Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Catholic News

Home

Home
Catholic
Religion News
Archbishop Kurtz on the best thing to come out of the synod

Archbishop Kurtz on the best thing to come out of the synod

Last updated on: November 16, 2015 at 8:47 pm by CNA Daily News

Archbishop Kurtz on the best thing to come out of the synod 2015-11-16T20:47:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Washington D.C., Nov 16, 2015 / 01:47 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Families helping families – this may have been one of the greatest “fruits” to come from the Synod on the Family, said the president of the U.S. Bishops Conference Monday.

“One of the greatest insights I brought home from the Synod last month is the recognition of families as ministers of the Gospel,” said Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville.

“Families are not simply objects, receiving from us who serve,” he added. “The families are subjects, those who give and share, who inspire others through their heroic lives often lived in very ordinary circumstances but lived in extraordinarily faithful ways.”

Archbishop Kurtz, who heads the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, made his remarks in a presidential address to his brother bishops at their annual fall general assembly in Baltimore Nov. 16.

The agenda for the bishops’ meeting included an address by the Apostolic Nuncio to the U.S. Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano and the approval of a formal statement on pornography, as well as a discussion of October’s Synod on the Family.

In his presidential address, Archbishop Kurtz hearkened back to both Pope Francis’ September U.S. visit and to October’s Synod on the Family, and also pointed ahead to the Jubilee Year of Mercy which begins on Dec. 8.

Recalling how Pope Francis urged the bishops to “be pastors close to the people” in his Sept. 23 address at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, D.C., Archbishop Kurtz stressed that the bishops must be present to the faithful during the Year of Mercy.

And that “mission of mercy begins with a presence,” he added.

“A special arena where our presence is desperately needed is in the homes and the hearts of families,” he insisted. He referenced Pope Francis’ words at the synod’s closing Mass that priests and bishops should avoid “scheduled ministry” and embrace the inconveniences that may accompany pastoral ministry.

The archbishop told of married couples who complained of feeling like a “completed project” after they were married in the Church, and who desired their pastors and bishops to be “present in their lives” even after marriage.

Both this year’s synod and the 2014 Extraordinary Synod on the Family reflected this need for pastoral accompaniment of families – to help those “struggling” to live out the Church’s teaching and also “inspire” every person to the “joy and strength in their vocation in Christ,” he added.

There is also a need to encourage families who are faithfully living out Church teaching, he said, and there was “wide agreement” about the importance of this among the synod fathers.

“These families who accompany other families – we often call them mentors – may be the greatest fruit of the synod process,” Archbishop Kurtz reflected.

Bishops must also work to encourage families by promoting “the beautiful vision of self-giving love in marriage,” he continued. Part of these efforts will be the approval of a formal statement on pornography which is on the agenda at the bishops’ meeting. This will be an opportunity to “lift up the beauty of God’s plan for human sexuality,” Archbishop Kurtz said.

The archbishop also shared an example of family love of his brother Georgie, who has Down syndrome.

Georgie was the “glue of our family,” Archbishop Kurtz explained. He “forced us to slow down, to ask for help,” and “focus on being together.”

These experiences of family love “are the ones that continue to enrich us,” he continued. “These families testify to Christ and His love simply by being faithful to one another, loving their children, welcoming others into their homes, teaching the faith, praying together.”

These are “simple things, but they are a profound witness to a vocation that the world needs,” he added.

In reaching out to help the faithful, “know that this Pope is at your side,” the archbishop told his fellow bishops. “The Pope supports you. He puts His own hand on yours.”

Previous Post

November 15, 2015

LAPD officer: If we only police homelessness, we miss the root problems

Next Post

November 17, 2015 Faith on the football field – Fargo high school stands up for religious freedom

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who prayed three times a day facing Jerusalem?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jonah Ezekiel Daniel Micah