Announcements

To support parents as the primary educators of their children, the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis has published, “Reclaiming Sundays: Recover Sunday as a Day for the Lord and Family.”

Come, Holy Spirit! That has been our fervent prayer each time that Bishop Izen, Bishop Kenney and I have celebrated the sacrament of Confirmation this Easter season. That was also certainly the prayer at the center of our moving Pentecost celebrations throughout the Archdiocese this past weekend, and that remains our prayer today as we celebrate the Feast of Mary, Mother of the Church, a commemoration introduced to the universal calendar just a few years ago by Pope Francis to be always celebrated the Monday after Pentecost.

After the conclusion of the Minnesota Legislature’s special session, Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC) celebrates a series of important policy victories that affirm human dignity and advance the common good.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda has announced the following appointments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis:

Ask your members of Congress to insist that the administration reverse the terminations of Catholic Relief Services’ Food for Progress and McGovern-Dole Food for Education programs, to continue lifesaving and life-affirming food aid.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda has announced the following appointments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis:

I hope today you are enjoying a restful Memorial Day and honoring in some way the brave women and men who gave their lives for our country. The Catholic Cemeteries welcomes hundreds of the faithful each year to Memorial Day Masses held at multiple locations throughout our archdiocese. This year I was blessed to have the Mass at Calvary Cemetery. With a number of my predecessors buried there, I tried to be on my best behavior. I’m hoping that Archbishop Ireland, a proud army chaplain at the time of the Civil War, was pleased by our celebration.

This weekend, you might have noticed something new at your parish. Maybe it was hanging in your church’s front entrance, or perhaps you noticed it in the parish hall while you were having coffee and donuts. Wherever it might be, I suspect that it will be hard to miss: It’s a large, blue poster marking the 175th anniversary of the Archdiocese and inviting you to be an Archdiocesan Jubilee Pilgrim.

Catholic and other nonpublic schools serve the common good, and our students deserve access to the support they need to succeed. Let’s make sure our leaders follow through on their commitment.

My suspicion is that many of you, like me, had your eyes glued to the screen last Thursday as the Vatican livestream introduced us to our newly elected pope, Leo XIV.

The papal conclave begins Wednesday, May 7 in Rome. Please pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, for the cardinals as they gather, as well as for the man who will be named our next pope.

Yesterday, the Church celebrated Divine Mercy Sunday. This feast day was instituted by St. John Paul II, drawing on the writings and visions of the Polish mystic, St. Faustina Kowalska. This feast held deep personal significance for St. John Paul II, who often preached about God’s great mercy. He was an avid student of St. Faustina’s writings and had been instrumental when in Krakow in helping the Holy See to understand Faustina’s writings in their proper context. It was considered providential that he passed on to eternal life on the vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday twenty years ago, after having beatified and canonized St. Faustina. The feast today has universal significance for our Church, bringing to a conclusion the Octave of Easter.

I apologize for the late arrival of this edition of the Weekly Word. To mark the passing of Pope Francis, the Archdiocesan Offices were closed yesterday. While I was sorry to be causing this delay, I was grateful for the opportunity to have time to reflect on the life of Pope Francis and on his extraordinary witness, and to join the Church in praying that our merciful God would give rest to the soul of the one who had assigned me to this Archdiocese, nearly nine years ago. 

The Holy See announced the passing of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, on April 21. Please join in prayer for the repose of his soul.

We’re off on the liturgical roller coaster that is Holy Week. It may be tempting to think of this week as the “home stretch” of Lent, but it’s much more a time to “double down” than to “kick back.”

From Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda I was shocked to hear of the attack on Father Neil Bakker, pastor at St. John the Baptist in Jordan, inside the parish rectory early Tuesday morning. Father Bakker and I have been in contact, and I have reiterated to him the promise of my prayers and Archdiocesan staff support for him and his parish and school community now and in the coming days and weeks. We need to give thanks to our gracious God that the incident ended as peacefully as it did. I continue to be inspired by the pastoral way in which Father Bakker was able to de-escalate a frightening situation.

Its hard to believe that we’ve come to the end of March already. Where did this month go? In the 10 winters that I have spent in Minnesota, I have come to know that March is a mystery. We never know if it will go out like a lion or a lamb. From an Ash Wednesday snowstorm to nearly 70 degrees a few days later, this month of March had its fair share of both! As we continue our Lenten journey, this final day of March can remind us how two related images of our Lord– the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God – can help us gain a deeper understanding of the very nature of God and of his love.