The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has formally requested that the Rev. Tony Flannery, a well-known Irish Redemptorist suspended in May 2012, sign a statement affirming his acceptance of church teaching, as formulated by the C.D.F., on homosexuality, civil unions between persons of the same sex, the admission of women to the priesthood Read more
Being prepared to consider ordaining women – and saying so – has seen a priest continue to be suspended from ministry while more senior clergy are not even smacked on the wrist. Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, recently admitted that he is “open” to the idea of ordaining women to the Catholic priesthood. “I am not Read more
Panel members at a conference organised by women’s ordination supporters have different views on conjectured future female deacons. The five-person panel met as part of the “Open to the Door to Dialogue” conference held in Rome earlier this month. Last month, Pope Francis said he would create a commission to study the history of female Read more
An appeal for reform of the process for theological investigations by the Church has met with a stony silence from the Vatican. In March, an international group of 15 bishops, nuns, priests and lay people wrote to Pope Francis and the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith calling for reform. Many Read more
Four Irish prelates are to meet a priests’ group to discuss calls for restoration to full ministry of priests disciplined by the Vatican. This is one of the topics likely to be on the agenda of a proposed meeting between the prelates and representatives of the Association of Catholic Priests. Other matters to be discussed Read more
A call has been made for Rome to allow priests silenced for expressing unorthodox views to return to full ministry as part of the Year of Mercy. The annual meeting of the Association of Catholic Priests in Ireland this week heard that six of their members had faced sanctions for their views. Among their number Read more
Twelve priests in Ireland have issued a statement calling for an open discussion on equality for women in the Church, including in ministry. “Discriminating against women encourages and reinforces abuse and violence against women in many cultures and societies,” they said. Some of the 12 have been prominent members of the reformist Association of Catholic Priests in Read more
Suspended Irish Redemptorist Fr Tony Flannery wants a synod of the Irish church, but says the Irish hierarchy hasn’t wanted to know. Writing on his blog after the synod on the family in Rome, Fr Flannery noted that Pope Francis sees the synodal process as the pattern for the whole church. Fr Flannery quipped that Read more
An Irish bishop has moved to prevent a suspended Redemptorist speaking at a parish event next month. Fr Tony Flannery was invited by the parish pastoral council in Killeagh in Cloyne diocese to give the opening address at Spiritfest 2015. But Fr Flannery’s invitation was cancelled at the order of Bishop William Crean of Cloyne. Read more
An Irish priest has challenged the belief that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a life-long virgin. Writing on his blog, suspended Redemptorist Fr Tony Flannery mentioned a Scripture passage that refers to Jesus’ brothers and sisters. “We are told that Jesus had four brothers, and an indefinite number of sisters,” Fr Flannery wrote. “This Read more