Denver Catholic

23 DENVER CATHOLIC | SEPTEMBER 8-21, 2018 Such as we are, such are the times L ike most Catholics, I have found myself equal parts appalled and frustrated over the recent abuse allegations (and ensuing cover-ups) that con- tinue to come to light. Car- dinals, bishops, and priests — the men we laypeo- ple trust to be our shepherds and guides — have all been implicated in what are, by all accounts, horribly unspeakable acts. As much as I'd like to, I can't just ignore what's happening. I've been closely following Catholic news, cheering for the brave souls coming forward to tell their stories. The more that is brought into the light, it seems, the better chance we have for healing. Yet as a layperson, I also admit that there is a general feeling of help- lessness that accompanies each new revelation of corruption and abuse. I am a stay-at-home mother, living in Denver, with no real stake in church politics. I attend a lovely parish with my husband and children, and we are certainly quite involved there, but we are also far removed (mercifully!) from the tragic things that we now know to have been happening over the past many years. Such revelations are an unfortunate but very real blight on Christ's Church as a whole. Our ability as Catholics to evangelize in our local communities has been, sadly, at least somewhat diminished as our credibility in the world appears to be nearly irreparably damaged. So what is someone like me, or you, to do? For one thing, I've committed myself to staying up on what's hap- pening. I've also tried to use my voice, humble as it is, to speak up in support of both the victims, and the coura- geous churchmen coming forward and making public statements in pur- suit of truth. I also remain staunchly committed to advocating as best I can for the truth — this is not the time to rely upon mere rumor or speculation. We must plead and wait for the facts. And of course, there is always prayer. But I also want to be proactive. While I don't have a direct role to play in managing the di¦cult aœairs of the Church, I do believe I have a respon- sibility to participate in Church life, and in healing the painful wounds that continue to rise to the surface. Surely there's a place for laypeople like me to exercise their gifts and work to make things better, even beyond a devo- tion to prayer and to the sacraments, important as those things are. In a recent homily, my parish priest was discussing the present state of things. He quoted something from St. Augustine that has stuck with me ever since: "Bad times, hard times — this is what people keep saying; but let us live well, and times shall be good. We are the times: such as we are, such are the times." Profound, right? Certainly, no one can deny that these are, indeed, dark times for the Catholic Church. Sin and pain are being exposed and dragged out into the light. We are, and rightly so, scan- dalized. Some among us are perhaps even tempted to walk away, and even the most faithful of those sticking around are uncertain and discouraged. But the truth of the matter is that not only can we cling to Jesus and his promises in the most di¦cult of moments, we can also renew our commitment to live out our respec- tive vocations the best we know how — because the times, whether good or bad, are not merely (or even mostly) defined by a few (or a lot of ) wayward individuals. They are also marked by saints-in-the-making. The people sitting in the pews. The mothers and fathers doing the long, hard work of love in their respective homes. The many good and faithful priests and bishops shepherding their flocks, day after day and week after week. So don't despair! Don't believe that you can't make a diœerence in our Church. Pursuing holiness and friendship with God, overcoming bro- kenness, and loving well are all repre- sentative of the times we live in, just as surely as the darkest news head- lines are. We must never give up on faith, hope and charity. We must look to Christ and to his mother, Mary, to lead the way through both the joys, and the sorrows, of this life. If we can do this, even in the midst of rocky, turbulent times, the world will see. They will see the light in spite of the darkness, and the good in spite of the evil. They will see that Jesus Christ is Lord, even when some of his own people have abandoned, mocked and spit upon him. They will see that faithful Catholics are ordinary men, women and children who advocate for abuse victims and Church reform, while simultaneously holding firm to the tenets of the faith. Loving Jesus, taking up our crosses and following after him — it is truly the only way forward. And not only might God use us and our humble eœorts to remake a hurting Church, we might also just discover that we have been remade, as well. St. Augustine was right when he suggested that above all, we live well in the bad and the hard times. Because we are the times. Such as we are, such are the times. the fight. And you say,¨"Well, okay, Bishop, I get it. But how do I fight?"¨Look: You fight through your own righteous anger. You fight by writing a letter to your bishop, a letter to the pope. You fight by your very presence at Mass. You fight by keeping people's feet to the fire. You fight by organizing your fellow Catholics. Fight any way you can. But you fight because you believe in the Church; you love the Church; and you realize that despite this terri- ble blight, it's worth fighting for. Keep in mind everybody, we are not Catholics because of the moral excellence of our leaders. God help us if we were. We want our leaders — indeed, we expect our leaders — to be morally excellent. But we are not Catholics because of that moral excellence. We're Catholics because of Jesus Christ, crucified and risen from the dead. We're Catholics because of the Trinitarian love of God. We're Catholics because of the Mystical Body of Christ. We're Catho- lics because of the sacraments. We're Catholics especially because of the Eucharist. We're Catholics because of the Blessed Mother. We're Catholics because of the saints. Even as leaders in the Church fail morally, the Catho- lic Church remains the Mystical Body of Christ, the Bride of Christ. And she's worth fighting for. Keep this in mind too everybody: Every baptized person is priest, prophet and king. A couple of days ago I talked about the kingly o¦ce. Can I talk now about the prophetic o¦ce? When Israel got oœ the rails — read the Old Testament, it happened on a regular basis: This community was meant to reflect the will of God into the world, Israel the chosen people of God, but frequently its lead- ers failed, frequently its people fell into sin, frequently it fell away from the Torah and the temple — what did God do? He called forth prophets: people like Jeremiah, people like Isaiah, people like Amos and Eze- kiel, people like Zechariah. And they raised their voices — sometimes, yes, in very angry protest — about these corruptions within Israel. You're a prophet. Every one of you listening to me right now who is bap- tized into Jesus Christ is a prophet. Raise your voice! Prophets didn't cut and run when Israel was in trouble; the prophets spoke out. That's all of our responsibility, all of us who bear the prophetic charism. Perhaps a last thought here. I said it a couple of days ago, I'll say it again. Whom are we fighting for? We're not fighting primarily to save our insti- tutions. See, I'm with my old mentor Cardinal George of happy memory. In the last talk he ever gave to all the priests of Chicago, he said,¨"Remem- ber, at the beginning of the Church, there were no parishes. There were no schools, hospitals, institutions. There were evangelists,"¨he reminded us.¨"There were proclaimers of the word."¨But the point was the Church does not depend ultimately on insti- tutions. We're not fighting primarily for that aspect of the Church's life. We are fighting for the victims of these terrible crimes. We're fighting for people who were sexually assaulted, sexually abused. If we cut and run precisely at this challenging time, who will be the prophetic voice on behalf of these victims? So that's my little cri de coeur, everybody — my cry from the heart. I get it. I get the frustration people feel.¨I share it. But this is not the moment to abandon the Church. This is the moment to fight for the Church. Guest Column Brianna Heldt is a Catholic writer, speaker and podcaster. Her work has appeared in various print and online publications. BRIANNA HELDT Visit archden.org/promise to watch the full video.

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