BALTIMORE, Maryland, November 19, 2015 (LifeSiteNews) — Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, Pope Francis’ envoy to the U.S., was warmly received by the nation’s bishops at their Fall General Assembly in Baltimore on Monday, netting a standing ovation both before and after an address in which he issued a powerful call for them to uphold the natural family and Catholic identity in education.
“We are all well aware that we are at a critical point now in the challenges that are brought to family life in our western world,” Archbishop Vigano said. “This has been clearly seen in the recent Synod of bishops.”
“We know that a solid Catholic family is the very first school of learning,” he said. “Good and faithful parents are always the best teachers,” who form a domestic Church.
The strength of the New Evangelization, which should be in Catholic families and schools, Archbishop Vigano told the bishops, will only exist in proportion to its Catholic identity. He also cautioned them that preserving moral order in society means not falling prey to the temptations of a “secularized and increasingly pagan civilization.”
Bishops have a “tremendous obligation to watch over and protect families, and parishes and schools for the good of the people,” the papal nuncio reminded the bishops in attendance.
Archbishop Vigano is credited by Christians and marriage supporters, and been vilified by homosexual activists and the Left, for his apparent role in coordinating Pope Francis’ private meeting with embattled clerk Kim Davis during the Holy Father’s recent U.S. visit.
On his flight back to Rome, the Holy Father also seemed to give Davis his implicit support, stating when asked about the situation, that government officials have a “human right” to refuse to conduct a duty that violates their conscience. “Conscientious objection must enter into every juridical structure because it is a right,” he said.
After an uproar when news of the pope’s meeting with Davis got out, many on the Left lashed out at Pope Francis, and not long after the Vatican first refused to confirm or deny the meeting, then confirmed it, before making a statement distancing the pope from Davis.
Homosexual supporters petitioned Archbishop Vigano to resign for his part in the meeting between Davis and the Holy Father, not the first time the pope’s envoy has been targeted or taken heat from them. They also petitioned him to stay away from this year’s March for Marriage.
Some media have linked the US bishops’ strong show of support for Vigano at the meeting with his prominent role in arranging Pope Francis’ meeting with Davis.
In his address at the meeting this week, Archbishop Vigano, also a vocal defender of life, reminded the US Bishops at their meeting of their responsibility as apostles to impart the Catholic faith, whether or not it makes them popular.
“We have received and we have to pass down the authentic teaching of Christ,” he said. “Like St. Paul, we are compelled to proclaim the Gospel message, ‘in and out of season.’”
He went on to task the bishops with working to restore Catholic identity in schools and to encourage Catholic colleges and universities to be worthy of their Catholic title, specifically calling on the Jesuit order to reaffirm Catholic identity in its educational institutions.
“Educational leaders should regain firm command of the helm of their institutions through the storm of the present times,” the pope’s envoy told the US Bishops. “The course must always be set by Christ and his Church, never allowing influence and wealth to dictate what might be an improper orientation for a Catholic school or university.”
Archbishop Vigano, who has served as nuncio since 2011, will turn 75 in January, at which time he is required to submit his resignation to the pope, who can either accept it or leave the archbishop in place to continue serving.
“As the end of my mission among you may be approaching,” he told the bishops, “I want to assure you that you will always be, with my sincere gratitude, in my thoughts and prayers.”