Catholic vote

IS THERE a “Catholic vote”? It is said there are Catholic votes, but there are of two kinds: one based on Vatican I and the other on Vatican II. Vatican I is viewed as emphasizing the conscience of the institutional Church over the conscience of the individual. Vatican II is viewed as emphasizing the conscience of the individual over the conscience of the institutional Church. Further emphasis is made on the division of the Catholics into two groups: those on the side of conservative Vatican I and those on the side of liberal Vatican II.

But then what really is a Catholic vote? Is a vote cast for those who cry for the approval of RH bill a Catholic vote, and a vote cast for those who cry for the rejection of RH bill also a Catholic vote? What is the difference? On what grounds, then, should a Catholic vote be based? Should it be based on the spirit of Vatican I or that of Vatican II?

It must be made clear that the topic on Catholic vote arises from the issue on RH bill, which has been controversial because it is deemed as anti-life. Now the Catholic Church, as an institution, is a promoter of life. Consequently, it is against RH bill for its being anti-life. Catholics, therefore, are enjoined–if and if they are truly believers of the Catholic faith–to uphold the doctrinal teachings of the Church to which they “claim” they belong. Therefore, the true Catholic vote is the one cast for the reason of faithfully upholding the doctrinal teachings of the Catholic Church.

It is a fact that some Catholics–those who easily compromise, or even reject, their faith–cry for the approval of RH bill, and some other Catholics–those who do not and cannot compromise their faith–also cry for the rejection of the same bill. Those who cry for the approval of the bill use “freedom of conscience” of the individual as their battle-cry. Those who cry for the rejection of the bill try their best to faithfully abide by the doctrinal teachings of the Catholic Church to which they belong.

It must be made clear that when and when it is a question of the doctrinal teachings of the Catholic Church, all Catholics are enjoined to uphold them, in and with their strong faith. For God, the Holy Trinity, wills to save mankind, and it is through the teachings preserved and perpetuated by the Church that the continuing salvation of souls–brought about by Jesus Christ through the Cross–be achieved. This is, and must be, the “Conscience” of the non-compromising Catholics.

Within Catholicism itself, there are indeed two kinds of believers: the compromisers and the non-compromisers. Compromisers are those who can easily wave or reject the doctrinal teachings in exchange for the values of the world proliferated by modern philosophies. Non-compromisers are those who, prodded by their strong faith in God, try to uphold the doctrinal teachings. Who then can be said as true Catholics? The compromisers or the non-compromisers? It is not difficult to distinguish a compromising from a non-compromising Catholic.

The true Catholic vote, then, is the one cast, not according to his/her own personal, self-determined “freedom of conscience” but according to the “conscience” of the Catholic Church, which he/she is enjoined to uphold–that if he/she is truly faithful to his/her belief. It should be made clear to Catholics that one’s “conscience” can either be in line or against the “conscience” of the Catholic Church. On this basis, it is a fact that a Catholic can either keep his/her faith, specifically in the area of Catholic morality, or sell it in exchange for the values, or morality, of the present modernistic world.

Therefore, it is a fallacy to say that a vote cast according to one’s “freedom of conscience” which is against the teachings of the Church is just as Catholic as the vote cast according to the “conscience” of the Catholic Church. –Jose D. Clepidio, Minglanilla, Cebu

Faith in an age of unbelief

Faith in an Age of Unbelief is the theme of this year’s annual lecture of the Institute for Research on the Signs of the Times (Discern) to be held on Wednesday at 7pm at the Hotel Phoenicia, Floriana. The event is open to the public.

The speaker is Gavin D’Costa, Professor of Catholic Theology at the University of Bristol. D’Costa was born in Kenya, travelled to England in 1968 and obtained his first degree in English and Theology from Birmingham University and a doctorate from Cambridge University. He is married with two children.

He writes on the Catholic and other religions as well as on Catholic culture and education. Some of his publications include: Theology and Religious Pluralism. The Challenge of Other Religions, 1986; John Hick’s Theology of Religions. A Critical Evaluation, 1987; The Meeting of Religions and the Trinity, 2000; Sexing the Trinity. Gender, Culture and the Divine, 2000; Theology in the Public Square: Church, University, and Nation, 2005; Christianity and the World Religions. Disputed Questions in the Theology of Religions, 2009; He is currently completing a book on Vatican II.

National conference ‘marks potential sea change’ in reading of Bible

 


Bishop Peter Brignall

A national Bible conference held at Ushaw College has been affirmed as beginning a ‘sea change’ in the Catholic Bible apostolate in England and Wales.

Bishop Peter Brignall (Wrexham) and member of the Bishops’ Conference Department for Evangelisation and Catechesis, attended the Word of the Lord conference, 24 – 26 April, along with more than 70 delegates from across England and Wales.

He said: “This gathering is the first of its kind in a generation and as such marks a very significant moment, a potential sea change, in the profile and importance of the Bible in Catholic life in England and Wales. The Word of God lies at the heart of Catholic life and initiatives such as this conference are pivotal to encouraging others to read, study and pray with the Scriptures.

“The conference is one of a series of bible-focused initiatives that have been generated by a new working group established by the Bishops’ Department for Evangelisation and Catechesis in partnership with Bible Society. It’s hoped that more and more people will receive the invitation to listen to and proclaim, through many different means, God’s Word, which is the Word of Life.”

Among the speakers at the conference was former Master of the Dominican Order worldwide, Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP, who highlighted the importance of listening, that entering into the conversation with God means listening to others, particularly to women and to the poor.

Dom Henry Wansbrough of Ampleforth Abbey, one of the leading Catholic Scripture scholars in England and Wales, gave an overview of how the biblical apostolate was embraced by Catholics before and after Vatican II.

Michelle Moran, President of Catholic Charismatic Renewal, invited those gathered to embrace the call of the Word to engage in the mission of the Church.

Group Chief Executive of Bible Society, James Catford, was also welcomed at the event and presented with an icon of Saint Mark in appreciation of the assistance provided by the Society to organise the conference. He said: “This conference represents an exciting next step in our journey together with the Scriptures. The themes of the conference have challenged us to consider afresh how we pass on God’s word in the written scriptures, through the Arts and through the witness of our lives. It has been a timely invitation to ‘be the word’ for others.”

The Conference was initiated by the Department for Evangelisation and Catechesis of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, in partnership with the Centre for Catholic Studies at Durham University, and Bible Society. One of the highlights of the conference was the launch of a new study guide, entitled The Word of the Lord, produced by the Department and published by the Catholic Truth Society. The guide is designed to assist reading of Pope Benedict’s Apostolic Exhortation Verbum Domini which was issued in response to the Synod of Bishops on the Bible held in Rome in 2008. Delegates also visited Durham Cathedral and prayed at the tomb of the Venerable Bede, doctor of the Church, and patron of Scripture scholarship in these lands.

Fr Adrian Graffy, member of the Bishops’ Scripture Working Group, which is an instrument of the Department, said: “The whole event was so energising. The delegates were so positive and the speakers excellent. In the Year of Faith it was an opportunity to deepen our appreciation of Scripture at the heart of the Church in this country and to make plans for the years ahead.”

Ingelise McNulty, who attended as a member of the Hexham and Newcastle Diocesan Evangelisation Team said: “I am lost for words. I really enjoyed the conference and it was so good to be there.”

Bishop Seamus Cunningham (Hexham and Newcastle) and Bishop Edwin Regan (Emeritus Wrexham) were in attendance and a video message was played to delegates from Bishop Kieran Conry (Arundel and Brighton).

Janine Young: Foundation had roots in Vatican II

One of the most significant developments in the Catholic Church in the last 50 years has been the implementation of the vast changes brought about by Vatican II.

Between 1962 and 1965, the Second Vatican Council was convened by Pope John XXIII for spiritual renewal of the Church and to reconsider the position of the church in the modern world.

Parishioners saw the most visible effects of the Council’s work in how Mass was celebrated, in new forms of church architecture, and in the repositioning of the altar.

But the consequences of Vatican II went much deeper into the heart of Catholic theology and the meaning of living as a Catholic in the modern world. The Council called for a new emphasis on the traditions of the church, especially Scripture, while also calling for a dialogue between the church and the contemporary world, among different faiths and religious traditions, and within the very structures and leadership of the church.

Since Vatican II, there has been a profound new emphasis on evangelization, missionary traditions, and an increased commitment to the poor. In the Diocese of El Paso, the effects of the Second Vatican Council were especially notable in the emergency of lay ministry both at the parish level and the diocesan level as the laity has increasingly taken its place as leaders of the church.

Today, most parishes within the Diocese of El Paso have a wide variety of ministries led by lay leaders that provide

outreach, spiritual care, and religious education including the Knights of Columbus, Guadalupanos, Ministries of Communion, Lectors, Youth Groups, Marriage Ministries, Religious Education Programs, Social Justice Ministries, and St. Vincent de Paul Societies.

At the diocesan level, lay ministry has expanded significantly since Vatican II and is reflected today in 16 pastoral offices including Catholic Campus Ministry, Communications, Vocations, Office of Education (Catholic Schools), Permanent Diaconate, Religion Formation, Office of Worship, Catholic Counseling Services, Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services, Peace and Justice, St. Charles Seminary, Tigua Native American, Youth and Young Adult, Tepeyac Institute, Worship, and the West Texas Ministry.

In 2001, Bishop Armando X. Ochoa, in recognition of the need to provide for the long-term sustainability of these diocesan ministries, established the Foundation for the Diocese of Paso.

The Foundation is an independent nonprofit organization that exists to support the growing needs of the Catholic community. The Foundation manages the Catholic Legacy Fund which is an endowment program that supports the annual and long-term needs of diocesan ministries, parishes, and schools.

An endowment is a permanent fund whose income is used to support the ministry, parish or Catholic school of the donor’s choice. Through the creation of endowments, the Foundation is providing a means to generate future and sustainable income for Catholic entities throughout the diocese.

The Foundation also oversees the Progress Annual Appeal which provides annual operational funds for the 16 diocesan ministries with a portion of the funds raised returned to parishes based upon their levels of participation, and the Grants Development Office, which seeks foundation and corporate grants for ministries, schools, and parishes. As a complement to fundraising programs, the Foundation promotes stewardship through several activities including an annual dinner.

Since its creation in 2001, the Foundation has raised more than $10 million for endowment, $14 million in grants, and $18 million through the Progress Appeal.

Join us this Wednesday at the Camino Real Hotel for the Foundation’s annual Catholic Legacy Fund Dinner — From Fame to Faith: An Evening with Eduardo Verástegui. Actor, singer, model, and film producer, Verástegui will be the keynote speaker. Known for his work in the movies “Bella” and “For Greater Glory,” he is also a spokesman for Catholics Come Home.

Eduardo will share his story about going from a life of fame to living a life of faith. For more information, or to purchase tickets, call the Foundation at 872-8412.

Janine Young is the author of the Centennial History of the Diocese of El Paso. She works for the Foundation for the Diocese of El Paso. For more on the Centennial, go to www.elpasodiocese.org.

Program celebrates 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council

CLINTON —
“Sharing the Vision” of Vatican II with a Latin American bishop, a Franciscan nun who led American Catholic Sisters during the Vatican investigation of their leadership organization, and a young, feminist theologian whose nationally published columns challenge the “Vatican II generation” to speak to what today’s young people need to know about what is called the most significant event in modern Church history is all in store at the closing session of the “Celebrating Vatican II” lecture series.

The Catholic Sisters of the Upper Mississippi River Valley will conclude the four-part lecture series they have sponsored in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council of the Roman Catholic Church on April 21, beginning at 2 p.m. at Prince of Peace Church, Clinton.

“Celebrating Vatican II: Sharing the Vision” has offered lectures by a variety of expert commentators at venues throughout the region since October 2012. The lecture series, which explores four key themes of the Council, coincides with the “Year of Faith” being observed by the Catholic Church, and is free and open to the public.

“We developed this four-part event as a gift to the Church and the people of God in celebration of the Council. We felt a responsibility to bring a renewed awareness of the great gifts of Vatican II to the people with whom we minister throughout the Upper Mississippi River Valley,” explained Anne Martin Phelan, OSF, president of the Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, and chairwoman of the organizing committee.

“It is providential that a Latin American Bishop should be with us in these days, following the election of the first Latin American Pope. We are all looking forward to his perspective on how Pope Francis might approach Vatican II heritage during his papacy.”

At the program, Dr. Marlene Weisenbeck, FSPA, former president of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, will describe Vatican II’s invitation to read the signs of the times and respond in dedicated service; Most Rev. Daniel Turley, Bishop of Chulucanas, Peru, will reflect on ways the Church is called to solidarity with the people of God throughout the world; and Jamie Manson, columnist with the National Catholic Reporter, will speak to what young people in today’s Church need from the Vatican II generation.

Sister Weisenbeck is a member and former president (2002-2010) of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, La Crosse, Wis., as well as former president of LCWR, a canonically approved membership organization that exists as a support system and corporate voice for leaders of religious institutes of Catholic Sisters in the United States. She also serves as chairwoman of the Catholic Health Association’s Sponsorship/Canon Law Committee and is a consultant in religious law.  She is past president of the National Conference of Vicars for Religious and chancellor for the Diocese of La Crosse.

Sister Weisenbeck holds a B.M. Ed. degree from Viterbo University, an M.M. from George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, a J.C.L. in Canon Law from Saint Paul University-Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Bishop Turley, an Augustinian priest and a native of Chicago, is the second Bishop of Chulucanas where he has served since 1996. He was elected to the Permanent Council of the Peruvian Bishops’ Conference and has been awarded an honorary doctor of Humane Letters by Villanova University, Philadelphia. In 2011 he was awarded the Peace Prize by the Peruvian government’s Ministry for Women’s Rights and Social Development in recognition of his outstanding work in defense of farmers in the Upper Piura region of the Diocese of Chulucanas. Bishop Turley insisted that farmers’ concerns about environmental degradation, which would destroy their livelihood, be heard as part of the discussion about opening a large mining operation in the area. In the process he received death threats. The Ministry called Bishop Turley “a tireless promoter of a culture of peace.”

Jamie L. Manson writes a monthly column for the National Catholic Reporter, addressing the plight of the poor, the future of the Church, issues of gender and sexual orientation, and ways of finding God’s presence in our everyday lives. She received her Master of Divinity degree from Yale Divinity School, where she studied Catholic theology and sexual ethics. Her NCR columns have won numerous awards, most recently second prize for Commentary of the Year from Religion Newswriters.

 There is no registration for the lecture series and no admission charge. Follow-up sessions to the lectures are offered in the cities where the sponsoring Sisters congregations minister.

“Celebrating Vatican II: Sharing the Vision” is sponsored by Carmelite Nuns, Eldridge; Congregation of the Humility of Mary, Davenport; Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, La Crosse; Sinsinawa Dominicans, Sinsinawa, Wis.; Sisters of Mercy, West-Midwest Region, Omaha; Benedictine Sisters, Rock Island, Ill.; Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton; and Sisters of Charity BVM, Sisters of the Presentation, Sisters of St. Francis, Sisters of the Visitation and Trappistine Nuns, all of Dubuque.

For details, see www.facebook.com/catholicsisters or call Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton at 242-7611.

Not Less than Everything

A group of Catholic writers profile “religious realists” through history.

By

Diane Scharper, Contributor /
March 14, 2013

Not Less than Everything:
Catholic Writers on Heroes of Conscience from Joan of Arc to Oscar Romero
Edited by Catherine Wolff
HarperOne
339 pages.

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Dorothy Day disliked religious romantics. “I want a religious realist,” she told “The Village Voice,” “…one who prays to see things as they are and to do something about it.” If there’s one phrase to describe Day and the other 25 subjects profiled in this anthology, it’s the phrase, “religious realist.”

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The book’s editor, Catherine Wolff, could also be called a religious realist. She believed in the reforms set forth by the Second Vatican Council, especially the importance of the individual conscience. So when the hierarchy tried to limit the effects of Vatican II, she became frustrated and decided to compile an anthology which would focus on inner-directed figures, like herself. 

Despite its somewhat unwieldy title, Not Less than Everything: Catholic Writers on Heroes of Conscience from Joan of Arc to Oscar Romero, the book is engaging. It gathers characters from New Testament times to the present. The collection is lively; the many fresh faces, voices, and styles keep it from being just another book with an axe to grind.

10 most controversial authors (in recent memory)

The people profiled here aren’t necessarily Catholic. (Martin Luther, for example, left the Church and started the Protestant Reformation). Nor are they typical heroes. (Gerard Manley Hopkins acquiesced to his superiors and destroyed much of his poetry). Some, like Bartolomé de las Casas, Hildegard von Bingen, Michel Montaigne, and Mary Magdalene, are famous historical figures. But others, like Horace McKenna S.J. and Father Charles Strobel – both parish priests who spoke out against racism and spoke up for the homeless and downtrodden – are known only in the small circles of their influence.

Yet all of those profiled took the example of Jesus Christ for inspiration. This is not the pretty Jesus pictured on holy cards. It is Jesus the iconoclast, the one who threw the money changers out of the temple, who publicly chastised hypocrites, and who disdained the authorities. This is the Jesus who did what he thought was right and bore the consequences.

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A ‘religious pope’: what difference it could make for the Catholic Church

Unsurprisingly, the Jesuits are celebrating tonight that one of their own has become the first member of the Society of Jesus to be elected pope in the history of the Catholic Church.

That he is from a religious order of a particular character may be very significant in shaping this papacy, even if it proves to be a transitional one, as initial expectations suggest.

In an article circulated today, Gemma Simmonds CJ, from Heythrop College, University of London, asked in the online journal Thinking Faith, ‘Time for a religious pope?’ (http://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/20130311_2.htm)

She explained: “The modern Church has become dangerously top-heavy through the increasing centralisation of power. Despite the personal sanctity and right intentions of the post-conciliar pontiffs, the abuse of power has flourished throughout its structures. A different approach to authority is what the Church needs now, and the place to look for this could well be in the rules of religious orders. The last pope to be ‘a religious’ in the full sense of being a member of a religious order was the Benedictine Gregory XVI (1831-46); perhaps it is time for another religious pope.

“Religious are accustomed to taking up the power of office only to lay it down again once their term is over. A pope with a deep-seated instinct for consultation and consensus, such as is found among the mendicant and monastic orders, would perhaps be more likely to take seriously Vatican II’s implicit and explicit teaching on subsidiarity. This would mean allowing local churches their proper level of self-determination and including widespread consultation of experts on the ground, whether clerical or lay, as a normative part of decision-making processes. It would mean having structures of governance that are more transparent, accountable and inclusive, presided over by a pope who provides a model to all in authority in the Church of being among the community as one who serves.

“The rhetoric of dialogue within religious orders is also very powerful. It can be a major challenge to achieve consensus within a worldwide body of people, often from radically different cultures and religious outlooks, despite living according to the same rule. Most orders have hierarchical structures of authority rather than functioning as a workers’ co-operative. In religious life the decision-making processes are predicated on the notion that discernment is a gift given not only to individual leaders but to the body as a whole, made up of all its members, whether those mandated to govern or play a specific spiritual role, or the ordinary members. The Augustinian Rule, on which many other orders, such as the Dominicans, base their life, gives due deference to authority. It warns those who have it not to abase themselves unnecessarily in front of those whom they have had to reprove in case it undermines their office, but it reminds them to ask forgiveness of God, if not of the erring brother or sister.

“So the dynamic of forgiveness and humility, but also of a measured understanding of the boundaries proper within the exercise of authority, lies at the heart of religious life. In practice, there have been monsters of autocracy in religious orders just as in any other walk of life, but the theoretical ideal is clear, and it has often held remarkably well. Authority is seen primarily in terms of service, but the subtlety of the relationship on both sides is made clear, with those in decision-making positions holding not only practical responsibility but also spiritual responsibility for the outcomes in terms of other people’s lives.”

* Read the whole article, Gemma Simmonds CJ, ‘Time for a religious pope?’, Thinking Faith, March 2013, here: http://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/20130311_2.htm

* Papal #conclave: news, comment, background and analysis from Ekklesia: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/PapalConclave

* Analysis: What can we expect from Pope Francis I?, by Simon Barrow: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/18166

———–

© Simon Barrow is co-director of Ekklesia. A member of the Scottish Episcopal Church with strong Anabaptist/Mennonite leanings, he has worked at a Catholic university college in the past, as well as within the ecumenical movement. He has a long-standing interest in, and appreciation for, Catholic spirituality and liturgy, alongside the peace and justice traditions of the Catholic Church.

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Prominent Catholicism expert coming to Niagara University as part of McNulty …

Vincent J. Miller, Ph.D., the Gudorf Chair in Catholic Theology and Culture
at the University of Dayton, will deliver an address on “The Church and Work
for Justice in the World: From Vatican II to Today” at Niagara University’s
Alumni Chapel on March 20 at 5:30 p.m.

The event is free and open to the public.

Miller was appointed as the first Gudorf Chair in Catholic Theology and
Culture in 2009. He is an expert on religion and politics, religion and
consumer culture, the U.S. Catholic Church’s involvement in politics and public
policy, social justice, and the moral consequences of budgetary policies. He is
author of “Consuming Religion:
Christian Faith and Practice in a Consumer Culture,” and is currently
working on a book on the effect of globalization on religious belief. Formerly
of Georgetown University, Miller has been widely sought for his comments on the
resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the global financial crisis, Catholic social
teaching and the federal budget’s impact on the poor.

Miller has been interviewed by Fox News (“The O’Reilly Factor”), The New
York Times, The Associated Press, The Washington Post, National Catholic Reporter,
Catholic News Service and Religion News Service.

The speech is part of the Henry and Grace McNulty Lecture Series on
Religion in the Modern World, presented annually at Niagara University to
address issues related to social justice and interreligious dialogue. The
series was established by the late Rev. Thomas P. McGourty, C.M., a professor
of religious studies at NU, in memory of his late aunt and uncle.

For more information on Miller’s lecture, contact Niagara University’s
department of religious studies at 716-286-8460 or [email protected].

Countdown to the Conclave, Day 4: The New York Times and Hans Kung

WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) – More Conclave hilarity yesterday, this time from a reliable source of hilarity, the New York Times. Our friend at the Catholic League, Bill Donohue, immediately sent out an email alert when the op-ed by Hans Kung appeared. 

Prof. Kung, now 85 years old, is himself the embodiment of what John Paul II and Benedict XVI rescued the Church from becoming.  This is not to say that Kung is not a man of immense learning — he is! — or a scholar with a worldwide reputation — he has that! — or even a man who would be a delightful companion over a glass of wine at dinner — he would be!  (Indeed, Benedict XVI surprised everyone by having him to dinner in the Vatican in 2005.)

But to feature Prof. Kung on the last day of the pontificate of Benedict XVI is the equivalent of the New York Times holding up its middle finger to the Holy Father, the Church, and the 1.3 billion Catholics around the world. This is how Donohue summarizes Kung’s evaluation of the latest pontificate: According to Kung, Benedict XVI

“‘irritated the Protestant churches, Jews, Muslims, the Indians of Latin America, women, reform-minded theologians and all pro-reform Catholics.’ He blames the pope (when he was Cardinal Ratzinger) for covering up the sexual abuse of minors, and cites ‘Vatileaks’ as a problem. He also says the two major scandals of his tenure were giving ‘recognition’ to the ‘Society of St. Pius X, which is bitterly opposed to the Second Vatican Council, as well as of a Holocaust denier, Bishop Richard Williamson.’”

Kung should know better than to speak to his elders that way! Benedict XVI, now pope emeritus, is one year older, having been born in 1927.  And at least Benedict XVI knew when to “hang up his spikes,” whereas Prof. Kung remains on the “spirit of Vatican II” treadmill, much like poor Sisyphus pushing his rock up the hill, only to watch it roll back down again.  

If you are not familiar with the name Hans Kung, let us provide a few basic facts: He was the first major Catholic theologian to reject the doctrine of papal infallibility (see his book, Fallibility: An Inquiry, 1971). Eight years later he was stripped of his license to teach Catholic theology. His criticism of the Church, and the papacy in particular, has continued unabated ever since, including an embrace of euthanasia among other intrinsically evil practices.  

Hans Kung is, it seems to us, very much a tragic figure, one of the best minds and best scholars the Church has produced in the last century.  But somewhere along the road he took a wrong turn and became the virtual magisterium of Catholic dissent, a font of authority much imbibed by theologians in the academy, including many Catholic departments of “religious studies.” But he became irrelevant to the development of Christian doctrine over the past forty years.  

Progressives, Conservatives Wrestle over Catholic Doctrine

Whoever succeeds Benedict faces challenges that will impact New England’s large Catholic community.

I’ve just entered the cavernous vestibule of the Holy Cross Cathedral. At this hour, there are two different masses being held, in two different languages, two visions for the future. In the upper church, a Mass hymnal in English; in the basement chapel, another in Latin.

A staircase separates the two, but it could just as well be separated by centuries of religious traditions. Following his election in 2005, Pope Benedict XVI affirmed his belief in conservative Catholic doctrine and promoted the symbols of traditionalism, including vestments and the Latin mass.

“As if Jesus himself spoke Latin or as if he conducted the mass wearing vestments,” said James Carroll, a former seminarian, and distinguished scholar in residence at Suffolk University. He said like conservative Catholic doctrine, the Latin mass is a throwback to the pre-Vatican II era. And for many folks that is appealing.

“The truth is there was something beautiful about it,” Carroll said. “It was coherent. It was orderly. There was an answer to every question and symbolized by the Gothic cathedral, the epitome of all that we loved about the Catholic Church. The astonishing thing is that this beautiful, coherent, gothic, edifice that was Catholicism — there was something deeply, deeply inhuman and corrupt in it.”     

The Second Vatican Council, or Vatican II, in the early 60’s, was a response to centuries old stagnation within the church, Carroll said. And so, Catholicism — constructed as a gothic fortress against external and internal forces — opened up, if only slightly, to new, modern-day realities. 

But in 2013 the doors are shut again, said Eileen Doherty, a member of the Spirit of life Community — a Catholic lay organization whose members believe in the ordination of women as priests, gay marriage, contraception in general, and even abortion under some circumstances.

“The way the Roman Catholic Church is going now is that they are excluding more people than helping,” Doherty said.

Under an iron-gray sky streaked with rain, Doherty and others are passing out flyers in front of the Cathedral. She accuses Cardinal Sean O’Malley and the church hierarchy of abandoning the poor.

“We have to be there for the people who can’t speak for themselves to make some necessary changes that have to happen for the church,” Doherty said. 

I asked her if those changes include doctrine.

“Yes, because the gospel of Jesus is not being adhered to, because Jesus was there for those that were deprived,” Doherty answered. “And they’re not my church. I don’t find them true to the gospel.”

Doherty said that Catholic doctrine — the way that gospel is taught and interpreted — must change to accommodate progressive viewpoints. But traditionalists in the church are pushing back.

As passengers dart from the subway in Downtown Crossing, they pass through a gauntlet of conservative activists passing out religious flyers. Ross Dutcher, a Catholic from Wakefield, hands me a pamphlet. What does he think of progressives claim to the church?

“They’re not really Catholic,” Dutcher said. “I mean, the church’s doctrine doesn’t change.”

How should the Catholic Church in your view and in the context of doctrine accommodate those folks who believe that women should be ordained? 

“Just tell them the truth,” Dutcher said. “Jesus ordained only men.”  

But Ray Flynn, former Boston mayor and U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, and a traditionalist, said that the church is fundamentally open to new ideas.

“I’ve seen the Catholic Church in Ghana, in Mexico City, in Sarajevo, in the middle East,” Flynn said. “How do you bring those traditions of culture into what we as Americans know the Catholic Church to be, consistent with our culture? That’s the challenge. Not by changing doctrine but by changing attitudes and making it more open and more inclusive.” 

Larry Kessler, who heads the Boston Center for Living, a facility assisting people to live with HIV, describes this as tinkering around the edges of change, not change itself. Kessler has spent most of his life working with AIDS victims in clinics and in hospices. He also attended Catholic schools and even went into the seminary.

“I guess I would say I have been a very practicing activist within the church for forty years, but recently I have had some serious doubts about whether I should hang on in there any longer,” Kessler said.

Kessler said he was hopeful following Vatican II, which gave lay people a greater role in church life. But he added the current Catholic hierarchy is mired in scandals and not receptive to change from below. 

“The pews are getting more empty every Sunday, because it’s not listening or speaking to the people that used to come to those pews,” Kessler said. “And it’s larger than the sexual abuse crisis. It’s a lack of leadership, a lack of vision, a lack of a coherent policy.”

Kessler said that instead of advocating for the kind of people he assists, he believes Catholic bishops — including Boston Cardinal Sean O’Malley — have directed their political energies into fighting contraception, abortion and gay marriage.

“The Catholic Church has acted more like the Republican Party, and we know what kind of trouble the Republican Party’s in because they’ve lost touch with the people who need strong government, and in terms of the church, we’ve lost trust in the bishops because they’re not being very Christ-like.”

But Flynn, a longtime advocate for the poor, strongly disagrees. 

“There are advocates for change, but the change is completely inconsistent with Catholic doctrine,” Flynn said. “The Catholic Church is not going to change its doctrine. Anybody that suggests that is trying to make headlines.” 

Francis Fiorenza, a professor of Catholic theology at Harvard Divinity School, said traditionalism and progressivism are not necessarily incompatible.              

“All one has to say is this is where the church is today,” Fiorenza said. “And the only way to do it is to develop a mutual respect to say, ‘Well, what is the side that doesn’t want change afraid of, and what do they really want to hold on to?’ And those that want change, they’re not wanting to throw the baby out with the bathwater, so to speak. And we need to try to understand the positions of both. And you also would have to ask the question: What in modern culture is positive that demands change?” 

As you think about that question, another word or two about Francis Fiorenza. He studied theology in Germany. His teacher was Joseph Ratzinger — who took the name Pope Benedict XVI, a resolute conservative. So Fiorenza’s answer to what in modern culture is positive and demands change may surprise you.   

“If I take a controversial issue like women’s ordination, there I think change is possible,” Fiorenza said.

John Allen, national senior correspondent for the Catholic Reporter in Rome covering the election to succeed Benedict, said “not likely.”

“Bear in mind, everyone of the 117 cardinals who will vote in this election were appointed by either John Paul II or Pope Benedict XVI, and on the big picture level, they’re all of like mind,” Allen said. “So I think its quite unrealistic to think whoever is elected pope is going to revise the church’s teachings on issues like abortion, or gay marriage or the ordination of women.”

But Carroll — who’s witnessed the Church evolve from a legacy of anti-Semitism to an embrace of civil rights — said never say never in the context of Catholic doctrine.

“Because we’ve had the breakthrough already: the breakthrough into the world of change,” Carroll said. “And what’s the most palpable recent incidence of that? Pope Benedict himself. By changing a practice of the church that’s a thousand years old that pope’s don’t resign. Well, yes, they do. And the church of Benedict will never be the same.” 

But some Catholics are not waiting for the outcome of the conclave.

“This church is an aberration of Catholic doctrine,” said Doherty, passing out progressive literature in front of the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.

“Women ordained? Same-sex marriage? Contraception? The Church isn’t going to go that way,” said the conservative Dutcher, handing out flyers on the Red Line platform.

Both are waging a spiritual battle, if you will, for the heart and soul of the Roman Catholic Church, which they both claim as their own.