August 9, 2011

 





Rev. Edward Dougherty, M.M.

Superior General of Maryknoll Brothers and Fathers

P.O. Box 305

Maryknoll, NY 10545-0305

 

Dear Fr. Dougherty and the members of the Maryknoll Council,

The Board and members of CORPUS reaffirm our support of Fr. Roy Bourgeois regarding women’s ordination.  How disappointing that Maryknoll has sent him the second canonical warning.  Over its history, Maryknoll has been known for its courage and prophetic voice in spreading and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus.  It seems clear that you and Maryknoll have lost your way.  You have sent men and women throughout the world as witnesses of the gospel.  Now you are unwilling to support the prophetic voice of one of your own brothers.

The papal claim to infallibility in saying that women are not fit to be ordained is tenuous at best.  For any doctrine to be infallible, it must be accepted by the “sensus fidelium.”  If you look at the stance of Catholics around the world, it is by no means universally accepted by the baptized.  In fact, more and more people are rejecting the papal assertion.  It is clearly the lesson of history that doctrines change and develop.  One obvious example is the now universal rejection of slavery, despite a whole scriptural history that accepted it as a norm in society.  This is true even in the Pauline epistles.  Slavery is now condemned despite a long held “tradition” of accepting it as a societal norm.

Our present pope, Benedict XVI, as a theologian to Vatican II, wrote clearly and forcefully about the primacy of conscience.  Fr. Roy, who has been a faithful servant of the Church and Maryknoll, is obliged by his conscience to continue speaking out about sexism and women’s ordination.  What a contradiction that Maryknoll and the Vatican condemn him for doing so.  CORPUS stands with Fr. Roy and urges Maryknoll to do likewise.

With prayers,

John and Roberta Hydar

Secretary

CORPUS (The National Association for an Inclusive Priesthood) is appalled by a recent Vatican announcement that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith would treat any “attempted ordination of a woman” as a serious crime against the church. In fact, such an ‘attempted’ ordination would be classified by the church hierarchy as the same category of offense as sexual abuse.

HELP On March 12, 2009, Ruth Kolpack was fired from her position as Pastoral Associate at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Beloit, Wisconsin. She had served the parish for the past 35 years.
 
The decision to fire Ruth, effective immediately, came after a ten minute meeting with Bishop Robert Morlino of the Catholic Diocese of Madison.
 
During this meeting, Ruth was asked to denounce her master's thesis, titled, "Inclusive Language for Naming God: A Challenge for the Church," in order to keep her job; she was given no opportunity to defend her work, nor explain why it would be dishonest for her to conform to the Bishop's request.

READ MORE ABOUT THIS INJUSTICE IN THE CORPUS FORUM.

 Priesthood serves the People of God by bringing healing and hope through sacramental celebration and pastoral care. It is God’s People who must discern their leaders and it is the bishops of the Church who are called to validate this in the normal course of events.
  

On July 31, 2006, eight Roman Catholic women were ordained as priests in Pittsburgh.  They were validly ordained by three consecrated female bishops.
 

With the release of the movie version of 'The Da Vinci Code' on May 19, it is reasonable to assume there will be general interest in the relationship that existed between Mary Magdalene and Jesus. While very little historical data exists that supports events depicted in Dan Brown's book, he does correctly draw upon recent scholarship that clears the bad reputation Mary Magdalene was stuck with for over one-thousand years.

CORPUS THANKS GAY PRIESTS FOR THEIR MINISTRIES
December 14, 2005
 
CORPUS, the National Association for an Inclusive Priesthood (www.corpus.org), wants to take this opportunity to say thank-you to the multitude of gay priests in the United States, and throughout the world, for their generous ministries they continue to share within their Roman Catholic faith communities.