Hey look! It's Bob!
Posted on 08/05/2002 12:35:34 PM PDT by NYer
We Are One:
A Pastoral to the Church in Rochester
by Most Rev. Dr. Robert M. Bowman,
Presiding Bishop, United Catholic Church
(Those unfamiliar with what has happened to Corpus Christi parish in Rochester, NY may first want to read the background, then return and read this Pastoral. Go to Background on Corpus Christi)
I, Bob, by the grace of God a successor to the apostles; to the people of God of Corpus Christi parish in Rochester, New York.
Greetings. May the joy and peace and love and grace and blessing of Almighty God be with you and sustain you always.
Beloved, it is well known far and wide how fruitful God’s grace has been in you. You have brought the healing touch of Jesus to the poor, the marginalized, the imprisoned, the abandoned, to all those God loves most. Now you yourselves are hurting, torn between the ministries to which you have been called and the church which you love.
You want Corpus Christi to continue as it has. And it can. Yet you don’t want to leave the Roman Catholic Church. You don’t have to!
It isn’t necessary to renounce the Roman Catholic Church. We haven’t. The married priests in our parishes haven’t. And I don’t believe the people in the Spring Committee have either.
We are all dissident Catholics. We put obeying our conscience and following the example of Jesus above obeying the dictates of the Roman Curia (which was not instituted by Jesus). But we are Catholics nonetheless.
We may, for a time, have to exist outside the institutional and financial framework which has grown around the Vatican. But we know the day will come when, under some future Pope, Rome rejoins us. They may excommunicate us. But we will not excommunicate them. We are one.
We know we are Catholics. We hold to the Catholic faith. We are nourished by the Catholic sacraments of the Church. We are encouraged by the example of Catholic saints (some of whom were excommunicated and persecuted by the same Inquisition afflicting us). We are one in Spirit with the Catholic saints living still (including those who are Anglicans or Orthodox or Lutherans, and especially the many, like the Berrigans, Bishop Shannon, James Curran, Bishop Gumbleton, Patricia Crowley, and all the members of CORPUS, Call To Action, and the Women’s Ordination Conference, who have been marginalized by the Vatican for following their call and their conscience).
We rejoice with those, like Bishop Gumbleton and many married priests, who have been able to remain within the institution and serve the many Catholics in traditional parishes without sacrificing their principles or violating their conscience. Lord knows, the Church needs them desperately.
But we also rejoice with those who have been unable to stay within the structure, instead giving up status and financial security in order to minister to the needs of the millions of alienated and excommunicated Catholics in need of Word and sacrament.
Hundreds of CORPUS priests serve small unofficial Catholic parishes, often without any compensation whatsoever.
A few courageous Roman Catholic bishops (at great personal sacrifice) have defied the curia and consecrated autocephalous bishops for the dissident movement, so that we have Apostolic Succession and the fullness of the sacraments.
As one of the beneficiaries of this movement, I in turn offer my apostolic services to Catholics cut off by the institution for following Jesus and their conscience.
Should you find yourself in that situation, I offer the following services, along with whatever personal counsel I can offer: (1) say Mass for you at places of your choosing, using the liturgy you prefer, with the full participation of your leadership (without regard to gender, marital status, or ordination). (2) consecrate hosts in sufficient quantity to provide for you between my visits and simultaneously ordain a deacon from among you to do a Deacon’s Mass with the consecrated hosts, or alternatively (3) ordain a priest for you (assuming a qualified candidate is available), (4) administer confirmation as required, and (5) at a suitable time, consecrate an autocephalous bishop to serve you.
These services are offered without strings. You need not join the United Catholic Church (which we incorporated for legal reasons, not as an alternative to the Roman Catholic Church; we are one).
You need make no financial commitment to the United Catholic Church, even for my travel expenses. Our church is not a denomination, but a voluntary communion of churches. We exist solely to serve those unserved by the institutional Roman Catholic Church. We have no salaries, no property, no paid staff. Our expenses have been paid out of my own pocket and the funds brought in by weddings I have performed.
You need not renounce the Roman Catholic Church. Indeed, when away from Corpus Christi, you may attend Mass at traditional Roman Catholic parishes and receive Communion with a good conscience (though if you ask, they will not tell you that).
If you choose to be affiliated with the United Catholic Church, little will change except that you will have the right to use the name, will receive our newsletters, and will be listed among parishes that other dissidents from around the country may feel free to visit while traveling. We will have no ownership in your property and no claim on your finances. Our parishes are all autonomous.
If you do not wish to be affiliated with us, that’s okay too. We will still be happy to offer our services to help you make the transition to independence. We are not trying to build an empire, but to serve the Kingdom.
Earlier, we noted how we rejoice both with those who have been able to stay within the system and those who have left it to serve the dissident church, the church in exile. We sympathize with our brother Matthew, who for so long has served you so well as your bishop, and who now anguishes over such a choice. You must realize that if he attempted to buck the powerful forces arrayed against him in order to continue protecting the old Corpus Christi, he would lose his position and his financial security. But more important in his eyes, he would lose his diocese and all those left in it. All those many thousands outside the old Corpus Christi parish would suddenly find themselves with a new bishop — undoubtedly one in the image of Cardinal Ratzinger. Do not judge Bishop Clark harshly if he chooses the good of the greater number. He is well aware that those who cannot live with the stricter rules imposed on and through him have other options. For the good of the rest of the flock he shepherds, he must try to hang on through this terrible time of witchhunts and autocratic rule. Continue to love him and pray for him.
Next, I send greetings to your long-time inspiration and guide, Father Jim Callan. He, too, has a difficult choice to make. He is so talented, so Spirit-filled that he will change lives wherever he goes. You have absorbed so much from him, that perhaps he is needed more elsewhere. But if he chooses to make the enormous personal sacrifice necessary to leave the institutional church and serve Corpus Christi In Exile, I will help him however I can. Just from reading his writings, my judgment is that he would make a marvelous bishop.
Greetings too to your courageous Associate Pastor Mary Rammerman. Her decision is also difficult. The Vatican acknowledges my Apostolic Succession. According to canon law, all Roman Catholics must accept the validity of the sacraments I administer, including ordination. So if I were to ordain Mary a priest, she would indeed have all the powers of the priesthood. But the current pope, under the influence of Cardinal Ratzinger, has left them a loophole which they will use to challenge her. They have not said that they will not ordain women. They have said that they can not — that the Church has no power to ordain women, even if they wanted to. This will allow them to say that therefore I have no power to ordain women, and that therefore any attempted ordination of Mary would have no effect.
I do not accept that argument at all. Indeed, there is much archeological evidence for the ordination of women in the early church. In a Roman basilica there is an ancient mosaic of a woman. The inscription reads, "Episcopa Theodora" (Bishop Theodora). The Vatican’s pronouncements will not deter me from ordaining a qualified woman (and by all accounts I have received, Mary is very well qualified). But Mary must be prepared for the fact that her priesthood will not be recognized by the Vatican, nor (at least publicly) by Bishop Clark, nor by most Roman Catholics in Rochester — even some who were part of the old Corpus Christi and remained with the institutional church. Her lot as one of the first female Catholic priests will not be an easy one. This is something for Mary and the people of Corpus Christi In Exile to pray over.
Finally, my dear people, I pray for all of you daily. Every one of you has a decision to make. If you believe that the policies of the old Corpus Christi with regard to women at the altar, Protestants receiving the Body of Christ, and gay and lesbian couples in committed relationships were mere human preferences, then you should obediently return to Corpus Christi Roman Catholic parish of the Diocese of Rochester.
If, on the other hand, you believe that these policies of inclusivity were inspired by the words and example of Jesus, then you should boldly embrace Corpus Christi In Exile Catholic Church, an independent parish (or Corpus Christi United Catholic Church, if you prefer).
And if some of you choose the one course, and some the other, do not feel that you are estranged or divided. We are one. The unity you achieved through your service to God’s people at Corpus Christi cannot be taken away from you. In churches all over the world, people say the Creed and express belief in "one" church. This is not some faroff pipe-dream unity, this is a unity that now exists.
This unity, the unity God wants, the unity Jesus prayed for before he died, the unity the Creed says already exists, this is not a mere institutional unity. It is a unity of the heart and mind.
The monarchical church was not the model Jesus gave us. He gave us his vision of ministry, authority, and hierarchy at the last supper when he washed the feet of the apostles.
Neither was a monarchical church the model left us by the apostles. The apostolic church was collegial, rather that hierarchical. For matters of great import, such as whether Gentiles could be baptized, the apostles met and reached consensus. But on most matters, they were autonomous. Bishops were free to establish liturgies compatible with the customs and ethnic makeup of their churches. Some of the apostles traveled to the far east, establishing churches very different from those in the west. The focus of the church was in Jerusalem, then Antioch, then Alexandria, then Byzantium, and eventually in Rome. But always it was collegial.
Some of the apostles were more influential than others, of course. Right after Pentecost, Peter was chief spokesman for the Church. Later, in Jerusalem, it seems to have been James who had the last word. But neither was the ruler of the church. Can you imagine Paul admonishing Peter the way he did if Peter were the "pope"?
It is not subservience to the Pope that makes us Catholic. Vatican II explicitly recognized that the Church is bigger than the Roman Catholic Church. And the Catholic Church is bigger than the Pope. We are "Catholic" because we are that part of the Church which holds to the universal faith believed everywhere, by all, since the days of the apostles.
As for myself, I am a convert. First I was an Episcopalian, then a Roman Catholic. Then (fed up with the conservatism and authoritarianism undoing Vatican II) I tried being an Episcopalian again. It didn’t work. I am a Catholic because I embrace Catholic spirituality (one of joy, serenity, and daily Communion), Catholic social conscience (although if that were all of it, I could just as easily be a Quaker), and the fellowship of the Catholic Communion of Saints (especially St. Francis, Archbishop Oscar Romero, Pope John XXIII, Dorothy Day, and those who are still living and from whom I take my inspiration). Eventually, it dawned on me that most of the Catholics I admired the most had incurred the wrath of the Vatican and were either excommunicated or marginalized. Those, like my dear friend and brother Tom Gumbleton, who were still inside the institution, were barely so. Finally, I realized that I didn’t have to stop being Catholic just because I didn’t believe everything the Pope said. But I might have to give up maintaining good standing with the Vatican. After preaching for thirty years as a layman, directing choirs for longer than that, and teaching priests how to do the liturgy, when a dissident bishop who had been a fan of mine for many years offered me ordination, I jumped at the chance.
I don’t believe everyone has to be Catholic. God and His Church are bigger than that. But I have to be Catholic. It’s who I am.
Does God want a unity in which everybody submits to the authority of the pope? No! God wants a unity in which everybody submits to the love of Christ! Many people do that listening to a good sermon in a Protestant church. I do it receiving Communion.
In the final analysis, being a Catholic is not about being a member of an institution. It is about being a member of the Body of Christ. It is not about what you believe. It is about whom you trust. It is not about following the rules. It is about following Jesus. May God grant us all the grace to do so. If I can be of help to you in continuing to walk in His footsteps while remaining Catholic, I am your servant.
Every one of you is in my heart and in my prayers. May God bless you always. And remember, We Are One.
Father Bob +
(Bishop Robert M. Bowman, Ph.D.)
United Catholic Church
5115 S. A1A Hwy, Melbourne Beach, FL 32951
(407) 952-0600
catholic@rmbowman.com
www.rmbowman.com/catholic
Return to Corpus Christi Faith Community
Return to United Catholic Church Home Page
As one of the beneficiaries of this movement, I in turn offer my apostolic services to Catholics cut off by the institution for following Jesus and their conscience.
This is MOST disturbing! Your thoughts?
And, Bishop Bob, you are not "Catholic" because you add on it various innovations unknown since the days of the apostles, like attempting to ordain women.
This letter is laughable. I started laughing beginning with "I, Bob..."
Sorry, I'm feeling cynical today. I think the heat doesn't help.
Hey look! It's Bob!
This is MOST disturbing! Your thoughts?At the very least these couple lines sound like they came from an SSPX Bishop (though I can’t possibly imagine an SSPX Bishop starting a letter with “I, Bob”)A few courageous Roman Catholic bishops (at great personal sacrifice) have defied the curia and consecrated autocephalous bishops for the dissident movement, so that we have Apostolic Succession and the fullness of the sacraments.As one of the beneficiaries of this movement, I in turn offer my apostolic services to Catholics cut off by the institution for following Jesus and their conscience.
patent +AMDG
Maybe I’m in a Monty Python mood today, but how I long for the good old days…
It's funny! "I, Bob"? And what's with this continual usage of "autocephalous"? That means he doesn't report to anybody, including, apparently, the Holy Father.
There's no such thing as a Deacon's Mass, either, pal.
These people want to be taken seriously, then they write a letter like this, which could have come from a mental patient.
"If you choose to be affiliated with the United Catholic Church, little will change except that you will have the right to use the name, will receive our newsletters, and will be listed among parishes that other dissidents from around the country may feel free to visit while traveling. We will have no ownership in your property and no claim on your finances. Our parishes are all autonomous."
Cool! A Baptist Catholic Church!
Who'd a thunk it?
"It is not subservience to the Pope that makes us Catholic."
Well, maybe, an Anglican Baptist Catholic Church?
"The Vatican acknowledges my Apostolic Succession. According to canon law, all Roman Catholics must accept the validity of the sacraments I administer, including ordination."
Er, maybe,..., er,... Old Catholic Anglican Baptist Catholic Church?
From their website:
"1. We do not accept the infallibility of the Pope.
"2. Following St. Jerome, we reject the canonicity of the deuterocanonical books.
"3. We do not require belief in doctrines lacking biblical support. The various Marian doctrines therefore lose their status as dogma. (People are free to believe in them, but are not required to do so.) Likewise, we reject as dogma the non-biblical concepts of purgatory, indulgences, and prayers for the dead, which are unsupported in the canonical books."
I got it! It's a LUTHERAN Old Catholic Anglican Baptist Catholic Church.
I think...
;-)
sitetest
Despite their rationalizations, I don’t even believe these jokers are stupid enough to take themselves seriously.Unfortunately they do. Even our feminist nuns take themselves way to seriously, holding all their conferences, protests, etc. They mean it, they are just delusional.
patent
"1. We do not accept the infallibility of the Pope.Kind of a funny juxtaposition, isn’t it? They reject the infallibility of the Pope, but apparently follow the infallible St. Jerome."2. Following St. Jerome, we reject the canonicity of the deuterocanonical books.
patent +AMDG
"LUTHERAN Old Catholic Anglican Baptist Catholic Church, Reformed."
I thought that was the Calvinist bunch that broke off from the group represented by "Bishop Bob".
But I could be wrong!!
sitetest
Do you recall the dissenters who showed up in Toronto? Amongst them was a "female priest". It was Mary Rammerman. I just found a picture taken during her mass. What's that in her left hand?
MacDonald's or Burger King?
Is that a chocolate shake she's holding with her communionburger?
sitetest
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