Identity, Mission & Hope

Pugin, Rood Screen at St. Giles' Church

Now, more than ever, the Ordinariate is needed to help Catholics orient themselves to God.

We in the Ordinariate, a community born of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of UNity in the Truth, the Mover of former Anglicans and all people of goodwill to unity with the Church founded by Jesus Christ on Peter the Chief Apostle, understand well what it is to live in the midst of turmoil as one or more Anglican bodies have descended into conformity with the world and the ensuing doctrinal confusion that accompanies flirtation with insanity.

For those such as yours truly, received into the Church in the 1980s, long before the Ordinarate was conceived, and having fairly recently discovered the Ordinariate and its beautiful form of the Mass, the Ordinariate offers a refuge from loose play with the Sacred Liturgy. Speaking as an outsider for a moment, communities of the Ordinariate offer disillusioned Catholics and those earnestly seeking reverent worship of God a clear vision of Catholic Christian identity. That identity is one of a Eucharistic people lovingly keeping the commandments of Jesus Christ. Let us give thanks to God for the opportunity to participate in the unifying work of the Holy Spirit, that all may be one in Christ (St. John Chapter 17).

https://ordinariate.net/documents/2017/9/170906_Rowland_lecture.pdf

As secular society drifts farther and farther from true charity, substituting pseudo-mercies (e.g., euthanasia) for authentic compassion, Catholics need a robust formation in the Faith that enables Catholics to navigate the treacherous waters of secular life while living as people of faith and of conscience in the public square. The Ordinariate provides more than a refuge. It is a Eucharistic community defined by its faithfulness to Christ in the Liturgy and its participation in the unifying mission of the Holy Spirit. As such, the Ordinariate is "a precious gift nourishing the faith of the members of the Ordinariate and as a treasure to be shared" with the entire Church (Benedict XVI, Anglicanorum Coetibus).

As a people that know suffering and alienation from their former homes in order to preserve what is true, good and holy, Ordinariate Catholic communities, comprised of many long suffering former Anglicans, can equip our brethren with an outlook that is nothing less than the way of Jesus, the way of bearing our respective crosses and integrating suffering through the saving knowledge that Jesus enters into our lives through our wounds, to draw us into an ever deepening embrace.

And we humbly beseech thee, O heavenly Father,
so to assist us with thy grace,
that we may continue in that holy fellowship,
and do all such good works
as thou hast prepared for us to walk in;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom, with thee and the Holy Spirit,
be all honour and glory, world without end. Amen.

—excerpt from the post-communion General Thanksgiving, Divine Worship: The Missal.

Scapular of Our Lady of Walsingham

H/T Corpus Christi blog: http://corpuschristicsp.org/blog/2018/8/20/bishop-lopes-addresses-scandal

Dear Faithful of the Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter,

This has been a difficult few weeks for the Catholic Church in North America. We have seen reports of episcopal negligence and malfeasance in the face of clerical sexual abuse, coupled with some reports of bishops themselves guilty of sexual predation. The report of the Grand Jury in Pennsylvania has reopened old wounds and inflicted new ones on victims, their families, the Catholic faithful at large, and indeed, the larger society. 

There have been many statements and commentary about all of this, and I do not wish just to add to the multiplicity of words. I would simply echo the words of the great Saint John Paul II: there is no room in the priesthood for a man who abuses a child. In our particular context of the Ordinariate with both celibate and married clergy, I would add that there is no room in the priesthood for a man who commits an act of violence—physical, psychological, or sexual—against his own wife or children. And there is no room among those who call themselves Shepherds and Pastors for a man who would cover-up an instance of abuse. 

I am confident in the policies and procedures in place ensuring that our Ordinariate is a safe environment for all of our children. All of these are publicly available on our website and they will be followed and enforced at every level. But policies do not bring about holiness, and isn’t that what we all so deeply desire? A Church that lives the faith once delivered to the Saints in integrity and in good conscience? Holiness is something that ultimately comes from God, so it is something for which we should pray and labor:

1. Pray for the victims of sexual abuse by clergy, so that the peace of God beyond all understanding may heal their hearts and minds in the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
2. Pray for priests, that they may live their lives in integrity of heart, faithful to the vows of their ordination. Pray the Prayer of St. Michael daily, especially for priests! The Devil is never happier then when he corrupts a servant of God. 
3. Join with me in setting aside 30 minutes of prayer before Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament to pray in reparation for the sins committed by clergy and faithful alike, sins which have disfigured the Body of Christ and caused many to turn away. 
4. Find some way to express Christian charity to your neighbor.* Sin repels, but authentic love attracts and transforms. 

September 21 is Ember Friday after Holy Cross Day. As your Bishop, I will offer that day in particular penance for the sins of bishops. I invite you to pray with me and offer some act of penance that day for the renewal of the Church.

The sins we have read about in these weeks have filled us with shame and with righteous anger. But one thing we should not feel is afraid. The Evil One thrives in darkness, so the bright light of truth, through painful in this moment, is purifying. 

Our Ordinariate exists because men and women of great faith placed everything on the line for the adventure of truth and Catholic communion. Even in the midst of these trials, I see that the joy of fidelity still draws people to Christ. I continue to receive letters from Anglican clergy seeking to join us. I have heard from three new communities this summer trying to form Ordinariate parishes. We have admitted 3 new seminarians, young men of faith and integrity who desire to leave all to follow in the way of the Lord. May our fidelity then be our most eloquent response to the current crisis in the Church. For the one in whom we trust is the Lord! And he is risen from the dead! 

Your servant in Christ,

+Steven J. Lopes

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* Blogger's note: "Find some way to express Christian charity to your neighbor." Start by offering to listen. Practice attentive listening, which requires forgetfulness of self. We may not always find the words or actions to engage our neighbours, but we have two ears with which to hear.