The archbishop of Wellington, Cardinal John Dew, was in Australia last week to present an address on Servant Leadership in the Spirit of Pope Francis. He spoke at Our Lady of Mercy College, Parramatta on Tuesday. On Wednesday he spoke on the same topic when he presented the Helder Camara Lecture at Newman College in Melbourne. Read more
Cardinal John Dew’s call to drop the “Father” title has received mixed results. As reported by CathNews, Dew first raised the issue of honorifics in an internal church newsletter. Describing the “Don’t call me Father” call as ‘simple’, Dew however hopes that not using the clerical title might go some way to changing the clerical Read more
“It seems the younger priests emerging from seminaries, here and elsewhere, are getting better (or worse!) at demanding full allegiance from the laity,” said an email I received this week. Last Saturday the Archbishop of Johannesburg, Buti Tlhagale, preached about his woes – and sufferings – as a diocesan bishop at the first profession of Read more
In his recent Newsletter, the Archbishop of Wellington drew attention to an article written by a priest from France, Jean-Pierre Roche, entitled “Stop calling me Father.” In his article, Roche says that priests may be able to make some small changes to overcome clericalism if they gave up expecting to be called “Father.” “In August last Read more
If the problem is clericalism, what is the solution? It is axiomatic that vices cannot simply be eliminated—they have to be replaced with something better, or else they will just come back, often in a form that is even worse. (Cf. Mt. 12:44-45) So it is a bit worrisome that when Pope Francis frequently mentions Read more
A senior Vatican cardinal believes Catholics face two choices as the Church experiences a “perfect demonic storm” due to sexual abuse. “We are at a moment of serious crisis, probably the greatest crisis our Church has faced in many centuries,” said Cardinal Edwin O’Brien, who visited New Zealand from September 13 to 16. Continue reading Read more
Once every five years the priests in New Zealand meet nationally for a professional development week. This time it was in Christchurch. And the experience was seismic. No priest or Bishop could have left that week unshaken. The two input speakers – each very different from the other – shook us to the core. Take Read more
The Vatican archives containing Archbishop Theodore McCarrick’s files are to be reviewed, says Pope Francis. A statement Francis has released from the Vatican says he has decided to combine the results of an investigation into McCarrick begun last year with a new, “thorough study” of all the documentation about him contained in the Vatican archives. Read more
I cannot help wondering if the current implosion of ecclesiastical credibility over clergy sex abuse has the potential to create a new moment of grace, one that breaks down outmoded governance models and creates new ones better suited for our times. We may already have a road map — thanks to liberation theologian Leonardo Boff. Read more
Almost from day one of his papacy, Pope Francis has made a trope out of railing against “clericalism,” once warning that it “nullifies the personality of Christians” and, on another occasion, praying for a Church completely “free” of clericalism. So familiar is his anti-clericalism rhetoric, by now there’s little energy devoted to pondering what exactly Read more