Put Out Into the Deep

Throughout the Easter season the Church’s newest members continue to reflect upon the meaning of their experience at the Easter Vigil when they were fully initiated into the mystery of Christ and his Church through Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist.

As the Church enters Holy Week and celebrates another Paschal Triduum, we may be questioning what Easter really means for us. We have been through a lot this year. It has been a year of pandemic and unrest and turmoil. Death has cast its shadow over us in unexpected ways.

One year ago, the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was identified in Oklahoma. Who imagined at that time its impact or the changes that were in store for us? Since last March there have been more than 425,000 COVID cases in Oklahoma and more than 7,200 COVID deaths.

I am ready for Lent this year. Please don’t misunderstand me. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Something within always resists Ash Wednesday’s sober call to repentance and a reorientation of my life.

It has been almost a year since COVID-19 became a household word in our nation. Virtually every aspect of our lives has been impacted by this global pandemic. Certainly, the life of the Church in our archdiocese has been dramatically affected as well.

Within 48 hours of the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden as the 46th President of the United States, and only our second Catholic president, Archbishop Gomez’s statement issued the same day proved to be prescient. 

Young people are valued members of the Body of Christ. They have much to offer the Church and the Church has much to offer them.

WASHINGTON – Seven U.S. bishop chairmen of committees within the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops have issued a statement in the wake of the death of Mr. George Floyd and the protests which have broken out in Minneapolis and in other cities in the United States.

The drama and the tension that we have been living with since COVID-19 began to disrupt life as we know it in the United States (and beyond) means that for some of us this day is long overdue while for others it still seems premature.

Dear Catholic Faithful of Oklahoma,

For more than six weeks we have been adjusting to a rapidly shifting landscape brought about by the spread of COVID-19.

“Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep.”

“Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle!” These words could have been written specifically with us in mind.

A little more than two months ago not many of us had heard of the coronavirus or COVID19. Today, everyone is on alert.

The season of our Lenten renewal is upon us. On Ash Wednesday, we were marked with ashes and exhorted to repent and believe the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Each year, the Church offers us the season of Lent as an invitation to set out on a journey of repentance and renewal. We begin our journey on Ash Wednesday.

One of the special blessings and responsibilities of being a diocesan bishop is making the pilgrimage – ad limina apostolorum.

Among the highlights of my annual calendar are the opportunities for me to visit each of our Catholic schools. I am about halfway through my pastoral visits to our 18 elementary schools, three high schools and one special needs school.