Bishops' Schedules: Bishop Robert C. Morlino Wednesday, April 4, 2007 7:30 p.m. -- Tenebrae service, St. Patrick Church, Madison Thursday, April 5, 2007 7:30 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at the Celebration of the Eucharist, Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper, St. Patrick Church, Madison Friday, April 6, 2007 3:00 p.m. -- Preach at the Good Friday Celebration of the Lord's Passion Service, St. Patrick Church, Madison Saturday, April 7, 2007 8:00 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at the Celebration of the Eucharist, Easter Vigil Mass, St. Patrick Church, Madison Wednesday, April 11, 2007 Pro-Life Talk on Embryonic Stem Cell Research, Seton Hall University, South Orange, N.J. Bishop William H. Bullock Thursday, April 5, 2007 7:00 p.m. -- Participate in the Mass of the Lord's Supper, Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, Madison

Christ risen: The only hope that cannot disappoint

		Under the Gospel Book + Bishop Robert C. Morlino

(en Español)

Dear Friends,

Hope is not hope if its object is seen. If we can see the object of our hope, our hope is no longer hope but certitude. Hope involves risk. Hope never includes scientific certitude. This feast of Easter is our festival of hope which brings joy, hope rooted in Jesus Christ risen from the dead - the only hope that can never disappoint.

We have so many hopes in our human lives, hopes for excellent health, or for a promotion at work, or for perfect weather during our vacation - hopes that so easily disappoint. We also have hopes within our Church, that we will move in this or that particular direction.

In the Diocese of Madison we have hopes about the future of our parish communities, as we engage in the process of parish planning. We also have hopes with regard to a Cathedral or lack thereof. We have hopes of how liturgical rites will be celebrated long into the future, and so on.

Needless to say, different disciples of Jesus Christ have different hopes in these particular areas. Because there is a diversity of hopes, it is necessary that, as we move into the future, some hopes will be realized and others will not be. Where there is a diversity of hopes, some of those hopes are destined to disappoint. And when our hopes are disappointed we tend to become discouraged or to say "our morale is low."

The only way to escape this type of discouragement or low morale is to receive the gift, the virtue of hope from Jesus Christ risen from the dead, hope that is rooted in Him alone and cannot be realized by any particular this-worldly good.

That is the only hope that can never disappoint. Jesus Christ risen from the dead, is the only hope that will never disappoint. At Easter time, let us not give into the temptation to allow anyone or anything less than Jesus Christ to be the object of our hope and in this way the joy of Easter will be ours, a joy which the world can neither give nor take away.

Hope is not hope if its object is seen. May Resurrection hope fill your hearts and bless your families and loved ones during this Easter season and always.

Thank you for reading this. God bless you. Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!

Bishop's Letter

Dear friends in Christ,

As we journey with our Lord through Holy Week, our hearts are brought back to that place where so many treasured moments in the lives of our spiritual ancestors, as well as the Lord Himself, unfolded: the Holy Land. This is the land where time and eternity were united in a special embrace, for the good of the whole human family.

Each year during Holy Week the Church gives us the opportunity, as Pope Benedict has stated, to offer "assistance for the needs of a portion of the Church which is both forever old and forever young. I refer to Catholic Christians living in the Holy Land. . . The responsibility is grave which devolves upon the universal Church with regards to the Mother Church of Jerusalem. Therefore, all Catholics of the world must offer their prayer and expressions of solidarity, including those economic, to the Christian community of that same blessed Land. Despite their countless difficulties, these Christians offer day by day, and in silence, an authentic witness to the Gospel."

The annual Good Friday Collection, as it has become known, aims to promote among the Christian faithful a love for the Land of the Lord. Funds are collected for support of the Holy Places, but above all for those pastoral, charitable, educational and social works which the Church supports in the Holy Land for the welfare of their Christian brethren and of the local communities.

Please be generous in the special offering to be taken at all parish services on Good Friday, April 6th, that assists the Church in the Holy Land.

I ask that you keep the people of the Holy Land in your prayers, and that we join our fellow Catholics in the United States in making a generous contribution to nourish the faith in this land that is sacred for all Christians, as well as Jews and Muslims.

With every prayerful wish for a blessed remainder to your Holy Week and Easter, I am

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend Robert C. Morlino
Bishop of Madison