The fall from grace of Cardinal Theodore McCarrick will be, I predict, a watershed moment in the scandal of Clergy sexual abuse which has critically wounded the credibility of the Church and been the cause of so many abandoning the Faith.
Up until now, Bishops in America and elsewhere have been quite successful in deflecting the responsibility for the repeated victimization of young people, doing more to protect the institutional Church than to provide justice and solace to the abused, their families and their parishes.
But the disgrace visited upon the once-popular former Archbishop of Washington who was courted by both secular and ecclesiastical celebrities is a development of which every Bishop should take notice.
For decades since the story first broke, the People of God have shared stories of being ignored or rebuked by their Bishops who turned a blind-eye to their laments and allegations, choosing instead to protect diocesan coffers and maintain a strict code of secrecy.
For decades, reports in both Catholic and secular media have alleged that many Bishops willfully failed to report their knowledge of these crimes to law enforcement.
All the while, the Holy See remained the silent observer, never engaging the scandal and never taking any significant action against the Bishops.
But Cardinal McCarrick’s banishment from public ministry, coming as it has on the heels of the Chilean sexual abuse scandal signals that Church authorities may finally be on track to begin administering justice within the ranks of Bishops themselves.
And there are certainly questions that need answering from Cardinal Wuerl of Washington as well as the Bishops of the Dioceses Cardinal McCarrick previously governed, all of whom were aware of other charges of sexual misconduct against the Cardinal McCarrick, yet said nothing.
Certainly, public sentiment is on the side of secular authorities who have begun to move without hesitation in announcing public indictments of criminal behavior against Bishops.
The ball is in the Vatican’s court.
Thus far, the Holy See has been slow to take any canonical action against members of the hierarchy. But, it must realize that the days when Cardinal Bernard Law could be re-assigned from his disgraced leadership in Boston and assigned to a feathered-nest in Rome are over.
They best be, for the Church cannot survive the scandal of Bishops engaging in a conspiracy of silence.
The Bishops' complicity in this sordid story is, in my opinion, as rampant as that of the abuse itself.
The Holy See must hold Bishops accountable.
The moment is upon the Church.
Bishops need to understand that there is no longer be anyone else to blame nor anywhere they can run.
It’s about time!
Wednesday, July 18, 2018
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
READERS REACT TO MY ARTICLE ON SYNODALITY AS A MODEL OF CHURCH GOVERNANCE
I have received some feedback from readers regarding an earlier article which I posted concerning a document published by the International Theological Commission.
Entitled, Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church, the document not only explains, but more importantly, advances the concept of synodality, a manner of Church governance which has been particularly important in the discernment process and decisions of Pope Francis.
One reader suggests that the only pathway open to the future Church must be that of synodality. The governance of the Church in matters of Faith and Morals as well as the institution itself must be synodal. The reader suggests that this model of the Church, one in which the People of God are primary and the Clergy and Hierarchy exist to serve them is deeply rooted in Sacred Scripture and is the essential vision of the Church of which the Council Fathers of Vatican II wrote and spoke.
Another reader suggests that the movement of Pope Saint John Paul II and Pope Benedict away from the concept of collegiality and synodality has been largely to blame for the present crisis with the Church as regards the credibility and relevance of Bishops and Clergy.
In yet another comment, a reader suggests that Pope Francis is very much like the Greek mythological figure, Sisyphus, King of Ephyra who was punished by being forced to roll an immense boulder up a hill only for it to roll down when it nears the top, repeating this action for eternity. He writes, “A Roman Curia steeped in the corruption which only absolute authority creates will never allow Pope Francis to succeed in establishing his much hoped-for paradigm shift in Church governance.”
Another quotes a recently published book about Pope Francis. He states: “The irony here is that Pope Francis, a celebrity-monarch, is trying to abolish both his monarchy and celebrity in his attempt to establish a more participatory model of Church governance."
On the 50th Anniversary of the Synod of Bishops in 2015, Pope Francis declared that synodality is the model which the Lord expects of the Church in the Third Millenium.
As my readers suggest, it will be an uphill battle every step of the way and one must wonder if Pope Francis has both the energy and the time to carry on the fight.
Unfortunately, the future of the Church hangs in the balance.
Once again, we turn to the Holy Spirit for His guidance, support and protection in the Providential Blessings and Grace the Church needs to fulfill its mission of being the Living Presence of the Lord Jesus in our day and time.
Entitled, Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church, the document not only explains, but more importantly, advances the concept of synodality, a manner of Church governance which has been particularly important in the discernment process and decisions of Pope Francis.
One reader suggests that the only pathway open to the future Church must be that of synodality. The governance of the Church in matters of Faith and Morals as well as the institution itself must be synodal. The reader suggests that this model of the Church, one in which the People of God are primary and the Clergy and Hierarchy exist to serve them is deeply rooted in Sacred Scripture and is the essential vision of the Church of which the Council Fathers of Vatican II wrote and spoke.
Another reader suggests that the movement of Pope Saint John Paul II and Pope Benedict away from the concept of collegiality and synodality has been largely to blame for the present crisis with the Church as regards the credibility and relevance of Bishops and Clergy.
In yet another comment, a reader suggests that Pope Francis is very much like the Greek mythological figure, Sisyphus, King of Ephyra who was punished by being forced to roll an immense boulder up a hill only for it to roll down when it nears the top, repeating this action for eternity. He writes, “A Roman Curia steeped in the corruption which only absolute authority creates will never allow Pope Francis to succeed in establishing his much hoped-for paradigm shift in Church governance.”
Another quotes a recently published book about Pope Francis. He states: “The irony here is that Pope Francis, a celebrity-monarch, is trying to abolish both his monarchy and celebrity in his attempt to establish a more participatory model of Church governance."
On the 50th Anniversary of the Synod of Bishops in 2015, Pope Francis declared that synodality is the model which the Lord expects of the Church in the Third Millenium.
As my readers suggest, it will be an uphill battle every step of the way and one must wonder if Pope Francis has both the energy and the time to carry on the fight.
Unfortunately, the future of the Church hangs in the balance.
Once again, we turn to the Holy Spirit for His guidance, support and protection in the Providential Blessings and Grace the Church needs to fulfill its mission of being the Living Presence of the Lord Jesus in our day and time.
Monday, July 16, 2018
LIES, DAMNED LIES AND STATISTICS II
In an earlier article, I quoted statistics from a study conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate. I noted that the statistics themselves can be somewhat misleading. Studies such as this can and often are used by either liberal or ultra-conservatives within the Church to advance their particular agendas.
In this article, I bring attention to the findings published in the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, 2015, (Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae), edited by the Central Office of Church Statistics of the Vatican Secretariat of State and published last April 6, 2017.
It may be of interest to note that Pope Francis may have called a special Synod of Bishops to focus on the Amazon region not primarily because of the rainforest’s key role in the ecological health of the planet, but mostly because he read in these statistics that the pastoral needs there require special attention.
In fact, while globally there are 3,130 Catholics for every Catholic priest, in South America the average priest serves 7,203 Catholics, according to Vatican statistics.
The Amazon Rainforest covers more than 2.1 million square miles in South America and includes territory in Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Suriname, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, Guyana and French Guiana. The Catholics-to-priest ratios in Venezuela (9,829-to-1), Peru (8,427-to-1), Bolivia (8,038-to-1) and Brazil (7,976-to-1) are even higher than the continental average.
In the United States and Canada, for comparison, the Vatican estimates that there are 1,916 Catholics for every priest.
The Amazon synod will be held at the Vatican in October 2019; the preparatory document for the gathering was to be released by the Vatican June 8.
The Catholics-to-Priest ratio is just one table in the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, which is published annually by the Central Statistics Office, a department of the Vatican Secretariat of State.
With more than 500 pages of figures and charts, the yearbook tracks everything from Catholic population to the outcome of requests for the declaration of the nullity of a marriage.
The figures are the result of information requested annually from every diocese and Church jurisdiction. Collecting and compiling the figures takes more than a year.
The numbers are interesting, but what is more so is the apparent lack of correlation that appears between the statistics and their interpretation.
For example, the same Yearbook tracks the number of Baptisms and Catholic Marriages in the world.
In 2016, more than 16.2 million people were baptized and more than 2.4 million were married in a Catholic ceremony.
But in 1986, the Yearbook reported 17.8 million Baptisms and more than 4 million Catholic weddings, that is a drop of 1.6 million Baptisms and 1.6 million Catholic Marriages over the course of the past three decades.
Yet, the Holy See cautions that a “general downward trend in the relative number of baptisms” does not always indicate a declining practice of faith, but closely follows the trend of a lower birthrate in many countries.”
Or, in reality, do the numbers not indicate the fact that fewer and fewer of so-called Catholics are in fact practicing their Faith but have chosen rather to abandon the Church altogether?
Another most interesting statistic refers to the year ending Dec. 31, 2016 and concerns the world’s 1.29 billion Catholics who were served by 5,353 Bishops; 281,831 Diocesan Priests; 133,138 Religious Order Priests; 46,312 Permanent Deacons; 52,625 Religious Brothers; 659,445 Religious Sisters; 345,743 Lay Missionaries; and close to 3.1 million Catechists.
The Vatican concludes that “globally, the number of Bishops, Diocesan Priests and Permanent Deacons all were higher than a year earlier, while the number of Religious Order Priests and Brothers, Religious Sisters, Lay Missionaries and Catechists all declined.”
But, the Holy See fails to highlight that it was the number of Diocesan Priests in Africa and Asia that rose significantly, whereas the numbers were only slightly higher in Latin America and Oceania, while the numbers were significantly, even drastically lower in North American and Europe.
One finding in particular bothered me and that is, that in the past 30 years, the percentage of the world’s Bishops who lead dioceses in a country other than the country of their birth.
In 1986, 16.7 percent of the world’s 4,027 Bishops were “foreign to country of residence.” In 2016, 16.6 percent of the Bishops were ministering outside their native land.
Could the disconnect between the Bishop and those entrusted to his pastoral care not be more pronounced?
How can a Bishop be expected to provide the level of accompaniment Pope Francis is calling for when he is a complete stranger to the culture and environment of those he has been appointed to shepherd?
The Holy See calls these “Bishop” appointments. I call them “Manager” appointments.
And so it goes.
In this article, I bring attention to the findings published in the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, 2015, (Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae), edited by the Central Office of Church Statistics of the Vatican Secretariat of State and published last April 6, 2017.
It may be of interest to note that Pope Francis may have called a special Synod of Bishops to focus on the Amazon region not primarily because of the rainforest’s key role in the ecological health of the planet, but mostly because he read in these statistics that the pastoral needs there require special attention.
In fact, while globally there are 3,130 Catholics for every Catholic priest, in South America the average priest serves 7,203 Catholics, according to Vatican statistics.
The Amazon Rainforest covers more than 2.1 million square miles in South America and includes territory in Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Suriname, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, Guyana and French Guiana. The Catholics-to-priest ratios in Venezuela (9,829-to-1), Peru (8,427-to-1), Bolivia (8,038-to-1) and Brazil (7,976-to-1) are even higher than the continental average.
In the United States and Canada, for comparison, the Vatican estimates that there are 1,916 Catholics for every priest.
The Amazon synod will be held at the Vatican in October 2019; the preparatory document for the gathering was to be released by the Vatican June 8.
The Catholics-to-Priest ratio is just one table in the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, which is published annually by the Central Statistics Office, a department of the Vatican Secretariat of State.
With more than 500 pages of figures and charts, the yearbook tracks everything from Catholic population to the outcome of requests for the declaration of the nullity of a marriage.
The figures are the result of information requested annually from every diocese and Church jurisdiction. Collecting and compiling the figures takes more than a year.
The numbers are interesting, but what is more so is the apparent lack of correlation that appears between the statistics and their interpretation.
For example, the same Yearbook tracks the number of Baptisms and Catholic Marriages in the world.
In 2016, more than 16.2 million people were baptized and more than 2.4 million were married in a Catholic ceremony.
But in 1986, the Yearbook reported 17.8 million Baptisms and more than 4 million Catholic weddings, that is a drop of 1.6 million Baptisms and 1.6 million Catholic Marriages over the course of the past three decades.
Yet, the Holy See cautions that a “general downward trend in the relative number of baptisms” does not always indicate a declining practice of faith, but closely follows the trend of a lower birthrate in many countries.”
Or, in reality, do the numbers not indicate the fact that fewer and fewer of so-called Catholics are in fact practicing their Faith but have chosen rather to abandon the Church altogether?
Another most interesting statistic refers to the year ending Dec. 31, 2016 and concerns the world’s 1.29 billion Catholics who were served by 5,353 Bishops; 281,831 Diocesan Priests; 133,138 Religious Order Priests; 46,312 Permanent Deacons; 52,625 Religious Brothers; 659,445 Religious Sisters; 345,743 Lay Missionaries; and close to 3.1 million Catechists.
The Vatican concludes that “globally, the number of Bishops, Diocesan Priests and Permanent Deacons all were higher than a year earlier, while the number of Religious Order Priests and Brothers, Religious Sisters, Lay Missionaries and Catechists all declined.”
But, the Holy See fails to highlight that it was the number of Diocesan Priests in Africa and Asia that rose significantly, whereas the numbers were only slightly higher in Latin America and Oceania, while the numbers were significantly, even drastically lower in North American and Europe.
One finding in particular bothered me and that is, that in the past 30 years, the percentage of the world’s Bishops who lead dioceses in a country other than the country of their birth.
In 1986, 16.7 percent of the world’s 4,027 Bishops were “foreign to country of residence.” In 2016, 16.6 percent of the Bishops were ministering outside their native land.
Could the disconnect between the Bishop and those entrusted to his pastoral care not be more pronounced?
How can a Bishop be expected to provide the level of accompaniment Pope Francis is calling for when he is a complete stranger to the culture and environment of those he has been appointed to shepherd?
The Holy See calls these “Bishop” appointments. I call them “Manager” appointments.
And so it goes.
Saturday, July 14, 2018
WILL THE CONFUSION AND CONTRADICTIONS NEVER END?
Just reported is news that Pope Francis has responded to Cardinal Manuel Clemente, the Patriarch of Lisbon, who in February sent a note to Priests of the Archdiocese encouraging them to apply the teachings of Amoris Laetitia with diligence and compassion.
The Patriarch’s guidelines to his Priests are said to borrow heavily from the guidelines published by the Bishops’ Conference in Argentina.
Cardinal Clemente urged that couples in irregular unions should first try to live in continence if they wanted to receive the Sacraments. However, if that proves impossible they should move on to a discernment process that could lead to them rejoining the sacramental life of the Church.
Some five months later comes the response of Pope Francis thanking Cardinal Clemente for the guidelines he offered to his Priests.
“I recognised in it the effort of a Pastor and father who, aware of the duty to accompany his faithful, wished to begin with his Priests so that they can better fulfil their ministry”, the Pope wrote. The letter is dated June 26th, and was just released to the public.
The Pope goes on to encourage the Patriarch and all the Priests of Lisbon to continue with their commitment to help those in complex situations. “A commitment which, on one hand, requires considerable effort on the part of us Pastors, but which, on the other, regenerates us and sanctifies us, as everything is animated by the grace of the Holy Spirit which the Risen Lord bestowed on his apostles, for the remission of sins and the solicitous caring of all wounds.”
Bravo, Your Holiness!
Only, I have one question: do you ever speak to the Cardinals you appoint to the various Dicasteries of the Holy See?
On July 6th, I published an article on this blogsite entitled: Cardinal Farrell: Reflect Before You Speak.
Admittedly, I took Cardinal Farrell rather harshly to task for the ludicrous and hypocritical remarks demeaning the competence of Priests saying: “Catholic Priests lack credibility to prepare the faithful for the Sacrament of Marriage because they have never been married, according to the leader of the Vatican’s office for ministry to the family. Priests are not the best people to train others for marriage.”
I went on to offer a biography of the career of the Cardinal which contradicts the very charges of incompetence which he levels against his Priest-brothers.
So, which is it, Holy Father?
Do Priests have the competence and credibility to fulfill the mission of accompanying and counseling those entering into marriage as well as those entrusted to their care who are in complex marital situations, or do they not?
Cardinal Farrell’s ridiculous comments were met with silence by the Holy See. A reasonable person would conclude the Pope had no problem accepting Cardinal Farrell's comments.
Now comes a note praising Cardinal Clemente for encouraging Priests to carry out their role as Pastors of souls who experience moral dilemmas such as divorce, remarriage and a continuing desire to receive the Sacraments.
It is remarkable how the Pope can live in a world of contradictions so comfortably.
Some would say this is part of the philosophy of “existential dialectic” so prevalent among Jesuit scholastics these days, especially from South America.
Frankly, I find it all more complex and confusing than it needs to be.
But, then again, I have a plaque on the wall of my office here in my home which reads: “If you can’t convince ‘em, confuse ‘em.”
I am beginning to think the Pope has an exact duplicate and refers to it often in administering the Church and speaking on critical moral issues of the day.
The Patriarch’s guidelines to his Priests are said to borrow heavily from the guidelines published by the Bishops’ Conference in Argentina.
Cardinal Clemente urged that couples in irregular unions should first try to live in continence if they wanted to receive the Sacraments. However, if that proves impossible they should move on to a discernment process that could lead to them rejoining the sacramental life of the Church.
Some five months later comes the response of Pope Francis thanking Cardinal Clemente for the guidelines he offered to his Priests.
“I recognised in it the effort of a Pastor and father who, aware of the duty to accompany his faithful, wished to begin with his Priests so that they can better fulfil their ministry”, the Pope wrote. The letter is dated June 26th, and was just released to the public.
The Pope goes on to encourage the Patriarch and all the Priests of Lisbon to continue with their commitment to help those in complex situations. “A commitment which, on one hand, requires considerable effort on the part of us Pastors, but which, on the other, regenerates us and sanctifies us, as everything is animated by the grace of the Holy Spirit which the Risen Lord bestowed on his apostles, for the remission of sins and the solicitous caring of all wounds.”
Bravo, Your Holiness!
Only, I have one question: do you ever speak to the Cardinals you appoint to the various Dicasteries of the Holy See?
On July 6th, I published an article on this blogsite entitled: Cardinal Farrell: Reflect Before You Speak.
Admittedly, I took Cardinal Farrell rather harshly to task for the ludicrous and hypocritical remarks demeaning the competence of Priests saying: “Catholic Priests lack credibility to prepare the faithful for the Sacrament of Marriage because they have never been married, according to the leader of the Vatican’s office for ministry to the family. Priests are not the best people to train others for marriage.”
I went on to offer a biography of the career of the Cardinal which contradicts the very charges of incompetence which he levels against his Priest-brothers.
So, which is it, Holy Father?
Do Priests have the competence and credibility to fulfill the mission of accompanying and counseling those entering into marriage as well as those entrusted to their care who are in complex marital situations, or do they not?
Cardinal Farrell’s ridiculous comments were met with silence by the Holy See. A reasonable person would conclude the Pope had no problem accepting Cardinal Farrell's comments.
Now comes a note praising Cardinal Clemente for encouraging Priests to carry out their role as Pastors of souls who experience moral dilemmas such as divorce, remarriage and a continuing desire to receive the Sacraments.
It is remarkable how the Pope can live in a world of contradictions so comfortably.
Some would say this is part of the philosophy of “existential dialectic” so prevalent among Jesuit scholastics these days, especially from South America.
Frankly, I find it all more complex and confusing than it needs to be.
But, then again, I have a plaque on the wall of my office here in my home which reads: “If you can’t convince ‘em, confuse ‘em.”
I am beginning to think the Pope has an exact duplicate and refers to it often in administering the Church and speaking on critical moral issues of the day.
Friday, July 13, 2018
LIES, DAMNED LIES AND STATISTICS
Quoting the old adage, “there are lies, damned lies, and then there are statistics.”
The website of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, a Georgetown University based agency known as CARA, issued the following report, which on its face would indicate that condition of the Church is quite strong and healthy.
For example, CARA reports that the Catholic population in the United States has grown steadily since 1970, when it was 51 million. It now stands at 74.3 million.
Wow! We might be expected to believe that there are 23.3 million more Catholics today then there were almost 50 years ago.
I only have one question: where are they?
They do not attend Mass regularly, nor do they frequent the Sacraments. Their presence within society and the expression of their Catholic values in the voting booths is negligible.
And yet, should we find comfort in the numbers CARA reports.
The truth is the numbers are meaningless.
For once baptized, a person is regarded a member of the Church until he or she passes from this earth to eternal judgment. There is no system by which the Church can account for the millions of baptized Catholics who have abandoned the Faith or whose relationship to the Church is so tenuous as to be irrelevant.
But let’s continue with the CARA report.
The number of annulments of Marriages initiated has fallen from 60,691 in 1984 to 22,631 in 2016.
Does this mean that fewer and fewer Catholics are divorcing and that Marriages among Catholics are sound and stable?
Of course not. It means that fewer and fewer Catholics who have divorced are bothering to make an attempt at a second Marriage recognized by the Church by having their previous attempt at Sacramental Marriage annulled.
In reality, more and more divorced Catholics are simply entering into civil unions or establishing domicile with domestic partners without recourse to the Church’s marriage tribunal process.
But, why stop there, let’s continue reviewing the findings of CARA.
Here’s a statistic which I find of particular interest, since I have noted its implications repeatedly on this blogsite.
The value of services rendered by Catholic Charities has also expanded, from $361 million in 1974 to $3.124 billion in 2016, with the number of persons served by Catholic Charities rising to 8.371 million in 2016 from 2.452 million in 1979.
What should be noted is the fact that the vast majority of funding for these programs comes from the Federal Government. Little wonder, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is so supportive of the Democratic Party and its minions and so dismissive of the Republican Party.
Enough said.
And finally, perhaps, the most curious of the statistics contained in this latest CARA report.
And that has to do with the number of Priests in active ministry in the United States and elsewhere.
The number of priests in the United States has dropped from 59,192 in 1970 to 37,181 today.
That’s a loss of over 22,000 Priests over the course of the past half-century.
But what is profoundly misleading about the remaining number of Priests presently in service is the fact that no mention is made of their age, the overwhelming majority of whom are in their mid 60s and early 70s, that is, within range of their expected retirement from active ministry.
The fact is that there is a crisis in the number of Priests who are and will be available in the very near future to serve the needs of the Catholic faithful who still regularly practice the Faith, a crisis much more profound than the CARA report on its own indicates.
Of course, CARA itself makes no effort to spin these numbers positively or negatively. The Center merely reports its findings. The Center appears to be reputable and I have referred to their studies repeatedly over the course of my postings to this blog.
But then, there will be those with particular agendas, liberal or ultra-conservative (as I refer to them) who will spin these statistics to their own purposes.
Numbers alone can be deceiving. Statistics alone can be very misleading.
That why I caution those referring to them to make an honest effort to understand what the figures truly represent rather than skew them to their own advantage.
My thoughts, at least, on this Friday the 13th, 2018!
The website of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, a Georgetown University based agency known as CARA, issued the following report, which on its face would indicate that condition of the Church is quite strong and healthy.
For example, CARA reports that the Catholic population in the United States has grown steadily since 1970, when it was 51 million. It now stands at 74.3 million.
Wow! We might be expected to believe that there are 23.3 million more Catholics today then there were almost 50 years ago.
I only have one question: where are they?
They do not attend Mass regularly, nor do they frequent the Sacraments. Their presence within society and the expression of their Catholic values in the voting booths is negligible.
And yet, should we find comfort in the numbers CARA reports.
The truth is the numbers are meaningless.
For once baptized, a person is regarded a member of the Church until he or she passes from this earth to eternal judgment. There is no system by which the Church can account for the millions of baptized Catholics who have abandoned the Faith or whose relationship to the Church is so tenuous as to be irrelevant.
But let’s continue with the CARA report.
The number of annulments of Marriages initiated has fallen from 60,691 in 1984 to 22,631 in 2016.
Does this mean that fewer and fewer Catholics are divorcing and that Marriages among Catholics are sound and stable?
Of course not. It means that fewer and fewer Catholics who have divorced are bothering to make an attempt at a second Marriage recognized by the Church by having their previous attempt at Sacramental Marriage annulled.
In reality, more and more divorced Catholics are simply entering into civil unions or establishing domicile with domestic partners without recourse to the Church’s marriage tribunal process.
But, why stop there, let’s continue reviewing the findings of CARA.
Here’s a statistic which I find of particular interest, since I have noted its implications repeatedly on this blogsite.
The value of services rendered by Catholic Charities has also expanded, from $361 million in 1974 to $3.124 billion in 2016, with the number of persons served by Catholic Charities rising to 8.371 million in 2016 from 2.452 million in 1979.
What should be noted is the fact that the vast majority of funding for these programs comes from the Federal Government. Little wonder, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is so supportive of the Democratic Party and its minions and so dismissive of the Republican Party.
Enough said.
And finally, perhaps, the most curious of the statistics contained in this latest CARA report.
And that has to do with the number of Priests in active ministry in the United States and elsewhere.
The number of priests in the United States has dropped from 59,192 in 1970 to 37,181 today.
That’s a loss of over 22,000 Priests over the course of the past half-century.
But what is profoundly misleading about the remaining number of Priests presently in service is the fact that no mention is made of their age, the overwhelming majority of whom are in their mid 60s and early 70s, that is, within range of their expected retirement from active ministry.
The fact is that there is a crisis in the number of Priests who are and will be available in the very near future to serve the needs of the Catholic faithful who still regularly practice the Faith, a crisis much more profound than the CARA report on its own indicates.
Of course, CARA itself makes no effort to spin these numbers positively or negatively. The Center merely reports its findings. The Center appears to be reputable and I have referred to their studies repeatedly over the course of my postings to this blog.
But then, there will be those with particular agendas, liberal or ultra-conservative (as I refer to them) who will spin these statistics to their own purposes.
Numbers alone can be deceiving. Statistics alone can be very misleading.
That why I caution those referring to them to make an honest effort to understand what the figures truly represent rather than skew them to their own advantage.
My thoughts, at least, on this Friday the 13th, 2018!
Thursday, July 12, 2018
PRIDE COMETH BEFORE THE FALL
Fordham University’s Board of Trustees has voted to rescind a honorary degree...again!
University President, Reverend Joseph McShane, S.J., just rescinded alumnus Cardinal Theodore McCarrick’s honorary degree as well as “other honors".
The former Archbishop has been recently removed from public ministry following accusations of the sexual abuse of a minor which an Archdiocesan Review Board spearheaded by Cardinal Dolan found to be credible and substantiated.
Cardinal McCarrick, a graduate of Fordham College at Rose Hill’s class of 1954, served as the Archbishop of Washington from 2000 to 2006.
This is the third time Fordham has revoked an honor it bestowed on a celebrity misfit.
Last December, Fordham rescinded Charlie Rose’s eponymous award for excellence in broadcast journalism following accusations from eight women that he sexually assaulted them.
Similarly, in 2015, Fordham revoked Bill Cosby’s honorary degree from the University.
In adding Cardinal McCarrick’s case to this blacklist, all three decisions cite sexual assault or abuse as the reason for action.
It’s no secret that these honorary degrees and titles are given to high-profile celebrities to entice alumni and others to open their purses and contribute to the coffers of elite universities.
But lately, Fordham has shown a remarkable lack of judgment in selecting celebrities who have a horrific history of sexual misconduct and abuse.
In their vainglorious rush to attract headlines and dollars, the Administration of Fordham has paid a terrible price.
Receiving an honorary degree from Fordham is no honor.
As a friend recently put it -- his comment motivated this post: “I’d rather be a fire-hydrant at a kennel than being an honorary alumnus of Fordham University.”
O tempore, o mores!
University President, Reverend Joseph McShane, S.J., just rescinded alumnus Cardinal Theodore McCarrick’s honorary degree as well as “other honors".
The former Archbishop has been recently removed from public ministry following accusations of the sexual abuse of a minor which an Archdiocesan Review Board spearheaded by Cardinal Dolan found to be credible and substantiated.
Cardinal McCarrick, a graduate of Fordham College at Rose Hill’s class of 1954, served as the Archbishop of Washington from 2000 to 2006.
This is the third time Fordham has revoked an honor it bestowed on a celebrity misfit.
Last December, Fordham rescinded Charlie Rose’s eponymous award for excellence in broadcast journalism following accusations from eight women that he sexually assaulted them.
Similarly, in 2015, Fordham revoked Bill Cosby’s honorary degree from the University.
In adding Cardinal McCarrick’s case to this blacklist, all three decisions cite sexual assault or abuse as the reason for action.
It’s no secret that these honorary degrees and titles are given to high-profile celebrities to entice alumni and others to open their purses and contribute to the coffers of elite universities.
But lately, Fordham has shown a remarkable lack of judgment in selecting celebrities who have a horrific history of sexual misconduct and abuse.
In their vainglorious rush to attract headlines and dollars, the Administration of Fordham has paid a terrible price.
Receiving an honorary degree from Fordham is no honor.
As a friend recently put it -- his comment motivated this post: “I’d rather be a fire-hydrant at a kennel than being an honorary alumnus of Fordham University.”
O tempore, o mores!
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
THE POPE DOES IT AGAIN!
Well, he’s done it again!
There is no question that I sometimes become frustrated with Pope Francis, especially when it comes to his constant rebuke of American immigration policy and his overzealous concern with climate change.
Then, just when he gets me hot under my own Priestly collar, this wonderful Pope offers words of wisdom and solace which enlighten my spirit and make me grateful that the Holy Spirit chose him to be the Successor of Peter.
At his General Audience of June 27 (the text of which I just finished reading), Pope Francis stated that obedience to God’s Will should flow from a personal relationship with the Father and from a deeply-rooted sense of gratitude for all the blessings the Lord has poured forth upon us.
On this point, Pope Francis hits upon one of my favorite themes: being grateful for God's generous and unconditional Love and being submissive to His Divine Will.
“Gratitude is a characteristic trait of the heart visited by the Holy Spirit; to obey God we must first remember His benefits. Whoever does not let those benefits fall into oblivion, is oriented towards good virtue and to every work of justice,” Poe Francis said, quoting St. Basil.
Speaking at the final General Audience before his two-month summer break, the Holy Father asked Catholics to perform a small exercise, asking themselves, in the silence of their hearts, “How much has God done for me? How many beautiful things has God done for me?”
Christians must exercise their memories to remember “how generous is our Heavenly Father!” he continued, “rather than focusing in on obligations and rules."
Referencing the Book of Exodus, when the Israelites were brought first through the Red Sea before reaching Mount Sinai, where Moses received the Ten Commandments, the Pope said “Christian formation is not based on willpower, but on the acceptance of salvation, on letting oneself be loved: first the Red Sea, then Mount Sinai.”
“Putting the law before the relationship does not help the journey of faith,” Francis said, asking how Catholics can teach young people to desire to be a Christian and live a Christian life if the first reference is always to “obligations, commitments, consistency, and not… liberation?”
“Christian formation is not based on willpower, but on the acceptance of salvation, on letting oneself be loved,” he said.
The Pope pointed to the words of God when he gave Moses the first commandment - “I am the Lord your God.” These words denote the importance of relationship with God, he said, who is not a stranger, but “your God.”
This can enlighten a Catholic’s whole reading of the Ten Commandments, he explained, because it is in the same vein as Jesus’ words in the Book of John: “As the Father has loved me, I have loved you.”
Thank you, Pope Francis, for reminding me and all of us that God is so good to us, provides for all of our needs so generously and unconditionally and remains faithful to us in love in spite of our spiritual fickleness and frailty.
I needed those words, in fact I need them everyday.
God bless you, Pope Francis, for even when you are a source of consternation to me, you never fail to remind me that God is so generous and the wisest spiritually is based upon a humble and submissive acceptance of that all-redeeming Love.
There is no question that I sometimes become frustrated with Pope Francis, especially when it comes to his constant rebuke of American immigration policy and his overzealous concern with climate change.
Then, just when he gets me hot under my own Priestly collar, this wonderful Pope offers words of wisdom and solace which enlighten my spirit and make me grateful that the Holy Spirit chose him to be the Successor of Peter.
At his General Audience of June 27 (the text of which I just finished reading), Pope Francis stated that obedience to God’s Will should flow from a personal relationship with the Father and from a deeply-rooted sense of gratitude for all the blessings the Lord has poured forth upon us.
On this point, Pope Francis hits upon one of my favorite themes: being grateful for God's generous and unconditional Love and being submissive to His Divine Will.
“Gratitude is a characteristic trait of the heart visited by the Holy Spirit; to obey God we must first remember His benefits. Whoever does not let those benefits fall into oblivion, is oriented towards good virtue and to every work of justice,” Poe Francis said, quoting St. Basil.
Speaking at the final General Audience before his two-month summer break, the Holy Father asked Catholics to perform a small exercise, asking themselves, in the silence of their hearts, “How much has God done for me? How many beautiful things has God done for me?”
Christians must exercise their memories to remember “how generous is our Heavenly Father!” he continued, “rather than focusing in on obligations and rules."
Referencing the Book of Exodus, when the Israelites were brought first through the Red Sea before reaching Mount Sinai, where Moses received the Ten Commandments, the Pope said “Christian formation is not based on willpower, but on the acceptance of salvation, on letting oneself be loved: first the Red Sea, then Mount Sinai.”
“Putting the law before the relationship does not help the journey of faith,” Francis said, asking how Catholics can teach young people to desire to be a Christian and live a Christian life if the first reference is always to “obligations, commitments, consistency, and not… liberation?”
“Christian formation is not based on willpower, but on the acceptance of salvation, on letting oneself be loved,” he said.
The Pope pointed to the words of God when he gave Moses the first commandment - “I am the Lord your God.” These words denote the importance of relationship with God, he said, who is not a stranger, but “your God.”
This can enlighten a Catholic’s whole reading of the Ten Commandments, he explained, because it is in the same vein as Jesus’ words in the Book of John: “As the Father has loved me, I have loved you.”
Thank you, Pope Francis, for reminding me and all of us that God is so good to us, provides for all of our needs so generously and unconditionally and remains faithful to us in love in spite of our spiritual fickleness and frailty.
I needed those words, in fact I need them everyday.
God bless you, Pope Francis, for even when you are a source of consternation to me, you never fail to remind me that God is so generous and the wisest spiritually is based upon a humble and submissive acceptance of that all-redeeming Love.
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