| Reflection on the Pastoral Letter of Pope Benedict XVI |
Reflection on the Pastoral Letter of Pope Benedict XVIBy Most Rev Philip Boyce OCDBishop of Raphoe
Holy Week 2010
The Church in Ireland has been rocked by the revelation of child sexual abuse and the inadequate response to it by Church authorities. The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has asked us to start a journey of prayer, penance and sacramental forgiveness so as to make reparation for these serious sins and heinous crimes and, in this way, bring about a renewal or rebirth of the Church in Ireland. Lent is a suitable time, he says, “to pray for an outpouring of God’s mercy and the Holy Spirit’s gifts of holiness and strength upon the Church.”
In his “Pastoral Letter to the Catholics of Ireland” the Holy Father names three practices or initiatives that should be taken:
Therefore, I ask all priests in their parishes or curacies, and all religious in their monasteries or convents, to start this work of reparation and rebirth in the following ways:
1) Offer your Good Friday penance, prayer and works of mercy this year for the intention of making reparation, obtaining God’s mercy and the gifts of holiness and strength from the Holy Spirit. Moreover, Pope Benedict writes as follows: “I now invite all of you to devote your Friday penances, for a period of one year, between now and Easter 2011 to this intention”. Whatever extra prayer we say, whatever fasting or restraint we exercise in our eating or drinking habits, whatever generosity and mercy we show to the poor and less fortunate, at home or abroad, can contribute to obtaining the grace of healing and renewal for the Church in Ireland. This reparation for sin and renewal of Church life will come not from those who criticize and condemn from outside the Church, but from those who pray and suffer in faith and love, within the Church. All of Christ’s faithful are obliged to do penance, in response to Christ’s call. He himself gave the example. We do penance out of love for God, as a sharing in Christ’s own sufferings, as an expression of conversion and in reparation for sins. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are to be observed as days of fast and abstinence. Fasting means that the amount of food we eat is considerably reduced. Abstinence means that we give up a particular kind of food or drink or form of amusement. Those over eighteen are bound by the law of fasting until the beginning of their sixtieth year, while all over fourteen are bound by the law of abstinence. Because Friday recalls the crucifixion of our Lord, it too is set aside as a special penitential day. The Irish bishops remind their people of the obligation of Friday penance, and instruct them that it may be fulfilled in one or more of the following ways: - By abstaining from meat or some other food - By abstaining from alcoholic drink, smoking or some form of amusement; - By making the special effort involved in family prayer, taking part in the Mass, visiting the Blessed Sacrament or praying the Stations of the Cross; - By fasting from all food for a longer period than usual and perhaps by giving what is saved in this way to the needy at home and abroad; - By going out of our way to help somebody who is poor, sick, old or lonely.
2) Secondly, I encourage you all, as Pope Benedict asks, to rediscover the grace, peace and strength that comes from a good Confession. He says: “Avail yourselves more frequently of the transforming power of its grace.” It may be the most challenging Sacrament, but it brings immense benefits. It gives us the assurance that we can live better lives, that God’s mercy can take away our burden of guilt and give rest to our troubled heart. Lent is an appropriate time to go to Confession. But it should not be our only Confession of the year. There are certainly three or four times a year when we should kneel and ask pardon in this Sacrament. Moreover, do not be satisfied with a Confession that does not contain an individual and personal confession of all serious sins. We sin as an individual; we have to acknowledge and confess all our sins personally. What I say to the lay faithful of the diocese I also say to priests and religious themselves. The Bishop, the priests, the religious are the first who have to do penance and make reparation, go to Confession and spend time in prayer and adoration.
3) Thirdly, the Holy Father asks us to give particular attention to Eucharistic Adoration. We thank God that what the Pope asks for, namely, that “in every diocese there should be churches or chapels specifically devoted to Eucharistic Adoration”, is already a reality in the Diocese of Raphoe. “Through intense prayer before the real presence of the Lord, you can make reparation for the sins of abuse that have done so much harm, at the same time imploring the grace of renewed strength and a deeper sense of mission on the part of all bishops, priests, religious and lay faithful” (Pope Benedict XVI). The Church makes this petition in her Palm Sunday liturgy: “Look kindly on those who through our sinfulness have been discouraged and fallen away, come to our assistance and help us to learn from our faults, so that justice and love may prevail” (Divine Office, Evening Prayer, Intercessions). A humble and persevering prayer has immense value. Consequently, I ask all priests to organize a Night Vigil of Eucharistic Adoration from after the Vigil Mass on Saturday 17 April to the following Sunday morning, 18 April or on the week-end from Saturday 24 April to Sunday morning 25 April. (Some Churches have already arranged this). If this is not possible for any particular parish, you are asked to hold this Eucharistic Adoration on some other night or day, for an extended number of hours. There should be a Holy Hour during it, with Scripture Reading(s); the Rosary (or a few decades a least), the Holy Father’s Prayer for the Church in Ireland (printed at the end of his Pastoral Letter), moments of silent reflection and Benediction. I encourage as many parishioners as possible to take part in this healing and purifying process of reparation. Any parish that does not have some time set aside every week for Eucharistic Adoration in a church or adoration chapel, is strongly invited to begin it soon. It will bring graces on the whole parish and its people. May the Lord who saved us on the Cross give you the joy and hope of his Resurrection.
+ Philip Boyce OCD Bishop of Raphoe |