Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Pastor
~ As you know, the Archdiocese of St. Louis is in the midst of our bicentennial year, and this week, the Church in St. Louis will celebrate something truly historic! This Thursday, September 24, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen will be beatified at the Dome at America’s Center. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, will preside at the Mass, which will bring together thousands of Catholics from St. Louis, across the United States, and around the world. This will be the first beatification or canonization in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, so it is especially noteworthy and historic!
So who was Archbishop Fulton Sheen? Born in El Paso, Illinois, in 1895, Fulton Sheen was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Peoria in 1919. A brilliant student and gifted teacher, he pursued advanced studies in Belgium and Rome and eventually taught at The Catholic University of America. But his greatest classroom would not be a university lecture hall. It would be the living rooms of millions of Americans.
Beginning with radio and later television, Sheen became one of the most recognizable Catholic voices of the twentieth century. His radio program, The Catholic Hour, reached millions of listeners. His television program, Life Is Worth Living, attracted an audience estimated at 30 million people. With his chalkboard, dramatic storytelling, and unmistakable voice, he spoke about Jesus Christ, sin, grace, the Eucharist, suffering, the Blessed Mother, and the meaning of human life. Fun fact: Blessed Fulton Sheen will be the only Blessed (or Saint, someday?) to have won an Emmy Award (for Most Outstanding Television Personality in 1952)!
Yet Sheen’s greatest gift was not his television personality. It was his missionary heart. For many years, he served as national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, helping Catholics throughout the United States support the Church’s missionary work throughout the world. He also attended the Second Vatican Council and later served as Bishop of Rochester and as an archbishop.
Those who knew Sheen often spoke about his deep devotion to the Eucharist and to the Blessed Virgin Mary. His ministry flowed from prayer. He understood that evangelization is not primarily about having the right words or winning an argument. It is about helping another person encounter Jesus Christ.
That is but one reason why his beatification matters today! We live in a culture filled with noise, distraction, and competing voices. Sheen used the newest means of communication available to him – radio and television – to proclaim an ancient truth: Jesus Christ is the answer to the deepest longing of the human heart. His example challenges us to ask how we can use today’s technology and communication not simply to entertain, but to evangelize.
Archbishop Sheen visited St. Louis many times, particularly in connection with his missionary work. In 1953, while he was national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, St. Louis hosted the first World Mission Exhibition at Kiel Auditorium. Some 270,000 people attended. Now, more than seventy years later, St. Louis will once again welcome the Church to celebrate his beatification!
I know that many parishioners will be attending the beatification this week, as well as other prayer services and events surrounding the beatification, both in St. Louis and in Peoria. For all of us not attending, I encourage you to pray for our Archdiocese, for the Church in the United States, and for a renewal of missionary zeal among all Catholics. May Blessed Fulton Sheen help us rediscover the joy of sharing the Gospel!
Blessed Fulton Sheen, pray for us!
