Tuesday, January 14, 2003

Note to any priest of and in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Most. Rev. Rembert Weakland, O.S.B., is not our bishop. So, when you get to that part in the Eucharistic Prayer that say that we pray for "N our bishop," don't say "Timothy, Richard and Rembert our bishops." Timothy Dolan is our archbishop. Richard Sklba is his auxiliary, but Rembert is not our bishop. We certainly ought to continue to pray for him both as our former archbishop and as a fellow member of our diocesan family, but we don't have to alter the liturgy in order to do it. When you do stuff like that you come off sounding so darned political! What about mentioning him in the general intercessions? Or offering the Mass for him?

Oh, and for those of you who are thinking, "Oh, he just says that because he didn't like Archbishop Weakland," you don't know me very well. I'd say it if our archbishop had been Karol Wojtyla. To me the words of the Mass have a particular meaning and the priest shouldn't monkey around with it, no matter whether his modification promotes some genuine good or not (e.g.: It is good to pray for your former archbishop).

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