Auteur/autrice : Mathilde Daniel

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Pope swaps leaders at abuse commission, months after reports on priest’s financial dealings

Pope Francis on March 15 appointed new leadership to his papal commission on clergy sexual abuse, naming a Colombian prelate and a former U.S. bishops’ conference official to run the group’s day-to-day operations.

The shake-up in leadership follows the resignation of one of the commission’s most prominent members and comes months after reports about the outgoing secretary’s previous financial dealings raised questions about his suitability to lead a group tasked with promoting best practices for preventing misconduct and abuse.

Oblate Fr. Andrew Small, a dual British and U.S. national, had served in an interim capacity as the No. 2 official at the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors since 2021. He will be succeeded by Bishop Luis Manuel Alí Herrera, currently auxiliary bishop of Bogotá, Colombia, who Francis appointed as the group’s new secretary.

Alí, a psychologist, has already served as a member of the commission. Since 2022, he has worked as the secretary general of the Colombian bishops’ conference. 

Serving alongside Herrera will be Teresa Kettelkamp, a former U.S. law enforcement official who previously led the office of Child and Youth Protection for the U.S. bishops. Kettelkamp, who Francis appointed as an adjunct secretary, has served as a member of the commission since 2018. 

Boston Cardinal Sean O’Malley, who has served as the president of the commission since its creation by Francis in 2014, remains in that role. His mandate is expected to come to an end in June, when O’Malley reaches the age of 80, the mandatory retirement age for Catholic bishops.

In a statement, O’Malley said Ali is currently the longest serving member of the commission and that Kettelkamp had previously led one of the largest national safeguarding offices in the U.S. church. 

« As Members of the Commission for many years, they reflect a strong focus on continuity of the work and agenda of the Commission since its expansion in 2022, » said O’Malley. « They are well known among the community of safeguarding professionals, and I am confident they will bring a team-based approach to our common work. »

The cardinal also praised what he called Small’s « vision and tenacity » in his work for the commission.

Questions have swirled about Small’s future for nearly a year, after an Associated Press investigation in May 2023 revealed details of financial dealings he undertook in his previous role as the national director of a Catholic organization in the U.S. tasked with directing money toward the church’s missions in developing countries.

The report detailed the transfer of at least $17 million from the Pontifical Mission Societies to an impact investing operation created by Small. The priest had initially continued to lead that operation while serving in the Vatican role.

Small has denied any financial wrongdoing and did not respond to NCR requests for comment last year in regard to the report.

The situation of the commission has sparked outrage from a number of leading abuse survivors and their advocates, including former members of the Vatican’s abuse commission. At least one of those members called for an internal investigation into Small’s financial dealings.

Three days after the initial AP report about Small was published, Francis went off script when speaking to a gathering of the Vatican’s missionary fundraisers to warn of the risk of corruption among their ranks.

« If spirituality is lacking and it’s only a matter of entrepreneurship, corruption comes in immediately, » the pope said at the time. « And we have seen that even today: In the newspapers, you see so many stories of alleged corruption in the name of the missionary nature of the church. »

NCR later confirmed that the pope directly referred to the AP article in a meeting with Spanish journalists earlier that same day.

Beyond the Pontifical Mission Societies, Small had also previously worked as a foreign policy adviser to the U.S. bishops’ conference.

While Small has been praised for his fundraising prowess — including overseeing moving the commission into a new office in an historic 16th-century palazzo in the center of Rome — former commission members repeatedly raised questions about his leadership. They have also raised questions about the group’s independence from Vatican structures, following a 2022 overhaul of its members and operations. 

In March 2023, Jesuit Fr. Hans Zollner, a long-time adviser to the pope on clergy abuse, resigned from the commission after publicly raising serious questions about its leadership. At the time, O’Malley defended the body’s effectiveness, while pledging to address the concerns raised by Zollner. 

In light of the upheaval, former commission member and abuse Irish survivor Marie Collins, along with former Irish President Mary McAleese, co-authored a letter to the pope in May 2023 alleging that the commission had suffered « existential damage, » and asking Francis to intervene to save the group. 

Over the following months, ongoing questions about Small’s suitability for the role continued to emerge. 

A Dec. 25, 2022, post by Small of him holding a 3-month-old puppy, describing himself as « feeling blissful in Vatican City » and with the text « Merry Christmas from me and Mancia. She’s 3 months old. Keeping the minors safe! » was widely circulated among both Vatican officials and abuse survivors. It prompted concerns about his use of social media, where he was seemingly joking about the issue of child protection.

Earlier this month, the commission met in Rome for its regularly scheduled plenary meeting and announced that it would soon release its « pilot annual report » on safeguarding policies at the pope’s request.

The report, which is expected in June, will offer « recommendations on how to move forward in achieving the goals of truth, justice, reparation » and to prevent child sex abuse in the church, said the commission.
 

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Attacking Pope Francis, anonymous cardinal seeks to curb the influence of his papacy

Autocratic, vindictive, careless, intolerant and ambiguous are just some of the slurs directed at Pope Francis by Demos II, an anonymous cardinal who published a letter in late February laying out a strategy to make sure that Francis’ influence ends with his papacy.

He — or they; rumor has it there were multiple authors — calls himself Demos II after another anonymous Demos, later identified as Cardinal George Pell, who two years ago issued a document criticizing Francis’ pontificate. Pell could not be Demos II since he died last year. Pell’s document was titled « The Vatican Today« ; the new document is « The Vatican Tomorrow. » 

Such public attacks by cardinals who have sworn loyalty to the pope have been unheard of in modern times. No liberal cardinal issued such a document during the papacies of John Paul II or Benedict XVI.

Centuries ago, such an attack would be grounds for a cardinal’s execution for violating his oath and being a traitor. Today, the cardinal should lose his place in the College of Cardinals and his right to participate in a conclave, but he probably won’t.

I have no problem with disagreeing with the pope — I have done it myself — but it should be done openly and respectfully.  

Demos II is a fraud who mourns a church of the past and his own loss of power in it. 

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It is noteworthy that this cardinal and his friends had no problem with the autocratic and intolerant actions of John Paul and Benedict. These popes routinely silenced bishops and theologians who disagreed with them. Seminary professors were fired; theologians were forbidden to publish. No such actions have been taken by Francis.

The anonymous cardinal wants to return to the days of suppressing theological discussion in the church, to rid it of « ambiguity. » He is outraged that the pope encourages theological discussion and debate, and wants to return to a pre-Vatican II church where nothing changes. He seems to happily side with those prelates at the council who opposed any changes in church teaching or practice.

The pope, on the other hand, knows that discussion and debate is the way theology develops, which is essential if the church is going to communicate with people in the 21st century.

Those who believe that the pope is fostering ambiguity in the church cannot distinguish between the faith and how we explain the faith. They have no sense of history or the development of dogma. They appeal to Augustine or Thomas Aquinas but have no true understanding of them.

The genius of both these figures was that they took the avant-garde thinking of their times and used it to explain the faith: Augustine used Neoplatonism, and Aquinas used Aristotelianism.

If the church is to be true to its tradition, we should imitate Augustine and Aquinas, not simply quote them. Theologians should be free to experiment with new ways of explaining the faith, using modern philosophy, literature and science.

Jesuit priest and paleontologist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin used evolution to explain the role of Christ in the cosmos in a way that spoke to contemporary Christians. He, like Aquinas before him, was condemned by church authorities before he was accepted by them.

The cardinal and his friends instead only want to use the church’s ancient texts as a treasure chest of quotes with which to hammer their opponents.

The anonymous cardinal also attacks Francis for not governing the church collegially with his brother bishops, but his real complaint is that the pope is not doing what the cardinal wants him to do.

Pope Francis has been more collegial than any other pope in history, as can be seen in the way recent synods of bishops have been run. At Francis’ first synod, he encouraged bishops to speak boldly without concern for what he or others thought. He even told them to imitate St. Paul, who criticized St. Peter, the first pope, at the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15).

Francis did this because he knew many bishops were frustrated by the synods held under John Paul and Benedict, where participants were told what topics could not be discussed. Vatican officials’ complete control of these synods gave them the feel of Soviet assemblies where the only purpose of the meeting was to praise the great leader. Most of the speeches quoted the pope to himself, as if he did not know what he had said.

The synods of Francis have been the freest ever.

In one area, the Demos II is correct. Francis has not consulted the College of Cardinals as much as did John Paul, who revived consistories as a place for discussing issues facing the church. Francis discontinued this practice, although he did create a council of nine cardinals with whom he consults periodically.

Some thought John Paul’s innovation was inconsistent with the synodal system, which has elected as well as appointed members. Others thought it would lead to a consultative system with two houses, the synod and the consistory, which would be like the House and Senate in the United States, or the British House of Commons and House of Lords.

But Demos II’s objection is more straightforward. The discontinuation of the consistories has reduced the influence of the cardinals. Being a cardinal, he does not like that.

One advantage of the consistories was that cardinals got to know each other prior to a conclave.

As an example of Francis’ intolerance and vindictiveness, conservative commentators point to the removal of the American conservative Cardinal Raymond Burke as head of the Apostolic Signatura, the church’s highest judicial authority. They conveniently forget how Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, head of the Vatican office for interreligious dialogue, was exiled to Egypt by Benedict.

Let’s all agree that popes have the right to appoint and remove Vatican officials.

In truth, Demos II is a fraud who mourns a church of the past and his own loss of power in it.

He has no consistent ecclesiology. He asserts that the church is not a democracy, but publicly releases his diatribe in the hopes of swaying public opinion to pressure the cardinals at the next conclave.

Make no mistake about it, this document is about power and influence in the church. Demos II has been sidelined, and he is angry.

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Pope: Church must stop protecting abusers ‘who hide behind their position’

The work of protecting minors and other vulnerable people in the Catholic Church involves holding those in positions of power accountable for the abuse they commit, Pope Francis said.

The church’s safeguarding efforts « must undoubtedly aim at eradicating situations that protect those who hide behind their positions to impose themselves on others in a perverse way, » the pope wrote in a message to participants in a safeguarding conference.

In the message, released March 12, he also said the church must try to understand why such people are « unable to relate to others in a healthy way. »

The papal message was sent to a three-day conference in Panama City organized by the Research and Formation Center for the Protection of Minors, also known as CEPROME Latin America.

Titled « Vulnerability and Abuse: Toward a Wider View of Prevention, » the conference was designed to discuss « the handling of power and authority in the church » and to broaden conversations about abusive conduct beyond the crime of sexual abuse to include « abuses of power, authority, conscience and spirituality, » organizers said.

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, which was one of the groups involved in organizing the conference, had announced March 8 the approval of a study group « to examine the reality of vulnerable persons in the context of the Church’s ministry and how this informs safeguarding efforts. »

In his message to the participants in Panama City, Francis wrote that God is calling the church to « an absolute change in mentality regarding our conception of relationships, » and that Christians must give priority to « the least, the poor, the servant (and) the uneducated over the greater, the rich, the master, the learned, based on the ability to accept the grace that is given to us by God and to make ourselves a gift to others. »

« Seeing one’s own weakness as an excuse to stop being whole persons and whole Christians, incapable of taking control of their destiny, will create childish, resentful people and in no way represents the littleness to which Jesus invites us, » he wrote. Instead, the pope urged the participants to imitate St. Paul who « boasted in his weaknesses and trusted in the grace of the Lord. »

Yet Francis wrote that the church « cannot be indifferent to the reasons why some people accept to go against their own conscience, out of fear, or allow themselves to be deceived by false promises, knowing in their heart of hearts that they are on the wrong path. »

« Humanizing relationships » in society and the church, he wrote, « means working hard to form mature, coherent persons who, firm in their faith and ethical principles, are capable of confronting evil (and) bearing witness to the truth. »

He added that any society that lacks such moral integrity will be « ill, with human and institutional relationships perverted by selfishness, distrust, fear and deceit. »

More than 20 members of CEPROME’s advisory board from throughout Latin America met with Francis at the Vatican in September 2023. They discussed methods for advancing abuse prevention and the pope condemned the accessibility of child pornography.

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Cardinal McElroy: Pope’s climate vision not getting enough attention from US bishops

Pope Francis’ call for the world to address the coming consequences of global climate change has not garnered enough attention at the U.S. Catholic bishops’ conference, said a leading American cardinal.

In an exclusive interview with National Catholic Reporter in late February, San Diego Cardinal Robert McElroy said the pope’s environmental vision « has not gotten the attention of the conference that it should get, and that the pope is calling us to get. »

« It has not been institutionalized in the conference in the same way that other major initiatives and priorities within the life of the church in the United States have been, » said the cardinal, speaking in an interview for NCR’s « The Vatican Briefing » podcast. 

McElroy, who has led the San Diego Diocese since 2015 and was made a cardinal by Francis in 2022, was speaking in particular about reception among U.S. bishops of the pope’s 2015 environmental encyclical « Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home, » which called for dramatic action to confront climate change.

The « most important » part of the encyclical, said the cardinal, « is Pope Francis’ assertion of what is Catholic faith: that nature is graced, that God has given us the gift of the created order and it’s our responsibility to sustain [it]. » 

« And now it’s in danger on a variety of fronts, » said McElroy. « So, with the eyes of faith, we’ve got to see this is God’s gift which is in jeopardy now. »

The cardinal was speaking to NCR on the sidelines of a conference hosted at the University of San Diego, which included some 80 bishops, theologians and Catholic leaders for two days of conversation to reckon with what was described as the failure of the U.S. church to implement the pope’s environmental teachings.

In the interview, McElroy said the Catholic Church « needs to be … a leading voice in the world on the dangers to our environment. »

« Creation is not just a thing that we encounter, » said the cardinal. « It’s not disposable. It’s not something given to us simply to use and toss away. »

Addressing climate change, he said, is « a moral, religious, spiritual challenge. »

« It’s not primarily even a scientific challenge, » said McElroy. « It’s a moral challenge. »

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En India diseñan mecanismo para denunciar abusos en la Iglesia contra hermanas

La Hna. Leena Padam confía en que las monjas católicas de la India dispongan ahora de una plataforma para « una escucha adecuada y una legítima resolución »  de sus abusos.

« Hasta ahora, las religiosas de la India no sabían dónde comunicar sus abusos, pero hoy tenemos una plataforma para compartir nuestros problemas sin temor a represalias », dijo Padam, miembro de las Hermanas de la Caridad de Nazaret, a Global Sisters Report.

Padam formaba parte del centenar de monjas que asistieron a una jornada de formación especial sobre la Célula de Reparación de Abusos (CRA), una iniciativa de la Conferencia de Religiosas de la India desarrollada en Calcuta, ciudad oriental de este país.

La conferencia puso en marcha la célula el 10 de diciembre de 2023 mediante un programa virtual para más de 100 000 religiosas católicas de la India. Este espacio permite escuchar los abusos de las monjas, reconocerlos y encontrar una solución mediante el diálogo.

« Definitivamente, es un rayo de esperanza para las monjas, sobre todo para las jóvenes », afirmó Padam tras la formación impartida del 19 al 21 de enero de 2024, la segunda para educarlas sobre el objetivo de la célula, y a la que asistieron hermanas de los estados del norte, este y noreste de la India.

La primera jornada de formación se celebró del 27 al 29 de diciembre de 2023 en la ciudad de Bengaluru, en el sur de India, y estuvo dirigida a monjas de estados del sur.

Padam, una activista social afincada en Ranchi, capital del estado oriental indio de Jharkhand, señaló: « Generalmente, cuando una monja se queja de un sacerdote o de una autoridad eclesiástica dentro de la Iglesia, no se le cree. Incluso, sus superioras tienden a creer lo que dice el sacerdote o el obispo ».

Ahora las monjas pueden dirigirse sin vacilar al canal adecuado: el de la reparación de abusos. « Tienen la seguridad de que serán escuchadas y se encontrará una solución a sus problemas, si es posible dentro de la estructura eclesiástica », afirma.

La hermana Maria Nirmalini, del Carmelo Apostólico, responsable de los más de 130 000 religiosos y religiosas católicos de la India, califica la célula de pertinente y oportuna. « A pesar de todos los sistemas y cuidados de que disponemos, algunas circunstancias desafortunadas pueden llevar a un sentimiento de aislamiento extremo, incluso cuando uno forma parte de una comunidad y una familia », declaró a GSR.

Nirmalini cree que la célula es « una forma de reconocer esta necesidad e intentar, por todos los medios, [de] proporcionar alivio en la medida de lo posible dentro » de su comunidad.

El impulso para poner en marcha la célula fue un libro sobre la discriminación de género dentro de la Iglesia en la India, publicado por la sección femenina de la conferencia en 2018.

El libro, It’s High Time: Women Religious Speak Up on Gender Justice in the Indian Church (Ya es hora: las religiosas hablan sobre la justicia de género en la Iglesia india), señala el chantaje sacramental, los abusos sexuales del clero, el clericalismo y las disputas por la propiedad como algunos de los principales retos a los que se enfrentan las religiosas católicas en el país.

El libro de 86 páginas, escrito por un equipo de tres miembros dirigido por la hermana Hazel D’Lima, ex superiora general de la Sociedad de las Hijas del Corazón de María, también destaca la « injusticia de género » que sufren las monjas católicas bajo la Iglesia patriarcal.

La Hna. Elsa Muttathu, religiosa de la Presentación y secretaria nacional de la Conferencia de Religiosos de la India, que dirige las formaciones, lamenta que en muchos casos ni siquiera las monjas sean conscientes del tipo de abusos que sufren dentro del sistema.

« Formamos a las monjas para que comprendan las distintas formas de abuso, no solo sexual sino verbal y de otro tipo, y les decimos cómo dirigirse a la célula », dijo Muttathu a GSR.

Muttathu explicó que tienen un comité de selección de tres miembros que primero estudiará la queja y, si la considera cierta, la remitirá a otro comité de nueve miembros.

« El comité está formado por cinco monjas, un sacerdote religioso o un hermano. Los demás miembros son personalidades femeninas eminentes que conocen bien el funcionamiento de las religiosas católicas », detalló.

La secretaria nacional de la Conferencia de Religiosos de la India también dijo que no se permite a ninguna superiora general formar parte de este comité, para mantener así su neutralidad y su funcionamiento eficaz. « En la mayoría de los casos, las monjas acuden al CRA después de no haber obtenido justicia de sus congregaciones », señaló.

« La jurisdicción del comité se sitúa en el marco eclesiástico y no emprenderá una lucha legal en un tribunal civil. Sin embargo, si el asunto requiere atención jurídica, apoyaremos al denunciante que recurra a la justicia, pero no nos implicaremos directamente », declaró Muttathu.

Según el borrador de directrices elaborado por la conferencia, un miembro abusado puede presentar una queja a la célula por teléfono, por escrito o por correo electrónico. Una vez presentada, se acusará recibo de la misma en un máximo de siete días laborables.

El acuse de recibo incluye un número único de reclamación y el modo de seguir su evolución.

Sin embargo, la Célula de Reparación de Abusos no tramitará asuntos que estén en manos de un tribunal o bajo investigación policial.

La directriz promete resolver una queja normal en 30 días. Una denuncia compleja y delicada llevará más tiempo, y la célula informará al denunciante del retraso.

Si un denunciante no responde a la respuesta escrita de la célula en 45 días, el asunto se considerará cerrado.

La célula garantiza la confidencialidad de la identidad del denunciante y de los detalles de la denuncia, a menos que lo requiera un organismo externo para resolver la crisis, también con consentimiento previo.

La célula actuará como un tribunal civil: notificará al acusado, solicitará una respuesta por escrito, interrogará a los testigos e investigará los hechos, entre otras medidas.

El objetivo de la célula es cerrar incluso un caso grave en un plazo de 90 días para evitar retrasos en la obtención de justicia para el denunciante.

Anita Cheria, activista de derechos humanos afincada en el estado de Bengaluru, en el sur de India, dijo que « la idea de este mecanismo es transformar la vida religiosa en felicidad y valía ».

« Dentro de la Iglesia católica existen muchos sistemas, pero aun así me he encontrado con monjas en situación desesperada que se ven empujadas a tomar medidas extremas como el suicidio o el abandono de la congregación », declaró a GSR Cheria, laica católica y una de las personas encargadas de impartir la formación.

En algunos casos, a la denunciante se la trata como una alborotadora en la congregación y se la aísla, sin dejarle espacio para abordar su problema.

« En algunos casos, las superioras defienden al acusado, lo que hace más vulnerable a la denunciante », afirma Cheria.

Desde 1997, más de 20 monjas se han suicidado en India, la mayoría en Kerala, bastión cristiano del sur. 

Cheria afirma que una audiencia habría ayudado a muchas a evitar medidas extremas. « La nueva iniciativa es un gran paso adelante para abordar los problemas a los que se enfrentan las monjas dentro del sistema patriarcal », explica.

La hermana Nambikai Mary, secretaria de la unidad de Tamil Nadu y Pondicherry de la conferencia, en el sur de la India, afirma que ahora las monjas sienten que tienen un lugar en donde serán escuchadas. 

Mary, miembro de la orden de Santa Ana de la Providencia, que asistió a la formación en Bengaluru, dijo a GSR: « Las monjas sufren acoso de distinta naturaleza dentro y fuera de la organización eclesiástica, pero la mayoría de las veces son incapaces de levantarse y oponerse a ellos porque carecen de apoyo dentro de la congregación o de la Iglesia ».

La Célula de Reparación de Abusos « no es un mero consuelo, sino una fuente de fortaleza », estima Mary.

Por su parte, Muttathu dijo que la formación no se limita a los abusos dentro de la Iglesia, sino que también cubre leyes importantes como la Ley de Protección de Menores contra Delitos Sexuales de 2012 —una ley federal para proteger a los niños de todas las formas de abuso sexual— y la Ley de Prevención del Acoso Sexual en el Lugar de Trabajo.

La ley sobre el lugar de trabajo exige que cada organización defina sus políticas de acoso sexual, sistemas de prevención, procedimientos y normas de servicio para sus empleados, entre otras cosas, dijo la secretaria nacional Conferencia de Religiosos de la India Elsa Muttathu.

Cheria felicita a la sección femenina de la conferencia por la creación del CRA, pero advierte que « es un gran reto sacarlo adelante en una Iglesia patriarcal »; sin embargo, agrega que « como se ha creado en el marco de la CRI, tiene legitimidad », y por eso espera que poco a poco « las autoridades eclesiásticas acepten este cambio en la India, ya que el Vaticano tiene tolerancia cero con los abusos de todo tipo ».

Nota: Este artículo fue publicado originalmente en inglés el 15 de febrero de 2024. 

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Pope Francis: Ukraine should have courage of the ‘white flag,’ negotiate end of war with Russia

Pope Francis said in an interview that Ukraine, facing a possible defeat, should have the courage to negotiate an end to the war with Russia and not be ashamed to sit at the same table to carry out peace talks.

The pope made his appeal during an interview recorded last month with Swiss broadcaster RSI, which was partially released on March 9.

« I think that the strongest one is the one who looks at the situation, thinks about the people and has the courage of the white flag, and negotiates, » Francis said, adding that talks should take place with the help of international powers. 

Ukraine remains firm on not engaging directly with Russia on peace talks, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said multiple times the initiative in peace negotiations must belong to the country that has been invaded.

Russia is gaining momentum on the battlefield in the war now in its third year and Ukraine is running low on ammunition. Meanwhile, some of Ukraine’s allies in the West are delicately raising the prospect of sending troops.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said March 9 that Francis picked up the « white flag » term that had been used by the interviewer. He issued a statement of clarification after the pope’s « white flag » comments sparked criticism that he was siding with Russia in the conflict.

Throughout the war, Francis has tried to maintain the Vatican’s traditional diplomatic neutrality, but that has often been accompanied by apparent sympathy with the Russian rationale for invading Ukraine, such as when he noted that NATO was « barking at Russia’s door » with its eastward expansion.

Francis said in the RSI interview that « the word negotiate is a courageous word. » 

« When you see that you are defeated, that things are not going well, you have to have the courage to negotiate, » he said. « Negotiations are never a surrender. »

The pope also reminded people that some countries have offered to act as mediators in the conflict.

« Today, for example, in the war in Ukraine, there are many who want to mediate, » he said. « Turkey has offered itself for this. And others. Do not be ashamed to negotiate before things get worse. »

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — whose NATO-member country has sought to balance its close relations with both Ukraine and Russia — has offered during a visit March 8 from Zelenskyy to host a peace summit between the two countries. 

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Fourth Sunday of Lent: A God who gambles on love

Why does God let it happen? We might be talking about the death of a child, an unjust war, the loss of young people to gang life, or even a tornado or flood. 

Some people blame God and then decide to give up on believing, concluding that God is either unkind or untrustworthy. Others are convinced that tragedy is a punishment, even if they can’t name the offense. Still others defend God with justifying explanations like « We can’t understand the divine ways, » or « Somehow it’s for the best. » 

Innocent suffering is one of the most serious problems religions have had to face over the eons and across the globe.

Today’s first reading seems to say that Israel’s exile in Babylon was a punishment for their adding « infidelity to infidelity. » We also hear that the compassionate Lord sent messengers to the people, but that those messengers were mocked and their message ignored. As a result, the people were conquered, their city sacked and the survivors made slaves.

Did God do that?

In the Gospel, we listen in as Jesus and Nicodemus converse. When Jesus says that the Son of Man will be lifted up so that all who see him will have eternal life, the « lifting up, » refers to the cross and resurrection as one event of divine self-revelation.

While that may seem obvious, we shouldn’t think the same of the expression « eternal life. » It’s easy to assume that « eternal life » refers to immortality or heaven, but the New American Bible tells us that the term in John 3:15 stresses quality of life rather than duration. »

Spanish Scripture scholar José Antonio Pagola tells us that the eternal life Jesus promises begins in this life and reaches its fullness in our definitive encounter with God. That means that eternal life is nothing less than union with God.

Writing to the Ephesians, Paul falls all over himself in trying to explain his sense of this communion. In this short selection, Paul mentions grace three times, insisting over and again that we are saved through grace, that is, through God’s favor rather than any merit of our own. 

This grace comes from God, whom Paul describes as rich in mercy, immeasurably giving and great in loving. These teachings about God’s grace lead to his conclusion that we are God’s own handiwork, created for union with Christ and to continue his work. 

How do these ideas help us to reflect on the existence of a good God and a world in which unspeakable evil seems to run rampant?

Before we can respond, we need to examine the question itself. This question assumes that God intervenes directly in the events of history. Is that not one of our many assumptions that has more to do with our theories than with what Jesus revealed about his Father? Yes, Jesus taught that not a sparrow would fall without God’s awareness, but that awareness does not prevent the fall of the sparrow. 

Jesus told Nicodemus that God has no intention of punishing anyone, rather God looks to saving by drawing people into the communion of eternal life.

Following that, Jesus’ being « lifted up, » had nothing to do with condemnation or compensation for human evil. Instead, it exposed God’s loving solidarity with all who suffer and revealed that suffering and evil will never have the last word. 

Paul ended his description of God and grace by saying that we are created in Christ Jesus to continue his good works. If God could do it all, there would be no need for our good works. But the Incarnation itself revealed that God works through human flesh, here now as the body of Christ throughout the world.

Our first reading tells us that God sends messengers « early and often. » We have had the prophets, Jesus, the saints and all who strive to be the body of Christ in our world. What happens to them? Like Jesus, they are often mocked, and scoffed at — even assassinated. What does this teach us?

Jesus said that he was sent into the world so that all who believe could enjoy not a life free of suffering, but communion with God (eternal life). Jesus died in faithfulness to his vocation to embody God’s love in the world. He was slain because the love of God threatened the powers such that they tried to eliminate him. In that most evil of circumstances, God did not stop it, but brought life out of death.

God created, not to control us, but to entice us toward communion. If we believe that God works through us, instead of asking « Why does God let it happen?, » the prophetic question is, « How can people who believe in God and the power of love let it happen? » 

Looking to Jesus, we know where the answer can lead.

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Vie de l'église

Attack on pope puts old whine into old whineskins

What are we to make of « The Vatican Tomorrow » or « Demos II » as it is being called, the anonymous musings about the current pontificate and what issues should determine the selection of the next pope? It claims to draw inspiration from the anonymous letter entitled « The Vatican Today » published in March 2022 and subsequently (and posthumously) attributed to the pen of the late Cardinal George Pell. This text, too, claims to be the work of a cardinal. 

The complaints are familiar. After acknowledging Pope Francis’ strengths, it lists the « shortcomings » of the current pontificate: « an autocratic, at times seemingly vindictive, style of governance; a carelessness in matters of law; an intolerance for even respectful disagreement; and — most seriously — a pattern of ambiguity in matters of faith and morals causing confusion among the faithful. » The text continues: « Confusion breeds division and conflict. It undermines confidence in the Word of God. It weakens evangelical witness. And the result today is a Church more fractured than at any time in her recent history. »

« Confusion. » Way back in 2014, Archbishop Charles Chaput complained about the synod on the family at an event sponsored by First Things. He said, « I was very disturbed by what happened. I think confusion is of the devil, and I think the public image that came across was one of confusion. » Now, we know that Chaput did not author the current treatise because it claims to have been written by a cardinal, and Chaput is the first archbishop of Philadelphia in a century who was never made a cardinal. 

It should surprise no one that Chaput’s longtime amanuensis, Francis Maier, has a fawning article about « The Vatican Tomorrow » at First Things. George Weigel joined Maier for a discussion of Maier’s new book, True Confessions, at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. That conversation was, ahem, interesting. 

The « Vatican Tomorrow » text goes on to explain that the next pope needs to return to basics, such as: « no one is saved except through, and only through, Jesus Christ, as he himself made clear; » and « man is God’s creature, not a self-invention, a creature not merely of emotion and appetites but also of intellect, free will, and an eternal destiny, » and « God’s Word, recorded in Scripture, is reliable and has permanent force. » Is there any doubt that Pope Francis holds all these truths of our faith? It is how one holds them that is the issue and the raison d’etre for theology. 

A doctrinal claim such as « no one is saved except through, and only through, Jesus Christ, as he himself made clear » is not self-explanatory. In St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians, 1:16, we read, « For in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities — all things were created through him and for him. » How does this text bear on the doctrinal claim? What of the people « created in him » who have never explicitly heard his name? Are they damned forever? That is not what the church teaches. 

The supposed cardinal goes on to list « practical observations [that] flow from the task and list above. » Top of the practical observations is this: « Real authority is damaged by authoritarian means in its exercise. The Pope is a Successor of Peter and the guarantor of Church unity. But he is not an autocrat. He cannot change Church doctrine, and he must not invent or alter the Church’s discipline arbitrarily » (emphasis in original). Where is there evidence of this autocratic behavior? Where has Francis attempted to change church doctrine? 

The complaint continues: « A new Pope must restore the hermeneutic of continuity in Catholic life and reassert Vatican II’s understanding of the papacy’s proper role. » How does one « restore » what was never there? How many times must it be pointed out that Pope Benedict XVI, in his famous 2005 address to the curia, did not, repeat did not, call for a « hermeneutic of continuity. » Yes, he specifically spoke against a « hermeneutic of discontinuity » but Benedict proposed, instead, a hermeneutic of reform, saying: « It is precisely in this combination of continuity and discontinuity at different levels that the very nature of true reform consists. »

Demos II continues the assault on Francis:

Third: Ambiguity is neither evangelical nor welcoming. Rather, it breeds doubt and feeds schismatic impulses. The Church is a community not just of Word and sacrament, but also of creed. What we believe helps to define and sustain us. Thus, doctrinal issues are not burdens imposed by unfeeling « doctors of the law. » Nor are they cerebral sideshows to the Christian life. On the contrary, they’re vital to living a Christian life authentically, because they deal with applications of the truth, and the truth demands clarity, not ambivalent nuance.

Has the author ever spoken to a young person today? Ambiguity is a reality of life in modern, pluralistic societies. In fact, it was probably more of a reality in previous times and less pluralistic cultures too, it was just hidden from view or has been lost to history. Complaining about ambiguity, and proposing that the church essentially ignore it, is like complaining about the wind. The complaint doesn’t make the wind die down. 

My favorite « practical observation » is item 5:

Fifth: The Church, as John XXIII so beautifully described her, is mater et magistra, the « mother and teacher » of humanity, not its dutiful follower; the defender of man as the subject of history, not its object. She is the bride of Christ; her nature is personal, supernatural, and intimate, not merely institutional. She can never be reduced to a system of flexible ethics or sociological analysis and remodeling to fit the instincts and appetites (and sexual confusions) of an age.

Ah, yes, Mater et magistra, Pope John XXIII’s compelling social encyclical that also produced the first time a prominent American layman publicly dissented from papal teaching! William Buckley famously responded with a vigorous defense of American capitalism entitled, « Mater — Si!; Magistra — No! » It is always good to note the existence of cafeteria Catholicism on the right has a pedigree too.

Setting aside that happily coincidental historical footnote, when does Francis say he wishes to « reduce » the Catholic Church to « a system of flexible ethics? » When does he deploy « sociological analysis » in place of the Gospel? Where has the pope indicated he wants the church’s teaching « to fit the instincts and appetites (and sexual confusions) of an age? »

What the pope did say, and say powerfully, in the text that is the bugbear of the culture warrior Catholics, Amoris Laetitia, is this: « At times we find it hard to make room for God’s unconditional love in our pastoral activity. We put so many conditions on mercy that we empty it of its concrete meaning and real significance. That is the worst way of watering down the Gospel. » 

Let this anonymous author, whether he be a cardinal or not, respond to that very clear statement of the Holy Father’s. Does he really not see how Francis is very clear and spot-on in that observation?

The text concludes with a shameful admission: « Readers will quite reasonably ask why this text is anonymous. The answer should be evident from the tenor of today’s Roman environment: Candor is not welcome, and its consequences can be unpleasant. » Unpleasant? Does he mean his brother cardinals might hold him accountable for his insinuations? Cardinals wear red as a sign of their willingness to shed their own blood for the faith, but this man is unwilling to risk a little unpleasantness? For such great matters as the integrity of the faith? 

We may never know who penned this attack on Francis. But we know one thing assuredly: The author is a coward, one who confuses easily.

Catégories
Vie de l'église

The Catholic Church needs married priests now

Without the Eucharist, it seems obvious: There is no Catholic Church. It feeds us as a community of believers and transforms us into the body of Christ active in the world today. But according to Catholic theology, we cannot have the Eucharist without priests.

Sadly, in many parts of the world, there is a eucharistic famine, precisely because there are no priests to celebrate the Eucharist. This problem has been going on for decades and is only getting worse.

Last year, the Vatican reported that while the number of Catholics worldwide increased by 16.2 million in 2021, the number of priests decreased by 2,347. As a result, on average there were 3,373 Catholics for every priest in the world (including retired priests), a rise of 59 people per priest.

The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate reports that in 1965 there were 59,426 priests in the United States. In 2022, there were only 34,344 . Over much the same period, the number of Catholics has increased to 72.5 million in 2022, from 54 million in 1970.

Priests are also getting older. In 2012, a CARA study found that the average age of priests rose to 63 in 2009, from 35 in 1970. When a Jesuit provincial, the regional director of the order, told Jesuits at a retirement home not long ago that there was a waiting list to get in, a resident wag responded, « We are dying as fast as we can. »

In many rural areas of the United States, priests no longer staff parishes but simply visit parishes once a month or less frequently. In 1965, there were only 530 parishes without priests. By 2022, there were 3,215 according to CARA.

All of these numbers are only going to get worse.

In the early 1980s, the archbishop of Portland, Oregon, came to a rural parish to tell them they would no longer have a priest and that most Sundays they would have a Scripture service, not a Mass.

A parishioner responded, « Before the Second Vatican Council, you told us that if we did not go to Mass on Sunday, we would go to hell. After the council, you told us that the Eucharist was central to the life of the church. Now you are telling us that we will be just like every other Bible church in our valley. »

Many American bishops have tried to deal with the shortage by importing foreign priests to staff parishes, but Vatican statistics show that the number of priests worldwide is also decreasing. New U.S. immigration rules are also going to make it more difficult to employ foreign priests in the United States.

The Catholic hierarchy has simply ignored the obvious solution to this problem for decades. Under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, the discussion of married priests was forbidden. Leaders in the hierarchy tended to live in large cities where the shortage had less of an impact than in rural areas.

Even Pope Francis, who expressed his respect for married clergy in Eastern Catholic churches, did not respond positively when the bishops meeting at the synod for the pan-Amazon region voted 128-41 to allow married deacons to become priests. At the recent meeting of the synod on synodality, the issue of married priests was hardly mentioned.

The decline in the number of vocations has many explanations depending on whom you ask. Conservatives blame the reforms coming out of the Second Vatican Council.

Certainly, the council did emphasize the holiness of marriage and the vocation of the laity. Priests seemed less special after the council. Prior to the council, only a priest could touch the consecrated host. Today, lay ministers of Communion do so at nearly every Mass.

However, sociologists note that vocations decline when families have fewer children and when children have greater educational and employment opportunities.

Thus, in a family with only one or two children, the parents prefer grandchildren to a son who is a priest. And, in the past, priests were the most educated person in the community and therefore had great status. Today, parishes can have many lawyers, doctors and other professionals, and becoming a priest does not confer the status it used to.

Those who point to the continued increases in vocations in Africa and Asia need to listen to the sociologists. Already, there are fewer vocations in urban areas of India where families have fewer children and more opportunities for education are available. Africa and Asia are not the future of the church. They are simply slower in catching up with modernity.

Anticlericalism has also impacted vocations, first in Europe and now in America. Priests are no longer universally respected. They are often treated with ridicule and contempt. Being a priest is countercultural. 

Despite this, there are still many Catholics who are willing to take up this vocation. People are being called to priesthood, but the hierarchy is saying no because those who feel called are married, gay or women.

A 2006 survey by Dean Hoge found that nearly half of the young men involved in Catholic campus ministry had « seriously considered » ministry as a priest, but most also wanted to be married and raise a family.

Having a married clergy will not solve all the church’s problems, as we can see in Protestant churches. Married ministers are involved in sex abuse, have addictions and can have the same clerical affectations as any celibate priest. But every employer will tell you that if you increase the number of candidates for a job, the quality of the hire goes up.

Nor is allowing priests to marry simply about making them happier. For the Catholic Church it is a question of whether we are going to have the Eucharist or not. At the Last Supper, Jesus said, « Do this in memory of me. » He did not say, « Be celibate. »

Catégories
Vie de l'église

Editorial: For Catholics, religious freedom is at stake at the border

It’s the same drill every election cycle: The rhetoric hits new lows, the vitriol new highs, the tactics and attacks new levels of questionable. Just as predictably, dutifully concerned citizens wring their hands into a gnarled nest. But nothing really changes — everyone just watches and waits for the latest low. 

The wait, for now, is over. The target: a Catholic organization in Texas that has worked quietly and effectively to aid immigrants for more than 45 years.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican who remains under criminal indictment and who narrowly escaped impeachment last year, has gone after those who give humanitarian assistance to asylum-seekers. He has filed a lawsuit against Annunciation House in El Paso, seeking to put the nonprofit out of business and liquidate its assets. Other, similar organizations are under his office’s scrutiny, as well. 

This signals a new rock bottom in the push to classify all immigrants as criminals of one kind or another. In fact, those who feed and shelter people asking for asylum are now also being labeled criminals, accused by some of complicity in human trafficking across the border. This apparently makes not just Annunciation House, but every diocese that takes up a second collection, every congregation of nuns that sends volunteers, and every Catholic Charities agency that donates clothing or personal items, unwitting patsies in some vast shadowy operation.

And the Texas attorney general is not alone. A shelter in Arizona was visited by two conservative operatives calling themselves « undercover journalists. » A pair of Republican congressmen tried to enter the same facility with cameras rolling.  One can imagine there will be more such examples to come as this election cycle slogs on. 

By now it is clear that this year immigrants and immigration will be the central wedge issue used to animate voters on the political right. People are starting to feel the effects of an improving economy, stabilized inflation, and higher wages. While many say the overall economic picture is downbeat, they voice optimism about their own personal economic condition and prospects. That means politicians and campaign consultants need to cook up conflict beyond those pocketbook concerns in order to bring their base to the polls.

Enter the migrant issue. 

This is not to deny that the country faces a real challenge at the border. Experts of nearly every political stripe agree the nation’s immigration system is a mess, causing pain and harm to everyone involved — including asylum-seekers and other immigrants. 

It was no surprise, then, that senators from both sides of the aisle recently came together to craft an immigration reform bill. In that process, Democrats — eager to address an issue that they knew had become an election-year distraction — gave in to nearly every point Republicans put forward. These included new authority for the border patrol to shut down the border entry points at a moment’s notice, and stricter standards for granting asylum. 

But when Donald Trump instructed Republicans to reject the bill so he could continue to stoke the issue until Election Day, House Speaker Mike Johnson quickly obliged. He declared the proposal — which also included funds for Ukraine and Israel — « dead on arrival. » Anti-immigrant forces swiftly pivoted to headline-making theatrics over substantive reforms. Ken Paxton’s lawsuit made news all over the country — as he, no doubt, knew it would.

But the Texas attorney general’s move is more than a stunt. It is, essentially, a lawsuit aimed at Catholic social justice teaching and Gospel values. Matthew 25:35-36 makes explicit the obligations our faith puts on us: to feed the hungry, care for the sick, tend to the needy and invite in the stranger.  

People who take those Gospel instructions to heart can do more than wring their hands this time. They can fight back. They can increase support for nonprofits such as Annunciation House in El Paso, the Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas, Casa Alitas in Tucson, Arizona, and many others. Catholics can donate money, food, water and clothing; they can volunteer, take up second collections, organize service trips and write letters to the editor. They can create a new narrative at the border.

Simply by doing what we are called to do as Christians, we can counteract the cynicism that pervades this issue and ignores the lives damaged.

Those on the right have for several years now used « religious freedom » as a handy rationale for opposing anything from health care reform to who gets to bake a wedding cake.

But the situation at Annunciation House is far more critical. The Texas lawsuit is unquestionably an issue of who ultimately decides how one lives out the central tenets of their faith. Catholics are not voiceless here. And we must make ourselves heard.