"Jubilee Justice 2000"by Bishop William S. Skylstad (From the July 29, 1999 edition of the Inland Register)
We concluded the gathering this morning with Eucharist. The Mass was celebrated in several different languages. It was the first time I’ve heard a reading proclaimed in a Native American language. The Holy See was represented by Cardinal Etchegaray, former president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and now the head of Jubilee 2000 celebration for the whole Church. Bishop Diarmuid Martin of the Pontifical Council attended as well. Their presence reflected the importance the Vatican places on justice and peace in the mission of the Church. About 20 bishops from the U.S. came who were part of the larger group representing many diocesan staffs and parishes. Besides the opening and closing Eucharists, the conference consisted of major presentations by usually a team of two or three individuals, with breakout sessions afterwards on many and varied topics related to the general theme. Everyone I talked to this afternoon while leaving was certainly enthused about the experience of the past four days. There were several notable items that stood out for me as part of the meeting. First, the liturgies were exceptionally well-planned and celebrated. There was great sensitivity to diversity of language and culture, reflected by the choice of music and the participants. Liturgy celebrated well is a wonderful way to pray and is formational and evangelizing as well. The second notable experience of the Jubilee Celebration was the sharing of the seven principles of the social teaching of the Church. These principles are:
Each of these themes was introduced in a spirit of prayer with an appropriate reading from Scripture, followed by a witness talk. Seven different people shared a reflection on each theme. For example, in the case of the family, a couple shared their family experiences. The reflection on the option for the poor was given by a young lady who ministered among youth groups in the Bronx. She shared her own story of conversion — of letting go a well-paying job to return to her childhood neighborhood to work among the young people. After these seven presentations, there were breakout sessions for each theme to continue the reflection. I think everyone came away with a deeper appreciation of the richness of the Church’s social teaching. The constant reference to Scripture reminded us of the need to translate the Word of God into action. I was asked to moderate the session on option for the poor and used a quote from the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “When we attend to the needs of those in want, we give them what is theirs, not ours. More than performing works of mercy, we are paying a debt of justice” (2446). The theme of Saturday afternoon and evening focused on the ban of land mines world wide. There are now between 80 million and 100 million land mines in place throughout the world. Many of these are the residue of regional conflicts. The devices most often destroy or damage the lives of non-combatants, usually children and people who live and work in the countryside. The United States has refused to sign the ban while some 70 nations around the world have done so. This lack of leadership is not a shining example for us as a country in the world community. After all, we are the only superpower. The Holy See has strongly supported debt forgiveness for poor nations. So have the U.S. bishops. Poor countries are held in bondage by interest payments alone. The cancellation of debt would not have a significant impact on our national budget. The people most significantly effected by this debt had nothing to do with causing it. As a country, we have done something, but much more needs to be done. As a nation, facts demonstrate that our aid for other countries is rather minimal compared to that of other nations. Bishop Martin in his presentation was especially strong about the need for international debt forgiveness for poor nations. A significant moment on the first night was a talk given by Bud Welch of Oklahoma City, whose 23-year-old daughter was killed in the federal building explosion. He strongly maintained that capital punishment is not the answer to violence. People were deeply touched by his story of searching out Bill McVeigh, the father of convicted bomber Timothy McVeigh. We must not forget how many victims are effected by violence. There is great opportunity for reconciliation and forgiveness. Pure and simple, capital punishment is vengeance. The pope and bishops are united in their stance against capital punishment. This cycle of violence must be broken. Finally, my impression of these three days of the celebration of Jubilee Justice 2000 pointed out the wonderful, diverse gifts in the Church which are used to share, reflect, and celebrate. In a sense, this gathering was truly a Pentecost experience. I hope and pray that its impact will be a leaven in our world as we strive to be more faithful to the Word of God, the teaching of our Church, and the movement of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. May God give you joy and peace.
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The national celebration of the Jubilee Justice 2000 took place at UCLA in Los Angeles on July 15-18. Three thousand Catholics from all over the United States attended. Over 30 went from the Diocese of Spokane. These reflections of the event are fresh in my memory as I write flying back to Spokane this Sunday afternoon.