Commemorating A New England Ecumenical Event

On January 19th, 1964, Cardinal Richard Cushing, then Catholic Archbishop of Boston, went to Sudbury United Methodist Church in Sudbury, MA.  He was to speak to a gathering of Christians of all denominations.  Even just a few years before 1964, such an event would have been unheard of, however, because of the work that the Second Vatican Council was doing on ecumenism; and the type of person Cardinal Cushing was, this milestone in ecumenical relations took place. 

50 years later, almost to the day, Cushing's successor, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, OFM CAP, returned to Sudbury Methodist, to celebrate the memory of that event, and to look forward to the future.  The Archdiocesan paper, The Pilot, announced the event, and gave some historical background.  Among those attending the ceremony was a friend of mine, the Rev. Anne Robertson, who is a United Methodist minister, and is currently the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Bible Society.  I am privileged to be a member of the Society's Board of Trustees. The service was a combination of prayer, and song.  Since January 12th was the Baptism of the Lord, there was going to be a renewal of baptismal vows.  Somebody from the Pilot, George Martell, took pictures of the event and also got audio of Cardinal Sean's talk. 

Part of the renewal of baptismal vows included being anointed with water by either a Catholic or Protestant clergy person.  Anne and a Catholic priest were about to go to an overflow room, where they were watching the ceremony on live stream TV.  Before they went off, the priest asked Cardinal Sean to anoint them with water, then Cardinal Sean turned to Anne, and asked her to do the same for him.  Anne shares her reaction and her feelings about this on her own blog.

It speaks again of the Franciscan humility of Cardinal Sean, and his ability to seize the moment, and turn it into a pastoral, a loving, a Christian encounter; much like what Cardinal Cushing did fifty years earlier.

My late father was born into a Methodist family, he would later convert to Catholicism; but I still have Episcopalian cousins.   Ecumenism is very important to me, and I pray that we find a way forward to that day when we all will be truly one in Christ.

Bishop Deeley Of Boston Goes Down East!

The local news outlets and the Catholic blogosphere were abuzz with the news that Robert Deeley, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston, had been appointed Bishop of Portland, Maine, by Pope Francis.  I had not realized, until I read the press releases, that they had been without a bishop for a long time.  Currently, he is serving as the Vicar General of the Boston Archdiocese.  The Archdiocesan newspaper, The Pilot, has reported on the story.

This appointment raises the question again about how much “juice,” Cardinal Sean O’Malley, Archbishop of Boston, has in Rome.  As a member of the newly formed Council of Cardinals, (also known as the “G8,”) one can speculate that he was a force behind the establishment of a papal advisory commission, dealing with the child abuse crisis within the global Church.  The Diocese of Portland is a part of the Ecclesiastical Province of Boston, with Cardinal O’Malley as the metropolitan bishop.  From so many angles, the Cardinal must have some influence in the selection of Bishop Deeley for Portland.

I read somewhere that the Cardinal could have even more influence in Rome, if he wanted to play the church political game.  However, there are indications that Cardinal Sean has no interest in engaging in Vatican power plays; it goes against his Franciscan nature.  It will be interesting to see that holds true as his involvement in the pontificate of Pope Francis continues.

Italian Press And Cardinal Sean O'Malley.

The Italian press remains fascinated with Cardinal Sean O'Malley, OFM CAP, the Archbishop of Boston, MA.  Recently the Italian newspaper, LaStampa, posted this story about Cardinal Sean on their website, Vatican Insider.  Among the various reasons for this interest, could be that Cardinal Sean is unique from the other members of the College of Cardinals.  A Capuchin Franciscan, he continues to wear his habit around the office, and at public functions.  Rarely does he wear the red trimmed cassock, biretta, and cape.  Determined to settle the legal suits concerning the sexual abuse of children by Archdiocesan priests, he sold the Cardinal's Residence (actually it was a mansion!). He now lives in a rectory.

Cardinal Sean is a quiet, humble prelate, but he does know how to lead.  He is an inspiring preacher.  And he has that common touch.

For all the attention that Cardinal Sean has received from the Italian press, and subsequently, from the American national press, there is very little of him being elected as the next Pope.  Which is fine by me, there is still a lot happening in this Archdiocese that requires his steady hand.

Franciscan Cardinal Switching From Brown to White?

This morning, the National Catholic Reporter posted on their website a story by John Allen about the “buzz” amongst the Italian press about Cardinal Sean O’Malley, OFM CAP, Archbishop of Boston.  The Italian media is hinting that an American being elected as the new Pope is not beyond the realm of possibility, and that Cardinal O’Malley may be a strong candidate.  The story was picked up by the local Boston media, like WCVB, and by the national media.

As much as I admire and respect Cardinal Sean, I think the possibility of him being elected as Pope is remote.  John outlines in his article, the points that would not be in the Cardinal’s favor.  And to be honest, as much as I would really think it would neat to have a Boston man as Pope, he is needed here in Massachusetts.  The Archdiocese is about to begin a process of reorganizing it’s parishes into collaboratives.  It is a process that will be taking many Boston Catholics into uncharted waters.  There will be anxiety, there will be uncertainty, as parish members will be struggling to re-configure themselves into a new type of community.  We will be looking to the Archbishop, Cardinal Sean, to be there for us, guiding us, and encouraging us.  So I am glad that the Cardinal has a round trip airline ticket.