Two Minneapolis priests resign from parishes

Two Minneapolis priests who have led parishes sympathetic to gay and lesbian rights have announced their resignations.

The Rev. George Wertin of St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, which has clashed with its archdiocese and some orthodox Catholics in the Twin Cities, announced his retirement Sunday effective July 1. And the Rev. Stephen O'Gara of the Church of St. Thomas the Apostle said last week he's leaving March 1.

St. Joan's has been discussed arounf the 'net' for quite some time...

While St. Joan's has doubled its parishioners and increased its social awareness during Wertin's tenure, the church has tangled with the archdiocese for years over its sympathetic views and actions on behalf of gay and lesbian Catholics.

In October, Wertin was ordered by the archdiocese to remove Gay Pride material from his parish's Web site after a complaint to church authorities.

The archdiocese also told St. Joan's to stop allowing the unordained to speak at mass. Topics have ranged from scripture to missionary work to homosexuality.

The 'Church authority", I believe was the Holy See...

A Catholic church in Minneapolis known for its progressive stands on social issues has been ordered by the Vatican and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to remove Gay Pride material from its Web site and stop allowing unordained guests to speak during mass.

The order was delivered by two bishops in person two weeks ago to the pastor of St. Joan of Arc and again in a statement issued Wednesday.

The Rev. George Wertin of St. Joan's said he intends to comply with the order.

But in keeping with his church's long-standing practice of community decisionmaking, he said several parish committees are considering precisely how to respond.

"It takes awhile to turn a ship around," he said. (Source)

Of course it does!