Father Knows Best—Episode 20: Archdioceses, when Jesus knew He would die, lay persons preaching at Mass, and what a Homily is

Archdioceses, when Jesus knew He would die, lay persons preaching at Mass, and what a Homily is

Tune in so we may discover, learn, and engage our hearts, souls, and minds and become illuminated, informed, and inspired. Send in your questions to Fr. Mark via e-mail at fatherknowsbestshow@yahoo.com.  The program is sponsored by St. Augustine Indian Mission in Winnebago, NE. 

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SPEAKER_00 0:00

I have questions. I don't understand. I'm confused. What's going on? That's not what I learned in school. What does the church really teach? Welcome to Father Know's Bush, the studios of 88.1 FM, KFA C Pankasu City, and K-O-I-A Storm Lake. Brought to you by the St. Augustine Indian Mission, Winnebago. We all have questions and the curiosity about manners of faith as it is normal for humanity to ask questions and seek answers in the timeless quest for understanding regarding matters of faith in the church. We believe that there is no such thing as a foolish or dumb question. Only opportunities to learn and to connect. And I say the only dumb question is the one that is not asked. And the reality is that the questions you have are like questions others have, and so it is good to ask. Sometimes an answer leads to more questions. Sometimes the questions and answers will lead us to insights we never considered. We at Siouxland Catholic Radio want to invite our listeners from Jackson, Nebraska to Elk Point, South Dakota, to Storm Lake, Iowa, and everywhere in between and beyond, send your questions to us at Father Knows Best Show at Yahoo.com. Or mail them to Father Knows Best, Sioux Line Catholic Radio, 701 West Fifth Street, Sioux City, Iowa, 51103. During this time, once a week, I or another guest will do our best to answer some of the questions I've received here at the studio so we may discover, learn, and engage our hearts and souls and minds, so we may be illuminated, informed, and inspired. So I thank you for tuning in. We invite you to open your mind, let the questions begin, and let your curiosity find its voice. Hello, I'm Father Mark Stowe, priest of the Diocese of City with you today. And joining me once again is Tim Soudin, Executive Director of Sioux Line Catholic Radio, presenting some of the questions I received from you, our listeners. And so once again, Tim, how are you doing this evening? It is a wonderful evening.

SPEAKER_01 1:52

I always enjoy this evening because it allows me to get closer to my faith, and I think our listeners are hopefully thinking in that same manner.

SPEAKER_00 2:00

I believe so, and I hope too. So and it's really been helping me too a lot to dive in some of these questions. So I also give a huge shout-out thanks to Ann, who is on the control board, to help us sound great. And so let's dive into some of the questions that I've received. And so, what is our first question?

SPEAKER_01 2:16

Joanne from Sioux City sent this question in via email. I was reading a Catholic news story in which an archdiocese was mentioned. I wondered why archdioceses were implemented. For example, there are many states that don't have an archdiocese, such as South Dakota and North Dakota. What is the purpose of archdioceses and why do some states not have an archdiocese?

SPEAKER_00 2:42

Thank you for that question. It's a wonderful question. Again, I just want to start off and explain again. Remember the church as a whole is a human institution of divine origin. And because the church is a human institution of divine origin, we have to set up, because of the human aspects, we have to set up the church kind of like civil entities, you know, like counties or countries or states to help uh govern. And so, you know, again, like I say, just like countries have states and regions and territories, and states have counties and counties have townships, you know, we have this church, our church set up and allocated into dioceses. And each diocese, again, it's a region that has covered a certain area of the world, and each diocese assigned a bishop who has full authority over that area, and he has full authority over that area in the name of the Pope for teaching, governing, and sanctifying. Now, for example, in the state of Iowa, there are four dioceses: Diocese Sioux City, Dubuque, Davenport, and Des Moines. In Nebraska, there are three dioceses, Omaha, Lincoln, and Grand Island. In South Dakota, there are two dioceses, Sioux Falls and Rapid City. Now, to aid in the governance, some dioceses are designated as an archdiocese. And there, that bishop then becomes known as the archbishop and also known as the Metropolitan Archbishop. And so often these archdioceses are established in larger cities in a region. And so, in the case of that happening, the archbishop of that archdiocese has full authority over his archdiocese for teaching, governance, and sanctifying. But the archbishop does not have authority over the bishops of the other diocese to which he has been assigned. Now the archbishop may have will only have the authority when the uh the bishops of that area meet together. That area they call it is the providence. Uh it's another term we use again. It's it's those dioceses that belong to this group which that archbishop has oversight just over the bishops when they meet together. That's the only time they have a have authority. So, for example, let's look at the state of Iowa again, state of Iowa. In Iowa, the Archdiocese is Dubuque, and the Suffragan, otherwise known as subordinate dioceses, are Sioux City, Davenport, and Des Moines. Now, with Archbishop Zinkla of the Archdiocese Dubuque, he has no authority over the other three dioceses except for when all four bishops get together to meet. And they meet occasionally, usually in Des Moines, I believe it is. In Nebraska, the Archdiocese is Omaha, and the suffragant or the subordinate diocese are Lincoln and Grand Island. And in South Dakota, the archdiocese is the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota. And it's interesting because Sioux Falls and Rapid City in South Dakota, as well as the diocese of Winno and Rochester in Minnesota, New Alm, St. Cloud, Duluth, and Crookston in Minnesota, and Farago and Bismarck in North Dakota, are all part of that group of that province known as the Archdiocese of St. Paul, Minneapolis. So the Archdiocese of Minneapolis, St. Paul, Minneapolis actually covers Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, which, well, I'm going to talk about this a little bit later, but it's actually covers what we call the entire Region 8 for the United States Catholic Conferences. And so, thus, while most dioceses and archdioceses do follow civil boundary lines, such as state and county lines, providences do not necessarily follow those same boundary lines. In Iowa, the providence of the Archdiocese of Dubuque does fall within the boundaries of the state of Iowa. In Nebraska, the providence of the Archdiocese of Omaha does fall within the boundaries of the state of Nebraska. But for the providence of the Archdiocese of St. Paul, Minneapolis, again, it covers the entire states of Minneapolis, excuse me, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. And there are other examples too of such arts as the Archdiocese of Denver also covers all four dioceses in the state of Denver and the Diocese of Cheyenne in the state of Wyoming. Now, it's kind of hinted at is what I call Region 8. The Church Authority also allocates groups into what we call conference of bishops. And so, for example, in the United States of America, we are part of the United States Bishops Catholic Conference. And this conference is allocated into 14 regions to assist bishops of a region when they need to meet for more local matters than on a conference level or national level. And so the diocese of Sioux City, along with the Archdiocese of Omaha, along with all the dioceses in Kansas and Missouri, belong to what we call Region 9. And as I mentioned earlier, the Diocese of Sioux Falls belongs to Region 8, which includes all the dioceses in South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota. So again, it's all about how we govern and take care of our people on kind of on a regional or providence, a diocese, archdiocese level. And so in summary, archdioceses have been created to help the governance of areas of the church, with the archbishop overseeing the meetings of the bishops of his providence, but not to have any authority over the diocese and providence. And again, not every state has an archdiocese within the state, as that diocese may be assigned to an archdiocese in another state. So I hope that answers your question.

SPEAKER_01 8:16

That's a really good answer because that really gets involved when you get into the administration of all these different dioceses. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 8:24

It helps, you know, church take care of all of our people at various levels. Thank you for that question.

SPEAKER_01 8:29

Our next question comes from Joanne from Sioux. Excuse me, I said that wrong. This next question comes from Betty from Sioux City and sent this question in via Father Knows Best Facebook page. Yes, you did. In reading Luke chapter 9, verse 30-31, did Jesus know of his death all along, or was the occasion of the transfiguration when it was revealed to him?

SPEAKER_00 8:54

Thank you for that question. Again, this question directly refers to the event of the transfiguration. That's what we find in Luke chapter 9, verse 30 to 31. Again, at that point is when Jesus goes to Mount Tabor in the presence of Peter, James, and John, as St. Luke reports, and behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. And so that was that was those key words there, referring to his exodus he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. And so what is meant by this exodus that Jesus was going to accomplish? We in the Catholic Church teach and believe that St. Luke is identifying the subject of that conversation, the exodus of Jesus, to be the reference to his death, his resurrection, and his ascension, that Jesus would fulfill there in Jerusalem. Which, of course, Jerusalem was the city of what we call Jesus' destiny, the destination as a point of the Gospel of St. Luke, because Jesus is at that point traveling towards Jerusalem. Of course, when we mention Exodus, we should also call to mind that great event in the Old Testament, Hebrew scriptures, where the Israelite people were released from slavery in Egypt, and they made this exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land. And so they were freed from slavery. The exodus of Jesus then refers to us being freed from sin and given opportunity for new life, eternal life even. However, I'm going to point out that this is not the first time, again, Luke chapter 9, verse 30-31, that there's a reference made that Jesus would die. Several verses earlier, in Luke chapter 9, verse 22, we find Jesus saying, quote, the Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And likewise in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, you know, Jesus, and then Luke does the same thing, this three times that Jesus predicts his death. You know, for example, in Matthew chapter 16, verse 21, it says, From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, be killed on the third day and be raised. And likewise, about a chapter later in Matthew, he says, as they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, The Son of Man is to be handed over to men, and they will kill him, and then he will be raised on the third day. And then Matthew points out that the disciples were overwhelmed with grief. About a chapter later, as it says, Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside by themselves and said to them, Behold, we're going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will be he'll be condemned to death. Hand him over to the Gentiles, be mocked, scourged, and crucified, to be raised on the third day. So again, Matthew, Mark, Luke have these three predictions, like we I just quoted from Matthew. So even before the transfiguration, Jesus was already speaking about his death. Now, um, you know, I think part we can look at is that maybe in some sense we all know we're gonna die someday. Um, but again, Jesus knew sometime in his ministry that he was gonna be arrested, put on trial, mocked, scourged, and crucified. So he he knew what kind of death he was gonna experience. And so your question again is how long before he predicted his cruel death did he actually know? And the answer is, well, we don't really know. The New Testament, the gospels do not really specify. However, we have different sources that kind of indicate that he possessed some sort of prophetic knowledge of his fate early in his public ministry, maybe even possibly as at the outset. Um there's some combination of my say natural insight, maybe some scriptural and scriptural interpretation, some of the miracles he performed, some of the maybe supernatural enlightenment he might have had. But yet the precise onset remains kind of unclear. Um the one thing I look at again is the Catholic Catechism and the Catholic Church. There in number 569 it says, and it's quoting Hebrews chapter 12, verse 3, it says, Jesus went to Jerusalem voluntarily, knowing well that he would die a violent death because of the opposition of sinners. And so again, we do have scripture and scholarship that point to Jesus' awareness, uh, even predating the first uh prediction that Jesus made, um, maybe going back to his early ministry, because again, you know, he knew that there were people uh were opposed to him. And so there's hints early on. This was another example. Gospel of Mark, chapter 2, verse 20 19 to 20. It says, Jesus answered them, Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. Again, this statement, before he even makes his first prediction of death, kind of indicates a foresight of his coming death. Matthew chapter 10, verse 38 speaks of Jesus says, talks about carrying one's cross. Again, this is the first time that the word cross is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew. Gospel of John chapter 10, verse 11 through 18 says, you know, Jesus using the shepherd, his imagery about a good shepherd. It says the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. Again, he's saying this even before he makes the prediction of his death. Uh, we find also in Gospel of John chapter 12, verse 25, he speaks about laying down one's life. And so obviously Jesus knew also of the arrest and the execution of John the Baptist. Again, that would have signaled maybe a danger, even at the start, very start of Jesus' ministry, that might foster a natural prophecy. And this is what St. Thomas Aquinas notes in his writings that this death of John the Baptist would give an indication also. In addition, again, I've mentioned a little earlier ago, he's experiencing opposition to his teachings, to his miracles, and all the good works he's doing, which again would point to his uh pending death. And of course, we know that Jesus was entirely open to God's will, even you know, pondering necessity, as we find stated in the Gospel of Mark, chapter 10, verse 38, and Luke 12, verse 50. And so, personally, on my part, I still kind of speculate and wonder if there was any knowledge that Jesus had before his public ministry. Because even if you go back to Luke chapter 2, verse 34 to 35, remember that's the gospel where Mary and Joseph present Jesus in the temple, and there's that man named Simeon comes and says to Mary, Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and be a sign that will be contradicted, and you yourself, a sword will pierce, so the thoughts of hearts may be revealed. And so I suspect right there, of course, Mary and Joseph may have pondered what the words of Simeon meant. And I wonder, did they share that experience with Jesus even before his ministry began? We don't know. Again, with Jesus being fully human, fully divine. Again, the question is how much did his human side know about what his divine side knew? But without sources pinpointing the months or years before Mark chapter 8, 31, and we are might be able to infer an early awareness, maybe perhaps one or two years into a three-year ministry. The exact date to when, we don't know. So that's the best I can come up with.

SPEAKER_01 16:37

But even with all the preconditioning to the disciples, the evening of the Last Supper, they never knew that this was going to be the end of their time, I think.

SPEAKER_00 16:46

Yeah, I don't think the disciples understood. They didn't comprehend what Jesus was saying to them. Interesting. Yeah, so so again, if you're just tuning in, you're listening to Father Knows Best here on Sioux Line Catholic Radio as I answer your questions about faith in the Catholic Church. I'm Father Mark Stoll, joined by Tim Sudin, presenting some of the questions I received from you. And so let's dive into another question.

SPEAKER_01 17:08

Mary from Sioux City, via email, asks, Why do I never experience a lay person preaching the gospel at a mass?

SPEAKER_00 17:17

Thank you for this question. During the holy sacrifice of the Mass, it is normal not to see a lay person preaching the gospel in the strict liturgical sense. And so the church distinguishes between what we call proclaiming scripture at Mass and giving the homily. And the phrase preaching the gospel at Mass, I'll take to mean basically giving the homily. The homily, of course, is what we would define as an exhortation or talk or speech or discourse given after the proclamation of the gospel to apply the scriptural passages that we've just heard, or maybe a teaching of the church, you know, to the people that are gathered. And so the church teaches that the homily is reserved to the priest or deacon because it's part of the liturgy itself, and explains that the mysteries of the faith and norms of Christian life, you know, are what the priest and deacon are supposed to try to explain. The quote of canon law is very explicit about this. In the canon 761, section one, it says, Among the forms of preaching, the homily, which is part of the liturgy itself, is reserved to the priest or deacon and is preeminent. In the general instruction of the Roman Missal, again on how the Mass is to be offered, paragraph number sixty-six, it says, the homily should ordinarily be given by the priest, celebrate himself. He may entrust it to a concelebrating priest, or occasionally according to circumstances, to the deacon, but never to a layperson. In particular cases, and for a just cause, the homily may be given by a bishop or a priest who is present at the celebration, but cannot celebrate. So, in other words, again, we're saying is lay people can proclaim the scriptures, the readings, such as the first reading, the psalm, the second reading, but not the homily. Or, of course, they can't proclaim the gospel either, because there's different roles at Mass. Again, we look at this in in we find this in the General Instruction Roman Missal, paragraph number 59. It says, the readings of the Old Testament, the Epistle, ordinary proclaimed by a layperson, the gospel proclaimed by a deacon, and if a deacon's absent, then by a priest celebrant. And then it goes on and says the function of proclaiming the readings is ministerial, not presidential. The readings there should readings, the readings therefore should be proclaimed by a lecture, and the gospel by a deacon, or in his absent a priest. However, a deacon or another priest is not present, the priest celebrant himself could read the gospel. But if a suitable reader is not present, the priest celebrant must also proclaim the readings. But again, we're looking at the priest along with the assistance of the deacon is the presidential role, presiding role. And so that's why that's reserved to the priest or deacon. And so, in short, the Catholic Church basically understands the liturgy where it involves the proclamation of scripture by ministers. But the homily is a particular liturgical, presidential, ministerial role that's connected to the celebration. And that's why we don't permit it to a lay person to stand up and preach the homily. Now, of course, this doesn't say that the lay people have no role in proclaiming the gospel, because Vatican II clearly teaches, again, Catechism, Catholic Church 904 says that the Christ fulfills his prophetic mission not only through the hierarchy, but also through the laity as witnesses, as through giving them the sense of grace and faith for the word. And in paragraph 897 of Catechism Catholic Church, it says lay people by the baptismal corporation of Christ share in Christ's prophetic office in their own way, with their own part in the church's mission. And the Vatican II's Lumengensian document, paragraph 35, says, laity are called to make Christ known, especially through their daily life, so their evangelization is not only by spoken word, but also, and often primarily by lived faith. And so the church sees the role of the Mass and the homily as a way to inform, to catechize, to instruct, to encourage, to motivate the lay faithful to go out and help evangelize the world by preaching the gospel by lived faith, and through their various vocations, such as marriage or single life, and through the various ministries they may serve in the parish and community, such as catechists for the parish's faith formation program. But in summary, the Catholic Church preserves the preaching of the gospel, that is the homily, at the Eucharist to a priest or deacon, that is to ordained ministers, but never to a lay person. But again, at the same time, the church absolutely expects lay people to proclaim the gospel through witness, evangelization, daily life, and participation in the church's mission. And so I hope that answers your question.

SPEAKER_01 21:53

Do we have enough time for one question? I think we have enough time.

SPEAKER_00 21:55

Let's try another one.

SPEAKER_01 21:56

That sounds fantastic. This is kind of a follow up to the one we just addressed. Yes. Please define what is a homily.

SPEAKER_00 22:03

Yes, so this question again I liked because it dives a little deeper into what we've just talked about. In the year 2015, the Congregation of Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, this is the Office of the Vatican, issued a document called Homiletic Directory, and it states the following A homily is a form of preaching that happens within Mass. It is not just a general religious talk. It is meant to connect the Word of God, proclaimed in the readings with the mysteries celebrating the Eucharist. It is to help the faithful respond by living what they hear. And so a homily again is a liturgical proclamation which is meant to proclaim God's wonderful works in the history of salvation and the mystery of Christ. A homily should always help the community go on to celebrate the Eucharist actively. It should be based on the sacred texts, drawing its content on the basic uh sacred text that was proclaimed just earlier. First reading, second reading, Psalms, gospel, for example. And I like this way they define it that it should be a heart-to-heart communication with its goal not merely to inform, but to provide a living explanation that forms faith and leads to practice. Now the word homily comes from the Greek word, which means familiar conversation. Other words, heart speaking to heart. So, in other words, a homily is not a sermon on an abstract topic that's unrelated to the readings of the liturgy. A homily is not an in-depth biblical exegesis, that is, you know, explaining what the scriptures mean at that point, you know, going into the depths of the Hebrew and the Greek terms. Um it's not merely a catechal instruction, even though catechesis can be a part of it. It's not a preacher's personal witness centered on himself, rather, it's centered on the faith of the church. And so these points I think are important. Again, because the homily is part of liturgy, it is an act of worship, is meant to help people, excuse me, it's meant to help Christ's pastoral ministry be acclaimed through the readings and the homily and then made present to the sacrifice of the Mass. And I should also add, of course, we know that there are some priests and deacons that are really good at homilies. Other priests and deacons are not so good for various reasons. Because it does take practice, it takes experience, especially being comfortable speaking in front of people. And that's why priests and deacons, when we receive homily training in the seminary and deacon formation, and again, it takes time and requires reflection on the scripture readings of that mass when homilies be given. So again, it should be part of the deacon or the priest prayer life. And again, it also requires knowing the people of the parish, the community that is being gathered, so that you know the priest or deacon can apply that homily to the people. And I was taught in summary two that a good homily begins by preaching to himself. And so, again, some wise words of of what a homily should be and how it why it takes some time and to develop some of those skills. But again, uh when uh a pre a homeless is able to connect to his people, again, uh it's it's a wonderful experience. Again, because you know, the the homeless, the the priest, the deacon needs to hear it himself too, and oftentimes like you know, the the glory of God being proclaimed. So, in short, I really like this definition I found. It says that homily is a heart-to-heart communication of the priest or deacon to connect the word of God proclaimed in the readings with the mystery celebrated in the Eucharist and to help the faithful respond by living what they hear. And so I hope that answers your question. I think that's a wonderful way to say it. Excellent. So next week we're gonna do something just a little bit different. Next episode, we're gonna uh talk about the order of anointing of the sick and their pastor care. Uh it was a newly revised, retranslated uh document that just went into um full requirement to be used by priests, you know, on Easter Sunday of 2026. And so we're gonna talk about that next week. So uh so, Tim, if you have any questions about that, write some up and we're gonna dive into that.

SPEAKER_01 26:12

I'm very much looking forward to that, Father, because as we all know, we're all gonna come to a point in our life when we will pass away. Right. But it's interesting to look at it from the priest's perspective, how they prepare a person to go for the afterlife.

SPEAKER_00 26:26

And also we want to catechize to explain that when is that those various rites could be used? Because it's just not one right, it's a series of rights to be used at various times. So we'll talk more about that next week. So um to hope you tune in.

SPEAKER_01 26:39

Thank you for that teaser.

SPEAKER_00 26:41

I'm excited for it. So again, we really appreciate that you've tuned in to Sudan Catholic Radio as we offer both national and local programs, including Faith in Action with Joanne Fox and Draw Near of Fred and Cara, Life Plan, Catholic Ministry Professionals, Divine Mercy Chaplet, and Sunday Morning Mass. Again, please check out the Facebook pages for Sudan Catholic Radio and for Father Knows Best for more information about this show and more information about other questions and answers that I've addressed, and even more information that I've not addressed on this show. So as we wrap up today's questions and answers session, we extend our heartfelt thanks to all of our listeners for tuning in and sharing your thought-provoking questions, your curiosity and engagement make this show possible. We're always inspired by the incredible range of topics to bring to the table. We hope that you found the answers both informative and enlightening, and that you'll carry some of the new insights with you as you go about your week. And if your question was not answered today, you may hear your answer to your question maybe next week or the week after. If you have missed this episode, would like to relisten to this or other episodes, please visit our website, so visit the programs drop menu and click on local programs to find this episode and other episodes of Father Knows Best and other local programs. Again, if you have any questions, please send your questions to us at father knows best show at yahoo.com or mail them Father Knows Best, Sulan Catholic Radio, 701 West Fifth Street, Sioux City, Iowa, 51103. And thank you. Graciously thank our sponsor, St. Augustine Indian Mission Winobago, for sponsoring today's episode. Please join us again next Wednesday at 9 p.m. for another round of questions and answers. I tell them, stay curious, stay faithful, keep your light shining, and keep those questions coming. And for now, I'm Father Mark Stowe, your host, signing off, wishing you a great week ahead. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.