Posted on 01/19/2006 3:53:41 PM PST by Aussie Dasher
CHICAGO, January 19, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In an annual interview with Chicago Sun Times reporter Cathleen Falsani, Chicago Cardinal Francis George revealed that last year the United States Bishops visiting with the Pope asked the Vatican to delay release of the long-awaited document on homosexuality and the priesthood.
The document entitled, "Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations with regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in view of their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders", reinforced Church teaching barring men "who practise homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'", from becoming priests.
"We asked them not not to publish it, but to delay it -- to wait -- otherwise it would color the visitations," Cardinal George told the Times.
He said the bishops were concerned that the document would be released during the official visits of US bishops with the Pope over the issue of sexual abuse in seminaries, and thus would ignite the sensitivities of homosexuals activists. Explained George: "We said, 'If you do this, it will be taken as a commentary on the visitations and we'll get into this whole business that the gay community is so sensitive to of, 'You're blaming us for the pedophilia.'"
In fact, however, the study on sexual abuse commissioned by the US Bishops after the scandals broke in 2002, confirmed that homosexuality indeed was a major part of the problem. The John Jay study (available online: http://www.usccb.org/nrb/johnjaystudy/ ) noted that 80% of the sexual abuse in the priesthood involved adolescent males rather than young boys, pointing to the core problem being one of homosexuality, not strictly pedophilia.
For comment, LifeSiteNews.com contacted Michael Rose, the author of the best seller 'Good Bye, Good Men'. The book catalogued the homosexual activism in Catholic seminaries during the 70s and 80s which led to the acceptance into the priesthood of many practicing homosexuals and rejection from seminary of many men who followed Church teaching on homosexuality.
Rose noted that the document, already delayed for some ten years, was important for the whole church, and a request to delay it to ward off criticism from homosexual activists was concerning. "The request of the Pope by the US bishops to delay the release of the (already long delayed) document seems at best self-serving," said Rose. It is "again, sending the wrong message to the faithful (and others), that our bishops are overly concerned with outward appearances, perhaps to the detriment of more important things."
Cardinal George noted that the Vatican disregarded the request and published the document as scheduled. "Their response was, 'Well, we're sorry about that, but this is a universal document. It's not directed at the United States. It's directed to the whole church. So we're gonna do it.' They have their own schedule," he said.
What are they, gay?
There's a fair chance...
You know, Pope Benedict doesn't seem to eager to run the Church according to what's convenient to the perverts in it.
The problem with the Church in the US is the Bishops. I've never been impressed with their fiscal acumen or religious leadership. Many are fast becoming shepards with a dwindling flock and diminishing grazing pastures.
The problem with a lot of these "Bishops" is they don't really want to be Catholics...very odd!
Yes, I agree. Many are pompus asses living the good life on the labors of their flock.
I'm guessing...yes.
Cardinal George is actually one of the more conservative and orthodox bishops in the US, so I'm surprised by his comments. I can only imagine what Mahoney would have to say about this. But George is one of the good ones. He's had a horrid mess to clean up in Chicago after Bernardin, and to my knowledge, he's doing a pretty good job.
America's version of George Pell?
Archbishop Levada was here in the archdiocese of San Francisco....talking about messes and homosexual activists. He's in Rome now because His Holiness knows a smart, steely-backboned bishop when he see him.
There ARE more good ones than bad ones.
I can see the problem with timing. But it wouldn't do much to change the activists. No matter when His Holiness comes and/or releases The Document, it will rile the activists and put the spotlight on the homosexual priests, be they good, bad or indifferent.
Just no getting around it.
In fact, the two things might be really best to do at once, the visit and the document, so as to get it all over with in one fell swoop.
I think Benedict will take out the trash.
Could you explain this to me a little? I was born and raised in Illinois, and my husband comes from the Chicago area. I know that Bernardin has been described on FR as having been responsible for recommending a lot of bad U.S. appointments to the Vatican, but I don't know if that's true or anything else specific about Bernardin and his tenure in Chicago. I would welcome some specific info. (however brief) if you are still on the thread.
Ping.
Probably alot like Card. Pell. I'm wondering if Card. George's comments were taken out of context, as so often happens when Church figures are quoted. I'm guessing George was concerned that the timing of the Pope's document would make it more difficult for the seminaries to be evaluated. Perhaps he worried that because of the document, certain people would have a "heads up" and would be able to hide things in the seminaries for Vatican investigators.
Perhaps George and other US bishops also don't want the seminary inspections to become solely focused on homosexuality - there are other serious problems in some seminaries like rampant heresy that must be addressed as well.
But I can't imagine that Card. George is opposed to the Pope's document, considering what he's had to clean up in Chicago. To give you an idea of how bad it got, when Bernardin died, he requested that a group known as the "Windy City Gay Men's Chorus" sing at his funeral Mass, in Holy Name Cathedral. He got his request.
I'm proud to know what that means and I agree with you!
Well, that's interesting.
"Windy City Gay Men's Chorus"? Good Lord!!!
That wouldn't be tolerated in Australia - not even by some of our worst Bishops!
I grew up near Chicago and was in high school when Bernardin died. At the time he was practically canonized, by the local media as well as by the nuns who ran my high school. Not being very knowledgable about my faith at the time, I had no reason to think he was anything but a saint. It was very disheartening to later find out the truth.
There were many problems with his tenure as Cardinal of Chicago. See my previous post to Aussie about the Gay Men's Chorus singing the funeral Mass at Holy Name Cathedral. In general Bernardin had a reputation for allowing the worst of AmChurch to flourish in Chicago during his tenure. He was and still is a favorite of "progressive" Call-to-Action types.
Bernardin also is credited with being the inventor of the "Seamless Garmet" theory, which has done enormous damage in the Church. I think that this legacy of his will continue to cause problems long after the mess he made in Chicago is cleaned up.
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