Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
Brothers and sisters: I welcome you this evening as we promulgate the new Pastoral
Plan for the Diocese of Austin. First, I wish to extend a warm welcome to the Auxiliary
Bishop of the Diocese of Austin, Daniel Garcia. This is an important moment for all of
us and I am grateful for your presence.
Thank you for being here this evening, particularly the pastors, priests, parish staff
and all the lay faithful who join us. I appreciate your presence as we begin the
implementation of the Pastoral Plan, Encounter that leads to Transformation.
Gracias por estar aquí esta noche, en particular los párrocos, sacerdotes, personal
de las parroquias y los fieles laicos que nos acompañan. Agradezco su presencia a
medida que comenzamos la implementación del Plan Pastoral, Encuentro que Lleva
a la Transformación.
For over a year now, Auxiliary Bishop Daniel Garcia and I worked with groups of
individuals composed of the Core Team and a Steering Committee to develop this plan.
I am grateful to Charlene O’Connell who served as facilitator in the development of this
Plan, and I take this opportunity to express to her and those committees for their
leadership and guidance during this time.
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
A great deal of time was spent gathering data and information that serves as the
basis for the plan.
Pasamos una gran cantidad de tiempo reuniendo datos e información que
sirven como base del plan.
We first began by asking ourselves a few questions. “Where are we now? And,
“What are the needs of the Diocese?” What we discovered is that the Diocese is extremely
blessed. But, we also knew, that there is always more that can and should be done to
serve the needs of the people.
One of the greatest blessings we have in the Diocese of Austin is our priests. They
are hard-working, faithful and committed to serving Christ and his people. My brother
priests, I am extremely grateful for your priestly ministry. It is only with your help that
the Pastoral Plan can be successful. I depend on you to communicate this Plan to our
people and to encourage them to live out their faith through an encounter with Jesus
Christ. You are the ones who create opportunities for our children, young people,
university students, adults and elderly to find Christ. Through your preaching, the Word
comes alive and gives them hope and joy. Through your celebration of the sacraments,
Christ is made present and real so that when you baptize, Christ baptizes; when you
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
absolve sins; Christ absolves sins; when you celebrate the Eucharist, Christ is found in
you as you offer up the one sacrifice that shares the Body and Blood of Jesus with our
communities.
Unas de las más grandes bendiciones que tenemos en la Diócesis de Austin son
nuestros sacerdotes. Son buenos trabajadores, fieles y comprometidos a servir a
Cristo y su pueblo. Por favor, únanse a mí en expresar nuestro aprecio a todos
nuestros sacerdotes por su ministerio sacerdotal. Mis hermanos sacerdotes, es sólo
con su ayuda que el Plan Pastoral puede ser un éxito. Yo dependo en ustedes para
que comuniquen este Plan a nuestro pueblo y para animarlos a vivir su fe a través
de un encuentro con Jesucristo. Ustedes son los que crean oportunidades para
nuestros niños, jóvenes, estudiantes universitarios, adultos y personas de edad
avanzada a encontrar a Cristo. A través de su predicación, la Palabra toma vida y
les da esperanza y alegría. A través de su celebración de los sacramentos, Cristo se
hace presente y real, de modo que cuando bautizan, Cristo bautiza; cuando
absuelven los pecados, Cristo perdona los pecados; al celebrar la Eucaristía, Cristo
se encuentra en ustedes al ofrecer el único sacrificio que comparte el Cuerpo y la
Sangre de Jesús con nuestras comunidades.
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
Brothers and sisters: the title of this Plan was inspired by our Holy Father, Pope
Francis, who continually speaks of encountering Christ and encountering others in order
to deepen our relationship with Jesus. I think a short passage that you will find in the
Pastoral Plan which are words from Evangelii Gaudium, “The Joy of the Gospel” fills
the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation
are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is
constantly born anew … I wish to encourage the Christian faithful to embark upon a new
chapter of evangelization marked by this joy, while pointing out new paths for the
Church’s journey in years to come.”
I wish to share with you two encounters that I’ve had and, hopefully, they will
illustrate what our Holy Father is asking of us.
Last year as I was coming back from the USCCB Conference of the Bishops and
happened to be sitting next to this gentleman who started a conversation with me; I was
dressed in my clerics. He began a conversation and asked right away, “Are you a Catholic
Priest?” and I said, “Yes, I am a Catholic priest.” And, then he asked a question about
the Holy Father, “Have you met the Holy Father?” he asked and I said, “Yes.” He said
“I am so touched by the way the Holy Father is and his message, particularly about
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
reaching out to the poor and being compassionate to those on the edge of the periphery.”
Those were kind words he said and it really made me feel very good.
And then came the following sentence, “I was once Catholic, but no longer.” He
said, “I left the Church years ago. I still go back periodically at Christmastime and I still
have memories as a child of those Christmases which I celebrated early in my life.” My
heart sank when I heard those words and I was distressed. Inside I could hear a voice
saying, “Say something, you have to say something; you can’t let this moment go by.”
So, I said, “Sorry, I am sorry that something happened that made you leave the Church
and that you felt you had no home with the Church.” What really saddened me was what
he said right after that, “You know I no longer believe in a personal God.” I said to him,
“I cannot help but believe in a personal God. The only God that I can believe in is one
who is close; one who is concerned about me, concerned about my needs, one who loves
me.” And, then, for the rest of the trip we were basically quiet.
Then we landed and as he was getting up from his seat to leave I was also getting
up. I said to him, “You are always welcome in the Church. You will always have a home
with us.” He said “thank you” and he left. The encounter with Christ is all around us.
We cannot stay silent, brothers and sisters, when Christ needs us to speak out. There are
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
so many of our brothers and sisters who need a voice, a word, something that will help
them understand that they are not alone – that there is a God who cares, that Jesus is
always ready to accept and welcome them home in the Church.
The second story that I relate to you is about how I was out shopping at a store
here. I was leaving the store ready to check out and I came up to the counter and there
was this big man. He had all these tattoos all over his arms and he asked me the question
again, “Are you a priest? Are you a Catholic priest? I said, “Yes, I am.” I thought, “What
is he going to say now? What’s he going to tell me? Is he going to scold me?” He said,
“You know, I just started going back to Church.” Really interesting what he said. He
said, “I was involved in Satanism. My mother prayed for me. She gave me a Bible and I
started reading it, and then I felt compelled to go back to church and I started going back
to church.” I said, “Thank you.” In just those few moments he said all this. I was utterly
amazed that this man was willing to say those words to me. Why is that? There are people
who want to communicate the faith just like that.
Those two stories illustrate that encounters are all around us. You and I can never,
never lose the opportunity for encounter. You and I are being challenged by this Pastoral
Plan, which came from a lot of listening, prayer and consultation. It was hard work
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
brothers and sisters, but it is delightful now that we have a plan. It’s a blessing to us. So
let us go forward with joy; let us not let anything disappoint us.
I will briefly mention the three major goals of this plan:
 The first major goal is to provide Spiritual Formation that Leads to Encounter
o This Plan calls us to have continual opportunities for people to encounter
Christ in our formation programs, retreats, and, especially, in the celebration
of the Eucharist.
o We must also strengthen our families – our families that are hurting; families
in general; we must strengthen married couples. The home should always
be a place where Christ is found. The family and in the family is present
Christ – in our parents and children, and even in our extended families.
o To participate more frequently in the sacraments and to invite our brothers
and sisters who are non-practicing to return to Mass.
 The second major goal is to create a Culture of Ministry for individuals and
communities.
o We need to provide leadership formation for clergy and religious, as well as
for lay ministers.
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
o
To create a “culture of collaboration” between all of our Catholic entities –
parishes, Catholic schools, and other ministries.
o
We must need to promote and increase the number of vocations to the
priesthood and religious life.
We can never tire of promoting these
vocations.

The third major goal is to strengthen our Witness and Outreach to transform
individuals and communities.
o This means we should have the ability to clearly articulate the Catholic
“story” with pride and joy. We should be very clear about that – we are
Catholic. We should not be embarrassed; we should not make excuses; we
should be extremely proud that we are Catholic –blessed. Not a sense of
superiority, but a sense of blessing.
o As well, we should celebrate our cultural diversity in our parishes, in our
schools and in our ministries. This Diocese is blessed with a rich, cultural
heritage that includes Czech, German, African and African-American,
Polish, Hispanic, Vietnamese and Korean communities. We are blessed. It’s
great to see the different colors, cultures, languages – all coming together to
celebrate our Catholic faith.
o The Pastoral Plan asks us to go to the periphery and affirm the dignity of
every human person by providing assistance to our brothers and sisters in
need.
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Homily
Vespers – Promulgation of Pastoral Plan
October 12, 2015
It is important to note that as a Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Austin,
my mission calls me to shepherd all people in Central Texas. This includes not only
Catholics, but all Christians, and even non-believers. Christ and His Church have a
universal mission that embraces all. We must respond to everyone’s needs and this
Pastoral Plan will help us accomplish this mission entrusted to us by Jesus Christ.
Es importante tener en cuenta que, como obispo de la Iglesia Católica
Romana, mi misión me llama a pastorear a todas las personas en el centro de Texas.
Esto incluye no sólo a los católicos, sino a todos los cristianos, e incluso los no
creyentes. Cristo y Su Iglesia tienen una misión universal que abarca a todos.
Para mí, el servirles como su pastor es tanto un privilegio y una bendición. Al
inaugurar este Plan Pastoral, pidamos a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe que nos
acompañe en este esfuerzo.
For me to serve as your shepherd is both a privilege and a blessing. As we
inaugurate this Pastoral Plan, let us entrust it to the loving care of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
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