Vocations & Healthy Dioceses

Yesterday I made a quick comment on Papa Benedetto's response to a question given at the end of his address to the American Bishops (Dr. Benedetto has the Right Diagnosis). I'd like to go back & look at that a little more. & I want to do so in light of a post I wrote last year about an article that Crisis Magazine did on the subject. (The State of the Catholic Church in America, Diocese by Diocese, Unfortunately the old website is gone & the links no longer work. But the basics of the article are in my post.)

(From the Vatican website emphais in all quotes is mine)

3. The Holy Father is asked to comment on the decline in vocations despite the growing numbers of the Catholic population, and on the reasons for hope offered by the personal qualities and the thirst for holiness which characterize the candidates who do come forward.

Let us be quite frank: the ability to cultivate vocations to the priesthood and the religious life is a sure sign of the health of a local Church. There is no room for complacency in this regard. God continues to call young people; it is up to all of us to encourage a generous and free response to that call. On the other hand, none of us can take this grace for granted.

Boom! His opening salvo goes right to the heart of the problem, the condition of the local Church, i.e. the Diocese. He is saying plain & simple, if you are having a dearth of vocations, then something is wrong with your diocese. It is spiritually ill. & the fault lies at the feet of the bishop.

Last year in the Crisis article, it asked this question: "But does a particular bishop really affect, for better or ill, the health of the Church in his see?" It came to the conclusion that yes, it does. & it seems that Papa Benedetto agrees. In fact much of the body of his main speech deals with the problems that need to be addressed to deal with this illness.

So, where does Il Papa say the Bishop is to start in dealing with the problem. With prayer. In the main speech he said: "Indeed a clearer focus upon the imitation of Christ in holiness of life is exactly what is needed in order for us to move forward. We need to rediscover the joy of living a Christ-centred life, cultivating the virtues, and immersing ourselves in prayer." Bishops, get down on your knees & humbly seek the face of God to see where you fall short in imitating Christ. & get about doing it.

He went on to shoot down the excuse "I don't have the time to waste doing so." "Time spent in prayer is never wasted, however urgent the duties that press upon us from every side." He then goes on to give a list of things in particular that a good bishop must do & the effect doing so will have:

1. Eucharistic Adoration "Adoration of Christ our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament prolongs and intensifies the union with him that is established through the Eucharistic celebration." brings the bishop into closer union with Christ.

2. Pray the Rosary daily "Contemplation of the mysteries of the Rosary releases all their saving power and it conforms, unites and consecrates us to Jesus Christ." as it brings the bishop into closer union to Christ as well as gives him the graces he needs to imitate Christ.

3. Be faithful to praying the Liturgy of the Hours/Divine Office "Fidelity to the Liturgy of the Hours ensures that the whole of our day is sanctified and it continually reminds us of the need to remain focused on doing God’s work, however many pressures and distractions may arise from the task at hand." Doing so is what keeps the bishop properly focused whatever may arise.

Papa Benedetto goes on to talk about the fruit of doing so: "Thus our devotion helps us to speak and act in persona Christi, to teach, govern and sanctify the faithful in the name of Jesus, to bring his reconciliation, his healing and his love to all his beloved brothers and sisters. This radical configuration to Christ, the Good Shepherd, lies at the heart of our pastoral ministry, and if we open ourselves through prayer to the power of the Spirit, he will give us the gifts we need to carry out our daunting task, so that we need never 'be anxious how to speak or what to say'"

Allowing the Holy Spirit to have His way is the reason for prayer & the key to success. I pointed out in my post that bishops of what were considered healthy dioceses "attribute their success to the Holy Spirit."

In the specific answer to the question, the Pope again hilites the importance of prayer. He bemoans the fact that prayer is often left out. "Strange to say, I often think that prayer – the unum necessarium – is the one aspect of vocations work which we tend to forget or to undervalue! "

Something I have noticed is that there is a tendancy to always be developing a new program to deal with the problems. Grand plans are put in place that I know are doomed to fail, why? Because they are man's plans implimented without prayer. There is a place for programs & plans, but only after prayer & in response to God's guidence. & Papa Benedetto says the same thing. "Prayer itself, born in Catholic families, nurtured by programs of Christian formation, strengthened by the grace of the sacraments, is the first means by which we come to know the Lord’s will for our lives. To the extent that we teach young people to pray, and to pray well, we will be cooperating with God’s call. Programs, plans and projects have their place; but the discernment of a vocation is above all the fruit of an intimate dialogue between the Lord and his disciples. Young people, if they know how to pray, can be trusted to know what to do with God’s call."

The speech & follow up questions lay out the path each bishop needs to follow to 1st of all achieve personal holiness, 2ndly to successfully lead their diocese. Success, not defined by the world's definition, but success as seen by God, faithfulness to the Gospel & faithfully shepherding his flock according to God's plans. The Pope didn't lay out anything new. He reiterated the same truths the Church has proclaimed for 2000 yrs. Each bishop has to chose to accept or reject God's call. & in the end, each bishop will have to answer to God for how he responded.

The 3 actions listed by the Pope for how a bishop should live a life a prayer are the same actions that each & every Catholic can & should do. What he said is just as true for us as for the bishops: "Time spent in prayer is never wasted." & the same fruit is available for us as much as for bishops.

I know that many people, like the bishops, will come up with arguements as to why he or she can't find the time. My answer is find it. I will admit that I have plenty of room for improvement, esp when it comes to Eucharistic Adoration. But, I am heading in the right direction. In particular I can hear arguements saying that the Liturgy of the Hours is just for priests & religious. WRONG!!! While they are required to do so, the daily Office is ment for all of us. I have been praying the Office since 1989. & it has become an intregal part of my prayer life, as well as a reminder that I am a part of the "Body of Christ".

Each of us is just as responsible as the bishops to respond to God's call to holiness. Each of us has the same tools available. Each of us has been given the same Spirit at baptism & confirmation/chrismation. We have no excuse. Each of us must respond. & each of us will answer as to how well we did or din't.