Lectio Divina — Day 27 for Synodality during the Centennial Celebration of the Diocese of Amarillo
Theme: “Withdrew”
1. Lectio
Today the Gospel turns on a quiet but thunderous verb:
“When Jesus heard that John had been arrested,
he withdrew to Galilee.”
The world expects retaliation.
The Kingdom begins with withdrawal.
Jesus does not rush Jerusalem.
He leaves Nazareth.
He chooses the edges—the shoreline, the mixed lands, the places history barely remembers.
And yet this retreat is no retreat at all
For precisely there—
in the land of those who sit in darkness—
light rises.
Withdrawal becomes revelation.
Distance becomes destiny.
Silence prepares proclamation.
From that moment forward, the Gospel tells us,
Jesus begins to preach.
“If Boston is the fault line of the child sexual-abuse scandal that has convulsed the Roman Catholic Church, then few places have felt the aftershocks more deeply than the Diocese of Amarillo.”
New York Times
August 24, 2002
“In memory of the death of innocence of the victims of clergy sexual abuse. When innocence dies…a life stops. It is essential that we never forget.”
“Her faith did not distance her from the world, but drew her even more deeply into the pain of the least among us. ”
Dilexi te §78
Does my faith—one of the pillars of our Diocesan Centennial—distance me from the world, or does it draw me more deeply into the suffering of the least among us, especially the victims of our “serious mistake”?
2. Meditatio
Today I am forced to face how I, too, have withdrew.
Photo used by permission of Douglas Kirkland/Corbis via Getty Images
I withdrew from asking that the Tribute to Bishop Matthiesen be removed.
Not because the wound disappeared,
but because I sensed that cancellation might close a door that Synodality could yet open.
That tribute was erected in 2001 by a priest who was and would later be convicted again of sexual abuse.
Two years later, the New York Times withdrew—of all places—to the Diocese of Amarillo to report that if Boston was the epicenter of the abuse crisis, Amarillo felt the aftershocks more sharply than almost anywhere else.
And now, during our Centennial,
the Diocese itself has withdrawn—from that history.
Gold banners flutter where memory once stood.
Silence stands in place of explanation.
And I wonder—
is this withdrawal prudence,
or is it fear dressed in festivity?
Yet the Gospel unsettles me further.
Jesus withdrew before He preached repentance.
Not after.
Below: A Fallen Centennial Banner
Perhaps the tribute’s silence is not the end,
but the narrow passage through which Synodality must walk.
Saint John Neumann understood this weight.
He once feared that Rome desired his resignation.
And he wrote—not in resentment, but obedience—
that he was ready to withdraw from office without hesitation
if it served the Church.
What kind of bishop thinks that way?
What kind of disciple?
And what kind of believer must I become
to know when withdrawal is cowardice
and when it is obedience?
3. Contemplatio (Chestertonian Synthesis)
The modern world believes that withdrawal is failure.
The Gospel insists it may be strategy.
God does not always advance by marching.
Sometimes He advances by stepping aside
so that truth can catch up.
The Church grows not by covering wounds with gold,
but by letting light reach them—even if that light comes slowly.
Withdrawal is not abandonment
when it prepares repentance.
Silence is not denial
when it is pregnant with listening.
The Kingdom of God begins, astonishingly,
by not insisting on being right,
but by insisting on being faithful.
4. Oratio
Prayer for Day 27 — Synodality and Withdrawal
Almighty God,
you called Saint John Neumann
to carry authority lightly
and obedience deeply.
Teach us to know when to withdraw
not from truth,
but from pride.
Grant that in this Centennial year,
our pauses may become listening,
our silence discernment,
and our history—however painful—
a path toward communion.
May Synodality arise not from force,
but from faithfulness,
through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
5. Actio (Action – Synodality & Laudato si’)
“’Generally, after ceasing their activity and withdrawing, they leave behind great human and environmental liabilities such as unemployment, abandoned towns, the depletion of natural reserves, deforestation, the impoverishment of agriculture and local stock breeding, open pits, riven hills, polluted rivers and a handful of social works which are no longer sustainable.'”
Laudato si’ §51
Inspired by Laudato si’:
Today I will practice restorative restraint—
listening before speaking,
inviting before accusing,
trusting that God’s timing
is wiser than my urgency.
Synodality is not speed.
It is walking together at the pace of the wounded.
🎶 Caleb Washburn – “But You Withdrew“
🎬Movie: : “Withdrawn” (2017) – Aaron Keogh
Email to Bishop Zurek
Subject: A Request for Synodal Discernment Regarding the Tribute to Bishop Matthiesen
Your Excellency,
I write to you during this Christmas season after many days of prayer and reflection, particularly through Lectio Divina, regarding the Diocese of Amarillo’s Centennial and the tribute honoring Bishop Matthiesen.
Over time, my focus has shifted. I am no longer asking simply for the removal of the tribute, but for the beginning of a genuine synodal process around it. I believe silence—however well-intended—has become pastorally burdensome, especially for survivors of clergy abuse connected to what Bishop Matthiesen himself described as a “serious mistake.”
My concern is rooted not in accusation, but in family: the family of survivors, the parish family, the diocesan family, and the wider Church. In the spirit of reason, religion, and loving kindness, I ask whether we might openly discern why this tribute exists, how it is received by those wounded by abuse, and what faithfulness to the Gospel requires of us during this Centennial year.
Christmas reminds us that God chose humility over grandeur, presence over silence, and truth spoken in love over avoidance. I respectfully ask that this matter be engaged synodally—with listening, dialogue, and prayer—so that healing, not division, may mark our celebration.
Please know that I remain committed to the Church, to the Eucharist, and to walking this path in charity and fidelity.
Respectfully in Christ,
Darrell Glenn
Diocese of Amarillo
My Story
“In memory of the death of innocence of the victims of clergy sexual abuse. When innocence dies…a life stops. It is essential that we never forget.“
- Bishop Matthiesen, who rode the white horse of public activism even as he brought abusive priests into our diocese such as John Salazar—wounds that still mark us today. I spoke with him often, pleading with him to reconsider his “no regrets” about bringing those priests here…
- Bishop Yanta, who sought to enforce the Dallas Charter even when Bishop Matthiesen resisted him, and who bore the personal and pastoral cost of doing so. I met with Bishop Yanta about Bishop Matthiessen’s “no regrets” stance. He listened. He believed me. He acted where he could. And when he retired, he urged me—quietly but firmly—to keep speaking out.
- Bishop Zurek, who told the Diocese of Amarillo he had “no facts” about the Philadelphia report even as Amarillo’s connection to that tragedy was headline news. When I continued to speak out, as Bishop Yanta had once urged me to do, he later wrote that I was not among the faithful and loyal disciples whom the Lord Jesus desires.