“The most important and basic pastoral challenge facing the priest in the parish is to bring the faithful to a consistent spiritual life based on the principles of Christian doctrine as lived and taught by the Saints… Today, more than ever, prayer, the sacramental life, meditation, silent adoration, talking heart to heart with the Lord, and daily exercise of the virtues which make us more like him must be rediscovered, since these are far more productive than any discussions, and ultimately the necessary condition for all effective discussion.” (from The Priest, Pastor and Leader of the Parish Community #27)
One the constant and important truths emerging from the scandals in our Catholic Church is the renewed call to holiness. In speaking with my brother priests, the parish staff and many parishioners we agree the rules and structures given to us and used by us at the parish level have produced a safer environment for the young and vulnerable of our community…but the greater call is to holiness where we live the Gospel of Jesus Christ
and call others to live this same gospel message must be what we are about.
This is the positive and holy good news. If we spend too much time dwelling only on the hurts then we begin to miss the blessings and healing that are occurring in our midst. The call to holiness is a call to joy, to peace and to blessing in the Body of Christ. We all suffer injuries and hurts, some very grave like abuse and others less so like the betrayal of friendship, which cause us pain and bring forth sorrow and anger. In each and every case seeking healing and exposing the hurt to the light of healing in Christ Jesus is the important first step.
We do this when we begin to recognize blessings even in the midst of suffering and pain. When we choose to share the feelings of hurt the feelings of blessing begin to unfold in our lives. This past weekend I was on a Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekend and for the first time in the past few weeks was able to speak about my feelings to someone other than a priest friend. With these couples I was able to share me feelings as they listened with compassion and care. As the junk cleared in my soul, heart and mind we were able to laugh and share the good news of the many gifts that surround us. A lightness filled me with joy. This isn’t a plug (at least not to big of one) for Marriage Encounter but is it a reminder of having good friends who believe and share in the mission and goodness of God’s holy Church living these blessings of love with joy and care in all parts of our lives. These conversations of healing are helping me to grow in my ability to simply sit and listen to the hurt and anger filling the hearts and voices of God’s people.
As the above quote reminds us, and me as a priest, we must enter into these discussion with love and prayer if we wish to find how God is calling us to be agents of mercy, compassion and healing. I 
was reminded of this again when I sat with our Cathecists in the meeting with our new Director of Faith Formation for Children as they shared their stories of faith. Hearing the goodness and desire to bring others to Jesus Christ and the love of God was inspiring and full of grace. Each of these wonderful Catholics were grounded in the prayer and their one on one conversations with God.
As we move through these challenging times remember to not focus solely on the sins of our Church…they are big, ugly and can be all consuming. Don’t hide or ignore them but tackle them with the weapons of prayer and love. This is what we must do because it is what Jesus asks us to do. See the blessings in one another. Receive Jesus in the Sacraments. Celebrate the joy of life. Help to heal our Church.
Please pray for the sanctification, the purification and the healing of our Catholic Church and the world. And yes, please pray for me.
God bless,
Fr. Mark
Three things—on article and two videos
JoAnna Wahlund article about “Should the Bishops Take a Pay Cut?”
Catholic speaker Ken Yasinski seeking Jesus for our fulfillment…holiness is the only answer
vhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROtMhMNkBAU&list=PLPtJlDO3CxNXO3muRyMlV70-jBsKWXUVm&index=2
Bishop Robert Barron “Why Remain Catholic”