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Chapter I of Lumen Gentium is entitled “The Mystery of the Church.” It continues as follows:

“3. The Son, therefore, came, sent by the Father. It was in Him, before the foundation of the world, that the Father chose us and predestined us to become adopted sons, for in Him it pleased the Father to re-establish all things.(4) To carry out the will of the Father, Christ inaugurated the Kingdom of heaven on earth and revealed to us the mystery of that kingdom. By His obedience He brought about redemption. The Church, or, in other words, the kingdom of Christ now present in mystery, grows visibly through the power of God in the world. This inauguration and this growth are both symbolized by the blood and water which flowed from the open side of a crucified Jesus,(5) and are foretold in the words of the Lord referring to His death on the Cross: ‘And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to myself’.(6) As often as the sacrifice of the cross in which Christ our Passover was sacrificed, is celebrated on the altar, the work of our redemption is carried on, and, in the sacrament of the eucharistic bread, the unity of all believers who form one body in Christ (8) is both expressed and brought about. All men are called to this union with Christ, who is the light of the world, from whom we go forth, through whom we live, and toward whom our whole life strains.”

(4) Cf. Ephesians 1:4-5 and 10.

(5) Cf. John 19:34.

(6) John 12:32.

(8) Cf. 1 Corinthians 10:17

To access the complete document, please visit:

Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - Lumen Gentium

Thank you, Lord, for the many ways in which You minister to Your people through Your priests and deacons.

“I was going to entitle this article “The Mysterious Case of the Disappearing Priests,” but you don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out what’s happening to the number of priests in the Diocese of Providence.

“It’s pretty simple: We have significantly fewer priests to serve the spiritual and pastoral needs of the Diocese than we had just a few years ago.”

In a recent commentary, Bishop Thomas J. Tobin, of the Diocese of Providence (RI), reflected on the decreasing number of priests available to serve this diocese.

To access Bishop Tobin’s essay, please visit:

Without A Doubt: The Case of the Disappearing Priests (24 MAY 12)

Chapter I of Lumen Gentium is entitled “The Mystery of the Church.” It continues as follows:

“2. The eternal Father, by a free and hidden plan of His own wisdom and goodness, created the whole world. His plan was to raise men to a participation of the divine life. Fallen in Adam, God the Father did not leave men to themselves, but ceaselessly offered helps to salvation, in view of Christ, the Redeemer “who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature”.(2) All the elect, before time began, the Father “foreknew and pre- destined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that he should be the firstborn among many brethren”.(3) He planned to assemble in the holy Church all those who would believe in Christ. Already from the beginning of the world the foreshadowing of the Church took place. It was prepared in a remarkable way throughout the history of the people of Israel and by means of the Old Covenant.(1*) In the present era of time the Church was constituted and, by the outpouring of the Spirit, was made manifest. At the end of time it will gloriously achieve completion, when, as is read in the Fathers, all the just, from Adam and “from Abel, the just one, to the last of the elect,”(2*) will be gathered together with the Father in the universal Church.

(2) Colossians 1:15.

(3) Romans 8:29.

(1*) Cf. S. Cyprianus, Epist. 64, 4: PL 3, 1017. CSEL (Hartcl), III B p. 720. S. Hilarius Pict., In Mt 23, 6: PL 9, 1047. S. Augustinus, passim. S. Cyrillus Alex., Glaph in Gen. 2, 10: PG 69, 110 A.

(2*) Cf. S. Gregorius M., Hom in Evang. 19, 1: PL 76, 1154 B. S Augustinus, Serm. 341, 9, 11: PL 39, 1499 s. S. Io. Damascenus, Adv. Iconocl. 11: PG 96, 1357.

To access the complete document, please visit:

Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - Lumen Gentium

Thank you, Lord, for the sacrifice offered by those men and women who gave their lives in service to our nation. May they rest in peace.

“[Pentecost] constitutes the baptism of the Church, it is an event that gave the Church the initial shape and thrust of its mission, so to speak. This shape and thrust are always valid, always timely, and they are renewed through the actions of the liturgy, especially.

“This morning I want to reflect on an essential aspect of the mystery of Pentecost, which maintains all its importance in our own day as well. Pentecost is the feast of human unity, understanding and sharing.We can all see how in our world, despite us being closer to one another through developments in communications, with geographical distances seeming to disappear – understanding and sharing among people is often superficial and difficult. There are imbalances that frequently lead to conflicts; dialogue between generations is hard and differences sometimes prevail; we witness daily events where people appear to be growing more aggressive and belligerent; understanding one another takes too much effort and people prefer to remain inside their own sphere, cultivating their own interests. In this situation, can we really discover and experience the unity we so need?”

Vatican Radio is offering the text of the Pentecost homily given by Pope Benedict XVI.

To access this text, please visit:

Vatican Radio: Pope: Pentecost is a feast of unity, understanding and sharing (27 MAY 12)

On Monday, 21 May, in federal district courts throughout the U.S., 43 Catholic dioceses, institutions, and laypeople filed twelve lawsuits, challenging the constitutionality of the Obama administration’s “contraception mandate.”

Media reports/commentary:

National Catholic Register: Unprecedented Legal Action Takes HHS Mandate Battle to the Courts (21 MAR 12)

National Catholic Register: Let Freedom Ring! (24 MAY 12)

PBS: Religion & Ethics Newsweekly: Catholic Institutions v Obama Administration (25 MAY 12)

Catholic News Agency: Bishop Blaire rejects claims of division over mandate lawsuits (25 MAY 12)

Washington Times: Times 247: Catholic bishops sound battle cry for religious liberty (24 MAY 12)

egregious twaddle: Consider the Source (24 MAY 12)

On 21 November 1964, Pope Paul VI solemnly promulgated one of the documents of the Second Vatican Council, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - Lumen Gentium. Unfortunately, as was the case of other documents from Vatican II, (too) many people did not take the time to read the document all the way through (let alone reflect on it). Over the next few weeks, we will be offering the document, one portion at a time. Time reading and reflecting on these words, the words of the Holy Spirit speaking through the Church, would be well spent indeed.

Chapter I of Lumen Gentium is entitled “The Mystery of the Church.”

“1. Christ is the Light of nations. Because this is so, this Sacred Synod gathered together in the Holy Spirit eagerly desires, by proclaiming the Gospel to every creature,(1) to bring the light of Christ to all men, a light brightly visible on the countenance of the Church. Since the Church is in Christ like a sacrament or as a sign and instrument both of a very closely knit union with God and of the unity of the whole human race, it desires now to unfold more fully to the faithful of the Church and to the whole world its own inner nature and universal mission. This it intends to do following faithfully the teaching of previous councils. The present-day conditions of the world add greater urgency to this work of the Church so that all men, joined more closely today by various social, technical and cultural ties, might also attain fuller unity in Christ.”

(1) Cf. Mark 16:15.

To access the complete document, please visit:

Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - Lumen Gentium

Today the Church celebrates Pentecost Sunday. The assigned readings are Acts 2:1-11; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13; and John 20:19-23. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 104 (Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-31, 34).

The Gospel reading is as follows:

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”

Reflections on these readings:

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Sundays Salesian: Pentecost (May 27, 2012)

Msgr. Charles Pope: Clubhouse or Lighthouse? – What the Holy Spirit Wants for the Church on the Feast of Pentecost (26 MAY 12)

Dr. Marcellino D'Ambrosio: The Feast of Pentecost: The Gifts and Charisms of The Holy Spirit

The Deacon's Bench: Homily for May 27, 2012: Pentecost Sunday (25 MAY 12)

The Quiet Corner: The church is God’s primary instrument of salvation (24 MAY 12)

The Lectionary: Pray that the Spirit will renew the face of the earth (Pentecost Sunday A B C) (24 MAY 12)

Dr. Scott Hahn: A New Wind (May 27th 2012 - Pentecost)

The Sacred Page: The Pentecost Readings (26 MAY 12)

Dominican Daily: Sermon of St. Thomas Aquinas for Pentecost (22 MAY 12)

The Word Encountered: Solidarity and Courage (Pentecost Sunday B)

Thank you, Lord, for the many, many ways in which the Holy Spirit is working in Your Church, in Your people.