Posted on 09/19/2005 3:35:59 PM PDT by NYer
Vatican, Sep. 19 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI has given his approval to a new Vatican policy document indicating that men with homosexual tendencies should not be ordained as Catholic priests.
The new document-- which was prepared by the Congregation for Catholic Education, in response to a request made by the late Pope John Paul II in 1994-- will be published soon. It will take the form of an "Instruction," signed by the prefect and secretary of the Congregation: Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski and Archbishop Michael Miller.
The text, which was approved by Pope Benedict at the end of August, says that homosexual men should not be admitted to seminaries even if they are celibate, because their condition suggests a serious personality disorder which detracts from their ability to serve as ministers.
Priests who have already been ordained, if they suffer from homosexual impulses, are strongly urged to renew their dedication to chastity, and a manner of life appropriate to the priesthood.
The Instruction does not represent a change in Church teaching or policy. Catholic leaders have consistently taught that homosexual men should not be ordained to the priesthood. Pope John XXIII approved a formal policy to that effect, which still remains in effect. However, during the 1970s and 1980s, that policy was widely ignored, particularly in North America. The resulting crisis in the priesthood-- in which one prominent American commentator observed that the priesthood was coming to be seen as a "gay" profession-- prompted Pope John Paul II to call for a new study on the question.
The Congregation for Catholic Education prepared the Instruction after soliciting advice from all of the world's bishops, from psychologists, and from moral theologians. A draft of the Instruction was then circulated among the Vatican dicasteries concerned with the issue, notably including the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
The pending release of the Instruction, in the face of certain criticism from liberal forces in America and Western Europe, demonstrates the determination of the Vatican to improve the quality of priestly ministry, and to protect the Church from some of the scandals that have recently shaken the Catholic community-- and no doubt deterred many men from entering priestly training.
Informed sources in Rome indicate that the Instruction probably will be made public after the Synod of Bishops, which meets in Rome from October 2 through 23.
The document is new but it is a restatement of what has always been policy (but not enforced for quite some time).
It will be interesting to see if they are really serious about it this time. The US Catholic clergy is a joke everywhere I go in Europe, btw; their reputation for homosexuality is so established that it's going to take a long time to overcome it. This is not to say that the European clergy don't have problems, and that there are not a few fruits among them, but a full-fledged gay culture has generally not taken root there the way it has among the US clergy.
If the Vatican is really serious about this, it's going to mean some major upheavals in the US, which would be good on a number of levels.
What's that sound I hear?
I've heard it before.
Oh yeah, the sound of liberals gnashing their teeth and rending their clothes.
I think there will be an outbreak of full-fledged liberal hysteria about this. They've been sort of distracted by Katrina, but heck, there's always a little time left over to attack the Church.
I'm also expecting lawsuits. This letter affects the entire Church, not just the US, and it wouldn't surprise me if the Canadians tried to legislate against the Church or enforce their "anti-discrimination" laws against it. They've talked about this in the past.
Yes. I expect a USCCB announcement to soften the blow shortly. How they are going to enforce a rule, if you will, that they have been flaunting for decades is beyond me.
I'm also expecting lawsuits.
Wouldn't surprise me. The Canadians might give it a try, but when you are up against no real crime committed and no cover-up, it's a little hard to do.
The breaking of porcelain caps and tearing of designer duds just back from the dry cleaner? Ooops.
Canon 1 of the Council of Nicea forbids such "violence" by choice and to be retained as a priest. I don't think this canon has been overturned. Apparently, it must have been practiced for it to be specifically addressed in the very first canon.
"To those who can..."
Regards
Wouldn't surprise me in the least. The national bishops' conferences are going to be one of BXVI's most difficult challenges because they are bound and determined to maintain the status quo. It's been just fine for them, thank you - they get to swan off to pointless meetings in comfy hotels, have the press fawn over them for their liberal positions, and - well, further speculation might be uncharitable.
These organizations have no canonical status in Church governance, but they are a real obstacle to any attempt to exert authority from Rome.
Origen --- who castrated himself --- is regarded by the Church as having committed a grave wrong. As Augustine (?) said, "It's not the corrupt body that leads the pure soul astray, it's the corrupt soul that leads the pure body astray."
ENFORCEMENT?
So much of it comes down to bishops' misbehavior. Refusal to use the Shepherd's Crozier to protect the sheep and dismay the wolves.... and not t'other way around.
What we need is not just a reiteration of the traditional teaching and discipline of the Church as they apply to homosexuals, but a major renewal of the procedures by which we can get rid of bad, disobedient bishops. I remember reading the rite for stripping a bishop of his ecclesial power. Impressive. Bell, book, and candle.
Recall that the greatest Catholic artists in all of history --- Michelangelo and Dante --- portrayed bishops in Hell; and the greatest preacher in Christendom --- St. John Chrysostom --- said that the floor of Hell is paved with the skulls of bishops.
I don't want them to be in Hell, mind you. I'd just like to scare the hell out of them.
LOL! Thanks for the morning laugh.
*And why ought we care about your personal opinions opposing the Pope on this issue? What is your expertise in this area?
*AMEN, brother
Benedict!
ludicrous (adj): Laughable or hilarious because of obvious absurdity or incongruity.
| Tuesday, September 20, 2005 Sts. Andrew Kim Taegon, Priest, Martyr, Paul Chong Hasang, Martyr and Their Companions, Martyrs (Memorial) |
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On Progressives:
"Anyone who is so 'progressive' as not to remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God; whoever remains in the teachings has the Father and the Son." 2 John 1:9
For what it's worth, I have a pile of kindling and an ample supply of tinder boxes for when the call goes forth. Can you bring the stakes?
Need a strong-arm tattooed yet unabashedly faithful Papist with firsthand working knowledge of military tactics on this little foray? Slide me an application for the TTGC. Heh.
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