We all know the saying, “No man is an island.” This applies to every human being and every walk of life. Years ago, when I was a deacon, I wrote the following verses of the poet T.S. Eliot in the front of my breviary (the book of the Liturgy of the Hours that the clergy are obliged to pray every day): “Even the anchorite who meditates alone / For whom the days and nights repeat the praise of God / Prays for the Church, the Body of Christ incarnate.”

The more a believer reflects on the theology and spiritual doctrine of the church, the more he or she will come to appreciate the interconnectedness of the Body of Christ and of all its visible institutions.

When a man is ordained a diocesan priest, he is not sent out as “a lone ranger” to do his own thing, but as a member of the presbyterate, with the bishop as both “father and brother” to his priests. Similarly, when I became a bishop, I was appointed and sent by the pope, who as the successor of St. Peter is the head of the college of bishops, of which I became a member. As part of a presbyterate, every priest has to be concerned about the good of the whole diocese to which he belongs, and not just his own parish. Every bishop has to be concerned about the whole church throughout the world, not just his own diocese or country.

In just a few days, Pope Benedict XVI will be making an apostolic visit to the United States. By his office — the office conferred by Jesus on St. Peter — the pope is a universal pastor and “the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful.” (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, 23)

This interconnectedness embraces every member of the church, not just the clergy. No individual Catholic or individual parish is an island either, self-creating or self-contained. We are all “one” at a very profound spiritual level, the visible signs of which are a common creed, worship and church order. Also included is the mutual help we are to give to one another, as reflected at this time of year in our Annual Catholic Appeal (ACA). Unity even goes beyond the grave to include the communion of saints in heaven and purgatory, as well as on earth. 

TUESDAY, MARCH 18, 2008
QUEEN OF THE MOST HOLY ROSARY CATHEDRAL, TOLEDO

We come together today visibly making present the local church of Toledo in its fullness: bishops, clergy, religious and laity from every part of our 19-county diocese. There are many spiritual and theological dimensions to this fullness, but ultimately they are rooted in the central mystery of the Christian faith, that is the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. In the words of St. Cyprian cited by the Second Vatican Council, the Church is a “people made one with the unity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”

The mystery of redemption consists in this: that the Father sent the Son to give us the Holy Spirit, so that through the power of the Holy Spirit we might be incorporated into Christ and so be returned to the Father. At one and the same time the Church is the People of God, the Body of Christ and the Temple of the Holy Spirit. The Church is always all three inseparably; one aspect to the exclusion of the others would be a distortion.

It is the Holy Spirit, from the Father, who overshadows and empowers everything that the Son accomplished in his sacred humanity as the Word made flesh. The whole mystery of our redemption, from beginning to end, is a work of the Trinity, and is accomplished “by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Christ’s Paschal Mystery, that we solemnly commemorate this week, reaches its fulfillment in the birthday of the Church at Pentecost. The Catechism tells us that “the Church's mission is not an addition to that of Christ and the Holy Spirit, but is its sacrament: in her whole being and in all her members, the Church is sent to announce, bear witness, make present, and spread the mystery of the communion of the Holy Trinity" (n. 738).

The signs of our times are calling us to renew our sense of this mission. In the face of social, cultural and ecclesiastical upheaval, we are awakening to the urgency of evangelization. What does this mean? Put very simply, faith is like a fire that is meant to be seen and felt. And it has to be passed on if the flame is to be kept alive. Remember what Jesus said: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing” (Lk 12:49).

Now, in the first years of the third Christian millennium, how vigorous is the light of Christ, the flame of faith, in your heart and mine, in our diocese, in our parishes and communities, our schools and homes? This fire is not for ourselves alone, but for the life of the world, its redemption, for the salvation of souls; this is our mission. Where the fire is smoldering among us, it needs a rush of air. Where the fire has gone out, it needs a new spark.

from a Homily of St. John Chrysostom

“Is there anyone who is a devout lover of God? Let them enjoy the beautiful bright festival of Easter! Is there anyone who is a grateful servant? Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord!

“Are there any weary with Lenten fasting? Let them now receive their wages! If any have toiled from the first hour, let them receive their due reward; If any have come after the third hour, let him with gratitude join in the Feast! And he that arrived after the sixth hour, let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss. And if any delayed until the ninth hour, let him not hesitate; but let him come too. And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour, let him not be afraid by reason of his delay.

“For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first … To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows. He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor. The deed He honors and the intention He commends.

“Let no one grieve at his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed. Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free. He has destroyed it by enduring it.”

+++

May the Lord sustain you in Lenten prayer, penance and almsgiving, and so lead you to Easter joy with mind and heart renewed, the gift of the Risen Christ to those who believe.

+MOST REVEREND LEONARD P. BLAIR
BISHOP OF TOLEDO 

[Editor’s Note: What follows is the text of the talk Toledo Bishop Leonard P. Blair gave at the First Thursday Dialogue Feb. 7 at the Toledo Club regarding the U.S. Bishops’ document on faithful citizenship. First Thursday Dialogue programs are organized by the diocesan Secretariat of Pastoral Leadership and feature different speakers and topics each month. The U.S. Bishops’ document, Faithful Citizenship, which was the subject of the talk can be found through the Toledo diocesan Web site, www.toledodiocese.org, or directly from the U.S. Bishops’ Conference, www.usccb.org/faithfulcitizenship/index.htm.]

The topic of forming consciences for faithful citizenship simply reflects the title of the document approved last November by the Bishops of the United States in anticipation of 2008 as an election year. For more than 30 years the bishops of our country have followed this practice of encouraging Catholics to be thoughtful about the moral dimensions of their faith as these apply to participation in political life.

Over the last 30 years or more we have witnessed a great upheaval in the life of our society. Consensus about fundamental moral issues has broken down, for example, with regard to the protection of unborn life and the very definition of marriage and family. In the Catholic Church this tidal wave of cultural and social change has given rise to a situation in which some people claim to be Roman Catholic and yet dissent from fundamental teachings of the Catholic Church, sometimes in a public manner that is scandalous, sometimes out of ignorance of what their own church believes and teaches, other times not.

The bishops’ desire to fulfill their responsibilities as teachers of faith and morals by offering guidance to the Catholic voting public has been the focus of increasing attention and even controversy. Some accuse the bishops of trying to tell Catholics exactly for whom or against whom to vote, thus embroiling the church in partisan politics. Others think that the bishops are too hesitant, and that they should be more pointed in telling Catholics exactly how to vote in light of the gravity of the moral issues.

In Faithful Citizenship the bishops state flatly: “The church is involved in the political process, but is not partisan. The church cannot champion any candidate or party.” What the church is calling for is “a different kind of political engagement: one shaped by the moral convictions of well formed consciences and focused on the dignity of every human being, the pursuit of the common good, and the protection of the weak and the vulnerable.”

It is important to call attention to the seven key themes that are the bishops’ elaboration of these moral priorities. Without going into the detail that you can read for yourself in Faithful Citizenship, these key themes of Catholic social teaching are meant to provide a moral framework for decisions in public life. The bishops list them as follows: not surprisingly, first and fundamental to everything else is the right to life and the dignity of the human person; then the call that everyone has to family, community and participation; the morality of both rights and responsibilities; an option for the poor and vulnerable; the dignity and rights of workers; human, global solidarity; and caring for God’s creation. Each of these themes, in turn, is elaborated with regard to specific issues.

The fundamental stance of the bishops reflects the teaching of Pope Benedict. In his encyclical Deus Caritas Est he writes: “The church wishes to help form consciences in political life and to stimulate greater insight into the authentic requirements of justice as well as greater readiness to act accordingly…. The church cannot and must not take upon herself the political battle to bring about the most just society possible. She cannot and must not replace the state. Yet at the same time she cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice.” (no. 28)

One of the signs of human maturity is an honest acknowledgement of how little we really know, of how much we have yet to learn in life. This is especially evident when we encounter people or situations that inspire or challenge us.

Imagine for a moment the spiritual maturation of the first disciples in the company of Jesus. No doubt they were life-long observant Jews who knew and practiced their faith. Yet moved by the example of Jesus, one of them said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray.” (Lk 11:1) The Son of God was clearly inspiring them to something more than they had known, and His answer to the request was to teach them the Our Father.

If we have been properly catechized by our parents and others, we may think we know what prayer is and how to pray. However, it may be asked whether the seeds of Christian prayer have truly matured in our souls. We are all tempted to think of prayer only as words used to ask for divine deliverance from suffering or trouble, or when we want to win the lotto or succeed in some other material pursuit.

In his reflection on the Christian Millennium, Pope John Paul wrote that genuine prayer is a “meeting with Christ expressed not just in imploring help but also in thanksgiving, praise, adoration, contemplation, listening and ardent devotion, until the heart truly ‘falls in love’ … Prayer develops that conversation with Christ which makes us his intimate friends.”

The Pope goes on to say “It would be wrong to think that ordinary Christians can be content with a shallow prayer that is unable to fill their whole life. In the face of the many trials to which today’s world subjects faith, they would be not only mediocre Christians but ‘Christians at risk.’ They would run the risk of seeing their faith progressively undermined, and perhaps end up succumbing to the allure of ‘substitutes,’ accepting alternative religious proposals and even indulging in far-fetched superstitions … It is therefore essential that education in prayer should become in some way a key-point of all pastoral planning.” (cf. Novo Millennio Ineunte, nos. 32-34)

On this Sunday following Christmas, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. Everything that Jesus experienced, from the first moment of his conception, has universal, saving significance. That includes family life because for many years Jesus lived in the bosom of a family, his human family, the Holy Family of Nazareth.