Promoting a renewed
ordained ministry
in a renewed
Roman Catholic Church
January 15, 2019 |
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Whom shall we send? Lay Ecclesial
Movements and Church Reform
Sheila Peiffer, womensordination.org | December 22, 2018
Publicity surrounding the Synod on Youth and Vocational Discernment
this past October highlighted the very slight role that laity have in
decision-making in the Church and the growing awareness that change is
sorely needed. As part of the reaction, Massimo Faggioli, professor of
theology and religious studies at Villanova University, wrote an
article in Commonweal discussing the challenge of representing the
laity in the official “church”.
Faggioli is an expert on the subject of lay ecclesial movements, having
written a book on the “new” ecclesial movements (Sorting Out
Catholicism) which I have not read. His professional knowledge of the
culture of these entities makes it all the more interesting that he
finds their ranks inadequate to represent the laity – and, in fact,
comments that they may contain individuals more authoritarian and
invested in clerical culture than bishops and cardinals. “…there is
little point in replacing the old clericalism of the ordained with a
new
clericalism of lay men and women who have proven themselves as extra
Catholic only by belonging to some favored group within the church,” he
concludes.
So, who should be tapped as representatives of the laity if we should
ever have the opportunity to send such to an official Vatican
convening?
Read More
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Contents
- Whom shall we send? Lay
Ecclesial Movements and Church Reform
- Pédophilie dans l’Église
Catholique
- Les Femmes prêtres catholiques
romaines (RCWP) du Canada joignent leurs voix à celle du Parvis de
Québec
- It was all about the
money/property and the power derived from them
- German cardinal urges change,
'review' of celibacy tradition
- Give Us This Day short videos
on the lives of Oscar Romero and Dorthy Day and Thérèse Martin
- Regina Nicolosi (24 May
1942--19 December 2018); Priest (25 July 2005, Gananoque, ON); Bishop
(19 April 2009 Santa Barbara, CA)
- Condemned by the Vatican, women
priests demand place at Catholic altar
- The Dysfunctional Holy Family
- Behind the New Integralism Is
the Old Intransigentism
- It is the Christmas season’s
promise that those who stay and pray and fight will see it improbably
reborn
- Priesthood and Revolution --
Where Christianity and Marxism Part Ways
- 10 Ways to Spot Spiritual Abuse
- Featured Link
- Tech Tip
- RCWP Canada Bishop's Message
- Shamed into Silence, Called Out
to Proclaim
- Comments to the Editor
- Free access to on-line or pdf
downloadable books and book-length articles
- Francis Comic Strip
- Comments to the Editor Form
- Links to RCWP
Canada website and other progressive websites and blogs
RCWP
Canada Bishop's Message
|
Over
the past months I have been asked to speak about Roman Catholic Women
Priest. People want to know who we are, what we are about and how I
became a priest. In the next few issues of The
Review I
will address these questions by sharing some of the notes from a
recent public presentation I made. As with any of my messages, I
welcome your comments and questions.
Who
are Roman Catholic Women Priests?
We
are
the legacy of women who have gone before us: the daring of Mary of
Nazareth to say “yes” despite patriarchal rules; and the audacity
of Mary of Magdala to overcome fear and go tell the brothers she had
seen Christ risen, although as a woman she had no credibility. I
will speak about... reclaiming the heritage of women's spiritual
leadership.
Called
by God,
We
are
the cry for justice for those marginalized by the forces of
patriarchal power. I will speak about...my personal journey to
ordained ministry.
We
are
“A new model of ordained ministry in a renewed Roman Catholic
Church” This is our vision. I will speak about our spiritual
migration from...staid traditionalism to Evolutionary Christianity.
Read More
+Jane
[Jane
Kryzanowski, Regina, SK, is bishop for RCWP Canada.]
Shamed
into Silence, Called Out to Proclaim
Craig
Van Parys, Special to The Review | January 15, 2019
[This
16-page essay is the basis of a public presentation given on November
14, 2019 at Regina, SK]
Introduction
I
am grateful to be with you today and honoured that Roman Catholic
Women’s Priests Canada entrusted me with the other half of tonight’s
presentation. I would like to introduce our topic by acknowledging
three things:
First,
I will not be discussing the third and often unacknowledged gender –
transgender. That could be a whole presentation in and of itself.
Next,
I would like to acknowledge several privileges I have as a male.
Privileges are unearned advantages. Based on my biology, no one would
question if I had an authentic calling to the priesthood. I do not have
to fight or convince a matriarchy that I am a person, of equal worth
and dignity to them. Other than in the RC Church, this happened in the
Canadian state. Women were not actual persons in Canadian law until
they fought for that change. They officially became persons in 1929.
Welcome to the club. The second unearned advantage is that I have never
felt compelled to work twice as hard in the church to prove I am just
as good as Jane is. For any human to prove their worth in this way is
demeaning. This appears to be a common experience for women however. To
quote Charlotte Whitton, “Women have to work twice as hard as a man to
prove she is half as good. Luckily, that is not too difficult.” Lastly,
there is no dominant matriarchal culture outside the church to exhort
me to live below my natural healthy body weight, get hair implants or
to sell me self-hatred if I fail to live up to their standards of
manhood. All of these privileges and many more give me a significant
advantage. I have fewer concerns or unrealistic expectations to occupy
my head-space. My cognitive functioning is not impaired nor overwhelmed
with these concerns, so, I have more freedom to do and be, relatively
unencumbered.
The
last thing I would like to mention before I begin is the title of
tonight’s presentation: Gender Justice in the Church. No, I’m not
advocating that more women learn how to use a snow thrower. I see
gender justice as a men’s issue more so than a women’s issue.
I’ll
use the snow thrower as an analogy to explain: If your neighbour throws
snow onto your driveway, and you attempt to address the problem, are
you the issue, or is your neighbour? Will it be OK for you if your
neighbour apologizes while they watch you shovel their snow from your
driveway? If they offer you their shovel or snow thrower for you to
remove the snow? What about if they turned it around on you and said
that you’re the one with the problem, because you’re making it into an
issue? Notice the snow removal problem has become your issue, or better
yet, your fault. What would be just in this case? Shouldn’t we begin
with your neighbour's actions?
When
it comes to gender justice, where should we begin? Labelling gender
justice as a women’s issue turns our attention to the wound, rather
than its source. How denigrating to have your gender associated with an
issue. It is like the Canadian state mislabelling their injustices upon
the Indigenous as an “Indian problem.” We place responsibility for
making it just on the wounded, as if the wound appeared out of nowhere.
With this misplaced responsibility, patriarchy and its inherent
privileges go unexamined. History proves that the initiation of
meaningful social change begins with the oppressed, not the oppressor.
But shouldn’t the amount of responsibility for a just church, a just
world, be commensurate with the amount of power a culture gives a
group? I, by virtue of my gender, should be the initiator, doing the
legwork, the heavy lifting of a church or society’s consciousness when
it comes to fighting for gender justice. Not the other gender.
Therefore, I must speak. Dr. Martin Luther King once said that there
comes a time when silence is betrayal. If I stay silent, then I betray
both women and humanity, I betray truth, I betray justice, I betray
equality, I betray right relationships, I betray my own integrity, and
I betray my prophetic calling. I would like to ask forgiveness from
Jane and all women who suffer from sexism for not speaking up and
speaking out sooner. This concludes my three acknowledgements.
I
had the privilege of learning some of Jane’s story at an undisclosed
location – I’ll just say it rhymes with Jim Norton's. I sat listening
to Jane, feeling honoured to be in such sacred space, as she shared her
story. It was impactful. I was graced with her courageous vulnerability
and Spirit-filled integrity, and I am again tonight. Her story is,
quite sadly, all too common.
Read More
[Craig
Van Parys, Regina, SK is a teacher/feminist/
activist/theologian]
Does
RCWP support the official church in areas such as LGBTQ?
I haven't read anything in The Review on that issue.
Wondering.
[Pearl
Gregor, New Sarepta, AB]
Editor's
Note:
After using the word "LGBTQ" in the search function in The Review, ten
references to LGBTQ appear. No, RCWP internationally, as far
as I
know, does not support the official Church in areas such as
LGBTQ. Neither does RCWP Canada. Rather, our
inclusive
attitude extends to all marginalized people.
How
sad. I did not know Bishop Regina Nicolosi, RCWP-USA, esteemed as I
feel she surely was. I did know and admired Sr Aldona with
all my
heart. I worked with her very briefly, and find it hard to believe
she's gone. She was, as ever, a beautiful soul and I can but
pray
for her along with Bishop Regina Nicolosi.
I pray for these true and dedicated members who dedicated their lives
to gender equity and inclusion. May our beautiful God help to advance
the concepts they, and we, hold so dear.
[Roberta
Fuller, Bethany, ON]
Tech
Tip
The Review looks good on a
smart phone or a tablet. Enlarge to one column to make it
more easily readable.
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c
Pédophilie dans
l’Église Catholique
Le
Parvis de Québec, parvisquebec.com |
le 12 janvier 2019
Depuis quelques années, on entend parler de pédophilie chez un certain
nombre de prêtres de l’Église Catholique dans plusieurs pays du monde.
Le Pape François vient de convoquer les Présidents des Conférences
épiscopales de tous les pays de la planète à une rencontre à Rome en
février 2019. Il veut discuter avec eux de ce problème qui afflige tous
les chrétiens du monde entier.
Le Parvis de Québec, en prévision de cette rencontre, a voulu envoyer
un message clair au Président des Évêques Canadiens qui se rendra à
Rome. Ce scandale de la pédophilie, qui nous affecte tous et qui
ralentit la propagation du message du Christ, mérite que nous
cherchions à convaincre nos évêques qu’il leur faut prendre des mesures
nouvelles et dynamiques, et surtout convaincre les autorités de Rome de
remettre en question certaines disciplines imposées aux prêtres en
d’autres temps et qui n’ont pas nécessairement leur place en ce siècle
qui est le nôtre.
Nous vous suggérons de lire la lettre, en annexe, et nous
suggérons à tous ceux qui sont d’accord avec nous, d’envoyer
un
courriel au Secrétariat de la Conférence des Évêques Catholiques du
Canada Il s’agit de cliquer sur l’adresse :
Mgr Frank Leo, jr., C.S.S.,
Secrétaire
général
Les
Femmes prêtres catholiques romaines (RCWP) du Canada joignent leurs
voix à celle du Parvis de Québec
Les
Femmes prêtres catholiques romaines (RCWP) du Canada joignent leurs
voix à celle du Parvis de Québec pour souhaiter que votre rencontre à
Rome donne lieu à de vrais changements qui pourront freiner la vague de
pédophilie qui sévit dans l'Église. Comme le constate le Pape
François, c'est le cléricalisme qui est à la source du problème, une
autorité hiérarchique qui est devenue non seulement cléricaliste, mais
pyramidale et dissociée de la vie réelle des baptisés et baptisées.
Deux changements que nous considérons comme incontournables sont
l'admission des femmes aux structures et postes décisionnels dans
l'Église et la fin du célibat obligatoire. Sans ces changements, qui
entraînent l'écoute des deux oreilles de l'humanité, la voix des
nombreuses victimes ne sera ni entendue, ni crue, et la justice envers
elles ne sera pas faite.
[Pour le Cercle national de
coordination de FPCR/RCWP,
Marie
Bouclin, Sudbury, ON, évêque émérite]
It
was all about the money/property and the power derived from them
Steven Lanoux, Special to The Review | January 15, 2019
The Church formally prohibited marriage by the clergy under Pope
Gregory in the eleventh century. 21 years later Pope Urban II
had
the priests' wives sold into slavery and the children
abandoned.
How's that for humane treatment? Makes one wonder why he
hated
women so much.
It was all about the money/property and the power derived from them, of
course, to prevent civil authorities from splitting Church property
between a priest's heirs (male, of course) and it passing from Church
control. With no legitimate heir, uncontested legal ownership
of
the land remained with the Church along with rents and income from
tenants.
(See an interesting synopsis posted by FutureChurch: A Brief
History of Celibacy in the Catholic Church)
[Steven
Lanoux, Brownsville, TX, is a member of Call To Action Rio Grande
Valley]
German cardinal urges change,
'review' of celibacy tradition
Catholic News Service, catholicregister.org | January 4, 2019
German Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising called for change
in long-standing church tradition as the German bishops' conference
prepares for a workshop debate to "review" the issue of celibacy for
priests.
In his homily at New Year's Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady in
Munich, Cardinal Marx said the church must, "in light of the failure"
surrounding the clergy sex abuse crisis, modify tradition in response
to changing modern times.
Read
More
Give Us This Day
short videos on the lives of Oscar Romero and Dorthy Day and
Thérèse Martin
Give
Us This Day and The Sheen Center For Thought
& Culture
come together to tell the story of ordinary men and women whose
extraordinary lives inspire the moral imagination and give witness to
the myriad ways of holiness.
The text for these short videos is taken from Blessed Among Us by
Robert Ellsberg and drawn from the acclaimed column of the same name in
Give
Us This Day.
Watch
videos
Regina
Nicolosi (24 May 1942--19 December 2018)
Priest
(25 July 2005, Gananoque, ON)
Bishop
(19 April 2009 Santa Barbara, CA)
Martha
Sherman, Special to The
Review | January 15, 2019
Entering
the home of Regina and Charlie Nicolosi delighted the bibliophile in
me, an RCWP candidate. The Danish Modern home contained more books that
I had ever seen in a home. The cool, light surfaces displayed colorful,
playful art, stained glass installations, statues of fertility
goddesses, sculptures bought to support local artists. The hallway
displayed many family photos both posed and spontaneous.
Regina
loved her family and she loved learning. If you ever received a gift
from Regina, it was most likely a book. Discussions with Regina were
often political, though they also might be about bonobos or debating
whether or not Neanderthals created art. She challenged people and
systems, rarely accepting excuses. She believed we could and should do
better.
I
had the privilege of driving Regina to regional retreats before she
moved to California. Regina was a role model who became a friend.
Parkinson's disease took her from us much too soon. I remember her
sadness when she stepped on the gas, rather than the brake when parking
at the YMCA. It was a brand new VW and she now admitted she should no
longer drive it. Her unsteadiness of foot, once hidden from the world
and now so evident, did not defeat her. She kept exercising and doing
therapy and travelling to her beloved home in Germany.
In
March she sent me a photo taken after my diaconal ordination. In the
photo, group of priests and friends sat in the motel lobby drinking
wine. I playfully knelt before Regina and kissed her ring. The title of
the email was 'True Devotion.' Regina never demanded blind obedience,
rather she demanded a strong moral compass and an even stronger desire
to speak truth. Regina, ever prophetic, challenged the Midwest Region
to do more, to be more, to embrace the call of Sophia Wisdom.
I
am confident the lilt of her accented English will resound in our minds
for a time. The weight and warmth of the hands that rested on our heads
and anointed our hands will be felt as we remember her. Each time we
sip a glass of red wine we will say a hearty 'Prost' and continue the
work Godde has begun in us.
[Martha
Sherman, Washington, IA, is a Priest and President of Roman Catholic
Womenpriests-USA, Inc. Board of Directors Circle]
Condemned
by the Vatican, women priests demand place at Catholic altar
Caitlin
McGlade, courier-journal.com
| December 20, 2018
Women
ordained as priests have been condemned by the Roman Catholic Church.
But instead of just leaving the church, they say they want to change it.
They
packed tightly in a circle in a Unitarian Church office in downtown
Louisville, KY, warmed by space heaters and the glow from tea candles
flickering on a table.
The
men and women prayed for immigrants seeking asylum, for the homeless on
Louisville's streets, for the people who feel they've been betrayed by
organized religion.
About
15 turned out for this Mass on a cold November night. One said she came
in secret, fearing other Catholics would punish her for attending.
Read
More
The
Dysfunctional Holy Family
Mike
Rivage-Seul, mikerivageseul.wordpress.com
| December 29, 2018
On
the feast of
the Holy Family, we’re used to thinking of it as a cozy group of 3,
Jesus, Mary and Joseph living in ideal circumstances, the way we
picture them in our nativity crib scenes. Or we imagine Jesus’ early
life as we find it depicted in medieval paintings of the carpenter
Joseph’s workshop. There we often find a loving haloed and elderly
foster-father instructing Jesus in his trade while Mary smiles in the
background.
However,
if we
take seriously the “infancy narratives” coming from Matthew and Luke,
we must draw the conclusion that Jesus’ home life was more complicated
than that. You might even say that it was “troubled” right from the
beginning.
Read
More
Behind
the New Integralism Is the Old Intransigentism
Massimo
Faggioli, commonwealmagazine.org
| January 8, 2019
At
the 1867
universal exposition in Paris, the Papal State chose to be represented
by a catacomb. It was a time when the papacy, which had already lost
the majority of the Papal State and would also lose Rome in 1870, was
apocalyptic about the future of the church in the modern world. At the
same time, the Catholic laity were entering a new age of mobilization
and engagement with that same world, with the encouragement of the
Catholic hierarchy, which knew it had lost much of its direct influence
on modern society.
Today,
during Pope
Francis’s pontificate, we see something like the opposite situation: a
pope who preaches “the joy of the Gospel” and has little time for
nostalgia, and a rising cohort of Catholic intellectuals (a minority in
the church, but especially active in the United States) who are looking
forward to the nineteenth century.
Read
More
It is the Christmas season’s
promise that those who stay and pray and fight will see it improbably
reborn
Ross
Douthat, nytimes.com
| December 22, 2018
At Mass this Christmas Eve, many Catholics who have spent a year
reading headlines about abusive priests, indifferent bishops, predatory
cardinals and Vatican corruption will sit and hear the long roll of
Jesus’s ancestors with which the Gospel of Matthew begins . .
.
Matthew announced the birth of the son of God by linking him to a pack
of egregious sinners.
Read
More
Priesthood
and Revolution -- Where Christianity and Marxism Part Ways
Herbert
McCabe, commonwealmagazine.org
| December 18, 2018
We
find among
Catholics two opposing attitudes to the priesthood. There is the
conservative view, which sees the Church as a kind of feudal society,
in which each man has his proper status with corresponding “duties of
his state.” On the other hand, there is the progressive view, which
models the Church on the democratic society, in which citizens are not
differentiated by their status but by their functions.
I
think that both
these views are mistaken, because both place the Christian ministry
essentially within the Church; both hark back to the idea that the
basic job of the priest is to celebrate Mass and otherwise minister to
the faithful. In the decree on the priesthood of Vatican II, however,
the position is quite otherwise: “Priests, as co-workers with their
bishops, have as their primary duty the proclamation of the gospel of
God to all men.”
It
has to be
admitted that the same document later on asserts that “Priests fulfill
their chief duty in the mystery of the Eucharistic Sacrifice,” but that
occurs in a section that seems plainly to have been inserted to satisfy
those who wanted to safeguard the practice of daily Mass. The emphasis
of the Vatican decree on the priesthood, like the one on bishops, is on
the proclamation of the gospel to all, whether Christians or not.
As I
see it, the
basic error is to see the Church primarily as a community. The Church
is not first of all a community; it is first of all a movement within
the community of mankind.
Read
More of this 12-page essay
10
Ways to Spot Spiritual Abuse
Mary
DeMuth, churchleaders.com | June 27, 2017
The
topic of
spotting spiritual abuse has been ricocheting in my heart and head for
many years. But recently, I’ve noticed a greater influx of reader email
about this topic, so much so that I felt it would be wise to address
it. Although I am thankful I haven’t had an extreme experience with
spiritual abuse, I have had some incidences that have scarred me and
made me leery of churches and ministries that bully.
Read
More
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