Posted on 07/03/2003 1:51:10 PM PDT by B Knotts
The dispute between Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman and the Rev. John Trigilio of Harrisburg involves one main issue.
The two are wrangling over what a Roman Catholic priest can publicly say under the church's canon law.
Trigilio believes his remarks were justified. Trautman believes they were not.
What follows are excerpts from what Trautman and Trigilio have written in the dispute, which centers on Trigilio's comments in the 2002 nonfiction book, "Goodbye, Good Men."
n One set of Trigilio's comments particularly upset Trautman. Referring to effeminate seminarians, Trigilio states in "Goodbye, Good Men": "If you wore a cassock, you were a reactionary 'daughter of Trent.' If you wore women's underwear, they'd make you seminarian of the year."
Trigilio said the remark was satirical.
The reference to Trent alludes to the Council of Trent, which the Roman Catholic Church's hierarchy held intermittently in Trent, Italy, from 1545 to 1563. The church at the council condemned the Reformation, undertook its own reforms and established Catholic doctrine.
Trigilio's comments about being labeled "a daughter of Trent" referred to his time not at St. Mark Seminary in Erie, but at a different seminary, according to "Goodbye, Good Men."
Trautman wrote to Trigilio of the "daughter of Trent" remarks: "John, I am frankly shocked by your outrageous comments. That statement alone is outrageous and unworthy of any priest. It reflects poor judgment and gross impudence bordering on scandal.
"Because of your allegations and the scandalous manner in which you have publicized your thoughts, I hereby forbid you to exercise any priestly ministry in the Diocese of Erie until further notice."
(Excerpt) Read more at goerie.com ...
Something Triglio said hit way too close to home here.
The Catholic Caucus has been awfully quiet the last couple days.
I guess everyone's getting all their fireworks ready.
I literally live in the forest, so I'm not real comfortable with shooting flaming stuff into the sky here.
We've had stuff all over the local TV and radio here from DFW Airport about handling fireworks then trying to get on a plane.
These "bag swabs" can detect minute traces of gunpowder, and they were warning passengers that they would be stopped, searched and questioned if any of this stuff turned up on their bags or their person, and it might "delay your vacation."
Can't do fireworks anymore; I've got two dogs who just go nuts over them.
Well, if nothing else, maybe Bishop Trautman read the book and maybe more bishops will do so as I would think this story will cause a bit of a stir.
If every diocese had priests like Fr. Trigilio, the Catholic Church would have way fewer problems.
I will remember both Fr. Trigilio and Bishop Trautman in my prayers tonight.
Thanks for posting this story, otherwise, I would not have seen it.
After attending St. Mark's School in Buffalo, Bishop Trautman studied for the priesthood at the Diocesan Preparatory Seminary in Buffalo and at Our Lady of the Angels Seminary at Niagara University in Niagara Falls, New York. He completed his theological studies under the Jesuits at the University of Innsbruck in Austria, studying under noted theologian, Karl Rahner, and renowned liturgist, Josef Jungmann. In 1962, he received his licentiate in Sacred Theology.
"Bishop criticizes Vatican, praises ICEL" -- Recent statements by Erie Bishop Donald Trautman sharply criticized Vatican "interference" in the affairs of bishops and national conferences concerning the liturgy.
What about an orthodox Catholic freep?
dtrautman@eriercd.org
Some readers may erroneously infer that the alleged incidents, behavior, activity and persons involved are currently present at St. Mark's Seminary in Erie. Fr. Trigilio wishes to unequivocally state that his experiences as related in this book refer to the former Saint Mark High School Seminary and have no connection whatsoever to the current Saint Mark Seminary College Formation Program, which is a reputable and responsible institution. Neither Bishop Donald Trautman of Erie nor the current faculty and seminarians of Saint Mark's are responsible nor even present during the time in question. The incidents depicted and described are of past events of the 1970's and 1980's and are not representative of the many good and faithful priests and seminarians who ever attended or were stationed at Saint Mark's even during that timeframe. Likewise, any and all references to Mary Immaculate Seminary are directed exclusively to the former inter-diocesan major seminary in Northampton (when it was run by the Vincentians) and no association, allegation or accusation should be inferred to the Spirituality Year Program in Northampton that is now part of Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary system, nor to the Diocese of Allentown nor to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, either. Many priests and seminarians who taught or studied at M.I.S. are faithful sons of the Church. One should not extrapolate that the incidents described refer to every seminarian or faculty member. There are some exemplary Vincentian and Diocesan priests who were at Mary Immaculate and they should not be confused with those who did not teach or live accordingly. These 'good men' should never be confused with the 'bad' ones who promoted heterodoxy and/or immorality. The sources of such evil can be traced to bad theology, bad liturgy and bad morality (behavior) which unfortunately infect many seminaries both past and present.
There were some very good, and some excellent, pious, orthodox priests in every seminary I attended (12 years) and there were the others as mentioned in the book. When I was in High School Seminary, one priest, a Divine Word Missionary, Fr. Leo Duscheck, SVD, drove me every week for several months to visit my little brother Michael in the hospital while he recovered from surgery on his legs for Muscular Dystrophy. I was only 15 years old at the time and my brother was 11 and those weekly visits meant a lot to him and to me (especially since I buried him in 1992 at the age of 26). There were a other Divine Word and Erie Diocesan priests who were devout and faithful priests at St. Mark's and fortunately the bad ones left the priesthood, died, or just got transferred. The current rector of the college seminary in Erie was a colleague of mine and we took many chemistry classes together. I have only heard good and encouraging things about him and about how things have greatly improved since I was there 22 years ago.
I also had some wonderful priests at Mary Immaculate, most notably the current president of Catholic University, Father David O'Connell, CM. He taught me Canon Law and was an exceptional Vincentian and a very orthodox priest loyal to the Magisterium. He has done phenomenal work in restoring orthodoxy and promoting devout Catholic piety on the campus of Catholic University. There were other outstanding priests from the Vincentian order and the Diocese of Allentown while I was at M.I.S. Again, most of the bad ones left the seminary or left the priesthood or are just gone. Currently, the place is a house of formation for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia (a spirituality year, similar to a novitiate but for diocesan seminarians who will enter first year theology when they leave) It, too, has returned to being a Catholic place once again.
In every diocese, religious order, seminary, rectory, etc., there are some very good and some very mediocre and some very bad eggs. While the good ones are phenomenal (like Father Levis) and support and encourage you, the bad ones can be as devious, hateful and vindictive as the good ones are compassionate, devout and helpful. Were it not for holy priests like Father Bob or orthodox priests like Father O'Connell or compassionate priests like Father Duscheck, then many of us would have been scattered to the winds and lost forever. But Our Lady, Queen of the Clergy, loves her priests and her seminarians. She can't and won't prevent the trial by fire, but she will give you the strength to persevere, believe me. Opus Dei and several Byzantine priests were also great pillars of encouragement to me and my friends, too. But most of all, the example of Pope John Paul II gave us all courage to "be not afraid."
Hopefully, the Vatican order for a new and thorough investigation of the seminaries will encourage the good ones and close or improve the bad ones. Bad theology (heterodoxy and dissent) is supported by bad liturgy (irreverence and abuse) and both will proliferate bad morality (promiscuity, homosexuality, etc.).
The more a cleric praises the fruits of the reform, the more likely that he is one.
Another reason to thank God that high school seminaries, with the exception of one or two, are all shuttered.
No "boy" can discern a vocation at the age of 13. If he has one, it will survive to 18.
One what? To whom are you referring?
What is the saddest thing is that Bishop Trautman suspended Fr. Trigilio from hearing confessions although he is allowed to say the Mass.
Triglio may not be able to publicly hear confessions, but I'd bet a few nickles that his regular penitents still have benefit of his council. Trautman is totally out of bounds with his prohibitions. He reminds me of Adamec, Polycarp's bishop.
As if writing a few words in a book is going to cause "scandal."
How many abusive priests did Trautman cover-up for?
THAT'S the scandal!
Bishop Trautman. Your comment in #2 suggests a likely reason for his swift and harsh reaction to Fr. Trigilio's comments.
There isn't a perfect correlation between homosexuality and heterodoxy in the clergy, by any means. But if Michael Rose's book and recent events are anything to go by, the two are not entirely unrelated, either.
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