardinal Tobin said, is the symbolism found in how it is worn: around the shoulders.

It shows "the obligation of the bishop to look for the one who's lost, and carry that one back on his shoulders. So that's why when I put it on my shoulders, I remember that," he said.

It is traditional for the Pope to bestow the stole on new archbishops June 29 each year. The rite is a sign of communion with the See of Peter. It also serves as a symbol of the metropolitan archbishop’s jurisdiction in his own diocese as well as the other dioceses within his ecclesiastical province.

However, as a sign of “synodality” with local Churches, Pope Francis decided in 2015 that new metropolitan archbishops will officially be imposed with the pallium in their home diocese, rather than the Vatican.

So while the new archbishops still journey to Rome to receive the pallium during the liturgy with the Pope, the official imposition ceremony is in their home diocese, allowing more faithful and bishops in dioceses under the archbishop’s jurisdiction to attend the event.

Archbishop Thompson, whose installation as Archbishop of Indianapolis will be held July 28, has the unique privilege of being imposed with the pallium at the same Mass as his installation, which he said will be "a great symbol."

Archbishop Etienne was installed as Archbishop of Anchorage on Nov. 9, 2016, so he’s had a few months to begin settling in. "The people in Alaska count winters, so I've been in Anchorage one winter now," he laughed.

Though the weather is cold, the people there are warm, he said, noting that they have all been grateful he accepted the appointment, since it isn't easy to live in Alaska.

"It's a very diverse Church," he explained, but the people have been wonderful, "helping me to understand their ways and to embrace that new territory and all the people that are a part of it."

Both Archbishop Etienne and Archbishop Thompson said that learning about their new appointments came as quite a surprise.

"It's a shock anytime you get one of those phone calls," Archbishop Etienne said.

Moving to Anchorage was not something he expected, but "after a prayerful night, it became clear that if this is where Mother Church has asked me to go and where the Lord is leading, I promised him years ago I would follow. So Alaska's my home now."

Archbishop Thompson, who only received his appointment June 3, said the last few weeks have been "a whirlwind," especially having to plan so quickly for a trip to Rome.

When he received the phone call, he had just returned home from saying an ordination Mass for new priests in his diocese, Evansville. In his homily that day, he said he had preached about missionary discipleship and how one cannot be comfortable or complacent in an assignment, but must be prepared to go out to the people, since it's the Lord who calls us and sends us.

"So when I got this phone call, I got off the phone and thought, 'Who was I preaching to this morning?'"

In Newark, Cardinal Tobin said there are so many people his work can be "daunting" at times, though it's also "wonderful."

"I would say it certainly gets me on my knees, to pray for wisdom and light, and to pray for the people and all their needs," he said.

During his time, Cardinal Tobin has come out strongly about the issue of immigration in the U.S., in May issuing a call for Catholic and political leaders to work in defense of immigrants.

“I think it's a very delicate moment in our history,” he said, both for the many immigrants in the U.S. and for the American soul in general. “Because I think that there are so many things that brutalize the American soul, beginning with abortion, proposals for euthanasia,” he said.

“The rounding up of immigrants, and the completely callous nature toward their suffering, I think, is just another thing that deadens our hearts. I think as spiritual leaders we have to be concerned about it.” 

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Vatican City, Jun 29, 2017 / 12:16 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Saints Peter and Paul are pillars of the Church and a reminder that God is with us always, Pope Francis said Thursday in St. Peter's Square.

“The Fathers of the Church liked to compare the holy apostles Peter and Paul to two columns, on which the visible building of the Church rests. Both sealed with their own blood their testimony to Christ of preaching and service to the nascent Christian community,” he stated during his June 29 Angelus address on the saints' feast.

He reflected on St. Peter's deliverance from prison by an angel “so that he could complete his evangelizing mission, first in the Holy Land and then in Rome, putting all his energy at the service of the Christian community.”

St. Paul similarly experienced hostility to his mission, the Pope said, from both civil authorities and his fellow Jews, “from which he was freed by the Lord.”

“These two 'deliverances', of Peter and of Paul, reveal the common path of the two apostles, who were mandated by Jesus to announced the Gospel in difficult and in certain cases hostile circumstances.”

They both, through “their personal and ecclesial stories, demonstrate and say to us, today, that the Lord is always at our side, walking with us, never abandoning us,” said Pope Francis.

“Especially at the moment of trial, God touches our hand, comes to our aid, and frees us from the threats of our nemeses. But let us recall that our true nemesis is sin, and the Evil One who drives us to it.”

He said that “when we reconcile with God, especially in the sacrament of Penance, we receive the grace of pardon, we are freed from the chains of evil, and are lightened from the burden of our errors. Thus can we continue our journey of as joyous announcers and witnesses to the Gospel, demonstrating that we ourselves first received mercy.”

Pope Francis concluded his address by praying for Rome, the city of the martyrdom of both Saints Peter and Paul.

“May the goodness and the grace of the Lord sustain all the Roman people, for they live in fraternity and concord, resplendent in the Christian faith, witnessed to with intrepid love by the holy apostles Peter and Paul.”

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Washington D.C., Jun 29, 2017 / 01:10 pm (CNA).- There’s been a lot of chatter about Fr. James Martin’s new book, “Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity,” and given the topic, it’s understandable why. Pope Francis’ call to “encounter” has reinforced the necessity for Catholics to go bring the Gospel to those on the margins. Within American society at large, one of the most visible minorities on the margins are those who experience same-sex attractions or identify as LGBT, and ministry to this community has been one has been of special concern among faithful Catholics in recent years. At the same time, both communities have borne legitimate struggles, as the Church faces pressures to choose between its teachings and public service, and those who identify as LGBT – including celibate Catholics who abide by Church teaching – have for years faced violence, ridicule and discrimination for their attractions.

The book contains many good and practical explanations for why conversations between these groups can come to a standstill. Fr. Martin points out how the scandal of the sex abuse crisis or mistreatment by persons in the Church can make it difficult for members of the LGBT community to listen to the Church’s guidance. Additionally, he explains to members of the LGBT community why it’s important to respect the teaching authority of the Church. Advice like this is clarifying and can help facilitate conversations with more patience and understanding. The book closes with a series of prayers and spiritual reflections, some of which provide a welcome antidote to the Pelagian poisons of our time: Fr. Martin rightfully reinforces God’s love for all his children in a world that places terms and conditions upon our human dignity and worth.

Yes, all of us are sinners and fall short of the glory of God and face the consequences of our actions. But all of us are created in the image and likeness of God; it is not our action or inaction, but God’s grace, which secures our salvation. I can only hope that these reflections provide spiritual fruit for all of the book’s readers who feel rejected, neglected, hurt, or who think their deeds somehow have rendered them unworthy of God’s love, particularly readers who experience same-sex attraction or identify as part of the LGBT community.

However, there were other aspects of the book that were troubling.  

Most of all, I was confused by the book’s avoidance of the Church’s teaching on the Sacrament of marriage, as well as the importance of the gifts of celibacy and chastity for the life of the Church. Likewise, I was baffled by Fr. Martin’s reluctance to acknowledge Catholics who experience same-sex attraction who live in obedience to Church teaching – either through celibacy or in sacramental marriages to persons of the opposite sex. If the purpose of the book is to build a bridge between the Church and the broader LGBT community, why skip over the perspective of those at the crossroads of living a Catholic life and experiencing same-sex attraction?

Eve Tushnet, an author, pro-life activist and Catholic who identifies as a lesbian spoke to similar frustrations, particularly the book’s avoidance of sexual ethics, in her review of Fr. Martin’s book for the Washington Post. “The Catholic sexual ethic is this book’s embarrassing secret. It’s never mentioned, and so the difficulties the teaching itself poses for gay Catholics in our culture are never addressed.”  

Tushnet later continues: “In a culture where everything from pop songs to health insurance urges us to structure our lives around romance and marriage, gay Christians have a chance – or a duty – to show that you can make a life of devotion, joy and mutual sacrifice within celibacy. And straight Christians have a chance not only to live the models we’ve shown them, following the paths we’ve blazed, but to support us when our callings to non-marital love leave us economically or emotionally vulnerable.”

Given the topic, it seemed jarringly incomplete to be denied even a reference to the call of Tushnet and other LGBT Christians trying to live in accord with Church teaching.

After reading, I also found myself wondering about the definitions Fr. Martin lays out, particularly those surrounding identity.

While certainly respect and sensitivity are necessary for any difficult conversation, I can’t help but wonder if Fr. Martin’s fixation on identity as LGBT overlooks Catholics who experience same-sex attraction but do not wish to identify as such. For instance, members of groups such as Courage share experiences of same-sex attraction, yet many choose not to identify as “gay” or “lesbian.” Furthermore, even within the LGBT community, those labels of “gay” and “lesbian” are falling out of use among the Millennial generation, with the terms like “queer” taking their place. If this book is to help bridge an understanding, why limit this conversation to their exclusion?

On top of that, all of these sexual identities – including that of “straight” – are very recent social constructions. This isn’t to say that identities don’t reflect on how we are shaped and encounter the world, or that they cannot be an effective shorthand for describing one’s background or community. Yet, as Pope Benedict XVI wrote while he was still Joseph Ratzinger, “the human person, made in the image and likeness of God, can hardly be adequately described by a reductionist reference to his or her sexual orientation” (or any other temporal identity). While we might claim a given identity – Gentile, Jew, Gay, Straight – they aren’t essential to who we are as children of God, nor should they limit us in doing what the Church, our Mother, asks of us.

Sadly, this point of Church teaching and historical understanding doesn’t come across clearly in Fr. Martin’s book. In one section, Fr. Martin rightly points to the hypocritical “acceptance” of some other groups who publicly disobey Church teaching such as known usurers or those in cohabiting relationships. However, he doesn’t merely call for consistency, but for consistency in acceptance of these forms of public sin. This is problematic for a number of reasons, but most of all because it seems to despair of God’s grace and sells short Christ’s call for all of us to live lives of virtue.

Overall, there are some useful insights in the Building a Bridge’s prayers and descriptions of where many conversations on this topic come to a standstill. And, the book may be a useful tool for a well-formed Catholic who wants a better insight into the LGBT experience, or for a member of that community who wants to understand a neighborhood priest's perspective. However, bridge-building is a difficult task. Hopefully the fruits of this book will prove to be a solid plank, but there is clearly a need for other resources, materials and direction to make up for what is lacking in this book as we seek to span these waters.

 

 

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