Knights of Columbus

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first of a two-part series on Ecclesia in America (The Church in America), Pope John Paul II’s exhortation released after the 1997 bishops’ Synod for America. The complete text of Ecclesia in America can be found at the Vatican Web site, www.vatican.va. Read Bishop Wuerl’s previous articles in his series, “The Pope Speaks to the Church and the World,” at the Knights of Columbus Web site, www.kofc.org.

As a sign of the significance of the Church in our hemisphere, Pope John Paul II traveled to Mexico City and the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Church in America, Jan. 22, 1999, to sign and promulgate the document that resulted from the Synod for America held in Rome from Nov. 16 through Dec. 12, 1997.

A synod is a gathering of bishops — in this case from North, Central and South America — to discuss with the pope a particular theme or the needs of the Church in a designated part of the world. The Synod for America focused on the Church in our hemisphere.

Even the name of the gathering, the Synod for America, and the document’s title, Ecclesia in America (The Church in America), speak of a particular vision that the bishops, together with the pope, see for the future. The use of the singular “America” was an attempt to express not only the unity which in some ways already exists but also to point to a closer bond “which the peoples of the continent seek and which the Church wishes to foster as part of her own mission, as she works to promote the communion of all in the Lord” (5).

Ecclesia in America is both a call to reflect on our faith and its meaning and an outline of important issues in the life of the Church and society that are of particular concern as we move into the new millennium.

The context of the whole document is what the pope and the Church refer to as the “new evangelization.” We are part of a faith community that has already received the Gospel. There are many, unfortunately, who follow the faith only halfheartedly or who have drifted away completely from its practice. Ecclesia in America calls our attention to the basic mission of the Church and, therefore, of every believer today: Invigorating our own faith and inviting back to the full practice of the faith anyone who is less than zealous in living out the Gospel message.

This is no easy task. In America, as in other parts of the world, there is an increasing tendency to live for the here and now. The result is that concepts such as transcendence, spirituality, grace and God’s kingdom become increasingly alien to our society. They are not denied outright. They are simply marginalized to the point where they have no impact on the way of thinking of so many people. Even good Christians today are increasingly subject to the suggestion that religious ideas and ideals, moral norms and guidance should be totally personal and private affairs with no impact on our public life.

Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than in the United States and Canada, where we regularly hear that moral principles and faith-based convictions should not influence public policy. Many good Christians are hesitant to speak up for their faith, the moral values so essential to their lives and the expectation that these most cherished values should be an integral part of society.

Chapter 1 begins with the announcement that who we are and what we do are rooted in our encounter with the living Christ. “The Gospels relate many meetings between Jesus and the men and women of his day. A common feature of all these narratives is the transforming power present and manifest in these encounters with Jesus, inasmuch as they ‘initiate an authentic process of conversion, communion and solidarity’” (8). At the heart of our personal identification as a Catholic is our meeting with Christ in a way that we come to know him, love him and invite him to be the focus and center of our lives.

Yet, we do not encounter Christ alone. It is in and through his Church that the grace of Jesus is brought to us and made present among us. The sacraments of baptism and confirmation, as well as the Eucharist, where we encounter Christ in a dramatically real way, introduce us to the person of Christ and sustain our friendship with him in a way that allows us to authenticate the truth of our personal conviction.

The document also reminds us that another place of encounter with Jesus is the sacred liturgy, where we experience the sacramental fullness of the Eucharist — the Real Presence of Christ.

To remind us that this exhortation is not theory, a chapter is devoted to encountering Jesus Christ in America today. The pope praises the strength of popular piety and its value, the presence of the Eastern Church and its rich heritage, and the extraordinary contribution of the Church in the fields of education and social action. In this chapter we are reminded of the need for a profound respect for human rights that must be rooted in the truth, because there can be no rule of law unless citizens, and especially leaders, are convinced that freedom depends on truth.

At this point the pope turns his attention to the “Christian identity of America.” He points out that “the greatest gift which America has received from Christ is the faith which has forged its Christian identity.” Going back over more than 500 years to its initial ongoing contact with the old world, America has benefited from the introduction of the Christian faith. The Holy Father points out that the experience of the Christian faith in North and South America is not synonymous with Catholic identity. “The presence of other Christian communities, to a greater or lesser degree in the different parts of America, means that the ecumenical commitment to seek unity among all those who believe in Christ is especially urgent,” he writes (14).

Even though the introduction to the Christian faith occurred in different parts of America through the activities of different Christian groups, it is the Gospel of Jesus Christ and faith in him that has formed so much of the way in which America envisions itself, recognizes its values and relates to the rest of the world. It is not an exaggeration to say that America is a land with Christian roots and Christian values.

To highlight this fact, the next section of Ecclesia in America is devoted to the fruits of holiness in America. Here a list of saints identified with America is found. As early as 1670 Pope Clement X proclaimed St. Rose of Lima, who died in 1617, as the principal patroness of America.

In subsequent years the list of American saints has continuously grown. Among them we could list the North American martyrs John de Brebeuf and his companions, Elizabeth Ann Seton, Peter Claver, Rose Philippine Duchesne, Turibius of Mongrovejo as well as Juan Diego, Katharine Drexel, Miguel Pro, Juniper Serra, Kateri Tekakwitha and many others.

Ecclesia in America also addresses some of the darker sides of development in our part of the world. Globalization and its ethical implications, and advancing urbanization and its related problems are concerns of the pope’s. The burdens of the external debt that many nations in Central and South America face, as well as the corruption in government are also mentioned. The drug trade, ecological concerns and a growing disregard for the dignity and value of human life are all part of the backdrop against which the exhortation calls us to renew our faith in Christ and undertake the new evangelization.

In the United States and Canada, one of the darker sides continues to be the glaring moral failure of abortion. With a callous disregard for all of the evidence of modern medical science that what is conceived in the womb is the beginning of human life, those responsible for the law of the land continue to legalize the death of more than 1 million unborn children every year. In the United States particular onus for this intolerable situation falls on the courts, particularly the Supreme Court, which wiped away a political consensus that existed across the land to at least contain the plague of abortion.

In reviewing the many issues that call forth a response from the Christian faithful, John Paul says there is much that is praiseworthy about life in America and the Church in America, yet there is still much more to be done within the Church to more clearly proclaim the Gospel of Christ and in the community to more justly address the great human issues of our day.

Bishop Donald Wuerl is a member of Duquesne Council 264.