Tares Among the Wheat: Part Two
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| Ustilago tritici - Loose Smut of Wheat |
Ustilago tritici is a plant pathogen infecting barley, rye and wheat.
Tares Among the Wheat Part Two: the challenge to emergent communities.
The Wrong Right
Beware any man who is bent on sowing discord in order to present himself or some remote ideology as the only means by which those in chaos may be rescued from that discord.
In this era of instant and hollow communication, too many power hungry individuals seek to control the narrative and, among too many other devious means by which they exploit vulnerable people, seed the internet (and conversation during fellowship after Mass?) with weeds that choke out truth, beauty and righteousness.
An Ordinariate priest was censured by his (our) bishop for remarks made during a homily that raised several highly charged issues in a forum meant for the elucidation of Holy Scripture.
Antacid
A few blogs - some not without merit as defenders of truth and goodness - have, unfortunately, flooded the internet with acid, an acid that should be reserved for and directed at the teachings of those clergy who should know and teach better. Those same blogs have, willingly or passively, allowed themselves to be used for a purpose that is not entirely consonant with a love for the whole truth.
The priest's bishop, a former member of the CDF, has a sharp mind; his writings and homilies are entirely orthodox. The reliability of his work speaks for itself. He is hardly one who can be accused of being a member of some cadre of Tradition-hating prelates.
Brethren in the Trad-o-sphere: why, then, hate ye a friend of Tradition?
As blogs disseminate emails and timelines that purport to capture the whole of the issue, the current Bishop of the Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter has for his part maintained a prudent silence.
The priest could have acknowledged the Ordinariate and Divine Worship as tangible signs of the kind of renewal for which the Council called. Instead, he used an approach akin to the indiscriminate firing of a rocket launcher to blast away at abuses in the Church to kill the good along with the bad, which kinda brings to mind Martin Luther's praxis. Said priest missed an opportunity to invite people to assist in the renewal called for by the Council: moral, liturgical, pastoral and theological.
Mob Mentality
And if the bishop does release to the broader public his analysis, will those lobbing grenades against him congratulate themselves for successfully squeezing a bishop into submission?
Strange, isn't it, when those who typically reject the lay usurpation of hierarchical authority tend to act like bishops and popes when they perceive an imagined threat to their agenda?
While it may be understandable that some or many Catholics are dismayed at the wayward antics of clergy, it is important that those critics not allow themselves to be blinded by wrath in the pursuit of truth.
The bishop's adversaries attack him for being, to their way of thinking, a liberal monster who is persecuting an ally of their cause. Those who are fueling division would do well to cool down and try to understand that the bishop has a story that he could tell, too. All would do well to be mindful that a man of the bishop's proven integrity likely has good and holy reasons for choosing to publish or not to publish his reasons for censuring a priest under his authority.
A Jury of Bloggers
To better respect the canonical process in which the priest and the bishop are engaged, which is to say, to respect those involved in the process, it is best that we bloggers leave the matter in the hands of the competent Roman authorities.
The bishop, you will recall, was once one of those competent Roman (Vatican) authorities prior to his ordination as Bishop Ordinary of the (very tradition-loving!) Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter. If he has determined serious cause for concern about a priest's actions, then we should be confident that a reliable (former) Vatican watchdog, if you will, is (still) doing his job to curb a threat to the flock in his charge.
Every conflict is an opportunity to pray for the well being of all those concerned. Let us hope and pray that the truth will be sustained in charity, and that healing may be effected for the sake of all souls.
Next Up (final installment) - Tares Among the Wheat Part 3: Sinister Inclinations
A few blogs - some not without merit as defenders of truth and goodness - have, unfortunately, flooded the internet with acid, an acid that should be reserved for and directed at the teachings of those clergy who should know and teach better. Those same blogs have, willingly or passively, allowed themselves to be used for a purpose that is not entirely consonant with a love for the whole truth.
The priest's bishop, a former member of the CDF, has a sharp mind; his writings and homilies are entirely orthodox. The reliability of his work speaks for itself. He is hardly one who can be accused of being a member of some cadre of Tradition-hating prelates.
Brethren in the Trad-o-sphere: why, then, hate ye a friend of Tradition?
As blogs disseminate emails and timelines that purport to capture the whole of the issue, the current Bishop of the Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter has for his part maintained a prudent silence.
The priest could have acknowledged the Ordinariate and Divine Worship as tangible signs of the kind of renewal for which the Council called. Instead, he used an approach akin to the indiscriminate firing of a rocket launcher to blast away at abuses in the Church to kill the good along with the bad, which kinda brings to mind Martin Luther's praxis. Said priest missed an opportunity to invite people to assist in the renewal called for by the Council: moral, liturgical, pastoral and theological.
Mob Mentality
And if the bishop does release to the broader public his analysis, will those lobbing grenades against him congratulate themselves for successfully squeezing a bishop into submission?
Strange, isn't it, when those who typically reject the lay usurpation of hierarchical authority tend to act like bishops and popes when they perceive an imagined threat to their agenda?
While it may be understandable that some or many Catholics are dismayed at the wayward antics of clergy, it is important that those critics not allow themselves to be blinded by wrath in the pursuit of truth.
The bishop's adversaries attack him for being, to their way of thinking, a liberal monster who is persecuting an ally of their cause. Those who are fueling division would do well to cool down and try to understand that the bishop has a story that he could tell, too. All would do well to be mindful that a man of the bishop's proven integrity likely has good and holy reasons for choosing to publish or not to publish his reasons for censuring a priest under his authority.
A Jury of Bloggers
To better respect the canonical process in which the priest and the bishop are engaged, which is to say, to respect those involved in the process, it is best that we bloggers leave the matter in the hands of the competent Roman authorities.
The bishop, you will recall, was once one of those competent Roman (Vatican) authorities prior to his ordination as Bishop Ordinary of the (very tradition-loving!) Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter. If he has determined serious cause for concern about a priest's actions, then we should be confident that a reliable (former) Vatican watchdog, if you will, is (still) doing his job to curb a threat to the flock in his charge.
Every conflict is an opportunity to pray for the well being of all those concerned. Let us hope and pray that the truth will be sustained in charity, and that healing may be effected for the sake of all souls.
Next Up (final installment) - Tares Among the Wheat Part 3: Sinister Inclinations
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