An Exhilarating Gut Punch Of A Day
My cell phone’s incoming-email tone sounded just after sunrise on June 13. Diocese of Evansville Chancellor Tim McGuire and I were somewhere along I-69, headed for Indianapolis and the press conference introducing Archbishop-designate Charles C. Thompson to the archdiocese he will shepherd beginning on July 28.
My friend Don Clemmer had written to let me know that I and the entire Diocese of Evansville would be in his thoughts as our collective journey toward Pope Francis’ appointment of the sixth bishop of Evansville unfolded. Clemmer and I met a few years ago at a media seminar organized by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. He worked in USCCB communications at the time.
He closed with a perfect summation of how I felt in that moment: “What an exhilarating gut punch of a day this must be.”
Yes, indeed – an exhilarating gut punch of a day. As I type these words, I’m still working on regaining my breath.
Talk about bittersweet. It’s impossible not to be happy for Archbishop-elect Thompson and the good people of Indianapolis. However, I’m sad that he is leaving us. Based on what I’ve seen across social media since the announcement of his appointment by Pope Francis, I am far from alone.
In more than 70 years, our diocese has found itself in this place only one other time – when Blessed Pope Paul VI appointed Evansville Bishop Paul Liebold to serve as Archbishop of Cincinnati. Our other bishops – Henry J. Grimmelsman, Francis R. Shea and Bishop-emeritus Gerald A. Gettelfinger – reached retirement age as our leaders, and so continued to serve as Apostolic Administrators until the sitting popes appointed their replacements.
Not so now. As was the case when Bishop Liebold left for Cincinnati, a group of our priests who serve as Consultors will convene the week after Archbishop-designate Thompson’s installation in Indianapolis. They will elect one of their brother priests to serve as Administrator of the diocese until Pope Francis appoints the sixth bishop of Evansville. Back in 1969 (for this historical record), the Consultors elected Monsignor Clinton Hirsch to serve in that role.
During a necessary meeting with our local media following the return trip from Indy, I made a public promise that I hope you will help me keep. In talking about Archbishop-designate Thompson and his legacy to our diocese, I noted that he always concluded every public presentation by 1) assuring those in attendance of his prayers; and 2) asking them to pray for him.
I promised that we would answer that call; I promised that we would pray for him. Please help me to keep that promise.
You might take comfort in knowing that, based on my experience since June 13, prayer does seem to mitigate the negative effects of an exhilarating gut punch of a day.
