Strife at St Mary's over "Buddha" statue

A member of St Mary's South Brisbane Church who contacted The Courier-Mail yesterday said it was understood Archbishop John Bathersby was weighing up the future of the church, after complaints were forwarded to him from The Vatican.

"A very right-wing parishioner came and was offended by some of the artwork in the church, including some indigenous art, and an image of a praying monk which they mistook as a Buddha," the parishioner said....

Run by Father Peter Kennedy, the vibrant and strong church community of St Mary's - where women are allowed to preach and homosexual couples can have their relationships blessed - has long been a thorn in the conservative Catholic Church's side....

A "Right-wing parishioner" actually contacted the Vatican???? How intolerant and selfish! Why would a faithful (Right-wing) Catholic not embrace idolatry? What Catholic parish doesn't have a statue of Buddha in its sanctuary while the tabernacle has been torn out or moved to a closet? Look at all the trouble these "right-wing" Catholics cause in the Church - Shame, shame!

All kidding aside, this parish appears to be like so many others we hear about from time to time....Just how many diseased parishes are there?

NCR Claims Kleba is "Dedicated St Louis Priest"

Dedicated St. Louis priest like others you know

If you don’t know Fr. Gerry Kleba you probably know a priest like him....

I don't know him, but from what I understand, I have known some like him - and many of those that I knew who rebelled against Church teaching and promoted heterdox views (or worse) had the courage to repent/convert or leave the priesthood altogether. Others who remain and promote dissent need to be avoided like the plague.

Kleba is one of those inner-city parish priests we have stumbled across and admired....

No surprise here. NCR seems to "admire" all who rebel against lawful Church authority.

I called Kleba recently to find out how he was doing. I found him to be a man of considerable faith and conviction and by the time I hung up I felt I knew this priest or had known priests like him....On the phone, I asked him how he is holding up, having lost two mainstay ministers in the parish. He says he’s doing OK and the parish is going to learn from the experience.

What are they going to learn, one might ask? How to engage in protesting in front of the Archbishop's home? Embracing women priestettes? Promoting homosexuality as good and wholesome? Refusing to grow up?

The parishioners, he said, are “being challenged to deepen their faith.”

Their "faith" in what? Community protest vigils>

He said he hopes the parish will come through the turmoil “a much better parish....”

Some maintain that this hotbed of dissent should have been closed long ago...

An e-mail he sent out to friends following his visit with Burke was critical of the archbishop’s action in the Lears’ case. The e-mail eventually got circulated on the Internet.

But he’s not worried. “What have I got to lose?” he asked....

Such a statement reeks of arrogance and pride, at least to me.

He has no plans to retire. His work, he says, is going forward.

"His" work? Of course, most of us wonder why it's not the Lord's work that he would be promoting - you know the teachings of Christ and His Church? That, however, would require the virtue of humility.

Protesters Demonstrate at Archbishop's Residence

Protesters from St Cronan's and beyond took to the streets this afternoon marching from, as we are told, from the St Cronan parish to the Archbishop's residence near the Cathedral Basilica to express their angst about the treatment Sister Louise Lears received from the Church - treatment that they refuse to admit was self-inflicted by Lears herself. One woman carried a sign stating that "She (herself) was there,too" at the sacrilegious "ordination" ceremony of Elsie McGrath and Rose Hudson last November...Something which any normal, thinking Catholic would be ashamed to admit, but then, these protesters are not "normal, thinking Catholics" - they're rebellious dissenters as evidenced by their actions.

It's been stated that this is to be a 24 hour protest - maybe I'll head down there about midnight and see if anyone is left to "carry the torch," so to speak. One thing I noticed in the video was that it seemed that many of the people didn't want to be taped - they turned their heads or looked down or away. Some, however, were vocal as the video shows.

One can only wonder how much better off the Church and the world would be if people like this, with evidently too much time on their hands, would expend that energy in support of the Church rather than in opposition to her.

Pictures coming tomorrow. In the meantime, KTVI News has video of these people and their "protest" here.

*** Updated ***
Two women were on the scene when I drove by at 8:30. One was Megan Heeney, a younger woman who has assisted at the "liturgies" of Hudson and McGrath as well as with other dissident groups. Apparently she provokes discord and dissent by coordinating the rebellious and heretical activities of Catholic Action Network - a group which usurps the name "Catholic" while rebelling against the Church.

The other woman I did not know...Heeney left shortly and was replaced by some middle-aged man. The sky was somewhat overcast and for some reason my pictures all had some strange bluish tint to them...The same signs used in the "protest march" were on hand as you might tell from the pictures. I apologise that I don't have more but it looked to be a worthless trip - and I had better things to do than to watch a bunch of malcontents.

One can only surmise that the pastor of St Cronan's had to be aware of this farce and one wonders what, if anything, he did to stop it? The ties between St Cronan parish and Catholic Action Network are too strong to admit otherwise it seems, since an email from Heeney states the following:

The theme of the vigil will be that of bread and stones, based on the gospel (Lk 11:11; Mt 7:9) accounts where Jesus asks, "Who among you would give your children stones when they ask for bread?"

Join us for the march, the service, or come and pray in silence (and by candlelight during the night) for an hour at any time between 6 PM on Friday to 4 PM on Saturday.

The Vigil will come to an end with a PROCESSION on SATURDAY THE 26th from the Archbishop's residence to St. Cronan's for the celebration of Mass at 5:00 PM.

And not only is this rebellion occurring, CAN has initiated a campaign to place an ad in the St Louis Review, called the "We Are One Petition"...

These lost souls need our prayers.

Kleba Comments on Meeting with Archbishop Burke?

This was posted, I assume, some time ago, but I just came across it.
For your reading pleasure, presumably, from the Pastor of St Cronan parish. Continued here....

Rise Up! Walk on Water with Us!

Such are the ramblings brought on by the deadly sin of pride - so deadly, in fact, that it leads to eternal torment.

Bridget Mary Meehan (another priestette in attendance at the Jewish synagogue where the attempted "ordinations" of Rose Hudson and Elsie McGrath took place) blogs the following in response to the allegation reported by NCR that the Archdiocese of St Louis videotaped the event:
This is a sad day when the hierarchy sends "spies" to the ordinations of womenpriests.

This is behavior unbecoming of a follower of Christ, let alone the leadership of a diocese.

The behavior of these women who have rejected Christ and His Church is what's really unbecoming. But then, they are not followers of Christ - they follow the foul winds of another spirit.

Perhaps we should ask ourselves why the hierarchy is so threatened by womenpriests that they are willing to try to intimidate the Catholic Community in this manner.

I doubt the Church feels "threatened" by the actions of a few loud-mouthed remnants from the 60's & 70's revolution against lawful authority.

Rise up, People of God, and walk on water with us.

As I've said numerous times before - delusional - it's one of the few words I find to adequately describe such behavior.

Let us keep our eyes on Jesus and let the Holy Spirit guide us as we renew our beloved church in grassroots communities everywhere.

If only that were so. Instead of keeping their eyes on Jesus, their eyes are fixated upon themselves in some sort of narcissistic disorder, brought about by the delicious poison of the evil one, pride. They are led by evil spirits and have shunned the grace God bestows on them to aid in their repentance.

A new day of Gospel equality has dawned for our church that gives hope to thousands, perhaps even millions who read about us or watch us on television!

It seems that the woman has imbibed too much of Satan's elixir. She appears obsessed with delusions of grandeur.

We the people are the church and God's holy people have nothing to fear!
Bridget Mary

Not quite, sister, I'm sorry to say.
Pray that she realizes her errors before it's too late.

St. Cronan's pastoral team "decimated" after women's ordination

So says the headline of today's Post Dispatch article by Tim Townsend. Some say that St Cronan parish should have probably been closed long ago, except that others have speculated that keeping it open kept a number of dissenters together, in effect, containing a good deal of the poison of heterodoxy in one place.

When Seán Collins resigned from St. Cronan Church last week, it left the Catholic parish in St. Louis with just a third of its pastoral team. Sister Louise Lears had given the parish her resignation late last month just before St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke placed her under the canonical penalty of interdict, a lesser form of excommunication.

Two-thirds of the "Co-pastors" are gone...and many Catholics would ask if that's a bad thing?

The resignations of his pastoral deputies left the Rev. Gerry Kleba, St. Cronan's pastor, in a bind. The church — in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood — is engaged in 20 ministries, many of which reflect its social justice emphasis. "These were two dynamic and gifted people who were great blessings to the church, and one left under unjust pressure, the other of his own volition," said Kleba....

Gerry Kleba, a priest of the archdiocese, appears to have problems telling the truth about this matter. The 'pressure', as he calls it, was hardly unjust. Lears partcipated at the faux ordination of two delusional priestettes, presided over by an equally delusional woman who claims to be a Catholic bishop, Patricia Fresen. Lears continued to reject a definitive truth of the Church. She was also guilty of the obstinate rejection, after written admonition, of the truth of the faith that it is impossible for a woman to receive ordination to the Sacred Priesthood. (Source) It would have been unjust for her and the Church to let her continue in her errors.

It's a disgrace and a scandal that Fr Kleba persists in his disapproval of such actions by lawful authority, but then, this isn't unusual for him.

"This church has been purified by fire over the last eight months, and we're a much stronger, more understanding, compassionate group of people than we were before..."

"Purified by fire?" It;'s a "hotbed" of dissent, that's for sure.

St. Cronan has been known for years as an activist, engaged parish, full of socially progressive Catholics, some of whom are former priests and nuns, many of whom take issue with one or another aspect of Catholic doctrine or teaching.

"Progressive" Catholics - too often seen as heretics for their open rebellion against Church teaching. And Cronan's has former nuns and priests as well as others who seem to reject doctrines of the Church.

In an interview, Kleba said he believed the reason he was summoned to meet with Burke was to persuade him to oust Lears. "He wanted me to fire Louise, and I told him that since the case was not yet decided, she was innocent until proven guilty," he said.

Kleba must think he has a new lease on life since Archbishop Burke is no longer the archbishop...otherwise, he would not be so bold. Maybe the new archbishop will handle the matter?

In an interview earlier this week, Collins said he quit St. Cronan because he felt he'd seen such injustice in the treatment of Lears that he was no longer comfortable taking a paycheck from the archdiocese and needed to be able to speak publicly. He said the archbishop's treatment of Lears represented "a complete failure of pastoral care...."

It is not "pastoral" to let others persist in their grave sin. Collins' understanding of pastoral care was probably acquired under Kleba's tutelage, making it flawed and prone to error.

As the only member of St. Cronan's pastoral team left, Kleba chose to focus on the positive. "I'm really confident that there's going to be a new archbishop here who's more pastoral," he said. "I think St. Cronan is going to flourish."

We pray Kleba is wrong...This parish needs to be closed and those who follow the heterodoxy and errors passing as Catholicism need our prayers for their conversion.

More "Breaking News" from NCR on StL Priestettes and Louise Lears

I understand that few of us could survive a steady diet of the National "Catholic" Reporter, but this one (received via email) is quite interesting.

It's titled, "St. Louis Archdiocese videoed women’s ordination rite."

The archdiocese of St. Louis authorized the video recording of a Catholic women’s ordination ceremony that took place in a synagogue last November. It then used the video, along with photographs apparently taken from the video, as evidence to punish a Catholic nun who attended the liturgy, according to several people familiar with the case.

First, this was most assuredly not a "Catholic women’s ordination ceremony," it was a rebellious act of defiance against the Church - caused, no doubt, by arrogance and pride. Any faithful Catholic who might have been inclined to attend this sham ceremony certainly would have taken pictures or video, precisely for the purpose of providing the Archbishop substantiation of the facts of the activities. Should the archdiocese not be advised of such a schismatic action within its jurisdiction? In fact, there is no evidence in this article that any "authorization" was even granted by the archdiocese, nor does it appear that anyone actually needed an authorization to observe the self-indulgent episode.

As I recall, this event was an "invitation only" affair where one needed to "sign up" via email to be placed on a list in order to attend. Several people discussed undertaking that process solely to gather facts. I recall this conversation taking place at one of our local Catholic group meetings when someone passed around a mailed invitation/flyer to the 'event.' It was even advertised on the dissident "Catholic Action Network" web site.

...several people familiar with the documents, prepared by the archdiocese that made up the case against her, strongly criticized what they called the “surveillance” video-taping.

What a fallacious statement - and so much whining! How could anyone complain about “surveillance” when the local media was invited to cover the gathering of dissidents with their cameras and crews? Of course, the guilty parties appear reluctant to accept responsibility for their actions - it's easier to shift the blame to others.

One of the confidential archdiocesan documents, according to knowledgeable sources, was an affidavit giving permission to an individual to attend the ceremony in order to record it. The record of the ceremony is contained on two electronic discs in Lears’ file.

Some might wonder who these "knowledgeable sources" are? And how exactly does an affidavit grant permission?

“It was a surveillance video. That’s exactly what it was,” said Sean Collins, a co-pastoral associate of Lears at St. Cronan Parish until he resigned July 2nd, in part, he said, to speak about what he says has been a grave injustice taken against Lears.

So, if one takes pictures and video and subsequently gives them to Church officials, it's "surveillance," but if one takes video and pictures to be plastered on the evening news or on media web sites, it's not? Is that the proper way to understand ex "co-pastor" Sean Collins?

“What disturbs me even more is that the video taping was premeditated,” he said, referring to the affidavit authorizing it by the archdiocese. Collins did not see the document firsthand, but referred to others who had seen it.

Typical response. He hasn't seen the document "firsthand" yet he has no qualms about commenting on it based on what others may have seen or understood. My guess is that he hasn't seen it "secondhand" either.

And, of course, would not any taking of video or pictures, by design, have to be "premeditated"? Does one not plan to take pictures of video if one takes a camera to some event? Does anyone have an idea of how many others in the "assembly," excluding the media, had cameras and video recorders? I would think that there may have been dozens - it was ,m after all, a "special extravaganza"...and their taking of pictures or videos was also "premeditated," it seem to me.

....There is no evidence that Burke knew about or ordered the taping.

It's nice of NCR to acknowledge that.

However, Catholics familiar with the workings of the archdiocese say it would be unlikely it could have happened without his authorization....

When the possibility of attending that circus was discussed at the luncheon meeting mentioned earlier, there was no talk of "clearing it" with the archdiocese first. Such a suggestion is a stretch, at best.

Archbishop Burke wrote (in part) in the St Louis Review prior to the sham 'ordination' that

Given the most sacred nature of the sacraments which will be simulated, the women involved and any Catholic who knowingly and deliberately assists them risks the eternal salvation of their souls. They commit mortal sin....[my emphasis]

Note what NCR writes:

“Any Catholic who knowingly and deliberately assists… risks the eternal salvation of their souls.”

Conveniently excised from the quotes is the pronoun "them" as in "assists...." rather than "assists them"...But why quibble over details, eh?

NCR thinks that this fact of risking one's eternal salvation (NCR refers to it as a "threat")

is the apparent reason an archdiocesan affidavit was required to permit someone to attend and video the liturgy.

Apparently someone is unclear what an affidavit is. It is not a permission slip to attend some event...it is formal sworn statement of fact, signed by the declarant and witnessed by a taker of oaths, such as a notary public or other individual.

Evidently, it appears that there is far too much speculation and hearsay in this article.

Even Bozek was there. We posted a picture of him with his rainbow stole this past January. The picture was obtained from the KSDK TV website...Operating another surveillance operation, I'm sure. Who else might be in those videos/pictures?

Another Resignation from St Cronan's

As reported by the National Catholic Reporter:

Beleaguered St. Louis parish hit again

"Beleaguered?" For what, rebelling against the teachings of the Church with respect to homosexuality and women priests, to name a couple?

Beleaguered St. Cronan parish in St. Louis, Mo., from which Sister of Charity Louise Lears was banished last month as a pastoral associate for her support of women’s ordination, has been hit again by the resignation of its pastoral associate, Sean Collins.

Collins announced his decision to end his parish work in a letter dated July 2nd to the St. Cronan parish council.

“I believe in the days ahead my calling is to continue our common work of praying for peace and trying to make real in the city of St. Louis the Reign of God,” Collins wrote. “I have come to the conclusion that I will be hampered in that calling, personally, if I remain an employee of a parish in the archdiocese.”

I guess that's why we could not find bulletin updates...And, he was "employed" by the archdiocese? Is it not beyond strange that employees of the archdiocese are "paid" to promote dissent?

Until last week the St. Cronan leadership team included Father Gerry Kleba, the pastor, as well as Lears and Collins, the co-pastoral associates. Parish members say they referred to all three as “co-pastors.” [Emphasis added]

I'm sure they did..."Co-pastors"....Co-pastor Sean, Co-pastor Louise, and Co-pastor Gerry...This in direct opposition to the position of the Church. But when one rejects certain, specific doctinals teachings, it's not too difficult to ignore other disciplinary requirements.

Collins says his plans now are to join with a group of people -- some former Cronan parishioners and others -- to investigate what “being church” might mean in the months ahead. “What form that takes, I'm not sure,” he said. “But I am sure excited to find out.”

"...his plans now are to join with a group of people...some former Cronan parishioners and others." It's referred to as Episcopalian in some parts. Or something else which usurps the name "Catholic" as "Sts. Clare and Francis," the Episcopal 'Catholic' Communion, [which isn't], or St Stanislaus, or others. There's plenty from which to choose. Last I heard, St Cronan's former Religious Ed director(?) is, as I understand it, gearing up to be a priestette in the ECC....

A St Louis Archdiocese Employee? Really?

A previous post "Breaking News: Community supports ousted St. Louis nun", generated numerous comments here as well as on the National Catholic Reporter site. One of those (of the many clueless or vitriolic type) is this one:

I tried posting earlier, but
Submitted by A. Tomson (not verified) on Fri, 07/04/2008 - 05:23.

I tried posting earlier, but for whatever reason, my comments don't appear. I am an employee in the archdiocese of St. Louis, and therefore I must start by saying this is not my real name. Thank you Sr. Louise for being such an inspiration and example of what it means to follow Jesus. I no longer will allow myself to be bullied by the hierarchy. I have spoken in favor of women's ordination, married priesthood, gay rights, a couple's right to limit the number of children, my right to worship at St. Stanislaus....all at the risk of termination of my employment. I suppose my voice wasn't loud enough, because I still have my job. I realize that the ONLY thing Archbishop Burke...or whomever is the next Archbishop....can do is terminate my employment. I love the Church.....and WE ARE THE CHURCH. Jesus had his Pharisees and we have ours. Jesus had his Good Friday and we will have ours......BUT.....EASTER ALWAYS FOLLOWS.

May God continue to bless you, Sister.

Apparently the man (or woman, or something in between), while claiming to be an employee of the Archdiocese, doesn't have the integrity to leave the Church with which he/she disagrees so vehemently. He/she does, however, feel no remorse receiving a paycheck from the institution he/she loathes. It's a shame that more of these pseudo-Catholics are not discovered and terminated - who needs enemies among their midst when so many are outside her walls.. Chances are that there are a plenty of faithful, orthodox Catholics who are more than willing to take their places working for the Church which they truly love and reverence.

It's a pity, really, that such individuals have not the courage of their convictions to "take one for their team," so to speak. All talk and no action. But then, do we expect anything else from these frauds and imposters?

Thankfully, though, some have spoken the truth - you can read more of the trash and the rebuttals here.

Breaking News: Community supports ousted St. Louis nun

This "just in" from a National Catholic Reporter email alert - where have they been? It's been nearly a week since this started.

Community supports ousted St. Louis nun
By Tom Fox NCR Staff
Published: July 2, 2008


Louise Lears (Photo by Jim Tobin)

Sister of Charity Louise Lears, forced out of all church ministerial roles by Saint Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke, is described by friends and colleagues in near saintly terms....

It was her belief that all church ministries, including women’s ordination, should be open to women....

Her belief is erroneous and at odds with what the Church teaches. Despite whatever good she does, she may not publicly support this position as she has done and remain a Catholic in good standing.

Jerry King, a member of the parish and member of the Center for Theology and Social Analysis in Saint Louis, an organization he and Lears belong to, found irony in the Burke censure. “Louise was not spoiling for a fight; she really did not want a fight; she wanted resolution.” He said she just wanted to be a pastor – “and has been very good at it, very active in her commitments” to the parish, which he described as a “last stop” for people disaffected from the church.

In other words, it's a hotbed of dissent. And she just wanted to be a "pastor"....Touching...

King and others now worry the disaffected are now going to drop out altogether....

Disaffected? What this really means is those who loathe the teachings of the Church , especially with regard to women priestettes and homosexuality. Haven't they already dropped out? Do they believe all that the Church teaches? Hardly; it's more the cafeteria or buffet style at St Cronan's from what we understand.

You can read this old news from the 'Distorter' here.

More from St Cronan Parish

Minneapolis has its confused St Joan of Arc parish and St Louis has St Cronan's, where Sister Louise Lears, S.C., was recently relieved of her positions as a member of the "Pastoral Team" and Coordinator of Religious Education anywhere in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. One might reasonably assume that the self-appointed title of "co-pastor" no longers applies [actually it never did]...

See:

Statement Regarding the Canonical Discipline of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C.,

Decree of Extra-Judicial Adjudication In the Matter of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C.,

Questions and Answers Regarding the Matter of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C.

Now the website hosts a rainbow banner and notice about "St. Louis Pride Weekend" [Screen capture below]



The bulletin for this weekend states:

Happy Pride Weekend! The St. Louis Pride Parade steps off at noon Sunday on South Grand. Blessings on all the LGBTQ folk and families who have found a spiritual home at Saint Cronan — thank you for sharing your journey of faith with us all.

And some wonder why this continues at a Catholic parish?

Finally, Louis Lears writes a farewell note to the St Cronan community:

The Pastors’ Peace

My Dear Community
Many of you know that this is my last week as a member of the Pastoral Team. I will continue to be an active member of our parish and neighborhood family through the end of August...

In the past 2½ years, you have taught me how to pastor, how to lead and how to follow, how to accompany and how to vision. You have been patient and encouraging as I learned—with my amazing colleagues and brothers Seán and Gerry—to be a member of the Pastoral Team....

Dissent and obstinacy - do good works make up for these evils?


From the homily on "Catholic Profession" from the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, we read:

It would be of no use to say then: "Lord, I am a Catholic; the Church is my mother; I have professed the faith, I have received Sacraments, I have known and held the truth." Christ would say to us: "Not every one that saith, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doth the will of My Father who is in heaven....I never knew you; depart from Me, you that work iniquity."

Who is supporting the opposition of the natural moral law and of the teachings of Christ and His Church?

Now by open violence of persecution, now by insidious temptations of worldly advantages, now by attacking Catholic education, now by the spread of evil ideas, immoral ideas, revolutionary ideas by means of the press, by calumniating the Church, holding her sacred teachings up to ridicule as old-fashioned, childish and superstitious; attacking the sacred institutions of marriage and the family, advocating divorce and giving facilities by law for the violation of holy matrimony, the remarriage of divorced persons, [and sanctioning homosexuality] - one professes by one's membership of the Catholic Church, to be against all this.

The answer is clear!

St Cronan Parish Council Issues Statement Regarding Louise Lears

STATEMENT OF THE PARISH COUNCIL
OF SAINT CRONAN CHURCH
in the matter of the Canonical Discipline of
Sister Louise Lears, S.C.
27 June 2008
Sister Louise Lears was removed from the Pastoral Team of Saint Cronan Church by the action of Archbishop Raymond Leo Burke on Thursday 26 June 2008. No communication was received by the pastor or people of the parish, other than the publication of the "Decree of Extra-Judicial Adjudication" on the Archdiocesan web site late in the day 26 June 2008. The decree relieves Sr. Louise of her service to us and our children and seeks to remove her from our common worship, effective immediately.

The people of Saint Cronan Church wholeheartedly support the pastoral work of Sr. Louise Lears and have been edified by her depth of caring for the people of this parish, our children, the children of our neighbors, and the men and women who call the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood of St. Louis home. Sister Louise has been a model of compassion and of non-violent resolution of conflict. She has encouraged us to live more fully the Gospel of Jesus. It saddens us deeply that she has been singled-out for prosecution in a Church court and we raise serious questions of the wisdom of having one man serve as prosecutor, judge, jury - and now, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court - in any supposed system of Justice.

We are concerned that Archbishop Burke seems more comfortable seeking resolution of conflict through recourse to Church law and by wielding his considerable power and authority over officials in the Archdiocese and its formal legal structures, rather than following the simpler, less expensive, and more challenging course of action recommended by Jesus (Matthew 5:21-26) that we seek reconciliation face-to-face with those with whom we are in confliict.

The people of Saint Cronan Church repeatedly invited Archbishop Burke to engage in conversation with us. The Archbishop repeatedly declined our invitations. [Ed. Note: These must have been private invitations, as I never saw them on the website.]

The long tradition of the Roman Catholic Church has held the primacy of an individual's conscience in making ethical decisions. The people of Saint Cronan Church respect this tradition and we recognize Sr. Louise's integrity and courage.

Does this "courage" include attending and engaging in the sham ordinations of women priestettes here in St Louis? Or her being the "Co-Pastor" of the parish? Something's amiss in the consciences of some individuals.

Source: St Cronan Church

Also posted are these:

A Statement of Sister Louise Lears, SC, and,

A Statement of Sister Barbra Hagedorn, SC

Decree of Extra-Judicial Adjudication In the Matter of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C

Archbishop Raymond L. Burke issued the following statement regarding Sr. Louise Lears, S.C. on June 26, 2008:

After a canonical process of several months, Archbishop Raymond Burke has, today, decided the case of Sister Louise Lears, S.C., a member of the “pastoral team” at Saint Cronan Parish, who was accused of four delicts, all connected with her encouragement of, promotion of and participation in the attempted ordination of two women to the Sacred Priesthood at a local synagogue in November of last year. Delicts, which must be published in the Church, are grave and external violations against the Catholic faith or moral teaching. For the entire statement, decree of interdict, and a listing of general questions and answers, please click the links below:

Statement Regarding the Canonical Discipline of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C.

Decree of Extra-Judicial Adjudication In the Matter of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C.

Questions and Answers Regarding the Matter of Sr. Louise Lears, S.C.

Code Pink Protesters Try Witchcraft at Anti-Marine Rallies

Code Pink is now resorting to witchcraft to beef up the number of its supporters protesting a controversial Marine Corps Recruiting Center in Berkeley, Calif.

The women's anti-war group has told ralliers to come equipped with spells and pointy hats Friday for "witches, crones and sirens" day, the last of the group's weeklong homage to Mother's Day....

What disturbed individuals these are...

Want to know what my first thought was when I read this headline? Actually, it was my second thought.

In reading some of the recent St Cronan bulletins on its COPA program, I was shocked, but not surprised, to see a blurb for helping CodePink:

CODEPINK Rush Hour Bannering Every Wednesday at 4:00p on
the Soulard pedestrian overpass above the I-44/55 split.

When a group supports women priestettes, homosexuality, and heaven knows what else, can witchcraft be far behind?

CAN unveils its "Catholic, Open and Affirming" Curriculum

On its main web page, Catholic Action Network & "Holy Familes" states:

Our Holy Families working group unveiled it’s “Catholic, Open and Affirming” Curriculum, which will assist faith communities with discussing the issues surrounding sexual orientation.

The "Catholic, Open and Affirming" Curriculum can be facilitated in small faith-sharing groups. Contact CAN to discuss bringing "Catholic, Open and Affirming" to your community. The curriculum is a helpful way to have healthy dialogue surrounding the issues surrounding homosexuality and the church.

We are looking for people who would be interested in facilitating the "Catholic, Open and Affirming" Curriculum.

Since "Holy Families" was "born," so to speak, at St Cronans, some might wonder if the "COPA" program there is the same as or similar to that promoted by CAN?

From the 4/13 St Cronan bulletin we read:

This weekend we begin a four-week series of discussions concerning the kind and character of welcome we extend to LGBT Catholics in our midst. The Pastoral Team and the Parish Council have whole-heartedly embraced this model of discussion and theological reflection. It’s crucial that you make a commitment to participate in COPA. There are two sessions each week – you can attend either session based on your schedule. If you’re unable to attend either session on a particular week, you can catch-up online at www.stcronan.net; but we encourage you to make every effort to participate each week, because the program builds on the group’s work from the previous sessions.

We owe a special debt of thanks to the faithful men and women who have shepherded the COPA project and curriculum to this point. This parish is grateful for the hours and years of work that have gone into this program. Your love for the People of God is evident in your passion, your care, and your advocacy for truthtelling....

One wonders what sort of "truth" is being told and if it's in accord with the teachings of the Church?

Tidbits from St Cronan's Parish bulletins:

Fromn the March 30th issue, we read:

Parishioners’ Politics A small study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found huge differences in the types of political messages being emphasized from one parish to another, which may come as no surprise to anyone. But whichever subjects their priests address, said author Gregory Smith, people clearly are being influenced in their political thinking by what they hear from the pulpit and read in their parish bulletins. For instance, parishioners were more likely to have strict standards “for what it takes to be a ‘true Catholic” if they were in parishes where the priest regularly emphasized abortion and stem-cell research but rarely brought up messages such as poverty or the environment. In addition, there was a very close match between the information conveyed in the bulletins and the response from priests about what they said they emphasized.

It is not surprising to see a subtle attempt (by quoting others) to blur that which is always and everywhere evil - abortion and ESCR, with works of mercy and stewardship that we also need to do - caring for the poor and protecting God's creation from deliberate misuse and abuse. A 'true Catholic' would necessarily be able to make the distinctions where others, perhaps nominally Catholic cannot or will not, in a manner of looking at these things as "either/or" rather than "both/and"....

We also read in the Pastor's Peace by Sr. Louis Lears (or in this case, the 'co-pastor's peace') the following comments:

...only the women remained with Jesus at the foot of the cross....

St John wasn't there?

...everything had changed. Jesus had risen from the dead, appeared to his followers and breathed the Spirit on them. Note that this change, both in the individual disciples and in the faith community, didn’t start with guidelines from a catechism or dogmas pronounced by church leaders....

Are we to understand from this that a 'true Catholic' doesn't need dogmas pronounced by the hierarchy or to be reminded to read or study a catechism?

...What came first for the early followers and what still comes first for us, is our relationship with the Risen Christ, who returned to give us his abiding, guiding, and strengthening Spirit. That is the foundation of our faith.

Our relationship with Jesus, our Saviour, can be in accord with His will for us or it can be a relationship opposed to His will. He did, in fact, leave His chosen Apostles and His Church to teach us what He taught them - to faithfully hand on to us what He handed on to them...If one rejects that, his 'relationship' with the Lord is not in accord with right reason or a true, humble faith. One can, indeed, reject His graces and blessings - we witness that daily.

So where are we going with Sister Lears' commentary?

Like those first disciples, we need the peace that Jesus offers. We need the Spirit and her breath of new life if we are to do what Jesus sends us to do. [my emphasis]

We need the Spirit and HER breath of new life....Profound - no wonder she considers herself co-pastor...What insights into scripture...It's odd that our Lord did not speak of the Paraclete in this manner...but then, He did not ordain women as bishopresses or priestesses either...evidently an oversight on His part, yes?

Some might find it odd that this reflection comes two weeks after a Communal Letter of Support for our sister Louise was made available Palm Sunday weekend for review and signatures.

Perhaps this was a letter to be sent to Archbishop Burke to demonstrate how much support the good 'sister' has from the St Cronan parish family - as if that has any bearing on her open support for women priests...Sad.

A St Louis Catholic Parish Touts "'Faithful' Dissenters"

From a distance I received this "Pastor's Column" for February 24 as it appeared in a local St Louis parish. For your reading enjoyment, I present:

THE PASTORS' PEACE

Much of the material in this article is gathered from a book titled Faithful Dissenters. It is the work of Robert McClory, a journalism professor at Northwestern University, and was published by Orbis Books in 2000.

As our parish and some of the staff are in the midst of scrutiny by Archbishop Burke, there is a danger that we might feel alone and disconnected from the church. It is important for us to remember that there is a long list of faithful dissenters in the church. All of the following brief notes are gathered from the book mentioned above.

St. Thomas Aquinas who was condemned on numerous counts by the Archbishop of Paris. At the heart of the issue was the insight into Catholic theology that Thomas received through his study of the ancient pagan philosopher, Aristotle. In the dark ages Aristotle had been lost to Western learning, but was reintroduced by the erudite Muslims. Pagan thinking through the Muslim influence was more than the Catholic Archbishop of Paris was able to stomach. Thomas was removed from his diocese. St. Thomas is commonly known as the Angelic Doctor and his text commonly used in seminaries.

Galileo Galilei is probably the best-known dissenter in the church. In 1609, as a scientist with a telescope, he noted that the earth and other planets moved around the sun. The ten cardinal board of the Inquisition found him guilty of heresy. He read a lengthy abjuration on his knees. Four hundred years later in 1992 Pope John Paul II acknowledged the church erred: "Galileo had to suffer a great deal at the hands of men and organisms of the Church."

St. Catherine of Siena was a woman who only lived to the age of 33. But during that time she confronted the Pope, who as the Bishop of Rome was living in the lap of luxury in A vignon, France. In brief she told the Pope that he must return to Rome not with an armed guard but with the cross in his hand. He must pacify Italy not by bloodshed but by mercy and pardon. The Pope must begin reform immediately by appointing worthy leaders from all of Christendom. Pope Gregory vacillated, authorizing three theologians to interview Catherine to determine the orthodoxy of this prophet. They referred to her as "a wretched little female." Catherine was canonized in 1461 and was declared a doctor of the Church in 1970.

John Courtney Murray was a man of the twentieth century who was able to use the American religious experience to transform the church at Vatican II. The effort on behalf of religious freedom was a long struggle contributing to several serious heart attacks during the last twelve years of his life. Murray was silenced by the Holy Office but received a new lease on life with the election of Pope John XXIII. In September 1965 when Vatican II passed The Declaration of Religious Liberty, 2,308 bishops voted in favor and 70 opposed. At the time of his death, Pope Paul VI called Murray one, "who never stinted in his service to God, the Church, and the Society of Jesus. His humble yet precious theological contributions will be his monument and guide to others." (gjk)

A member of the Pastoral Team - Gerry, Louise, Sean - writes this column each week. We welcome your feedback.

One wonders if theose responsible for this bit of tripe feel as if they belong in the same class as St Thomas or St Catherine...I don't recall these saints ever holding heretical positions. And isn't Archbishop Burke supposed to "scrtinize" those professed Catholics who hold positions opposed to what the Church teaches?

This isn't posted yet at St Cronan's...wonder why...now back to my self-imposed Lenten penance.

Peter Phan has been rescheduled...

St Cronan's Parish Web Site proudly displays the new schedule of the Peter Phan lecture that was recently canceled at Aquinas Institute. Now it will be held at Forest Park Community College on Friday, the 8th of February at 7:00pm.

It's nice of St Cronan's to keep the Archdiocese up-to-date on events like this.

Pastor Called to the Chancery?

From the Arch City Chronicle rumor mill we read that Fr. Gerry Kleba, Pastor of St Cronan's Parish, was called to the Archbishop's office...

What could that be about, some might wonder?

St Cronan "Pastoral Team" Member Receives Summons from Archbishop Burke?

From the "womenpriests" forum, we read:

The following note comes from Sister Jeannine Gramick with a request for prayers. Please remember Sister Louise Lears SC in your prayers. These are some challenging times....

Dear friends,

A friend of mine, Sister Louise Lears SC, who is a pastoral minister at St. Cronan's parish in St. Louis, [Missouri, USA] is being confronted by Archbishop Burke.

On the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's, Louise was served (at home) with a "summons to appear and canonical admonition" at the Catholic Center of the Archdiocese. The letter was signed by Archbishop Burke. The hearing is set for January 15 at 10 am. She is to appear to "take cognizance of the accusation and proofs concerning your apparent commission of the delicts of 1) the rejection of a truth /de Fide/tenenda/ (canon 750) and 2) grave scandal (canon 1399)."

She does not know what the the issue is that has prompted this, but she imagines it is her support of women's ordination. The two women who were ordained to the Roman Catholic Priesthood in October were from St. Cronan's parish. Rabbi Susan Talve, the rabbi who offered her synagogue for the ordinations of the women, was invited to be the guest preacher at one of St. Cronan's Advent Vesper services. Archbishop Raymond Burke asked St. Cronan's to cancel the invitation to Rabbi Talve. Instead, the vesper service took place on the public sidewalk outside the church. Louise presided at the service. This may be what has stirred up the Archbishop, although his summons is mute on its motivation.

The President of Louise's community, Barbara Hagedorn, has been in touch with Dan Ward, the LCWR canon lawyer in Washington DC, who referred her to a local canon lawyer in St. Louis with whom she is meeting. She has spoken with the Parish Council at St. Cronan's and they are standing firm behind her.

Louise asks for prayers in this situation and ideas that anyone may have. Louise also wants transparency and has said this information can be shared as widely as possible.

Courage and peace as the hierarchy sinks further into secrecy and repression,

Jeannine

It's difficult to ascertain whether this is about the recent "Advent Vespers" fiasco or something else...Certainly, there will be more on this from the dissenting crowd at St Cronan's and elsewhere as time goes on...St Cronan's has been and remains a hotbed of dissent, as I understand it. Numerous past posts shed considerable light on this matter...

St Louis Catholic has more on this here...

Let us not forget to pray for the souls of those of the St Cronan parish - and pray for Archbishop Burke as well as he deals with this troublesome situation.