Virginia State Convention of Knights of Columbus

By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Special to the HERALD
(From the issue of 5/2/02)

The following reflections were given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde at the annual Virginia State Convention of the Knights of Columbus on April 27 in Virginia Beach.

I will frame these reflections with the theme of this year’s state convention: "Celebrate faith, family and fraternity." These three realities are so basic to Catholicism and to our Fraternal Order of the Knights of Columbus; indeed, they are truly intertwined.

Faith underlies all that we are and do as disciples of the Lord Jesus and members of His Body, the Church. Ultimately, faith is God’s gift, enabling us to surrender our total selves to God who reveals Himself in His only-begotten Son and to say "yes" to the fullness of God’s revelation. Faith empowers us to be grateful for all the gifts God gives us, to cope with life’s realities, to see beyond and beneath difficulty, suffering and death, and to go on in hope even when there is no longer any human reason to continue. Let me share with you a true story of a woman who, in my opinion, is truly a person of faith: grateful even in the midst of unbelievable tragedy.

Several days after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, I was privileged to visit the home of a family whose husband and father had been killed when Flight 77 slammed into the Pentagon. After I had been introduced to the family members, the wife and I began to talk. Obviously, she was deeply distressed and saddened by her husband’s sudden and untimely death. At one point in our conversation, she looked at me and said something like this: "Bishop, I shall so miss my husband, but I cannot be angry with God. About 29 years ago, my husband was involved in a terrible crash of a small plane. Of the six, only two survived. God gave me 29 years more of married life with him, something which those four widows did not have. I am so grateful for the gift of those 29 years."

The family is the basic cell of society and of the Church. A family of faith prays both at home and at church, seeking God’s grace to live together in mutual support and peace and to reach out in loving service to others, especially those most in need. Each of us can point to such families in our experience, and we, indeed, find fresh encouragement in their faith-filled witness. In fact, tonight we honored such a family just moments ago when Douglas and Jerri Pat MacPherson were named Family of the Year.

Fraternity is part and parcel of each of our councils and assemblies. Our fraternity is much more than a natural spirit of good will and comradery, although goodwill and comradery do play a real role. Our fraternity is rooted in our Catholic Faith, the Faith which empowers us to love the Church despite her weakness, to work in the name of the Church even in times of trial, even in these days, and to uphold our Catholic ideals as loyal sons and friends of Father Michael J. McGivney in this order he was inspired to begin.

Now, within this framework of faith, family and fraternity, I invite us to reflect on two specific issues, both of which are contemporary.

The first of these is the issue of vocations to the priesthood and the consecrated life. Last weekend, the Third Continental Congress for Vocations to the Ordained Ministry and Consecrated Life in North America took place in Montreal, Canada. Nearly 1,200 delegates participated, coming from throughout the United States and Canada. Priests, deacons, religious and laity came together to affirm their commitment to collaborating in the pastoral work of vocations, that is, to promoting, recruiting, supporting and encouraging those whom God is indeed calling to serve the rest of us in the Church as priests, deacons, religious sisters and brothers, and members of secular institutes.

There was much discussion in small groups and in plenary sessions about the influence of the culture on vocations, on the rootedness of such a vocation in the mystery of God’s Word and Will and on the growing need for women and men to say "yes" to God’s call to service in this new century. Vocations to ordained ministry (to the priesthood or diaconate) and to the consecrated life (religious institutes, societies of apostolic life and secular institutes) are understood only from the viewpoint of faith. Why would a well-balanced and integrated man or woman put aside the desire for a spouse and family, and the ability to acquire financial prosperity and success in order to give one’s life to celibate chastity and a simple lifestyle, if it were not for faith?

Faith alone undergirds the understanding that giving one’s self to the Lord completely for the service of His people is the pearl of great price for which one gives up everything else! Moreover, vocations to ordained ministry and consecrated life are sown and nurtured in families of faith. In such families, the realities of our Catholic Faith are really appreciated and lived; parents are enabled by their faith to make the sacrifice of their son or daughter to the Lord’s service; those called respond generously in faith.

Vocation promotion, recruitment and support are integral to the Knights of Columbus in the projects and works of our councils and assemblies. Both the National Strategy of the U.S. Bishops for Vocations (1995-1998) and the Third Continental Congress last weekend received great support from the Knights. I am proud of your support and encourage you to be even more involved in the pastoral work of vocations, beginning in your own homes, as well as in your parishes, councils and assemblies.

Yes, a very real question was raised just before and during the Third Continental Congress. In the midst of the current situation of scandalous revelations involving clergy, should we be focusing on vocations? The answer was a resounding "yes — precisely at this moment and time!" Of course, we cannot and must not deny the fact that terrible mistakes in judgment have been made. Most dioceses already have stringent policies to protect our children from sexual abuse. Certainly, both the Arlington and Richmond dioceses have such policies and carefully follow them. The bishops of this country are committed to drafting policies which will build on what we have already been doing in most places. In other words, we want to develop "a set of national standards … in which essential elements for policies dealing with the sexual abuse of minors in dioceses and religious institutes in the United States are set forth" (Final Communique, 4/24/02). Other related aspects will also be discussed, so that the present crisis will lead, in the words of our Holy Father, "to a holier priesthood, a holier episcopate, and a holier Church." Moreover, we must not only apologize to the victims, but also offer "appropriate assistance in recovering faith and receiving pastoral care" (Ibid). From this painful and purifying crisis, a stronger and holier Church will emerge and in that renewed Church, priests, deacons and religious will be both welcomed and needed! Now is the time to launch out into the deep in faith and say to young men and women, and to the not-so-young: "the Lord is calling you! Say ‘yes’ for His sake and the sake of His people! Give your life to enable His people to live. Make the Church holier by your service as a priest, a deacon, a sister or brother or a member of a secular institute."

Yes, brother Knights and family members and friends, let us "celebrate faith, family and fraternity" not only here but back home every day! Let us echo this short concluding prayer: "Father, may we whom you renew in baptism be a witness to our faith by the way we live" (Opening Prayer, Mass for the Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter).

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