Archbishop's Column

Oklahoma state officials plan to carry out seven executions over the next five months. They will be the first executions in Oklahoma in nearly seven years.

Discipleship is a way of life! Like life itself, it is a journey filled with rich blessings and difficult challenges. Bearing good fruit over the course of this lifelong journey is our goal. The fruit we bear glorifies God.

I can’t remember how long we have been living with this COVID pandemic. It seems like a long, long time. And, it has taken a toll on all of us.

We live in a rapidly changing world. Every hour of every day we are met by dramatic new developments affecting us personally, affecting us as a nation, as a Church and as a global community.

There is a significant difference between “may” and “must.” This is a key point in the ongoing conversation regarding the ethics of vaccines and vaccine mandates, including COVID vaccines.

This is the sixth and final installment of a series on the Precepts of the Church.

Young people are valued members of the Body of Christ. They have much to offer the Church and the Church has much to offer them.

WASHINGTON – Seven U.S. bishop chairmen of committees within the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops have issued a statement in the wake of the death of Mr. George Floyd and the protests which have broken out in Minneapolis and in other cities in the United States.

The drama and the tension that we have been living with since COVID-19 began to disrupt life as we know it in the United States (and beyond) means that for some of us this day is long overdue while for others it still seems premature.

Dear Catholic Faithful of Oklahoma,

For more than six weeks we have been adjusting to a rapidly shifting landscape brought about by the spread of COVID-19.

“Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep.”

“Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle!” These words could have been written specifically with us in mind.

A little more than two months ago not many of us had heard of the coronavirus or COVID19. Today, everyone is on alert.

The season of our Lenten renewal is upon us. On Ash Wednesday, we were marked with ashes and exhorted to repent and believe the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Each year, the Church offers us the season of Lent as an invitation to set out on a journey of repentance and renewal. We begin our journey on Ash Wednesday.

One of the special blessings and responsibilities of being a diocesan bishop is making the pilgrimage – ad limina apostolorum.

Among the highlights of my annual calendar are the opportunities for me to visit each of our Catholic schools. I am about halfway through my pastoral visits to our 18 elementary schools, three high schools and one special needs school.