For His Friends

As they often say on Sunday afternoon between 350pm and 415pm, but slightly paraphrased from the NFL games, “We would like to welcome those people who have been watching the Church in the US and the world through Whispers in the Loggia to our humble little commentary on a great local Church, the Diocese of St. Petersburg.” If this is the first time you have taken a peep at this blog, maybe a small introduction would help. For the first nine or ten years I was here as bishop, I communicated on a regular basis with the people of the diocese in two ways: with a daily radio program of five minutes of something less than pearls of great wisdom entitled “On the Air with Bishop Lynch” on our powerful and gifted 100,000 watt SPIRIT FM. Then I also wrote a fairly regular column for the diocesan edition of the FLORIDA CATHOLIC entitled “Out of the Ordinary.” The paper is no longer a part of our diocesan communications opportunities. After ten years of deadlines for submission to the paper and recording sessions, I was fairly worn out and found myself writing and talking about what I and others considered minutiae of Catholic Church life.

The electronic media began to catch my attention and this blog, soon to celebrate its first anniversary, is the result. I write only when I have something to share or teach. The average time it takes me to prepare a 500 word blog entry is between 20 and 30 minutes (sometimes they read like “haste makes waste”) and there is only the moment when the muse suggests I write, not a deadline. Do I reach as many people as the former column and radio show – not even close, but “hits” on this blog were rising until my five week confinement in late July and August. Now in recuperation, I am beginning to get my energy back and have time, lots of time every day, to share reflections on our lives as Catholics.

I read your comments personally but do  not answer them because in some instances I wish to avoid useless polemics and in other instances some are very personal to the person who comments. Many have offered me new perspectives in challenging pastoral problems.

Now some news. Bishop-elect Etienne has asked me to deliver the homily at his episcopal ordination on December 9th in Cheyenne. I am grateful to Archbishop Charles Chaput, OFM Cap, of Denver who as the principal consecrator  has allowed me this privilege. Most of my diocesan family remember that in the year of his death, 1996, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin preached at my episcopal ordination. I am not much more agile at this moment than the Cardinal was that January 26th but it will be a labor of love.

I promised myself and my doctors that I would not make trips outside of the diocese until after my ileostomy is reversed soon after the first of the year, but I will make an exception in this instance. I will be unable to attend the November Bishops’ meeting in Baltimore but should be back to full form to welcome the USCCB to St. Petersburg in June for their special assembly.

Finally, John Barry of the ST. PETERSBURG TIMES does a second wonderful job in four days in today’s paper’s coverage of the Holy See’s announcement about the offer to the Anglican Communion. I could take no exception to his conclusions. I will return to this topic myself in a few days when by mind is better capable of dealing with what was for myself a total surprise.

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The late Richard Cardinal Cushing of Boston was fond of saying about the Church he served, “we may be difficult but we are never boring.” That was my first thought yesterday with the news from Rome that Pope Benedict XVI would soon issue an Apostolic Constitution allowing Anglicans who are seeking unity with Rome to come over while retaining some of their traditional liturgy, prayers and practice. To accomplish this, some personal prelatures would be established around the world where governance would be by a person selected by the Pope from among the former Anglican clergy now ordained and serving in the Roman Church. So, the bottom line is that there may well be a new “rite” within the Catholic Church for these people who seek this form of union, similar to the Pope’s decision to allow the celebration of the former or Tridentine Mass several years ago. In return for this concession, the Anglicans would have to accept the authority  of the Pope as universal pastor and abide by the same rules and norms as you and I do.

In announcing this concession for the sake of unity, the head of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, the U.S.’s Cardinal William Levada and the new secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, the U.S.’s Augustine Di Noia, OP made it very clear that our Church has no intention of going “fishing” in the Anglican communion for converts but rather were simply providing an option to those who had decided to separate themselves already. In London, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams was characteristically kind in response, but it had to be painful for him and for others of our Anglican/Episcopalian friends. The issues driving those who might take advantage of this new concession by the Pope are the ordination of women priests and bishops, of gay and lesbian priests who are openly so, etc.

I could be wrong but my sense is that not an awful lot of our brothers and sisters will take advantage  of this attempt at outreach. Here in this diocese I would be surprised if any Episcopal community would come over as there are many things about our governance structure that they do not like. We should also humbly acknowledge that there are a good number of disaffected Catholics who have become Episcopalians and are quite comfortable in their new home. Also, I can assure you that the Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida has far more former Catholic priests serving as clergy than either our own or the Venice dioceses have. I have always been grateful that neither of our Churches “crow” about this reality and I assure my Episcopalian friends that it is not my intention to proselytize among their number. However, should a community wish to “come over to Rome”, it appears that it will be outside my competence and will be the business of the new prelates chosen for this purpose.

If you are interested in learning more about this announcement, today’s NEW YORK TIMES covers the story well as does the mother of all Catholics blogs, WHISPERS IN THE LOGGIA.

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Here are some pictures from an Ecumenical Good Friday Service at Pinellas Hope. This photo essay was taken by Mack Reeves, a junior at St. Petersburg Catholic High School.

The evening meal arrives for the residents of Pinellas Hope

St. Petersburg Catholic's Baseball Team volunteers to serve the Good Friday meal

The reading of the Passion of our Lord according to Mark - Two residents join me in proclaiming the Gospel

An overflow congregation for the Ecumenical Service

Listening intently to the story of our redemption

Reverencing and embracing the wood of the cross on which hung our salvation

The Pinellas Hope Resident's Choir led by Eric volunteering from Our Lady of Lourdes Parish

One word, also nailed to a tree, that captures the end of Good Friday at Pinellas Hope

Tonight is the Feast of Passover throughout the Jewish world. This is one of those years when as we read, “Jesus went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Passover” it applies tonight as it did historically two millenia plus ago. Our brothers and sisters of the Jewish faith will gather throughout the world today and tonight to hear again the wonderful story of God’s intervention in the lives of their ancestors, how God saved them, delivered them, favored them. For the Jews tonight is a very Holy Thursday night. Since the first Passover celebration, the Jewish people have suffered much and have been the victims of the worst genocide in human history, the shoah, the holocost. On the receiving end of vile and evil forms of prejudice, they have remained faithful throughout the centuries and have formed a strong bond to protect their faith. Those of  us privileged to have close Jewish friends know how much their faith sustains them and tonight in a special way will bring families together at synagogues and in homes as have the days leading up to this moment. Let us pray for our Jewish friends, our ancestors in faith and deep believers in the same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as ourselves. Blessed Passover, dear friends.

I received a letter today from Pope Benedict XVI. It was not exactly a personal letter but rather one which he has written to all the bishops of the world. Its content has been widely circulated in the media so I will not go into the matter of its contents as much as what it meant to me as one of those who shares the burden of shepherding God’s people like the Holy Father. In the letter the Holy Father admits that prior to taking the action of lifting the excommunications of the four schismatic bishops, research into one of those freed of this worst of all ecclesiastical penalties would have suggested that there were problems with the public statements of Bishop Williamson. When those statements came to light, the Holy Father admits of the embarrassment he felt. But he then goes on to lament how hurt he personally was by those, including those whom he counted as “friends”, who rushed to judge him as embracing or condoning the horrible propositions of Bishop Williamson. He reaffirms once again his horror at the shoah and his dedication to advancing the course of the relations between our Church and the Jewish people and Jewish leaders. To have jumped to the conclusion that he himself could abide the opinions of Williamson simply because he was seeking to cure a schism in the Church today hurt him deeply. It is clear to me that had he known in advance of the opinions of Williamson, while he still would have lifted the excommunication, he would have made it more clear that in so doing he was in no way condoning the former’s political, historical or even religious positions.

It’s often lonely at the top and I felt for Pope Benedict as I read the letter today. It was clear that the controversy Bishop Williamson introduced into what the Holy Father saw as a pastoral outreach was both embarrassing and unexpected. Even Popes can hurt from time to time in the face of seemingly endless criticism.

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Some updates on subjects taken up recently on this blog.

The Holy See press officer acknowledged this week that its handling of the lifting of the excommunication of the four Society of St. Pius X bishops did not serve the Church well and that Pope Benedict had taken the action without the knowledge of the comments of Bishop Williamson on the Shoah. The Holy Father himself engaged the issue at a Wednesday audience and the Holy See has made it clear that the England born now in Argentina Williamson must totally recant before any other action, at least in his case, can be taken. The other three bishops have either distanced themselves or disavowed Williamson’s preposterous statements. In the end, we look foolish, nonetheless.

Contacts between senior curial personnel in Moscow for the enthronement of His Holiness, Kiril, as patriarch of Moscow were warm and cordial and Pope Benedict gave a chalice to the new head of Russian Orthodoxy.

There is still no Freedom of Choice Act introduced in this Congress but in all likelihood there will be. The giant postcard campaign in Catholic Churches against FOCA has now been refocused by the USCCB Pro-Life Committee and directed to all legislative initiatives which would broaden abortion access or challenge conscience clause protection currently in place.

Beautiful Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago where I once took Pope John Paul II (in October 1979) suffered significant fire and water damage on Wednesday from an early morning roof fire. It will be closed for repairs for an indeterminate time.

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