Bishop to meet Pope during ad limina trip

The Evangelist's "Word of the Week" on page 2 is "quinquennial." Not coincidentally, that's also Bishop Howard J. Hubbard's word of the week: He is about to leave for a ten-day visit to Rome to discuss the Albany Diocese's "quinquennial report" with Vatican officials and Pope John Paul II.

A quinquennial report is a detailed accounting of the life and ministries of a diocese, sent to the Vatican every five years.

Every diocese in the world is required to submit such a report; the Albany Diocese's foot-thick version ranges from data about the financial status of the Diocese to statistics on the number of children baptized in the past five years. The report also talks about Catholic schools, religious education, healthcare institutions, clergy, laity, social justice, families, liturgy, evangelization and a host of other subjects.

Also included were an issue of The Evangelist and two books published for the Diocese's sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary in 1997: "How We Tell God's Story," and "Canals and Crossroads."

In summary

Bishop Hubbard wrote a three-page summary on the current state of the Diocese, outlining several accomplishments and challenges during the 1998-2003 period covered by the report.

The Diocese's successes, he told The Evangelist, include:

* the growth of lay ministry,

* his televised retreat in 2000 ("Disciples: Together in Faith") to mark the Church's Jubilee Year, and

* the Diocese's expansion of housing for senior citizens.

Challenges

The Bishop noted that the greatest challenge for the Church -- in the Albany Diocese and across the country -- is to increase vocations. He also cited other challenges:

* combating secularization and religious indifference in society,

* fighting society's emphasis on consumerism,

* keeping Catholic schools vital and viable,

* shoring up family life,

* filling the need for adult religious education, and

* encouraging Catholics to be more faithful about Mass attendance.

Meetings

Bishop Hubbard's trip to Rome is known as an "ad limina" visit from a Latin phrase meaning "to the threshold of St. Peter." He is going as one of the bishops from New York State, all of whom will make their reports during the same time frame.

He and his fellow bishops met recently to decide what questions they wanted to ask Vatican departments, which are called "congregations." The resulting list included questions on the U.S. bishops' "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People;" the need for evangelization by the Church; concern about the decrease in vocations; the war in Iraq and in other countries; the next World Youth Day celebration, to be held in Cologne, Germany; and Vatican-issued changes in the liturgy.

Regarding the latter, Bishop Hubbard said his fellow bishops hope to persuade Vatican officials to allow their dioceses time to assimilate the many Mass changes already instituted before issuing more.

With the Pope

The Bishop's trip will include a personal visit with Pope John Paul. Bishop Hubbard noted that because of the Pope's ill health, a group luncheon and Mass with the pontiff that usually occur have been dropped from the schedule; however, each bishop will still spend 15 to 20 minutes alone with the pontiff.

"While he has been slowed by the ravages of Parkinson's disease and the assassination attempt on him, he has a strong constitution and his mind is sharp," the Bishop stated.

He sees the trip as a chance to "renew fraternal bonds" with the Pope, and to "meet with his collaborators at the Vatican to discuss practical, pastoral issues we may be facing and bring up any concerns we might have."

Time for prayer

Moreover, said Bishop Hubbard, the visit is a prayerful experience. The bishops of New York State will concelebrate liturgies at several of Rome's basilicas.

"It's an opportunity, as a group of bishops, to pray at the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul," he said, noting that he will ask for the saints' "guidance and intercession" in fulfilling his own apostolic mission.

Bishop Hubbard also remarked that although this meeting may be his last with Pope John Paul, "he has fooled us before. With medication and his own strong gene pool, if I make it to the next ad limina visit, he may be there to receive me."

The last quinquennial report was sent to Rome in February 1998; this visit to Rome was postponed because of the Pope's health issues.

Bishop Hubbard has already received replies from some Vatican officials about the sections of the report they have read. Among them is Archbishop John Foley of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, who lauded three communications efforts by the Albany Diocese: "Table of the Lord," the Diocese's televised Mass; the Bishop's TV retreat in 2000; and "the continued excellence of The Evangelist."

Because the report covers a time period ending in 2003, the false allegations of sexual misconduct leveled against Bishop Hubbard this year and the independent investigation that exonerated him are not detailed.

However, the Bishop told The Evangelist that Vatican officials are aware of the situation, which he called "my own personal ordeal."

One Vatican official wrote him to say, "I know you to be a model priest and bishop." (KB)

(9/30/04)