Pope's Church

Today is the feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome.

The Basilica of St. John Lateran is the Cathedral Church of the Bishop of Rome – who also goes by the title “Pope.”

(this is the facade of San Giovanni in Laterano)

Most people [incorrectly] assume that St. Peter’s Basilica is the Cathedral of Rome, but it isn’t, and never has been, by the way.

The Cathedral of the Pope is St. John Lateran, which is located in south-central Rome. Vatican City (which is an entirely different country altogether) is located northwest of Rome. The pope lives in Vatican City, but there are several properties throughout the city of Rome that belong to the Vatican, including the Lateran Palace – which is where the popes used to live a long time ago.

(this is a photo of the doors that you enter the basilica through - yes they really are THAT big!)

The church of a bishop is the church where the cathedra (chair) is located. In fact, when we speak about papal infallibility, we sometimes use the term "from the chair," meaning that when the Pope speaks infallibly he does it from the "chair of Peter," that is, as the universal pastor of the entire Church.

In every diocese in the world the cathedral is simply the church that contains the bishop's chair - a sign of his authority and of his apostolic succession represented by the chair. Just as the Bishop of Rome is the successor of Peter, every bishop is the successor of the Apostles.

And the Chair of the Pope is located here at St. John's shown here. (sorry about the fuzziness of this photo)

All of these photographs are from a pilgrimage I made to Italy in March of this year. A group of seven of us from Omaha joined about twenty others on a tour that included Venice, Florence and Rome. Our smaller group took several side trips to Assisi, Siena, and San Gimignano. We were in Rome ten days before JPII passed away (in fact, we did not get to attend an audience with him, because he was still in the hospital).

So the universal Church celebrates the dedication of the universal cathedral on this day. If you ever get a chance to see this beautiful church, be sure and include a tour of the baptistery (a separate building) where the pope would baptize new Catholics on the Easter Vigil.

(In this photo notice the Easter Candle next to the font, and the sculpture of a deer drinking from a stream "like a deer that longs for running water, so my soul longs for you, O God" - Psalm 42:1)

Happy Anniversary, Brothers!

Exactly one year ago today eight of my classmates and I were ordained deacons in the Catholic Church. -- November sixth, in the year of the Lord 2004, St. Cecelia Cathedral, 10 o'clock in the morning. It seems as just yesterday to me.

I wish all my brothers continued grace and blessings in their service to the people of God. May your ministry be one filled with wonder, awe, and great humility as you strive to be the servant Christ who came not to be served, but to serve, and offer His life as a ransom for all.

(here is a photo of us listening to Archbishop Curtiss instructions just prior to the ordination rite.)

He urged us above all to be incredibly patient with those we minister to -- so many Catholics are alienated, hurting, or poorly cathecized. Meet them where they are, and help them to mold their lives more fully to that of Jesus. Touch them as the Servant Christ, whom you have been configured to today in Sacred Orders.


Our Lord suffered when He poured forth His blood on Golgotha. The blood of the new and everlasting covenant. The blood that makes all things new.

(here is a photo of us receiving that very same Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity)

How incredibly blessed we are to share the Body & Blood of Christ with the people of God -- and even more blessed to take Him to those who cannot get to Church because of age or infirmity.

Thank you brothers, for all you do to make the kingdom present to those you meet. Congratulations on your first anniversary, and thank you for welcoming our newest 17 brothers in such a beautiful way yesterday.

Tim LaHaye missed Mass today

Today is the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time – and it’s a shame that Tim LaHaye wasn’t with me at Mass this morning.

You see, in the Epistle we hear St. Paul using the very language that LaHaye and his followers base their “rapture” theology on:

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 italics mine)

But the solution to all of this rapture talk is foun in the words of Jesus from Matthew’s Gospel reading for today:

Then the door was locked. Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour." (Matthew 25:10-13 italics mine)

Throughout the Gospels we hear the words of our Lord consistently urging us to be on guard, to be prepared for we know not when He will come again.

But the success of LaHaye’s Left Behind series shows that so many Christians do NOT heed these words of Jesus. They prefer to look for signs and clues – both in Sacred Scripture and in other places as well.

Tomorrow is promised to no one, folks – it’s as clear as that. Live each day of your life expecting and desiring that our Lord would return. Instead of waiting for the Kingdom – make it present by doing what Jesus commanded of you: feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick & imprisoned.

Who wants to be a foolish virgin when the bridegroom arrives? Or worse yet, who wants to be a goat when they are separated from the sheep?

God bless you all that serve our Lord faithfully, diligently and quietly. Your reward in heaven will be great.

We Love You Terri - Part II

There's a wonderful story about the Schindler's Omaha visit in this week's issue of The Catholic Voice, the newspaper of our archdiocese.

Read Jaclyn Schulte's story here.

We Love You Terri

Last night I spent the evening with two remarkable people, Bob & Mary Schindler. They traveled to Omaha on the feast of All Saints to deliver a talk at Pro Sanctity’s annual Call to Holiness program.

As you probably remember, they are the parents of Terri Schindler-Schiavo, who was deprived nutrition and hydration on March 18th and died thirteen days later. View more info about Terri here.

I was so moved by the spirituality and love exhibited by these two people, as they shared the story about their beloved daughter.

How fitting it was to celebrate Terri’s life on this glorious feast. You see, All Saints Day is the day to celebrate and honor every saint.

For those unfamiliar with the Catholic teaching on the Communion of Saints – this is simply the belief that those in heaven can and do pray for us here on earth.

People oftentimes narrowly construe the term saint to only mean those canonized saints. But that is not the teaching of the Church. Everyone in heaven is a saint – that’s what the very term means. Canonization is simply a declaration by the Church that a given individual IS in heaven, and thus a saint.

God created you and desires for you to live with Him forever in heaven. Our job on this earthly sojourn is to prepare ourselves for that everlasting reality with God.

And through the exercise of our free will, we either walk in the way of our Lord Jesus or not. We either prepare ourselves for life eternal or not. We either make use of the gifts, called sacraments or mysteries that Jesus left us or not.

And we use the talents God graced us with to bring about the kingdom here on earth or not.

Michael Schiavo, George Felos and George Greer used their talents to end Terri’s life – pure and simple. They will be held accountable for their actions when they meet our Lord Jesus at the Particular Judgement.

The Schindler’s use their talents to raise awareness and advocacy so others do not have to endure what they did. They assist other families with hope, with support and with love. They produce a quiet whisper of life & love to a culture of death.

There is no doubt whatsoever to me that Terri Schindler-Schiavo is in heaven, with our Lord. She is a saint.

St. Terri, pray for us all – help us to learn from the ultimate sacrifice you paid – a sacrifice not unlike our Lord Jesus paid. An innocent life taken from us all. We love you, Terri!