A radical group, Catholic Action, is angering some gay-friendly New Zealand MP’s and the NZ Catholic Bishops, the latter seemingly powerless to do anything about the extreme fringe group.
Banned by the bishops from using the word Catholic in their name, Catholic Action raised the ire of MP’s after sending an email telling them they were “on the road to hell for all eternity” if they voted in favour of the Marriage Amendment Bill.
The group also sent follow-up emails to MP’s, including the Green’s Kevin Hague, saying that homosexuality was “an abomination crying out to Heaven for vengeance”, and accusing Hague and Labour MP Ruth Dyson of having “an agenda promoting abominable perversity”.
Labelling homosexuality as a ‘mortal sin’ the group said homosexuality would see people “cast into hell to suffer eternal punishment”.
Group spokesperson, Arthur Skinner, said the New Zealand Bishops’ inactivity on the matter meant they have to take the issue on and do the bishops’ jobs for them.
Skinner accused the NZ Bishops of becoming mere politicians.
President of the NZ Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop John Dew, reiterated that Catholic Action does not have permission to use the name Catholic, but said he would not excommunicate Skinner.
“We have made it known to them and to others that they haven’t sought permission from the bishops to use the name Catholic, and we’ve told them not to use it,” Dew said, “but there isn’t actually anything else we can do. It would have to be something heretical for them to be excommunicated”.
MP Kevin Hague, however, noted that the Catholic bishops who had been vigorous in their opposition to the Marriage Amendment, will not move against Skinner.
“It’s interesting whether the Catholic bishops are effectively saying the same thing, but in a more genteel way,” he said.
Hague said it is incumbent on the bishops to identify the substantial differences between their position and that of Catholic Action.
Archbishop Dew said he had not seen Catholic Action’s submission.
“We try and say whatever is done should be done in charity, and so using language which is inflammatory is not charitable language, not a part of who we are as gospel people,” he said.
Archbishop Dew said he’d had no response to his letter to Skinner and Catholic Action denying them the right to use the name Catholic, and didn’t expect one.
He said it was the first time he’d been aware of a group using the church’s name without permission.
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