Many have followed the story of Fr. Paul Weinberger of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Dallas. While I do not know either Fr. Weinberger or Bishop Grahmann, from the information available, it seems clear that a great injustice has occurred. You may even come across purported statements by the diocesan ‘spokesman’, Deacon Bronson Havard, which were completely unfit to come from the mouth of an ordained man. From what I can gather and if these reports are true, both Bishop Grahmann and the ‘good’ deacon are two of the most miserable and detestable excuses for clergy I have read about, with the exception of practicing homosexual, pederast, and heretical clergy.
That having been said, it would seem to me that the best approach for Fr. Weinberger is to graciously accept the decision of his bishop with obedience and offer his sacrifices to the Lord. Those who are under no direct obligation of obedience to this seemingly misfit bishop can continue to write letters to the Holy See, to or for newspapers, or post articles on web sites. Fr. Weinberger can look to those heroic saints who proceeded him under similar circumstances. St. Pio comes to mind immediately in this regard. His superiors actually treated him more severely yet Padre Pio, humble and obedient, took up his cross knowing that his superiors were quite ‘confused’.
Good and great priests are a threat to many. They are a threat because they are loyal to Christ and His Church. They accept the teachings of the Church. They catechize the faithful. They practice prayer, fasting, and mortification. They celebrate the sacraments in a reverent and dignified way, in a manner worthy of offering true praise and glory to God. They enlighten the hearts of the people. They illuminate the darkness with truth. They lead people to Jesus. They work for the salvation of souls. They give their lives so that others might be saved.
These good priests are a threat to evil. Moreover, they are threat to their brother priests who refuse to confront evil or who may even engage in evil. We must pray diligently for our good priests so that God will grant them courage to keep going amid the onslaught of attacks against them. We must encourage our good priests, our spiritual fathers, by inviting them to our homes as part of our families – because they are part of our families. We must get down on our knees and ask God for His help with these trials that our good priests must endure. And we must thank God for blessing us with our good priests and ask Him to send us more.
We must not forget, however, to continue to pray for those priests and bishops who have already lost the faith or are in the process of losing it - because they refuse to exercise their faith. Many of these ordained men have an atrophied faith because they have no longer know how to stand up against evil. They lack a life of prayer. Their souls have become empty. They have lost touch with Jesus. For these, we should pray even harder. Perhaps, if it be God’s will, their faith might be rekindled. We should continue to confront them charitably with the truth when they err. We should continue to ask them to help us toward heaven. And pray, pray, pray!
Here are a few links, in no particular order, to information about Fr. Paul Weinberger.
Fr Wilson’s Comments
www.cruxnews.com
www.markshea.blogspot.com
Rod Dreher’s Comments
www.dallasnews.com/opinion/blog/
amywelborn.typepad.com
Dallas Morning News stories about Fr. Paul Weinberger
www.dallasnews.com/religion/stories/
Fr. Paul Weinberger’s Correspondence
www.blessedsacramentparish.net/news.html
Other related info concerning Bishop Grahmann
www.bishop-accountability.org/tx-dallas/
