Pope Benedict has declared a Year of Faith from October 11, 2012, to November 24, 2013, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council.
Tag: Bishop Robert C. Morlino
The triumph of the Cross and our salvation
Dear Friends,
This past week we celebrated the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross. There is no shortage of crosses in our lives, and we pray for one another and lift one another up as we encounter those crosses. It is through those crosses, which some of you experience right now, that can come the Resurrection victory. So engage the struggle to embrace your cross and do not forget the triumph which comes by way of our following the Lord.
Reason for rejoicing: But our seminarians need our continued prayers and support
People in the Diocese of Madison have a reason to rejoice: our diocese is now blessed with 32 seminarians — men who will, God willing, become future priests to serve the Church in our diocese.
Just nine years ago, only six men were studying in seminaries for our diocese. Bishop Robert C. Morlino set a personal goal for the diocese to reach 30 seminarians by his 10th year as Bishop of Madison in 2013. That goal has been met a year earlier — and has been surpassed by two.
Promoting vocations a priority
The bishop himself has made promoting vocations a top priority. He speaks about the need for priests as he travels throughout the diocese, especially when he addresses young people at Confirmations and other events.
He also appointed a full-time diocesan vocation director, the position currently filled by Fr. Paul Ugo Arinze. Father Arinze’s enthusiasm and rapport with young people have been assets to our diocesan vocation program.
The Office of Vocations and the Serra Clubs of the diocese have also encouraged prayer for vocations in our parishes through the Traveling Chalice Program and through Adoration for vocations at the Bishop O’Connor Center and other locations.
Facing the challenge of learning your faith
Dear Friends,
The week of Labor Day now having come and gone, schools everywhere are kicking into “high gear,” and thus it’s important that we remember to pray for all of our students. It’s also a good time for Catholic parents to remember to reapply themselves to educating and forming their children in the faith, and for all of us to support them! It is a large task, but one which will bear fruit for all of eternity.
Facing the challenge of learning your faith
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
The week of Labor Day now having come and gone, schools everywhere are kicking into “high gear,” and thus it’s important that we remember to pray for all of our students. It’s also a good time for Catholic parents to remember to reapply themselves to educating and forming their children in the faith, and for all of us to support them! It is a large task, but one which will bear fruit for all of eternity.
Next week I’ll be blessed to celebrate two Masses with students, one with students at the UW-Madison, and another which will gather together students from all of the Catholic schools in our diocese. I can’t wait to be with all of these young, energetic young people. Next week’s issue of the Catholic Herald will also focus on the 32 men who I call “my sons” in a particular way. In recent weeks I’ve also seen almost all of the seminarians head back to school — and I can certainly identify with those parents who are missing students, who are back in the dorms!
Looking for beauty in the workaday world
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
As I write this column, we come quickly upon the Labor Day Holiday. It is, in some ways, a rather bittersweet milestone for me each year, as it signals the soon-to-come end of the days of warmth and sun (although this year any break from the extreme heat is not unwelcome!), and before we know it, we’ll be in the midst of winter.
At the same time, with increasing speed each year, Thanksgiving seems to rush upon us after Labor Day, and then Christmas — which is surely a blessed time.
Labor Day, however, allows us a breath and an opportunity to examine our efforts and, I would propose, to reapply ourselves to using our work — no matter what it is — to sanctifying the world around us. Each and every one of our labors, whether it be raising our children, working as a teacher, a salesperson, a lawyer, or a mechanic, should become a means by which we encounter God and witness to His concern for the world — and that’s my first point.
New catechetical standards launched for Year of Faith
MADISON — As the Diocese of Madison prepares for the Year of Faith, it is perhaps by Divine Providence that our parishes and schools will also be implementing a new body of Catechetical Standards for grades Pre-K through eight in the 2012-13 academic year.
Beginning with a process initiated in early 2011, a committee was assembled by the diocesan Office of Catholic Schools and the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis to assist in drafting these new standards.
Stronger marriages: We must be committed to strengthening marriage, family life
Recently my husband John and I celebrated 39 years of married life. When we got married in 1973, we told each other that we hoped to make it to our 50th wedding anniversary. Of course, we would even like more than 50 years together, but that is our goal. We have only 11 years to go, God willing.
We hope to be able to participate eventually in the annual diocesan celebration for couples observing their 50th wedding anniversaries. It was held in August, and Bishop Robert C. Morlino gave each golden anniversary couple a certificate. He commended them for their cooperation with Christ in building a successful marriage.
The bishop said that these couples know that Christ is central to a successful marriage. He also pointed out the importance of forgiving each other and bringing a joyful witness to others in society.
This week the Catholic Herald is publishing our twice annual Catholic Marriage section. It offers articles focusing on marriage preparation and marriage enrichment with a faith perspective. We hope you will read it and/or pass it along to a couple contemplating marriage or needing help with married life.
Way of the Cross being built on cathedral site
MADISON — A Way of the Cross is being built on the St. Raphael Cathedral site in downtown Madison.
“This Way of the Cross will help us to recover the sacred character of the cathedral site,” said Msgr. Kevin Holmes, rector/pastor of St. Raphael Cathedral Parish.
Subsidiarity, solidarity, and the lay mission
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear friends,
It was no shock at all for me to learn that our diocesan native son, Paul Ryan, had been chosen to be a candidate for the Vice Presidency of the United States. I am proud of his accomplishments as a native son, and a brother in the faith, and my prayers go with him and especially with his family as they endure the unbelievable demands of a presidential campaign here in the United States. It is not for the bishop or priests to endorse particular candidates or political parties. Any efforts on the part of any bishop or priest to do so should be set aside. And you can be assured that no priest who promotes a partisan agenda is acting in union with me or with the Universal Church.
It is the role of bishops and priests to teach principles of our faith, such that those who seek elected offices, if they are Catholics, are to form their consciences according to these principles about particular policy issues.