BishopAccountability.org

Byrnes spends first 10 days listening

By Tihu Lujan
Guam Daily Post
December 7, 2016

http://www.postguam.com/news/local/byrnes-spends-first-days-listening/article_35309202-bc70-11e6-afc4-b7d1cdd05411.html

'HERE TO LISTEN': Coadjutor Archbishop Michael Byrnes addresses the media during a press conference at the Chancery in Agana on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Reflecting on his first visit to Guam, Byrnes remarked “I would hope that the people of Guam understand that I’m here to listen first."
Photo by Norman M. Taruc

“Last week was kind of a whirlwind, but it was a great opportunity to get acclimated in a very quick way. This week has been about listening, meeting the chancery staff and having some of our first meetings, seeing what people do and hearing what their hopes and concerns are.” – Coadjutor Archbishop Michael J. Byrnes

Coadjutor Archbishop Michael J. Byrnes said his first 10 days in office have been a whirlwind, consisting mostly of meetings with different religious groups, organizations, councils and clergymen.

The coadjutor archbishop arrived on Guam on Nov. 26 and met with members of the press yesterday to recount his first 10 days on island, and also gave updates on various church responsibilities.

“Last week was kind of a whirlwind, but it was a great opportunity to get acclimated in a very quick way,” Byrnes said. “This week has been about listening, meeting the chancery staff and having some of our first meetings, seeing what people do and hearing what their hopes and concerns are.”

While Byrnes said that he’s met with a few of the local archdiocesan councils – including the finance council, legal councils and a few priests – the coadjutor archbishop had little to update on, stating that his meetings mostly entertained brief introductions and general overviews of diocesan issues.

“No actions have been taken that I’m aware of, there’s a lot of deliberating going on, but no final decisions made,” he said.

The coadjutor archbishop said he has yet to visit the island’s two seminaries, the sitting Church museum, and has not received updates or decisions on Archbishop Anthony Apuron’s ongoing canonical trials in Rome. He briefly met with members of the Neocatechumenal Way, but has issued no stance on the divide, claiming that he is "just getting the lay of the land."

Appreciative of groups' efforts

On receiving a letter addressed to him from protesters representing the Concerned Catholics of Guam and the Laity Forward Movement on Sunday, Byrnes said he acknowledged and appreciates the groups' efforts over the year. He added that he understands their intentions, trying to reach out to Rome and staying true to their goal of officially removing Apuron’s title as archbishop of Agana.

“I received the letter from Mr. Sablan and Mr. Klitizkie and I appreciate it. They have very focused concerns,” Byrnes said. “They’re saying that it’s not about me, which I appreciate, but about their convictions and that they’re mainly trying to communicate to Rome with these respects, and I get that.”

The coadjutor archbishop also met with support groups for clergy abuse victims, working with Sister Angela Perez to further the process of communication between victims and the church.

“We’re working out protocols on how to respond, and to develop a kind of systemic ability to give an immediate response to people who call with an allegation or a claim,” Byrnes said.

In his first week on island, Byrnes also worked on renewing the church’s affiliation with the Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores Catholic Theological Institute for Oceania, a seminarian school erected in 2005. The institute requires the renewal of affiliation with the archdiocese every five years, according to Byrnes.

His more elaborate meetings have consisted of getting to know the island’s priests and the faithful. Byrnes described the father-son like talks with the eight or nine priests he’s met so far, out of the island’s 48 priests, including retired ones.

“It’s a great deal to hear their stories. As my chief collaborators in the ministry of the church here, I just really value the opportunity to spend an hour with them to get a sense of where they’re at, what their concerns may be, and what their hopes are,” Byrnes said. “It’s been eye-opening, but also encouraging to see the faithful and my brothers in the priesthood.”

Closing his first 10 days on island, Byrnes is still adamant about listening to the members of the archdiocese and religious above all before embarking on making hard decisions and issuing what could be vast reforms in the island’s church. The coadjutor archbishop’s goal for now is to bring a habit of leading with fairness to the local archdiocese.

“I would hope that the people of Guam understand that I’m here to listen first. My main vocation in life is to make Jesus known. I’ve experienced Jesus to be a savior, and he saved me,” Byrnes said. “When I was vice rector of the seminary in Detroit, I always wanted the priests to know that I was fair, and I would seem very straightforward, but I would be fair. I think that’s important in relating to the large diocese we have here. Those are things I hope people here would understand.”

Mother's inspiration

Byrnes is grateful to be able to join in on the celebration of the Dec. 8 Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Relating the importance to his personal life, the bishop recalled his mother as a guiding inspiration for celebrating tomorrow’s solemn event.

“One of the reasons that this day is very important to me is because of my own mother, long deceased now. I used to call her a ‘world-class worrier.’ She would always worry, thinking, ‘if I worry about it, the worst won’t happen.' So sometimes I ask the Blessed Mother to worry for me, too,” Byrnes said.

The archdiocese is also celebrating the culmination of the Golden Jubilee of the Archdiocese of Agana, which began on Oct. 14, 2014. While the actual 50th anniversary of becoming a diocese was on Oct. 14, 2015, the observance was extended to give more time to prepare the faithful spiritually and to relish the special year of grace for the Archdiocese of Agana.

Guam will also mark and solemnly remember the 75th anniversary of the start of World War II on Guam, on Dec. 8, 1941.

“I’m also very mindful of the 75th anniversary of the bombing here on Guam. The day is called the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Feast of the Immaculate Concepcion, and this anniversary adds a different kind of solemnity, a remembrance of the importance of this day in the history of this island,” Byrnes said. “I look forward to meeting some of the remaining survivors. This is a generation that is passing swiftly, so it’s an honor to be able to honor them and to hear some of their experiences through the years.”

Byrnes will preside over the Mass and will deliver the homily this year at the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica. Praying of the Holy Rosary will begin at 3:30 p.m. followed by the nobena. Proclamation of the Gospel will begin at 4 p.m. followed by the homily and the islandwide procession through the streets of Hagåtña with the statue of Santa Marian Kamalen.

Contact: tihu@postguam.com




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