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Bishops Welcome Pope’s Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation

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U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

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The President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a statement welcoming Pope Benedict XVI's Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation on the Eucharist, saying it clearly reflects the mind of the bishops who attended the Synod.

"By implementing the wise guidance of the Synod and of the Holy Father, our Eucharistic Liturgies will not only be celebrated in a way that is beneficial to all who participate, but will also give glory and praise to the Father in Christ Jesus through the Holy Spirit," Bishop William S. Skylstad said.

Sacramentum Caritatis (The Sacrament of Love) is a papal reflection on the discussions and suggestions made during the 2005 World Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. The document was released by the Holy See March 13.

This is the text of Bishop Skylstad's statement:

On behalf of the Bishops of the United States, I welcome Pope Benedict XVI's Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis (The Sacrament of Love). The Apostolic Exhortation clearly presents the authentic mind of the bishops who attended the Synod. Pope Benedict teaches that the Eucharist finds its source within the wellspring of love that is the Trinity, the love that is so abundantly expressed in Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and in the new life of the Holy Spirit that flows into the hearts of those who participate in his sacrifice and receive him in Communion. The Holy Father also shows how the Eucharist is the source and summit of the Church's life in its relation to the other sacraments, especially the sacrament of Holy Orders and the sacrament of Matrimony.

In response to the Synod's request, the Holy Father addresses clearly the relationship of the Eucharist to daily life. His observations about celebrating the Eucharist are rooted in the holistic understanding that "This most holy mystery thus needs to be firmly believed, devoutly celebrated and intensely lived in the Church" (paragraph 94). By implementing the wise guidance of the Synod and of the Holy Father, our Eucharistic Liturgies will not only be celebrated in a way that is beneficial to all who participate, but will also give glory and praise to the Father in Christ Jesus through the Holy Spirit. The sacrament of love must bear the fruit of love within our families, our parishes and our communities.

Read Pope Benedict XVI's Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis (The Sacrament of Love).

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    For me the exhortation missed an opportunity to definitively call the bishops to task to refuse pro-abortion so-called Catholic politicians from receiving the Eucharist. Pope Benedict XVI must stop trying to be "politically correct" with his Bishops and must begin to use definitive words, words that are undebatable and unquestionable.

     

    The word "bound" doesn't cut it.  

     

    Under Eucharistic consistency section paragraph 83 ..

     Worship pleasing to God can never be a purely private matter, without consequences for our relationships with others: it demands a public witness to our faith. …incumbent upon those who, by virtue of their social or political position, must make decisions regarding fundamental values, such as respect for human life, its defence from conception to natural death, the family built upon marriage between a man and a woman, the freedom to educate one's children and the promotion of the common good in all its forms . These values are not negotiable. Consequently, Catholic politicians and legislators, conscious of their grave responsibility before society, must feel particularly bound, on the basis of a properly formed conscience, to introduce and support laws inspired by values grounded in human nature (231). There is an objective connection here with the Eucharist (cf. 1 Cor 11:27-29). Bishops are bound to reaffirm constantly these values as part of their responsibility to the flock entrusted to them.

     

    In Christ

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