6th Eastern Link June 2010 - Province 20 Catenians of Western ...

Oscar Romero’sMartyrdom Continued. . .lay-faithful men and women and, sadly, even children. Her words, ‘He gave voice to those who had novoice; he gave hope to those who were sick with fear and living in despair’ were close to my thoughtsthroughout those days. It made me think then as now of the great sermon that was preached by Jesusas he unrolled the scroll of the prophet and said, looking deeply into the eyes of all present in thesynagogue, This text is being fulfilled today, even as you listen.As we hear those words each year the Church through its liturgy for this Mass is remindingus that through our baptism and confirmation, our ordination and even at the moment of serious illness– we are being anointed to be the messengers of God in every time and circumstance of life. This is animportant message for us in this special Year of the Priest as well as for our programme of diocesanrenewal Go Make Disciples!It was shocking, but comes as no surprise that Oscar Romero in his short time as a bishopwas constantly ridiculed, ignored, even jeered at in the streets by youths. The rich and the middle classshunned him; lies were told and published about him; he was tried by the media and the sinistermilitary junta issued constant death threats – even taking his priests out one by one in order to cowerhim and deflect him from his mission. Some of his brother bishops even tried to have him expelledfrom the country. And he was not a strong man; he was timid and often trembled in the face of it all. Inhis diary he wrote I am entering into this darkness and I am afraid and ill-equipped. But despite that,his faith was strong – bolstered by hours of prayer and adoration and the company of his priests andso many supportive lay people. Despite that sense of being ill-equipped, he was conscious ofsomething that is important for all Christians to remember and especially for us priests on this day.The anointing he had received was an act of God rooted in God's choice of him and God'sinitiative – and so it is for us. Anointing has always been that. We need only think of the anointing ofDavid as King of Israel by Samuel. Samuel was sent to the house of Jesse to anoint the one God hadchosen, to fulfil God's purpose.But most fundamentally, Jesus Christ, our great high priest makes the words of the prophetIsaiah his own explaining to us the nature of his ministry and the meaning of his anointing: to bringgood news to the poor, to bring freedom, healing, release and strength - to proclaim that the Lord’sjubilee – his year of favour – is not confined to a specific calendar year but to every year and everymoment. It is to that same ministry that the bishop and priests and all, are baptised and confirmed andcalled to to this diocese in these times. This anointing is for our day and our present reality - as it wasfor Archbishop Romero’s time.The context in which we exercise our ministry is changing rapidly, the world is changing andwe need great imagination, courage and confidence to engage with the pastoral realities that presentthemselves today. But this time is our time, our opportunity. It is the right time for our ministry to enrichand strengthen the life of our Church. And this diocese is the place where we are called to do that.Some days after that great celebration in the Cathedral Square, I stood celebrating Mass atthe altar in the cancer hospital where Monseñor Romero was assassinated. As he looked down frombehind the altar to the open door at the back of the Church he saw his executioner who shot him as hebegan the Offertory of the Mass. That was the final and most sublime offering of his own life in unionwith Christ. My thoughts then and now as I think of what he saw and what that meant is, how goodGod is to have given this fearful yet courageous priest to a people so desperately in need – who spokefor those who couldn’t speak for themselves, who brought his own particular experience and gifts tothat ministry, his own voice to the preaching of the Gospel – preaching that was original and personal,but at the same time in continuity and complete fidelity to the faith of the Catholic Church throughoutthe ages. And, today, as I look at you, my brothers and sisters, I recall that same sentiment: how goodGod is to have given you to this diocese at this time when the challenges are great and the labourersare few. God has anointed you in our day – his choice, his initiative - new voices articulating amessage that is always old yet ever new – and greatly needed. Thank you.38EASTERN LINK NEWSLETTER 38 JUNE 2010