Rainbow Sash Movement

My last column was devoted to the Vatican bullying Moral Theologians. No sooner had the dust settled on the Fr. Jon Sobrina, S.J case, another incident erupted. This time it involved Dr. Daniel Maguire's works. Dr. Maguire teaches at Marquette University.

This time the U.S. Episcopal conference's Committee on Doctrine beat the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) to the punch. It is unusual for a Episcopal conference to preempt the CDF in these matters. They condemned Dr Magurie.

The cause of this course of action was power and authority. Fr. Maguire published 2 pamphlets. The way the Bishops reacted you would have thought it was akin to Martin Luther’s 95 thesis being nailed to the church door in 1517.

The two pamphlets dealt with abortion, contraception and same-sex marriage. Fr. Maguire proclaims in these pamphlets "there is no authentic Church teaching that is binding on all members of the Catholic Church," and says that within the Church there is both a pro-choice and pro-life tradition, and that "neither is more Catholic than the other."

The views presented in Daniel Maguire's two pamphlets on abortion, contraception and same-sex marriage "cross the legitimate lines of theological reflection and simply enter into the area of false teaching," the bishops' stated. It would be great to see the bishops put as much energy into cleaning up the massive financial irresponsibility of various Archdioceses’ and Dioceses’ across the nation.

In my opinion the response was a little over kill. The bishops really need to develop a two way path of communication with our theologians. Public autocratic pontifications only alienate the Bishops from the theologians and reasonable people.

If you have any comments to make about this blog please email: sashmovement@aol.com

Posted by Joden at 04:06 PM | Permalink

options

The Vatican has certainly been busy this week.  The Congregation of Doctrine of the Faith censured  Fr. Jon Sobrina, S.J., a Liberation Theologian for his work on behalf of the poor. “Fr. Sobrino manifests a preoccupation for the poor and oppressed, particularly in Latin America. This preoccupation certainly is shared by the whole Church,” an ambiguous attempt at clarification
 
However, the CDF  continues, "the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), in its Instruction on Christian liberty and liberation 'Libertatis conscientia,' indicated that 'human misery drew the compassion of Christ the Savior to take it upon Himself and to be identified with the least of His brethren,' and that 'the preferential option for the poor, far from being a sign of particularize or sectarianism, manifests the universality of the Church's being and mission. This option excludes no one. This is the reason why the Church cannot express this option by means of reductive sociological and ideological categories which would make this preference a partisan choice and a source of conflict."

Liberation theology is a movement which argues that the Christian gospels show God as having a particular concern for the marginalized and oppressed. It sees God’s action for the poor as a key interpretative tool in reading the Bible, and a decisive element in the vocation and mission of the church.

This is a calculated attempt to suppress alternative voices – one which has also targeted Roger Haight (another Jesuit, and a philosophical theologian of international standing), Jacques Dupuis (an inter-faith scholar), Leonardo Boff (another liberation theology forerunner) and Tissa Balasuriya (a Sri Lankan priest who wrote a controversial book on Mary and liberation).
Those advocating women’s ordination and recognition of lesbian and gay people have also been stamped on hard.

Clearly the Vatican’s action only confirms those who criticize the Vatican’s authoritarian leadership style in dealing with a diversity of opinion.  There must be a better way to deal with our theologians, bullying only reflects a inability to deal with their diversity of thought.

www.rainbowsashmovement.com

Posted by Joden at 08:24 AM | Permalink

options

 Archbishop Celetino Migliore the Papal Nuncio for the Vatican at the UN called on that body to remove all obstacles and expand opportunities for women so they can take their rightful role in societal decision making. He also called on the international community to address discriminatory practices

I am sure the Archbishop means well; however, how can the Vatican ask the international community to do what it is unwilling to do.  In other words one must walk the talk. This is akin to saying that you respect the human dignity of Gay people while at the same time you are actively promoting discrimination against that community.

The Papal Nuncio goes on to say that the “legitimate quest for equality between men and women” will not be accomplished nor “authentic” unless there is an acknowledgement of the differences between the sexes being recognized as complementary…“Oftentimes the ideas on the equality of rights between men and women have been marked by an antagonistic approach which exalts opposition between them,” he said. “Success in the quest for equality and the empowerment of women can best be achieved when such antagonism gives way to mutual respect and recognition of the identity and the role of one towards the other.”

www.rainbowsashmovement.com

Posted by Joden at 03:31 PM | Permalink

options