Visit ad limina of Our Bishops
It had been a hectic and enjoyable week for the priests, sisters, seminarians and the faithful of the Malankara Catholic Church in Rome because of the visit ad limina of our bishops. Before talking about the Malankara Catholic Bishops’ visit ad limina, I owe my readers a brief explanation of what the visit ad limina actually means.
The quinquennial visit ad limina apostolorum or simply ad limina visit is an obligation of each bishop (members of the hierarchy) of the Catholic Church to the “thresholds of the Apostles” (ad limina apostolorum) – to the tombs of Sts. Peter and Paul and also a visit to the successor of St. Peter, the Pope. The visit is required of all diocesan bishops once every five years and is made up of three basic parts: 1) a visit to the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul, 2) a private and personal meeting with the Holy Father, Benedict XVI, and 3) visits to the various dicasteries (offices of the Roman Curia).
Even though there are several rules by the Popes which led to the current form of ad limina visits, it was in 1585 by a Constitution “Romanus Pontifex” when Pope Sixtus V formed the main rule and norm for visits ad limina. In a Decree for the Consistorial Congregation Pope Pius X made it mandatory for the bishops to render an account of the state of the diocese once every five years. At present it seems to be extremely difficult to keep up with the five year mandate because of the increased number of bishops (more than five thousand) and the busy schedule and health reasons of the of the Holy Father. The basis of this visit is found in the Scripture itself. The first documented visita ad limina is contained in Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians (1:18): “Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to confer with Cephas and remained with him for fifteen days.” The current requirements for the ad limina visit is the subject of can. 399 - 400 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law and can. 208 of the 1990 Code of Canons for the Eastern Churches.
The visit has a highly spiritual dimension when the bishops visit the tombs of St. Peter and St. Paul, offering mass and renewing their Profession of Faith. The tomb of St. Peter is in St. Peter’s Basilica and the tomb of St. Paul is located at the Basilica of St. Paul Outside - the - Wall. I felt blessed to be part of the Eucharistic celebration of the bishops along with other priests in a chapel at St. Peter’s adjacent to the tomb of John Paul II.
The personal dimension of the visit of the bishop is the 10 – 15 minutes meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. The Holy Father, when apprised of the state of the diocese by each bishop might ask questions and clarifications, which the bishop is prepared to answer. This meeting is very personal creating an intimate relationship with the head of the Apostlic College.
The official dimension of the visit is again expressed when the bishops visit various offices of the Roman Curia. Various matters related to the life of the dioceses are discussed with the heads and staff of these offices. I accompanied my bishops when they visited the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith as an “official photographer.” The Prefect of the CDF addressed the bishops and then listened to what they had to say. I also used the opportunity to talk to the Cardinal telling him that I had been to his diocese in the United States and mentioned my studies at Sacred Heart Seminary. He told me that he also has high regards for my alma mater.
Each bishop has to submit multiple copies of a detailed report (the quinquennial report) on the state of the diocese. The report also is the basis of the discussion in various dicasteries. At the group audience of the bishops, my Major Archbishop Baselios Cleemis addressed the Holy Father. Then the Holy Father addressed the bishops (I will write about it later). They all present some kind of traditional gifts to the Holy Father and the Pope normally gives each bishop a pectoral cross. It has a Corpus of Crucified Christ, surrounded by the symbols of the four Evangelists.
