Navy ends Catholic Masses at bases

The Deacon's Bench ^ | September 6, 2020 | Deacon Greg Kandra

[ebb tide]

Navy ends Catholic Masses at bases

We all know there’s a shortage of priestly vocations — but some places are feeling the effects more dramatically than others.

From The San Diego Tribune: 

Catholic Masses at San Diego-area Navy bases have ended because the Navy, in what it says is a cost-cutting move, has declined to renew its contracts with Catholic priests, and there are not enough Catholic chaplains on active duty to fill the void.

Protestant services on bases, which are led by active duty chaplains, will continue, said Brian O’Rourke, a Navy Region Southwest spokesman.

The changes to the Navy’s religious ministries are part of a national realignment announced on Aug. 20. It is unclear how many priests this will affect.

“The Navy’s religious ministries priority is reaching and ministering to our largest demographic — active duty Sailors and Marines in the 18-25 year-old range,” O’Rourke wrote in an email. “To meet that mission, the Navy has had to make the difficult decision to discontinue most contracted ministry services.”

In the Navy message announcing the change, Vice Adm. Yancey Lindsey, the commander of Naval Installations Command, said it differently.

“We have a responsibility to use our limited resources wisely in meeting the needs of our personnel,” wrote Lindsey. “Therefore, we will reduce redundancies and capture efficiencies by realigning resources,” noting that religious services will be cut at bases where those services are readily available in the surrounding community outside the base.

To Rev. Jose Pimentel, a priest who has led services at Naval Base Coronado and Naval Air Station North Island for eight years, the loss of his parish isn’t just a personal loss — it’s a loss of the 1st Amendment rights of service members on bases.

“One issue is discrimination (and) another is the violation of your right to practice your religion,” he said when reached by phone Friday.

…While the Navy has an active duty component of clergy — the Chaplain Corps — the number of Catholic priests among them is small, reflecting a worldwide shortage of Catholic priests. To make up for that shortage, the service contracted with priests to lead Catholic services on U.S. bases.

Those contracts are the ones being canceled.

Read more. 

[Christopher Marlowe]

Priests in ordinary parishes are sorely lacking as it is. The local parish has only one priest for thousands of families. The parish recently added an extra mass in Spanish as well. That priest has to say all those masses, and hear confessions, perform weddings, funerals, visit the sick, manage the parish, etc..... Now you want him to go out to Coronado on top of that?

[Svartalfiar]

You forgot to empty your head - shit for brains.

Do all of your conversations mostly revolve around you attempting to insult your fellow conversationalists? Especially ones you barely/don't even know?

But did you even read the article you posted? And you call me a "shit for brains"?

Certainly no military chaplain can celebrate a Catholic Mass and consecrate the Eucharist unless he is a Catholic priest;

Plus, that article even has links to Canon Law, and here's a couple that directly apply to this conversation, or somewhat apply (908):

Can. 900 §1. The minister who is able to confect the sacrament of the Eucharist in the person of Christ is a validly ordained priest alone.
...
Can. 907 In the eucharistic celebration deacons and lay persons [Much less a non-Catholic!] are not permitted to offer prayers, especially the eucharistic prayer, or to perform actions which are proper to the celebrating priest.
...
Can. 908 Catholic priests are forbidden to concelebrate the Eucharist with priests or ministers of Churches or ecclesial communities which do not have full communion with the Catholic Church.

[snoringbear]

“ Do all of your conversations mostly revolve around you attempting to insult your fellow conversationalists? Especially ones you barely/don’t even know? ”
**********

Nope, you’re the first. But you deserve it. Can’t stand pompous know it all’s.

[mewzilla]

Update...

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump
The United States Navy, or the Department of Defense, will NOT be cancelling its contract with Catholic Priests who serve our men and women in the Armed Forces so well, and with such great compassion & skill. This will no longer be even a point of discussion!
@CardinalDolan
10:15 AM · Sep 9, 2020·Twitter for iPhone

[Svartalfiar]

Nope, you’re the first. But you deserve it. Can’t stand pompous know it all’s.

I never claimed to know everything. I just stated that the Church doesn't do what you said, and gave you information supporting that. All you can do is call people names and claim we don't know anything.

[snoringbear]

You still lurking around? I know what I saw.

[Svartalfiar]

You still lurking around? I know what I saw.

And what did you actually see? A non-Catholic chaplain giving out bread wafers? You do realize non-Catholics still have communion, they just don't believe in transubstantiation? And, per the Church, no priest would give a stack of consecrated hosts to some random dude claiming to be a minister or prayer leader or whatever.

[snoringbear]

Your comments are wrong on all counts. At first I thought you were just a well meaning but naive precast. But, you’re nothing but a no nothing. Go back under your bridge troll.

[snoringbear]

*priest*