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Bishop Burbidge shares takeaways from ad limina visit to the Vatican

Ann M. Augherton | Catholic Herald Managing Editor

Arlington Bishop Michael F. Burbidge chats with Catholic Herald Managing Editor Ann M. Augherton during an interview at the NAC in Rome Dec. 5. ANN M. AUGHERTON | CATHOLIC HERALD

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Bishops from Regions 4 and 5 meet Pope Francis during an ad limina visit to Rome Dec. 3 at the Vatican. VATICAN MEDIA

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Pope Francis greets Bishop Michael F. Burbidge during the Dec. 3 audience with the bishops making their ad limina visit. VATICAN MEDIA

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Bishop Emeritus Paul S. Loverde (left) greets Pope Francis during the Dec. 3 audience with the bishops making their ad limina visit. VATICAN MEDIA

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Pope Francis waves to the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican for his Dec. 4 general audience. ANN M. AUGHERTON | CATHOLIC HERALD

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Bishops making their ad limina visit to the Vatican gather for Mass celebrated by Washington Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory at St. Mary Major Basilica Dec. 5. ANN M. AUGHERTON | CATHOIC HERALD

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Bishop Emeritus Paul S. Loverde (right) and Fr. Michael C. Isenberg, diocesan vocations director, pause for prayer at St. Mary Major. ANN M. AUGHERTON | CATHOLIC HERALD

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VATICAN CITY — Asked about what he might bring back to the people
of the Arlington Diocese from his ad limina visit during this difficult time
for the church, Bishop Michael F. Burbidge said, Pope Francis’ “words of
encouragement and confidence in the Lord’s promise.”

Bishop Burbidge said that during the bishops’ conversation with
Pope Francis they talked about the clergy sex abuse crisis and “the scandal
caused by other bishops.”

 “We talked about that
because if you’re going to heal as a church, you have to acknowledge that there
was hurt. So, we talked to the Holy Father, we talked to his advisers, about,
first of all, the remorse, the sadness we have for the victims who’ve been
abused,” Bishop Burbidge said.

 “The lack of trust that
many people have in their bishops because of the failures of some being held in
suspicion, sometimes that impacts our ministry. So, we honestly talked about
that.”

He said the church still needs healing and unity. “It’s always
the Lord’s church. It always has been. Back in Rome, you realize he founded the
church on Peter, the rock. The church has been through many difficult times
right from the beginning and his promise that nothing would prevail against it
is something you’re reminded of here in a powerful way.”

Bishop Burbidge said he will bring back the confidence that “this
is always the Lord’s church and he will be in charge. The Holy Father said
what’s going to heal the church is going to be holiness and integrity of life,
being the person you say you are, living the faith you profess, doing it with
integrity.

“I bring back that renewed commitment to grow in holiness and to
be faithful to all that I promise and to encourage our priests, our deacons,
our lay faithful to do the same,” he said. “The unity that we’re seeking and
healing we’re seeking doesn’t depend just on one person. We all can play a part
in that. So hopefully I bring back those words of encouragement and confidence
in the Lord’s promise.”

THE AD LIMINA

The bishops of Region 4 making their required ad limina visit to
the Vatican Dec. 2-6 included: the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore, the
Dioceses of Arlington, Richmond, Wheeling-Charleston, W.Va., and Wilmington,
Del., as well as the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Washington, the Diocese of St.
Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Archdiocese for the Military Services,
USA.

This was Bishop Burbidge’s first ad limina visit as head of the
Arlington Diocese, and he was accompanied by Bishop Emeritus Paul S. Loverde,
making his sixth ad limina visit as bishop.

The visit to the Vatican follows the more than 1,000-page
quinquennial report, a comprehensive document on the life of the diocese,
submitted months earlier. The report is broken up when it gets to the Vatican
and each section is given to the specific dicastery or congregation to which it
pertains. The bishops attend meetings at the various dicasteries.

“We had a meeting with the Congregation for Bishops that was
directly speaking to our lives and our ministry,” Bishop Burbidge said. “We had
a meeting with the Congregation for Clergy, which also talked about how bishops
can foster priestly life and ministry, and our work with seminarians and
forming future priests. So that was very encouraging and of course, you know, I
love the work of communications, so we met with the Pontifical Council for
Communications talking about some of the obstacles we face in our own country
in getting our message out rather than letting people control the message, and
some of those challenges. But it’s really great to hear from their perspective
how they do that throughout the whole world, and it’s different in each
country.”

Bishop Burbidge said the meetings were fascinating. “You learn a
lot while you’re here,” he said.

THE PAPAL AUDIENCE

Bishop Burbidge summarized the week: “It’s a visit to meet with
the Holy Father and his advisers, to speak to them about the situation in our
own dioceses, in our own country, the challenges within the church, the
blessings within the church and to hear from them because this is a time
bishops reaffirm their bond, their unity with the Holy Father, the successor of
St. Peter. So part of our ministry is to bring his ministry to the faithful
that we serve,” he said.

Although the bishops’ meeting with Pope Francis is confidential,
Bishop Burbidge shared a bit about the encounter. 

“First of all, he greeted all of us
individually. We were also able to bring in our seminarians. They didn’t stay
for the meeting but (the pope) shook hands with each one of them. So that was a
great honor. One of our seminarians (Deacon Joe Moschetto) has been here for
four years and it’s the first time he met the pope. So, I was so happy for
that.”

Bishop Burbidge said two things struck him about the Dec. 3
audience with Pope Francis.

“The first was the amount of time he spent with us — over two and
a half hours. So that’s a pretty lengthy conversation. There were times during
the conversation, where I was just sitting there almost pinching myself, we’re
here with the Holy Father like in a living room, like a parlor. It was
beautiful,” he said.

“And the second — of just how fraternal it was. And that’s what
he said in the beginning. He wanted it to be brothers talking to brothers. And
so, if it’s to be a fruitful conversation and dialogue, he said we have to be
honest with each other, we have to trust each other and we have to also speak
confidentially. This is a family discussion in a sense. He wanted it to be
heart-to-heart, and we could ask him any question we wanted.”

Bishop Burbidge said the bishops didn’t prepare for the
discussion ahead of time. “I did not know what the person next to me might say
or not say and there was no preplanning on his part or on our part.

“So, it was a very natural conversation, and he responded to
every question openly, humbly,” he said. “(The pope) injected some humor into
the conversation but it was just so real, so down to earth, and to every bishop
who was in that room we all left so encouraged. We knew he was listening to us,
our struggles and our blessings. He offered us good words of wisdom of how to
exercise our ministry. Every one of us said we left there just kind of renewed
and inspired. I’ll forever treasure that moment.”

CHURCHES

Part of the ad limina visit requires bishops to celebrate Mass at
Rome’s four major basilicas — at the tombs of Sts. Peter and Paul at St.
Peter’s Basilica and St. Paul Outside the Walls, respectively, and at St. Mary
Major and St. John Lateran.

“We do everything as a group, including the Masses in the four
major basilicas. That’s a highlight of being in the major basilicas here in
Rome to celebrate Mass,” he said.

Bishop Burbidge said he approached the week like a retreat. “I’m
just trying to open my heart to receive the graces that God wants to give me
and the messages he wants to speak to me so that we come home stronger in our
commitment to be faithful as the successor of the Apostles and faithful as a
servant and as a bishop,” he said. “I really have been feeling many graces and
blessings, and I’ve been praying for all the faithful in our diocese — our
priests, our deacons, religious, lay faithful and seminarians — and praying at
every Mass for them and their intentions.”

SEMINARIANS

Since the bishops were staying at the Pontifical North American
College in Rome, Bishop Burbidge was able to meet with the six diocesan
seminarians studying there. 

“It’s really great to see
such really good, young, holy men prepare for the priesthood and to see the
bond and the fraternity that they share. There’s a great spirit in this house,”
he said. “We have reason for great hope as we look at the seminarians here and
as we look at our seminarians back home. God is raising up some really fine men
to serve us as priests, and again, I think that will be part of the way he
heals and unifies our church.”

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