[Domestic Church]

"I know it's popular around here to keep repeating the bizarre statements of Navarro-Valls, but I find it interesting that no other bishop or theologian in the world has repeated them, nor did Cardinal Ratzinger ratify them." "Ratzinger is head of the Congregation of Doctrine and Faith. The Cardinal that needs to "ratify" Navarro-Valls's statements is the one who heads the Congregation of the Clergy (or whatever it's called). Do you think the Vatican's spokesman makes any public statements that haven't been thoroughly vetted?" ************************************************************ When Navarro-Valls first made this interesting statement about the possible invalid ordinations my first thought was that it was a sort of strategic marketing ploy...getting the word out and knowing it would be repeated and repeated with a desired shudder effect upon the NCCB, the lavender clergy mafia and the hierarchy. I would imagine it leaves many wondering if and when the other shoe will fall(when the big cheese in the Congregation of the Clergy ratifies it.) And it gave a glimmer that the Pope, indeed, knows what is really going on here. Hoping & praying he is strong enough for the spring cleaning,

[ELS]

Yes, it could have been a shot across the bow.

[sinkspur]

I would imagine it leaves many wondering if and when the other shoe will fall(when the big cheese in the Congregation of the Clergy ratifies it.)

He's not going to ratify it because it is theologically incorrect to say that a gay celibate cannot be validly ordained.

If you want to keep gays out of the priesthood, then don't ordain them. But you're going to have to wait for the current crop to die off or be laicized because nobody's going to retroactively invalidate a valid ordination.

Plus, if a gay priest is celibate, how would you know he's gay?