Thursday, February 03, 2005

Tomorrow and the Fate of the St. Stanislaus Board

If I recall, February 4 was the date set by Archbishop Burke for the board members to comply with his directives and the decision of the Holy See or face the punishment of "interdict or other just penalties."

Strangely, the media has been uncharacteristically quiet about this and, perhaps, the board members have been as well. I have noticed nothing new on the St. Stanislaus website...

Let us pray that progress is going on behind the scenes quietly and that the board members are coming to the realization that docility, humility, and obedience are part of what it means to be a faithful Catholic - that one must be willing to endure hardships and sacrifices for Christ and his Church, that obedience to the lawful directives of a successor of the Apostles is obedience to Christ, Himself, Who said: "He who hears you, hears me." (Luke 10:16).

As we read in Lumen Gentium §20: "This sacred Council [Vatican Council II] teaches that the Bishops, from divine institution, have taken the place of the Apostles, as the pastors of the Church: he who hears them, hears Christ; he who spurns them, spurns Christ, and Him who sent Christ".

Certainly, when a Bishop gives a lawful command or directive as Archbishop Burke has, we should, in humble obedience, follow his direction lest we, by our willful refusal, disobey and reject Christ and the Father. What a unenviable position this would be in which to place oneself, regardless of one's own ideas or opinions on the matter. We have the words of Christ Himself who makes this perfectly clear to us.

We should pray that tomorrow will be a day in which St. Stanislaus Parish accepts the generous offers of Archbishop Burke and it will be a day of rejoicing in the Archdiocese.

Previous article regarding the Feb 4 date is here.

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