'Passion' shakes North Jersey clergy to the core

The Record of Hackensack ^ | 02.29.04

[babaloo]

Our priest said we should all see it and that it was a remarkable film. He did say he would not recommend it for children. He is a soft spoken man and not the least bit emotional. The fact that he told us this from the altar during Mass yesterday was pretty telling given his low-key nature.

[Gritty]

I wondered why the two thieves who were crucified along with Jesus didn't come in for the same treatment

Under Roman punishment, scourging in concert with crucifixion was reserved for murderers and traitors.

The Jewish religious leaders were claiming Jesus was a "traitor" to Rome. Pilate's questioning centered around this accusation and he questioned Jesus, "Are you the King of the Jews?". King Herod had been appointed King of Judea by the Romans, so the acccusation of "traitor" would stand up only if Jesus were trying to usurp Herod, whom Rome had appointed - an accusation which neither Herod or Pilate could confirm during their individual investigations and interrogations. Nevertheless, that is the charge under which Jesus was unjustly executed.

The other two who were crucified with Christ were thieves, and as such did not qualify for the "full" treatment which included scourging.

[RonHolzwarth]

None of the four contradict each other?

THE LAST WORDS OF JESUS, according to:

Matthew Ch 27:
[46] And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, la'ma sabach-tha'ni?" that is, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
[50] And Jesus cried again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

Mark Ch. 15
[34] And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, "E'lo-i, E'lo-i, la'ma sabach-tha'ni?" which means, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
[37] And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last.

Luke Ch.23
[46] Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit!" And having said this he breathed his last.

John.19
[30] When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, "It is finished"; and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

This subject is rather large, there has been a large amount of scholarly research covering this subject well, it is not an "Old kinard(sic, correct spelling, canard) from freshman religion but it lacks scholarship.", as you stated.

[I still care]

It's a sad fact that in today's society, when the truth meets political correctness, it is revised.

It is a shame we live in a society where the truth is not valued, rather it is important not to "offend" people.

[Coleus]

Well Father, your either an idiot...or chose to ignore the truth of the scriptures.>>>

And weren't there countless Old Testament Scriptures which indicated the same, that a Messiah was coming to free them from sin?

[Coleus]

Some good news, he's retiring.

[Coleus]

This is so predictable it is scarey.

AP ignores 99% of the priesthood and finds one malcontent and who does it give the ink to?

Boy, I've never seen this happen before...NOT!>>

Isn't this the truth, I wonder how many priests this reporter sought out before he found the right answer for his headline. Most of the clergymen I spoke to just loved the movie, some good news, this priest is retiring. He may be ill, who knows.

[Preachin']

The Rev. Kenneth Lasch, a veteran Catholic priest, said he was repelled.

"I saw it as religious barbarism ... in my opinion, God did not send his son to die,'' said Lasch, of St. Joseph's Church of Mendham. "God sent his son to live, to be faithful. And in being faithful, it cost him his life.''

It seems the reverend forgot to read this verse...

Revelation 13:8 "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

He also forgot to read this one:

Isaiah 53:10 "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. "

[agenda_express]

"I saw it as religious barbarism ... in my opinion, God did not send his son to die,'' said Lasch, of St. Joseph's Church of Mendham. "God sent his son to live, to be faithful. And in being faithful, it cost him his life.''

Really? So then, in the garden, why did He tell Peter to put away his sword? Or, why didn't He just temporarily blind the soldiers and run away? He IS the Son of God and has the power over everything.

Comeon Lasch. Come to faith in Christ, the Son of God, who took away our sins. Accept His forgiveness and be saved, even as the thief on the cross.

[Coleus]

Outspoken monsignor announces retirement

Monday, January 19, 2004

MENDHAM - A Diocese of Paterson priest who has made it his mission to speak out against clergy sex abuse announced his retirement during his Sunday Mass at the Church of St. Joseph.

Monsignor Kenneth E. Lasch, 66, was a vocal victims advocate when many other Catholic leaders were more reticent. During the past two years, since incidents of abuse first started making headlines, he has allowed victims to meet every week in his church. He has said the church was wrong in how it dealt with past incidents of abuse. And he has openly expressed his dissatisfaction with some of the church's efforts to curb future abuses by clergy.

On Sunday, he said retirement would not end his activism.

"I will not be retiring from active life," he told a packed crowd, some of whom cried when he announced that he would leave. He said he will continue to minister on a volunteer basis, visit the sick, and maintain "my involvement with victims of abuse."

Lasch first realized the importance of defending sex abuse victims in the mid-1980s, when a former parishioner claimed he had been abused by James T. Hanley, a pastor in the 1970s and 1980s. The parishioner, Mark Serrano, later settled a civil lawsuit with the diocese for $350,000. The diocese has said the settlement was not an admission of guilt. Last week, 21 men filed suit against the diocese, 19 of them claiming that they also were sexually abused by Hanley, and that the diocese's lack of supervision allowed it to happen. The other two plaintiffs accuse other clerics of abuse.

"After Mark - that's when I got serious about what was going on," said Lasch in an interview last week. "Our church is strong about speaking about right-to-life issues, and this is a life issue. When a priest abuses a child, they invade their soul."

In 1995, Lasch held a meeting to disclose Hanley's alleged abuse to his parishioners. He has since hosted biweekly sessions of the victims' support groups Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests and Helping Our Survivors Together. In 2001, he hosted a forum, during which Hanley victims berated Bishop Frank J. Rodimer for not opening diocesan files and failing to help victims heal. Lasch also has written articles questioning the church's policies toward abuse in the wake of the scandal.

"I can't remember a time when he hasn't been supportive of victims and families," said Bill Crane, an alleged Hanley victim who now lives in Oregon. "He helped with outreach in 2002 - he opened the doors to providing a space for the bishop. A lot of members of the clergy who don't have the same commitment would have shied away."

Lasch, who grew up in Morristown, was ordained in 1962. He served at St. Therese Parish in Paterson, went to Rome to study canon law, and served as a diocesan administrator. He became pastor of St. Joseph's in 1983.

Chris Kurnath, a Chester mother of three who has been a parishioner for 18 years, said that although other parishioners had bridled at Lasch's outspokenness, she was grateful for it.

"He is honest and he stands up for what he believes in," she said. "My kids go to [St. Joseph's] school. If [sexual abuse] had happened to them, I would have wanted that kind of support."

E-mail: kremenm@northjersey.com

[NathanR]

I saw it as religious barbarism ...

I think the reason he saw it as barbarism, is that it follows the gospels more than he would like.

[Lancey Howard]

If New Jersey is a liberal toilet, North Jersey is where the soilpipe connects.
No surprise that some of these people believe the Holy Bible is "anti-semitic" - - but of course, since they don't have the guts to come out and say THAT, they condemn the movie. They're cowards.

[shhrubbery!]

Lasch is from Mendham, Morris County, NJ, which is an overwhelmingly Repbulican area.

But Mendham has an element of rich limousine liberals, as do many of the wealthy towns in Morris County.

[Coleus]

Home of Whitney Houston and that husband of hers. Most who live there in Mendham are Multi Millionaires.

[frgoff]

However, at the time of Christ, Israel was under Roman rule. Only Rome could execute. That's why the Jews who wanted Jesus dead had to present him before Pilate on a charge of sedition. Only after Pilate pronounced the penalty of crucifixion did the Jewish leaders call out that Christ was being killed because of blasphemy.

[frgoff]

You really ought to study up on textual criticism. Identical phrasing of multiple eyewitness accounts is actually strong evidence FOR fabrication. Minor variations in wording and content with the main points essentially remaining the same is strong evidence for actual occurence of the described event.

[Barnacle]

God didn't send his son to die? This Catholic priest doesn't believe in the Bible. Odd no?

If the priest really did say that, he's an idiot. That is so far out and away from Catholic teaching, it is not recognizable. I feel sorry for his congregation - if he's allowed to have one.

[AFPhys]

I've written to this priest (Lasch) asking if his comments were incomplete or out of context. That would not surprise me in the least. I'll let you all know how he responds to me if he does so. I'd appreciate others to do the same if he replys to them.

[js1138]

The behavior you describe is typical of human witnesses to an event. Everybody sees it differently. But the Bible doesn't claim to be a jumble of conflicting narratives. It claims to be inspired. That was the point being made.