Catholics complain to Vatican over (Cardinal) Pell (liberal activists alert!)

The Age ^ | February 20, 2006 | Barney Zwartz

[NYer]

A GROUP of leading liberal Catholics has complained to the Vatican that Cardinal George Pell is teaching inaccurate and misleading doctrine.

Spokesman Frank Purcell went further, accusing the cardinal of fostering an "Eichmann mentality" whereby people in the church did not think for themselves but simply obeyed orders. (Adolf Eichmann was the Nazi in charge of exterminating Jews in World War II.)

The Catholics wrote in November to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith — formerly the Holy Inquisition, and a body on which Cardinal Pell served under the present Pope — but have had no reply.

They are calling for the Vatican's direct intervention because they say Cardinal Pell's "explication of Catholic doctrine is inaccurate, misleading, and not true to the Catholic tradition".

The doctrinal dispute centres on the ultimate right of Catholics to make moral judgements based on their individual conscience even if it is in error. It lies at the heart of debate in the church over the use of contraception and on moral and ethical questions surrounding bioethics, euthanasia and abortion.

The letter said a number of statements by the cardinal about the role of conscience were difficult to reconcile with the priority church teaching placed on conscience. Given Cardinal Pell's prominence, many Australians took his views as representing doctrine.

The letter was signed by 24 Catholics, including Sister Veronica Brady, Professor Max Charlesworth, historian Paul Collins, NSW judge Chris Geraghty and several Melbourne priests.

Cardinal Pell, Archbishop of Sydney, yesterday said: "This is a real hoot. Such well-known defenders of orthodoxy as Paul Collins, Veronica Brady and Max Charlesworth appealing to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith." He said what was in dispute was not the importance of conscience, but whether conscience must be oriented to truth, to the word of God.

Mr Purcell, a lecturer in politics at La Trobe University, said the issue was an important question of religious freedom and provided an opportunity to test the accountability of church leaders. A cardinal is accountable only to the Pope.

"We are not formally accusing him of heresy. But his statements are surprising in the light of the Vatican Council (the 1960s reforming council) and even the Catholic catechism. He should be asked to clarify what he really means," he said.

"The real role of the church is not to tell people what to do but give them a map, and conscience is the compass."

Mr Purcell said Cardinal Pell was trying to keep people at a lower level of moral development by telling them to do what the church said. "He overemphasises the obligation to follow the church absolutely. That's the Eichmann mentality."

He said the group decided to go public when the Vatican, as expected, did not reply. "The Vatican just doesn't answer your letters. It's a way of fobbing you off."

[NYer]

And here is the background information on these 'whiners'.

• Sister Veronica Brady: She has spoken out publicly against the Vatican stance on abortion, homosexuality and contraception, and has been involved in the Aboriginal rights movement and the anti-uranium mining lobby. She also supports the ordination of female priests in the Catholic Church. She is also a member of Amnesty International, the Campaign against Nuclear Energy and the Campaign against Racial Exploitation, among others.
• Professor Max Charlesworth: a retired philosopher and pacifist who in many occasions has argued that Catholic should use “less faith and more reason.” Regarding Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam war, he said he was prepared to allow the possibility that the Vietcong and North Vietnam were puppets of the Chinese communists, although he personally doubted that, but insisted that this was not sufficient to make any war against them a just war.
• District court judge Chris Geraghty: a former priest and theologian turned judge, a pioneer of state aid to Catholic schools, who opposes mandatory celibacy to priests and called Humanae Vitae a “fiasco,” and who recently said: “I think that the hierarchy who are drawing back and are destroying the message of the Second Vatican Council, are really fearful people. And I think the Roman church, and I think other churches too, are quite fearful now about the influences of the world, and theyÂ’re drawing back and refusing to dialogue with the world.”
• Father Frank Martin: a priest who was Director of Religious Education for the diocese of Melbourne, and who had a critical role in reducing catechetical content on educational programs.
• Paul Collins: A former Sacred Heart  priest who was under Vatican investigation since 1998 for his views on the papacy and other matters, who left Catholic priesthood in 2001.
  In a statement to news organizations, Collins gave two reasons for his resignation. The first was “the Vatican support for so-called ‘new movements’ such as Opus Dei, the Neocatechumenate and the Legionaries of Christ, which are ‘theologically reactionary’.” The second reason was that the Vatican investigation of his work by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, “was moving toward an escalation.”

[Knitting A Conundrum]

They wish!

[trisham]

Unbelievable.

[marshmallow]

The usual suspects.

Between the lot of them, they've pretty much got all bases covered as regards the typical loony liberal crusades du jour.

From "stop the war" (doesn't matter which one), to "stop the mining" to "ethnic rights" to "free love".

A true collection of activist whacko caricatures.

[ArrogantBustard]

These cretins, and not Cardinal Pell, should be forced by the Holy Inquisition to answer for themselves.

[dynachrome]

"Liberation" theology at it's finest.

[Convert from ECUSA]

If the likes of these rodents are complaining about good Cardinal Pell, then it is a clear sign he is doing his job! God bless this good Cardinal and may the Church have many more like him.

BTW, why hasn't this "sister" whatever-the-heck-she-is gotten the left foot of fellowship on her caboose out the church-house door?! (rhetorical question) "Sheriff, please show this lady the door and make sure she gets safely to her car and escort her out of town."

[RobbyS]

In the States we call them "Commonweal Catholics."

[marshmallow]

The real role of the church is not to tell people what to do but give them a map, and conscience is the compass."

What happens when the compass needle gets stuck or points in the wrong direction?

Is there anyone to whom I can take my compass to have it fixed or should I simply continue blithely marching in the wrong direction?

There is such a thing as objective north and just because my compass points south, it doesn't mean that Canada is now where Mexico used to be. It means I have a bum compass.

[lastchance]

From the article "The doctrinal dispute centres on the ultimate right of Catholics to make moral judgements based on their individual conscience even if it is in error. It lies at the heart of debate in the church over the use of contraception and on moral and ethical questions surrounding bioethics, euthanasia and abortion. "
News flash. There is no such right. There is only the acknowledgement that people who do have a correctly formed conscience will do these things. That may mean they avoid being guilty of mortal sin ( not knowing it is wrong) but that does not excuse them from being guilty of a venial sin at the very least. They are to seek forgiveness and receive absolution. If they do know what they are doing is wrong they would most likely be guilty of a mortal sin.
But in no way is there any wiggle room to say it is alright to go against church teachings.

[lastchance]

There is only the acknowledgement that people who do have a correctly formed conscience will do these things
Errata the sentence should read. People who DO NOT have a correctly formed conscience will do these things.
And reading about the backgrounds of the petitioners I hesitate to call any of them Catholic.

[AnAmericanMother]

There's a name for this collection of loony-tunes.

Protestants.

[Ozone34]

I was just listening to one of the taped interviews with Fr. Malachi Martin in which he recounts a Cardinal Pell anecdote. When Pell was made Archbishop of Sydney, one of the first things he die was demand that the faculty of a seminary or Catholic university teach only orthodox Catholic doctrine. In response the entire faculty resigned rather than go along with his orders, claiming "we don't really believe that stuff any more"! Does anybody know if this is a true story? Pell is definitely becoming a legend in his own time!

[NYer]

Why hasn't Sister Brady been kicked out?

That would only draw more attention to her and her message. There are more subtle ways to silence these folks ;-). (Note that the Vatican has not responded to their request, so they went public. There's an old expression: give someone enough rope and they'll hang themselves.)

[MillerCreek]

My initial (and as yet not well thought out) response is that these people are the negative fallout from Vatican II, the liberals who perceived with Vatican II that the Catholic Church was adapting toward liberalism and therefore remained active as liberals in association with the Church, in their perspectives.

Obviously, they're squirming with diminished avenues available to manipulate as they go along, "make up the Church" to suit their own humanistic purposes and they're using some quite profane methods and statements (much moreso, profane intentions) to flail Christ just one more time.

But, the "Eichman" reference is truly hideous. It's an indication that evil is, as usual, extremist and irrational in reference to Christ.

[MillerCreek]

They might just as well have written -- in anguish, mind you:

"It burrns, it burrrnnnsss..."

[Convert from ECUSA]

ROFL!!!!!

[Ozone34]

Just found this:

The Pope's Man on a Mission
Archbishop George Pell makes waves in Australia
By Michael Gilchrist
Oct. 18, 2001

http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=20678