Excommunicated Priest Now Faces Expulsion

By Bruce Nolan
Religion News Service

NEW ORLEANS -- The Rev. Roy Bourgeois, the Louisiana native and peace activist who was excommunicated three years ago for publicly supporting women's ordination, now faces expulsion from his religious order and from the priesthood.

Bourgeois and Mike Virgintino, a spokesman for the Maryknolls, a missionary order of priests, confirmed that "with much sadness" the order served Bourgeois written notice that he must publicly recant his support for women's ordination by Saturday (April 2).

Without his compliance, a second warning will be issued, followed by the Maryknolls' request to Rome that Bourgeois be dismissed from the order and "laicized," or defrocked after 38 years as priest, Virgintino said.

Bourgeois said in an interview from his home in Columbus, Ga., he cannot, as a matter of conscience, recant his belief that women are called to the Catholic priesthood.

"They're asking me to tell a lie," he said. "To exclude women from the priesthood is a grave injustice to women, to the church and to God."

Bourgeois made a public assertion of his dissent in 2008, when, with other activists, he participated in a public ceremony in Kentucky that purportedly ordained Janice Sevre Duszynska to the priesthood.

The Catholic church responded that the ordination was without effect, and that Sevre-Duszynska and Bourgeois had automatically excommunicated themselves by their action. Bourgeois was barred from priestly ministry in public.

Still, Bourgeois remained a priest and a member of his Maryknoll community, a status now at risk.

As a Maryknoll priest, Bourgeois has lived under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. He lives in a small apartment provided by the order outside the gates of Ft. Benning, Ga., the focus of his peace activism for more than 20 years.

Bourgeois said he is seeking a church lawyer and plans to file a full defense of his views on women's ordination, although the Maryknoll notice seems to leave no room for that.

He said his conversations with the order and its superior, the Rev. Edward Dougherty, have not covered whether the order will support him financially should he be expelled.

"I hope they'll do what is just as a Christian community. But I see this with such clarity that rather than recant, I'd rather eat at a soup kitchen and live under a bridge, and do that with deep inner peace and a clear conscience," Bourgeois said.

Comments

[jesuitical61]

01:19 AM on 04/28/2011

The religious groups that practice women's ordination haven't ceased to fracture. The Archbishop of Canterbury, no one's idea of a traditionalist, drew the line at ordaining practicing homosexuals to the Anglican priesthood & is now jeered at by Episcopalians & other secularized Anglicans as if he'd published the Syllabus of Errors.

The Maryknoll order has been an excellent witness for peace, but the Church's social magisterium is undergirded by her ancient confession of faith, and only someone who is dishonestly repeating that confession could say that he or she 'believe[s] in the Holy Catholic Church" while, in fact, NOT believing in it: the idea that women can receive the sacrament of holy orders is as much an expression of anti-faith as the belief that restricting communion to Catholics and to those who live chastely with their spouse is repressive.

Those who prefer to live by their own will rather than God's, as Fr. Bourgeois have done, might show a bit more modesty -- but no, they know that God is demanding something different. And how do they know? It makes them uncomfortable to live according to their vows & to the teaching that gave meaning to their lives and birthed their vocation.

[paulsays]

11:34 AM on 04/26/2011

about 30-50 years time the Church will likely change its mind. By then of course Roy Bourgeois will be entirely forgotten.

[Talismancer]

12:25 AM on 04/19/2011

A great example of the church showing it's immorality relative to secular ethics. Eventually they will conform or cease to exist as they have done for centuries. Meanwhile secular morality advances ahead of them dragging them kicking and screaming into the 21st Century.

[paulsays]

11:33 AM on 04/26/2011

You talk about 'secular ethics' as if it were some moral panacea that we will all decide on. Some secular ideologies can be entirely heartless and wrong - but still remain immoral.

[liberal123]

02:56 PM on 04/14/2011

Faster than a speeding bullet, the Catholic church defrocks and excommunicates a priest supporting ordination of women.

Contrast this with the years of dithering inaction, obfuscation, coverup, and criminal conspiracy in the matter of widespread sexual abuse throughout the Catholic Church.

[lostnacfgop]

12:40 AM on 04/12/2011

Score one more for the Vatican's Reactionary Rapid Response Team, zero for enlightenment within the Religious Corporate Structure. Someday it will seek to keep pace with the Faithful. Sure hope it is within my lifetime.

[KennebunkportIndependent]

12:28 AM on 04/12/2011

The Father will be welcome in the Episcopal Church.

[dgr]

03:36 PM on 04/09/2011

It's what happens when one decides to worship one's conscience rather than the Living God, when one confuses democracy with the Kingdom of Heaven.

[Peric Overde]

12:39 PM on 04/15/2011

Apparently the "Living God" suffers from some form of communication disorder as there are dozens of congregations out there that believe in ordering women. It seems then that the matter is quite unclear... I am wondering if it is a problem of long distance communication or that simply the celestial carrier does not do proper maintenance of its phone lines.

Of course, it may also be that the "Living God" has a a sadistic streak or is into some form of BDSM kink. I'll give you conscience, I'll give you free will and the ability to think... just don't use it or else. Kind of remind me of that story of the apple tree in the paradise lost where Adam and Eve where given permission to eat from any tree except from the Apple tree conspicuously placed at the center of the place. So, yes, I guess there is some precedent for this theory as well.

[New Yorker]

07:40 AM on 04/07/2011

Intelligence won't save you, wealth and power won't save you. Obedience is counted as loyalty to God. When one obeys the laws of God, they do as God wishes, and are loyal to God. When one becomes a priest they also take oaths to God vowing Poeverty, Chastity and Obedience. Obeying ones assigned superiors may not always be agreeable to you, but you took an oath to obey, so that should never matter. Many saints who were members of the clergy were obedient to superiors even when they disagreed with the duty they were assigned. Padre Pio, a great saint of the 20th century was once ordered not to say confessions, and he really hated that but for his love of God, Padre Pio obeyed without question or hesitation. The current politically correct fart may be ordaining women or gay marriage, but the Church will never do either, unlike this priest, Christ's Church remains loyal and obedient to God.

[KennebunkportIndependent]

12:36 AM on 04/12/2011

What is a 'current politically correct fart'???

[Talismancer]

12:22 AM on 04/19/2011

How can one obey an entity that does not exist?

[RedBall24]

06:18 PM on 04/06/2011

How do I get excommunicated and expulsed?

Next I’d like to know how to get my foreskin back?

[New Yorker]

03:16 PM on 04/08/2011

That circumscison thing is the Jews, so don't blame it on the Catholics. But we would be delighted to excommunicate you and then drop kick you through the church doors. You're Welcome !

[MNKen]

05:42 PM on 04/05/2011

Such a surprise to see an article in HuffPo about someone I have heard speak and met personally. "Our boy Roy" as a local priest called him has been working as a peace activist for many, many years. He is a man of conviction. When I heard him speak at a small Catholic church he was very adamant that Christians should be working for peace in any way they can. Shortly after he spoke here, he became vocal about women in the priesthood, so I am surprised it took this long for the church to kick him out.

All in all, a priest I admire. He lives what he believes.

[New Yorker]

11:22 AM on 04/05/2011

Priests take a lifelong VOW of Obedience. This man is not being obedient, he has broken His Vow to God. His 'personal' thoughts are fine, so long as he doesn't disobey his superiors. He also took a vow of silence so when he hears of the sins of others in Confession, he must never speak of them. Obedience demands that He not break this Vows to God, his soul will depend on that. Being de-frocked is the least of his problems, God is watching !

[SalusPopuli]

02:42 PM on 04/05/2011

Father Bourgeois is really only trying to behave justly. Jesus often ran afoul of religious authorities for the same reason. If you vowed to support me and I did something unethical, would your continued silence on the issue not be unethical also? I would think so. In the end, maintaining a male-only clergy is only going to hurt the church. I don't think Father Bourgeois need worry about his soul because of this.

[New Yorker]

10:49 AM on 04/08/2011

So making a Solemn Vow to God is meaningless in your opinion. Ex-Priest Bourgeois will NOT be welcomed into heaven for Breaking His Vow to Obey.

[New Yorker]

10:08 AM on 04/09/2011

So when a mere soldier swears to obey his commanders, it'd be OK if he turned and ran under fire, or caught a well deserved Nap while on guard duty, and then pinned his disgrace on some minor annoyance he didn't like about life in the military ?

[marind]

04:13 PM on 04/05/2011

So by your reasoning, the Roman Catholic Church is "God".

Obedience to whom? God or man?

Do you really think that God would give a pass to pedophiles while cutting off a nun who helps save the life of a young mother of 4? If so, your god, I'm sorry to say, is a psychopath.

[New Yorker]

08:58 AM on 04/07/2011

satan's attacks on Christ and His Church have clearly deceived you. None of this is ever about what we individual humans want to happen, it is all about doing as God expects. What God expects of those who become priests is that they OBEY those placed in positions of authority over them, Obedience they VOW to God to respect and follow.
Since the Roman Catholic Church was Founded by Jesus who IS GOD, yes, you are correct, in this instance the Catholic Church IS God. How else could it have lasted over 2000 + years of satanic attacks ?

[Michele Somerville]

08:42 AM on 04/05/2011

Read Light, Action, Sacrifice: The Unholy Crusade to Defrock Roy Bourgeois on "Indie Theology"

http://tinyurl.com/34nz4...

[CBasilJr]

03:07 AM on 04/05/2011

As long as whatever the pope says cannot, by church definition, be wrong and the pope is selected by the arch-bishops, then don't expect for anything to change.

It is regrettable that the RCC has lost sight of its mission in its zeal to maximize its profits and cover up its sins.

[New Yorker]

11:30 AM on 04/05/2011

You should refrain from commenting on that which you are ignorant of, like papal infallibility. The Pope is NOT infallible on whatever he says, and no Catholic pretends he is, only the ignorant make such remarks.

The pope is considered infallible on only the subject of Faith and Morals, and then only on the extremelt Rare occasions when the Pope declares that he is speaking 'Ex Cathedra', or "From The Throne of St.Peter". This has happened on only a handful of issues.

The church is stronger than ever in its mission to bring sinners to Christ, and save souls. The world despised Christ and cricified him, and jesus told His Disciples, " I send you out a sheep amidst wolves ", hence people like you fulfill the role of wolves tearing at His Church and His disciples. Jesus was preparing His followers for you, and those like you. He promised his church would Prevail over the Gates of hell, so The Catholic Church will last, and not fall away as the last 2000 years have proven so conclusively.

[marind]

04:15 PM on 04/05/2011

"The Catholic Church will last, and not fall away as the last 2000 years have proven so conclusive­ly."

What the last 2,000 years have proved "conclusively" is that the RCC has been very adept at keeping the peasants at bay while the rich and powerful become more rich and powerful.

[17andlife]

07:11 PM on 04/05/2011

"The world despised Christ and cricified him"
Um..no. He was accused of herasy from his Jewish community. The punishment was death.

As far as people "tearing" at the Church - no that is also inaccurate. Ney, ignorant. The actions of men that are PART of the Church have brought shame to it. Do not sit there so self righteously and attempt to judge others.

[PeterOregon]

12:43 AM on 04/05/2011

My parents have 5 kids, 7 grandkids, 1 great, and not a single one has followed her Catholic faith. The church is glaringly guilty of shielding pedophile priests. The cover-up clearly goes all the way to the Vatican and their denials at this point are just insulting.

The Catholic church has a rotten core of pure, unadulterated evil. Of course it lashes out and attacks the good father because he would like to open the priesthood and begin to clean the cesspool that is the Catholic clergy.

I challenge any Catholic clergy to dispute the evil and the lack of recognition. Do you really expect me to believe that not a single priest was deserving of prison? COWARDS

[thunk]

10:11 PM on 04/04/2011

Somehow I can't get excited about this. The amazing thing about Christianity is that since Luther you can pick a sect that suits your sense of morality. Bourgeois can certainly find another Christian home that ordains women. You wanna be a Catholic. You play by the Catholic rules. Oh well.

[marind]

04:17 PM on 04/05/2011

Guess NO ONE can EVER criticize the RCC, eh?

Enjoy watching the series "The Borgias"?

As Pope Cesar Borgia said before bankrupting the Vatican, "God has given us the Papacy. Let's enjoy it."

[GeneralPerson]

10:02 PM on 04/06/2011

Marind, this comment interests me. First, you ask a sarcastic rhetorical question that has nothing to do with the comment above. Then, you refer to Rodrigo Borgia as "Cesare" (the name of his son). Then, you include a quote that was historically attributed to Leo X, not (as you claim) Alexander VI. That supposed quote by Leo, by the way, was very possibly fabricated by the Venetian ambassador, who had an agenda and did not even claim to have witnessed it first-hand.

And yes, I enjoy watching the Borgias. I can also tell you that almost all Catholics, even the most conservative, are more than willing to criticize historical popes such as Alexander VI and Leo X.

I am not, by the way, a conservative Catholic, and I am more than happy to entertain intelligent criticisms. But your two comments so far have suggested that you are a "lazy" critic at best. You have a few ideas in mind (e.g. the Catholic Church did nothing during World War II, some of the historical popes were corrupt, there is a new TV show I can cite to score points), but then you take your vague and often partially mistaken thoughts and present them as "facts." Please, in the interest of intellectual discussion, try to be more careful next time.