OMAHA (NE)
World-Herald
By Christopher Burbach
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Meeting with Omaha Archbishop George Lucas and other U.S. prelates Friday, Pope Benedict IXV posed questions about the American contraception insurance controversy and offered encouragement to American church leaders in the position they have taken on the matter, Lucas said from Rome.
Lucas and fellow bishops from Nebraska and Kansas met Friday with Benedict in an office of the Apostolic Palace, the pope’s official residence in Vatican City. The prelates are in Rome for what’s called an ad limina visit to the Vatican, a periodic trip required of all Roman Catholic bishops from around the world. Groups of U.S. bishops have been traveling to Rome for several months. Iowa and Missouri bishops also are in the current contingent there. …
During Lucas’ visit, news broke in Cleveland, Ohio, that the Vatican had ordered the reopening of 13 Catholic parishes that the Cleveland Diocese had closed in 2009 as part of a diocese-wide reconfiguration. A Vatican decree found that Cleveland Bishop Richard Lennon did not follow church law or procedures in closing the parishes, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported.
The Omaha Archdiocese has embarked on a study and planning process that could lead to mergers or closings of parishes and schools in Omaha. Lucas’ schedule in Rome included a meeting with the Congregation for Clergy, the panel that issued the Cleveland decree.
“We actually did talk about (the Cleveland situation),” Lucas said. “Not just Omaha, but it faces every diocese.”
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