Bishop Braxton's letter on The Catholic Church and New House Bills Expanding Abortion 'Rights'
Diocese of Belleville
Office of the Bishop
The Catholic Church and New House Bills Explaining Abortion 'Rights'
by
The Most Reverend Edward K. Braxton, Ph.D., S.T.D.
Bishop of Belleville
February 17, 2019
Dear Priests, Deacon, Seminarians, Religious, and Parish Life Coordinators
Dear Diocesan Staff
Dear Principals and Teachers
Dear People of God
May the Peace of Jesus Christ be with you!
The Catholic Church in the United States stands at a critical crossroad. On the one hand, the Church is facing the greatest crisis in its history with the unspeakable sin, scandal and crime of members of the clergy abusing children and concealing that abuse. On the other hand, the Church, has long been a powerful moral voice proclaiming the truth of Christian morality and the dignity and worth of every human life by opposing injustices, the violence of war, unjust penal systems, euthanasia, abortion, racial, ethnic, and religious prejudice, the destruction of the environment in our common home and forms of oppression causing great harm to the most vulnerable, especially young children. The abuse crisis has caused more and more people to close their ears to the voice of the Church which, in their view, no longer has credibility. At this crossroad, some Catholics, including leaders of the Church, may feel compelled to withdraw from the Public Square and remain silent in the face of so many cross currents.
However, as followers of Jesus Christ, we are not free to do that. We believe in the mercy and forgiveness of God. We believe that we should truly repent for our sins, seek forgiveness from those we have sinned against, pray for the strength we need to be faithful to our repentance over and over again. Then, as redeemed sinners, we must humbly take our place in the Public Square proclaiming the dignity and worth of every human person.
It is from this vantage point that I write to you today.
His Holiness, Pope Francis
APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION
His Excellency, The Most Rev. Edward K. Braxton, Ph.D., S.T.D.,
Bishop Edward K. Braxton hosted a luncheon Sept. 12 at his residence for Father Evaristus Okaa Onwuogu, Personal Secretary to His Excellency, the Most Rev. Valerian M. Okeke, Archbishop of Onitsha, Nigeria. Father Onwuogu was a guest of the bishop while visiting fidei donum missionaries from Onitsha, who are serving in Belleville.
On Monday evening, August 8, 2016 Bishop Edward K. Braxton spoke about the need for moral leadership in action in order to bridge the racial divide in the United States.
People came from near and far throughout the diocese to meet Bishop Edward K. Braxton at his residence Dec. 20 at his annual Christmas reception.
The Relic of St. Maria Goretti and Our Vocation to be Saints
A Week of Moving Experiences
Bishop Edward K. Braxton recently welcomed Father Vincent Mukasa, a fidei donum missionary from the Archdiocese of Kampala, Uganda to the Diocese. He has been released by his Bishop, His Excellency, The Most Rev. Cyprian Kizito Lwanga, Archbishop of Kampala, to serve for a period of three years. Commenting on the appointment, the Bishop said, “I am very appreciative of Father Mukasa’s generosity in coming to serve the People of God in our Diocese. I am confident that he will be well received by the clergy, religious, and the Christian faithful. I am deeply grateful to Archbishop Lwanga for making this possible.” Father is already acquainted with the Catholic Church in southern Illinois, since he has been coming to the Diocese during the summer to provide pastoral ministry, on and off, since 1998. Father Mukasa will be joining two other fidei donum priests from Uganda currently serving here: Father Christopher Mujule from the Diocese of Hoima and Father Bernardine Nganzi from the Diocese of Fort Portal.
The Diocese of Belleville welcomes Deacon Brett Judkins who was ordained May 23, the eve of Pentecost at St. Peter Cathedral in Belleville by Bishop Edward K. Braxton.
His Excellency, The Most Rev. Edward K. Braxton announced today that he has appointed Mr. Michael D. Gibbons as the new Chief Finance Officer of the Diocese, effective May 4, 2015. He succeeds Mr. James V. Mroczkowski, who has completed his five-year contract.
Every year Bishop Edward K. Braxton devotes a significant amount of time to Pastoral Visitations to the Catholic schools in the Diocese. These visits afford him the opportunity to see each school firsthand and to offer his personal support to the parish pastors, school principals, faculty and staff of our elementary and secondary schools. One of his primary goals is to strengthen the Catholic identity of each school and to make sure that the Catholic faith is being taught faithfully and accurately. During his conversations with the students in their classrooms, he teaches them about different aspects of their faith.
For the second time in two months a personal representative of the Holy Father has been the guest of Bishop Braxton and the Diocese of Belleville. Last month, on September 25, The Most Reverend Carlo Maria Viganò, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, spent a day in the Diocese. His Excellency, The Most Reverend Fortunatus Nwachukwu, Apostolic Nuncio to Nicaragua was the guest of the Bishop and the Diocese October 29-31, 2014. Bishop Braxton and Archbishop Nwachukwu have known one another for many years. During his years as Chief of Protocol at the Vatican Secretariat of State, the then Msgr. Fortunatus often assisted the Bishop in making special arrangements for his guests on pilgrimage to Rome. He was especially helpful when the Bishop led a large number of Pilgrims from southern Illinois to Rome and the Holy Land during the 125th anniversary Jubilee year, 2012.