Spiritual/Political/Philosophical Blog on the Nature of Truth and Falsehood and Heaven
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| Sunny Days in Heaven Spiritual/Political/Philosophical Blog on the Nature of Truth and Falsehood and Heaven |
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Monday, May 20, 2002 Darned if they do, darned if they don't The NY Times has a story on how parish reactions to bishops actions. Everything is impossible. If the RCC runs by hierarchy and central leadership, it alienates and kills faith. If the people control their own parishes, idiots are in charge and it all splinters and falls apart through dissension and factionalism. ¶At Sacred Heart Church in New Orleans, more than 300 parishioners signed a petition in support of their pastor, who was removed last month because of an incident involving a teenager more than 15 years ago. ¶Near Richmond, Va., parishioners at St. Michael's Church wear buttons and T-shirts supporting their pastor, who was removed recently for an incident of what the diocese described as "inappropriate judgment" that took place 31 years ago. . ¶In Azusa, Calif., parishioners at St. Frances of Rome formed a chain around the church to keep out protesters after their pastor was removed following accusations of what detectives have called "inappropriate touching." The police had to remove one parishioner who struck a protester. . ¶Parishioners at Our Lady of Fatima in Manorhaven, N.Y., are rallying around their 74-year-old pastor, who was removed because of an accusation about an incident involving a teenager that took place 35 years ago.. ¶In Blue Bayou, La., parishioners at St. Louis Church want their pastor back even though a photograph in a recent book showed him bare chested with a Mardi Gras drag queen.. Experts say parishioners are angry because church leaders continue to impose decisions and policies from above, without input from the laity.. "All these incidents suggest that the hierarchy still is far removed from recognizing the problems of a church structured for the 15th century operating in the 21st century," said William D'Antonio, a research sociologist at Catholic University in Washington. "If all the church leaders want to do is act as the hierarchy and tell parishioners what to do, then they have learned nothing from what has happened over the last several months.". Parishioners at St. Louis Church in Blue Bayou, La., certainly see it that way. When their pastor, the Rev. Thomas Bouterie, resigned after his photo appeared in a Mardi Gras book, they figured he was pressured to do so for the sake of the diocese, not the good of the parish.. "They don't know how much they hurt us," Loretta Chaisson, a parishioner, said. "It should have been for the parish to decide, and not the bishop.". People might think I'm kidding when I say the train just keeps rolling or - Ol' man river, he jus' keeps rollin' along. The church is apparently filled with people of the exact same kind of loyalty which hears no, sees no evil, but will speak plenty of evil about those who tell truths and facts about despicable things. You wonder, are people, my neighbors, really so stupid as to believe Fr. Our Old Favorite couldn't have done what that so and so said of him? He's so sweet. I'm all for loyalty and innocent until proven guilty, but some of these people seem pathological in their denial of human reality. I grant you that a sin committed 35 years ago without repetition speaks well of an individual's reform; except for one thing. The person in question should never have been allowed to continue as a priest. No more than a doctor who murders a patient, repents, goes to jail, does his penance. The act destroys the conditions of vocation when someone has an office of trust and authority. It's not a matter of zero tolerance, but insistance on unblemished integrity in order to hold such a position. It's not revenge; it's about a reasonable standard of purity and behavior. I've never molested my child or any child. It's not that hard a rule or exacting a standard. Punishment for beaching such a standard ought to be applied and caution enforced afterward punishment. posted by Mark Butterworth | 11:56 PM | |
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