Catholics for Ministry meet in Melbourne

by Barry Morris

Inevitably the list of challenges facing the Australian Catholic Church – a church in crisis – would be long.

Almost 50 Catholic laity, priests and religious from around the nation, aware of the need for change, gathered in the Melbourne suburb of Malvern at the weekend. They were there to consider the challenges and to recommend practical steps to overcome them.

The catalyst for the meeting was a petition to the Australian bishops in 2007 calling for the ordination of married men and opening up discussion on the ordination of women. Petition organizers, Catholics for Ministry, were overwhelmed by the response. Almost 17,000 people signed including 15,000 parishioners after weekend Mass and 170 priests. The petition was largely ignored.

Catholics for Ministry, led by Paul Collins and Frank Purcell, decided on a follow-up meeting to plan the next steps. Collins and Purcell said they believed the church faced a kairos, a moment of both crisis and opportunity. Another image of the church was provided by the phoenix, a mythical bird which burns fiercely and arises anew from the ashes. Collins called for a practical agenda for action, tapping into the experience, knowledge and wisdom of those present.

The challenges loomed large.

The liturgy was moribund, the church too exclusive and addicted to power, there was a lack of credibility, the clergy faced an excessive workload, there was no effective decision-making or public accountability, a growing conservatism placed emphasis on external rituals and symbols. It was also felt that there was no structure to enable the people to be heard, ecclesiastical language was obtuse, parishes were seen as franchises, dioceses were too big placing stress on priests and bishops.

The church was perceived at large to be irrelevant and an unwieldy institution, the current model of priesthood was limited and unhealthy for priest and people and the Australian Church was dominated by Rome. The scandal of sexual abuse, the problems facing the parishes of South Brisbane and Redfern in Sydney were also discussed.

But it was not all negative. There was enormous sympathy for the work pressures placed on the diminishing number of priests struggling with their burden. After the Federal Government, the church was the biggest employer in the country with an infrastructure second to none. Its managers in education, health and other agencies were dedicated and efficient with thousands of these dedicated people quietly doing their jobs. It was time for the church to listen, particularly to the “unchurched” or exiled Catholics, those who felt excluded because of divorce or for their sexual orientation. There were opportunities to empower the laity and the Pope’s comments on “perestroika” in the church were welcomed.

The gathering brainstormed the subjects of leadership, grass-roots movements, communication and technology, youth and the church in exile and conservative groups and fundamentalism.

One suggestion was for a national church summit to draw up a new national pastoral plan.
Some suggested that this gathering be a festival of small groups that are springing up nationwide.

Another proposal was for a web page similar to that organised by Get Up to canvas views and put pressure on church leaders when necessary.

After vigorous debate, the meeting called for a summary of issues raised in discussion and to be given the chance to prioritize those issues. It was a significant day in the life of the Australian church, but as Collins summed up: “There’s still a lot of work to do.” Delegates were enthusiastic about the energy and goodwill of the meeting. Perhaps the phoenix is about to burn and rise again.

Report by delegate Barry Morris of Sydney.  Originally on Peter Maher.org

"What does it mean to receive Communion in the mouth? What does it mean to kneel before the Most holy Sacrament? What does it meman to kneel during the consecration at Mass? It means adoration, it means recognizing the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist; it means respect and an attitude of faith of a man who prostrates before God because he knows that everything comes from Him, and we feel speechless, dumbfounded before the wonder  of His goodness and His mercy. That is why it is not the same to receive  [Communion] in the hand, and receive Communion in any fashion, than doing it in a respectful way (sic); it is not the same to receive Communion kneeling or standing up, because all these signs indicate a profound meaning. What we have to grasp is that profound attitude of the man who prostrates himself before God, and that is what the Pope wants."

With a chap who does not know that the original and primal attitude of Christian prayer is standing, and that kneeling and prostrations were introduced into Christian worship from the Byzantine court, I thinkwe could expect to be in for a bad time worship-wise in Catholicism.

Here are a couple of recent pictures of him. They tell you a lot about him ...  

He is pictured above wearing a cappa magna (great cloak), a cover-all outfit of shot silk with a train that is often up to two metres long. The clerical gentlemen standing on either side are canons (senior priests) of the cathedral - presumably of Toledo. God alone knows who the person is hiding behind the chap on the right of the picture?

The next picture shows the good cardinal in procession. Here you get some idea of the length of the cappa magna. Notice the 'page boy' leading the procession carrying the Cardinal's galero, the broad-brimmed, tasseled hat. The clergy in all these pictures seem to be much given to clasping their hands:

And just in case you are still convinced that Cardinal Canizares Llovera is one of those trendy liberals, here he is saying Mass recently, but obviously not in an Australian parish church. Notice the maniples (the strips of cloth with an embroidered cross worn over the left arm above the wrist) that His Eminence and his two off-siders (deacon and sub-deacon) are wearing. Is that the Infant of Prague at the top of the altar above the tabernacle and cross?

And just in case you missed the point as to whether or not this is a Latin Mass according to the old rite, here they are again at the prayers at the foot of the altar, with not a woman in sight:

I guess none of this requires much commentary, except to say that this man now has the final say - yes, I know B16 has the final say, but this bloke will be very, very influential - not only on the style of worship throughout world Catholicism, but even on details of the English translation.

The thing that strikes you about all this is the detail of the costumes - and as one who remembers the old rite very well, I can assure you they have got it all right. But do you think these chaps are worried about all those rural and urban parishes in Australia and all over the developing world that don't even have Mass because we don't have priests? No, they're not; they're too busy with this kind of reactionary extravaganza.

Oh - just in case you thought this kind of stuff was confined to Europe, here is a chap you might just recognize. He once trained with the Mighty Richmond Tigers, the greatest ALF team of them all !

These pictures were taken in Cologne at World Youth Day 2005. I wonder if carrying all these costumes around attracts excess luggage charges on Qantas? I suspect the two rather emaciated chaps in front are 'ordinary' priests, the one nearest us looks diocesan and the chap in white is perhaps a Dominican (??).

APOSTOLIC NUNCIATURE

         AUSTRALIA

                                 QUESTIONNAIRE for EPISCOPAL CANDIDATES

A- This questionnaire is "sub secreto pontificio": it must be returned to the Apostolic Nunciature with your answer. B- Please state how long you have known the candidate and in what way you have come to know him.

 

 I- PERSONAL

Appearance, health, application to work. Family's condition. Any predisposition to hereditary illnesses?

2- HUMAN QUALITIES

Intellectual abilities Temperament and character. Balance and Soundness of judgment. Sense of responsibility.

3 - CHRISTIAN & PRIESTLY VIRTUES

Prudence, Fairness, spirit of faith and charity. Piety: daily celebration of the Eucharist and Liturgy of the Hours. Marian devotion.

4 - BEHAVIOUR

Moral integrity. How does he relate to people and to public authorities in the exercise of his priestly ministry?

5 - CULTURAL FORMATION

Is he competent and up to date in Theology and other Ecclesiastical Sciences? General cultural attainment. Foreign languages. Works published.

6 - ORTHODOXY

Doctrinal orientation. Loyalty to the Doctrine and Magisterium of the Church. In particular: the attitude of the candidate to the Documents of the Holy See on the Ministerial Priesthood, on the Priestly Ordination of Women, on marriage, on sexual Ethics and on Social Justice. Fidelity to the genuine Tradition of the Church and commitment to the authentic renewal promoted by Vatican 11, and adherence to the "Statement of Conclusions, 1998".

7 - DISCIPLINE

Devotedness to the Holy Father, the Holy See and the Episcopal Hierarchy. Support for Priestly Celibacy and general and particular Laws of the Church. In particular: as to Liturgical and Clerical Discipline.

8 - PASTORAL EXPERIENCE AND ATTITUDES

Evangelization and Catechesis: preaching and teaching. Aptitude for public speaking. Readiness to administer the Sacraments. Promotion of Vocations. Interest in the Missions and Ecumenical activities. Formation of lay people in the Family and Social fields of apostolate: of young people, of workers, defenders of human rights?

9 - QUALITIES OF LEADERSHIP

Does he have a capacity for leadership: for dialogue, for evoking and accepting collaboration, for analysis and programming, for making decisions and ensuring that they are carried through? Does he appreciate the role and collaboration of religious and lay people ( men and women )? Is he able to delegate and share responsibility? Has he shown an interest in the problems of the Universal as well as the local Church?

 10 - ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY

Does he exercise due care of the Church's property? Ability in administration. Sense of justice. Readiness to enlist the help of those experienced in such affairs?

11 - PUBLIC IMAGE  Has he gained the respect of his fellow clergy? Of the people and of the public authorities?

12 - GENERAL OVERVIEW

Give a comprehensive judgment on the personality of the candidate and of his suitability for the episcopate. Indicate, if affirmative, whether he is particularly suited for appointment to a residential See, or as an Auxiliary Bishop. Or for work in an urban, rural, industrial or in other social context.

13 - CONSULTATION

Please suggest the names of persons (ecclesiastic, religious, or lay) who can provide pertinent and useful information about the candidate. Please give names and addresses.

                                             BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

I- a. Full name of the candidate.

b. Date and place of birth.

c. Names of parents.

d. Was he born in lawful wedlock?

2- a. Condition of his family: religious, moral, civil, economic; bodily and mental health.

3- a. In what Seminaries and other Institutes has he studied?

b. What were the results?

c. What academic grades did he achieve?

4- a. Is-he the-author of any publications? b. If possible, indicate titles and editions.

5- a. Does he speak, or in any way know, foreign languages?

6- a. Date and place of priestly ordination.

b. Diocese or Religious Institute for which he was ordained.

c. Diocese in which he was born.

d. Diocese to which he now belongs.

e. Diocese of actual residence.

f. If a Religious, indicate the province for which he was professed and the date of profession.

Here now is my commentary:

             Sub Secreto Pontificio- 'subject to pontifical secrecy'

Recently Catholics for Ministry received an unsolicited letter containing a copy of a document that the vast majority of ordinary, practicing Catholics would usually never see. Nevertheless it will have already had and will continue to have a real influence on their membership of the church and their faith lives. It is entitled 'Questionnaire for Episcopal Candidates', and it comes from the Papal Nuncio (or ambassador) in Red Hill, a rather up-market Canberra suburb. The questionnaire I received is the one which is currently in use to seek opinions from bishops, a small number of senior priests, and a very small number of carefully selected lay people seeking advice on potential candidates for ordination as bishops in Australia.

Under the heading it is marked in block letters 'SUB SECRETO PONTIFICIO' which means 'subject to pontifical secrecy'. This attempts to suggest that the recipient is bound to maintain an extremely high level of confidentiality about the contents of the document and their comments about the proposed candidate. According to one canonist it binds recipients to maintain the secrecy 'under pain of mortal sin'. However, in fact the threat is meaningless and no one takes a great deal of notice of it. The questionnaire itself says that it 'must be returned to the Apostolic Nunciature with your answer.' 

Nevertheless, these kinds of documents rarely see the light of day. As far as I know the only other example in the public domain comes from Spain where a questionnaire from the papal nuncio about prospective bishops was leaked in November 2002. It is available on the excellent and helpful Women Priests Web-Page at http://www.womenpriests.org/teaching/secretexam.asp .

To see where this questionnaire fits into the appointment process, it is important first of all to understand how bishops get chosen. Nowadays it is a closed, opaque process in which all power is held by the Vatican and very little by the local church. The Code of Canon Law outlines the general process in canon 377, paragraph 2: 'At least every three years the bishops of an ecclesiastical province ... are to compose in common counsel and in secret a list of presbyters ... who are suitable for the episcopacy and to send it to the Apostolic See'. 

In countries like Australia the process works like this: the papal nuncio canvasses the names of priests for possible appointment and seeks the views of the local bishops (e.g. the NSW bishops or the Victorian bishops), including especially the bishop of the diocese. Selected senior priests and a few very carefully chosen lay people are also asked, usually through the questionnaire published below. A terna, a list of three names, is compiled by the nuncio. Further checks are made, and then the list is sent to the Congregation of Bishops in Rome. Another investigation is made in the Vatican where they check whether any of the priests on the terna have been reported to any Roman congregation or office for things like 'unorthodoxy', or disagreement with the prevailing Roman line on any issue, or any critical comments about the pope or the Vatican. At the end of the process the list is sent to the pope for decision. He would normally choose the priest at the top of the list.

However, this process is very modern by church history standards. Right up until the nineteenth century bishops were usually nominated by the civil ruler, or were elected by the senior priests of the diocese. At most the pope and the Vatican got a say at the end of the process. In the first millennium of church history most bishops were elected by the people of the diocese with subsequent final approval by the Metropolitan (the senior regional archbishop) and/or the pope. But as liberal democracy spread in the nineteenth century and civil governments became less interested in the appointments of bishops, Rome gradually gained complete control of the whole process so that now there are only a couple of dioceses left (in Switzerland and Austria) in which the canons of the diocese get the right to nominate three names for bishop with Rome making a choice from the canon's list.

The questionnaire from the Canberra papal nuncio is part of the local process whereby names are sorted out. Very little notice is ever taken of the diocesan community or the majority of priests, and some times even out-of-favour bishops are completely by-passed or ignored.  One archbishop was told by a previous nuncio: 'I don't need to consult you; I know what you think'. A lot depends on the peculiar ecclesiastical bias of the nuncio as to what names get nominated. For instance, it was well known that Archbishop Franco Brambilla, Nuncio from 1986-98, was conservative, whereas the American Archbishop Ambrose De Paoli, nuncio from 2004-07, had far more sympathy with the pastoral orientation favored by the majority of the Australian bishops. De Paoli is known to have blocked the appointment of very reactionary priests to the episcopate in a large metropolitan diocese.

In many ways both the Spanish and Australian Questionnaires are similarly unimpressive documents. The Australian one, for instance, leave out the words 'God', 'Jesus', 'Christ', 'Holy Spirit', 'hope', 'ministry', 'belief', 'spirituality', 'prayer', let alone references to fundamental statements of belief like the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed, are all omitted. There is no reference whatsoever to the Bible and not a single reference, let alone a quotation, from any part of Scripture. The whole emphasis is on loyalty to the pope, the Vatican and the Holy See.

The questionnaire nowhere mentions the candidate's primary obligation to care for the diocese or to show loyalty and accountability to the priests and people of the diocese. In fact, it turns the Catholic tradition on its head. In the past the emphasis was on the bishop being primarily committed to the local church, but this is entirely omitted in the questionnaire. As a result the document is completely out of kilter with the ancient tradition of the church, in the sense that the ecclesiology of the first millennium talked about a bishop's relationship with his diocese in terms of marriage. That is why bishops could not be moved from diocese to diocese.

Looking at the questionnaire in detail: firstly it completely ignores the prospective candidate's right to privacy. For instance, in the section headed 'Personal' (1) the questionnaire asks about the candidate's family 'condition', and about any predisposition to hereditary illnesses. Any prospective employer in Australia asking for such information would be immediately challenged legally. And what does the word 'condition' refer to here: is it asking about their economic condition, or whether a brother is an alcoholic or a sister an epileptic? This is re-enforced in the section on p 2 where the questionnaire asks for 'biographical information'. It asks the respondent to describe the 'condition of his family: religious, moral, civil, economic; bodily and mental heath'. So the question has to be asked what right does the papal nuncio (a non-citizen in Australian who, as a foreigner, is here on sufferance) have to ask for such information which no Australian prospective employer would dare to ask for fear of litigation.

Another area of real concern is the section on 'Orthodoxy' (6). Here the questionnaire is slanted away from the creeds and the traditional theology of the church toward complete, myopic loyalty to the papacy and the Vatican without any theological feeling for a bishop's many other roles and functions in the church, let alone any sense of accountability toward the diocese to which he is to be appointed. Despite one mention of 'Vatican II', this account of the role of bishops is entirely rooted in the First Vatican Council (1870) and is focused completely on secondary theological issues to do with the priesthood, the ordination of women, marriage and contraception. Social justice is thrown in as a kind of optional extra. It uses terms like 'genuine tradition' and 'authentic renewal' which actually give the game away. This is the kind of rhetoric used by the Vatican to convey their idea of what Vatican II was all about. What they are trying to achieve is what they call 'a reform of the reform', but what they really mean is 'a winding back of the reform'.

The most extraordinary demand of all in the questionnaire is 'adherence to the "Statement of Conclusion, 1998"'. This rather odd document was imposed on the ambushed Australian bishops by a group of senior Vatican bureaucrats at the Synod for Oceania in October-November, 1998. Not a single one of these Vatican clerics who composed the Statement was even a natural English-speaker, let alone an Australian. Six of them were Italians, four were Latin Americans and one was German. Few of them had any pastoral experience anywhere in parishes. It is a safe bet that not a single one of them had ever visited Australia, but this did not inhibit them from informing the bishops that Australian Catholics were suffering from ‘a crisis of faith ... manifested by the rise in the number of people with no religion and the decline in church practice ... [which was due to] Australian tolerance and openness'. The bishops were told this ‘can lead to indifference, to the acceptance of any opinion or activity as long as it does not impact adversely on other people'. The document went on to assert that the Australian church was suffering from a series of crises about ‘Christology', ‘anthropology' and ‘ecclesiology', words that left most local Catholics gobsmacked. The source of these clichés about Australian Catholicism, although it was never admitted by the Vatican, was a tiny, totally unrepresentative group of local, theologically illiterate reactionaries, possibly tacitly and secretly supported by no more than a couple of Australian bishops.

The vast majority of the bishops were furious and frustrated when this totally twisted and distorted view of the church in Australia was simply forced on them at the end of the Synod. While no one pretends that Australian Catholicism is in particularly good shape, the view presented in this quite silly document is so wide of the mark as to be ludicrous. The Roman view simply does not reflect the overwhelming experience of local church leadership, let alone the vast majority of church membership. Despite the fact that they had a vast knowledge of Catholicism in this country, and were on the spot in Rome for an extended period, the Australian bishops were completely ignored. The view of a tiny group of theologically illiterate reactionaries and unaccountable, unresponsive bureaucrats prevailed.

The bishops were caught between loyalty to Rome and loyalty to the local church when they returned to a storm of protest in Australia; there was even a Four Corners programme on the issue. Most of them reacted by retreating into sullen silence. Even those who did speak out were put under pressure to shut-up by the Bishops' Conference which acted, as it so often does, as a kind of controlling ‘club' that makes sure that no one stands out or offers any form of individual leadership. It is astonishing that such a superficial and ignorant document is now made a normative prerequisite for the episcopate in Australia when the Bible, the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed are simply ignored.

The questions on discipline (7) are also quite defective. The whole focus is on the hierarchical church, canon law and 'liturgical and clerical discipline' as though nothing else mattered. Note also the reference to 'support for priestly celibacy'. No room for married priests here! Pastoral experience (8) is defined very narrowly with no sense of the breadth of the Catholic ministerial tradition. However, the discussion of leadership (9) is better, especially with the emphasis on 'dialogue', 'evoking and accepting collaboration', and delegation and sharing responsibility. It even has an emphasis on planning, something sadly missing in many Australian dioceses.

Essentially the key problem with the document is that the idea of a bishop's accountability to his diocese is completely omitted. There is a real sense in which this distorts the traditional relationship between the bishop and his diocese on the one hand and his duty to participate collegially in the government of the universal church through the college of bishops (presided over by the Bishop of Rome) on the other. The questionnaire actually reflects the ecclesiology of the First Vatican Council rather than the Second.

A final note: some weeks after Catholics for Ministry received a copy of the questionnaire we informed the present Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto, that we had a copy of the document and we detailed some of the criticisms that I have already outlined. Archbishop Lazzarotto replied pointing out that the questionnaire was 'one among a number of elements in the enquiry process and cannot be understood or appreciated in isolation. At an earlier stage of the process other aspects are thoroughly examined through a widespread consultation of priests, religious men and women and lay people. Obviously this includes in particular the situation of the Diocese and its particular needs.' The Archbishop goes on to day that he has been impressed 'by the very high quality of the contributions that I receive from those whom I consult.'

Catholics for Ministry appreciated the openness and courtesy of Archbishop Lazzarotto's reply, which contrasted with that of Archbishop Philip Wilson's terse reply to the 16,800 Catholics who signed the Petition last year. However, the problem remains that it is the Vatican and the Nuncio who hold all the trump cards and the process remains secretive and non-accountable. That is why we are trying to engage the Papal Nuncio and the Congregation for Bishops in Rome in a process that might lead to us all developing a better approach to the election of bishops in the Australian church. We realize that this will be a very difficult task, but we think that one way of engaging the Holy See might be to get Australian Catholics to develop an alternative to this document.

We have begun the process of trying to do this within Catholics for Ministry, but we are a tiny group and we feel the need for broader consultation. So we are approaching a number of representative Catholic bodies as well as the wider Catholic community. Specifically, what we are seeking are suggestions concerning (1) the process through which bishops ought to be appointed in Australia, and (2) what issues ought to be canvassed and emphasized in the selection process.  We are deliberately leaving this fairly open so that you will feel free to suggest whatever you think is important and relevant.

You can send your response to us at PO Box 4053, Manuka. ACT. 2603 or at pco77760@bigpond.net.au. We look forward to hearing from you.

Catholics for Ministry is not the only organization asking bishops to confront the shortage of priests. The US-based VOTF (Voice of the Faithful), a  lay organization which was set-up in the wake of the sexual abuse scandals, particularly in Boston, have written to Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, a Capuchin friar who is presently archbishop of Boston. O'Malley was appointed to replace Cardinal Bernard Law who was removed to Rome after his scandalous failure to deal with the abuse crisis which eventually overwhelemed the archdiocese. The letter is addressed to O'Malley as the chair of the US Bishops' Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations.

VOTF told O'Malley that the priest shortage in the US 'compromises the ability of the faith community to participate in the celebration of the Eucharist.' They asked him and his fellow bishops to 'use [their] pastoral and apostolic authority to call for a serious ecclesial review of mandatory celibacy for diocesan priests ... We have seen a 60% drop in vocations in the past forty years, adding considerably to the workload stress of an already overburdened and aging priesthood ... More is being written about priests' health and well-being, with increased reports of stress, depression, heart attacks and even suicide. We express our growing concern about how difficult it can be to work and live in a clerical culture that on some deep and profound levels seems to be unhealthy and dysfunctional.'

Concern was also expressed  about the link between mandatory celibacy and clericalism 'which enables church leadership to put the needs of the institution ahead of the needs of the faithful, including victims of clerical sexual abuse ... [and] ahead of the need for due process and justice for priests accused of such abuse.' The letter bluntly tells O'Malley that the solutions that the bishops put forward - importing priests from poor countries, substituting Communion services for Mass, lowering admission standards for seminaries and asking priests to look after multiple parishes  - 'fail to address the long-term systemic issues that are at the root of the problem.'

CfM wishes VOTF good luck and God's blessing in their attempt to get the US Bishops to address these issues in a pastoral way. But the omens are not good if the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference is anything to go by.

And just another item of interest to Vatican watchers ....

Benedict XVI has done very little since he was elected pope, and that is probably a good thing after his hyper-active predecessor. But one thing has become clear: he is determined to reverse at least some of the reforms of the liturgy of Vatican II. This was shown vividly in late- September when in a little-noticed move, he replaced all of the former consultants of the Office of Liturgical Celebrations in the Vatican. This is the outfit that runs papal liturgical services, but which also sets the model for Rome- conscious bishops.

The former head of the office, Archbishop Piero Marini, a man wedded to Vatican II liturgical reforms, was replaced in November last year  by Monsignor Guido Marini (no relation). We saw Marini the Second in action with B16 during World Youth Day in  July in Sydney. A sure sign that the good Monsignor doesn't approve of Vatican II liturgy is that he wears a lace surplice (a kind of cut-off alb that  resembles  a short maternity dress). Well, he's been joined by a lot more lace surplice types in the Office of Liturgical Celebrations, among them an Opus Dei priest and another clergyman from the Legionaries of Christ, as well as  by another  clercial chap who believes we should  be facing east during Mass and who wrote a book about the topic.

All of this liturgical claptrap, of course, is going to come to a head next year when the new "literal" translation of the Latin of the Mass is going to be imposed on the English-speaking world. We can all look forward to saying  'And with your spirit' when the priest greets us and 'Through my fault, through my fault, through my most grevious fault' when saying the 'I confess'.  Enough to get your blood boiling!

Below is a picture of Monsignor Guido Marini the Second

     Lay-Led Liturgies: Dealing with priestless parishes in Rockhampton

Recently Bishop Brian Heenan of the Diocese of Rockhampton, which extends over 415,000 sq kilometres in Central Queensland, reported on how the diocese is trying to cope with an acute shortage of priests. He has about twenty active but aging priests to service an area the size of Germany and Austria combined. Bishop Heenan says the diocese 'includes a strong coastal belt, with three larger cities and a vast rural area stretching to the Northern Territory border.  Besides the older established towns, there are at least a dozen communities which have a link into the booming mining industry.'

To try to deal with the situation Rockhampton Diocese has developed lay-led liturgies in many outback rural parishes. 'Some of our more remote towns', Bishop Heenan reported, 'would have a lay-led liturgy on three weekends out of four, others every second weekend, others on one Sunday per month.'  In many of these places Mass is only celebrated twice a year. But now lay-led liturgies are becoming more common even in parishes with priests, so that priests can visit more remote parishes, or have some time off for vacations or study leave.

Bishop Heenan says 'During holiday time for priests, our people have become very accepting of lay-led liturgies including the larger centres, as it is almost impossible to find suitable supply priests who have the health and stamina to drive the long distances.' He says that people are quite clear about the difference 'between a lay-led liturgy and the full celebration of the Mass.' However, some people preferred not to attend lay liturgies and await the occasional arrival of a priest.

It has been difficult to recruit leaders - 'Presiders' is probably the best word - because people are shy of standing up before their fellow worshippers. However, Rockhampton has made sure that they have been given adequate leadership training and has provided resources to assist them in preparing the liturgy and homily.

Bishop Heenan says that 'The common experience for our Diocese is to include Communion with the Liturgy of the Word. This is much appreciated by the participants and reminds all that while the Mass is not being fully celebrated, the gift of Communion is offered, much as it might be to the sick or others unable to celebrate the Mass.  It also, in my opinion, reinforces the various ‘presences’ of Christ – in the community gathered, in the Word and in Communion.

Catholics for Ministrywould simply ask: 'Why can't these presiders at least begin preparation for priestly ordination, so that eventually Mass can be celebrated in these communities?' Not for one moment would we criticize Bishop Heenan and Rockhampton Diocese. They are responding creatively to the immediate problems that they face. What we  would rather ask is who is responsible for creating this problem in the first place?  The answer is obvious: the church's leadership - Benedict XVI, the Vatican and the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference who ignored the call of 16,746 Mass-going Catholics (including 166 priests) who asked them to consider the ministerial crisis that the church faces and to do something about it. Archbishop Wilson, the President of the Bishops Conference told Catholics for Ministry that this was none of our business!

To be completely honest we have to admit that all we can do is simply hope and pray the method we chose will work. Experience seems to indicate that letter-writing influences attitudes in the Vatican, but that the pressure has to be maintained.

We are also considering sending a selection of the letters to the new papal nuncio, Archbishop Giuseppe Lazarotto, to give him some idea of the opinions of Australian Catholics.

I had a chance to observe the action very closely as I did 10 hours of live-to-air descriptions of three of the major events for SBS, one of our national radio networks here, as well as doing interviews for other commercial and public radio and TV stations. We covered the official arrival and welcome for Benedict XVI on the Thursday (a three hour broadcast), the Stations of the Cross around the city of Sydney (a three hour broadcast) and the papal Mass at Randwick Race course (a four hour broadcast).  I also covered the actual arrival of the pope for SBS TV as he flew in by Alitalia at the Richmond Air Force base on the northern edge of Sydney on the previous Sunday  

My feeling is that B16 did very well 'down under' and impressed the locals. People right across the spectrum from straight-out secularists to conservative Catholics really liked him. He had very positive media coverage. My assessment is that he won hearts, but perhaps not minds, because people saw a humble, prayerful man whose face conveys a human vulnerability which is particularly appealing.

My view is he is much better than his predecessor essentially because he doesn't think he's God, or the Messiah, or the King of the Catholic church or even the world - as did JPII, in my estimation - who seemed like a latter-day Innocent III without the great thirteenth century pope's sense of humour! In fact B16 utterly charmed us.  

Part of the explanation has been that he is such an attractive contrast to Cardinal George Pell, arcbishop of Sydney. Pell - and Bishop Anthony Fisher, OP cut little ice with the media  because of their domineering attitudes and rather ham-fisted responses to the sexual abuse crisis. A couple of cases blew up right before and during Papa Ratzi's visit and both Pell and Fisher handled them badly.

My sources tell me that B16 and Frederico Lombardi SJ, the papal media supremo, were determined to offer an apology as they had in the US and meet with some victims, but that Pell and Fisher dealt so mishandled the cases that blew up during the visit that the pope was left in a difficult position. However, he did go ahead with both the apology and the meeting with victims at a private Mass. Both were very well received by the mainstream media and most people, although some victims groups were justifiably critical.

We also got the usual Papa Ratzi reflections on 'secularization' and its evils, but Australians tend to take these kinds of comments with considerable skepticism. Actually, all of the evidence is that Aussies are a good bit more 'spiritual' than the Brits, French and Germans. Americans are seem more religious in a kind of 'churchy' sense, but there is probably a fair amount of superficiality in this. Here in Australia we live in a glorious landscape with much intact wilderness left, and even though we are very urban people, many do get out into the 'bush' (as we call the wider landscape) reasonably regularly. It palpitates with transcendence and lots of us are unconsciously influenced by that. But we are not very 'churchy' in the sense that we go to Mass regularly. We used to in past decades, but not now. About 13% of Catholics (we are 26.5% of the population) attend Mass regularly (i.e. more than once a month).  

The visit clearly recognized the indigenous people and the opening Mass celebrated by Pell included Aboriginal elements. In the spectacular stations of the cross, which were done around the city of Sydney, gave the role of Simon of Cyrene role to a local Aboriginal man and many of the wailing women were Aborigines. The stations were brilliantly done; they were operatic in their proportions and were desiged and staged by an Italo-Australian Melbourne priest, Father Franco Cavara, formerly a stage designer for Opera Australia.

However, in the main papal Mass there was only one indigenous element: the gospel book was brought in by people from Samoa. It was very impressive. I noticed that while this was happening papal Master of Ceremonies, Msgr. Guido Marini in his lace surplice, was looking even more unhappy than he usually appeared! He has a sepulcral look as though he were a dead body that had just been embalmed by Tobin Brothers (well known Australian funderal directors). Bring back the handsome Archbishop Piero Marini (no relation)!!!  

I was very happy that climate change and the message about the environment featured very prominently in the papal speeches. This is clearly important for B16 and while he stressed it the media here missed it, largely, I think, because they are not used to hearing the green message from the church. My wife and a group stood up for women's ordination even though the police tried to move them on. Another group organized 200 letters which were sent to B16 calling for the ordination of married men to solve the shortage of priests, the return to ministry of priests who left to marry, and for a recognition that women do 75% of all pastoral ministry in Australia as well as the question of the ordination of women. The group - Catholics for Ministry - is not optimistic that they will get a reply.  

Then there was the final Mass at Randwick Race Course - one of the two most prestigious horse racing tracks in Australia. This is a vast area - probably about about 15 hectares in area - and about 5 kilometres from Downtown Sydney, so it was conveneint and easy for the pilgrims to walk there. In the end there were 215,000 pilgrims at the race course and another 195,000 in a nearby park watching on large TV screens. All up just over 400,000 attended the Mass.

At Randwick the pilgrims stood for three or more hours, were reverent throughout and very quiet. In fact, the behaviour of the young people throughout the event was extraordinary. There were no arrests of anyone associated with World Youth Day throughout the week and only one reported fight when a protestor threw a condom at a pilgrim. It just shows that when you get rid of drugs and alcohol you get better behaviour.  

But the Mass itself was more a clerical-male-dominated concert than a spiritual experience. It was celebrated on a vast stage with hundreds of concelebrating cardinals (there were 26 cardinals in attendance), bishops (over 400) and clerics (over 4000) - all up about 4500 concelebrants. The young people hardly got a chance to participate or to get anywhere near the action. The only women who appeared anywhere in the vicinity of the altar were the women and girls who were confirmed by B16 after the sermon, and the soprano from Opera Australia who sang Mozart's Laudate Dominum after Communion. B16 used a lace alb whenever he celebrated Mass and Monsignor Guido Marini hovered around him looking very severe and distinctly uncomfortable. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Secretary of State, seemed omnipresent - a bit like God, really!

The whole liturgy was a parade of male clericalism and patriarchy with the laity firmly excluded. No wonder women are alienated from all this clerical nonsense. Australians are particularly wedded to the reforms of the Mass from Vatican II and have no patience whatsoever with nineteenth century liturgical revivals. And that is what this Mass felt like: it seemed like a revival of the liturgy of the emasculated court of Pius IX.  

All of this probably not only reflects B16 and his liturgical preferences, but also Cardinal George Pell.  One of the events that particularly annoyed me was the Mass for priests and religious in Saint Mary's Basilica. I noticed on the TV that there seemed to be endless "real nuns" in habits everywhere, whereas I knew that the vast majority of religious women in Australia - the ones who do all the work - wear lay dress. I could not see one anywhere. I was leter informed that there were tickets for orders still wearing habits - most of them recent arrivals and, I discovered, some of them ring-ins from overseas who are not even resident in Australia - but that only one ticket each was made available to the traditional, larger orders like the Sisters of Charity (who came in 1839), the Mercies, the Josephites, the Good Samaritans, the Presentations and others, all of whom have carried the heat of the day in this country for more than a century. It was outrageous.

However, all up - a successful week of World Youth Day (a bit of a contradiction in terms). Lots of young people had lots of fun, learned something about their faith and had a positive experience of Catholicism which will stay with them for a long time. Possibly a miniscule number were deeply touched in a life-shanging sense. But the vast majority will return to their normal lives.

But the real question is whether anything substantial and basic in Australian Catholicsm will change as a result of WYD? The answer to that is - 'No, not really'!     Paul Collins.

Saturday, June 07, 2008

Martini calls for Church reform

by Juan G. Bedoya
El País
5/25/2008


"The Church must have the courage to reform itself." This is the main theme of Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, one of the great contemporary church leaders. With praise for the Protestant reformer Martin Luther, the Cardinal asks the Catholic Church to consider the possibility of ordaining viri probati (married men, but of proven faith), and women. It also calls for an encyclical to end the prohibitions of Humanae Vitae, issued by Paul VI in 1968 with severe censorship in matters of sex.

Cardinal Martini has been rector of the Gregorian University of Rome, archbishop of the largest diocese in the world (Milan) and papabile (i.e. a candidate for the papacy). He is a Jesuit, has published many books, written for newspapers and debated with intellectuals. At the Synod of European Bishops in 1999, he called for the convocation of a new council to finalize the reforms put on the back burner by the Second Vatican Council, held in Rome between 1962 and 1965. Now he is back in the news because his book, Jerusalemer Nachtgespräche ("Night Talks in Jerusalem"), has been published in Germany (by the Herder publishing house) -- the spiritual testament of a great thinker. Georg Sporschill, also a Jesuit, is co-author.

Without beating around the bush, what Martini demands of the Vatican is the courage to reform and calls for concrete changes, for example, in the politics of sex -- an issue that always triggers anger and nerves in the popes since they are unmarried.

Celibacy, Martini argues, should be a vocation because "perhaps not everyone has the charism." He hopes, moreover, for authorization of the use of condoms. And he is not afraid to argue against the priesthood being denied to women because "to entrust ever more parishes to one pastor or import priests from abroad is not a solution." He reminds the Vatican that there were deaconesses in the New Testament.

Several European newspapers that have already echoed the publication Jerusalemer Nachtgespräche, stressing the Cardinal's exhortation not to depart from the Second Vatican Council and not to be afraid to "confront young people."

Precisely, about sex among young people, Martini asks them not to waste relationships and emotions, learning to save what is best for marriage. And he breaks the taboos of Paul VI, Pope John Paul II and the current pope, Joseph Ratzinger. He says: "Unfortunately, the encyclical Humanae Vitae has had negative consequences. Paul VI consciously avoided creating a problem for the conciliar fathers. He wanted to take responsibility for deciding about contraceptives. This solitude in the decision-making process has not been, over the long term, a positive premise for dealing with issues of sexuality and the family "

Cardinal calls for a "fresh look" at the issue, forty years after the council. Whoever heads the Church today can "indicate a way better than that proposed by Humanae Vitae," he says.

On homosexuality, the cardinal says with subtlety: "Among my acquaintances there are homosexual couples, very respected and social men and women. I have never been asked, nor would it have occurred to me, to condemn them."

Martini exhibits his whole personality in this book, a boundless intellectual curiosity, to the point of admitting that when he was bishop he asked God: "Why don't You offer us better ideas? Why do You not make us stronger in love and more courageous to face current problems? Why do we have so few priests?"

Today, retired and sick, he has just left Jerusalem, where he lived and devoted himself to studying sacred texts, to be treated by doctors in Italy, and he limits himself to "asking God" not to abandon him.

In addition to praising Luther, Cardinal Martini reveals doubts about faith, reminiscent of Teresa of Calcutta. He also speaks of the risks that a bishop has to incur, referring to his trip to a prison to talk with militants of the terrorist group Red Brigades. "I listened and prayed for them and even baptized two twin children of terrorist parents, born during a trial," he reports.

"I've had problems with God," he confesses at one time. It was because he could not understand "why He made His Son suffer on the cross." He added: "Even when I was bishop there were times when I could not look at a crucifix because I was tormented by doubt." Nor was he able to accept death. "Could God not have saved men after the Christ?" Later he understood. "Without death, we would not be delivered up to God. We would keep emergency exits open. But no. We must surrender hope itself to God and believe in Him."

Life is perceived differently from Jerusalem, especially the paraphernalia of Rome. Martini recounts: "There was a time when I dreamed of a church in poverty and humility, one that does not depend on the powers of this world. A church that gives space to people who think outside the box. A church that transmits courage and worth, especially to those who feel belittled or like sinners. A young Church. Today I no longer have those dreams. After 75 years I have decided to pray for the Church. "