Advent Announcement #2

First of all, I will say this once again as a reminder that this is MY blog, which reflects only my opinions, viewpoints, and experiences. Although I walk in the Way, I am not a spokesperson for the Way. The Neocatechumenal Way has its own official website. 

In my previous post on Advent Announcement, I wrote that we had a couple of good news.  The first one pertained to Carmen Hernandez.  The second one is in regards to the Nuncio calling a meeting for all the bishops in the United States.  This meeting will take place soon.

The purpose of the meeting is to clear up any misconceptions about the Neocatechumenal Way.  As many people are aware, there are some bishops who oppose the Way because they listened and believed social media more than the Church and the Pope.  The Nuncio will explain to all the bishops that the Way is approved by the Church, is part of the Church, and endorsed by five popes.  There should no moratorium to stop the Way from evangelizing or building more communities.  In fact, every baptized Catholic is called to evangelize.  Evangelization is part of building up the Church.

Correcting the misconceptions of the bishops is the first way to go.  Then the priest and deacon can follow their bishop.  Unfortunately, obedience to the bishop is a problem we had in Guam under then Archbishop Anthony Apuron.  Some of the priests whom he ordained went against him and even encouraged the laity to go against the Archbishop.  The laity should never entice a priest to go against their bishop's decree, and a priest should never band together the laity to go against a bishop. A priest should never go against their bishop's decree.  Canon law 273 states, "Clerics are bound by a special obligation to show reverence and obedience to the Supreme Pontiff and their own ordinary."  The ordinary in this case would be their bishop or Archbishop. 

Padre Pio was a perfect example of obedience despite the unjust things done to him by the Church. He was banned from celebrating Mass publicly. The superior of the monastery read to Padre Pio the decree, and he responded, "God's will be done.....The will of the superiors is the will of God."  When people came out in defense of Padre Pio, the Saint responded, "I must repeat that I am very disgusted by the unworthy behavior of certain false prophet who speak in my behalf..... they should stop this false and unworthy propaganda, but meanwhile they have followed in their morbid fanaticism,  not caring about the Supreme authority of the Church. I turn, therefore,  as a son most humble and completely obedient to the Catholic Church....." 

The accusations against Padre Pio later proved to be false, and he would eventually be allowed to minister without restrictions.  The point is that Padre Pio submitted to the decree and remained silent, trusting in God’s provident plan. A priest has promised obedience to his bishop.

According to the Arlington Catholic Herald:

This experience gave me a foretaste of what priestly obedience implies. In the rite of ordination, both deacons and priests promise their respect and obedience to the bishop. As the ordinand kneels, he places his folded hands into the hands of his bishop, signifying his fidelity to the bishop and his successors. Through this symbolic action, the priest or deacon is ultimately placing his own will in the hands of God through the hands of the successor to the Apostles.

This promise of obedience implies — and requires — the exercise of two virtues: trust and love. I express my trust and love for God by surrendering my will to his through the mediation of my bishop. By trusting my bishop, I recognize that his decisions are made for my own good and the good of the church. In the same vein, I strive to embrace his decisions out of love for Christ and the church, putting their good above my own.

My Rome experience led me to reflect on the role of obedience in the life of a priest. While it may appear that obedience hinders a priest’s free will, it actually offers an occasion for him to conform his life more closely to Jesus Christ. When a priest offers himself obediently to his bishop, he imitates Jesus’ own obedience that he offered the Father in all his actions here on earth. He freely chose this out of love for his Father and us, and trust in his will. When I meditate on what he went through on behalf of all of us, suddenly my challenges do not seem as difficult.

So, all the bishops of the United States will soon be called into a meeting to clear up all and any misconceptions of the Neocatechumenal Way, so that whatever restrictions, moratorium, or unjust decrees against the Way will be rescinded. First, the bishop must be in communion with the Pope.  When the Bishops of the Church are in communion with the Pope, then it will soon follow that priests, deacons, and the laity will also be in communion.