Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

Peace! Our Holy Father has requested prayers for the gathering of all the Presidents of Episcopal Conferences from around the world in Rome beginning this Thursday: "From Thursday to next Sunday there will be a meeting in the Vatican of the presidents of all Episcopal Conferences on the theme of the protection of minors in the church. I invite you to pray for this meeting, which I wanted as an act of strong pastoral responsibility to face an urgent challenge of our time". (Pope Francis Calls Sex Abuse Summit at Vatican; Vatican Sex Abuse Summit Press Conference; World Bishops Head to Vatican for Sex Abuse Summit)

You can follow along and read more on the summit website: http://www.pbc2019.org/home

We might reflect during this time on our CLC General Principles #6, which reflects our union with the Christ through the Church: "Union with Christ leads to union with the Church where Christ here and now continues his mission of salvation. . . . We work together with the hierarchy and other ecclesial leaders, motivated by a common concern for the problems and progress of all people and open to the situations in which the Church finds itself today."

We join our prayers with those of the Pope and our Shepherds during this time, that the Holy Spirit may guide our entire Christian community to a conversion, because "We know today that the best thing we can say in face of the pain caused is a commitment to personal, communal, and social conversion that learns to listen to and care for especially the most vulnerable." (Pope Francis' Letter to the Bishops of Chile, 31 May 2018)

As we join our prayers with our shepherds, we also are invited to journey with them in in our own conversion and deepening of our union with the Church in our mission "to bring the gospel of salvation to all people and to serve individual persons and society by opening hearts to conversion and struggling to change oppressive structures." (CLC General Principles #8)
May all of us as entire people of God remember we live in "dignity and freedom of the sons of God, in whose hearts the Holy Spirit dwells as in His temple." (Lumen Gentium, 9) We pray that all of us as the faithful Holy People of God be reminded we are anointed with the grace of the Holy Spirit and that we be very attentive to this anointing therefore when we reflect, think, evaluate, discern during these days and always. (Pope Francis' Letter to the Bishops of Chile, 31 May 2018)

As your humble servant, I offer these reflections for us for these coming days.

In Christ,

Michael "Lib" Liberatore
CLCP President