Diocese of Charlottetown

From time to time Bishops write to the People of God in their Diocese through a pastoral letter. I take the occasion of the conclusion of two years of Pastoral Planning in our Diocese to issue my response by way of this pastoral letter. I write with a deep sense of gratitude for the way in which so many participated in the planning process. I write to assure you that you have been heard. I write to provide some initial sense of my own reflections as Bishop of Charlottetown on what has been said. I write to share the next steps, the actions that are being planned now that will begin by the fall of 1995.

All of the discussions across the Diocese have been about change. In the words of a popular folk song, "the times they are a changing". Indeed, change is not always bad. It can mean "becoming" something else. It can signify conversion. It can mean turning away from our old ways in order to become more Christ-like. Our Lord told His disciples: "unless you become like little children ..." (Mt. 18:3). Thus He challenged His disciples to change, that is, to "become". Changes in the Church have been occurring since Jesus Christ founded it. People change constantly. The Church as the People of God is forever "becoming". But it is always the same Church. While trying to remain faithful to the Gospel, the Church struggles to find ways to make the Gospel message relevant to a society and to a people constantly experiencing societal changes, some positive, some negative, some joyful, some painful, some constructive, some destructive, some confrontational, some indifferent, some avoidable and some to be accepted as a challenge to become God's new creation.

I established the Diocesan Pastoral Planning Committee a little over two years ago and have been encouraging the process which it has implemented because I thought it important that the People of God in our Diocese be given an opportunity to reflect on some of the changes that have taken place in the family (often referred to as the domestic Church) in our Diocesan Church and in society as a whole. Some of the changes since the Second Vatican Council have had a positive impact on the life of the Church. Some have had a negative impact. It is to be expected. We do not live in a perfect world. And we do not live in a perfect Church. Yet, we are the true Church of Jesus Christ. The true Church is that Church which, after the fashion of Jesus Christ, "welcomes sinners, and eats with them" (Lk. 15:2). The Church of Jesus Christ must be willing to name its sin. This was the beginning of our exercise during the Diocesan Pastoral Planning meetings. It is the beginning of metanoia, the change that is conversion, the positive acknowledgement of our sinfulness as individuals and as a community. The challenge is to change, or to "become perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect" (Mt. 5:48). In the meantime, we must not forget that it is only God who is perfect and who can bring us to perfection. Jesus said to the rich young man: "Why do you call me good? There is only one who is good" (Mt. 19:17). It becomes evident that perfection resides in God alone and the measure in which we reflect some of God's goodness as individuals and as Church is in itself God's gift to us.

The better we understand the Church's imperfection the more we become motivated to model our actions on the Lord Jesus Christ. Some become discouraged and lack zeal in the practice of the faith. Some are worried. Some are worried that the Church is not changing fast enough. Others are worried because they believe there are too many changes. Some want to go back to what they perceive to have been the "good old days". Some say that the Church must change in order to meet the needs of the people, that it is too far removed from the everyday lives of the people who more and more are single parents, separated or divorced. On the other hand some have said that the Church must return to its roots. The root of the Church is Jesus Christ. The Church has never, can never, will never abandon its roots.

In order to be faithful to the Church, one must be rooted in Christ, the vine. [He is] the vine, [we] are the branches (Jn. 15:5). Our rootedness is in Christ who is "the same yesterday and today" (Heb. 13:8). The Church may change but He never changes. We may worry about change. Christ, who never changes, tells Martha that she is worried about many things and that there is need of only one, the part that Mary had chosen. Mary sat at the Lord's feet and listened to what He was saying (cf. Lk. 10:38). Change is always difficult, even scary. That is human nature at work. We can, however, have confidence and hope if, as structures change, as the furniture gets rearranged, we do not lose sight of the Master of the house. The psalmist says: "unless the Lord build the house..." (cf. Ps.127:1). We labour in vain if we cease to be connected to Jesus Christ, our source. Beautiful Church buildings and liturgy are not enough. True change and renewal occur only when the Gospel of Jesus Christ speaks to the heart of every man and woman. The invitation of the Gospel is not one of change for the sake of change. Rather it is an invitation to conversion for the sake of renewal.

While we may be successful at changing structures and our surroundings, the number of times we genuflect, or change language in liturgy, we realize that nothing has really changed unless we have changed. True change in the Church must be rooted in the Gospel. Whether it be liturgical change or the way we receive the sacraments, if our hearts have not changed, it will make little difference whether we receive communion in the hand or on the tongue. Nothing will have changed, except the outward form. The heart will have remained the same. We know for a fact that thousands of people visit beautiful churches yearly all over the world. They take a few pictures. Many remain the same. Their visits do not change them. A certain few do change. As much as we fail to understand what happens at shrines like Lourdes and Fatima, and other places where Mary is said to appear, we have to say that one positive effect in many instances is the change that occurs in the person who visits those places of worship. Many become, as a result of their experience, no longer indifferent. Seldom does one remain the same.

What threatens the Church today, more than anything else, is the indifference, that "lukewarmness" that Jesus condemned (cf. Rev. 3:16). Many parents complained about the "lukewarmness" of their children with regard to religious practice. Some young people seem to care but in practice seem to devote little time to Church attendance. Parents have expressed a desire for assistance in this area. They need the resources and help of other Catholics to help them in their responsibility. Many catechists are providing that help.

Over and over again in our meetings we listened to people expressing a feeling of confusion resulting from a lack of consistency in teaching from parish to parish and their hope that there would be uniformity in teaching. This is not only a problem on a Diocesan level, but it is one that the Holy Father has set out to remedy with the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and his Encyclical on morality, Veritatis Splendor. In the area of morality, there is a need for a proper understanding and teaching of the Ten Commandments. This duty belongs to every pastor and to every parent. It is the duty of every baptized person to heed the Lord's statutes and ordinances, "and to make them known to the children and to the children's children" (Deut. 4:1 ff). It is of utmost importance that we make the Commandments known. The only way to accomplish this is to teach them. Jesus said: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come .... to fulfill" (Mt. 5:17). "Whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven" (Mt. 5:19). The first and most important manual or instrument for teaching is therefore the Bible, the Scripture, the Old Testament and the New Testament. The study of the Scriptures is necessary and forms the basis of Catholic teaching. The reading and meditation on the Sunday readings of the Mass is a necessary exercise for every Catholic family.

The Church admonishes parents, not only to be teachers of their children, but to be the best of teachers. Many said: "the Church is in need of strong, consistent and authentic Church teaching" (quote from Pastoral Planning meeting). Some people expressed the feeling that it is not clear what the Church teaches, or where they are going with the Church. All around them they see a rise in criminality and delinquency. One wonders where it is all leading. Every minute of the day the Lord's Commandments are ignored by an increasing number who pride themselves on being the advocates of a "value free" society. This "commandment-free" society produces adults who reject traditional moral values and teach children to do the same. We are not surprised that our people are calling for more moral teaching and more guidance and direction in this area.

People are asking for more at a time when we have fewer personnel and less financial resources. Our priest numbers are diminishing. While there were fifty-six (56) priests active in parish ministry twenty years ago, there are only thirty-eight (38) today and if the trend continues there will only be eighteen (18) in ten years time. The following little chart illustrates the point:

This is a great concern to our lay people, to priests and bishop. Many of the faithful supporters of the Church and its programs fall into difficult situations, for various reasons. Their financial condition changes. The financial contribution they made to the life and support of the Church is not taken up by some of the younger generation. The same sense of belonging to a specific parish or of taking responsiblity for its financial upkeep is not as strong. Some people are content to petition the Church for services but are not actively involved in providing the financial means that will guarantee that same service for their children. Many parishes do not have funds to provide a salaried housekeeper, secretary, or janitorial service. The generosity of our people during the G.I.F.T. (Financial) Campaign enabled many parishes to become financially viable. They were able to initiate and complete much needed work to Church property and buildings. While parishes need money to operate and to survive, the Church is mainly an institution of volunteers. In our Diocese we are blessed with an abundance of volunteers. They are mainly the people who have acquired the much needed understanding that the Church is about service, serving God and God's people in faithful obedience to God's Word.

While striving to remain faithful to the mandate given to the Church by Jesus Christ, the Apostolic Church is called to minister to changing pastoral situations. Some of the present situations did not exist when Jesus called the apostles to "go, make disciples of all nations ..." (Mt. 28:19). A disciple is one who is a student of Jesus Christ. It is one who listens to His word and allows himself or herself to be led and shepherded. The Church is the context in which this message and shepherding takes place. The Church's main responsibility, therefore, is to preach the Gospel "in season and out of season" (2 Tim. 4:2) and to feed God's people, "not on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God" (cf. Mt. 4:4).

Some people are of the opinion that the Church must change in order to meet the needs of the people. When Jesus asked the disciples: "Who do people say I am?" (cf. Mk. 8:27) He already knew who He was. He was asking not for an opinion, but for a profession of faith. It is people who must change to meet the challenge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our challenge, as baptized Catholics who profess faith in the Risen Christ, is not to change the message to fit our imperfect world, but to change ourselves, to "Repent, and believe the Good News" (Mk. 1:15) and to fashion our lives according to the heart and mind of Jesus Christ, to "let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home with you" (Col. 3:16).

This is not to say that the Church should not be present to the needs of people. It must understand the difficulty of people who are single parents, separated, divorced, remarried, young adults who are pressured to conform to a pagan culture, or a "culture of death" as the Holy Father calls it. The Church has always been present, as Jesus was, to the ones who are most in need. Jesus said: "It is not the healthy who need the doctor" (cf. Mt. 9:12). It is the sinner, the poor, the physically sick, the mentally sick, the one whose marriage has ended in divorce, the widow, and the orphan who need the nurturing of the Church. At the same time the Church and the Gospel must challenge the "value-free" structures that we are tempted to accept as the norm. Norms which pretend to be "value-free" can never be accepted by people of the Gospel. When we include all people, we include them in the challenge that we ourselves are living, in the challenge of living the Gospel each day in our families and communities. That requires us to change. This is what change in the Church is all about. It is not about a Church that changes to conform to opinion polls. Jesus said to Peter: "Get behind me Satan! ... the way you think is not God's way but man's" (Mt. 16:23). With these words, Jesus is inviting Peter to change, not to conform. He invites him to conform to the Word of God and the ways of God. The Spirit is given to each person for a specific purpose. Ultimately, however, it is God's purpose that we must discover.

There is no doubt that Jesus never relinquished the authority He received from God, the Father. "All authority has been given to [Him]..."(cf. Mt. 28:18). Peter shares in the authority of Jesus. Peter does not have any authority that has not been given to him. In the words of Jesus "You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church" (Mt. 16:18). We cannot deny that the Church is an authoritative structure. This is so only because Jesus Christ set it up to have authority. A problem arises when we fail to understand the difference between authority as conferred by Jesus Christ and therefore flowing from ordination, on the one hand, and power, on the other hand.

Some people during our Diocesan Pastoral Planning meetings mentioned that "priests have too much power". If by "power" they mean power in questions of administration of buildings and property, one is tempted to agree. The authority of the priest comes from his ordination and therefore his share in the authority of Jesus Christ. The priest is ordained to perform priestly ministry. He receives that power through the local bishop and his successors. It is given to him. It is not a power that he gives to himself. That power is to make Christ present in the Sacraments. The priest has the authority to do precisely the things for which he was ordained. This does not mean that somebody else could not do it better. It means that the priest, as the ordained minister, is the legitimate authority.

One of the very positive changes since the Second Vatican Councils has been the many new ways in which lay persons have become more actively involved in the Church of our Diocese. Parish Pastoral Councils are a good example of this new involvement. This new involvement is exciting and should not be misunderstood. A lay person is not a less important person in the life of the Church. A lay person has all the rights and responsibilities which come with being baptized. Being a non-ordained person does not take away from any other vocation or gift. St. Paul told the Church of Corinth, "it is always the same Spirit who works in each one of us..." (1 Cor. 12:4). A problem arises when we all want to be equal, signifying sameness. Equality does not mean sameness. There are different gifts in the Church. The different gifts are not lesser gifts. If properly understood, the development of each person's gifts serves the parish community as a whole. In many of our parishes this is already a reality. People are offering their gifts and talents for the greater good of the parish. One gift is not superior. It merely serves the many other gifts needed to have an effective body. St. Paul is clear when he teaches that the hand or any other member of the body cannot say it has no need of the other member (cf. Cor. 12:20). We are members of a parish. We are members of the Body of Christ. We are members of a Church that is parish, diocesan and universal. This makes us responsible for each other. It is one of the marks that make us Catholic. As parish we are invited to minister to every sister and brother, not only in the parish but in the whole world and also in the ones who do not share the faith we profess.

Even among our Catholics it can become easy to forget that we are responsible one for the other. One can become selfish. Our modern day Catholic can easily develop the "shopping around" mentality, the "pay-as-you-go" mode of operation. As one can visit several facilities that seem to offer the same services and decide which is the more convenient, one can also visit different parishes and decide which one offers the "drive-in" type of fast service and the best sermon at the lowest price. It is difficult to ask some Catholics to register or to make a commitment to any one parish, financially or otherwise. The children of these people have difficulty feeling responsible for the parish church because, for one reason, they too become accustomed to shopping around for the priest and the parish that best suits them. On the other hand when they hear someone criticize the pastor, they often become determined not to do any shopping at all. They often simply stop going to Church. The consumer mentality is more common than we think. It is always the same sacraments. While the delivery might be better in a certain place; one must not lose sight of the gift. The wrapping should not fool us.

This philosophy also affects our secular world. It is reflected in the lives of those who feel that there is always a way out if one does not like the present situation. It is the attitude that: one can easily get out of a marriage if it does not suit him or her; or one can easily leave home if his/her parents will not obey him/her, one can steal the family car because everything belongs to everybody. Everybody has rights to everything but responsibility always belongs to someone else. The only person who matters is me. Everyone else is wrong, including the Holy Father. I can live the way I want and still be a member of the Church.

Many of us often complain about too many rules. We know rules are necessary for harmony. People across the Diocese have asked for a clear expression and teaching in the area of morality. They are asking for rules. Our young people are no exception. The encyclicals Evangelium Vitae and Veritatis Splendor are about Christian morality. Our young people are seeking moral guidance. They seek clear teaching and have little or no patience for ambiguity in this area. If we refuse to give them the rules, they soon make their own rules. Parents have a serious duty to teach Christian doctrine and morals by word and example. Pope John Paul II, celebrating the closing of the International Year of the Family in St. Peter's Square before thousands of people from around the world, described the family as the answer to society's "cultural and social decay". In his homily the Holy Father said that the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph was God's gift to every family. Parents, in welcoming children, welcome Jesus and the Father. "Whoever welcomes one of these little ones in [His] name, welcomes [Him] and whoever welcomes [Him] welcomes not [Him] but the one who sent [Him] ..." (Mk. 9:37).

We must encourage our young people to stay close to Jesus and to model their lives on Him. He understands the plight of young people. Like many of our young, Jesus had a rough beginning. He was wrapped in bands of cloth and placed in a manger. He can identify with the needs of our young people. Our young people have to strive to make room for him in their busy lives. Many would ridicule the young person who cares about his soul by frequenting the Sacrament of Penance and attending Mass faithfully. People must display the courage of Mary who feared being rejected when she found out she was with child, yet was intent on doing God's will for her, even when she did not fully understand. One young person travelling with the National Evangelization Team wrote: "The Canadian youth I've encountered are just amazing. Many miracles have happened - so many young people are giving their lives over to Jesus and wanting Him to be number one in their lives".

In our Diocesan Pastoral Planning meetings we heard people ask to have the youth speak for themselves and express their concerns, to develop an effective peer ministry in the Diocese in order to involve youth in all aspects of Church life.

One of the essential ways of involving youth in the life of the Church is to prepare our young people for the reception of the sacraments and to train them to teach their peers. They may not be able to formulate the teaching theologically, but they in turn will pass on to their children their understanding of Catholic practices. The faith of the Church is passed on to the children primarily by the parents. Ministers of religion must see to it that the parents are given the resources necessary to fulfill their Catholic obligation as parents.

We are not always in agreement with what faithfulness means. Generally when parents complain about their young sons and daughters in matters of religion, they complain about the difficulty they often encounter in encouraging them to go to Mass. Parents must insist. Many do insist. Some have given up insisting. As a rule, that which is not important in the life of the parents will be less important in the life of the child. It should not surprise one to find less faith in the offspring of non-practising parents. A question often asked of us today is whether or not it is more beneficial to teach the children or to teach the parents of the children. Another question is how we equip the parents to teach their children.

Almost forty percent of our participants in Diocesan Pastoral Planning mentioned the Sacraments as being very important in our Catholic practice. We do know "one thing". Catholics want to receive the Sacraments. Parents want their children baptized. Blessed be God! First Communion generally takes place on a Sunday. For many this is an important moment. It is one of the Sacraments parents and children remember for the rest of their lives. Confirmation at one time was attached to Baptism. The culmination of the Sacraments of Christian Initiation is the Eucharist. Under the present system, one would get the impression that Confirmation is the completion of initiation.

The Sacraments in today's Church occupy all of the priest's time. There is less time left for meetings with generous parish groups who are serving very important roles in the Church. In all of the Sacraments the priest is the other Christ. He continues the ministry of Jesus Christ who became one of us to seek out and to save that which was lost, to heal the brokenhearted. This ministry, by virtue of ordination belongs to the priest. Administration more and more will have to be turned over where appropriate to members of a parish, Finance Councils and Parish Pastoral Councils.

The ministry of the priest is supported and completed by the ministry of the lay people. It is by virtue of our common baptism that we complement one another in our respective roles in the Church. The vocation of the lay person is a call to share in the glory of the Risen Christ through Christ's cross and resurrection. The lay faithful of the Church are called to that glory which makes them a royal priesthood and a "people set apart" (cf. Sunday Preface in Ordinary time, No. 1). It is not the ministerial priest who is set apart; it is the baptized lay person. If anything puts anybody on a pedestal, it is our common baptism by virtue of which we share in the cross and resurrection. This in no way takes away from the ministerial priesthood. Jesus did call the twelve apostles. They drew their authority and vocation from the Lord Jesus. But their authority and vocation can be properly understood in the light of the teaching of our Lord and Master. He tells his disciples that: "[They] call me Lord and Master and rightly so..." (Jn. 13:13). After washing the feet of His disciples He invites them to imitate what He has done. When they argue about who is the greatest He does not hesitate to tell them that the greatest among them must be the last of all and the servant of all.

In our Diocese many of our lay people understand their vocation to be one of service. They are faithful servants in marriage, in the family, at work, and in parish and community organizations. They are also faithful in passing on the faith of the Catholic Church to their children and to many other members of the parish community, members also of the Body of Christ, brothers and sisters all in Our Lord. In our Diocese, at one time or other, we have been able to count on eight hundred (800) catechists or more. These and many others are the volunteers, and as such, the shareholders in Christ's royal priesthood, actively engaged in their vocation of service to Christ and to His Church. In being faithful to serving spouse, children, an aging parent, one is faithful to the Lord. "What [we] have done to one of these, the least of [His] brothers and sisters... [we] have done to [Him]..." (Mt. 26:40).

Married persons, single people, widowed, separated, young or old, vowed religious women and men, ordained ministers,...all are called to glory and all share in Christ's royal priesthood. The People of God have an obligation to serve those members of the royal priesthood who are most in need of believing, serving and praying as the logo of our Diocesan Pastoral Planning Committee indicates. We adopt this logo for our pastoral action as we approach the third millennium.

In all of this what is clear is that the people of our Diocese want to assume increasingly an adult faith. As your Bishop, I want to serve you by celebrating the sacraments with you, by teaching that which the Church professes, and by being among you to listen to the voice of the Spirit as it is given to you and as I strive to exercise my Office of Bishop in the Church.

In this Pastoral Letter, I have already referred to the reality of the changes that have occurred and continue to occur in the Church and in our society as a whole. The other reality, however, is that we are a gifted Church and a gifted People of God. The Church of the Diocese of Charlottetown will continue to change dramatically in the next ten years. In fact, the people who participated in our Diocesan Pastoral Planning process were able to speak eloquently of the Church of the past and of their dream for the Church of tomorrow. We must not fail to notice the declining number of priests, the shifts in population and enhanced communications. We need each other more than we ever did. Our people tell me that they need priests. Our priests tell me that they need the continued support and encouragement of faithful lay women and men as they minister to God's people. Our Diocesan Pastoral Planning process will continue to be the vehicle for evaluating our prayer and our service to and in the community of believers. It is not our intention to try to solve all the problems. But we do believe that the Spirit of God is alive and continues to speak to the hearts of women, men and children in our Diocese. Lay people will be called upon to take a leadership role in prayer and worship. We must realize that this is not something entirely new. Our Diocese began with the prayerful action of committed lay men and women. They, primarily, were the ones who were responsible for calling the community to prayer and service.

In conclusion, I wish to thank all the faithful of Our Diocese for their constant devotion to the work of proclaiming the Gospel and making the Lord known and loved. I am confident that if we are able to develop an ever deeper respect for members of our Church regardless of their circumstance, and an ever deeper understanding of our respective vocations, we will be well on our way toward that new evangelization the Holy Father calls for in his Apostolic Letter, The Jubilee of the Year 2000.

We entrust our common efforts to the maternal intercession of Mary, Mother of God. I impart to all the faithful of our Diocese my blessing and the assurance of my constant prayer for your spiritual well-being.

Given in Charlottetown on June 29, the Solemnity of St Peter and St. Paul, in the year 1995.

Most Reverend Vernon Fougere, D.D.
Bishop of Charlottetown

A People Set Apart

To: Clergy, Religious and all Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Charlottetown



	www.dioceseofcharlottetown.com - Diocese of Charlottetown Prince Edward Island - Canada Diocese of Charlottetown - PO Box 907, C1A 7L9 - Charlottetown, PE. Tel. (902) 368-8005 Canada Some Logos, pictures and documents are private property