On His Knees

Karol Wojtyła, who we now call Blessed John Paul II, became a cardinal in 1967 at the young age of forty-seven. This short except from George Weigel’s biography of Blessed John Paul II, Witness to Hope, describes how devoted Cardinal Wojtyła was when he served as archbishop of Krakow, Poland.

Wojtyła was running a very large organization as archbishop of Krakow, but this was an organization with a difference. This was the Church, and he would govern it like the Church, not like some other kind of institution.

He lived this approach to leadership and problem solving every day. Each morning, after Mass and breakfast, the archbishop disappeared into his chapel, and it was known that he was not to be disturbed. There, alone, a few yards from the spot where Cardinal Sapieha had ordained him a priest, he spent two hours writing at a small desk, facing the Blessed Sacrament in the tabernacle on the altar. It is said that there are theologians who do theology at their desks and theologians who do theology on their knees; the same might be said about bishops and their governance of dioceses. Karol Wojtyła was a bishop who governed his diocese (and did his philosophy and theology) “on his knees”—or at a desk in the sacramental presence of his Lord (188).

And with joy, he carried this serious holiness all the way to the papacy. Blessed John Paul II, please pray for our cardinals and bishops, that they may be like you and lead with the light of the Lord.  

USCCB on New Evangelization and Marriage

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has been very active in the last couple of weeks, sharing reactions to the Synod on the New Evangelization, responding to US election results, and in hosting their annual fall meeting, where many important propositions were discussed and voted on.

Check out this article about USCCB’s new strategic road map for the New Evangelization, called “Journey with Christ: Faith/Worship/Witness.”

Also, this reaction to recent initiatives legalizing same-sex marriage is worth reading. It reports on the November 7 statement published by Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of San Francisco, chairman of the USCCB Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage, who said: “In a society marked by increasing poverty and family fragmentation, marriage needs to be strengthened, promoted, and defended, not redefined.”

Pope Benedict XVI’s general intention for the month of November is that “bishops, priests, and all ministers of the Gospel may bear the courageous witness of fidelity to the crucified and risen Lord.” Let us pray for our bishops then, that they may continue to be guided by the Holy Spirit. 

A Heart On Fire With God’s Love

…her whole life was transformed and enlightened by her love for Christ in the Eucharist. During the long hours she spent before the Blessed Sacrament she learned to live continually in the presence of God….The radical commitment of Mother Duchesne to the poor and the outcast of society, remains a very dynamic source of inspiration for her own Congregation, and for all religious today….Her absolutely unique example is valid for all Christ’s disciples, especially those who live in the underprivileged parts of the world…With missionary courage, the great pioneer looked to the future with the eyes of the heart—a heart that was on fire with God’s love.

-Blessed John Paul II, Canonization Mass for St. Rose-Philippine Duchesne, 1988

St. Rose-Philippine, oh beautiful exemplar of missionary courage and love for Christ, please pray for the Pilgrim Church, that she may be inspired by your same missionary spirit!

Their Reply, Their Beauty

I put my question to the earth, and it replied, “I am not he”;

I questioned everything it held, and they confessed the same.

I questioned the sea and the great deep,

and the teeming live creatures that crawl,

and they replied,

“We are not God; seek higher.”

I questioned the gusty winds,

and every breeze with all its flying creatures told me,

“Anaximenes was wrong: I am not God.”

To the sky I put my question, to sun, moon, stars,

But they denied me: “We are not the God you seek.”

And to all things which stood around the portals of my flesh

I said,

“Tell me of my God.

You are not he, but tell me something of him.”

Then they lifted their mighty voices and cried,

“He made us.”

My questioning was my attentive spirit,

And their reply, their beauty.

-St. Augustine of Hippo

The Church Must Go Digital

...62% of adult US Catholics have a profile on Facebook

...58% of Catholics age 30 and younger share content online at least once a week

...33% of Catholics would like their pastors and bishops to keep blogs

These are just a few results from a study conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University, suggesting that the Church’s online presence is critical if we are to fully engage the culture. Pope Benedict XVI is taking a step in this direction with his plan to open a personal Twitter account.

Of course, engaging the online culture is one very small step in the New Evangelization, and a seemingly shallow one at that. But in order to become more visible and make connections with those who have fallen away, the Church must meet people where they’re at.

Mary, Star of the New Evangelization, Pray for Us!