MADISON — Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison issued the following statement on June 5 regarding the death of George Floyd and the steps forward towards healing and justice:
Tag: bishop
New evangelization initiative to be launched in the Diocese of Madison
One of the Missal prayers in the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary expresses a beautiful aspiration: “In our mortal flesh may we show forth the life of Jesus.” This simple hope expresses succinctly the nature and purpose of evangelization.
Diocese of Madison to roll out reopening plan early next week
MADISON — With the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling of May 13, which overturned Governor Tony Evers’ state-wide Emergency Order #28, i.e., the “Safer at Home” Order, Most Reverend Donald Hying, Bishop of Madison offered the following brief statement:
“I certainly appreciate the exception added to the Public Health Madison and Dane County Order of May 13th, which while continuing to list religious entities as ‘Essential Businesses and Operations’, also allows for more reasonably-sized congregations for public worship while maintaining appropriate health-related safeguards, and I look forward to seeing this exception for religious entities being adopted in our other ten counties in the Diocese of Madison, and hopefully statewide in any possible future state order.
As we struggle through the pandemic, persevere, keep praying, hold Lord’s hand
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The Bible is so rich and vast that we can never fully fathom or remember the totality of the Scriptures, which allows for constant pleasant surprises when we discover a text which bears a new divine revelation to our hungry hearts.
This phenomenon happened to me recently as I was reading the Letter to the Hebrews. This New Testament letter was addressed to Jewish Christians to strengthen them in the practice of the faith and not to grow weary or become indifferent.
Two central themes of the text are the Priesthood of Jesus Christ as Savior and Redeemer and the pilgrimage of the people of God to the heavenly Jerusalem, where Jesus ministers in the heavenly sanctuary.Why we can’t do evil so good may come
There is a curious and intriguing passage in the third chapter of St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, which in the context of the missive seems almost tossed-off, but which has proven to be a cornerstone of Catholic moral theology for the past 2,000 years.
One, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church
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One silver lining for me during this weird coronavirus shutdown has been the opportunity to return to some writing projects that I had left on the back-burner.
One of these is a book on the Nicene Creed, which I had commenced many months ago and on which I was making only very slow progress, given my various pastoral and administrative responsibilities.
The last several weeks, I have been working in a rather concentrated way on the Creed book, and I find myself currently in the midst of the section on the Church: “I believe in one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church.”Turning to God during the pandemic and maintaining momentum afterwards
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Questions often raised during these weeks of social isolation and pandemic are: What am I learning from this experience? How will my life be different going forward? How will society change as a result?
I have heard from many people who are feeling a greater need for God in their lives. When we confront suffering, fear, loneliness, and privation, we gain greater insight into the essential nature of life’s meaning.
Discovering what really matters
Without frenetic activity to distract us, with less social contact to sustain us, with the threat or reality of sickness, unemployment, and even death staring us in the face, we discover very quickly what really matters.God has entrusted remarkable powers to us
During this challenging pandemic experience, I have been meditating lately on power and the lack of it, the fear of vulnerability and dependence, the need to surrender control and accept what is beyond one’s ability to change.
Since the definition of power is “the capacity to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events,” we have probably all felt an ebbing of power and influence in our lives. The social restrictions, the loss of health or employment, the cancellation of activities and events have all thrust us into this opaque existence of limitation and diminishment.
Two transitional deacons ordained in Madison
MADISON — Ordinations, whether to the priesthood or the diaconate, are usually very busy events filled with making sure everyone is in their right seats; lining up the men to be ordained, priests, and others in the processional before the Mass; and dozens of people doing their parts during the Mass to make sure the sacred rites are done correctly and reverently.
However, on April 15, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, as Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison said during his homily, “It’s not the ordination that any of us would have anticipated.”
He added, “By being winnowed down to its essence, we see with greater clarity the beauty of what is about to happen.
The resurrection invites us to leave sin and death behind
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We may be tempted to think that once Jesus had risen from the dead and sent the Holy Spirit upon the early Church, the lives of the Apostles were easy; after all, they were filled with the light and joy of knowing that the Lord had conquered sin and death; they knew that He was with them in the power of the Holy Spirit and the sacraments of the Church.
Yet, a simple reading of the Acts of the Apostles reveals that they met with immediate and violent opposition when they began to proclaim the Resurrection of Christ. Those who had conspired to kill Jesus certainly did not want Him coming back from the dead. How much easier for them if He had remained cold and lifeless in the tomb.