We are sent forth as ambassadors of the Good News

Diocesan Administrator Msgr. J. Terrence Fitzgerald gave the following homily at the Mass at the close of the Annual Pastoral Congress Sept. 30, 2006, in St. John the Baptist Church, Draper. The theme of the congress was "As the Father Has Sent Me, So I Send You."

Dear Friends,

I am happy to be able to celebrate Mass for you as we conclude the annual gathering of the Diocesan Pastoral Congress. The gathering highlights the need we have to strengthen our diocesan community and to enrich our life of faith. I want to thank all who have labored so diligently to organize this day and for all our participants tonight.

The theme of the Congress reminds us of the fact that as the "Father sent Jesus, so we are sent forth as ambassadors of the Good News." I commend you for your generous commitment to work hard to profess the faith in word and deed and for the expansion of God’s kingdom. You understand what it means to be evangelizers.

On several occasions I have recently heard the concern church leaders, teachers, and parents express regarding the extensive ignorance of the faith. We know well that too many adults, as well as young people, fail to grasp the essentials of our faith, whether we speak of sacred Scripture, liturgy, devotions, church history, prayer, or the catechism. We have wonderful educational resources available for us today, yet many still abandon or are luke-warm regarding a faith tradition they never really understood. That is certainly a pastoral concern that we face in our various ministries, and it is unfortunate in this day and age.

We have developed programs and policies regarding the reception of the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, acceptance into the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) or catechism classes. These are important efforts to properly prepare and form people for sacramental life. Yet sometimes I wonder if we sufficiently take into account the new mobility of people and the changing face of Utah’s Catholic population, especially the influx of Hispanics. Perhaps we have not quite responded to the many new people, including the many new young people who have come to us. Our landscape is certainly changing.

Some years ago I was giving a talk to religious educators and parents in Logan. I was explaining a new parish program that required parents to be at Sunday Mass and to participate in the catechetical program. I was quite strong in establishing an unbending policy requiring participation.

An elderly woman stood up, one who had been a catechist in the parish for many years, and she challenged me. She related how she and her brother were raised by a single mother who was alcoholic. Their life was quite miserable. With the encouragement of the pastor, two Legion of Mary members picked the two youngsters up each Sunday, from the time they were small, and took them to Mass and catechism. She said there was no way her mother could have been involved. "Those women were angels of mercy," she said. "That kept us in the family of the church. It made us faithful witnesses." She, her children, and her grandchildren remained active Catholics.

In tonight’s Gospel, Saint Mark challenges us to reflect upon one specific aspect of pastoral care, the need for our ministry to be all-embracing and inclusive, one reflecting a hospitality that keeps the welcome mat out and our greeters at the church door. I would add, one that encourages us to seek out those whose stories we might not know, but whose families hunger for faith. It is a call to people of faith to make hospitality a priority – to tell people, "You are welcome. We will take you."

Saint Mark raises the question: Who can be considered a follower of Jesus? Who can teach and heal in his name? What is the criterion for membership? These questions quickly arose in the early Christian community. It seems the disciples wanted to exclude someone who seemed to be a competitor or outsider, someone who was different.

The response of Jesus is rather startling. If the person is casting out demons in His name, then there is some connection. Those who are not against him are somehow for him. Mark supports that idea of being more inclusive with a series of sayings that emphasize the care and concern for "the little ones." This is not a reference to children, but to those who are not very sophisticated in their faith, those who live ordinary lives and struggle with the challenges of daily living, and those on the margins of our society. Jesus wanted them protected. He wants us to be more inclusive, more welcoming.

Mark obviously wanted this very strong teaching to penetrate his own community where exclusion was a temptation. As Jesus was sent by the Father to embrace these little ones, so we are sent to do the best we can to keep the doors open, the welcome mat out so as to build bridges to the many little ones within and on the fringes of our parish communities.

I leave you with the admonition of Pope Benedict XVI from his beautiful encyclical letter, "God is Love: "Those who work in the name of the church need a ‘formation of the heart...’ They need to be led to that encounter with God in Christ which awakens their love and opens their spirits to others. As a result, love of neighbor will no longer be for them a commandment imposed, so to speak, from without, but a constancy deriving from their faith, a faith which becomes active through love."

I commend you for your commitment to the faith, your generous love, and your response to our call as disciples.