The curtain has risen on the next act in the drama of Father Roy Bourgeois, MM. Acting under orders from the Vatican, the Maryknoll Missionary Fathers have given Roy a final warning that he must recant his support for the ordination of women to the priesthood or be expelled both from the Order and the priesthood. The conclusion of this tragedy is foregone. Roy will stick to his position, the Vatican will not relent, the Maryknolls will give the official order of expulsion, and Roy will be stripped of his community and his status as a Roman Catholic priest.
Reaction to this event has focused on the unfairness of a good priest being bullied by the Church hierarchy for holding fast to his conscience. The offense merits such an outcry. However, Catholics committed to achieving justice within our Church as well as in the larger world should think about how we choose to respond to this incident, and the many others like it that occur, generally with far less fanfare, week after week.
In truth, this is a moment of liberation that could, in the long run, help bring a new Roman Catholic Church into being. Roy Bourgeois has made the choice to trust his deepest conviction, his community, and, yes, his God. In the face of the profound economic and professional uncertainty that his dismissal from the Maryknolls will bring, Roy has chosen integrity over security. He is choosing to be wholly himself, and refusing to project an acceptable image to the powers that behave badly. To paraphrase St. Irenaeus, he is opting to embody the glory of God, by being a human fully alive.
Too many Catholics face similar dilemmas frequently in their professional, ministerial, and personal lives, and choose the safe path. They are the priests who read letters from their bishops attacking the civil rights of their lesbian and gay parishioners during Sunday Mass, despite the pastoral harm they know these missives inflict. They are theologians who take apart official dogma in private but who refuse to challenge it in the public square. They are the Eucharistic Ministers who refuse Communion to the divorced and remarried, the religious educators who carefully stay inside the lines when answering difficult questions, the teachers who refuse to discuss the importance of condoms in preventing the transmission of HIV. Each of these concessions to power erodes personal dignity, and strengthens the Stepford Church that current hierarchs are creating.
So, rather than asking the Maryknolls not to expel Roy, and then returning to the pews shortly after they do, I ask my fellow Catholics to affirm acts of conscience and integrity by Fr. Roy and so many others like him. We have the power to validate Roy's convictions and his continued priesthood. I'm sure there are many Catholic communities that would be thrilled to embrace Roy as a leader. I also believe there are Catholics who can step forward to provide a living wage, health benefits, and even retirement funding that will allow Roy to continue his justice ministry. Once we've done it for Roy, we can do it for others.
If we can remove economic bullying from the arsenal that Church leaders have to control Catholics, clergy and laity alike, perhaps more of us will be feel free to speak and live the truth of our own convictions. Most importantly, we will have taken an important step in creating the Church we believe in and deserve.
Michele Somerville: Roy Bourgeois Detained at the Vatican for the Crime of Primacy of Conscience
Father Alberto Cutie: Missing, Gone or Disappeared by the Church: Where Are These Priests?
However, having taken vows to support the Catholic doctrine, and then deciding not to, and being held accountable for the decision, where is the beef here?
Nobody should become a priest unless they want to support, for life, the medieval practices of the church.
But is is simply silly to criticize the Vatican for trying to enforce its doctrinal rules on its priests.
Frankly, I could care less that John Paul "settled" the issue years ago. If the decision is prejudicial, antiquated, unfair, unreasonable and unconscienable, then it's probably wrong. But I'm also not shocked that so many catholics will shut down their consciences on something as long as the pope's signature is on it.
My biggest, most outrageous dream is that someday this country will have a universal whistle-blower law that will protect EVERYONE who exposes or fights against corruption in all arenas, whether public or private. People with that kind of commitment to the well-being of others deserve such protection.
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Their are independent Catholic communities but often the priests are gainfully employed or retired. Has anyone asked Father Roy what he would like?
Granted, sometimes this is the best option...but sometimes it feels to me like this is people's answer to everything..
And divorce. And contraception. And skipping mass and confession. And pre-marital sex. And chastity of the clergy. And all those other things that no catholic ever does.
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You talk like this is something new when it is in fact business as usual.
The way to end two millenia of repressive church hierarchy is to vote with your feet. The truth is that you don't need the organization. The organization needs you.
As for this priest and his justice ministry: If he's so serious about it, then he can choose to emulate Paul, who had a day job to support himself, and didn't depend on anyone in order to do his own clerical and pastoral work.
I challenge the statement that Church was never a democracy. The college of Cardinals symbolize the people of Rome who are the true electors of the Bishop of Rome. Historically, the popes used the civil authority to get control of various parts of the Church. Appointment of bishops is really a late development. In the first millennium bishops were elected by priests and the people. What one sees is that the Popes extended their influence and then forgot the people. What you see today is not what it used to be.
I have to wonder if a standard letter requesting priests be allowed to marry with a equally sincere and signed pledge to "tithe" each week (protestants get this one) might change the Pope's viewpoint. As noted, the Pope's real concern might be financial capacity to support the priest's family. I happen to be a early-candidate who walked because the celibacy thing just didn't work for me. I do wonder how different my life would have been.