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U.S. women religious study raising new concerns
Profession of faith, loyalty oath requested of on-site visitators.
Jun. 04, 2009
Mother Millea
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PDF versionThe Vatican-appointed apostolic visitator charged with leading a study of U.S. women religious communities soon will have personally interviewed nearly half the superiors general included in phase one of the effort.
Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Mother Mary Clare Millea, who heads the project, has spoken with women in Rome, by telephone, and also while visiting various U.S. cities. In August she plans to send questionnaires to heads of religious institutes with an eye on beginning on-site visits shortly into 2010.
“The response has been very positive,” said Sr. Eva-Maria Ackerman, a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George, the American sister handling communications for the project. “Mother Millea has already interviewed 50 superiors general in Rome and will soon have completed 77 more in the U.S. She will speak with more after she returns to Rome.”
Phase one of the study, Ackerman said, calls for interviewing some 340 women religious leaders with U.S. generalates, provincialates and houses of formation.
Sr. Eva-Maria (CNS photo)In January, the Vatican’s Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life first announced that it had begun an apostolic visitation, or comprehensive study, of U.S. women religious congregations. The announcement caused considerable uncertainty and alarm among many U.S. women religious who saw it as unnecessary and potentially divisive.
The Vatican action was initiated by the congregation’s prefect, Slovenian Cardinal Franc Rodé in a decree issued last December. That decree indicated the visitation was being undertaken in order to examine the quality of the life of women religious with an eye to learning why their numbers had fallen in recent decades.
Ackerman, in announcing the study last January, said the visitation is not meant to impose any particular model of religious life on any religious order, but rather to help “revitalize and renew” the congregations.
As part of the project, Millea, in a letter dated May 19 and sent to the superiors general, asked each to give her up to three names of religious who might participate in the planned on-site visitations.
“To assist me in the current process of selecting religious who will be members of visitation teams,” said Millea, “I am offering each superior general the opportunity to suggest names of potential team members, principally among her own sisters, but not excluding religious of other congregations.
“Male religious may also be appointed as members of visitation teams and will be assigned to those congregations who will have indicated on the questionnaire that they would welcome a member of a men’s religious congregation.”
Millea’s letter noted that those who take part in the work “will be acting in the name of the Apostolic See” and for this reason “they must be willing to make a public profession of faith and take an oath of fidelity to the Apostolic See.”
These requests appear to have touched the nerves of some already suspicious women religious.
Canon lawyers, however, who have seen the requested profession of faith and oath say they date back two decades and are required of candidates who hold teaching positions, including roles in the diaconate as well as positions of bishop, pastor, and theology teacher in Catholic seminaries.
The profession of faith involves the recitation of the Nicene Creed followed by three paragraphs add in 1989. These read:
“With firm faith, I also believe everything contained in the Word of God, whether written or handed down in tradition, which the church, either by a solemn judgment or by the ordinary and universal magisterium, sets forth to be believed as divinely revealed.
“I also firmly accept and hold each and everything definitively proposed by the church regarding teaching on faith and morals.
“Moreover, I adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teachings which either the Roman pontiff or the College of Bishops enunciate when they exercise their authentic magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim these teachings by a definitive act.”
The oath of fidelity reads, in part:
“With Christian obedience I shall follow what the bishops, as authentic doctors and teachers of the faith, declare, or what they, as those who govern the church, establish.
“I shall also faithfully assist the diocesan bishops, so that the apostolic activity, exercised in the name and by mandate of the church, may be carried out in communion with the church.”
Millea’s letter appears on the apostolic visitation Web site . While the profession and oath do not appear, NCR obtained a copy.
Most women religious interviewed for this article did not want to be quoted by name, fearing they would draw attention to their religious communities. Nearly all remained skeptical about the Vatican-mandated study. Several questioned the need for a profession of faith and an oath in order to be part of the visitation teams. The requirement, these women said, would narrow ranks of potential applicants, making the teams less representative of U.S. women religious today. For these women, the whole matter of fidelity oaths seemed to be adding salt into old wounds.
At issue are gender and authority questions, which have a contentious church history in recent decades.
In June 1998, Pope John Paul II re-opened these issues in an apostolic letter, Ad Tuendam Fidem, enshrining into canon law the tougher 1989 profession of faith and loyalty oath. On that occasion, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, then prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, now Pope Benedict XVI, listed examples of non-definitive church teachings that need to be upheld as part of core Catholic teachings. Ratzinger’s commentary singled out the ban on women’s ordination and the invalidity of Anglican ordinations.
“The change in the wording was troubling to many theologians at the time the profession and oath were altered in 1989,” said Fr. James A. Coriden, canon law professor at Washington Theological Union. “It required not just a personal act of faith, but also to firmly accept and hold certain non-definitive teachings. This went way beyond a profession of faith. Theologically, it seemed at the time like an effort to deal with the issue of the ordination of women.”
Reacting to the news of the requested profession of faith, Franciscan Sister of the Poor Beth Rindler said: “It seems so obvious that the men in official positions within our church are attempting to control us as women. We are their subjects and we are to do as they tell us, even to what we can think.”
Sister of Loretto Jeannine Gramick lamented the requirements.
Said Gramick: “If we truly believe that the Spirit is guiding our church, we have no need of professions of faith and loyalty oaths. I feel embarrassed for the church I love when it uses such tactics in the 21st first century — tactics that are reminiscent of the inquisition, where fear overruled truth, and of Orwellian mind control, where individuals were controlled by the Thought Police.”
Sister of Mercy Theresa Kane said it is both ironic and providential the visitation process is taking place simultaneously with the national opening of a major women’s religious exhibit in Cincinnati. That exhibit highlights the work of U.S. women religious beginning in the 18th century. She called the exhibit “deeply inspiring” and “a sacred experience.”
“Having stated this, to think women religious are being directed to sign oaths or a pledge of fidelity is scandalous,” she said. “We have made lifelong oaths; they are called vows. Before God, we have attempted to live our lives fully with gifts of a rich spiritual life, an effective ministry and in community with other women religious. Such is fidelity and a fidelity that belongs only to one’s loving God.”
In her letter, Millea listed other requirements for those to be considered for the visitation teams. Applicants, she wrote, need to be:
- At least 20 years of religious profession in an institute of pontifical or diocesan right;
- Current membership in good standing in her/his own religious institute, with active and passive voice therein;
- Clear and consistent witness to faithful religious living, in accord with congregational and ecclesial norms;
- Spiritual, human and practical wisdom drawn from extensive experience in interpersonal relationships, both within the community and in ministry;
- Ability to respect confidentiality, listen attentively and dialogue honestly;
- Capacity for working collaboratively with a team in drawing clear and fair conclusions;
- Ability to perceive, verify and clarify essential ideas and data;
- Ability to prepare a written report in a timely manner that is objective, unbiased, accurate and succinct;
- Ability to identify strengths and areas of concern based on data gathered.
There are nearly 400 apostolic religious institutes of women in the United States containing approximately 59,000 women religious. Communities of cloistered, contemplative nuns are not part of the study. At the end of the apostolic visitation process, Millea will submit a confidential report to Rodé based on her observations and findings.
Fox is NCR editor and can be reached at tfox@ncronline.org.
I recell the case of the
I recell the case of the venerable and honorable and the Reverend Father Tissa Balasuriya who found he was called upon Ratzinger's CDF brocaded carpet for the sole purpose of forcing him to sign such a carefully tailored (by Ratzinger himself) and unorthodox Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity, as the CDF could find nothing whatsoever out of sorts in any of his great writings (see particularly his moving Marian meditations) and so forced the old man against his will to sign a Credo crafted by Ratzinger himself. The good old priest correctly declined to sign, and offered as substitute a more orthodox and universal Credo developed under Pope Paul VI. Ratzinger refused and so the great and Reverend Father Tissa Balasuriya passed his final years under a shadow where none was merited. Our brothers and sisters in any case whom we discover under shadows merit our bringing light and love, not scorn, not judgment and rejection. Such treatment is not Gospel.
and now that same unholy shadow passes over our good and holy religious women in the USA, whose visitors are carefully screened by this means to guarantee the worst possible.
What Oath did Jesus require his followers? What Oath does he require of us now? Only to love without condition up to the ultimate consequences. That is all, no more and no less, and no preposterous political purity papers.
This is control which stinks of the Third Reich, not the liberating odor of sanctity which freely comes from above.
your most unfaithful servant
frere charles
Dear Frere Charles, Why is it
Dear Frere Charles,
Why is it that you refer to Pope Benedict XVI as "Ratzinger" and not by his papal name?? You don't call Pope Paul VI "Montini". What gives?
If you disagree with the Holy Father...fine...but at least show some respect by affording him the same respect as you afford to Pope Paul VI. I find your posts to be hate-filled and very divisive.
May God grant you peace!
To Generation X-er: Simple-
To Generation X-er:
Simple- he wasn't the Holy Father at the time- he was Cardinal Ratzinger.
May God grant YOU peace.
Generation X-er, You will
Generation X-er,
You will note that the Frere refers to the now Pope Benedict as Ratzinger when he's referring to things Ratzinger did as Ratzinber, before he became Pope.
Although I find no offense in calling him Ratzinger...I'd have referred to JP II by his given name except that it was too hard for me to pronounce.
Dear Gennie, The events
Dear Gennie,
The events mentioned here occured while Cardinal Ratzinger ran the Holy Office under Wojtyla. Therefore I employed his name of that time, as calling him Pope Benedict XVI would have increased your confusion. No offense intended and I regret that some was taken. I can only beg your forgiveness, and your most compassionate love and prayers.
I cannot at this moment recall my remarks regarding the great Montini, but thank you very much for drawing this to my attention.
your worst sesrvant,
frere charles
Dear Friar Charles, Why do
Dear Friar Charles, Why do you refer to yourself as an oblate friar of the Benedictine Order??? You do not believe in God or the Roman Catholic Church if one can believe your continuous criticism of both!!
If I were you I would be
If I were you I would be very, very careful to claim publicly whether someone believes in God or not. Any disagreement with or even (if proven) disrespect for the pope doesn’t mean that someone is an atheist. On the contrary: only people who care and feel responsible for the Church must present their concerns and sometimes even a critical voice.
Purely unreflected and unintellectual repetitions of some statements presented by even highest authorities in the Church don’t qualify anyone automatically to be described as “good believer” and “good Catholic”. The Church is a home of living, intellectual beings, followers of Christ and his commandment of Love – not just faithfully repeating everything tape-recorders... And, precisely, this Love requires very often from us to tell the truth and to express our concerns.
Public disagreements and proving to the “first pope” his hypocrisy (see Gal 2:11-14) is very clearly recorded in the inspired Word of God.
my dear Father Noket, I am
my dear Father Noket,
I am sincerely grateful and deeply moved by your careful and insightful, orthodox and correct response to Tom's message. I was unable to answer myself as I was away behind cloister at a Roman Catholic Retreat House run by the Canosian Sisters some five hours from where "our" hermitage stands (okay, so like, I am the only one living in the, well, HERMITAGE, but "we" still must say "our" in recognition that nothing belongs to the individual - see the Holy Rule for Monks written 1500 years ago by Our Holy Father Saint Benedict, not to be confused with te present papacy). What a great and profound joy it was to spend the retreat in their house, under the wise and holy guidance of an excellent Jesuit, with ample time to arise before everyone else and sit in chapel reading the Office. I was in Heaven, with frequent "prayer fo tears" particularly to join the good Sisters chanting the Save Regina after Mass! SO wonderful to be held thus closely and spiritually by Our Holy Mother Church, in the company of such excellent servants of Our great Church.
So, now what was Tom's question again? I hope you responded to his satisfaction, and I am so grateful to you both for your prayers. I am especially grateful to you, Father for your kindness and generosity for this,
your poorest servant,
frere charles out in the desert, of the Order of Saint benedict, Oblate sworn into the ancient Subiaco Congregation (must be a briefer way to say that!)
dear friends, kindly forgive
dear friends,
kindly forgive the several typos in the above post, as I was quite tired, and excited . . .
that plus my limited linguistic skills introduced several errors in typing, including the title of that greatest of hymns, that which accompanies us to rest each evening (in season) and after Mass each week in Mexico (in SPanish): The SALVE REGINA (not the Save Regina as printed above)
again I most sincerely apologize for MY several typing errors above, and for all of my several most grievous errors
resolving to take greater care in future, I remain
your poorest servant
frere charles
The article only referred to
The article only referred to the Pope as Ratznger when speaking of him in his pre-papal position. That seems quite proper and less prone to confusion on the part of readers.
Likewise, it would be appropriated to refer to Montini when speaking of Pope Paul VI prior to he elevation as pope.
Let's not get to sensitive here.
Thank you, Frere Charles. I
Thank you, Frere Charles. I doubt such statements will do much good because I doubt those in authority are listening, but still they must be stated.
Thank you for that. I so
Thank you for that. I so agree.
At one time in my life I
At one time in my life I refused to sign any more political loyalty oaths. As a Catholic Christian, if I were required to sign a loyalty oath, I would be deeply offended. Especially since it appears to me, as stated in the above article, that these oaths are designed to keep women out of the hierarchy. Once again, why are some members of the hierarchy so afraid of women?
Shirley, you jest!(sorry) The
Shirley, you jest!(sorry) The oath of JPII & descriptions by then Crdl. Ratzinger are straight from the documents of Vatican II (i.e. Lumen Gentium 25). Remember what was left of the New Testament after Thomas Jefferson cut out the things he chose not to believe. It seems too many here in the comments section would make Swiss Cheese of V2 were they to follow Jefferson's example.
Recent Canonical
Recent Canonical Visitations
1. An apostolic visitation team concluded that U.S. Catholic seminaries and houses of priestly formation are generally healthy, but recommended a stronger focus on moral theology, increased oversight of seminarians and greater involvement of diocesan bishops in the formation process.
http://web.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0900196.htm
2. In a bid to find out why numbers have decreased so drastically over the last 40 years, the Vatican Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life announced an apostolic visitation of US religious women's institutes.
http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=11484
3. The Vatican ordered an apostolic visitation of the institutions of the Legionaries of Christ following disclosures of sexual impropriety by the order's late founder, Father Marcial Maciel Degollado.
http://web.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0901460.htm
Thank you Shirley and as ever
Thank you Shirley and as ever you are absolutely correct.
Each year we renew our Baptismal vows.
Occassionally, if they make it, the married and monks and nuns renew their vows.
These are sacred vows.
We receive the Sacrament of Confirmation after more than adequate preparation.
These are more than enough. These are sacramental. Nothing more is required.
Case closed. Anything additional is evil and not of God. This is particularly
oppressive.
An Oath of obedience of thought has nothing to do with the Church of Jesus Christ, and all to do with totalitarianism.
I mean, where's the Afflantu Spiritu, dudes??
your poorest servant
frere charles
Frere Charles. You are
Frere Charles. You are absolutely correct. After renewing our Baptismal vows and receiving a wonderfully deep knowledge of the faith gained in preparation for Confirmation, we need never aver a deeper knowledge. Please, please please, under no circumstance look up and read Lumen Gentium 25. Case Closed.
sure, Seiber, I'll study it
sure, Seiber, I'll study it more, in continuance, as I have for some forty something years, especially grateful for the insight and guidance of such great American Catholic theologians as the Reverend Father Richard P. McBrien (seen his work, Seiber?), etc., but right now, please forgive me as I find myself a little tied up reading the Gospel of Saint Mark once more. Perhaps when I have completed my study of that out here in the desert . . .
Oh yeah, and with the exciting and hopefilled news now coming out of the Vatican, I am now reading the writings of Dr. Diaz - - wonderful stuff?
And of course Fr. James Carroll's new book Practicing Catholic
Have you read it yet?
just wondering
highly recommendable
your poorest reader
frere charles
Frere Charles. i before e
Frere Charles. i before e except after c or in this case spelling my name correctly. Since Mark's gospel is so short, may I expect your rebuttal of Lumen Gentium tomorrow? Which version of Fr. McBtien do you suggest, before or after he was spanked by Cardinal Ratzinger?
Dear Sieber, I am very
Dear Sieber,
I am very grateful for your infinite patience and kindness with my limited linguistic abilities, and your sharing that golden rule of English orthography. Why, just the other day, a brother Oblate from Saint Meinrad's was remarking a similar phenomenon.
I could not so presume to answer a Conciliar document as you remark; such activity, to paraphrase our great President, is far above my pay scale, and would certainly offend the humility steps of Our Holy Father Saint Benedict's Rule for Monks. In any case, upon the date which you specify, I was inside a cloister a day's journey from here upon a Roman Catholic retreat, in particular upon that day mourning very much the great Roman Catholic martyr's 41st anniversary at hands still unknown.
Please once again, kindly accept my great gratitude for your lesson in orthography, in light of my limited linguistic abilities. I ask you also to help me to identify this person, whose name I cannot locate in a web search. Perhaps it is a Vietnamese name? You write of a certain, and I shall copy it as written: "Fr. McBtien." Perhaps you can also explain what is meant by "he was spanked by Cardinal Ratzinger" as I can certainly not recall any such event within my recent Catholic Church history.
Apologizing once more for my limited abilities, I ever remain
your poorest servant
frere charles
Touche' on dyslexia. However,
Touche' on dyslexia. However, if brevity is the soul of wit, you demonstrate the opposite is also true. I did not mean to embarrass you on church history, but since your comments on this blog are antithetical to Lumen Gentium, I thought you really should read it.
And please, no need to further apologize for your limited abilities.
Of course he won't look up a
Of course he won't look up a document of Vatican II. Why should the words of the Council stand in the way of the "spirit"?
Dear Anonymous, Why! Thank
Dear Anonymous,
Why! Thank you very much for your helpful and patient interjection which has certainly shown your infinite kindness with one such as I with such limited linguistic skills. In fact, I have been asking all that I can for the exact parallel passages from both documents, side by side. Frequently, I believe it has been you, Anonymous, but one can never be certain, we have seen here in messages that this oath of fidelity was taken straight out of Lumen Gentium. Realizing and freely admitting my limited linguistic skills, I beg you please to indicate the source of quotation from one to another. Please do not cut and paste a large passage from the one, but please, line by line, if I may so very greatly presume upon your patience and your time.
sincerely yours I must remain
your poorest reader
frere charles
"Once again, why are some
"Once again, why are some members of the hierarchy so afraid of women?"
Simple. Because we are threatening to them. They don't 'get' us, and they fear we will somehow upset their nicely designed apple cart, and therefore, they are afraid. Because they can't imagine sharing power with a female. Because some of us are smarter than some of the males in power, and that really hits a nerve. Because we approach things differently. Because they are insecure.
However you look at it, the hierarchy is afraid, and operates out of fear. Hence the hammers and lockdowns over the centuries, years, and decades. It's really, really sad.
In response to why some
In response to why some members of the hierarchy so afraid of women, my belief is that these men have many unresolved issues from their childhood, teen years and even adult years that continue to impact their present-day responses regarding women. Fears have many roots which need loving attention to transform into courage. Sharinig deeply within counseling and/or spiritual direction and seeking the healing presence of Jesus can lead to much healing and courage. It is very easy for both men and women to avoid looking deeply within themselves - preferring the escape of doing ministry and making hurtful decisions.
If I were to paint a
If I were to paint a landscape of a pine forest and leave out all of the Douglas Firs would my painting have any authenticity? If only the Sisters willing to take the oath and meet other narrow requirements are interviewed, will the Vatican have captured the true and beautiful landscape that our Sisters in Christ present to the world? If I were trying to decide how to attract new and vibrant young women to religious life, would I only ask those who have more than twenty years experience for their views?
This is sad.
Absolutely, Anonymous. This
Absolutely, Anonymous.
This is nothing but a ploy to screen out those who are uncertain of the legitimacy of such things, the very ones who best could give an objective "Visitation."
Any first year PhD. candidate would have such a requirement thrown out of his research project as invalidating the results.
How astute of you, Anonymous!
your poorest servant
frere charles
I strongly urge all to have
I strongly urge all to have faith in the Church and do not re-judge the Apostolic Visitation. The Church is a gift of Jesus-God come in the flesh. Have confidence Sisters and brothers! God bless you all! Rejoice in Pentetost! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! The paraclete has come!
GEE, WE ARE THE CHURCH!
GEE, WE ARE THE CHURCH!
Sorry. My trust in the
Sorry. My trust in the institutional church has all run out all the holes. My trust in the Church of Christ is fully alive - but the two are NOT the same!
Very well said!
Very well said!
Well, then obviously you are
Well, then obviously you are no fan of Vatican II.
My dearest drop of
My dearest drop of snow
dude.
Has your liturgist reminded you Paschaltide is over, dude?
Drop the allelujia's already . . .
Unless you have joined one of those evangelical store front groups . . .
so you trust these draconian restrictive measures placed unilaterally upon the selection of Visitationers?
just wondering
frere charles
Its still the Pentecost
Its still the Pentecost Octave for Catholics. By the way what denomination are you sir, you have a lot to say about Catholicism. However have not identified your denomination. Just curious?
Rejoice in Pentecost! Alleluia! Alleluia1 Alleluia!
what denomination? singles,
what denomination?
singles, tens or twenties?
I resent the question as one MUST resent the unholy imposition of this extraneous oath of fidelity, and most humbly ask you, my dearest droplet of snow, to look at my title above
res ipsa loquitur
Alleluia!
(do I question you? oops, I just did . . .)
your poorest servant
frere charles
With respect. I would not
With respect. I would not call being a baptised and confirmed Catholic an "extraneous oath". Catholicism is a way of life in Christ. Seriously though, are you churched?
Physician, Heal
Physician, Heal thyself!!
“With Christian obedience I shall follow what the bishops, as authentic doctors and teachers of the faith, declare, or what they, as those who govern the church, establish.
“I shall also faithfully assist the diocesan bishops , so that the apostolic activity, exercised in the name and by mandate of the church, may be carried out in communion with the church.”
How many of the Catholic Bishops in America have had the Courage to post their own homilies ONLINE, like the Archdiocese of Milwaukee?
http://www.archmil.org/bishops/Audio_Bishops.asp
Perhaps these bishops, "as authentic doctors and teachers of the faith engaged in Apostolic Activity", should "swallow their pride", eat "humble pie" and ask Archbishop Dolan for advice, as to how to post their "MEDIOCRE" homilies ONLINE, instead of spending all their time seeking "PHOTO-OPS", using the "PRO-LIFE" Crutch!
Dear Sr. Scholastica, Thank
Dear Sr. Scholastica,
Thank God we have weekly here on NCRonline the great and edifying homilies of our finest US Bishop, the courageous and just Gumbleton! Deo Gratias!
and if I may . . .
ALLELUIAH!
your poorest srevant
frere charles
Amen. That's all they do now
Amen. That's all they do now - go pray in front of abortion clinics and look pious. Bunch of baloney.
People who demand oaths live
People who demand oaths live in a time long long ago. They deserve what they get, but they are not entitled to fidelity because of an "oath."
The first requirement, 20
The first requirement, 20 years of professed religious life, is in violation of the Rule of St. Benedict, which requires the abbott/abbess to listen to EVERYONE, even the youngest & most inexperienced.
If it looks like a witch hunt and it quacks like a witch hunt, it's a witchunt...this fools no one.
The Catholic Church would not exist in the U.S. without the years of grinding work & prayer by the women's religious orders. I feel that this will be a turning point in the Catholic Church in the United States...we need to stand with all the women who founded, managed, owned & were nurses in our Catholic hospitals...the women who educated us from kindergarten through grad school at Catholic women's colleges & Catholic universities...
word to the Vatican: Don't mess with our women religious!!
As I understand it, monastics
As I understand it, monastics are exempt from the visitation; hence Benedict's dictum wouldn't matter!
Dear Leota, Next to the
Dear Leota,
Next to the Gospels, the Holy Rule for Monks written by Our Holy Father Saint Benedict 1500 years ago - is the ONLY thing that matters.
As our greatest American Benedictine Sister and former head of Benedictine Prioresses recently reminded us, Saint Benedict would wonder whether in such cases this is why they came.
The citation above is quite poignant and does well to be heard: the youngest have much to teach us. Of such is the Reign of God.
Every "dictum" of Our Holy Father Saint Benedict matters, my dear Leota.
Well, there is that mystery of the hemina measure which might not matter to some such as I who drink no wine . . .
But his twelve step program towards humility is especially well taken in this lost age.
your most boastful servant
frere charles
Rachel - I couldn't have said
Rachel - I couldn't have said it better myself!
How many Bishops are there in
How many Bishops are there in this list of American saints?
1-- 2006, St. Theodore Guerin (1798-1856), foundress of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., and established the Academy of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods on 4 July 1841 at Terre Haute, Indiana, the first Catholic women’s liberal-arts college in the United States.
2-- 2000, St. Katharine Drexel (1858-1955). Spent $20 million of her family fortune serving blacks and American Indians through the religious order she founded.
3-- 1988, St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (1769-1852). French-born; founded a boarding school for pioneer daughters in St. Louis and a school for American Indians.
4-- 1977, St. John Neumann (1811-60). Served a vast parish in western New York and Pennsylvania; early bishop of Philadelphia; founder of Catholic education in America.
5-- 1975, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (1775-1821). First American-born saint. Became Catholic late in life, founded American Sisters of Charity.
6-- 1946, St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917). Patroness of immigrants; first American citizen canonized. Founded schools, hospitals and orphanages for immigrants.
7-- 1930, St. Isaac Jogues (1607-46). French-born missionary to Canada; tortured and eventually killed in New York by Mohawks, who blamed "blackrobes" for any problems they had.
8-- 1930, St. Rene Goupil (1607-42). Jesuit missionary and surgeon who served alongside Jogues. Met a similar fate, tortured and martyred by Iroquois in New York state.
The only Bishop, St. John Neumann in this list was ELECTED by his colleagues and NOT NOMINATED by Vatican.
If the Catholic Church in America is to go back to its roots, then it is time that BISHOPS are "ELECTED" by their Dioceses, and NOT NOMINATED by VATICAN.
If Cardinals can be trusted to elect one among them, as a successor to ST.Peter, it is logical that Dioceses too be "trusted" to elect their OWN Bishops, just as St. John Neumann was "ELECTED" by his colleagues, before his nomination was approved by Vatican.
Only then, will the Catholic Church in America find "LEADERS" who can rebuild the Church, that has decayed under the watch of mostly "MEDIOCRE" Bishops with "ZERO INTIATIVE", who have been sleeping at the wheel.
Sources: www.catholic.org/saints, Catholic Information Network, Catholic Community Forum, www.newadvent.org, Catholic Almanac
My dearest and most excellent
My dearest and most excellent Cardinal,
As we review your list of American saints (USA/Canada - and we may debate your comment regarding Jogues - this list leaves out Peru and the rest of Latin America) we must also note not only the number of Bishops (none?) but also the number of women.
Thanks for sharing
your poorest servant
frere charles
St. Theodore Guerin too was a
St. Theodore Guerin too was a victim of "BULLYING" by her Bishop:
"Bishop Bouvier knew more about the actions of the bishop of Vincennes than mother Theodore realized, for clerics and others had brought him word from time to time. The bishop they all agreed was a pleasant man when pleased, but otherwise very difficult; when something went wrong, he was apt to make those about him quail. He was an affable and generous man until things went badly. He was sometimes too severe and sometimes too indulgent. He found it difficult to deputize any of his work. He had a vicar general, a director of the seminary, a chaplain for St.Mary's, a rector for his cathedral, all able men - and not one had the power to do a thing without his permission. "All over the diocese he stretches his hand," said one priest, "and in consequence there is unrest and uneasiness and it is growing>................."
"To oppose me is to oppose God," he told her firmly. "I alone have any authority over you, and the least priest in the diocese has more power over your community than has Mother Theodore"....
Ref pages 160-163 in:
The Eighth American Saint: The Story of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, Founderress of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-Of-The-Woods, Indiana
by Katherine Burton and Mary K. Doyle
ACTA Publications (November 2006)
ISBN-10: 0879463244; ISBN-13: 978-0879463243
“What a waste!” The Legacy
“What a waste!”
The Legacy of St. Katharine Drexel
By Peter Finney, Jr.
St.Anthony Messenger, Oct.2000 - Feature Article
"In 1922 in Beaumont, Texas, a sign was posted by local Klansmen on the door of a church where the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament had opened a school. “We want an end of services here,” the note read. “We will not stand by while white priests consort with nigger wenches in the face of our families. Suppress it in one week or flogging with tar and feathers will follow.” A few days later, a violent thunderstorm ripped through Beaumont, destroying a building that served as the Klan’s headquarters."
"In the late 1920s, when Mother Katharine found property in New Orleans for expanding Xavier University, she used a third party as a purchasing agent to keep the transaction from falling through. When the handsome campus was dedicated in October 1932, a priest gazed upon the expensive Indiana limestone buildings and remarked in Latin: “What a waste!”
"Blessed Katharine never heard the remark. The woman who had spent $656,000 for the land and new buildings watched the dedication ceremony from a third-floor window, far away from the dignitaries’ platform."
http://www.americancatholic.org/Messenger/Oct2000/feature1.asp
The history of congregations
The history of congregations of women religious in the Catholic Church is fraught with stories of visionary women struggling against clerical/episcopal bullying, going back at least to St. Angela Merici, founder of the Ursulines, in the 16th century. Read her biography, or those of Mary Ward (founder of the Loreto Sisters), St. Jeanne Jugan (Little Sisters of the Poor), Blessed Theresa of Jesus Gerhardinger (School Sisters of Notre Dame), St. Julie Billiart (Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur), Margaret Anna Cusack (Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace), to name just a few, and you'll find examples of high-handed male supression of the spiritual gifts of women that will make your toes curl! Even the estimable St. Vincent de Paul had to deny that his Daughters of Charity were "nuns" at all in order to save them and their work! In more recent days, the Sister Formation Movement of the mid-20th century, founded with the worthy goal of responding to Pius XII's order that teaching Sisters not be thrown into classrooms without the college degrees and teacher training they needed, was derailed, at least in part, by the bishops' demands that their parochial school classrooms be filled, without delay, by the virtual slave labor of Sisters. In my own Catholic grammar school, we had postulants, barely out of high school themselves, sent from the Motherhouse to teach classes of 40 or 50 second and third graders because the Archbishop demanded it!
Yes and those same people who
Yes and those same people who chose St. John Neumann tried to throw him out of office as well.
Just a note about St. Isaac
Just a note about St. Isaac Jogues - I am afraid that circumstances surrounding St. Isaac Jogues' death were not that straightforward. In the context of the times, he alarmed many Mohawk people - who feared sorcery - when he gratuitously baptized or made the sign of the cross upon people/children who later died - and when he left his "Mass kit" at the settlement - and a smallpox epidemic erupted in his absence, etc. These were real concens and many Mohawks believed that Jogues, especially, was a sorcerer; they told him to leave and not return. It's good to remember that Mohawk people werer losing their families and friends due to diseases that Europeans brought to them, and they were exploited and manipulated by both the French and the English. His death at their hands was not simply because Mohawk people were "blaming the 'blackrobes' for any problems they had".
"The Catholic Church would
"The Catholic Church would not exist in the U.S. without the years of grinding work & prayer by the women's religious orders. I feel that this will be a turning point in the Catholic Church in the United States...we need to stand with all the women who founded, managed, owned & were nurses in our Catholic hospitals...the women who educated us from kindergarten through grad school at Catholic women's colleges & Catholic universities..."
I wholeheartedly agree with you.
But none of that counts for anything because women don't have the 'correct' anatomy.... The problem is those women taught us to think critically and smartly, and that, my friend, is a dangerous thing in a world of clerics who want desperately to hold onto power.
The sisters who did the work
The sisters who did the work would turn in their graves if they saw what these women did with their orders.
Dear Anonymous, Forgive me
Dear Anonymous,
Forgive me for asking, but why do you always say such things, Anonymous?
Have you watched their graves? Opened them?
What makes you suppose such a thing?
Upon what evidence?
Which sisters? Which women? What specifically have they done?
just wondering
your poorest servant (and one who cannot see underground as you do)
frere charles
That is baloney. The bishops
That is baloney. The bishops are standing for truth and fidelity to the church, and too many women religious are way out in left field in that regard. Power has nothing to do with it. The only power anyone can wield as a Christian is the power of love. Love and truth go hand in hand. One without the other is entirely disordered. Yes, there can be bishops and priests who are more focused on truth than on love, but too can there be sisters and nuns who are more focused on love to the exclusion of truth. That cannot be. I am certain that is one of the purposes of this visitation. We in the Church must hold each other accountable.
Rachel, You go girl!!!!
Rachel,
You go girl!!!!
Our dear Sisters need our
Our dear Sisters need our support. They have given the world a great image of the church at work. Thank God for sisters who not only wear their Jesus but are Jesus to many all over the world.
Vatican Boys leave the US Girls alone.
If it weren't for Sister
If it weren't for Sister Maria James RSM at Sacred Heart Parish School in New Haven, CT, I never would have achieved academic success. She recognized my inate intelligence and in one year repaired six years of educational damaged, granted caused in part by my mother moving me among three public schools a year.
I'm now a schismatic priest and maybe poor Maria James, RIP, would not be proud of me. But I certainly am proud of her, and several other Mercy sisters I have met, including Sister Janice in Vermont who was the driving force for reform of special education laws.
Fr. Daniel
I find this article very
I find this article very one-sided. Are all of the women religious congregations in the United States opposing this visitation? Did it never occurred to NCR to interview some sisters/congregations that are subject of this visitation and actually support it? Maybe none exists...but even so, I'd appreciate to hear what the other group(s) have to say about the visitation and the oath. Also, in previous articles produced by NCR about this topic, one of the things that the American nuns were complaining about is that they are not invited into the process and/or their imputes are not being taking into consideration. Now that they are being invited, they are still not happy... It seems that the only thing that will make some of the sisters happy is an end to this visitation...If that is the case, why don't they just request that visitation to stop? If the answer is "OK" then happy-go-lucky; if the answer is "no" then put up with it...or change your religion...But either way, stop the complaining...
Aside from that, the reaction of some of the American religious sisters/congregations is interesting: why are they surprise? They are, after all, Roman Catholics; and this is how Roman Catholics (hierarchy) do business.
In short: these nuns sound more like Americans than Roman Catholics.
Using a Google search you
Using a Google search you will find very many other sites that present other points-of-view of the apostolic visitation.
Dear friend, if these nuns
Dear friend, if these nuns were acting like American's as you contend wouldn'd they overthrow the evil that is taking their freedom of speech and freedon of thought away. Your coment reminds me of the old saying from the Vietnam days, America love it or leave it!
Maybenow it is going to be the church; love it or leave it (but please do so in silence).
DEar anonymous, You conclude
DEar anonymous,
You conclude your apparent tirade with these words:
"this is how Roman Catholics (hierarchy) do business."
As we have been so recently and brilliantly once more reminded by our dear Abbot Primate Weakland: collegiality is the way the Church does things, as repeated at Vatican Council II, in careful discernment and consensus of the Spirit of Love, not through the unjust and unCatholic totalitarian structure we see in action here, with its very selective targets. Oath of obedience of thought and of judgment is not of the Roman Catholic Church. It is totalitarian. It is Nazi. It is fascist. Certainly it is unAmerican as you say (although some of our most loudly American groups demand their own oath of loyalty and such) but that is not an exclusive statement. It is also and foremost not of Jesus Christ.
Love one another.
your poorest servant,
frere charles
Supreme Sacred Congregation
Supreme Sacred Congregation has mutated to just "plain Vanilla" Congregation, while "Universal Inquistion" has mutated to "Doctrine of the Faith"
1.Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition
On July 21, 1542, Pope Paul III, with the Constitution Licet ab initio, established the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition, staffed by cardinals and other officials whose task it was "to maintain and defend the integrity of the faith and to examine and proscribe errors and false doctrines". It served as the final court of appeal in trials of heresy and served as an important part of the Counter-Reformation.
2. Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office
In 1908, this body was renamed by Pope Saint Pius X as the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office .
3. Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
On December 7, 1965, at the end of the Second Vatican Council, its name was changed again to Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith .
4. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
In 1983, with the new code of Canon law, "Sacred" was dropped from the names of Vatican Congregations.
Ay, Cardinal Bellarmine (and
Ay, Cardinal Bellarmine (and quite a reputation you have there in your own right!)
Is there nothing "sacred" anymore!
just wondering
your poorest servant
(but, please, no Inquisitions! I'll slowly come around, with your most loving prayers!)
frere charles
Why are they worried? This
Why are they worried? This is the same oath taken before ordination and before accepting a pastorate, the episcopate, a diocese, or other office. It is pretty standard. It was not created "to harass the good sisters." You would think the many sisters who want to be priests and try to do the things the priests do would be all for this.
not true!!! this profession
not true!!! this profession of Faith and oath is not required at the taking of religious vows nor at ordination
Yes true!! It is required
Yes true!! It is required before ordination to diaconate.
Actually, before ordination
Actually, before ordination (starting with the diaconate), you have to write, in your own handwriting, a profession of faith and oath (among other things) after which they have to be notarized and copies are made. And as for religious vows, each congregation has its own order/rule/regulation: so before taking religious vows, a candidate also has to agree to these order/rule/regulations. And let's not forget: (public) religious vows are regulated by Canon Law...
when will all the Bishops
when will all the Bishops agree by oath that they did everything in their power to protect our children from sexual assault. The Bishops can not investigate themselves, so they are throwing blame on others. What a poor leadership Christ's Church has at this moment. Believe me my loyalty oath to the Episcopacy will be to not contribute any resources, money or talents, to this unethical group of old men.
I have some questions about
I have some questions about these "potential team members" who would be assisting in these 'on-site" visitations.
If a religious woman has been professed in vows for at least 20 years---she is involved in a ministry---the salary of which is used to support the religious community as a whole. Will she be paid for her service in this capacity? If so---who is paying her? If the Vatican is paying her----where are they getting the salaries from? If it is from donations from American laity---that is as LOW as it gets.
Or---are these team members supposed to do this as volunteer work? If they are expected volunteer their time---how can any religious afford to permit this? The salaries of each and every able-bodied religious woman (whether she works full time or part-time), is sorely needed. Religious communities need to support their infirm and aged members.
I am not even going into the Oaths. When men are being ordained as diocesan priests---they are asked to take an oath of obedience to the Bishop ordaining them and to his successors. As Frere Charles aptly noted, "What Oath did Jesus require his followers?" But these women would be expected to take an oath---and of course, they can't be ordained, can they? And Jesus said nothing about that either. The official Church had its hands so much on deleating and adding things to Sacred Scripture in the past---that the Evangelists, themselves, would be surprised at what they supposidly wrote or did not write in the Gospels.
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