How Catholics view the Role of the Pope

Welcome to the Saint John the Baptist Catholic Parish podcast from Fort Lauderdale. Be sure to spread the word about our podcast and follow us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. That way, you'll be notified every time we release a new episode. Welcome to episode 17 of the Saint John the Baptist Parish podcast. Well, this past Sunday was the sixteenth Sunday in ordinary time.

Did you happen to catch Father Alberto's, message in the bulletin about the readings? I found it very interesting. I'd I never knew this about he talks about the Chinese bamboo tree and how it grows. And that sometimes for many years, there's nothing above the ground when a bamboo tree has been planted. Nothing for years and years and years.

And this extensive root system is taking hold underground as it adapts to absorbing water and nutrients. And then all of a sudden, in a single day, it could it could grow up to three feet. And what he the reason he brought this up was to compare our spiritual life. How it's often the same way. Many times for a long time, we may pray and not see immediate results.

We may wonder, is anything happening? Years of silence, countless rosaries, and we wonder what's happening sometimes. But in prayer, Father Alberto wrote, we are accumulating spiritual strength and wisdom. And in the twinkling of an eye, it's going to break through in the moments that God is preparing us for. So if you didn't have a chance to read his article, it's in the bulletin from, this past Sunday, please please do so.

Registration for a religious education program is now open. We're excited. Another year of passing on the faith is upon us. And our program here at the parish welcomes students from pre k and kindergarten all the way through the eighth grade. And part of that is preparing children the sacramental preparation necessary for first reconciliation and first holy communion, for some of the older students, confirmation.

Classes are gonna begin Sunday, September 7, and they will run through next May. And the classes meet Sunday from ten to eleven immediately following the 9AM family mass on Sundays. Check out our bulletin. You'll find the link where you can click and register your children. Also, we have an incredible resource here at the parish.

It's called Formed. And if you go to our website, the homepage of the website, you can access it. K. This is absolutely free. Now Formed, which is online at formed.org, is the premier online platform for inspiring Catholic content.

You'll find movies, bible studies, audio talks, ebooks, children's programming, a lot more. It doesn't cost you anything. One way to think of it is is like the Catholic Netflix. So many resources to grow your faith and deepen your relationship with Jesus anytime, anywhere. And you get there by going to our website and just clicking the button.

A few moments ago, I mentioned that we are very excited to begin our children's religious education program, but we also are going to be starting up the order of Christian initiation for adults. This is the process for adults who desire to join the Catholic faith and are seeking more information. There's gonna be an inquiry session on Tuesday, October 7, followed by a little meet and greet. We'll have more about this in the coming weeks. The parish is gonna be hosting a mission appeal.

It's our chance to learn about and support the Capuchin mission in Namibia. And the mission appeal weekend is gonna be the weekend of August. Since 02/2003, Capuchin friars have been serving in Namibia. Eight friars minister across four different mission centers reaching out to people in very remote areas. And father Thomas Sebastian, a Capuchin, and the mission secretary of their delegation in Namibia will be speaking here at the parish as part of the Archdiocese of Miami's Mission Cooperative Plan.

Gonna be sharing firsthand about the mission work and how you can support your brothers and sisters in Christ who find themselves living under the bondage of poverty. And your act of kindness can really help transform not just one life, but an entire community in the various ways that you can help. So we'll you'd be hearing about that at the parish, the weekend of October, second, Saturday the second and Sunday the third. You know, it's only been a couple of months since the College of Cardinals elected an American pope, Leo the fourteenth. Now anytime a new person ascends to the chair of Saint Peter, there's great interest, not only in the Catholic world, but the entire world.

People know something big is happening. But at least here in The United States, this changing of the guard has taken on new meaning because we see something that we never thought we'd see before. Someone born in The United States becoming the leader of over a billion Catholics here on planet Earth. As Catholics, we are called to pray for the pope each and every day for his intentions. You know, our theology on the papacy begins in the gospel of Saint Matthew.

There's a pivotal verse in Matthew sixteen sixteen and the verses that follow. Simon Peter boldly declares that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of the living God, fulfilling Jewish expectations of a divine savior. And in response, Jesus proclaims Peter as the rock upon which he will build his church, granting him the keys to the kingdom of heaven and the authority to bind and loose on earth and in heaven. Now earlier this year, we celebrated what's called the Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter. It It usually happens, or it does happen, every year in February.

And that, of course, celebrates the foundational role that Peter has in the establishment of the church Christ founded. But since we just had someone take the seat of Saint Peter, we thought it was a good time to think about these things again. When we think about the chair of Saint Peter, we think about the fact that the pope has the authority to bind and to loose, and that it extends to the College of the Apostles, who were all united under the leadership of the Bishop of Rome. This apostolic office continues today through the bishops around the world who operate under the primacy of the pope, the successor of Saint Peter. Together, they ensure the church's unity and continuity.

But what does this mean for you and me in our everyday lives? What does Matthew sixteen sixteen and the words that come after it, how does that affect us? Well, here's a few practical things to think about. As I mentioned before, Catholics are called to honor and revere the Holy Father, the Pope, through daily prayers for his health, his guidance, and his intentions, because we recognize him as the visible head of the church. We want him to succeed.

Second, obedience to bishops as the successors of the apostles is essential. As Catholics, we listen to our local bishop, their teachings. They are the chief catechists in our lives. The bishop, in our case, the archbishop, is the chief catechist of the archdiocese, and our pastor is the chief catechist of our parish. We should listen to them.

Next, we need to make sure that we're adhering to the doctrines and the dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pretty soon, in just a few weeks, we're going to be celebrating a very special day, the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who was assumed into heaven body and soul at the conclusion of her earthly life. Again, this is a truth that we believe because it has been proclaimed by the church's teaching authority. And all that traces back to when Jesus proclaims Peter as the rock upon which he will build his church, grants him the keys to the kingdom of heaven and earth, the authority to bind and loose. Also, think about the sacrament of penance.

It is part of this binding and losing authority given to Peter. You and I, when we approach confession, we go to receive God's mercy and to restore our relationship with him. This falls under that authority that the church has to absolve us from our sins. We really are blessed to be Catholic, to have such a visible presence in front of us in the parish, but also in the church's very broad and rich spiritual treasury. Think about all the ways we can enhance our spiritual lives.

All the devotions like the rosary, novenas, different things that the church prescribes for our spiritual growth. Again, all these practices are rooted in the authority that Jesus Christ granted to Peter. So the coming weeks and years, we're gonna be asked as Catholics, probably all of us, something about this new pope. He's a young guy for someone ascending to the throne of Saint Peter. He'll be around a long time.

And so at some point, we're gonna be asked, whether it's tomorrow or five years from now, somebody is gonna ask us about our faith. And it's gonna be an opportunity for us to share our faith, to give an account of why we believe in one holy Catholic and apostolic church. Let's continue to prepare ourselves to give a good witness by attending mass every Sunday, by praying for the priests that serve our communities, by praying for our archbishop, by praying for the pope, and by taking advantage of all the wonderful ways we can grow in the church, Receiving communion, going to penance, going to adoration, reading about the lives of the saints. We have such a rich treasury. We're very blessed to be Catholic.

And more people are going to be asking us about our faith in the future. Let's be prepared to encourage them to seek God through the one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. Thanks for listening to the Saint John the Baptist Catholic Parish podcast from Fort Lauderdale. Be sure to follow our show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, And that way, you'll be notified every time we release a new episode. This has been a production of the Parish Podcast Project.