06/07/98

Cardinal George’s remarks to the pope

Vatican City (CNS) -- Here is the text of Chicago Cardinal Francis E. George’s remarks to Pope John Paul II May 30, during the “ad limina” visits of bishops from Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. Holy Father, We are the bishops of three provinces from the midwestern section of the United States: the ecclesiastical provinces of Indianapolis, of Chicago and of Milwaukee. We are grateful to be with you between the recent celebration of your birthday and the anticipated 20th anniversary of your service to the universal church as successor of Peter. We are grateful to be here during the week when the church prays for the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and during the year of the Holy Spirit in preparation for the great jubilee.

In our local churches, this is the season of confirmation and ordination. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon those who are confirmed and those who are ordained priests is a source of hope for us. In the sacrament of confirmation, the Holy Spirit renews the faith, first given at baptism, of the young people given to our pastoral care. In the sacrament of holy orders, the Holy Spirit renews the pastoral care of the faithful with each newly ordained priest.

These signs of hope, these signs of the Holy Spirit’s action shaping God’s people, calm our occasional anxieties about ourselves and our ministry and bring us to you, so that you, guided by the Holy Spirit, can confirm the faith of your brother bishops from all parts of the American continent. Our U.S. conference will begin to discuss our own implementation of the synod for America during our spring meeting next month. Already, a certain renewing of the bonds of unity among all the churches of America is happening as a result of your pastoral visit to Cuba, for which we are grateful. Those bonds will be further strengthened next January by your pilgrimage to Tepeyac in Mexico and to St. Louis, Mo., which borders our region.

With you now, we pray that the great jubilee will be a springtime for the Gospel. With you, at the threshold of the third millennium of Christianity, we see the mission of the church being at the service of Christ’s call to conversion of heart and mind, so that the world may be transformed. With you, we hope that the unity Christ desires all his disciples to enjoy may soon find again its roots in Sinai and Jerusalem and its full expression in the Apostolic See of Rome.

May the Virgin Mary, who gave birth to God’s only begotten Son 2,000 years ago by the power of the Holy Spirit, continue to give birth to Christ by her spiritual motherhood of his body, the church, and may she guide and protect you and us so that Christ’s leadership of the church may become more clearly visible in our ministry.

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