THE GOOD NEWS
ARCHBISHOP BELTRAN
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The Good News ...A Century of Faith January 1-2, 2005 My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: This is Archbishop Beltran greeting you in the Name of the Lord Jesus. I extend to you my sincere wishes for a most blessed and joyful New Year. I pray that this New Year of 2005 will be a special time of grace and peace for you, your families and all your loved ones. Today is the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. The Epiphany is the manifestation of Jesus as Messiah of Israel, Son of God and Savior of the World. This great feast of Epiphany celebrates the adoration of Jesus by the Magi from the East. The Magi - sometimes called the wise men or even the three kings - came from neighboring pagan religions and countries. They came seeking the Child born to be the King of the nations. Their presence before the Child Jesus as they adore and praise Him means that pagans too can discover Jesus. It means that all people can worship Him as Son of God and Savior of the World. The beginning of a new year and the celebration of the Gospel Feast of the Epiphany that manifests Jesus to the world is a profound setting for the following proclamation: “Today, we, the Catholic Church of Oklahoma, begin a year-long celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the Diocese of Oklahoma. This year-long observance will be referred to as our centennial celebration. With great faith and confidence and joy, as your Archbishop, I invite you to join me in our centennial celebration which we will observe throughout this New Year of 2005.” By inviting you to participate in our centennial celebration, I am offering you a tremendous opportunity to grow in faith. Essentially, our Catholic faith is totally centered on the Person of Jesus. This Jesus, the eternal Son of God, lived, suffered and died for us. He is the foundation and the goal of our faith life. Keeping this reality before us and applying it to our centennial celebration, we have come up with this theme: “Seeds of Faith, Works of Love, Harvest of Hope.” The “Seeds of Faith” refer to our Catholic belief planted among us as a gift from Jesus. It is this faith that He entrusted to His apostles and they handed it down to us. The first permanent missionaries brought this Catholic faith and planted it here by teaching and preaching, by word and example. By 1905, many great accomplishments had been made. Churches, schools and hospitals were established. This required much hard work and great sacrifice. These were the “Works of Love” which grew out of the “Seeds of Faith”. As a result, on August 17, 1905, Pope St. Pius X established the Diocese of Oklahoma. He included the Indian Territory, the Oklahoma Territory and the Panhandle, all of which today form the state of Oklahoma. With the establishment of the diocese and continuing throughout this one-hundred year period, the Church grew in faith and in hope and in love. We are still reaping that “Harvest of Hope” which will be completed only at the final Epiphany when we stand face to face before the Lord! Today’s issue of the Sooner Catholic is an introduction to our centennial celebration. The various events throughout the year will continue to be announced and reported at the appropriate time in the Sooner Catholic. I hope every Catholic household receives our archdiocesan newspaper. During the months of January and February, extra copies have been offered to all parishes with the hope that if there is anyone not yet on the Sooner Catholic mailing list, you will subscribe at this time. In conjunction with the one-hundredth anniversary of the Diocese of Oklahoma, a beautiful centennial history book is almost completed. It too will be made available at all parishes throughout Oklahoma. There are approximately two hundred Catholic churches in Oklahoma as well as a number of other Catholic institutional buildings. During the centennial year, it is hoped that every parish church will display the large outdoor banner which identifies us as members of the Catholic faith who are celebrating the one hundredth anniversary of our diocese. Thirteen special centennial sites have been designated. These include seven churches or religious sites which were in use one hundred yeas ago and are still in use today. In addition to those, Holy Family Cathedral in Tulsa; the Cathedral of Our Lady in Oklahoma City; the Catholic Pastoral Center on the Northwest Expressway; Saint Gregory Abbey, Shawnee; the Meerschaert House, Oklahoma City and the Saint Anthony Hospital historical display constitute the thirteen designated pilgrimage locations. I urge every Catholic person to visit as many of these sites as possible. At each site, a plenary indulgence can be gained by praying for our Holy Father who has granted me this faculty for the centennial year. In order to assist you in planning your pilgrimage, our centennial committee has prepared a pilgrimage booklet which will be available here in your parish later this month. This booklet also lists the five official shrines in Oklahoma. One of the biggest celebrations of the centennial year will be a Mass at the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City on August 14th near the date of the actual creation of the Diocese of Oklahoma. On that happy occasion, we plan to present Papal Awards to designated honorees. In addition, our Holy Father has granted me the privilege of imparting His own Pontifical Blessing for that occasion upon all who participate in that Mass. This year 2005 is an historic moment for us, the Catholic people of Oklahoma. We commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the diocese and the continuing vibrant Catholic faith which we profess. By our participation and celebration, the grace of God will become more effective in us, in our families and in our parishes. God is good. He loves us totally. He invites us to repent of our sins and to live a life of holiness. The centennial celebration of 2005 provides us with the incentive and the opportunity to do just that. Will you join me and all our Catholic brothers and sisters in proclaiming and living the fullness of our Catholic faith during this special time of faith, hope and love? Remember our theme: “Seeds of Faith, Works of Love, Harvest of Hope.” Let us and future generations joyfully enter into the second century of Oklahoma Catholicism. God bless you and |