An Abundance of Blessings | A Teaching from Bishop Robert Pipta

My new episcopal ministry in the Eparchy of Parma finds a very welcome amount of support from its clergy, monastics, faithful, and friends. I’m grateful for this. I’m learning a new pace of ministry, organizing a great deal of travel, and working to prioritize the needs of our clergy and parochial communities.

Prior to my coming to Parma, I served the Byzantine Catholic Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as its rector for nearly ten years. I enjoyed, in addition to my administrative work, teaching the liturgical practicum courses to our seminarians. I still recall a particular course where the seminarians learn of various types of blessings that may be requested of them in future priestly ministry. We were mindful of a definite connection between blessings in the liturgical services and those that may be requested of us “on the street” or in the home.

Now that we are celebrating the great feast of the Theophany of our Lord, the ultimate example of a blessing extending from the Church into our homes is put before us in the great sanctification of the Jordan Water, its use in our homes for the annual blessing by the priest, and its availability for other purposes throughout the year. Holy water is used to bless icons, whose presence in our homes confirms it as a domestic church.

The words of blessing that begin our liturgical services are familiar to our ears: “Blessed is our God, always, now and ever and forever.” These words extend from the liturgy and are used by many a priest when an individual requests a blessing. At the end of the Divine Liturgy when we hear the words “The blessing of the Lord be upon you through his grace and loving-kindness,” we are hearing a formula of blessing associated with the distribution of bread blessed at the end of Great Vespers on greater feasts. Also, in those churches where the remaining bread that was not consecrated to become the Body of our Lord is formally distributed at the end of Divine Liturgy, this blessing formula may be heard by each individual who approaches. It is common that even those who are not permitted to partake of the Divine Eucharist are invited for participation in these blessings.

The Instruction for Applying the Liturgical Prescriptions of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches issued by the Vatican’s Eastern Churches office in 1996 reminds us that creation, itself, can be understood as a sacrament:

The economy of divine grace dispensed to mankind is accomplished by deeds and words (cf. Acts 1:1), increasing the value of the “cosmic elements:” the human body above all; the water, oil, bread, and wine, the instruments such as the Eucharistic cup; the sacred building with all that it represents and encloses within it, especially the cross and holy icons; sacred places and times. Such elements are taken up by the Lord Jesus through the Holy Spirit, recapitulated by him and entrusted to the Church as instruments of salvific sacramentality…. It is in this context that the liturgical gestures and benedictions acquire all their meaning. (#41)

These are the aspects of our rich Byzantine liturgical and spiritual tradition that come to my mind as I reflect on Pope Francis’ recent declaration, Fiducia Supplicans. On December 18, 2023, the Vatican issued this “Declaration on the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings” that the Church may have some clarity on those blessings that are at the heart of the Holy Mysteries (i.e. the seven sacraments) and those which are considered more extemporaneous or spontaneous.

Clearly, Christ and his mystical body, the Church, only bless that which is good for our salvation and bless Him Who accomplishes our salvation.

I value the declaration’s clarity about different types of blessings. The distinction between ascending blessings, descending blessings, and extending or horizontal blessings is helpful in giving a clear sense to the various blessings that I taught our seminarians in preparations for requests that would be made of them.

Examples of Ascending blessings in our Church are “we praise you, we bless you, we thank you, O Lord” (anamnesis acclamation at the Divine Liturgy); “Bless the Lord, O my soul” (Psalms 102 and 103); and the familiar words of blessing, “Blessed is our God, always, now and ever and forever.” Such an ascending blessing does not make God holy; rather, we declare his holiness for our own benefit.

Descending blessings are those we most commonly understand as blessings. In our Church, these are given in the name of Christ by the bishop or priest. The blessing is often accompanied by a hand gesture in the form of a cross with the priest forming in the fingers of his right hand the letters that abbreviate, “Jesus

Christ,” reminding us that the blessing is not the cleric’s, but is God’s given through the treasury of the Church.

The Holy Father also makes mention of extending (horizontal) blessings, or those that indicate an approval or permission from person to person, such as a father giving a blessing for a man to marry his daughter.

It is common in the Byzantine tradition for the faithful to request blessings from bishops and priests on many occasions, often informally. My experience is that these blessings are given immediately and without questioning, understanding that the one who asks for the blessing is showing a need for God’s saving presence in his life.

It is assumed that those who request a blessing from the Church do so to assist in growth toward holiness, to be assisted in the ascetical life and in conforming to God’s will, and to be successful in the performance of good works.

Concern regarding some interpretations of the declaration has arisen in regard to those who may seek a blessing not for growth in holiness but to affirm an attempted deviation from the Church in its teaching on same-sex relationships. The declaration guides us by stating that those who seek blessings only do so appropriately when they, “recognizing themselves to be destitute and in need of (God’s) help—do not claim a legitimation of their own status, but who beg that all that is true, good, and humanly valid in their lives and their relationships be enriched, healed, and elevated by the presence of the Holy Spirit.” (#31)

The declaration clarifies for Catholic faithful that which many Catholic priests have already come to know in their compassionate ministry to those with same-sex attraction. There are, for example, priests within the Byzantine Catholic Church in the U.S. who are chaplains for “Courage” – a support ministry for persons with same-sex attraction but who want support to live a chaste life according to the teachings of the Church. A priest of our Eparchy shared with me that, after each session, individuals spontaneously ask for his blessing. He understands that in asking for this blessing each is asking for the grace to continue to live a chaste and holy life.

Important to note is that, in our society, the word "couple" has come to be understood as two people who have entered a relationship that is either one of dating, engagement, or marriage. According to Church teaching, two people of the same sex cannot be in any of these types of relationships. There can never be a Church blessing for these.

It also must be added that there are relationships between one man and one woman that, likewise, cannot be blessed unless the priest has confidence that the relationship will grow into a valid marriage recognized by the Church.

Priests will need to take precautions if the public sign of any blessing could be misconstrued by those requesting the blessing or by those witnessing it. Priests must allow the Word – our Lord Jesus Christ – and His words to evangelize the culture with persistence “whether it is convenient or inconvenient.” (II Timothy 4:2). When any misunderstanding is possible, spontaneous prayer that leaves no doubt about the truth of the matter according to the Church’s teachings on faith and morals and no doubt about the blessing’s goal of growth in salvific holiness is the only option. What we pray is what we believe!

As the faithful of our Eparchy strive to grow in holiness in all aspects of their lives, and as we unpack the words of our Holy Father, finding how they apply to our Byzantine Catholic liturgical, spiritual, and disciplinary tradition, I encourage the English translation of Fiducia Supplicans to be printed in parish bulletins* and that parish priests assist their faithful in understanding the teachings of the declaration in light of the abundant blessings that we are graced by in our Byzantine Catholic Church.

+Robert
Bishop of Parma