Bishop attends annual retreat, Plans to lead pro-life prayers

Jan. 17, 2008

My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

As many of you know this Sunday, January 20th, marks my second anniversary as your bishop. I cannot begin to tell you how many blessings I have received in my life because of each one of you who make up this wonderful diocese of Sioux City. Thank you once again for receiving me, for being patient with me and especially for your prayerful support. We have much more to do together for the Lord. I look forward with hope and joy to what the future holds. I have the great privilege of building on the legacy of the bishops, clergy and laity who have preceded me in my ministry. The simple words "thank you" comes from a grateful heart. May the power of the Holy Spirit continue to anoint all we do together.

ANNUAL RETREAT

Each year the bishops of Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Missouri gather for a spiritual retreat. For several years we have gone to spend time with the Benedictine monks of Prince of Peace Abbey in Oceanside, California. We prayed and sang the Liturgy of Hours with the monks each day. We celebrated the Eucharist together each day and you were remembered in my intentions. Thank you for praying for me. This year we had the great honor of having the preacher for the Papal Household in Rome give the conferences of our time together. Father Raniero Cantalamessa is a capuchin priest who has preached to the Holy Father and others at the Vatican for several years. He was truly inspirational. We began each session singing a verse of "Veni Creator Spiritas", an ancient Latin hymn to the Holy Spirit, "Come, Creator Spirit" 

Come, Creator Spirit,
visit the minds of those who are yours;
fill with heavenly grace
the hearts that you have made.

You who are named Paraclete,
gift of God most high,
living fountain, fire, love
and anointing for the soul.

You are sevenfold in your gifts,
you are finger of God's right hand,
you, the Father's solemn promise
putting words upon your lips.

Kindle a light in our senses,
pour love into our hearts,
infirmities of this body of ours
overcoming with strength secure.

The enemy drive from us away,
peace then give without delay;
with you as guide to lead the way
we avoid all cause of harm.

Grant we may know the Father
through you,
and come to know the Son as well,
and may we always cling in faith
to you, the Spirit of them both.

Amen.

I gained a much deeper appreciation for the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church. Father Cantalamessa then led us through the Pentecost event shared with us in the Acts of the Apostles. Once again, the working of the Holy Spirit in the early Church came alive for us. I pray that this same Holy Spirit continue to work wonders in our own local church here in the Diocese of Sioux city. May we grow in our appreciation of the teaching of the apostles, may we gather for time of prayer and the celebration of the Eucharist and may we strive for unity among all Christian people. This is how the early Church lived out their faith. May we, with the Spirit's help, do the same in our own day.

PRO LIFE ACTIONS

Next Tuesday, January 22, marks the 35th anniversary of the fateful Roe v. Wade decision of the Supreme Court. An entire generation has been decimated by the scourge of abortion. Our Lord Jesus Christ did not hang on the Cross for this. We who profess to love and serve Him must rededicate ourselves wholeheartedly to ending this devastation. It is our task to convince our fellow citizens, by the depth and humility of our faith, by our constant prayer, by the power of Christ's love alive in us, that the lives of His little ones are precious. We know by both science and faith that life - human life - begins at conception. We must be willing to bear our Cross for this, to sacrifice our convenience and our means for love of our brothers and sisters.

To mark this date, I ask all who can to observe January 22 as a day of penance. I beg you to take up the most ancient tools of faith against injustice: fasting and prayer. If you are able to fast from food for all or even part of the day, I ask that you do so, for the intention of an end to abortion. I ask also for your fervent prayers throughout this day especially. We must have great faith in the power of prayer to bring about true conversion of mind and heart; let us entreat our Lord God, who gives us all good things, that those who so blindly mistake His precious gift of life for something much less, may be moved to know and love Him in His littlest ones in the womb.

To mourn the unnecessary deaths in our country of more than 48 million children by abortion since 1973, and to protest the injustice of permissive abortion laws, I will offer a special Mass at 12:10 p.m. in the Cathedral of the Epiphany. After the Mass, I will lead a Rosary outside the Planned Parenthood facility on Stone Avenue, to begin about 1:30 p.m. I invite as many of you as can attend to join me in these prayers, to demonstrate by our numbers the strength and truth of our conviction that God, the author of all life, bestows each person with sacred dignity from the moment of conception. For those who cannot attend, please try and keep a time of fast and prayer and to maybe even pray your own Rosary wherever you are at 1:00 pm.

On Sunday, January 27, I will also be participating in an inter-faith prayer service to end abortion. This "Pro-Life Rally" will be at the Baptist Church on Outer Drive North at 1:00 p.m. Being pro-life is not just a Catholic movement. Many, many others, both Christians and non-Christians, also recognize the truth of the a priori dignity of each human person. We appreciate very much the efforts of all those who stand for life and against the dehumanizing assumptions and practices of the "culture of death."

Your brother in Christ, 
Most Reverend R. Walker Nickless 
Bishop of Sioux City