When I received the call to be your bishop, I went into the St. John the Baptist adoration chapel in Savage, Minnesota, to ask God in prayer what he wanted me to do. He wanted me to say “yes” and made it clear in prayer that he would provide everything I needed. My “yes” that day meant I would, in new ways, have to be more fully reliant upon God and others (like the parishioners throughout our diocese) to provide for the spiritual, pastoral, educational, liturgical and other crucial needs of souls in our diocese.
The needs are great today, but I have also found these past years the great generosity of parishioners to help care for the needs within their parishes and through the many ministries supported through our Catholic Family Sharing Appeal. I thank God for his grace and generosity in providing those who have been and continue to be supportive.
As bishop, I am blessed to witness sacrificial love by people who are seeking goodness, receive goodness, and then share it with others. When we lovingly share our blessings with others, we participate in the very work of God who infinitely loves us. St. Thomas describes God’s love (charity) as willing the good of the other. Such perfect love is a spiritual virtue that God desires to fill everyone with so everyone in turn can love others as he does.
God’s love is diffusive, meaning by its very nature it moves us to share it with others and with him. The more we receive his love, the more we desire and take action to share it with others. I have been blessed to witness goodness, generosity and charity through people throughout our diocese because they generously sacrifice for the good of others by actively sharing what they have so others can benefit.
This month’s feature story highlights some of the ways Catholic Family Sharing Appeal funds are used to serve others. For example, when I think of the sacrifices of so many religious sisters, brothers, deacons and priests in our diocese who have helped so many people, I am reminded that they were first served through the generosity of others so they could receive the necessary education and formation that would ultimately lead to them becoming a sister, brother, deacon or priest. This is how charity works. God blesses us with spiritual virtues like charity, and by its very nature, we desire and choose to share his goodness.
In a spirit of genuine gratitude, I want to thank everyone who has and continues to support the many ministries Catholic Family Sharing Appeal (CSFA) supports. Since my arrival as bishop five years ago, it has been on my mind and heart to continue to find ways to help people experience God’s love in a very personal way. This is accomplished not only through ministries that foster a deep spirit of prayer but also ministries that provide resources to educate and form our next generation of deacons and priests, college and university students, those seeking annulments, healing ministries, discipleship camps for youth, Catholic education for all ages and so many other ministries.
I hope you will join me in supporting CSFA to continue the great work so many people do to help others in our diocese. Know of my gratitude for your prayerful discernment to continue the work of charity toward others in our diocese.
