Archbishop Bernard Hebda recently joined “Practicing Catholic” radio show host Patrick Conley to discuss three timely and important topics for the local Church: the Church’s commitment to women and children in light of the leaked draft of the Dobbs v. Jackson Supreme Court decision, recent news about Indian boarding schools, and the upcoming archdiocesan Synod Assembly.
The Synod Assembly takes place June 3-5 with a gathering of about 500 delegates from across the archdiocese. During the past three years, the local Church has seen priests and lay people be leaders in the process, Archbishop Hebda said.
“We’ve seen how the Lord has really blessed us with great ideas that are coming forth from the grassroots,” he said, “and we already had a deep sense of how blessed we are to have people that really are interested in the health of the Church, who love coming together, who have a great respect for the Church and her teaching, and who want the Church to continue to be faithful to her mission in the challenging times of 2022 and beyond.”
Having so many people be so generous with time is a “great comfort” to an archbishop, he said.
“I realize how much I’m longing for that outpouring of the Holy Spirit that will really help direct us in the years to come,” he said. Archbishop Hebda said the Synod process has been a major undertaking, one that brings great joy to his life and great anticipation as “we don’t know exactly what happens and how it is that the Holy Spirit is going to direct us.”
“But we have that confidence,” he said, “that Christian confidence that the Lord indeed has a plan for us, and that this is one way in which he’s able to reveal that for us.”
Asked about the leaked Supreme Court decision draft of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health that would overturn Roe v. Wade, Archbishop Hebda described the strong pro-life commitment locally that’s manifested not only in advocacy at the government level, but also in practical assistance to women and families in need, “that really help them look at a pregnancy in a different light, knowing that they’re not going to be alone,” he said.
Archbishop Hebda said he sees many Catholic faithful who understand that “if we’re going to be able to make progress in this area, we really have to be able to change hearts, but we also have to be willing to support women and families that are in need so that they’re able to make the right decision when the Lord blesses them with life.”
On the subject of Indian boarding schools, Archbishop Hebda described a deep desire to come to the truth. The report recently issued by the Department of the Interior is “massive,” he said, but it is only the first part.
“What we’re doing here is peeling that onion and trying to understand the good and the bad … of what transpired all of those years ago and how it is that we might be able to shine the light of truth, which is always important, into that situation in a way that might bring some healing,” he said.
To hear the full interview, listen to this episode of “Practicing Catholic,” which debuts at 9 p.m. May 27 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM and repeats at 1 p.m. May 28 and 2 p.m. May 29. To review pro-life resources, visit archspm.org/life. To learn more about the history of Indian boarding schools in the archdiocese, visit archspm.org/seeking-truth-together. To view an invitation to join Archbishop Hebda and parish Synod representatives for the Pentecost vigil Mass on June 4, visit archspm.org/events.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes interviews with Father Joseph Bambenek, assistant director of the Archdiocesan Synod, who describes what it takes to put together a Synod and what follows the Synod Assembly June 3-5; and Allison Spies, archives manager for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, who describes three “blesseds” with local ties and whose intercession Archbishop Hebda seeks during the Archdiocesan Synod.
Listen to their interviews after they have aired:
