Posted on 12/12/2005 10:28:41 AM PST by SmithL
Ask the archbishop of Dublin to describe the theological weight of the Vatican's latest statement on whether gay men have a place in the priesthood. He'll say it didn't amount to much.
In Archbishop Diarmuid Martin's opinion, the document issued last month left a fundamental tenet untouched: The path to possible ordination is still open to anyone, including homosexuals, who remain celibate and follow the church's moral teachings.
Martin is not alone. A high-profile array of European pastors and theologians have issued similar liberal interpretations of the Vatican's "instruction" on gay priests, which was formally released Nov. 29 after years of internal debates and redrafts.
Such views are squarely at odds with conservative Roman Catholic blocs, including some in the United States, that believe the church is in effect endorsing a blanket ban on gay priests. But the complications don't end there.
The cluttered response to the document — and its hard-to-define phrases such as "transitory" homosexuality — suggests many church leaders will increasingly follow their own standards for seminaries and ordination.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Poor Ireland.
NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE , LIMERICK, IRELAND
Monday, Jul 12, 2004,Page 6
Only eight Roman Catholic clerical students are expected to be ordained this year in all of Ireland, compared with 193 ordinations in 1990. The Diocese of Dublin, the largest in the country, has planned no ordinations for next year, and the Diocese of Limerick, a hardscrabble city on the banks of the Shannon River, is expected to ordain one man soon, and then wait years for its next priest.
Getting bishops to do anything is like herding cats.
Ping.
Wow! The paster of my parish is from Offaly and emmigrated 30 years ago. I'm sorry, but you can't have him back!
I nearly forgot to ping you!!
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