Pastoral letter from bishop of Memphis

It’s not often that I find myself drawn to a pastoral letter written by a sitting bishop, but I find this one just issued by J. Terry Streib, bishop of Memphis, Tennesee, pretty powerful. Entitled “Living our Catholicism: That our joy might be complete,” it’s a reflection on joy — as distinguished from happiness — and it begins by noting that:

We know that Catholicism is not, in essence, a collection of ideas to which we must subscribe, prohibitions and regulations we must obey, or obligations we must fulfill. Of course, the Catholic way of life does involve particular beliefs and ways of relating to God and to others. While regulations, prohibitions, obligations and expectations are part of the Catholic way of life, our way of life is certainly not reducible to those expectations. Sisters and brothers, our sacred scriptures, tradition and the great teachers and saints of the church proclaim a much more profound hope for us.

Bishop Streib then goes on to describe joy -- begun in human hearts, part of our very nature as human beings, bound up not in superficial pleasures, or ephemeral happiness, but caused by the love that flows through us from God. He focuses directly on how we love each other, and how the love of God -- even while drawing us to the cross -- brings joy:

The source of our joy in living a Catholic life is awareness and acceptance of God’s love for us and an active sharing of God’s love with others. As Catholics, our lives are rooted in God’s Word, in personal prayer, in our celebrations of the sacraments, and in sacramental living with people from our own faith community and with others. Our lives are also rooted in – and only make sense at all in – the reality that we are loved by God and that we are invited into a rich, intimate relationship of love which is lived out here on earth and forever in eternity. When we accept the truth of being God’s beloved, our hearts swell with joyful response in love for God and for all of God’s creation.

THIS is a Catholicism I can believe in, and this is a way of engaging scripture and tradition that gets at the heart of Catholic faith. It's not often that a bishop cautions us, however, in this way:

Unfortunately, many people – sometimes even Catholic people – think of the Catholic Church as merely the institutional organization that is headed by the bishop of Rome, that requires attendance at Sunday Mass and Holy Days, and has more rules than the US tax code. It is no wonder that not too many people are charmed by this understanding of the Catholic Church and that they are not especially joyful when they think about it. Some believe that Catholicism consists of remaining loyal to this institution and following the rules, thereby avoiding going to hell. If this is how many Catholics see the church, it is no wonder that many do not derive joy from being Catholic.

I can only wonder at the reception of this letter in the higher circles of the church, but I am grateful for its words here at the grassroots, and commend it to others.