VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Here is the text of remarks by Archbishop Harry J. Flynn of St. Paul and Minneapolis on behalf of bishops from Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota during an "ad limina" visit with Pope John Paul II.
Most Holy Father,
It is a great privilege for the bishops of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota to journey to the Eternal City to pray at the tombs of the holy apostles and to pay our respects to you, the successor of St. Peter. We wish to take this opportunity to give thanks to God and to you, the vicar of Christ, for the many blessings we have received since our last "ad limina" visit.
Your beautiful example of self-sacrificing love for God and his holy church continually inspires each one of us in our own episcopal ministries. For the past 26 years, you have guided us in making Christ's love known to the world of today as was mandated by the Second Vatican Council. We specifically wish to express our gratitude to you for the wisdom and pastoral zeal recently shared with us by your apostolic exhortation, "Pastores Gregis," your reflections on your ministry as bishop of Krakow, and the "Directory for the Pastoral Ministry of Bishops." With the help of your prayers and the consultations of these blessed days, we hope to return to the United States as better shepherds of the one flock of Christ entrusted to our care under your faithful governance.
The great jubilee year was a grace-filled occasion in all of our dioceses for a return to the contemplation of the face of Christ and a renewal of our efforts of evangelization. The present Year of the Eucharist is yet another gift to us so that we may strengthen the foundations of faith of our people.
The bishops of our entire nation have also struggled mightily in these past years to restore the integrity of the priesthood and to provide adequate safeguards against those who would sadly misuse their sacred office. From these reforms in seminary formation and in supervision, we are confident that we will soon see a renewed flourishing of priestly holiness.
We still face many obstacles in our culture to the preaching of the Gospel. We are confident that the Holy Spirit will enlighten us as to the best ways to hasten a greater respect for the dignity and sanctity of all human life and to foster the consciousness that God calls each one of us to live as having been created in his image and likeness. Recent developments in the biomedical sciences and in societal attitudes toward marriage have caused us grave concern. We seek to respond to these questions by engaging others in respectful dialogue and in our commitment to reaffirming the divine and unchanging truths in our faith.
Our ecclesiastical province encompasses large rural areas and we have many challenges associated with providing adequate pastoral care for the faithful in those locations. In addition to our numerous Native American populations, in both rural and urban settings, we also now minister to many recent immigrants from Latin America, Africa and Asia. Some of these have come as refugees from wars and persecution who need special care and healing. We continue to address the associated concerns of poverty and racism which plague these communities. These are a few of the particular pastoral concerns of our region.
My brother bishops and I wish to convey to you the prayers and affection of all of the faithful of our dioceses. Your constant witness of hope lightens our burdens and serves to refocus our attention on the heavenly kingdom toward which we earnestly strive in all of our efforts. Asking you, Holy Father, for your apostolic blessing for ourselves and all those entrusted to our care, we pray with you and wish the universal church in this holy season of Advent: "Come Lord Jesus! Come."
