July 11, 2008
'Be not afraid!’
Thank you and farewell
by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke
Introduction
On June 27, Pope Benedict XVI appointed me to the office of Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.
With the appointment, which took effect at noon in the Vatican (5 a.m. in St. Louis) on the same day, I ceased to be the archbishop of St. Louis. In the afternoon of June 27, the College of Consultors of the archdiocese, in accord with Church law, met and elected Bishop Robert J. Hermann to the office of archdiocesan administrator. As archdiocesan administrator, Bishop Hermann will govern the archdiocese until the new archbishop is appointed. From my very close work with Bishop Hermann, over the past four years and five months, I can assure you that the governance of the archdiocese is in the best of hands. It is in the hands of a bishop of deepest faith and prayer.
Since I have regularly written a column for you in our archdiocesan newspaper when I was your archbishop, I wanted to write to you one last time now no longer as your archbishop but as your former archbishop who continues to love you very much. I write simply to say "thank you" and "farewell."
Thank you
As I commented during the news conference on the day of the announcement of my new appointment, my years of service in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, even though they have been relatively brief, have been years of intense grace for me.
I have encountered in St. Louis a remarkable depth of Catholic faith, strongly connected with the apostolic tradition and lived practically in the homes of the faithful.
The strong Catholic faith of the Archdiocese of St. Louis is manifested in a host of ways. Some examples are eucharistic adoration in almost all of the parishes and its extension through enthronement of the Sacred Heart in many homes; a strong archdiocesan seminary enrolling an ever growing number of Archdiocesan seminarians; a long-standing and vigorous exercise of the apostolate of the respect for human life; a generosity to the Annual Catholic Appeal, which is unparalleled in the Church throughout our nation; multiple agencies of Catholic Charities and a St. Vincent de Paul conference in practically every parish; and the deeply-rooted practice of making great sacrifices to provide a Catholic-school education for the children and young people, including the children and young people with special needs. These are just some examples.
The new evangelization and controversy
As archbishop, building upon the strength of Catholic life in the archdiocese, I tried to lead you in the new evangelization, which is so needed in the totally secularized society in which we live. Your response has been dedicated and generous. In thanking you for your response to my pastoral leadership in carrying out the new evangelization, I urge you to continue to teach, to celebrate in prayer and the Sacred Liturgy, and to live in practice our Catholic faith with new enthusiasm and new energy, with the enthusiasm and energy of the first disciples of our Lord and of the first missionaries to our part of the world
During my service in the archdiocese and as I am now leaving you, the secular media have focused very much on the controversies that have marked my years in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. While the controversies have been difficult for us all, I did not shrink from them when I knew the integrity of our Catholic faith, worship and practice was at stake. Our society, which esteems above all political correctness, views negatively anyone who is in the eye of a controversy over questions of faith and morals. Yet, in the Church, we know that we, like our Divine Master, are destined to be a "sign of contradiction" (Luke 2:34). It is not by chance that our most esteemed religious symbol is the crucified Christ.
If a totally secularized society is not uncomfortable with the way we teach and pray and live, then we are not putting the truth of our faith into practice. While we must always speak the truth with love (Ephesians 4:15), we must speak the truth. A society that prefers the comfort of confusion and error will not be pleased. But what alone matters for us is that we be pleasing in the eyes of God. Thank you for holding fast to the truth of our Catholic faith, for praying and worshiping with great devotion and fervor and for witnessing to the truth of the faith in your attitudes, words and actions.
Particular gratitude
I express my particular gratitude to those who have worked most closely with me in my pastoral care and governance of the archdiocese. The priests of the archdiocese, who, in virtue of their ordination, are my closest co-workers, welcomed me warmly from the day I arrived in St. Louis and have always responded loyally and generously to me. We are most blessed in our priests, and I know, from my years in St. Louis, how much and how rightly you love and support your parish priests.
In thanking our priests, I thank, too, the permanent deacons of the archdiocese, who assist the priests and me in the ministry of the Word, the altar and charity. May God reward you, brother deacons, and your families who support you so generously in the service of the Church.
I thank, too, all of the faithful who serve the mission of the Church directly in various apostolates in the parish, especially Catholic education, and in the administration of the Church’s resources. I am deeply grateful, too, to the many faithful who serve so competently and well on parochial and archdiocesan consultative bodies: the Parish Pastoral Council, Parish Finance Council, Archdiocesan Pastoral Council, Archdiocesan Finance Council and a host of other committees and councils which assist the archbishop and priests to respond, as best as possible and with the best possible stewardship of resources, to the pastoral needs of the faithful in the archdiocese.
Bishop Hermann and Msgr. Vernon Gardin, who were my vicars general, have encouraged and assisted me in countless ways.
To them are joined the whole staff of the Archdiocesan Curia, especially the judicial vicar and episcopal vicars, and the archdiocesan finance officer and chief administrative officer, who, no matter what their responsibility, have been dedicated to helping our priests and the parishes and other institutions in which they serve. To the entire staff of the Archdiocesan Curia, I express my heartfelt gratitude.
Msgr. Henry Breier, my personal secretary and pontifical master of ceremonies, has faithfully attended to the fitting dignity of the celebrations of the Sacred Liturgy, at which I have presided. So often, the faithful comment to me on the beauty and inspiration of the pontifical liturgies at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis and throughout the archdiocese. That beauty and inspiration depends upon a devoted master of ceremonies and those who work with him. Monsignor and his assistants remain in the background, all the time, giving their service for the more fitting worship of God.
Monsignor also has made it possible for me to participate in so many events in the Archdiocese of St. Louis and also in the civic communities of the archdiocese. His extraordinary degree of organization and his most kindly manner have helped me to be with you and meet with you, as much as possible, and to carry out, as best as possible, the great diversity of my responsibilities.
My good secretaries, Sister M. Regina van den Berg, FSGM, and Rosalie Manz have worked with Msgr. Breier in assisting me to communicate with you, both in person and through correspondence. Anyone who has had occasion to speak with them knows how well they represent the archdiocese and the archbishop. I thank, too, Anne Steffens who has helped me with communications within the archdiocese and also with communications with the wider community through the media.
Special thanks to the consecrated
I owe a particular debt of gratitude to the Franciscan Sisters of the Martyr St. George, who generously mission Sisters to serve in the Archdiocesan Curia and at the archbishop’s residence. The religious consecration of the sisters brings to us, along with their dedicated service, special grace for living more perfectly in Christ. My heartfelt thanks to Mother Ingeborg Rohner and Mother Regina Pacis Coury, the provincial superiors of the Franciscan Sisters of the Martyr St. George during my years of service in the archdiocese, who have responded so generously to my requests of the assistance of their Sisters.
In thanking the Franciscan Sisters of the Martyr St. George, I thank all of the consecrated religious — priests, monks, nuns, brothers and sisters — who are missioned in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, your consecration and apostolate have greatly built up and continue to build up the life of the Church in the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
In writing of the many graces which have come to the Archdiocese of St. Louis through the witness and apostolates of consecrated persons, I note, with an altogether particular gratitude, the abundant gift of the contemplative life in the archdiocese. I am certain that you, with me, have experienced directly the power of the prayers of the contemplative sisters whose love truly embraces the whole world and expresses itself, most of all, in a life of prayer before our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament, and of sacrifices lifted up to the Sacred Heart of Jesus for those in most need. My dear sisters in Christ, thank you from my heart for all of the spiritual assistance which you have given to me over the years of my service here. Please continue to pray for me.
Farewell thoughts
The media and several individuals have asked me to comment on what most stands out for me among the various aspects and events of my service as Archbishop of St. Louis.
Because of the richness of Church life, it is difficult to answer the question simply and easily. With humble recognition of the many blessings which God has showered upon the archdiocese during my years, I offer two observations.
Priestly vocations and Kenrick-Glennon Seminary
The growing number of our seminarians and their evident desire to become holy shepherds of the flock never cease to edify me. God is blessing the Archdiocese of St. Louis with many and holy priestly vocations. I cannot commend enough the good parents and parish priests of our seminarians, who encourage and support them in responding to Christ’s call with an undivided heart. I cannot commend enough the work of the Archdiocesan Office of Vocations, which assists so ably and well the young men who are discerning God’s call to the priesthood.
It has been the source of the greatest joy and hope for me to get to know our seminarians and to help them to see better God’s will in their lives and to respond generously to it. I am deeply proud of our seminarians and will miss them, in a most particular way.
My devotion to the seminarians and to Kenrick-Glennon Seminary has always been essentially united to my desire to serve, to the best of my abilities, all of the faithful of the archdiocese. Since I was first named a bishop in 1994, I have been keenly aware that my first responsibility to the faithful is to provide them with good and holy shepherds. In caring for our seminarians, I have been caring for all of you, the faithful of the archdiocese, for whom one day, God willing, they will be priests.
I very much looked forward to leading the campaign for the restoration, renovation and new addition at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. In a preliminary phase to the campaign, I found the greatest generosity among the faithful. In a year’s time, thanks to the generosity of a number of the faithful, the seminary endowment, which is critical to its stability and also to meeting annual operating expenses, increased from some $5 million to nearly $20 million.
As I leave you, I commend to you the campaign for Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. The success of the campaign, of which I am confident, will be the fitting response to God who is blessing the archdiocese with so many good and holy vocations, and will be the best way possible to provide for the future of the Archdiocese of St. Louis in every aspect.
Reflecting upon the fact that our Lord did not leave me here to complete the work of the campaign, which I viewed as one of the first of my responsibilities to you, the faithful, I am reminded of the words of St. Paul:
"I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are equal, and each shall receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building" (1 Corinthians 3:6-9).
My heart is full of gratitude to God for letting me be His co-worker in His wonderful field in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, especially in the care and promotion of our archdiocesan seminary.
Sacred Heart of Jesus
Secondly, one of the happiest days of my service in the Archdiocese of St. Louis was June 17, 2007, when I dedicated the Shrine to the Sacred Heart of Jesus at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis and led representatives of the whole archdiocese in making the Act of Consecration to the Sacred Heart, as it was first made by St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the apostle of the Sacred Heart. The Shrine to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the consecration of the archdiocese to the Sacred Heart of Jesus represent the heart of what I have hoped, with God’s help and through the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, to accomplish on your behalf during my years of service as archbishop. Above all else, I have desired to make Jesus Christ better known, loved and served in His holy Church.
Since the time I was a child and especially during my years in the seminary, the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus has kept me focused on my life in Christ, especially through Holy Communion, and has sustained me in both the joys and sorrows which visit the life of every Christian.
With the years, the devotion has only increased in importance for my spiritual life. I pray that our Blessed Mother, especially under her title of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mother of America and Star of the New Evangelization, will continue to guide us all to her Divine Son and to help us in lifting up our hearts, with her Immaculate Heart, to the glorious pierced Heart of Jesus, in which we find, without measure, rest and strength for our life in Christ.
Farewell
I am deeply honored and humbled by the trust which Pope Benedict XVI has placed in my by naming prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura. We are blessed, in our time, with a remarkably holy Successor to St. Peter. I have pledged to serve our Holy Father with all of my ability and strength, and I pray that God will give me the grace to do so always. Through my good parents and through my seminary formation and years of priestly ministry, I have learned ever more that obedience to my superiors always brings a blessing to me and to those whom I love and serve. Even though I am deeply sad in leaving the archdiocese and you, whom I love, I go to my new assignment with joy, trusting in God’s Providence in all things. I ask your prayers for me, that I may fulfill generously and well my new responsibilities.
It has been my experience that, whenever greater responsibility is given to someone in the Church, Satan works all the more cleverly and furiously to discourage and confuse. Christ alone wins the victory over Satan, and we draw near to Christ through prayer. Please keep placing me in the Sacred Heart of Jesus, through your prayers, so that I will have the courage and wisdom to do faithfully and generously all that I am asked.
What I have written above seems so poor and inadequate. It is surely a feeble attempt to give expression to the sentiments of a heart filled with gratitude and love. In the end, I can only ask your forgiveness for my failures as your Archbishop and, from the depths of my heart, thank all of you who have helped me to carry out the responsibilities of my office.
To almighty God, I express my deepest gratitude for the time of my service as shepherd of His flock in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, asking His pardon for my failures and praising Him for what He has accomplished among us from Jan. 26, 2004, until June 27, 2008.
In saying "goodbye," I promise that you will be in my prayers daily. Daily I will lift up the intentions of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and of the faithful of the archdiocese to the Heart of Jesus, especially through the Eucharistic Sacrifice. May God bless you and bless us all in His service!
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