Posted on 08/28/2018 2:59:47 AM PDT by markomalley
In response to a letter published on Aug. 25 by Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, the former Papal representative to the United States, San Diego Bishop Robert McElroy has released the following statement:
“This is a moment when the bishops of our nation, in union with the Holy Father, should be focused solely on comprehensively revealing the truth about the patterns of the sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable adults by clergy in our Church, so that deep reform can be enacted.
“Unfortunately, in recent weeks ideological warriors within the Church on both sides of the spectrum have utilized the tragedy of victims of abuse to promote their goals. The dedication to comprehensive truth has been subordinated to selective targeting of enemies and tendentious distortions of the truth.
“Archbishop Vigano’s statement constitutes just such a distortion. It is not an attempt to comprehensively convey the truth. In its ideologically-driven selection of bishops who are attacked, in its clear efforts to settle old personal scores, in its omission of any reference to Archbishop Vigano’s own massive personal participation in the covering up of sexual abuse by bishops, and most profoundly in its hatred for Pope Francis and all that he has taught, Archbishop Viganò consistently subordinates the pursuit of comprehensive truth to partisanship, division and distortion.
“We as bishops cannot allow the pathway of partisanship to divide us or to divert us from the searing mission that Christ calls us to at this moment. We must make public our sinful past. We must engage and help heal the survivors of abuse. We must develop new, lay-governed instruments of oversight and investigation in every element of how we confront sexual abuse by clergy at all levels in the life of the Church. And we must reject all attempts to subordinate these goals to ideological or personal projects. For if we do not, we will have betrayed the victims of abuse once again.”
+Bp. McElroy
Another attack on the messenger rather than an attack on the allegations in the message.
Mc Elroy is part of the gay mafia...
It’s a non-denial denial.
‘Another attack on the messenger rather than an attack on the allegations in the message.’
yes, but it demonstrates the divided Church turning on itself, and beginning to devour its own body...certainly many will seize upon the convenient excuse of the hand of Satan, but in truth, there is nothing the least bit metaphysical in grown men molesting teenagers, and the clerics and the laity playing their pray, pay and obey games as if the abuse were a mere diversion from the duties of holiness...there is much blame to go around here, and everybody will be pointing fingers at everybody else, and avoiding mirrors entirely...
my recommendation, such as it is; stop all payments to the dioceses, and stop going to Mass, since if one wishes to be holy, a brick and mortar building isn’t necessary, especially if its residents are preaching out of one side of the mouth, and acting out with the other...
San Diego was mentioned in the letter, “reserved” for a test place for LGBT agenda.
Once Bergoglio invokes his infallibility to decree that nothing he or anyone else did was sinful, even the most ardent Roman Catholic apologists will have no choice but to defend him and the gay agenda. Papal infallibility is of course de fide dogma, beyond question.
The RCC is specifically and purposely designed so that the laity have zero power in the church. A lot of Catholics probably don’t even realize that their criticisms of Bergoglio and demands that he resign are in fact violations of Canon Law.
Martin Luther burned the books of Canon Law and never looked back. Strange fact: Pope Leo X who excommunicated Martin Luther was a vile pedophile and homosexual.
Just FYI,
Canon 212 §3. According to the knowledge, competence, and prestige which they possess, they have the right and even at times the duty to manifest to the sacred pastors their opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church and to make their opinion known to the rest of the Christian faithful, without prejudice to the integrity of faith and morals, with reverence toward their pastors, and attentive to common advantage and the dignity of persons.
These demands are very much so in accordance with Canon Law.
Can. 1372: “A person who makes recourse against an act of the Roman Pontiff to an ecumenical council or the college of bishops is to be punished with a censure.”
Can. 1373: “A person who publicly incites among subjects animosities or hatred against the Apostolic See or an ordinary because of some act of power or ecclesiastical ministry or provokes subjects to disobey them is to be punished by an interdict or other just penalties.”
your comment; “my recommendation, such as it is; stop all payments to the dioceses, and stop going to Mass, since if one wishes to be holy, a brick and mortar building isn’t necessary, especially if its residents are preaching out of one side of the mouth, and acting out with the other...”
I disagree. Many have already done this. Only 20- 30% of registered parish Catholics attend Mass regularly. Even Jesus told us to about the Pharisees do as they preach, not as they act.
The Church was founded by Jesus Christ and He gave us the gift of Himself and His love. We can certainly give our love to Him. We have the Body and Blood of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. We are the Body of Christ and we stand with Him and with all the righteous clergy. The devil will not win.
We can certainly fight this sinful evil corruption in the Church, but we need to pray to God, ask for His help and forgiveness.
Pope Leo XIII composed a prayer to be recited daily after low Mass in all the churches throughout the Christian world when the Church was in trouble.
St. Michael, the Archangel, defend in the battle; be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into Hell Satan and all the other evil spirits, who prowl about the world seeking the run of souls. Amen.
Prayer works!
“Once Bergoglio invokes his infallibility to decree that nothing he or anyone else did was sinful...”
The doctrine of infallibility would not be licit under such an application.
“The doctrine of infallibility would not be licit under such an application.”
Says who? There’s no one to appeal to. The invocation of infallibility is as licit as the Pope says it is. Unlike we Protestants, who can appeal to the Scriptures, Roman Catholics have no one higher than the Pope to whom they can appeal.
Vigano is (1) for traditional marriage, and (2) against homosexual child rape. I guess that’s made him an enemy of the progressives inside and outside the Church.
Can. 749 §1. By virtue of his office, the Supreme Pontiff possesses infallibility in teaching when as the supreme pastor and teacher of all the Christian faithful, who strengthens his brothers and sisters in the faith, he proclaims by definitive act that a doctrine of faith or morals is to be held.
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/_P2H.HTM
It’s not so simple as you state. The Pope, for example, could not proclaim the the Redskins to be the greatest football team ever. This would not be an issue of faith or morals and he could not compel the faithful to hold this view. It would also be an abuse of reason given the team’s history.
There are defined limits to infallibility, as others have pointed out. Here we are approaching, but I believe not reaching, the waters of Dogmatic Fact, which are only somewhat defined.
I can imagine that the Pope could attempt to define the limits of infallibility both more clearly and in a way that would allow him to say something infallible on the issue. That said, on a human level, I do not think this Pope is capable of it, and on a level of faith, I do not believe that God will allow it to happen.
Says the Doctrinal definition of infallibility itself. What we are dealing with here is not Doctrine, but an administrative fubar where certain clerics protect each other and ally themselves against their theological rivals. Bergoglio is the Pope chosen by cliche of Cardinals who were always against Benedict.
No, Francis and his allies have not altered the Doctrine on sexuality, but in practice they have neutered it. That is how the game is played by theological liberals in the Catholic Church. Officially they can say no doctrine was changed. And officially that would be true. But wink wink nod nod we are not going to preach against these sexual immorality in their dioceses so what we can be a “welcoming Church” and not upset homosexuals, pro-abortion types, etc. Pope Benedict on the other hand was appointing Bishops who did speak out against these things publicly even if it got the secular press to go after Him.
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