reflections, updates and homilies from Deacon Mike Talbot inspired by the following words from my ordination: Receive the Gospel of Christ whose herald you have become. Believe what you read, teach what you believe and practice what you teach...
Showing posts with label Bishop Glen Provost. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bishop Glen Provost. Show all posts
A Statement from the Louisiana Catholic Bishops on Pending Executions
February18,2025
by LCCB
The Louisiana Conference of Catholic Bishops have consistently defended life from conception to natural death and we remain deeply aware of the pain and grief that victims and families suffer, especially those who have lost a loved one through the crime of murder or crimes of violence. As we continue to pray for the victims and their families, we pray that the State will not issue in a culture of death by facilitating death warrants and consider that mercy can be the highest form of justice. No method of execution is acceptable including nitrogen hypoxia (asphyxiation).
As a result of the recent efforts to restart the protocols for executions, the Louisiana Conference of Catholic Bishops issued the following statement:
“We are saddened by the recent notice to restart the process for the issuance of death warrants to execute human beings in Louisiana. This only contributes to the culture of death. We promote a culture of life, not death, in this great State we love. As bishops, we will continue to promote life from conception to natural death and work to end the execution of another human being”.
Sincerely in Christ, Most Rev. Gregory M. Aymond, Archbishop of New Orleans Most Rev. Michael G. Duca, Diocese of Baton Rouge Most Rev. J. Douglas Deshotels, Diocese of Lafayette Most Rev. Francis I. Malone, Diocese of Shreveport Most Rev. Robert W. Marshall, Diocese of Alexandria Most Rev. Glen John Provost, Diocese of Lake Charles Very Rev. Simon Peter Engurait, Diocesan Administrator Houma-Thibodaux
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More information and an Action Alert to write letters to the Governor is on our website at www.laccb.org under TAKE ACTION and Click OnOppose Death Warrants and Promote a Culture of Life to complete brief registration and to send letter that you can personalize. For further information, contact Tom Costanza at tcostanza@laccb.org or 504-874-7829.
Over the last few years, I have become increasingly aware of the concerns and puzzlement of Catholic Christians concerning Catholic teaching. Most of this confusion is generated by, but not confined to, exposure to the media and ambiguous statements by some clergy who deviate from the truth.
For any of us, who love the Church and the authentic teachings of Jesus Christ as found in the Sacred Scriptures and Sacred Tradition, this is disconcerting. That the Catholic faithful are being misled or sense a lack of clarity in fundamentals of doctrine, such as the Eucharistic Presence, what constitutes worthiness in the reception of Holy Communion, the indissolubility of sacramental marriage, the very definition of matrimony itself, the existence of hell, the nature of sin, the consequences of moral choice, and the authority of the Sacred Scriptures, is distressing to me, as a Bishop, and should be to any pastor, catechetical instructor, or Catholic parent.
As a pastor of many years, I am profoundly disturbed when statements casting doubts upon the faith and sowing confusion in the minds of the faithful are made by those who hold a teaching office in the Church.
In October of 1992, Pope St. John Paul II issued the Apostolic Constitution Fidei depositum, on the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. In the opening sentence of the document, Pope St. John Paul II wrote, “Guarding the Deposit of Faith is the mission which the Lord entrusted to His Church, and which she fulfills in every age.” The Holy Father later asked in the document that “… all the Church’s Pastors and the Christian faithful … receive this catechism in a spirit of communion and to use it assiduously in fulfilling their mission of proclaiming the faith and calling people to the Gospel life. This catechism is given to them that it may be a sure and authentic reference text for teaching catholic doctrine…. It is also offered to all the faithful who wish to deepen their knowledge of the unfathomable riches of salvation (cf. Ephesians 3:8).”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church remains an indispensable source to assist in dispelling the confusion that exists today. We should use it. When questions arise, we should consult it. When fundamental teachings are attacked, we should seek the correct answer by utilizing this rich resource.
The truths of the faith are not clarified by Church leaders in casual “tweets.” Nor are they officially communicated by informal interviews granted to popular journalists as if this were a means of authentically teaching the faith. These truths are certainly not treated fairly in the ravings of dubious theologians and self-proclaimed experts.
Furthermore, the truths of the faith do not originate in one’s preferences or some trend-driven discernment presumed more enlightened. The truths of the faith originate in the salvific Will of God, revealed fully in Jesus Christ, and are found in the authentic teaching of the Church, without prejudice and with abiding charity. St. Paul wrote prophetically to St. Timothy: “For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth and will be diverted to myths. But you, be self-possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry” (2 Timothy 4:3-5). St. Paul understood well, for he saw it happening in his own day, that there is always a tendency to deviate from the truth. The truth is compromised when our “own desires” take precedence. The truth is not a matter of opinion. Revealed truth by its very definition is a gift from God.
St. Paul felt so strongly about this teaching that he addressed a scathing condemnation to those who pervert the truth of the Gospel: “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one that we preached to you, let that one be accursed! As we have said before, and now I say again, if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than the one that you received, let that one be accursed!” (Galatians 1:8-9).
At moments such as these in our history, we must courageously live by the truth as revealed by God in Jesus Christ and taught by His Church down through the centuries. The truths of our faith are a most prized possession. We cannot dismiss them or view them as a human invention subject to revision. We should approach them with respect and reverence, as having come from the font of Divine Revelation. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a most dependable and trustworthy articulation of these revealed truths. And we have a serious obligation to ensure that the Deposit of Faith is communicated in all charity and with all the accuracy and brilliance that the truth deserves.
Pastoral Letter: “The Eucharist: Yearning for the Lord” Lent 2023
My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
“For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.” I Corinthians 11:26
About 35 years ago, when I was a pastor of a parish, the Bishop asked me to welcome as a guest the first Archbishop of the Military Services of the United States, Archbishop Joseph Ryan. He directed all our Catholic military chaplains throughout the world. One evening, he recounted one of his experiences as a young Marine chaplain in the Pacific during the Second World War.
The Marines were storming the beaches of islands in the Pacific held by the Japanese. Their names are legendary: Tarawa, Saipan, Okinawa, Iwo Jima. These were bloody conflicts, and the death toll was considerable. I found it fascinating to hear someone who had been present speak of them.
Father Ryan would celebrate Mass on the beaches and then take the Blessed Sacrament to young Marines, some not much older than 20, manning howitzer installations. One occurrence was burned into his memory.
There were two young soldiers to whom Father Ryan gave Holy Communion in a remote area of the beach. Having completed his task, the priest turned to walk away. Several yards distance, a terrific explosion threw him to the ground. He looked behind, and in the spot where he had stood, an enemy shell had fallen and exploded. He returned to the demolished installation. One Marine was already dead. The other was severely wounded and near death. He took the dying Marine in his arms and heard him ask, “Father, am I going to die?” “Yes, I am afraid so,” Father Ryan gently replied. “And is my Buddy dead?” the Marine asked. Father Ryan answered affirmatively. “Good,” the Marine responded, gasping for breath, “That’s good. We both have Jesus in us.”
Now, I repeat this story for a reason. It is not only deeply touching. But even more, this account of young Marines dying on a beach in the Pacific and what the Eucharist meant to them speak more eloquently than ten thousand theology books.
We know that we live under less threatening circumstances, but sadly many take the Eucharist for granted. Is not Mass attendance down? Do not the surveys show that a large segment of Catholics do not believe what the Church teaches about the Eucharist? How different it was for the two young Marines. They knew exactly what they believed. They knew what the Church taught. They also knew that our Lord had given this gift of Himself so that the Church could share that gift with them.
The Second Vatican Council taught nothing new about the Eucharist but repeated that ancient faith in these words: “At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout the ages until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved Spouse, the Church, a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet ‘in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us’” (Sacrosanctum concilium, 47). Whether in the eloquent words of an Ecumenical Council or from the mouth of a dying Marine, the faith is the same.
Jesus Christ gave us the Eucharist “in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout the ages.” This is the action of Jesus recorded in the Sacred Scriptures. No one “perpetuates” anything because he wants to forget. Our Lord Jesus Christ wanted to be remembered. There is a reason for this. When we eat His Body and drink His Blood, we share in Christ’s death and Resurrection. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood,” Jesus Christ said in the Gospel of St. John, “remains in me and I in him” (John 6:56).
I think of the dying Marines on the beach, or the terminally ill in our hospitals, or the persecuted Christians hiding in a remote location—countless thousands of threatened, suffering, and deprived—they know that the Lord is present to them. This presence, however, is more to them than merely a consoling visit. The Lord comes to abide with them, to offer them a share in His life-giving passion, death, and Resurrection.
What the persecuted, suffering, and dying know, and what we need to realize, is that humans yearn for the Lord. This yearning is not some empty wish with no foundation in fact. This desire was instilled in our hearts at Baptism when God shared with us His life for the first time. He satisfied this thirst and hunger. And He does so through His Son, Jesus Christ, who gives us His own Body and Blood, a flesh that He offered up on the Cross of Calvary.
This mystery is not confined by time. God is not restricted by a clock. Instead, God reaches out to us in the most intimate way possible, through a food that nourishes us for eternal life. Through the Eucharist God answers our most basic need, to experience Him in the here and now, as He is in eternity. In words attributed to St. Augustine, “Eternity is the now that does not pass away” (cf. The Confessions, Book 11).
We yearn for this eternal now, in which God is present. I think this is what the young Marine expressed as he lay dying on a Pacific beach. I know that is what innocent second graders desire when I ask them what sacrament they are to receive this year and they shout enthusiastically, “Holy Communion.” What the cynical, callous, and corrupt of this world cannot ever admit is the innocence of children! Unfortunately, these men and women of the world yearn for nothing, except their own gratification and satisfaction. But the innocent, the little children, the dying, and the poor, left empty by this world—they know their yearning and that only God can satisfy their desire.
Catholics are a sacramental people. The Sacrament is not found in a synod, or programs, or re-structuring, or anything else devised by humans. The Eucharist is the Sacrament par excellence which nourishes the Body of Believers. Just as we cannot live bodily without food, neither can we live spiritually without the Eucharist. For the Catholic, the Eucharist is a powerful teacher and sign of contradiction to the empty promises and worthless values of the world. This truth the young dying Marine knows, as well as a child of 7 preparing for Holy Communion. They both yearn for the Bread of Heaven, Christ the Lord.
The three-year Eucharistic Revival in which Catholics of the nation are involved is a moment to rediscover our yearning. Through this moment with our Lord in His Eucharistic Presence, it is my prayer that we will rediscover our innermost hunger and thirst for Him. May the Eucharist continue to satisfy our deepest desire for God. May we yearn for Him and the “banquet in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us.”
Extending to you and your families my blessings, I remain joyfully your bishop and
Catholic Bishops’ Coronavirus Responses Will Not Long Be Forgotten
COMMENTARY: When everything was shut down, some of our spiritual fathers seemed a little too eager to accept, and at times even exceed, the demands made by civil authorities.
Jennifer Roback Morse
“The public will not forget what your business says and does during this crisis.”
I heard this sage advice at the beginning of the coronavirus shutdown from a friend who is an advertising professional. Those words apply to me, as the president of a nonprofit organization. And they apply to Church leaders.
Permit me to say. “Reverend fathers, the public will remember your words and actions during this crisis for a long time to come.”
Allow me to illustrate with a pair of contrasts. Some clergy closed their churches reluctantly.
In my home Diocese of Lake Charles in Louisiana, Bishop Glen Provost suspended the public celebration of Mass with great reluctance. I was in the church at 6:30am Mass on the feast of St. Patrick when we heard the pastor read the bishop’s letter. The bishop and the pastor were obviously heartbroken. We all gasped but were not really surprised. Lake Charles was among the last places to suspend public worship.
The decree was carefully written and attuned to the sensibilities of the people. People learned that the obligation to attend Sunday Mass was temporarily dispensed. They learned that receiving Holy Communion would not be among the “usual conditions” for receiving a plenary indulgence each day for the duration of the suspension of public Masses. Bishop Provost knew that people would be concerned about these matters. He anticipated his parishioners’ questions and answered them in advance. The sacrament of penance was never suspended or limited, nor was adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
The clergy stepped up to the plate with creative ways of making Christ present to us. They provided daily livestreamed Masses and drive-up Palm Sunday celebrations. Children made their first Holy Communions and had May crownings.
Several priests drove the Blessed Sacrament around their parish neighborhoods. For instance, the clergy of Our Lady, Queen of Heaven Church rode in the beds of three bright-red pickup trucks. The pastor was in one truck, holding the monstrance, while the other priest and deacon held statues. They drove through the entire parish locale, slowly enough for people to come out of their homes and kneel and pray as Our Lord passed by.
These men spent nine hours in the back of those pickup trucks. To put this in perspective, driving east at highway speeds down Interstate 10 for nine hours would bring you to Tallahassee, Florida. Drive north for nine hours from Lake Charles and you’d be in Joplin, Missouri. Drive south, and you’d end up in Monterrey, Mexico. These priests knocked themselves out for their flock.
Do you think the people noticed? You bet! They came out of their houses to kneel on the street as Our Lord fully present in the Eucharist passed by. They prayed the Rosary. They created a “neighborhood Stations of the Cross,” with different houses representing each station, during Holy Week.
People throughout the diocese showed their appreciation to the clergy through cards and letters and chalk messaging on the church parking lot and drive-by “thank you” parades.
The leadership of the bishop supported the innovations of the clergy. The people showed their appreciation of their clergy and their bishop. This created a “virtuous cycle,” an upward spiral of mutual support, with everyone united by the love of Jesus. Some bishops seemed a little too eager to close.
In other dioceses around the country, the people were not so lucky. Some bishops suspended not only public celebration of the Mass, but other sacraments, as well. Some dioceses issued confusing statements about the availability of the sacraments.
In fact, some of these directives were so carelessly written that canon lawyers had to jump in and try to clarify matters. Father Raymond de Souza wrote not one but two columns on the subject in the Register. Noted canonist Ed Peters commented on the overall mess:
“That a bishop could purport to authorize the enunciation of sacramental form for anointing by a cleric and the execution of the sacramental matter by a hospital worker gives some insight into what kind of challenges confront sound pastors and canonists these days. But, while that bizarre idea was shot down in a few hours thanks to the internet, a new mess has taken its place, one whereby a bishop thinks he can ‘suspend’ the celebration of the sacrament of anointing in times of greatest need!”
And the Catholic News Agency published a lengthy piece that included this subtle, yet pointed, rebuke:
“While no serious canonists question the bishop’s right — even prudence — to suspend the public celebration of the Mass during an emergency, the liceity of other suspensions is decidedly less clear.”
Apart from the confusion about canon law, these directives created unnecessary doubts and concerns in people's minds. What were the men in the chanceries thinking? Didn’t it occur to them that people would hunger for the sacraments? Were they unaware that the people of God would want clarity about what was required, forbidden and permitted, not to mention some empathy for the spiritual isolation that depravation of the sacraments can cause? These bishops have caused unnecessary pain to their priests and parishioners. And the most faithful, the most devout are the very people who are most upset. These are the very sorts of “public relations” problems that my friend in advertising warned us about.
I accuse no one of anything here. I merely report what I have observed. The people in these dioceses are in agony. What they see is this: While retail shops, gyms, and recreation outfits have gone to lengths to creatively respond to the needs of their customers, some bishops seemed just a little too eager to accept, and at times even exceed, extreme demands made by civil authorities. There seems to be just a little too much overlap with these bishops and those with reputations for turning a blind eye to Church teaching on sexual morality. And there seems to be just a little too little concern for the salvation of souls in these dioceses.
As I say, I make no accusations. I simply report. A vicious cycle is now operating. The people who take the Church and her sacraments the most seriously are the very people who seem to be forgotten by their shepherds. The more the bishops ignore these people, the less the people trust them.
As my friend said, “The public will not forget what your business says and does during this crisis.” Indeed.
Last week, His Excellency Glen Provost, bishop of Lake Charles, Louisiana, celebrated a Pontifical Mass of Easter Saturday in the chapel of Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans. We are very happy to share these photos with our readers, because they show once again that it is especially the young who are working so diligently to preserve and promote our Catholic liturgical tradition. It is also a very good sign that the traditional liturgy can now not just be celebrated, but celebrated in its fullest and most elaborate form, within a seminary. Our thanks to Bishop Provost and to the staff of Notre Dame Seminary for this important step in making the fullness of the Roman Rite known and available to the upcoming generation of priests.
In Southwest Louisiana we are not strangers to dangerous situations. We have faced hurricanes and the catastrophes they bring with perseverance and courage. Should we not face accompanying challenges in the Church with the same determination? With God's help we certainly can.
I think of this when we meet internal and external threats to the Church. From within there is evidence of infidelity to Church teaching, gross immorality, and violations of trust on a scale that defies comprehension. This is particularly disconcerting for those of us who grew up in an environment in the Church that, while experiencing challenges, strived to maintain standards and unity. Of course, the Church remains the Body of Christ. Its teachings, which come from our Lord Himself, have not changed. They still point the way to heaven for us. The Church is still · both a human and Divine institution which possesses a coherent philosophical, theological, spiritual, and cultural foundation that lifts humanity toward God and away from self-destruction. When individuals in the Church forget or ignore this, they are laying the groundwork for great harm.
From outside, we have forces that seek to discredit the credibility of the Church, if not destroy it. Let us be honest. The Church's teachings are not in sync with many prevailing notions in fundamental areas like life, death, and marriage. Many have succeeded in marginalizing the Church in society. In certain instances some within the Church have even helped accomplish this goal.
And the world that the Church faces and to whom it seeks to preach the Gospel is shaken by its own formidable challenges. Technological advances, changes in communications, political upheaval, and forceful ideologies rise up to bring us invasion of privacy, terrorism, political unrest, uncivil discourse, and confusion. All things considered, we could easily become disillusioned, but this is not God's way.
I think of the night that began out Lord's Passion. Just before He entered the Garden of Olives, when all circumstances pointed to an ominous conclusion, He said, "In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world" (John 16:33). This is Christ's message to us in the midst of scandals and confusion.
With this in mind and following months of prayer and reflection as your bishop, I have decided to issue the decree attached to this letter. The Church did not help construct the civilization of the last two thousand years by ignoring our behavior within society. We in the Church either transform society by witnessing to it or risk being absorbed by society through acquiescence. We in the Church either act as a pro-active force for good or retreat into irrelevance. For these reasons, this decree seeks to implement in our diocese a program of prayer and worship that moves us more closely to being who we are as Catholics. In this way, God might more easily work through us to give good example to our neighbors and build up the kingdom of God. Of one thing I am certain: We cannot continue to live as passive bystanders. A change is necessary, and it begins with the way we worship and pray. It is a humble step, but I think a positive one.
Much of what I propose in the decree involves parish life and our daily lives as Catholics. In the case of the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, originating with Pope Leo XIII in 1886, and Eucharistic processions, we are reaching into the rich treasure of Catholic prayer and practice. With the Ember Days, we are touching upon a tradition that was sustained within the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council (cf. General Norms for the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, March 21, 1969, #45). These proposals lay the groundwork for changes in the life of our parishes that, I pray, will be beneficial for a deepening of Catholic life. This is a beginning; more will follow, and we shall see where the Grace of God leads us.
The Devil and the forces of evil, which this iniquitous spirit unleashes, are not resisted with a "business-as-usual" attitude, nor has what some would call a "Catholic-lite" approach ever proved effective in facing challenges to the Church and the Gospel. When the disciples of our Lord complained that their attempt at combatting a demon was ineffective, they asked, "Why could we not drive it out?" (Matthew 17:19, Mark 9:28). To which our Lord answered, "But this kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting" (cf. Matthew 17:21, Mark 9:29).
May our Blessed Mother intercede for us. May God bless our labors, increase our faith, and strengthen our resolve. May we patiently, hopefully, and confidently rise to face this moment of crisis.
With my prayers and blessings, I extend also my gratitude for your support, as I remain Sincerely yours in our Lord, +Glen John Provost Bishop of Lake Charles
Whereas the Second Vatican Council affirms, "Christ entered this world to give witness to the truth," and "to carry out such a task, the Church has always had the duty of scrutinizing the signs of the times and of interpreting them in the light of the Gospel" (Gaudium et spes, 3 and 4);
Whereas, in the present moment, the Catholic faithful and their shepherds, the Bishops, are keenly aware that the Church must be fortified by grace to live its mission of proclaiming the truth of the Gospel;
Whereas it falls to the diocesan Bishop to give suitable guidance in such times and, when necessary, to draw from the rich spiritual patrimony of the Church to equip those entrusted to his care with the spiritual tools necessary to meet the needs of their time;
Glen John Provost Bishop of Lake Charles
DECREES
That the Prayer of St. Michael the Archangel be recited following every Mass;
That every parish church conduct one hour of Eucharistic Adoration each week, excluding the week of 40 Hours Devotion assigned to the parish;
That in addition to the intention for vocations to the priesthood and religious life in the Diocese, 40 Hours Devotion include prayers in reparation for sins contrary to the Sixth Commandment, the healing of all victims of sexual abuse, and the conversion of sinners;
That, in order to foster a further devotion and love for the Most Holy Eucharist, each parish once a year conduct a Eucharistic procession on an appropriate day, such as the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi), the Solemnity of Christ the King, the patronal feast day ofthe parish, the feast day of St. Peter Claver, the Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady (the Patroness of Acadiana);
That the faithful follow the universal law of the Church that all Fridays of the year are days of abstinence from meat; although, on Fridays outside of Lent, one may choose another suitable penance;
That Catholics are urged to observe the time honored tradition of Ember Days as days of prayer and fasting; Ember Days are the Wednesday, Friday and Saturday following the First Sunday of Lent, Pentecost Sunday, September 14 (the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross) and December 13 (the Memorial of St. Lucy);
Given at the Chancery of Lake Charles, Louisiana, on the First Sunday of Advent in the year of our Lord 2018 and effective 1 January 2019.
