This week an interesting or disturbing (depending on one’s outlook) story made the rounds about a 17 year old high school student in Minnesota who was denied the Sacrament of Confirmation because he put a photo on his Facebook page in favor of same sex marriage. Since this happens near the beginning of the Church’s Year of Faith, we might wonder if this is an example of the New Evangelization and its return to “basics”. Most responsible adults, and no one is accusing the hierarchy of being in this category, urge our high school students to begin to think for themselves, and we stand by them as they make their inevitable and necessary mistakes. How can depriving a young student of a Sacrament because he is not “100{9e61ac4632015d8c9c24fb4bfd2ec078081fa0bb2b0def4afb71f2c7af3817d9} Catholic” be even remotely be seen as imitating Jesus? It is more in the line of a playground bully claiming to act in the name of Jesus. Perhaps John 11:35 applies: “And Jesus wept”.
With this sort of shenanigans alleged to be done in Jesus’ name, it is no wonder that there seems to be in development some sort of separate Churches. There is the Church of the folks in the pews who continue to be faithful in attending Mass, but do not want to be involved in the commotion going on in the Church. They are good folks who just want to do what is right. Then there is the Church of the folks who come to Mass, but pay only lip service to what is going on, because they know from their own experience that there is more to life than the hierarchy with its squabbles, and, they know they need Eucharist for their own fulfillment. They still identify in varying degrees as Catholic, and who is to say otherwise? Then there are those who simply walk away, still looking for some sort of religious fulfillment, or not. They are not interested in the judging or labeling, in-groups or out-groups. So, there seems to exist some sort of parallel church.
This is not necessarily a bad thing. Very few catholics argue about the basics of the Catholic version of Christianity. The commotion centers on other things more or less periphery to the the basics. Why can there not be different interpretations concerning these important but non-essentials? There are various rites for the celebration of Eucharist. There are already exceptions allowing some married priests in the Roman Church. Why can there not be other variations and alternatives? Celebrating the Eucharist is essential. The gender or marital status of the presider is not. The maturity and educational level of Catholics must be considered. The bishops are not the only ones with smarts. A number of them seem not to have too many. No one person or group knows everything. We all can and must learn fro each other. A mother trying hard to raise a family while her husband is away on a military mission in a foreign country and culture has an insight into marriage that no bishop can ever have, no matter how much he claims to know about something he has never experienced. He ought to shut his mouth and open his ears, listen and learn. There is a world of difference between theoretical knowledge and lived experience. Our families of all traditions and conditions can teach these celibate men some pretty good lessons. Are they willing to learn? Cardinal Dolan suggested the bishops might work on the call to their own conversion before they try to convert others. Listening to our families tell their stories might be a good place to start.
If what happened to the young student in Minnesota, the efforts of some bishops to force their agenda on same sex marriage etc on the general populace is an example of the real meaning of the Year of Faith, who would want to be a part of it? But, “De Pontificia Academia Latinitatis condenda” should solve all the problems.
Just sayin . . .
It is horrible what is going on. It has pained me deeply to have my own daughter stop going to Youth Group because I don’t want my children to ever think that being a Catholic gives you the right to pass judgement on others. Rather that being a Catholic you should be always humble to a point. Last year our Youth Group went through a lot of drama. Our Youth can teach us old people so much. They have honest questions that need to be answered not barked with replies of because the Church says so. They was a Youth last year who is openly Gay who came to Youth Group alot. The adults were so damned concerned that he was Gay and how they were going to “fix him”. I would open my mouth and say he doesn’t need to be fixed and it is wonderful that he is here at Youth Group because he wanted to be. The old people had their way and now this Youth no longer goes because he wasn’t what the old people wanted. I saw him last week we hugged each other. He is doing great things and he still knows that God loves him for who he is…..sad that the old people don’t get it….to tell the truth those old and some young farts scare me. How many of us are judging rather than living the Word of Christ? I just so sick of it. One of my best friends was Gay and died of Aids and most people that he got Aids because he was Gay. He got Aids because he shared a needle when he was a drug addict. He would get so mad because people assumed he was Gay there fore that equals Aids. Judging does no one Good…..you would think these two thousand years later we would get that….gosh are we old dogs that can’t learn new tricks….I think not as I contuine to learn new ones but rather most are Control Freaks….
Peace be with us all on are Walk with Christ
My younger brother, who is gay, believes that he was chased out of the Church because of his homosexuality, nor shall I say that he is wrong.
My bishop said that he had given $10,000 to the campaign against the legalization of gay marriage. I typically give $25 per week to my parish; I wrote to both the pastor and the bishop saying that I shall donate nothing to the Church for the next 400 weeks since the diocese obviously does not need $10K, as it is willing to give monies for the advancement of bigotry. My pastor spoke to me, threatening to deny me the sacraments since I termed the official stance on gay marriage “bigotry”. I replied that according to Canon Law (it’s Canon 912), “Any baptized person not prohibited by law can and must be admitted to holy communion.” Canon 915 says “Those who have been excommunicated or interdicted after the imposition or declaration of the penalty and others obstinately persevering in manifest grave sin are not to be admitted to holy communion.” Since I have not been excommunicated nor interdicted, nor am I “obstinately persevering in manifest grave sin”, so it is my right to recieve the sacraments. I then told him to take his bigotry and stick it where the sun don’t shine.