The Portal Archive February 2012 | Page 9

THE P RTAL February 2012 Page 9 The Ordinary’s Page Monsignor Keith Newton writes My Dear Brothers and Sisters, The 15th January 2012, marked the first Anniversary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham under the patronage of Blessed John Henry Newman. An Anniversary is an opportunity both to look back with thanksgiving and look forward in hope. We have moved from places we have known to a new and welcoming home in the Catholic Church. I give thanks to God for your courage and faith, sometimes at great personal cost. Many people have travelled a similar road, including our patron Blessed John Henry Newman, but we have travelled responding to the invitation made by Pope Benedict specifically to people like us. Although there have been difficulties and anxieties, many have told me of their joy and fulfilment. We can also be thankful for those Catholic congregations and individuals who have supported and encouraged us. There have been disappointments and setbacks but these have been outweighed by the warmth of the welcome. This is something we have prayed and longed for and it puts into practice the Holy Father’s vision that it is possible for Christians from different traditions to be united in a common faith in communion with the successor of Peter. Of course, there have been some misunderstandings; partly because the Ordinariate has begun in a modest way, many Catholics have had no personal contact with the Ordinariate. It is up to us to make a reality the vision that Pope Benedict has set before us, that the Ordinariate should contribute to the wider goal of visible unity between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion. It is to help us to experience how we can share the gifts we have received to strengthen each other for our mission to a world that desperately needs to hear of Jesus Christ. We should continue to pray earnestly for the unity of Christ’s Church which Pope Benedict reminded us last year is a particular task for the successor of Saint Peter. What of the future? We face it with faith and hope. There is a constant stream of men and women being received into the Catholic Church through the Ordinariate; we expect several new groups to be received at Easter and we are preparing for a number of priestly ordinations around Pentecost. In addition several young men are exploring the possibility of ordination within the Ordinariate. This is all extremely encouraging but could be a strain on our limited finances. I ask you to be generous; not simply making your financial contributions in response to needs but in response to God’s generosity to us in Christ “who though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” 2 Cor 8:9. If we all do this we will be able to prepare for the future with confidence. We are part of an historic moment in the Church, and must remember that nothing will be achieved without prayer and holiness of life. As we look forward to the future with hope we entrust the life and mission of the Ordinariate to the prayers of Our Lady of Walsingham and Blessed John Henry Newman. The Right Revd Mgr Keith Newton Ordinary (This is an abridged version of Mgr Keith Newton’s recent Pastoral Letter)