Toward unity or division

We spoke yesterday of the Holy Father's recent publication of a Motu Proprio on the 'Roman Liturgy prior to 1970'. In the days immediately prior to the departure of the Pope for his annual vacation period, the Vatican offices seem to have been very busy preparing a series of documents which have been released in the past days.

On Tuesday, July 10, 2007, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican office which is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that various issues related to explaining the Faith are clarified and maintained free of error or misinterpretation, published a series of Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine of the Church.

Like the media reports surrounding the publication of the Motu Proprio, there has similarly been an abundance of commentary on this most recent document issued by the above-named Congregation. Many would have us believe that the Church is once again taking steps backward rather than continuing on the path of reconciliation with other Churches and ecclesial communities which have been separated from the Roman Church during the past number of centuries.

In order to truly appreciate the value of declarations such as this, the reader of Church teachings and documents must be able to see the larger picture which sometimes spans a number of months, years and even centuries. This is very different from the modern day media which seeks to provide immediate answers to current affairs.

Joseph Ratzinger chose the name Benedict on the day when the Cardinal electors appointed him as the Successor of Peter. He did this because he has desired ardently to promote reconciliation and peace in the Church. Like his fifth century namesake, he has recognized a number of areas in which the present-day Church can benefit from clarifications in order to remain faithful to the call of the Divine Master to continue the mission of proclaiming the Good News to the world today.

From time to time, the Church needs to clarify its teachings and precepts, much like a ship which needs to correct its direction on occasion as it travels through the waters of the ocean.

According to the Commentary on the document, issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the same day as the document itself was published, the Responses essentially summarise the teaching of the (Second Vatican) Council (1962-1965) and the post-conciliar magisterium, (presenting) a clear reaffirmation of Catholic doctrine on the Church.

Shortly after his election as Pope, in his first message to the Church and during his Apostolic visit to Turkey, Benedict expressed a desire to continue promoting dialogue between the Catholic Church and other Churches and ecclesial communities. Dialogue can only occur if the positions of the respective voices are clearly understood. In the words of the explanatory note, if such dialogue is to be truly constructive it must involve not just the mutual openness of the participants but also fidelity to the identity of the Catholic faith (as well as all other participants in the discussion). Only in this way will it be able to lead towards the unity of all Christians in “one flock with one shepherd” (Jn 10, 16) and thus heal that wound which prevents the Catholic Church from fully realising her universality within history.

In the light of this explanation, the Responses issued by the Congreation for the Doctrine of the Faith can in a sense be understood as a clarification of certain points, so that further dialogue can take place. How the dialogue will proceed, and what fruits will be borne remain to be seen.

Amid much speculation

You will forgive a momentary sidestep from the commentary which is currently being provided on the subject of George Weigel's book The Courage to Be Catholic. In a sense this post also speaks about what it means to be Catholic but from a slightly different perspective.

On Saturday, July 7, 2007, just two days before he left for his annual vacation, His Holiness Benedict XVI issued an Apostolic letter Motu proprio (on its own authority) on the 'Roman liturgy prior to 1970'.

For days if not weeks or months prior to its publication, public speculation about Sumorum Pontificum was that it would insist upon the reinstatement of the use of Latin as the preferred language for the celebration of the Eucharist. Even after its publication, some would believe that this is more of a step backward rather than a progression for the Church in the modern world.

In truth, the aim of this document is to promote a clearer understanding of the liturgy of the Catholic Church and to make steps at healing some of the injury which may have been inflicted through eroneous belief that the Latin tradition of the Church was supressed in favour of the vernacular (language of the people) for the celebration of the Eucharist.

In an explanatory letter about the intent of the Motu Proprio addressed to the bishops of the world, the Holy Father explains that 'it is a matter of coming to an interior reconciliation in the heart of the Church. Looking back over the past, to the divisions which in the course of the centuries have rent the Body of Christ, one continually has the impression that, at critical moments when divisions were coming about, not enough was done by the Church’s leaders to maintain or regain reconciliation and unity. One has the impression that omissions on the part of the Church have had their share of blame for the fact that these divisions were able to harden. This glance at the past imposes an obligation on us today: to make every effort to enable for all those who truly desire unity to remain in that unity or to attain it anew.'

Contrary to the belief that the revision of the liturgy proposed by Pope Paul VI, which we commonly refer to as the Novus Ordo liturgy is meant to replace the earlier liturgy proposed in 1962 by Pope John XXIII, Benedict XVI clarifies that 'There is no contradiction between the two editions of the Roman Missal. In the history of the liturgy there is growth and progress, but no rupture. What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful. It behooves all of us to preserve the riches which have developed in the Church’s faith and prayer, and to give them their proper place.'

As with all other issues of administration of particular dioceses, each bishop, as Shepherd of the local Church entrusted to his pastoral care has the authority to oversee the implementation of this directive which takes effect on September 14, 2007, Feast of the Triumph of the Cross.

Although the Roman Missal (the liturgy used for the celebration of the Eucharist) proulgated by Pope Paul VI remains the ordinary expression of the Law of Prayer of the Church of the Latin rite, the earlier version promulgated by Pope Saint Pius V and reissued by Blessed John XXIII is from now on to be regarded as an extraordinary expression of the same Law of Prayer. Since the liturgy promulgated by Blessed John XXIII was never abrogated, it remains a viable option for communities who wish to celebrate according to this ritual.

An unofficial English translation of the Motu Proprio was published by ZENIT on Saturday, July 8, 2007.

Like his fifth-century namesake, Benedict XVI has hoped that this document will help to promote peace and reconciliation in the Church which has experienced division because of misunderstanding about these versions of the Roman Missal. This hope seems to already be bearing fruit. In a statement issued on Saturday, Bishop Bernard Fellay, who succeeded Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre as Superior of the Society of Saint Pius X thanked the Holy Father for this gesture of reconciliation, and expressed 'deep gratitude to the Sovereign Pontiff for this great spiritual benefit'.

Various commentaries on this text have also been issued in the past few days.

How the crisis happened

The biblical account of God's interaction with humanity is a story of fidelity, betrayal and reform. From the beginning of the story of salvation, God has constantly been faithful to his promise to love cherish His beloved people. Whenever human beings have fallen short of God's dream for us to live in mutual fidelity with Him and with one another, there is another chapter to the story which speaks of the reform that needs to happen so that the originally-intended fidelity can be restored.

Like the apostles who were first called to follow in the footsteps of the Master, seminarians who have discerned the Lord's call joyfully accept the invitation to walk in His footsteps. No one is more aware of his own weakness and unworthiness to embark on this journey than the priest himself, but he does so with the assurance that Jesus, who called even Judas Iscariot to join Him in the task of proclaiming the Kingdom, will accompany him, encourage him and use his talents and gifts to spread the good news, at times despite his own limitations.

Many factors, including cultural immersion in the sexual revolution and modern disregard for traditional structures of authority, especially religious authority have contributed to the loosening of clerical discipline especially in the 1970s and early 1980s. This tendency to disregard the wisdom of traditional authority resulted in what George Weigel calls a culture of dissent.

In fact, 'as the culture of discent reached critical mass in the ... Catholic theological community, and as discenting views on sexual morality and other issues were openly proposed as acceptably Catholic positions in seminary and noviciate classrooms, seminarians and religious order novices were faced with an almost schizophrenic situation. To be a witness to the fullness of Catholic faith now seemed antiquated, even bizzare ... (and) orthodoxy, not heterodoxy, became suspect. (Courage, p. 76)

In response to this conflict, John Paul II invited bishops to participate in a Synod focused on the formation of priests in the modern world, the fruit of which was the Post-Synodal Exhortation Pastores Dabo Vobis (Shepherds after my own heart). The Pope recognized that in the face of a crisis of priestly vocations "the first answer which the Church gives lies in a total act of faith in the Holy Spirit. We are deeply convinced that this trusting abandonment will not disappoint if we remain faithful to the graces we have received." (PDV, 1)

The Post-Synodal document recognizes various challenges facing priestly formation, and then returns to basics by examining the nature and mission of the ministerial priesthood. Considerable time is spent examining the spiritual life of a priest, and situating the priestly vocation in light of the Church's pastoral work.

This document, devoted to a serious re-examination of the responsibility for formation of candidates for the priesthood has been instrumental in the reform of requirements and the modus operandi which guide the life of seminary formation today. This reform, which has taken place in the past decade is a response to the crisis of sexual abuse, and has called the Church to a renewed fidelity to the call of the Lord to form shepherds according to His own heart.

What the crisis is not

As reports of alleged sexual abuse against minors by clergy became known across various parts of North America, a number of theories have surfaced about the cause of this behaviour. Those who are entrusted with the task of addressing this issue must be clear on what it is about as well as what it is not.

Some of the misunderstandings about the roots of this crisis are:

A belief that it was caused by the Church's rule about celebacy for priests

Every man who is ordained for service as a priest in the Roman Catholic Church makes a promise to live out his vocation in the state of celebacy. Those entrusted with the priest's formation testify as to his ability to commit to this and to the other responsibilities he accepts with Ordination, but it is ultimately the candidate himself who comes forward to make this promise before the Church, represented by the Ordaining bishop and the community that is gathered for the celebration.

The crisis of sexual abuse by clergy does not involve those who are 'faithful celebates, but men who ... failed to live the vows they made'. (Courage, p. 37)

In the present-day culture which is experiencing some of the highest rates of marital breakdown, and in which sex seems to be something experienced primarily for pleasure, it is perhaps difficult to fathom the possibility of living one's entire life committed to celibate chastity.

'Read through the lens of the sexual revolution, celibacy is peculiar at best and pathological at worst ... (from this point of view) celibates might be believed to be especially prone to sexual predation because they are maladjusted psychologically and require some for of release ... for their sexual tension.' (Courage, p. 38)

In reality, those priests who have been accused, tried and found guilty of sexual abuse are in the minority compared with the vast number of others who live their lives committed to prayer and service of God's people.

A belief that the Church is authoritarian in it's structure

Some would believe that this crisis is a result of an authoritarian approach to the administration of the Church. In reality, this could not be further from the truth.

The Holy Father is the Bishop of Rome, and does indeed carry the responsibility of Pastor of the Universal Church. However he exercises his ministry in communion with all other bishops throughout the world. Despite the belief that the Pope is somehow an overseer of the pastoral activity of the bishops of particular dioceses, it is in fact the bishops themselves who are entrusted with full pastoral responsibility for the administration of their local churches.

Priests who have been assigned as pastors of parishes exercise their ministry in collaboration with their local bishops. Their authority to lead is given to them by the local bishop as an extension of his pastoral responsibility for the well-being of souls committed to his care.

If anything, priesthood is not about authority but about service.

A belief that this is a crisis of 'pedophelia'

The clinical definition of a pedophile is one who abuses children, but 'pedophile priests - in the classic sense of men who habitually abuse prepubescent children - are not the majority of clerical sexual abusers; they are in fact, a small minority ...' (Courage, p. 47)

In fact, the majority of cases being reported in the United States involve teenaged boys or young males, and not pre-pubescent children.

All abuse of minors, in fact abuse of anyone is abhorent, but reporting about the situation should be as acurate as possible.

A belief that this is a response to the Church's sexual ethic

Some critics who were quick to venture opinions about the source of the problem tried to portray this as a resonse to the Church's 'medieval' sexual ethic, but the fact is that 'sexual abusers are manifestly and unmistakably not living the Church's sexual ethic. On the contrary, they are doing what the Catholic Church condemns' (Courage, p. 54)

Throughout a series of Wednesday audiences delivered early in his pontificate, John Paul II outlined what has become known as the 'theology of the body'. According to this teaching, 'the Catholic sexual ethic holds that sexual love is a matter of self-giving, not self-assertion - as indeed all genuine love is a matter of self-gift, not self-assertion'. (ibid)

The Church's sexual ethic is therefore meant to affirm and celebrate sexual love, in the context of the Sacrament of Marriage and with the aim of cooperating with God in the act of creation. Sex should never be used as a source of power for to do so is to abuse the gifts we have received from the Lord.

Against the backdrop of a society which is increasingly tolerant of sex for the sake of entertainment, the Church is countercultural in proclaiming the message of sexuality as a God-given gift which should be celebrated in the context of fidelity since the One who has first offered it continues always to be faithful (1 Thes 5:24).

What the crisis is

In the beginning were good intentions. The Irish Christian Brothers were one of the religious groups who came to the shores of Canada in the late nineteenth century to teach. In Saint John's, NF, they built Mount Saint Francis Monastery, which was to function as the residence for the Brothers, and subsequently Saint Patrick's Hall, which was to accomodate the students.

Other orphanages were also constructed during the period and for more than a century, the Christian Brothers lived and worked in Newfoundland promoting charity and faith-filled dedication to the people of Saint John's and surrounding areas. In the early part of the 1980's revelations of abuse of minors by some of the Brothers caused a media frenzy and brought to light an injustice which has coloured the Church in Canada to this day. Eventually, Mount Cashel Orphanage in Saint John's, where the first incidents of abuse by clergy were reported, had become synonymous with terrible physical and sexual abuse that had been inflicted upon its residents by members of the Christian Brothers, and was closed.

Since the 1980's the Church in Canada has had to deal openly and honestly with the unfortunate effects of sexual abuse by members of the clergy. But what exactly is the crisis about. George Weigel believes that there are three parts to the problem:

Abuse of minors by clergy demonstrates a crisis of priestly identity

The Catholic priesthood ... is not just another form of 'ministry'. Ordination to the priesthood in the Catholic Church radically transforms who a man is, not just what he does. In fact, in the classic Catholic view, the things a priest does - the things a baptized lay Catholic cannot do, such as celebrate Mass or forgive sins sacramentally in confession - are entirely dependent on who he is by the grace of his ordination. (The Courage to be Catholic, p. 23).

Mr. Weigel believes that too many Catholics seem to have forgotten these basic truths about the priesthood, and the result is that the boundaries between who a priest is and what he does have become increasingly blurred.

Abuse of minors by clergy indicates a lack of Episcopal leadership

The deepest angers of Catholics ... have been reserved for bishops: for bishops who seem to have done little or nothing to address the problem of clergy sexual abuse; for bishops whose most extensive efforts have seemed directed at keeping these problems out of the public eye; and for bishops who evidently did little to heal the personal and familial wounds caused by recklessly irresponsible priests. Given strong, even adequate episcopal leadership - leadership willing to face facts and undertake essential reforms - the crisis of sexual abuse by priests need not have become the greatest crisis in the history of the (local) Church. It became that because of the bishops' failure to lead. (Courage, p. 29)

The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) emphasized that local bishops (ie. bishops who have pastoral care of a diocese), in communion with the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of Peter, have real authority, and are not merely ecclesial branch managers. They have a consequent responsibilty to teach, sanctify and govern the local Churches that is entrusted to their pastoral care.

Abuse of minors by clergy is indicative of a crisis of discipleship

From the moment of our baptism, we are all called to be disciples of Christ - to conform our lives more and more each day to Christ. Striving each day to do this is our task as committed Christians in the world, and the ultimate end of all this is to become saints when we enjoy eternal life with God.

Every Christian fails on the road to sancity. Some of us fail often, and many of us fail greviously. In each case, the failure is one of discipleship. Men and women who have truly encountered the Risen Christ in the transforming experience of conversion - an experience that can take a lifetime - live different kinds of lives: they lead the lives of disciples.

No one expects priests and bishops to be perfect ... (but) everyone can and should expect that men have been adequately converted to Christ before they are called by the Church to be priests or bishops. Everyone can and should expect

• that men have been adquately converted to Christ before they are called by the Church to be priests or bishops;
• that priests and bishops have made a fundamental, irrevocable, and life-transforming gift of their lives to Christ, in whom they have placed all their hope; and
• that no one will be called to the priesthood or the episcopate who is not willing to bear full public witness to that commitment ... no matter what the difficulties. (Courage, pp. 34-35)

Crisis, Reform and the Future of the Church

Now that we've completed the exposé on the Holy Father's book Values in a Time of Upheaval, let's turn our attention to another subject. I've never been one to shy away from controversy, so let's just jump in with both feet.

When sexual scandals rocked the Roman Catholic Church in the United States of America, many observers and faithful alike called on the church to abandon its beliefs about the vocation of priesthood and sexuality outside marriage, but George Weigel saw the crisis differently.

Shortly after the crisis was first made public, Mr. Weigel, a weekly columnist who lives in North Bethesda, Maryland, published his reflections in a volume entitled The Courage to be Catholic.

In this book, Weigel explains his belief that the crisis has more to do with the question of fidelity to the true esence of Catholicism. He examines patterns of dissent and self-deception that became entrenched in seminaries, among priests, and ultimately among the bishops who failed their flock by thinking like managers instead of apostles.

Recalling the biblical insistence that 'crises' also are times of great opportunity, invitations to deeper faith, Weigel sets forth an agenda for genuine reform that challenges clergy and laity alike to lead more integrally Catholic lives.

The Courage to be Catholic was first published in hardcover (2002) by Basic Books

ISBN - 10: 0-465-09260-8
ISBN - 13: 978-0-465-09260-4

and subsequently in softcover (2004)

ISBN - 0-465-09261-6
ISBN - 978-0-465-09261-1

Publicly known cases of sexual abuse by members of the clergy first came to the fore in Canada in the late 1980's. Since that time, the bishops of Canada have implemented a number of protocols to protect the innocent and the young.

Following a lengthy period of serious reflection, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops in June 1992 published From Pain to Hope, a report by the Ad Hoc Committee on Child Sexual Abuse, which can be found by clicking here. Concacan Inc. holds copyright on this report. For reproduction of any of its material, permission is necessary from the Publications Service of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

In 2003, a Special Taskforce was created by the Bishops of Canada to review From Pain to Hope. Its report was received in September 2005 at an annual meeting of the CCCB.

In the coming weeks, I will try to examine some of the key points raised in George Weigel's book, and invite discussion about how these findings are being implemented in Canada and the United States.

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