Vatican confirms excommunication for US dissident group

Catholic World News ^ | Dec. 7, 2006

[Petrosius]

Dec. 7, 2006 (CWNews.com) - The Vatican has confirmed an American bishop's decision to excommunicate members of the dissident group Call to Action.

Call to Action is "causing damage to the Church of Christ," wrote Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re (bio - news), the prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, in a letter to Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Nebraska.

In March 1996, Bishop Bruskewitz had announced the excommunication of all Catholics in his diocese who were members of Call to Action or several other dissident groups which he described as "totally incompatible with the Catholic faith."

The Nebraska chapter of Call to Action appealed the bishop's decision to the Vatican. In his November 24 letter to Bishop Bruskewitz, Cardinal Re reports that Vatican's finding that the disciplinary action was "properly taken."

The Vatican has determined that "the activities of 'Call to Action' in the course of these years are in contrast with the Catholic Faith due to views and positions held which are unacceptable from a doctrinal and disciplinary standpoint," Cardinal Re writes. He concludes: "Thus to be a member of this Association or to support it, is irreconcilable with a coherent living of the Catholic Faith."

The excommunication that Bishop Bruskewitz announced covered not only to Call to Action, but also to members of Catholics for a Free Choice, Planned Parenthood, the Hemlock Society, the Freemasons, and the Society of St. Pius X.

The excommunication order applies only within the Lincoln, Nebraska diocese. But the Vatican's judgment against Call to Action raises clear questions about the status of the group's members in other dioceses.

[Salvation]

Glad to see this.

[mockingbyrd]

about time.

[voiceinthewind]

Bishop Bruskewitz is my kind of bishop.

[Alex Murphy]

The Vatican has confirmed an American bishop's decision to excommunicate members of the dissident group Call to Action.

Meanwhile Mahoney, et al have yet to be defrocked.

[Nihil Obstat]

from the FAQ on Call to Action's website:

How do the leaders of the Catholic Church view CTA?

Call to Action is not a schismatic group. There have been no pronouncements from Church authorities in Rome against Call to Action or its members. Individual bishops have varying opinions of Call to Action. Some bishops have disapproved of Call to Action and others have embraced CTA and have even become active members themselves.

Better get that updated.

[Joseph DeMaistre]

I don't call them "dissident" because they aren't Catholic to begin with.

[Coleus]

Call to Action is a bunch of pro-abortion democrats who think if one volunteers at a homeless shelter or food kitchen they are following the pro-life tenets of the catholic church knowing they are voting to murder 1.2 million babies per year.

[ElkGroveDan]

Hot diggity dog. A bishop with a backbone. Imagine how different our society would be today if all American bishops had stood their ground like this 40 years ago.

[dfwgator]

The cafeteria is closed.

[B-Chan]

Bruskewitz takes the pass from Benedict as the buzzer sounds! .SHOOTS!... FROM DOWNTOWN... NOTHIN' BUT NET!

[Cicero]

In the early days, I think there were bishops closely associated with Call to Action, and possibly they were members.

That was back in the Seamless Garment days. I think Bp. Bruskewiscz may be one of the few who has taken action against this dissident group. Or, if you prefer, heretical group, since they certainly are that as well.

[Mrs. Don-o]

The Bishops actually organized the first "Call to Action" Conference in 1976 in Detroit. It was supposed to be the platform for lay people to apply Gospel principles to the temporal order. Instead, the lay leadership (mostly middle-management Catholic parish and school people: DRE's, teachers, professors, Chancery nuns, state Catholic Conference staffers, etc) skewed the agenda from the start to create leverage for new feminist, democratic and liberal model for the American Church.

The Bishops (mostly, except for the Usual Suspects like Gumbleton) dropped it, but dang, they should have throttled it.

Bruskewitz did the right thing. We should be sending him bouquets.

[Antoninus]

Seen this yet? Nice!

[Sun]

Glad to see this, but I don't know why more bishops don't do this.

[mockingbyrd]

nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah

hey hey hey

goodbye


(and here's praying ya'll find your back)

[Mr. Silverback]

Congratulations to the Catholic Church on showing these twits to the door.

ProLife Ping!

If anyone wants on or off my ProLife Ping List, please notify me here or by freepmail.

[Marie Antoinette]

Thought you might like to see this. :)

[Barnacle]

Interesting history, and a reason that I do not embrace the concept of democratizing the Church. Though far from perfect, there are few churches that are 2,000 years old and still going strong.

[Petronski]

Next on the block should be "Catholics for Choice," or whatever those bloodthirsty bastards are calling themselves these days.

Also, a serious look should be taken at Joanne Chittester's merry band of amazon warrior-queens.