Will I be #satisfied with “The bonds that shape the unity of the Church” in places within the Diocese of Amarillo when these matters are addressed❓
- A memorial is removed, as it was erected by a convicted pedophile priest in honor of a bishop who made the “serious mistake” of granting that priest “a second chance,” a decision that ultimately led to the destruction of the innocence of youth.
- A letter is taken off the diocesan website—a letter that rebukes “a few” who reported abuse at St. Mary’s Cathedral, casting them aside instead of pursuing justice, healing and reconciliation.
- The abortion of daily Masses at St. Mary’s Cathedral, is banned, recognizing that the practice, justified under the guise of fostering “an incredible sense of Reverence for the…Priests and especially for the Bishops“, weaponized the Eucharist as a tool of power and control—excluding or exiling of members of His Body.
- The next bishop “Just Says No” to residing in a bishop’s residence whose construction symbolically reinforces hierarchical dominance and seeks to put him “in his place” before his arrival.
If and when these things take place, will my “hunger and thirst for righteousness” finally be satisfied, just as the outcasts among the crowds were fed and restored in Matthew 15:29-37❓
XVI ORDINARY GENERAL ASSEMBLY
OF THE SYNOD OF BISHOPS
How to be a missionary synodal Church
Instrumentum laboris
Part III – Places
The bonds that shape the unity of the Church
99.
Bishop Zurek, for his part, called what Matthiesen did a ‘serious mistake,’ yet the memorial still remains.”
“The desire that local synodal dialogue should continue and not come to an end and the need for effective inculturation of the faith in specific regions drives us towards a new appreciation of the institution of particular Councils, be they provincial or plenary, whose periodic celebration has been an obligation for a large part of the Church’s history” Accordingly, can a memorial erected by a convicted pedophile priest in honor of a bishop who made the “serious mistake” of granting him “a second chance“—a decision that ultimately led to the destruction of innocence—be a way to have satisfied the need for effective inculturation of the faith; moreover, can such a memorial genuinely reflect the hope that “On that day it will be said: “Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us!❓
Based on the experience of walking the synodal path, one can think of forms that bring together an assembly of bishops and an ecclesial assembly composed of members of the faithful (priests, deacons, consecrated men and women, laymen and laywomen), delegated by the pastoral Councils of the Dioceses or Eparchies involved, or designated in some other way to reflect the variety of the Church in the region. Therefore, instead of telling “a few” at St. Mary’s Cathedral, when they reported clergy abuse, that they were not “faithful and loyal disciples that the Lord Jesus desires” because they had supposedly lost “the capacity to realize, ‘I, as a lay person, do not always have all the knowledge,’ while it is quite probable that the deacon, priest, or bishop has a much fuller picture of what is actually happening,” wouldn’t the Church have be more satisfied and just to bring such decisions before a council that reflected the variety of the Church; furthermore, wouldn’t such a council have fostered transparency, values diverse perspectives, and uphold the hope expressed in, “I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.“❓
Alleluia, alleluia, “To aid this, the procedure of recognitio of the conclusions of particular Councils should be reformed to favor their timely publication.” Subsequently, wouldn’t a more timely and thoughtful response to my concerns about the decision to abort the daily Eucharist at St. Mary’s Cathedral—for the sake of the priest’s health and spirituality—for the sake of the priest’s health and spirituality—have satisfied my longing to feel the Church’s commitment to the faithful and to hear proclaimed: “Behold, the Lord comes to save his people; blessed are those prepared to meet him“❓
Alleluia, alleluia
Finally, believing that faith awakens the critical sense by preventing research from being satisfied with science’s own formulae and helps it to realize that nature is always greater, likewise, shouldn’t the places that, for me, embody “The bonds that shape the unity of the Church” also strive to be greater than the “sins against synodality—the very sins that now place our new bishop in a position where he must “Just Say NO❣️” to being “put in his place”-consequently, when these sins are overcome, should that not give me reason to rejoice, as the outcasts in the crowd did when…
“‘…They all ate and were satisfied‘”❓
Faith awakens the critical sense by preventing research from being satisfied with its own formulae and helps it to realize that nature is always greater.
From footnote 141 of ENCYCLICAL LETTER LAUDATO SI’ OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS ON CARE FOR OUR COMMON HOME