Category: Bishop Hying’s Columns

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Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

Go forth and make disciples!

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

When I became a bishop back in 2011, I attended a nine-day conference in Rome for new bishops from all over the world, put on by the Vatican.

The best part of the experience was meeting the other participants, 16 other Americans, 25 from Brazil, and one bishop from Iraq whose predecessor had been murdered by terrorists. The informal conversations were often more interesting than the scheduled talks.

Dealing with declining Church

At lunch on the third day, I sat with a newly appointed bishop from a diocese in the southern Netherlands. He told me that Mass attendance there hovered at about two percent, mostly elderly people; he had no seminarians, so there was no future for the priesthood. It wasn’t so much that the Church had collapsed as that it had evaporated!

I asked him where he was going to start in such a daunting situation. How do you begin when everything seems so hopeless? What he said did not surprise me, but it has stuck with me.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

We are called to build a monastery in our hearts

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

The center point of my spiritual geography is New Melleray Trappist Abbey, just west of Dubuque, Iowa. I have returned there often for retreats ever since I first visited at the age of 19.

Founded in 1849 as a daughter house of Melleray Abbey in Ireland, this monastic community rises at 3:30 a.m. every morning for Vigils, the first liturgical hour of the day. The monks’ days are filled with prayer, meditation, work, and silence.

From the first time I entered their beautiful stone chapel, I have felt profoundly embraced by God at New Melleray; some of my deepest prayer experiences have occurred there. If I could have ever convinced God that the Trappist life was my vocation, I would be peeling potatoes and scrubbing floors there as I write now!

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Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

Freedom of religion is at risk worldwide

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

Worldwide, Christians are being killed explicitly for their faith in alarmingly large numbers these past years. North Korea, the Middle East, and Africa are some of the top hotspots for Christian persecution.

Believers in Christ are being systematically driven out of the Holy Land through intimidation, prejudice, and lack of opportunity. Soon, there will be almost zero Christians in the country where Jesus lived. More martyrs are being born through a bloody death than any time since the early Church!

Religious freedom at risk

Here at home, we do not face such overt violence because of our religious beliefs, but some significant shifts in political praxis have put our religious freedom at risk.

The First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees religious liberty in our country. This right is not some beneficent gift from the government; it is inscribed in our human nature as an inherent right to exercise freedom of conscience. No one can either compel or restrict religious belief or practice. Faith is a sacred gift nurtured in the heart and soul.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying

Jesus urges us to cast away fear

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

The Storm at Sea occurs in each of the Gospels, that perilous moment when the apostles are terrified by the wind and the waves on the Sea of Galilee until Jesus calms the tempest and encourages them to not be afraid.

In the Gospels, the apostles’ boat always symbolizes the Church. And so we think of all the times in the history of the Church that there have been storms, difficulties, and challenges, including persecutions, betrayals from within, epic struggles with political powers, global wars, theological divisions, and terrible instances of clergy sexual abuse.

We think of our own lives, the suffering we have gone through, the challenges we have faced, the changes that perhaps have intruded into our lives in an unwelcome way — all the things that frighten, overwhelm, or disturb us.

‘Do not be afraid’

The constant message of the Storm at Sea is Jesus’ refrain, “Do not be afraid. It is I. I am with you.” Throughout the Scriptures, this urging to cast away fear is God’s constant message to us.

Somebody went through all the hard work of counting how many times in the Bible God says, “Do not be afraid!” and it’s 366 — one for every day of the year plus Leap Year.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

Teaching children to know, love, and serve God

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

As another school year begins and we lament the rapid passage of summer, I ponder the gift and blessing of our children and young people — the greatest treasure of the Church and the world.

Our Diocese pours significant resources into the formation of our children and youth, through our schools, religious education programs, and youth ministry.

And rightfully so. We want each child to know, love, and serve God. We want each young person to be a zealous disciple of the Lord Jesus. We want each person to grow up, flourishing in the abundant life of the Gospel, becoming the saint that God has called them to be.

Advocate of Catholic Schools

I have always been a big advocate of Catholic schools. Every study shows that graduates of parochial schools practice the Faith, support the Church, contribute to the poor, have a keener sense of social justice, and are more successful in their vocations than the average population.

A learning environment imbued in faith and love, permeated by prayer, and strong in Christian values becomes a blessed, formative experience that impacts the whole person — soul, body, mind, and heart.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

Embrace holy leisure

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

We live in a frenzied culture of hyperactivity and stress; we probably all feel the pressure to do more, be more productive, and somehow find a perfect balance in it all.

To slow down, purposely do nothing for a while, and to rest is difficult in our sleepless, overstimulated culture. Yet, how can we hope to grow our prayer lives, deepen our relationship with God and others, and grow in our spiritual awareness if we never embrace holy leisure?

Sunday as a day of rest

Orthodox Jews take the laws of Sabbath rest very seriously, not even driving a car or pushing an elevator button from Friday evening until the end of the Sabbath, in imitation of the Lord’s seventh day of rest.

I am old enough to remember Sundays as a child, when most people still went to church, stores were closed, and no one was supposed to do work. Sundays felt qualitatively different with a focus on God, time for family and friends amidst a slower pace.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying

Beginning of new ministry dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

As I begin episcopal ministry in the great Diocese of Madison, the Lord has filled my spirit with joy, enthusiasm, and gratitude.

I am particularly thankful to Msgr. Jim Bartylla for his dedicated, effective, and loving leadership of the Diocese these past seven months.

Stepping into my new role has been easy because of his hard work. I am grateful to all the diocesan staff, the priests, permanent deacons, Religious, lay leaders, and the faithful who have all welcomed me with such kindness and love. I am already feeling very much at home!

Bishop Morlino’s legacy

We honor the legacy of Bishop Morlino as we continue to pray for him and lift him to the Lord.

I am grateful for his attention to growing the priesthood, the beauty and reverence of the liturgy, and the importance of faith formation for our leaders and people.

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