Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Cross, Page 4
Thursday, April 13, 2000
Bishop Boland: five years of service as chief shepherd
F ive years ago next Tuesday, on
April 18, 1995, Father John
Kevin Boland was ordained the
thirteenth Bishop of Savannah. He
took as his motto, Christus in Corde
(“Christ in the heart”), an echo of
the Breastplate of Saint Patrick:
“Christ be in the heart of each to
whom I speak, in the heart of each
who speaks to me.”
Since his ordination, Bishop Bo
land has made extensive visits to the
parishes, schools and other Catholic
institutions in the diocese. He has
also set in motion feasibility studies
for the parishes and schools of the
Savannah deanery, which have resul
ted in proposals for a new school, the
transfer of Saints Peter and Paul
Vietnamese Parish to Nativity
Church, the appointment of one pas
tor for Most Pure Heart of Mary and
Saint Anthony of Padua Parishes,
and the proposed relocation of Our
Lady of Lourdes, Port Wentworth, to
the Pooler-Bloomingdale area. The
bishop has displayed real courage
and foresight in making these deci
sions. The rationalization of parishes
and priestly resources must be a pri
mary concern of any bishop; Bishop
Boland has accepted this sometimes
painful challenge.
In order to provide for the future,
Bishop Boland has encouraged and
supported the active programs for
fostering priestly and religious voca
tions undertaken by Father Brett A.
Brannen, the diocesan vocations
director. The 16 men currently study
ing for the priesthood for the Diocese
of Savannah bear witness to then-
bishop’s concern and care for them
and for the future of his people.
In preparation for the Great Jubilee
of the Year 2000, proclaimed by
Pope John Paul II, Bishop Boland
commissioned a three-year prepara
tory program, called The Fullness of
Time, written and published in the
diocese, with materials in English,
Spanish and Vietnamese, in recogni
tion of the diocese’s changing demo
graphics.
Because the year 2000 is also the
sesquicentennial of the founding of
the Diocese of Savannah, the bish
op encouraged every parish and all
seven deaneries to hold appropriate
celebrations. He has attended all the
deanery celebrations held so far,
often celebrating Mass for large
gatherings in civic centers or out
doors. He sponsored the publication
of a diocesan calendar and a book
of historical essays and parish histo
ries, due to appear this summer, and
the manufacture and dissemination
of various memorabilia to mark the
diocese’s 150 years of existence.
Bishop Boland was also aware that
2000 would mark the 100th anniver
sary of the rededication of the
Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
in 1900, after the fire of 1898. But
the building was deteriorating
badly—it needed a completely new
slate roof; leaks had ruined much of
the plaster; the stained-glass win
dows were damaged and in danger
of popping out of their splintering
frames; the electrical system was
inadequate and the acoustics
deplorable. After undertaking a thor
ough survey of the building, the
bishop announced a major restora
tion project for the Cathedral in
September 1998. The “Jubilee
Campaign One Faith... One Family'’
a sought $10 million for the restora-
_o tion and maintenance of the
± Cathedral, Hispanic ministry, tech-
o nology and the parishes. Over $15
-S million has been pledged. The mas-
-q sive restoration project is scheduled
b to be completed by late fall, with the
rededication of the Cathedral plan
ned for November 29.
Although these accomplishments
are impressive, the key fact of the
bishop’s first five years as chief
shepherd of the Savannah Diocese
is that Bishop J. Kevin Boland is
loved, respected and admired
throughout the 90 counties of south
Georgia because he is first and fore
most a pastor who is “there” for his
priests, deacons, religious and peo
ple. They have recognized Christ in
his heart, even as he has never
failed to recognize Christ in their
hearts.
—DKC
Q uestion: Just an old-time 72-year-old
Catholic needing to ask a major question
aoout the recitation of Holy Rosary. From my
earliest days to the present, my family and
friends used the small chain on the Rosary (one
Our Father, three Hail Marys and one Glory be
to the Father) for intentions of the Holy Father
(and currently, we pray for his continued health
and safety). When did we stop doing this? We
feel that every prayer should be an offering of
some kind. The decades of the Rosary are beauti
fully introduced and offered as a memory of an
important event in the lives of Jesus and Mary.
Not to offer the prayers at the beginning of the
Rosary seems empty and hollow to me. What a
great gift it would be to the Church and the Holy
Father if all the Rosaries recited began with the
Holy Father in mind.
—Jim Galvin
A nswer: According to the Catholic Encyclo
pedia (1967), “the Rosary is begun and ter
minated in various ways. In the U.S., it com
mences with the recitation of the Our Father,
three Hail Marys, and a Glory Be to the
Father”—as the questioner states. The custom of
reciting these for the intentions of the Holy
Father is commendable, but not obligatory. The
Questions & Answers
encyclopedia adds that in this country the Rosary
“ends with the recitation of the Hail Holy Queen
and the prayer from the Feast of the Rosary.” As
an example of other customs, it cites the
Dominican tradition of beginning the Rosary
with “the verses that open Matins of the Divine
Office.” Indeed, “neither these introductory and
concluding prayers nor the Glory be to the Father
following the decades are integral parts of the
Rosary.” In other words, one may retain the cus
tom mentioned or not as one sees fit.
—DKC
uestion: Why do Catholics prohibit any oth-
IJers from receiving communion at Mass?
vVny do we act so exclusive when we are trying to
mite the world into one common religion?
—John Grant
A nswer: The primary requirements for re
ceiving the Eucharist are faith and baptism.
Indeed, all baptized believers have what lawyers
would call a prima facie (“at first glance”) right
to receive communion at Mass. The Catholic
Church recognizes this fact in allowing not only
Catholics but also Eastern Orthodox to receive
communion: their faith is the same and we rec
ognize all their sacraments. (The Orthodox
Churches, however, do not allow their members
to accept our invitation). Western Protestants,
because their faith in the Eucharist itself has his
torically been judged inadequate, are considered
to be impeded from receiving communion.
Although they are baptized believers (and we
accept almost all trinitarian baptisms), most
Protestants (with the exception of Swedish
Lutherans) have been brought up not to believe
in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist,
and their own Eucharists have been judged
invalid because they lack apostolic succession
(which does not affect their baptisms, as anyone
can baptize, but does affect their Eucharists,
because only bishops or priests in apostolic suc
cession can celebrate the Eucharist validly). So
while we would dearly love to invite them to
exercise their baptismal right to receive commu
nion, they are impeded for now by their theolo
gy, and though we would love to be able to share
their Eucharists, we cannot overcome their lack
of priests. Individuals, however, who are
deprived of the Eucharist in their own churches
and who do believe in the real presence may
request permission from the local Catholic bish
op to receive communion. But we pray for the
day when we can unite around the Lord’s Table.
—DKC