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PAGE 5 — The Southern Cross, May 17,1990
National Pilgrimage For Abolition Of Death Penalty
The National Pilgrimage for Abolition
of the death penalty is now making a 400
mile march and caravan journey through
Florida and Georgia. The purpose of the
pilgrimage is to encourage people in the
churches to study and discuss the death
penalty.
The march and caravan began outside
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Priests should
think of their ministerial duties as part of
their spiritual lives rather than an in
terference, the president of the National
Federation of Priests’ Councils told the
group’s annual convention in Los Angeles.
While counseling married persons or
preparing couples for marriage, said
Father Joseph Brink of the Diocese of Cov
ington, Ky., “we wished we had time for
penance, not recognizing that we may be
doing a perfect form of it at that moment.”
Some 200 priests from 88 dioceses and 12
religious communities and other priests’
associations attended the April 30-May 4
convention, which had spirituality as its
theme.
“Since many of us were ordained,”
Father Brink said, “a true and honest re
understanding of spirituality has occur
red.”
“Much of what we learned has been
changed. It is possible for us to blame the
training that we received — and in too
many cases it was training, not education
— yet we are what we are,” Father Brink
said.
He added, ‘ ‘We cannot deny our past, but
we can build on it.”
Spirituality, he said, was being discuss
ed by the U.S. bishops’ Committee on
Priestly Life and Ministry, and it would
the topic for both Canada’s National
Federation of Councils of Priests meeting
next October and the International
Death Row at Florida State Prison near
Starke, Florida. The evening before a
Kickoff rally was held at St. Augustine’s
church in Gainesville, Florida.
Each day of the pilgrimage, from May 5
to May 18, scheduled stops are being made
at churches, colleges, prisons and public
buildings for forums and discussions about
Assembly of Priest Representatives from
English-Speaking Countries in Zimbabwe
in September.
“It is no accident that so many signifi
cant groups have chosen spirituality as the
topic this year,” he said.
“It is also not a conspiracy. Each group
made the choice independent of the others.
I think it is a statement that this topic is of
great importance for priests right now.
“It may even be a movement of the
Spirit,” he said. “We are hungry for the
right kind of nourishment.”
During the meeting Father Thomas Mc
Carthy of Warren, Ohio, was elected the
new president, with his three-year term to
start with the 1991 convention in Orlando,
Fla. He said the federation was “the only
national voice for priests in this country.”
In a prepared address sent to the con
vention, Bishop Donald W. Wuerl of Pitts
burgh, chairman of the U.S. bishops’
priestly life committee, said, “We priests
need a strong vision of priestly ministry.
We need each other’s wisdom as we try to
discover the best ways to be priests in our
times.”
“We need a sense of fraternity among
ourselves, so that we can provide quality
priestly ministry,” the bishop said. “We
need presbyterial councils, in union with
their bishops, to provide leadership for
us.”
Bishop Wuerl could not attend the
meeting because of a death in his family.
the death penalty.
In South Georgia, pilgrimage stops were
made at Valdosta, Waycross, Tifton,
Albany, Americus, Fort Valley, Warner
Robins and Macon.
Other stops in Georgia are at Forsyth
and at the Georgia Diagnostic Correc
tional Facility, Jackson, where Georgia’s
Spirituality"
The priests’ federation is helping the
bishops’ committee to prepare the U.S.
delegation for the world Synod of Bishops
on priestly formation in Vatican City Sept.
30-Oct. 28.
Death Row is located. Also at Griffin and
Jonesboro before reaching Atlanta May 18,
with the closing ceremonies at the King
Center on Saturday, May 19.
Georgia and Florida were selected for
the pilgrimage because these states have a
combined Death Row population of over
400. Twenty-one executions have taken
place in Florida since 1976 and fourteen in
Georgia.
Among organizations endorsing the
pilgrimge were the Committee Against the
Death Penalty and the Social Development
Commission of the Florida Catholic Con
ference, the Conference of Major
Superiors of Men, Leadership Conference
of Women Religious, Pax Christi and
Jubilee Partners.
ATLANTA BOUND — Participants in the National Pilgrimage for
Abolition of the Death Penalty start out from Starke, Fla., on May 5.
The 400-mile march will conclude May 19 with a ceremony at the Mar
tin Luther King Jr., Center for Non-Violent Social Change. (CNS photo
by Jacque Brund, Florida Catholic)
“Look At Ministry As Part Of
DC
Saying Yes To Christian
Service and Ministry
Homily given by Fr. Michael Lubinsky,
pastor of St. Joseph’s Church in Waycross,
at 51st Savannah DCCW Convention
Saturday-April 28, 1990 at the opening Con
vention Mass.
My Dear Sisters,
I wish to thank Fr. Peyton, who asked
me to preach at this Mass. It is my honor
and privilege. As Fr. Peyton might say in
your company, “Blessed am I among
women.”
Today I wish to share a message about
ministry. Today’s Acts of the Apostles
reading lends itself to it very well. The
needs of the early Christian community
surfaced and solutions had to be arrived at
to meet them. All of the ministry seemed
to be the work of people coming together
and assessing what needed to be done and
what steps were necessary in bringing
about the solution.
A certain David Campbell has been
quoted as saying, “If you don’t know
where you’re going, you’ll probably end up
somewhere else.” To me, the purpose of
Christian service to God and community
has to have a clear vision of who we are
and where we are going.
The Second Vatican Council opened for
the Catholic Church in America and
around the world a vision of church that is
radical and revolutionary. It calls for
nothing less than a real conversion on our
part: conversion of the individual, conver
sion of the institution, and conversion of a
whole people. This new vision of church
calls on us to become and act like a dif
ferent people. It demands that we do a kind
of about face in the way we think and feel
and act about ourselves, about God, about
church, about life, and about other people.
All are called and gifted to be obedient to
the Spirit - the call to be led by the Spirit to
renew and reform. This disposition means
that we are willing to let go of present pat
terns of life and behavior when we
discover that they are no longer produc
tive. It means to develop an awareness
that we are on a journey and the best of all
lies in the future. It means that the church
has got to change, like all other living
things, or the church will die.
Those of you already involved in some
form of parish service, ministry, organiza
tion, and outreach realize full well that the
work of evangelization - spreading the
Good News of Jesus’ love for us is a multi
level process. The work of teaching and
proclaiming God’s love happens at home,
at work, at church, and wherever we
travel. The process of becoming
evangelizers, ministers of God’s Good
News - is not restricted to any group of
Christians. Every individual Christian
man, woman, and child has the common
challenge to be a follower of Jesus and a
witness to spread His love by words and
example.
There are four energies which make
good liturgy, good ministry, and good
sense in our pursuit to be servants of God
and servants of the church. These four
energies were outlined by the well-known
theologian, Father Eugene Walsh.
The 1st Energy - HOSPITALITY - ’This
energy is vital, because it is the process by
which we work to make people feel at
home. You say by mouth and body
language - Gee, its awfully nice to have
you among us. You are special. You are
welcome. You are important to God. You
are a person needed here. You have much
to give and much to receive here. You have
a place where you can be yourself. Say
what you believe strongly without any fear
of rejection. Do what you believe deeply
without any danger that you will be thrown
out if you don’t conform. Your ideas and
your love and your service are deeply
valued and respected. We don’t take you
for granted. We thank you for the presence
you share with us. All these expressions
reinforce the energy of hospitality.
The 2nd Energy - LISTENING - One of
the key elements in establishing dialog is
the need for a conscious and deliberate in
volvement of listening to God’s love pro
claimed in our life. We must be silent in
order to listen to God speak to our minds
and hearts. We need to focus our complete
attention to the Beloved speaking a
nessage of truth, compassion, and
tenderness to the Servant. Everyone needs
to be a better listener. We need to block out
distractions which hinder our ability to
focus on the Word the Father has for us to
deliver to us. The Word is gently
whispered and we need to quiet ourselves
in solitude and meditation to grasp the
meaning and the call of the Beloved to be
of service to the needs of our brothers and
sisters in South Georgia.
The 3rd Energy - PERSONAL
RESPONSE - Now that God’s voice has
spoken to me about doing the will of tne
Father and invites me to share in this
ministry to God and community, I am led
to make a personal response to God. Jesus’
sacrifice of his life to bring eternal life is
the model of all Christian ministry, it is
blessed to say, “Yes, Lord, send me.” With
the grace and help of God, we give a per
sonal response to participate in loving ser
vice thru the corporal and spiritual works
of mercy our church holds up to us as being
Christ-like and life-giving.
The 4th Energy - GOING FORTH - I
don’t stay in some ivory toWer looking
down with pity on the problems in my life,
in my church, in my world, in my com
munity. I am sent. I am called to go and be
the Salt of the earth and the Light of the
world. I am sent to serve others with a
heart full of genuine charity. My life is con
secrated to proclaiming the need to follow
Jesus and share His love boldly with all
brothers and sisters. I am asked to go forth
and be a servant in my family, my world,
my church, and my community. God calls
me to be His witness and messenger and I
am filled with a mission to accomplish.
The mission will take up all of your life.
There is no cloudiness or fogginess about
the call to serve. God wants me to offer to
Him my time, talents, and treasure for the
good of the church and the good of my own
self.
My dear ladies, thank you for putting
these four energies into your daily worn of
serving God and community. The Diocese
of Savannah is and will be on the road to
health and happiness with Jesus, our Lord,
when we turn our lives over to saying
“Yes” to Christian service and ministry.
God bless.