Saint Mary's Church in Orange, Massachusetts continues to promote a priest who has misrepresented Catholic teaching..

As noted here, Father Jonathan Morris, a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of New York as well as a Fox News contributor, misrepresented the Church when asked what conscientious objectors should do if they work for an agency issuing same-sex marriage licenses.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in its document entitled Considerations Regarding Proposals to Give Legal Recognition to Unions Between Homosexual Persons, warns that even where homosexual unions have been legalized, "clear and emphatic opposition is a duty." (No. 5). This important document stresses that, "any kind of formal cooperation in the enactment or application of such gravely unjust laws" and even any "material cooperation on the level of their application" must be avoided. "In this area," states the document, "everyone can exercise the right to conscientious objection."


Considerations makes it abundantly clear that, "The Church teaches that respect for homosexual persons cannot lead in any way to approval of homosexual behavior or to considerations of homosexual unions." (No. 11). In other words, there can be no doubt that all Catholics have a moral duty to oppose the homosexual agenda.

And yet, knowing that Father Jonathan Morris has misrepresented the Church's teaching in this area, Saint Mary's Church in Orange, Massachusetts continues to promote this cleric on its Facebook page even while blocking orthodox Catholics faithful to the Magisterium from commenting on that same page.

It is unclear where the parish stands with regard to Considerations.

Bishop Robert McManus, the Diocese of Worcester, and vocations

As I noted in a previous post (see here), the Diocese of Worcester has some sort of animus against men who feel called to the priesthood but who accept, promote and defend the Church's Magisterial teaching.  There really is no denying this.  Candidates such as Jonathan Joseph Slavinskas are entirely welcome within the diocese (see here), but I am not permitted to even apply as part of a discernment process.

This is most unfortunate.  Dr. Germain Grisez explains that, "Since the ordained priesthood and diaconate provide the necessary ministries of the word and sacraments to the whole Church, every member shares a common duty to foster vocations to this service."

This duty, which pertains to all Christians, is codified in Canon Law:

"A duty rests upon the entire Christian community to foster vocations so that sufficient provision is made for the needs of the sacred ministry throughout the entire Church; Christian families, educators and in a special way priests, especially pastors, are particularly bound by this duty.  Since it is principally the concern of diocesan bishops to promote vocations, they should instruct the people entrusted to them concerning the importance of the sacred ministry and the necessity of ministers in the Church; therefore they are to encourage and support endeavors to foster vocations by means of projects especially established for that purpose." (Canon 233).

Paragraph 2 of the same Canon also states, "Moreover priests, and especially diocesan bishops, are also to be solicitous that men of a more mature age who consider themselves called to the sacred ministries are prudently assisted IN WORD AND DEED and duly prepared."

When I contacted the Worcester Diocese to express my interest in DISCERNING a priestly vocation, I received no response whatsoever.  When I wrote Bishop Robert McManus expressing my interest, again, no response.  This is promoting vocations?  This is being "solicitous" for mature vocations while assisting such in "word and deed"?

Of course not.

Every so often local parishes will offer a prayer intention for vocations.  But without any real effort to promote and foster vocations to the priesthood and religious life, such prayer intentions amount to little more than a dog and pony show.  Bishop McManus apparently has such disdain for me (pesky magisterial Catholic that I am) that when I phoned him to inform him that my "pastor" at the time (Fr. Joseph Jurgelonis) and his "pastoral staff" wouldn't schedule a Mass for my departed father, he actually laughed.

Feel the love of Christ Jesus.

Folks, if we really want to turn the tide within and outside of the Church, we will need to be more accepting of men who are orthodox in their faith and who feel called to the priesthood.  The laborers are few.  Can we afford to prohibit men faithful to the Magisterium from having a place at the table?


Related reading here.

 

 

 

Obama administration accused of illegally using using US funds to promote abortion in Kenya

400,000 in US funds was funneled to the International Development Law Organization.  At its website, the IDLO says that it "uses a variety of programs to reach its objectives.  These programs are fully consistent with the 2005 UN Summit and the Millenium Development Declaration.  We read in No. 58 of this document, pp. 16-17:


Gender equality and empowerment of women


58. We remain convinced that progress for women is progress for all. We reaffirm

that the full and effective implementation of the goals and objectives of the Beijing

Declaration and Platform for Action22 and the outcome of the twenty-third special

session of the General Assembly is an essential contribution to achieving the

internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the

Millennium Declaration, and we resolve to promote gender equality and eliminate

pervasive gender discrimination by:

(a) Eliminating gender inequalities in primary and secondary education by

the earliest possible date and at all educational levels by 2015;

(b) Guaranteeing the free and equal right of women to own and inherit

property and ensuring secure tenure of property and housing by women;

_______________

21 World Health Assembly resolution 58.3.

22 Report of the Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing, 4-15 September 1995 (United Nations

publication, Sales No. E.96.IV.13), chap. I, resolution 1, annexes I and II.

A/RES/60/1


(c) Ensuring equal access to reproductive health;

(d) Promoting women’s equal access to labour markets, sustainable

employment and adequate labour protection;

(e) Ensuring equal access of women to productive assets and resources,

including land, credit and technology;

(f) Eliminating all forms of discrimination and violence against women and

the girl child, including by ending impunity and by ensuring the protection of

civilians, in particular women and the girl child, during and after armed conflicts in

accordance with the obligations of States under international humanitarian law and

international human rights law;

(g) Promoting increased representation of women in Government decision making

bodies, including through ensuring their equal opportunity to participate

fully in the political process.

59. We recognize the importance of gender mainstreaming as a tool for achieving

gender equality. To that end, we undertake to actively promote the mainstreaming of

a gender perspective in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of

policies and programmes in all political, economic and social spheres, and further

undertake to strengthen the capabilities of the United Nations system in the area of

gender.
 
Empowerment of women is tied to "equal access to reproductive health."  And by "access to reproductive health," of course, is meant access to abortion.  The problem is that the allocation of US funds to lobby for abortion in other countries is illegal.  The Siljander amendment, an annually renewed law which prohibits US foreign assistance funds from being used to lobby for or against abortion (Source: FY 2006 Appropriations Act, Title II, "Child Survival and Health Programs Fund" and/or Title V, Section 518), was ignored by the Obama administration.

Some of Daniel Avila's critics promote doctrines of demons...

Marianne Duddy-Burke, Executive Director of the demonic organization "DignityUSA," and others associated with her dissent group, have issued a statement regarding Daniel Avila's opinion piece on same-sex attraction which was removed from The Pilot, Boston's Archdiocesan newspaper.  The statement says (in part):

"The comments made by Mr. Avila are outrageous, and have no place in any official Catholic communication vehicle. While we appreciate his apology, both he and officials from the Archdiocese of Boston have inflicted tremendous damage on the souls and psyches of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people and our families. There are still many people, both Catholic and non-Catholic, who will find validation for misguided beliefs about gay people because this material was allowed to be published in the Boston Pilot."

This is the same Marianne Duddy-Burke who called upon the Catholic Church to abandon its teaching that homosexual acts are intrinsically evil acts and who said that,  "As long as the doctrine stands [Catholic doctrine which defines marriage as a heterosexual union and which says that homosexual acts are acts of grave depravity], it makes it really hard for the pastoral and the doctrinal aspects of our faith not to come into a clash...The people of the church are changing, and by and large very affirming of gay people, and the hierarchy and the doctrine are lagging behind."  See here.

Now as Michael Brown has reported, "Father Gabriele Amorth, the official exorcist in Rome, has warned that wanton consumerism, sexual promiscuity, the occult, abortion, and homosexuality have caused a tremendous outbreak of demonic activity at a time when the Church has stripped itself of weapons to fight it." And one might add: at a time when the homosexual movement is engulfing our society like a plague.  Father Jeffrey Steffon warns that, "Satan tries to deceive, entice, enslave, torment (bring into bondage), drive human beings away from God, or defile them even if they are baptized...A major tactic of Satan is to attack our minds and thoughts.  He wants to deceive us for '..there is no truth in him.  When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.' (John 8:44)...The followers of Jesus must always be alert because 'the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.' (1 Tm 4:1)." (Satanism: Is It Real, p. 38).

Deceitful spirits.  Recall Father John Unni and the "Rainbow Ministry" over at Saint Cecilia's Parish in Boston.  One blogger who challenges the Church's teaching has written that, "For those who are dealing with the Catholic church specifically, it is also useful to recognise that for all its apparently homophobic teaching, in its internal culture it is in fact a Homoerotic Catholic Church. It could also be helpful to know that for all the negative material that has come from the modern Vatican, there have in fact been several popes who have either enjoyed their own sexual relationships with men, or who have protected relatives who have done so, or who have lavished generous papal commissions on notable gay artists to produce frankly homoerotic art. Read about some of these in Gay Popes, Papal Sodomites...It is important though to understand the more serious side of Catholic theology, and how it is changing." (See here).

Because we live in an overly-secularized culture, we tend to intellectualize everything while ignoring the supernatural dimension.  We are living in a time of diabolical disorientation.  It is important that we do not forget this and that we have recourse to daily prayer (especially the Holy Rosary) as well as living a sacramental life.  We must arm ourselves with deliverance prayers, sacramentals such as Holy Water and Blessed Salt.  We fight an enemy many choose to believe - at their own peril - does not exist.

The duty of fostering vocations...

Vatican II's Decree on Priestly Training (Optatam Totius) says that, "The duty of fostering vocations pertains to the whole Christian community, which should exercise it above all by a fully Christian life...All priests especially are to manifest an apostolic zeal in fostering vocations and are to attract the interest of youths to the priesthood by their own life lived in a humble and industrious manner and in a happy spirit as well as by mutual priestly charity and fraternal sharing of labor. Bishops...are to encourage their flock to promote vocations and should be concerned with coordinating all forces in a united effort to this end. As fathers, moreover, they must assist without stint those whom they have judged to be called to the Lord's work." (No. 2).

Unfortunately, this duty is not taken seriously by many within the Church. In fact, many vocations have been sabotaged by dissident priests and religious anxious to exclude those who are deemed "too rigid" or too "pre-Vatican II." Recall Michael S. Rose's book "Goodbye, Good Men." Such was my experience with the La Salette Missionaries. Because of my orthodoxy, I was never even seriously considered as a candidate. In fact, when I expressed concerns over La Salette priests promoting the ordination of women to the ministerial priesthood during a vocation retreat, a La Salette Provincial accused me of "evil." I still have all my correspondence with several La Salette priests, one of whom actually had the grace and kindness to apologize to me for the way the La Salette community treated me.

Because I accept everything which is taught in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and because I defend the teaching authority of the Church's Magisterium, I am treated with nothing but contempt in my own diocese. I am not even permitted to participate in the life of my parish. And I am not alone. As Archbishop Elden Curtis explained in an article entitled "Crisis in Vocations? What Crisis?":


"There is much media hype these days about the present and projected shortage of priests and its effect on the sacramental life of the Church. It is time to pay close attention to the dioceses and religious communities reporting increasing numbers of candidates. There have to be reasons for these increases that bear objective analysis from which some conclusions can be drawn.
I personally think the vocation "crisis" in this country is more artificial and contrived than many people realize. When dioceses and religious communities are unambiguous about ordained priesthood and vowed religious life as the Church defines these calls; when there is strong support for vocations, and a minimum of dissent about the male celibate priesthood and religious life loyal to the magisterium; when bishop, priests, Religious and lay people are united in vocation ministry—then there are documented increases in the numbers of candidates who respond to the call.

It seems to me that the vocation "crisis" is precipitated and continued by people who want to change the Church's agenda, by people who do not support orthodox candidates loyal to the magisterial teaching of the Pope and bishops, and by people who actually discourage viable candidates from seeking priesthood and vowed religious life as the Church defines the ministries.

I am personally aware of certain vocation directors, vocation teams and evaluation boards who turn away candidates who do not support the possibility of ordaining women or who defend the Church's teaching about artificial birth control, or who exhibit a strong piety toward certain devotions, such as the Rosary.

When there is a determined effort to discourage orthodox candidates from priesthood and religious life, then the vocation shortage which results is caused not by a lack of vocations but by deliberate attitudes and policies that deter certain viable candidates.

And the same people who precipitate a decline in vocations by their negative actions call for the ordination of married men and women to replace the vocations they have discouraged. They have a death wish for ordained priesthood and vowed religious life as the Church defines them. They undermine the vocation ministry they are supposed to champion." (Full article here).

It is incredible to me that while Senator Edward Kennedy's life was celebrated during a very public funeral - even though he publically dissented from the Church's teaching regarding the sanctity of life - I am treated with nothing but contempt by those who would exclude me because of my fidelity to the Church's teaching. The Senator was referred to as "Our brother and friend." I cannot even participate in the life of my parish. I am held in so much contempt that when I contacted my Diocese to inquire about the priesthood, I received no response whatsoever.

Maybe if I promoted the killing of the unborn or women's ordination, I too would be welcomed as "brother and friend." That's not going to happen though. For what does it profit a man....you know the rest.