The People Speak Out

Local voices connecting globally

This is important: to get to know people, listen, expand the circle of ideas. The world is crisscrossed by roads that come closer together and move apart, but the important thing is that they lead towards the Good.  (Pope Francis)

Canon Law 212 calls upon the laity to speak up:

2 - The Christian faithful are free to make known to the pastors of the Church their needs, especially spiritual ones, and their desires.

§3. - According to the knowledge, competence, and prestige which they possess, they have the right and even at times the duty to manifest to the sacred pastors their opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church and to make their opinion known to the rest of the Christian faithful, without prejudice to the integrity of faith and morals, with reverence toward their pastors, and attentive to common advantage and the dignity of persons.

It is now widely recognized throughout the Catholic Church, especially in western countries, that there is a severe contraction in availability of and access to the celebration of the Eucharist, “the Source and Summit of the Christian life” (Lumen Gentium, 11). You may know of particular circumstances where the Eucharist is not regularly available, and where particular solutions are evident if the bishops would take advantage of Francis’s willingness to act. Perhaps your solution is optional celibacy for priests, ordaining women, supporting Basic Christian Communities, addressing an unjust caste system, or any number of other situations. We welcome your suggestions here. Our intent is to have this discussion reach Pope Francis and the Bishops who will be attending the Synod.

Hmmm. Finally, voices that reflect my voice.

The foundational problem/reality is not a shortage of priests. It is the growing reality that people are starving… not being “fed” with Eucharist because we believe that only one gender can “serve up the meal.”

We have lost our center – that Eucharist must (that’s must) be accessible to all – no excuses that “he” can’t make it happen. If we are centered in a sacramental church we would automatically ensure that faith-full, community-bound, prepared individuals (Male and Female God created them) are recognized and commissioned to call the community of believers together.,

Why is it that we proclaim from the housetops of homes and government buildings that we are all responsible and must participate in feeding the hungry yet we allow the faithful to “
go hungry” for Eucharist because “the one” isn’t here.

No, I don’t want “just anyone” sideling up to the altar and replaying priestly privilege. I want us to call forth from among us those who will call us together to do, practice and be Eucharist.

It’s time to thank our priests and let them know that they have taught us well and that we can join them to ensure that no one – that’s no one – goes hungry.

There is no theological quote that I can conjure up other than Jesus telling the apostles (am sure there were women among them) to “feed them yourselves.” (and we are faith-fully waiting in the wings ready and more than willing to do just that!)

Yes, Virginia, it would be great to see the article!

Bishop Lobinger’s contribution in Africa is described at pages 421-422 of chapter 12 (“SCCs Promote Family and Marriage Ministry in Eastern Africa”) of Maryknoll Fr. Joe Healy’s book, “Building the Church as Family of God: Evaluation of Small Christian Communities in Eastern Africa,” .

You described the current focus in Asia as follows:

“In places where there is priest shortage the leaders of the community keep the faith community alive and active by providing catechesis, Eucharist service and breaking of the Word every Sunday. They conduct Baptisms, witness marriages, give communion to the sick and when the priest is available the Eucharist is consecrated, and hears confessions, the bishop comes for Confirmation. The important fact is that the community is kept alive in the practice of the faith in the community.”

The experience in Africa appears to be quite similar. And in contrast to Benedict XVI, Pope Francis is cultivating just such local experiences of church, and speaks to these foundations in “Joy of the Gospel” (e.g. see #29).

I have a question for you, though:

In the Asian experience, how significant is the priestly consecration of the Eucharist for the faith of the community?

The reason I ask is because in my own community, in the United States, we have developed a “community led liturgy” where bread and wine is blessed (without pretense to consecration) by the whole community and distributed saying “remember Jesus” as opposed to “this is the body and blood of Christ”. Although we have ordained ministers most Sundays (from a pool of ten or fifteen priests in the Washington, DC, area), when we don’t have a priest the community led liturgy serves just as well to keep the community alive in the practice of the faith.

It seems to me that what Francis is doing to encourage evangelization from and by (rather than to and for) the grass roots is quite radical, and if the bishops are slow in responding to it with concrete proposals, then the bishops may end up following the lead of the flock “who strike out on new paths” (see #31 of “Joy of the Gospel”).

Some of these questions we have been talking about within the Strategy Team, but our strong sense was that the Advisors would likely have a much better feel for what was happening, and what could happen, at different places around the globe. Francis presents an extraordinary opportunity to pursue change in the Church by acting locally.

What you are saying about Asia, Virginia, is a good example.

You are quite right about Cardinal Gracias (and the entire Magisterium, including Pope Francis) saying, “don’t talk about women priests”. But the grass roots (the “sensus fidei”) have a mixed and richer voice on this question. In the end, this inequality will be rooted out, but much work still needs to done to lay an effective foundation for change. Although the bishops are not going to make proposals at the present time for women priests, it is still feasible to consider what can be done to lay an effective foundation.

There were six bishops from Africa at the conference in Belgium in 2006. Bishop Fritz Lobinger has since retired.

Let me tell you that Card. Ozwald Gracias from Mumbai was also present with two other Asian Bishops. But Card. Ozwald took a conservative stance and kept telling me, “Virginia do not speak about women priests!”

The other two Asian bishops shared how they had community leaders who kept communities alive in their dioceses.
I personally think that a proposal for community priests would work the best. I hope there are bishops that would make this proposal. CP are people emerging from the community and best able to minister to the community with the help of a team from the community. They are all elected from the community.

I wrote an article on the Church for the Future on this. I can share it with this group of anyone is interested.

This is really very interesting, I would not be surprised if Pope Benedict did not get involved with any discussion about ‘community priests’ but as with anything, discussion with a Pope, whoever that is, may excite the hope that something is becoming more official, and on this Benedict would – I should think – be seriously upset – he is an autocrat. In Canon Law it is first stated that only a Catholic Priest can give communion to a Catholic, and, a Catholic can only receive communion from a Catholic priest. (Can. 844. SS1)
But as in many area’s of Canon Law, there are ‘buts’ which provide for a certain flexibility, out of kindness. SS’s 2,3,4, of Can. 844 explains; ‘Whenever necessity requires or a genuine spiritual advantage commends it, and the danger of error, or indifferentism is avoided, Christ’s faithful for whom it is physically or morally impossible to approach a catholic minister, may lawfully receive the sacraments of penance, the Eucharist and anointing of the sick from non-catholic ministers in whose Churches these sacraments are valid.’ These sub-sections are very important to remember, for they provide for for those, with an APPROPRIATE attitude, state of the heart IN MINISTER AND COMMUNICANT when need arises, such as a shortage, or no access to the Eucharist, including for whole – non-catholic communities, provided you have permission from a bishop, and CRUCIALLY, if a person is ‘properly disposed.’ i.e.
an appropriate attitude, RESPECT, and preparation is in place. I have no problem taking communion in the Anglican Church, because it is ALWAYS stated, that we are welcome, if, we are ‘communicants in our own church’ signifying we have been properly prepared! Which is what Canon Law states. For me, it is how my preparation is formed and the state of my own prayer and spiritual condition at the time. So, community priests seems to me to be a wonderful and critically, kindly way, to help in the crisis of a Eucharist shortage.

The problem as always – I would suspect, is making it look official. I always remember, Catholic Priests the world over are doing their ‘own thing’ and giving communion to non-Catholics, it just isn’t officially stated! Non inter-communion is terrible to me, it seems a nonsense to deny it is happening, and, it is healing and welcoming when practiced; I don’t feel we should box up and put a lid on the Holy Spirit, the Spirit overrides everything. I do confess, of course, this is all VERY simply said, knowing the Commentary on the Catechism, and the Catechism itself, have a great deal more to say but this, we can all read for ourselves. It seems to me at least, Virginia has hit on the work of the Spirit in its true sense here, and I just love it!

Whether Bishops will discuss it of course, is yet another problem.


JanStephen:

Great comment Ollie … and I firmly believe than when the Eucharist is made available in all the ways noted and yet to created … the law will be changed. Law follows justice … in a just church unjust law will be changed to reflect a more perfected Body of Christ. Long haul ahead … but the path is clear.
Jesus respected law, came not to overthrow it, but made calling out unjust law a big part of His Teaching. Law changes to reflect deeper truth in justice. Gender Equality, one the greatest measures of Justice applied.

In my view there is not yet a Eucharistic Famine in most parts of England, though there could be in some rural areas where parishes and their churches/chapels have been closed altogether. I think that the bishops of England & Wales know that there is soon going to be a problem, but they still exhibit the timidity/cowardice that has afflicted them since Humanae Vitae. I have been pressing advice on the bishops here since October, 1953. At 87 I am still at it, but I have to add that since 1964 I have been singularly unsuccessful. I have found that they will only act if they become severely embarrassed (just like our Prime Minister on the issue of refugees). I was very (but not totally) successful in getting the Catholic Education Service to publish the annual Catholic school censuses (which I established in 1955, but whose publication was suspended from 1992 to 2006), but despite five reports since 2004 on the unreliability of the Church’s pastoral and demographic statistics here I have had no success on that particular issue. On the issue of clergy numbers I have tried several times to get the 22 dioceses to cooperate with the PRC in the preparation of reliable statistics, so far without success. Most dioceses are so haphazard in their approach in this matter that an enquiry I made some five years ago into the age structure of their own clergy brought the astonishing admission from most of them that they did not know!
On much wider issues I am reading a short paper (on ‘structural sin’) at The Tablet’s 175th Anniversdary Conference in Durham, early in November. There will be several bishops there and I hope the paper will result in embarrassment for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, but I am not putting any money on it. They have got so used to doing nothing until the Roman Curia tells them what to do (or stop doing) that I think there have lost any ability to do anything themselves to resolve the many issues facing the Church in this country.
In my own view the steps I would press on the Latin Rite Catholic Church are, in order of priority:
(i) Offer priestly ordination to all permanent deacons,
(ii) Open the permanent diaconate to all women over the age of (?), subject to the training currently required for male permanent deacons,
(iii) Offer reinstatement to all laicised priests (whether married or not) on terms that are acceptable (rather than humiliating),
(iv) Ask Episcopal Conferences either to make their own proprosals or to explain why they are not interested in ordaining married men as Latin Rite secular priests in their own territories.
I would add that, although there is a massive e-mail discussion (daily/hourly into my in-box) on these and other issues among the laity in this country, I have failed to persuade my friends in ACTA to take the initiative themselves, by establishing a National Pastoral Council and inviting all the bishops to attend. The laity here have in the last five decades got so conditioned to waiting for the bishops to do something that they seem to have lost either the will or the ability to take the initiative themselves.