If they are saying that sexual actity outside of the proper context of marriage between one man and one woman is acceptable, then they certainly are in conflict with moral revelation.
If they are saying that all people are welcome in their parish, gay and straight alike, but are not explicitly condoning sexual activity, then they are not in conflict with moral revelation. Thet are, however, on a very slippery slope. Their statement can easily be interpreted to mean more than they may want to say. For this reason it is very important that one observe what one says, how one says it, where and when one says it. If they want to be welcoming, this march may not be the place to do it, because it can be read as saying more than just “welcome.”
As to fraternal correction, I could not agree more. Again, we must be careful not to step on slippery slopes. This parish is run by an exempt religious order. Exempt means that the laity and the bishop have no right to correct them. Only their superior has that right. We always have to be very careful when correcting to ensure that we have a right to correct. The Vatican is very protective of exempt religious orders. This has been a law within the Church since the 13th century. There was a very good reason for creating it. It was meant to protect religious from what often appeared to be too many superiors over them. Thus Pope Innocent III ruled that no one except a pope had the authority to correct a monk, a friar, a clerk regular, a nun or a canon. This decision has never been changed. Canon law says that any rule or practice regarding religious life that is over 100 years old must be allowed to continue without interruption. This rule is over 800 years old.
I understand the desire to do an act of charity. But we must make sure that we are doing the act of charity without breaking the law. If the law of the Church is that we do not have that right, then we must bite our tongues.
There are many times when I have seen other religious orders do things that to me seem outrageous. But I cannot say anything to any of their members, because they belong to exempt religious orders. I’m only allowed to offer fraternal correction to the members of my own order, the laity, secular deacons and priests (never a bishop, even if he’s secular), or members of non-exempt religious institutes. Non-exempt religious institutes are very few. The papacy has made it a point to make them all exempt as soon as they reach a certain stage in their development.
This is why they are called Institutes of Pontifical Right. This term means that only the Pontiff can correct or critique them, outside of their own members. Even religious from another Institute of Pontifical Right cannot do it. In other words, Pontifical Right means that a religious order or congregation can do whatever it wants as long as it is given the right to do so why the Pontiff. If there is a doubt, the benefit must always be given to the order until the Pontiff or his delegate speak on the matter.
This was the issue with the Legion of Christ. No one could touch them, because they are a Pontifical Institute. They are exempt from correction by anyone who is not the pope. It took an apostolic visitation ordered by the pope to correct their problems. Lay people and bishops had complained about many things concerning certain members of the Legion. The Sacred Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life became so angry at these folks that it threatened them. The Congregation for Religious felt that the laity and the bishops were trying to tell the Legion what to do and trying to correct them and guide them, when they have not right to do so. The only right that the laity and bishops have is to report to the Sacred Congregation and let them deal with it if and when the pope says to do so, which did happen.
I as a Franciscan cannot correct a Jesuit. Jesuits are exempt from all corrections by anyone except their superior and the pope. Anyone who attempts to correct them is on a very slippery slope, because it can be considered a sin of arrogance, unless the person does not know the rule. The only thing that you and I can do with regards to anything that we see out of place with the Jesuits is to report it to Church authorities who will then make sure that the report reaches the person who can do something about it.
Let’s be concerned and loving toward others and try to help them do the right thing. But let’s also remember that we have a place that has been assigned to us by the Church and that we cannot step out of that without the danger of doing something wrong ourselves. Then you have two people doing something wrong. That doesn’t help anyone.
Fraternally,
Br. JR, OSF
