Posted on 02/25/2006 1:35:19 PM PST by Rupert Pandrakos
How weird it is that I, a layman, had to debate a Catholic bishop on the issue of the problem of homosexuality in the priesthood. It's weird because I was defending the Catholic Church's perennial teaching about this issue and Bishop Gumbleton was taking the position that their being homosexuals in the priesthood is not a problem.
It was a brief debate, all of 20 minutes ... but it was enough time to see the two massively different approaches to this issue that Bishop Gumbleton and I took. What are your thoughts?
Listen to the show here... [with link to streaming audio file of the exchange].
(Excerpt) Read more at envoymagazine.com ...
Ping
Wow, thanks so much.
Revealing. The Bishop is beguiled by a theory.
Tell us, you unmanly and effeminate man, what do you seek in another male that you do not find in yourself?”
“For God’s sake, why do you damnable sodomites pursue the heights of ecclesiastical dignity with such fiery ambition?”
“By what right or by what law can one bind or loose the other when he is constrained by the bonds of evil deeds common to them both?”
“Who can expect the flock to prosper when its shepherd has sunk so deep into the bowels of the devil?
"Who, by his lust, will consign a son whom he spiritually begotten for God to slavery under the iron law of Satanic tyranny?”
“This utterly diseased queen of Sodom renders him who obeys the laws of her tyranny infamous to men and odious to God.”
“Without fail, [the vice of sodomy] brings death to the body and destruction to the soul. It pollutes the flesh, extinguishes the light of the mind, expels the Holy Spirit from the temple of the human heart, and gives entrance to the devil, the stimulator of lust.”
“[The vice of sodomy] leads to error, totally removes truth from the deluded mind . . . It opens up Hell and closes the gates of Paradise.”
“[The vice of sodomy] is this vice that violates temperance, slays modesty, strangles chastity, and slaughters virginity."
[The vice of sodomy] defiles all things, sullies all things, pollutes all things.” “Who will make a mistress of a cleric, or a woman of a man?”
“It is not sinners, but the wicked who should despair; it is not the magnitude of one’s crime, but contempt of God that dashes one’s hopes."
I've actually heard testimonials that it is possible. The people for whom same sex attraction was a problem all said that they spent many hours at Adoration and specifically prayed for the desire to leave them. Their prayers were answered in due time.
Other gems: "The problem is when people don't accept their orientation. They should accept it and publicly speak about it." "More pedophiles are heterosexual than homosexual." [The important point is the number of pedophiles per homosexual or heterosexual. That's a very cynical remark] "Priests are psychologically underdeveloped." "I know many gay priests. They're not clicky. The reason why they have to stay silent is because they're afraid of a crackdown." "Gay people are as healthy psychologically as heterosexual people." "It was easier for the priests to interact with boys than girls. It was more acceptable for a priest to take boys on a camping trip than girls."
This bishop is an absolute disaster. I have a bad feeling that he represents a sizeable number of bishops.
I agree. Bishop Gumbleton is definitely a disaster, but this is no surprise. His track record has been abysmal in the area of orthodoxy. I'm glad this radio debate was held, even though it was brief. It would be great if Madrid had had more time to dismantle the bishop's vacuous arguments. Perhaps they'll have another, longer exchange somewhere on this subject.
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