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By Christopher Gunty
BALTIMORE (CNS) – At a mass to open the fall 2022 general assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gómez invited his fellow bishops to take time for self-examination and renewal of their vocation and ministry.
Seven cardinals and more than 220 archbishops and bishops celebrated Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption, along with Archbishop Gomez, who will complete his three-year term as president of the USCCB, at the close of the meeting on November 17. of Our Lady of Baltimore.
At the beginning of the Mass, Baltimore Archbishop William E. Laurie welcomed the bishops to the basilica, the first cathedral built after the founding of the United States.
Noting that the Church is nearing the end of the liturgical year, Archbishop Gomez reflected on the teachings of the daily liturgy from the Book of Revelation and the Gospel of Luke. Archbishop Gómez said, “Mass readings today are useful for examining ourselves and renewing our vocation and ministry.”
In the first reading, as he noted, the Lord says: “I know your works and your work. … Moreover, you did not suffer, suffer, or get tired for My name’s sake.”
The archbishop said that God knows us very well because — “better than we can ever know ourselves — God understands that sometimes we can lose our motivation and our sense of purpose; we begin to do many things not out of love, but out of duty.”
In the Book of Revelation, the Lord says: “You have lost the love you had at first.”
“Sadly, we sometimes realize that this is true,” Archbishop Gomez said.
However, God provides a simple way to be renewed and refreshed in love, he continued.
“He tells us: ‘Realize how far you have fallen.’ “Repent and do what you did in the beginning,” he said. “He is calling us today to return to him, to be in his presence, to seek his light and guidance, to remember and renew our love for him,” said the archbishop.
The story of the blind man healed by Jesus on the road to Jericho in Luke’s Gospel is a great example of that renewal, he said.
“The saints remind us that this blind man is still us, you and me. It’s a wonderful story, but on a deeper, more spiritual level, it’s the story of our discipleship.”
Archbishop Gomez said that we are all trying to follow Jesus and walk in his footsteps. “Sometimes it is difficult to understand the Lord’s will in our ministry and life; It’s hard to know what he wants from us.
“In the darkness, the blind man turns and looks for Jesus, calls him urgently. … When a blind man seeks Jesus, he sees Jesus seeking Him.”
Archbishop, the blind man’s prayer opens our eyes to see that the Lord is near. “And as we know, that means Jesus is alive. As he was on the road to Jericho, he is with us now.’
According to the archbishop, Jesus asked the blind man what he wanted. “Brothers, Jesus asked us the same question. He is calling us to look inside ourselves, to recognize that we are blind, to understand that we cannot walk without his light.”
The blind man’s prayer: “Lord, let me see” should also be our prayer – “especially in darkness, in times of weariness, when our hearts are restless, we are troubled, when our burdens seem to be heavy. too much.”
Archbishop Gómez called the patron of the basilica and asked Mary, Our Lady of the Assumption, to have the grace to see God’s will and be faithful to it.
“May his Son give us his eyes, and we will see that we can follow him and continue our mission of serving him and glorifying God with our lives.”
The Mass was attended by priests, religious and USCCB staff members who were in Baltimore for the meeting, which began on the morning of November 14 with a prayer and performance session.
Archbishop Gomez and Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron, who is not eligible to be the current USCCB vice president, will include the election of a new conference president and vice president. president-elect because he will turn 75 next October, the age at which canon law requires bishops to submit their resignations to the Pope.
The bishops will also hear updates on the National Eucharistic Revival and National Eucharistic Congress planned for 2024, as well as vote on liturgical and other activities, among other reports.
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