Blessed John XXIII – A Call to Renewal

While our Roman brothers and sisters have not yet fixed a date for the canonization of Blessed John XXIII, many of us in the National Church already invoke his intercession for in moving forward the inspired reforms of the Second Vatican Council.

We, in American National Catholic Church, are grateful that Blessed John listened to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and invited all peoples, not just Catholics, to a deeper sense of renewal in our faith. He writes, “Inquire how we are to renew ourselves, so that we may be found increasingly faithful to the gospel of Christ.”(Opening Message to Humanity, Second Vatican Council). In this opening address, Blessed John continued to emphasize the urgency of this inquiry not only for the institutional church, but for all peoples, especially for those of us who claim the name of Christian.

Blessed John XXIII

Blessed John XXIII

Some fifty years have passed since the opening of the Second Vatican Council on October 11, 1962 and this form of inquiry into how we can renew ourselves and become more increasingly faithful to the gospel of Christ seems ever more urgent. Perhaps it was this renewal that have lead many of us to affiliate with the American National Catholic Church. Perhaps many of us were searching in our faith journeys to see how we could renew ourselves and be more faithful to Christ’s command to love all people as he has loved them.

As we in the American National Catholic Church continue to move forward the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, we need to keep fresh in our minds and hearts the daily question of how to renew ourselves, so that we might give witness to the love of God to all peoples.

For the first time this August, on the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mother, the bishop and clergy of the American National Catholic Church will gather in convocation. In prayer and compassionate dialogue with her experiences, we will examine in light of Blessed John XXIII’s admonition, and ask ourselves how we can continue to renew the life-giving gifts of the Holy Spirit in our lives and the lives of the church.

Those of you who read this blog, please pray for us that we too may open our ears in our hearts the promptings of the Holy Spirit so that our efforts might result,  “A happy impulse on behalf of humankind!”