"The Church Universal"by Bishop William S. Skylstad (From the May 18, 2000 edition of the Inland Register)
At the beginning of Lent, Pope John Paul II celebrated the Mass of Pardon at the Vatican, requesting forgiveness for the Churchs sins but also extending forgiveness toward those who have harmed us in the Church. Almost immediately he followed this celebration with the pastoral visit and pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The visit took place in context of a very complex and tense political situation. Yet, with deep sensitivity to all the parties involved and with a strong focus on his personal pilgrimage of prayer to sacred places mentioned in the Scriptures, his visit left a profound sense of awe in the world community. Let us hope that the seeds of the call to reconciliation and unity will bear much fruit in the future. His visit to the Holy Land was not a solitary act. As chief shepherd of the Church, he in a sense brings all of us along with him on those visits. He is a part of us, and we of him as we are Church together. We were proud of what he had done. In my ad limina visits to Rome every five years, I am mindful that in a certain way I bring the whole diocese with me as well. We are profoundly connected in the Church through our baptism into the body of Christ. The truth automatically follows that we can never think only of our own little world in which we live. We must always be mindful of the larger picture and reality of the global community. Thats why the Church places special emphasis on global solidarity and specifically addresses, for example, issues of peace, justice and international debt of poorer nations. There is no other organization in the world community with a presence and sense of belonging such as we have. That reality is a wonderful gift, but also places upon us a continuing responsibility to be faithful to God’s Word. We are our brothers’ and sisters’ keeper, and we are to love our neighbor as ourselves. The day before I wrote this column, Cardinal John O’Connor was buried in St. Patrick Cathedral in New York City. You have read the news accounts and have seen parts of the funeral liturgy on TV. As the communication capital of the world, New York offers the special opportunity of having made known the cardinal’s ministry. In an admirable way he continually called for respect for the dignity of human life at all stages, for sensitivity to the poor, for rights of workers, for sensitivity to our Jewish brothers and sisters, and for compassion towards those who have failed and sinned. I remember his remarks at one of the national bishops’ meetings when he told the story about himself after visiting four young people in prison who brutally murdered a jogger in Central Park. He received vicious mail criticizing his action. The authors of the letters must have forgotten the words of Jesus that “when I was in prison, you came to visit me.” As one news reporter commented, the funeral liturgy for the cardinal was the same rite celebrated for any Catholic, rich or poor, powerful or powerless. Once again, the cardinal’s witness of life and teaching are also part of who we are, all of us in the Church. It’s especially at the time of death that the fullness of truth about life seems to come out. Cardinal Laws comment in the homily about Cardinal O’Connor’s unambiguous stance for respecting human life from the moment of conception to natural death drew a two-minute standing ovation. That’s who we are as Catholics. In just a few weeks on June 11, Pentecost Sunday, we will gather as a diocesan family with Cardinal Szoka for Eucharist in the Spokane arena. We don’t often have that kind of experience in our local church, but our gathering will be a vivid reminder of the reality that we live each day as members of this diocese and of the Church universal. We come from all walks of life, with unique spiritual journeys which make up the mosaic of the church not only here in Eastern Washington, but all over the world. I hope you will be able to take advantage of this unique opportunity to be Church as we celebrate together and thank God for his bountiful gifts and marvelous goodness. May God bless you and give you peace.
Bishop Skylstad's Schedule
May 18: Business breakfast; Catholic Charities Board meeting; Confirmation, 7 p.m., St.
Francis of Assisi Parish, Spokane
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So far during this jubilee year, several significant events have occurred in the Church. Over and above the many local gatherings in the churches of dioceses, there have been universal and national celebrations which have helped us to appreciate the nature of the Church and what it means to us. A couple of examples come to mind.