Nearing the End of the Year of Faith
An Interview with Fr. Frank Donio, S.A.C. by José Antonio Varela
Click here for the Spanish translation

Q: We are near the end of the celebration of the "Year of Faith." In your opinion, what will "remain" in the believers after this experience?

The Year of Faith has been a spiritual opportunity to reflect on how we are living our personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  A key message for all is deepening one's relationship with Jesus Christ and then going forth and witnessing in faith and charity.  My hope is that this message has permeated into the lives of believers and will bear fruit through greater renewal not just in the Church, but in the world.

Q: This Year has been rich in activities and meetings with different sectors. Where should the Church assist in deepening of the faith?

Personal witness of the faith in word and deed in everyday life.  Activities and meetings assist us in our growth in faith, but personal witness can transform the life of the believer, the Church, and the world.  Simply knowing the faith through catechesis is not enough; living faith in daily life, outside of the church building is key.

Q: A recent Propaganda Fide statistic shows that the Church does great missionary and social charitable work in the world. In what geographical areas must the Church strengthen its presence?

As everyone knows, the Church in what is called by some the "Global South" is growing at an exceptional rate in a number of places, but is diminishing in the "Global North."  Our solidarity with one another as a global Church can benefit all if we are willing to move beyond nationalism and prejudices.  Closer collaboration with one another in serving faith and socio-charitable needs can be a remedy to scarcity in either area.  I have seen personally the benefit of such collaboration in my own religious community, the Pallottines, and in the association of which we are a part, the Union of Catholic Apostolate.  We are in over 50 countries around the world and when we collaborate well, then faith and charitable needs are served more fully, others are energized and new opportunities are developed.  Such collaboration engenders hope.

Q: Today we live in the midst of a secular society, and where the world is moving at the whim of economic theories. How should the gospel be presented to men and women?

Witness of believers that is authentic, charitable, open, hospitable, welcoming, and communal does appeal to those who find that secular society is individualistic.  People are used and then discarded.  Only if they are useful do they have a place.  Many young adults who I work with pastorally see the lie to this understanding. They often have struggles finding jobs, are in debt, and are inheriting the economic woes brought on by their prior generations. The Church offers a community of believers that, at its best, cares for one another and assists all in leading lives that are virtuous, with values, and a goal that is eternal and not fleeting.

Q: The encyclical "Lumen fidei" came to light during this Year. Where is the "new" doctrine of this document?

Not new, renewed. Lumen Fidei is new in the sense that it was written by both Pope Francis and the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI.  It offers a clear exposition of what faith is and how we can live faith concretely in a world that needs the "light" of Jesus Christ.  This light is shed on dark places in our world and seeks to transform them.  It also leads us to salvation.

Q: During the Year of Faith, the Church lived through the change of a Pope. How do you view the first seven months with Pope Francis?

Pope Francis has already, by his witness, changed the common, secular narrative about the Church in recent years - scandal, discord, etc.  Instead, through lived faith in charity, he is showing us how to witness hope in the world.  We are all still learning about him, but his witness is clear and challenges all to deeper reflection about how we are living what we say we believe. In time, we will come to know more, but I have found him a profound example of faith who has led me to examine deeply how I live as a religious and as a priest.

Q: And in the same way, what is the main legacy left by Pope Benedict XVI?

All that Pope Benedict did for the Church will be more fully understood and appreciated with time, as is the case with any legacy.  Pope Francis offers us an example to follow in that he has invited Pope Benedict to continue to be a present, rather than past, witness.  We can learn from this and take time to read what he wrote and appreciate the gift that he still is to us.

Q: Although Pope Francis is leading the Church with humble gestures and simple guidelines, there are some who criticize him because he is "simplifying" the papacy. Is this real?

Critics will always be present, no matter who the Pope is.  Some criticized Pope Benedict for resigning saying that it diminished the papacy. Instead, I prefer to focus on the fruit of the witness of both.  It is called humility.  Giving up the papacy, as Pope Benedict did, is not the act of a self-seeking person. Living in the way Pope Francis does is also not the act of a self-seeking person. These are actions of men of great prayer with a focus on life in Christ, not life for self. In a world that is enamored by celebrity, true humility - not self-seeking, but focused on the good of the other, true charity, when we see it should cause us to pause and evaluate our own living. Why is it so strange that the Vicar of Christ would do this, is it not like Christ himself?

Q: There are also those who criticize because the pope insists that the Church's work must focus on the message of Christ, and, for example, not obsess about sexual moral issues. The Catholic Apostolate Center, that is purely missionary, has strong resources for the New Evangelization? What about it?

Jesus Chris is not a what, but a who. We can be in relationship with him.  He is not distant to us, but is our brother leading us to salvation.  All of our moral teachings are based on this relationship, but they are not the starting point of faith, the relationship with Jesus Christ is. The baptized continue Christ's mission, he working through us, and assist others in experiencing life in him.  We are sent, as missionary disciples, as apostles, to witness in the world.  Our witness is in word and in deed, which includes the moral life, lived love of God and neighbor.  Missionaries do not live compartmentaized lives.  It is faith and charity lived together, not one or the other. No matter what, it needs to be lived witness. None of this message is new.  What seems to be new is that some are hearing it for the first time, possibly because the language used is very simple and direct.

Q: How has the Catholic Apostolate Center and the Pallottines of the Immaculate Conception Province lived the Year of Faith? What collaborations have emerged from this experience for future work? Are there plans for expansion into South America or other countries?

The Catholic Apostolate Center developed greatly during the Year of Faith.  We offer opportunities for people to grow in faith and charity both through our many online resources, but also through the programs and activities that our collaboration with the United States Conference of Bishops, archdioceses and dioceses, educational institutions, and international, national, and local Catholic organizations.  We also offer a local site in the Washington, D.C. area where our affiliated organizations and others can come for spiritual renewal and collaboration.  This facility re-opened, after reconstruction, during the Year of Faith.  We hope to continue to expand the Center's collaboration beyond North America and are examining ways for this to happen concretely. As a Province, we have begun missionary work in a remote area of Peru, which expands the presence of the Pallottines in South America.   These efforts during the Year of Faith and our jubilee year of celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the canonization of St. Vincent Pallotti (22 January 2013) offered great opportunities for us to actualize the work of the New Evangelization.