The Bishop Writes

(From the Aug. 19, 1999 edition of the Inland Register)

Approximately 1,500 people gathered in Martin Centre at Gonzaga University for the 60th annual Tekakwitha Conference from Aug. 4-8. Most of those attending were native and indigenous peoples from the United States and Canada. Bethel, Alaska; Sandia Pueblo just north of Albuquerque; and Prince Edward Island were names of places on some of the name tags which represented the diversity of attendance.

I was one of seven bishops who also were able to attend for varying amounts of time. Even though it has been some years since I attended the last conference, each time I have found the events to be a remarkable gathering of diverse peoples who for a few days celebrated their faith, listened to presentations and workshops, and enjoyed the pow-wow at the end of the conference.

The name Tekakwitha comes from a young Mohawk woman who was declared venerable by Pope Pius XII in 1943 and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1980. Especially the native peoples hope and pray that this “Lily of the Mohawks,” Kateri Tekakwitha, will soon be canonized.

Kateri’s life is remarkable. She was born in 1656 in Ossernernan, along the Mohawk River, and was baptized 20 years later on Easter Sunday. She died in 1680 at 24 years of age, having been a Catholic for only four years. Sometimes God’s grace works powerfully in relatively short periods of time!

For many of the attendees at the conference, this was the first visit to the Northwest and more specifically to the Spokane area. Our weather was great, although a little warm for a couple of days. The joke at the beginning of the conference was this must be Spokane, Ariz. The Alaskans were placed in charge of praying for cooler weather. Their prayer seemed to be quite successful, so much so that on the last evening when the pow-pow was to be held outside, we had a cool rainstorm. Martin Centre provided a great, alternative place for the round dancing, the drumming and the singing. Everyone from the youngest to the oldest participated in the dancing. (Yes, I participated, too).

Our diocese was truly blessed to host the Tekawitha Conference this year. Millie Nicodemus of Spokane with her committee and the many volunteers did an excellent job with the planning, logistics, and flow of the program. I heard nothing but most positive comments from the participants who seemed to enjoy very much their brief stay for the conference.

Such an occasion as this reminds us of the presence of the native peoples in the diocese. Besides the many Indians who live in the immediate Spokane area, we have Immaculate Conception Church on the Kalispell Reservation near Cusick. On the Spokane Reservation, there are several parish churches: St. Philip Benizi in Ford; Sacred Heart in Wellpinit; and Our Lady of Lourdes in West End. On the Colville Reservation six churches serve the parishioners: St. Rose of Lima in Keller; St. Michael in Inchelium; Sacred Heart in Nespelem; St. Mary Mission near Omak; and St. Joseph in East Omak.

Several Jesuit priests, lay ministers, and the six Jesuit volunteers working at St. Mary Mission and Paschal Sherman School serve on the reservations, along with the pastor of Usk who serves the Kalispels. Cursillos, pilgrimages (the follow-up to Cursillo), ministry training, and regular parish activities make up the faith life of this part of our diocese. My strong desire and hope is that we will never see parishioners on the reservations (or in the city, for that matter) as being somehow separate from the rest of the Church. Rather, we are together as brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. That theme constantly surfaced at the Tekakwitha Conference — we are called to unity, to reverence and respect for one another.

We in the Church have a unique opportunity to live out that vision and make it a practical reality of our daily living and practice of faith.

May God bless and strengthen us to live faithfully and genuinely what it really means to be Church.

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