I guess I feel their pain—-Not!
From the National Chismatic Reporter (NCR):
VATICAN CITY — Several prominent theologians are raising concerns about how the Vatican's doctrinal office has handled the case of Redemptorist Fr. Tony Flannery, saying the decision to issue fidelity oaths to the priest over his support for women's ordination appears out of line with Pope Francis' calls for a Catholic Church open to dialogue.
In interviews with NCR, the academics also wondered if Flannery's treatment might signal that the powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is returning to its practice of tightly controlling the bounds of theological debate, which in previous decades led to the silencing of theologians and priests around the world.
Bradford Hinze, a theologian at Fordham University known for his work exploring issues of authority and obedience in the church, said Flannery's case "has the feel of being a bit of a time warp."
The issuing of four fidelity oaths to the Irish priest "gives the appearance of being a performative contradiction with the official and informal statements and practices of Pope Francis that encourage dialogue and openness in the church," said Hinze.
Richard Gaillardetz, a theologian at Boston College who has also focused on issues of authority in the church, said the doctrinal congregation appeared to be operating "within a kind of law enforcement paradigm."
4 comments:
Some Priests and theologians need to be silenced.
Flannery was offered the same conditions in 2012 and stated in 2013 that he would not submit to them. He continued to write for the in-house journal of the Irish Redemptorists and I believe carried out retreats with the approval of his superiors.
Since he is of the opinion that the priesthood was not founded by Jesus Christ but resulted from a power-grab by a group of ambitious men in the early years of the Church, there is little point in his returning to a sacerdotal ministry which he himself repudiates.
It's not all about women's ordination and gay rights, as the liberals would have you believe. In 2013 Pope Francis laicized and declared excommunicate an Australian priest (Greg Reynolds) who despite his suspension continued to offer 'liturgies' at which Communion was handed round and on one occasion given to a dog. In effect he had set up a breakaway 'church', and Rome regards schism as more dangerous than heresy.
"Go and sin no more!" That is how Jesus dealt with a sinner. The Church has an obligation to act with charity and clarity (as a famous Midwestern priest put it not so long ago), especially when the matter is of great doctrinal importance.
Timely correction is important too. But punishing the innocent comes to Church authority easier as we have recently witnessed in the case of the afore mentioned Midwestern cleric. Catholic Dystopia?
Who is the famous Midwestern cleric to whom you refer? It is impossible to comment on guilt or innocence without knowing the facts of the case.
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