January 6 - St. Paul the Apostle Church - Diocese of Joliet

The Epiphanyof the LordJanuary 6, 2013The Year of FaithAs we’ve seen in our overview of the different Vatican II documents, some of them are very narrowin their focus, dealing with one specific issue in the life of the Church. Today’s document really pertains toa narrow issue: the Decree on the Pastoral Ministry of Bishops.A lot of people think of bishops in managerial terms: they are the CEO’s of the diocese. This analogyfrom business misses the mark, however, because Christ himself instituted this ministry in the Churchsince the bishops are the successors to the apostles. Christ created this role of leadership under the impulseof the Holy Spirit to guide the Church in authentic fidelity to his original design. Therefore, to put it simply,when the Church is guided by good bishops, the whole Church grows in holiness.Bishops have guided the Church from the start. We see in several New Testament letters that theapostles appointed bishops in the new churches which they founded in order to guide the faith in those fledglingcommunities. Those bishops in turn were succeeded by subsequent bishops, down to the present day.The bishops themselves, however, having been appointed by the Holy Spirit, are successors of theApostles as pastors of souls… Christ gave the Apostles and their successors the command and thepower to teach all nations, to hallow men in the truth, and to feed them. Bishops, therefore, havebeen made true and authentic teachers of the faith, pontiffs, and pastors through the Holy Spirit, whohas been given to them.Not surprisingly, the document spends a lot of time reviewing the duties to which bishops must devotethemselves. Interestingly, however, while most people would think that managerial duties would be themain task, the document actually speaks of teaching the faith and building up the holiness of the Church asthe primary duties of the bishop.The bishop is sent by Christ to propose the gospel to all people, both inside and outside of theChurch. This is particularly relevant today since our culture is no longer Christian and therefore needs tohear the message of Christ. At the same time, within the Church many Catholics are uncertain of the Faithor disagree with the difficult teachings of the Faith. Especially today, when so many people object to thefull message of the gospel, the hard task of the bishop is to maintain the purity and authenticity of the depositof faith. In sum, the bishop is not called to be a manager or CEO; he is to be the primary preacher ofGod’s Word, a preacher with divine authority who hands on the message of Christ complete and unmodified.Therefore, they should teach, according to the doctrine of the Church, the great value ofthese things: the human person with his freedom and bodily life, the family and its unity and stability,the procreation and education of children, civil society with its laws and professions, labor and leisure,the arts and technical inventions, poverty and affluence. Finally, they should set forth the waysby which are to be answered the most serious questions concerning the ownership, increase, and justdistribution of material goods, peace and war, and brotherly relations among all countries.Fr. Gregory