Dear Beloved Parishioners,
A Call to Communion, Participation and Mission
Pope Francis has issued a worldwide invitation to all Catholics to participate in the Synod on Synodality. The theme of this Synod is For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.
The word synod is rooted in Greek and means “same road” or “journeying together.” Through this synodal process, Pope Francis invites every Catholic to prayerfully reflect and learn together about how God is calling us to be the Church in the third millennium.
United in prayer, engaged in dialogue, enlightened by the Word, and guided by the Holy Spirit, we will strive to be faithful messengers of the Good News and to pursue the path to which God calls us – towards deeper communion, fuller participation, and greater openness to fulfilling our mission in the world.
The first part of this journey is taking place now, in dioceses across the world, leading up to the Synod that will take place in Rome, in October of 2023..
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And, in case you did not see it this weekend in the bulletin, here is what I wrote about this in this week’s pastor’s pen..
The Synod on Synodality has begun worldwide in the church, and now in our Archdiocese. (Go to: https://allthingsnew.archstl.org/Ways-to-Engage/Synod-on-Synodality.) This is all about how we do ‘church’ together, listening to one another, and building each other up in Christ. Since there is a strategic overlap between our All Things New initiative and the goals of the Synod, the first step for both of these processes in our Archdiocese is to take the Disciple Maker Index. (Click on the link below https://portal.catholicleaders.org/d/y3226y to take the Index. There are only 14 more days to do so…)
And then, once you have given us some objective input via the Disciple Maker Index, the Synod process seeks input on these three questions:
- Based on your personal experience, what about the Catholic Church fills your heart?
- Based on your personal experience, what about the Catholic Church breaks your heart?
- How can the Church better listen to people who are marginalized or socially excluded, including, but not limited to, cultural-ethnic groups, women, those living with disabilities, those experiencing poverty, and those identifying as LGBTQ+?
You may submit your answers to those three questions by April 30th at the link here:
https://allthingsnew.archstl.org/Ways-to-Engage/Synod-on-Synodality/Feedback
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I am so grateful for all the choices you are already making to have a productive and fruitful Lent. And I also pray that your individual practices spill over in responding to the earnest questions being asked of us by our Church leadership at this stage in the life of the local and universal church.
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So, this afternoon, I received enough information about Friday’s consecration of Russian and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary to begin planning with our school. Though I still don’t know a time yet, I hope to touch base with Mrs. Schroff briefly after Mass and before RCIA and then the Archbishop’s study day to pin a time down for Friday’s prayer. Stay tuned, as they used to say…
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Though I am a day late, the Deeper Dive into the Sunday Scriptures comes to us from the Ignatian Solidarity Network
Third Sunday of Lent: On Holy Ground
By Christina Leaño
Over two years ago I was in a church in New York City preparing to join the global climate strikes.
There was a man passing out green buttons that said, “You’re on holy ground. Act like it.” The button was a reminder of God’s words to Moses near the burning bush. It was a reminder that “The universe…shows forth the inexhaustible riches of God” as Pope Francis says in Laudato Si’. (Laudato Si’ 86)
What would it mean to act as if we are on holy ground? We might imitate Moses in front of the burning bush. We can take off our “shoes” by becoming humble, acknowledging our humanness before God, and being open to receive. Then we can lean in and listen.
Often when we see something burning, whether figuratively or physically, our instinct is to go the other direction. Yet God asked Moses (and us) to do the opposite. To come closer.
And then we are to act, as God called forth Moses to lead the Israelites to liberation. We are called to respond concretely to “the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.” (Laudato Si’ 49)
I reflect on this notion of Holy Ground after hearing the appeal from Ukranian Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk to end the war against his country. He declared that this war was not just a humanitarian catastrophe. “It is an irreversible attack on God’s creation that for decades, for centuries, will be impossible to correct.”
You’re on holy ground. Act like it. Stop this war. For the suffering of the people. For the suffering of the earth.
This Lent may we lean in to listen to the cries of this holy ground and be courageous enough to act. Even if we, like Moses, feel ill-equipped, may we trust in the “I am” who is sending us.
For Reflection:
How might we act differently if we knew we were on holy ground?
Where around us do we see a burning bush inviting us to “hear both the cry of the earth and the poor” and to act?
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The Song of the Day: Here and Heal Me Now, by Lester Delgado
blessings,
fr bill