Belleville Diocesan priests ask Bp. Braxton to resign

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flameburns623 said:
See following link:

stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/religion/story/9CC3A49E7C1E6A328625740C005D6B70?OpenDocument

Don’t know all of the reasons for this and am reluctant to speculate. Anyone else have details not readily found in the popular media? Just wondering if Braxton’s apparent lack of popularity seems deserved by his behavior or if he is basically a faithful bishop who is getting roasted in the press because he won’t kowtow to their agenda?
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I live in this diocese. Braxton misappropriated funds meant for charities and bought his own vestments with it, among other things, holds secret meetings, tends to exclude the priest’s (name removed by moderator)uts on decisions where they should be listened too, did not renew the contract of a well thought of auditor, and seems to have a very big ego and is very aloof.

He seems to have lost the trust of much of the laity, as well as the clergy.

This is my take. I’m sure there are Braxton supporters out there.
 
This should make for an interesting Chrism Mass this week when they all renew their pledge of loyalty to him. :rolleyes:
 
I live here too…and while I don’t know all the details either, there is every indication that the “misappropriation” was a simple mistake or misunderstanding that the dissenters in the diocese have seized on as an excuse to attempt to get rid of an orthodox bishop. These dissenter priests are the last gasp of “liberal” 1970s feel good theology…and they’re chaffing under orthodox leadership.

A few years ago they were upset they weren’t “consulted” before the Holy Father appointed Bishop Braxton!

More facts…it’s the older priests who have demanded…not asked…His Excellency to resign. The orthodox priests in this diocese won’t have anything to do with this rubbish.

Liturgical abuse in the diocese is rampant…and if that’s any indication of orthodoxy, this place needs a firm hand. Bishop Braxton is a learned man of God, and he doesn’t deserve this. He certainly has my trust, it’s the rebels who have lost my trust.

If the priests who made this scandalous row public really had the best interests of the faithful at heart, they wouldn’t have sent the letter to the paper, nor would they have done it during Holy Week.

A parish priest actually tried to “explain” the whole mess (with his spin of course) during Holy Mass!!

The whole thing is shameful. My advice to His Excellency is to dismiss the whole lot like Reagan did the air traffic controllers in the 1980s. We’d all be better off without them.
 
Engineer1 said:
I live here too…and while I don’t know all the details either, there is every indication that the “misappropriation” was a simple mistake or misunderstanding that the dissenters in the diocese have seized on as an excuse to attempt to get rid of an orthodox bishop. These dissenter priests are the last gasp of “liberal” 1970s feel good theology…and they’re chaffing under orthodox leadership.

A few years ago they were upset they weren’t “consulted” before the Holy Father appointed Bishop Braxton!

More facts…it’s the older priests who have demanded…not asked…His Excellency to resign. The orthodox priests in this diocese won’t have anything to do with this rubbish.

Liturgical abuse in the diocese is rampant…and if that’s any indication of orthodoxy, this place needs a firm hand. Bishop Braxton is a learned man of God, and he doesn’t deserve this. He certainly has my trust, it’s the rebels who have lost my trust.

If the priests who made this scandalous row public really had the best interests of the faithful at heart, they wouldn’t have sent the letter to the paper, nor would they have done it during Holy Week.

A parish priest actually tried to “explain” the whole mess (with his spin of course) during Holy Mass!!

The whole thing is shameful. My advice to His Excellency is to dismiss the whole lot like Reagan did the air traffic controllers in the 1980s. We’d all be better off without them.
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If it was just a few priests complaining that would be one thing, but two thirds of them, plus a order of nuns? Boy to me that is sending a message loud and clear that there is a problem with this Bishop. I’ve talked to folks who’ve had direct dealing with this man. He is aloof and has a gigantic ego. His “my way or the highway” attitude are not the marks of an effective leader. Hopefully he wakes up and changes his way of doing business. We’ll see.
 
I know someone from this diocese - I hear horror stories of the Mass - and not just in regard to one parish. Priests adlibbing prayers, changing the creed (omitting “for us men”), altering Eucharistic Prayers, EMHC’s around the altar while the priest is self-communicating, a sister saying the ending of Mass (the part after Communion), etc. I think this diocese needs new leadership and renewed orthodoxy.
 
I think Braxton is African-American. In most cases I would expect that to bias the local press in his favor. Either the guy really is very incompetent, OR he is very conservative and the press and priests are homing in on any excuse they can identify in an effort to force him out. Just speculating.

I’m in Madison County, which is just outside of the boundary of that diocese–makes no sense to me, but apparently the population center of the metro-East St. Louis area has it’s Catholic diocese headquartered in Springfield Illinois. Same thing is true for the Episcopal diocese, btw: is there some unwritten rule that dioceses must be headquartered in a state capital? (As a reminder: I’m Episcopalian, not Roman Catholic).

I love the town of Springfield, but it’s a Podunk little village whose sole industry is the state government. They need to give Belleville the metro-East area of St. Louis. On the other hand–the Episcopal diocese of Springfield is reputedly one of the most conservative in The Episcopal Church; if the Roman Catholic diocese in Springfield is equally conservative and orthodox, it might be a relief for my Catholic neighbors not to have to put up with the screwball antics of neighboring Belleville.
Mike262:
If it was just a few priests complaining that would be one thing, but two thirds of them, plus a order of nuns?
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Belleville is one of the dioceses hardest-hit by sex-abuse scandals as I understand it. Which possibly could be traced back to very poor priestly discernment and formation. Some observers of the Catholic scene have suggested that where norms for seminarians and priests were very liberal, a culture began to flourish in which predators could hide and flourish. I do NOT know this is part of the history of the Belleville diocese, but it could account for a rebellious flock of priests who are not accustomed to being brought to heel. Please excuse me for speculating ‘out loud’ so to speak.

All of which is derailing my own thread. Sorry.
 
flameburn and Elzee are exactly correct. This diocese is extremely “liberal” (read that: heterodox) and this rebellion is by the most liberal of all of them.

I had the priviledge of hearing Bishop Braxton speak, and meeting him…leadership style notwithstanding…he is a learned, orthodox, and strong leader. The rebels have been in control of this diocese so long they expected to remain in control.

In my former parish (I left this past Sunday when the pastor launched into a “prayer” listing the bishops “character traits” that he felt caused them to take this action), the pastor abused the liturgy horribly (omitting parts of the Mass, changing the words to the prayers, etc), then spouted liberal theology in his homily. He is one of the ring-leaders of this cabal of priests who are challenging…in public…the authority their bishop.

They have been looking for a reason to get rid of him since before he arrived…now there is essentially a clerical error (that the bishop has apologized for and re-paid from another account), and the vultures are striking.

When I arrived last summer (I’m military), I thought I’d set the Wayback Machine for 1975. There is such dissent and heterodoxy here, it’s unbelievable.

Thank God not all the priests are 1970s rejects…
 
I am next door to this diocese.

I think it rather funny that those who abhor loyal and orthodox Catholics as “fundamentalist reactionaries” are – as several posters have given witness to – *the ones *who are being reactionary! 😃

Folks, this diocese has four (4) Call-To-Action chapters. There are “ex”-priests living out in the sticks of this diocese who simply “left” the priesthood before the law could catch up with them because of their – ahem! – extra-curricular activities with young men. 😦 God help the young men where these perverts end up living.

I think I will cut the bishop some slack on this oversight. He deserves better from his “brothers.” :mad:
 
We lived in Belleville for awhile and at every opportunity went the a mass where Bishop Braxton was. He is an excellent speaker and very picky within his diocese on cleaning up all of the liturgical abuses around the diocese. This diocese is extremely liberal and Bishop Braxton has been fighting that battle to change.

We went to other masses at different churches within the diocese and I had to look to make sure I was in a Catholic church.

I don’t live there anymore but called the diocese to see if I could help.

Bishop Braxton is great. He is trying to hold the many liberal priests in the diocese to a higher standard.
 
Engineer1 said:
flameburn and Elzee are exactly correct. This diocese is extremely “liberal” (read that: heterodox) and this rebellion is by the most liberal of all of them.
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I was only wondering out loud. I didn’t know that to be the case. I’m not Roman Catholic and I don’t live in that diocese. I work all over the greater St. Louis area though, and at very screwball hours. If I ever decided to consider being Roman Catholic, however, I’ll know where NOT to pop in for worship if attending at my home parish were inconvenient one Sunday.
 
This issue is being discussed on other fora. If Call to Action hates him he must be a good bishop. Pray for him that he is successful in routing the n’er do wells.

CDL
 
GregoryPalamas said:
This issue is being discussed on other fora. If Call to Action hates him he must be a good bishop. Pray for him that he is successful in routing the n’er do wells.

CDL
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What a questionable thing to say!

IF someone inspires hatred in another person, I’m not sure that’s a laudable quality…regardless of who is doing the hating.
 
frommi said:
What a questionable thing to say!

IF someone inspires hatred in another person, I’m not sure that’s a laudable quality…regardless of who is doing the hating.
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Let’s rephrase it differently: if Bishop Braxton is causing Call To Action to strongly disagree with him, given their stance, that’s a good thing.
 
frommi said:
What a questionable thing to say!

IF someone inspires hatred in another person, I’m not sure that’s a laudable quality…regardless of who is doing the hating.
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If you have evil hating good… seems like that is what he meant.
 
If Call to Action wants to be liberal Protestant let them become liberal Protestant. Bishop Braxton seems like a good man. I’ve met enough priests who act like pure secularists. I would not attend their churches. I’m not interested in becoming a Protestant again. The Tiber Swim was too costly. I’m not going back.

CDL
 
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