Bishop James Conley: The Love of God is Found Precisely at the Foot of the Cross

12/1/2012

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They have encountered the Risen Lord and want to live in His Body the Church. They deeply appreciate and understand the gift of the fullness of the Catholic Faith and want to both know the teaching of the Church and live it fully. They are what I call "Catholic by Choice".

The Bishop entered the seminary four years after he graduated from College and was ordained for the Diocese of Wichita in 1985. He is one of the many treasures of the Church who were trained at Mount St Mary's in Emmitsburg.

He has a deep knowledge of - and devotion to - Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman, another noteworthy convert to the Catholic Church. His Episcopal motto is "cor ad cor loquitur," which means "heart speaks to heart". That was John Henry Cardinal Newman's motto as well.

As a priest, Fr. Conley served fruitfully as a College Chaplain and for ten years as an official in the Vatican Congregation for Bishops in Rome. His Episcopal service to the Church began in 2008 when he was ordained an auxiliary in the Archdiocese of Denver under Archbishop Charles Chaput.

It was during the time he was in Denver that I had the privilege of meeting Bishop Conley. What was immediately evident in the encounter was his deep, personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. He is a man of great personal and pastoral warmth. Immediately upon meeting him you feel welcomed and cared for.

He has a gift of evangelical joy which catches you in its hopeful grasp and shakes any cynicism out of your weary bones. Let's face it, these are trying times and the struggle can wear on you. When you encounter this Bishop, you just want to be in his presence. The experience reminded me of how people must have experienced Jesus when they encountered him. That should have come as no surprise I guess. This is a truly holy man.

However, like so many of the episcopal appointments being made by His Holiness Benedict XVI, Bishop Conley possesses that dynamic living faith so vitally important in the times in which we live. He has had that "encounter" with the Lord which Pope Benedict so often addresses. He is, in the best sense of the phrase, an "evangelical" Catholic. In that regard, he reminds me of another great Bishop, the president of the Bishops conference, Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

So, I was not at all surprised when the new Bishop of Lincoln quoted the Cardinal Archbishop of New York in his homily at the installation: "Last week in Baltimore, Cardinal Dolan put it like this: 'we cannot engage culture unless we allow him to first engage us. And, if we want the New Evangelization to take root, it starts on our knees with the conversion of our own hearts,"

Clearly the New Evangelization has taken root in the heart and the ministry of Bishop James Conley. The faithful of the Diocese of Lincoln have received a tremendous gift from the Lord.

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Bishop James Conley, Diocese of Lincoln, New Evangelization, dynamic orthodoxy, Pope Benedict XVI, St Gregory the Great Seminary, Bishops, Benedicts Bishops, Deacon Keith Fournier

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1 - 5 of 5 Comments

Brenda
5 months ago
I was blessed with the opportunity of knowing Bishop Conley in Wichita. This author has done a fine job of describing this holy leader. You DO feel the presence of Jesus with him. There is a certain warmth, a spirit of mercy, and a sense of calling about the Bishop.

It is interesting the author speaks of "Benedict's bishops," as being placed as foundational stones for the future of the Catholic Church. Knowing the fruit of St. Benedict's life and work...while Deacon meant our Holy Father placed these great men, I have to wonder if the good Saint Benedict himself isn't helping/influencing Pope Benedict in his choices!
JayeKay
5 months ago
It seems the hierarchy church leaders would naturally be "holy" and close to walking the path of Jesus Christ, and this effort is a necessary element to the continued prosperity of the Catholic church, but not the only element needed for growth.
The biggest problem I see are the "snobbish" parishioners, who flaunt the amount of tithing they can afford, and snobbishly put those less fortunate below themselves. Then they go to work and crush others for gain or go home, kick the dog, and belittle their children, condemn neighbors and sneak off to their mistresses. We all have shortcomings of our faith, yet need more than a sense of "belonging" in being an active church member. Putting those with less money or time to volunteer in the church below ourselves, or even being part of a cliche that keeps tight knit so that others cannot socialize within that group are all things that tear apart the church.
New members or others coming in contact with such people bring alienation within. That is enough to cancel participation for some who cannot accept the rejections so often set in activities within the church. The people are the backbone of the church. Unless that backbone functions with open arms, acceptance of all who want to grow in the name of the Lord, they will turn away if treated as I have described.
Social cancers our society in America have downgraded us into itself, and is not immune to our church members, yet we needs to rise above that decline, in order to reach the goals of re-birth and renewal. When the people reach the level of spiritual maturity needed to do so, if the Bishops and church leaders reach higher ground or not, the church will prosper once again, but only when the people of the parishes and communities display those proper protocols to all who knock on the door.
Tom McGuire
5 months ago
I appreciate stories about faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. Thank you for introducing Bishop James Conley. The call to holiness that comes from suffering gives authentic witnesses to the redemptive love of Jesus Christ.

Holiness can be a mask and when it does it becomes a great counter witness. Unless holiness comes through the fire of suffering, the danger of holiness being used to promote ideology becomes great. I pray Bishop Conley's joy that comes from his encounter with Jesus Christ and inviting presence will bring unity among his fellow Bishops, a unity that will heal the broken ecclesial communion in the Catholic Church.
abey
5 months ago
Today the marker to distinguish whether to Christ or Anti-Christ (read Pseudo Christ), whether it be an individual or a Church is the "Gay Agenda" in the clarity of Against it or, For it not exempting those complacent soft cornered ones towards it, like unto Lots wife. Gay & its relations are not just to unproductiveness but to the contrary is of the worst form of sin against the body which is to sinning against God, His creations & its purpose. For the human body was created by none else other than God himself to be kept Holy in the Fulness of the Spiritual Body but contradicted by certain Pagan beliefs that which America today chase after, to nullifying the Body to an eventual soul without a body, against the resurrected state of Christ, the express Image of God. This is the Faith that the Church & its Bishops & laity need contend for, in the standing against the grave gay error being pushed through & away from political correctness that which does not work with God, proved at the time of Noe.
vance
5 months ago
Welcome Bishop James Conley to your new position. I just hope that you will be a departure from your fellow Bishops who say nothing and do nothing against evil.

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