Lucas Tells Pope of Young Catholics

By Christopher Burbach
The World-Herald
March 10, 2012

http://www.omaha.com/article/20120310/NEWS01/703109877

L'osservatore Romano

Meeting with Omaha Archbishop George Lucas and other U.S. prelates Friday, Pope Benedict IXV posed questions about the American contraception insurance controversy and offered encouragement to American church leaders in the position they have taken on the matter, Lucas said from Rome.

Lucas and fellow bishops from Nebraska and Kansas met Friday with Benedict in an office of the Apostolic Palace, the pope's official residence in Vatican City. The prelates are in Rome for what's called an ad limina visit to the Vatican, a periodic trip required of all Roman Catholic bishops from around the world. Groups of U.S. bishops have been traveling to Rome for several months. Iowa and Missouri bishops also are in the current contingent there.

As Lucas expected, Benedict wanted to hear more about the controversy over new federal rules requiring employers or their insurers to provide health insurance plans with birth control coverage. Churches were exempt, but employers such as Catholic hospitals are not. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has been a leader in the opposition to the rules.

Also in the meeting, each bishop was asked to give the pope a presentation on a particular topic.

"The thing I was speaking on was the Catholic faith of young people," Lucas said by telephone from Rome. "I talked about how children and young people are affected by the breakdown of family life and other related things in the culture."

Lucas said he also had positive developments to tell the pope in that regard, including the strength of many Catholic schools and that Catholic youths enthusiastically embrace sacraments and worship when exposed to them. Benedict said he had observed that at World Youth Day events.

During Lucas' visit, news broke in Cleveland, Ohio, that the Vatican had ordered the reopening of 13 Catholic parishes that the Cleveland Diocese had closed in 2009 as part of a diocese-wide reconfiguration. A Vatican decree found that Cleveland Bishop Richard Lennon did not follow church law or procedures in closing the parishes, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported.

The Omaha Archdiocese has embarked on a study and planning process that could lead to mergers or closings of parishes and schools in Omaha. Lucas' schedule in Rome included a meeting with the Congregation for Clergy, the panel that issued the Cleveland decree.

"We actually did talk about (the Cleveland situation)," Lucas said. "Not just Omaha, but it faces every diocese."

The Omaha Archdiocese hasn't settled on a plan. Lucas said the Vatican officials stressed the importance of following proper procedures and policies, including considering and respecting the interests of all affected people.

Contact the writer:

402-444-1057, christopher.burbach@owh.com