Celebrity priest punished after being caught with woman

  • Thread starter Thread starter Miraluna
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
ChristIsLord said:
it’s pretty amazing how they keep mum and move the pederests around to start anew no questions asked over and over for decades. but the guy who god forbid finnally caves in and gets intimate with a grown woman after torturing himself for two decades is thrown to the lions…

during the pederest scandal you had nothing but excuses and apologizing for these perverts “ohh it was the time people kept these things secret”, “it’s a gay thing”… but here people are just killing the guy as if you could accept celibacy for even a year… something is fundementally wrong with this church…
Click to expand...
There is something worng with the Curch. It is made up of people. And for the record, the only reason anyone cared about the scandal you reference is the simple fact that the MSM hates God, and when they want to attack God, they attack the CAtholic Church. There is not a greater instance of pedophelia among priests than among any other profession. You sess that as an opportunity to attack the Church. Perhaps you should do some digging among your own denomination, and you will be shocked at the corruption you will find. Why? Because your denomination os made of people, and established by people. Our Church, though establised by God, is still run by people. Not to minimize, this is a minor scandal. The Church will survive, but it is the kind of scandal that would make a non-denominational “church” implode.
 
redrosetea said:
The thing that upsets me the most about all of this is he didn’t have the decency to stop saying mass
Click to expand...
We have to be careful here. Priests are not allowed to stop saying mass no matter what their sins are. They may only stop saying mass with the permission of the bishop or if they are religious with the permission of their superior. All priests should celebrate mass daily and must celebrate it on Sunday.

In addition, he did have a spiritual director and a confessor who encouraged him to continue to try. We do not know how much they knew, because that can never be revealed.

Finally, this is not one of those sins that requires a priest to stop celebrating the mass, unless he is suspended. As long as the person is not involved in public scandal, he can continue to celebrate the liturgy. Now that the issue has become public, he is still allowed to celebrate the liturgy, but not in public. Until such time as he is suspended, he can celebrate the liturgy.

I heard a rumor that he has incurred a suspension due to some things that he has said in his interviews. But I do not know if this is true. I asked my brothers in community and no one seems to know anything about it. There is just a rumor that some lay person was sharing. But we have to be careful, because the laity often says what it would like to see happen, not what actually does happen.

In any case, what Fr. Albert has done, has caused a great deal of harm to some people. He has violated trust. He has made himself his own lawyer and judge. He has broken a very special promise. None of this is acceptable under any circumstances.

He will have to live with the choices that the Church gives him or leave the Church. Regardless, he will be a priest until the day he dies, even if the Church grants him a dispensation. He simply will become a dispensed priest, but always a priest. Nonetheless, a dispensed priest is in good standing with the Church and can receive all the sacraments, including marriage within the Catholic Chuch. Should he have children, they can be received into the Church and become priests themselves.

I don’t have great hopes for him getting a dispensation, because Pope Benedict is very tough on granting them to secular priests and religious brothers. He prefers that they remain in ministry and recover from their sinful ways, even if they have to take some time off to pull themselves together. He is willing to grant leaves of absence up to five years. This does not mean that he will not grant a dispensation, only that he will not give it away upon request. The request will be studied very carefully.

This is a very sad situation, especially for the parishioners of St. Francis de Sales parish who have lost three pastors in a row.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
I didn’t know that.perhaps they were trying to work with him privately…I think they would have moved him if he had requested it, or that lady could have removed herself…I am not putting everything on him…It takes 2 and she was a Catholic…She knew she should have never allowed things to go as far as they did

.As disgusted as I am with him, I hope he doesn’t stop practicing his religion , and he can lead a useful life…After seeing the interview I saw, I don’t hold out much hope he will try to remain a priest…I think he has burned his bridges

Jr would the fact he was a priest and married without dispensation stop his children from being able to be a priest? That seems a bit harsh, perhaps I am misenterpreting what I read?
 
redrosetea said:
I didn’t know that.perhaps they were trying to work with him privately…I think they would have moved him if he had requested it, or that lady could have removed herself…I am not putting everything on him…It takes 2 and she was a Catholic…She knew she should have never allowed things to go as far as they did

.As disgusted as I am with him, I hope he doesn’t stop practicing his religion , and he can lead a useful life…After seeing the interview I saw, I don’t hold out much hope he will try to remain a priest…I think he has burned his bridges
Click to expand...
I think it’s too early to tell. Right now the man is in turmoil, for one. He loves the priesthood and loves this woman. That kind of conflict can spin anyone’s brain.

The media is eating this up and he’s feeding them. I believe that he lacks the character necessary to stay, STOP . . . “I need private time.” In a sense, I feel sorry for him, because he comes across as a very immature man. I may be wrong. I can only judge what I see, not what’s hidden. Immaturity, at any age, does not help one make good choices.

Also, this is “the priest who would be king.” I believe that it was a mistake to allow such a young priest loose in the world of the media. The man was a celebrity almost since he was ordained. He may have been about 26 years old at the time. At that age, just out of the cacoon, he was on TV, radio and the press. Were he one of our brothers I would not have allowed him such exposure.

The world of mass media is a narcissistic world. It takes a strong spiritual person to navigate it. One has to be very mature in the spiritual life. It doesn’t look to me as if he was so mature. But I’m guessing based on what little information I have. I could be very wrong.

In any case, hind-sight is always 20/20. None of us, priests or religious, who saw him in action ever thought that he was too young, too immature in the spiritual life and not ready to survive the life of the celebrity without some damage. Now I wonder.

It is true that Fr. Albert and his girlfriend committed the sin. However, it is also true that his superiors should have thought about the risks involved in releasing such a young man into the world of stardom.

There is responsibility at many levels here. I’m not trying to be judgmental of the hierarchy or his superiors, for that matter him or his girlfriend. I’m just stating what I’m observing from a distance.

God forgive me, if I’m wrong. Pray for me.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
The interview I saw reminded me of a teenager…I think he is very immature and it didn’t sound to me like he was in love with this woman…I think he liked the arrangement they had very much

I never heard him say he was in love with her , nor that he wanted to marry her…He said he might like to have children but he didn’t know for sure I honestly think the new found media attention was a very happy thing for him. He just beamed…Jr can you answer my previous question about children he could have, not being able to become a priest?
It is in my last post

I read once , and I don’t recall where, an illegitimate child couldn’t receive Holy Order’s and I thought that was really unfair, and I couldn’t believe it was accurate
 
Serap said:
A priest dipping his hands in the collection plate is a thief. A priest having an affair with a grown woman is not a criminal.

Let’s not get carried away judging this priest.
Click to expand...
Both acts are going against the commandments. It’s one thing to struggle with celibacy/sexual desires/love/whatever. He carried on for two years. Let’s not forget that had he not gotten caught, he most likely would still be holding mass, hearing confessions, and living a lie. It’s not like he agonized for 2 years and then decided to fess up. He only fessed up when he was outed.
 
redrosetea said:
The interview I saw reminded me of a teenager…I think he is very immature and it didn’t sound to me like he was in love with this woman…I think he liked the arrangement they had very much

I never heard him say he was in love with her , nor that he wanted to marry her…He said he might like to have children but he didn’t know for sure I honestly think the new found media attention was a very happy thing for him. He just beamed…Jr can you answer my previous question about children he could have, not being able to become a priest?
It is in my last post

I read once , and I don’t recall where, an illegitimate child couldn’t receive Holy Order’s and I thought that was really unfair, and I couldn’t believe it was accurate
Click to expand...
There was a tradition, never a law, in the Church, that men who were illegitimate could not be ordained. This tradition is no longer practiced for several very practical reasons.
  1. The sins of the parent cannot be used to penalize the child.
  2. There is no proof that a legitimate son makes a better priest than an ilegitimate one.
  3. There are presedents in Church history of men who were ilegitimate and became either priests or brothers in solemn vows who were later canonized.
  4. There is no prohibition in canon law.
  5. The local bishop must make the determination whether the ordination of an individual in his diocese will cause damage to the Church. In the case of a religious, the Provincial Superior must make the same determination. If such an ordination can cause harm to the Church, then it is legitimate to deny the request before the ordination to the diaconate.
  6. There are priests whose parents were married outside the Church or who were married in the Church, divorced and remarried outside the Church.
I knew a friar in one of our communities whose father had been a priest. The friar in question asked for permission to be ordained and it was granted by the major superior. The interesting thing is that the father had been a member of the same order. The situation was resolved very simply. The son was received into a different province. Since provinces do not overlap, there was no problem of scandal.

For more information on the requirements for ordination, you may go to www.vatican.va click resources, then click canon law. But keep in mind, the the Apstolic See (the Pope) can dispense from many impediments, if the bishop or the religious superior requests it.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
Brother JR,

Thank you for participating in this discussion - I am learning so much from your insights.
 
Truth is certainly stranger than fiction Br JR…Do you know if the dad was present at the son,s ordination? I take it the dad left the priesthood.?..Life is very strange and many times it seems we come full circle

I always like the explanation that was given in the film Out of Africa, for why God made the world round…It was so we couldn’t see too far down the road…I am glad we can’t, it makes the possibilities in our life far more exciting and the pain a lot less…Who would want to know their future, not me?

Of course we all hope our future in the after life will be with God, or at least on the front porch of heaven(purgatory) for a while, how ever long that while might be…:o
 
bookgirl32 said:
That doesn’t really make much sense. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not defending the actions. But take a marriage for example: you don’t give up, say you’ve tried for a long time but you just can’t be monogomous, and get a dispensation from marriage. You could live apart and legally divorce but you would have to remain celibate.

A priest isn’t a single man taking a vow of celibacy. A priest is married to the Church, taking a vow of celibacy in order to remain faithful to her.
Click to expand...
Yes and no. The image of the priest married to the Church is an image, an analogy, a theological reflection. Its not a literal marriage. Holy Mother Church has and continues to dispense priests from the promise of celibacy to allow them to receive the sacrament of marriage in the Church. Remember, there is no absolute barrier to an ordained man receiving the sacrament of marriage its rather a matter of tradition and canon law.

Secondly, people involved in marriages that were “doomed from the start” (so to speak) are able to apply for a decree of nulity.
 
NewEnglandPries said:
Yes and no. The image of the priest married to the Church is an image, an analogy, a theological reflection. Its not a literal marriage. Holy Mother Church has and continues to dispense priests from the promise of celibacy to allow them to receive the sacrament of marriage in the Church. Remember, there is no absolute barrier to an ordained man receiving the sacrament of marriage its rather a matter of tradition and canon law.

Secondly, people involved in marriages that were “doomed from the start” (so to speak) are able to apply for a decree of nulity.
Click to expand...
True. I read some of these posts after writing that and it makes more sense now, what people are saying.
 
NewEnglandPries said:
Yes and no. The image of the priest married to the Church is an image, an analogy, a theological reflection. Its not a literal marriage. Holy Mother Church has and continues to dispense priests from the promise of celibacy to allow them to receive the sacrament of marriage in the Church. Remember, **there is no absolute barrier to an ordained man receiving the sacrament of marriage **its rather a matter of tradition and canon law.

Secondly, people involved in marriages that were “doomed from the start” (so to speak) are able to apply for a decree of nulity.
Click to expand...
The red bold is mine.

I’ll just piggy-back here by adding something that most people probably do not know. In the case of priests and religious, there is only one situation in which there exists an absolute barrier to entering into the sacrament of marriage; but it’s not the preisthood. As Father said, that’s a matter of Church discipline. There is no theological or doctrinal barrier for priests to enter into a valid marriage.

There is a barrier for religious brothers and nuns in solemn vows. They cannot validly enter into a marriage and remain in solemn vows. A dispensed priest remains a priest and can enter into a valid married.

A brother or sister in solemn vows cannot enter into a valid marriage and remain in solemn vows. Even if the Church wanted to do so, she does not have the authority to do so. The marriage vows are also solemn vows. You cannot make two solemn vows that are mutually excusive.

The solemn vow of chastity excludes not only sex, but also any possibility of marriage. The religious brother or sister in a solemn vow of chastity gives up all rights to a biological family and consecrates his life to God. He physically, psychologically and spiritually belongs to his religious family which is always a religious order.

The solemn vow of marriage binds to a biological relationship with a spouse and your children. You physically, psychologically and spiritually belong to them.

Do you see how the vows are mutually exclusive?

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF
 
The parents of St Therese, the Little Flower had both aspired to become a religious. For various reasons this didn’t happen. They met and married vowing to live as celibates

Their priest told them this wasn’t what God intended for them…so they lived as a married couple and gave us St Therese…Just think of what the world would have lost by them not fulfilling the sacrament of marriage

I do see Br. Jr …There is a place for both, but it is mutually exclusive…The Martins, I think, are now canonized along with their daughter St Therese…It seems you can’t be all things to all people, we must chose our path carefully, and try to live it as God intends it to be lived
 
JReducation said:
The red bold is mine.

I’ll just piggy-back here by adding something that most people probably do not know. In the case of priests and religious, there is only one situation in which there exists an absolute barrier to entering into the sacrament of marriage; but it’s not the preisthood. As Father said, that’s a matter of Church discipline. There is no theological or doctrinal barrier for priests to enter into a valid marriage.

There is a barrier for religious brothers and nuns in solemn vows. They cannot validly enter into a marriage and remain in solemn vows. A dispensed priest remains a priest and can enter into a valid married.

A brother or sister in solemn vows cannot enter into a valid marriage and remain in solemn vows. Even if the Church wanted to do so, she does not have the authority to do so. The marriage vows are also solemn vows. You cannot make two solemn vows that are mutually excusive.

The solemn vow of chastity excludes not only sex, but also any possibility of marriage. The religious brother or sister in a solemn vow of chastity gives up all rights to a biological family and consecrates his life to God. He physically, psychologically and spiritually belongs to his religious family which is always a religious order.

The solemn vow of marriage binds to a biological relationship with a spouse and your children. You physically, psychologically and spiritually belong to them.

Do you see how the vows are mutually exclusive?

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF
Click to expand...
Br. JR,

So why are religious’ vows not considered a sacrament? That has always confused me.
 
redrosetea said:
The parents of St Therese, the Little Flower had both aspired to become a religious. For various reasons this didn’t happen. They met and married vowing to live as celibates

Their priest told them this wasn’t what God intended for them…so they lived as a married couple and gave us St Therese…Just think of what the world would have lost by them not fulfilling the sacrament of marriage

I do see Br. Jr …There is a place for both, but it is mutually exclusive…The Martins, I think, are now canonized along with their daughter St Therese…It seems you can’t be all things to all people, we must chose our path carefully, and try to live it as God intends it to be lived
Click to expand...
Actually, the Martins joined the Franciscans and were professed as Secular Franciscan Brother and Sister. They are now blesseds and they have their feast day on the Franciscan calendar.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF
 
bookgirl32 said:
Br. JR,

So why are religious’ vows not considered a sacrament? That has always confused me.
Click to expand...
Religious vows are not a sacrament because the Church does not consider them essential to the life of the Church. The Church consideres religious life and religious vows to be a spiritual gift from the Holy Spirit, but not an essential gift. The Church can exist without religiuos life, though the Church admits that its spiritual life would suffer, because the life of penance, community, obedience, sacrfice, chastity, poverty, obedience and other practices of religious life are a source of grace for the Church.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
Good! He should be punished for the sake of his soul. The woman should also be punished if she is a Catholic. Priests take a vow of celibacy when they become priests and they are bound to obey that vow. By not obeying that vow, they scandalize the Church and give the Church a bad name. It disgusts me when stuff like this happens. But then again, I do believe we are living in the end times so this stuff doesn’t really shock me that much. 😦
 
CWBetts👍
There is something worng with the Curch. It is made up of people. And for the record, the only reason anyone cared about the scandal you reference is the simple fact that the MSM hates God, and when they want to attack God, they attack the CAtholic Church. There is not a greater instance of pedophelia among priests than among any other profession. You sess that as an opportunity to attack the Church. Perhaps you should do some digging among your own denomination, and you will be shocked at the corruption you will find. Why? Because your denomination os made of people, and established by people. Our Church, though establised by God, is still run by people. Not to minimize, this is a minor scandal. The Church will survive, but it is the kind of scandal that would make a non-denominational “church” implode.
Click to expand...
Well said my friend!🙂

Attack the priests and attack the Eucharist says Father Corapi.
The work of the devil is to destroy our priests, one way or another in order to keep the Holy Eucharist away from us.
Satan is roaring around the world, throwing his last battles, his time is counted, thank you Jesus - Maranatha!!
For over 2,000 years the Catholic Church founded by Jesus Christ stands glorious and She will triumph! 👍👍👍
The Catholic Church is HOLY!! Nothing is wrong with her!! Her members are sick like you and I are constantly sick, aren’t we?
What a great time to be alive!! 👍
Proudly Roman Catholic!!!:eek:
 
JReducation said:
Religious vows are not a sacrament because the Church does not consider them essential to the life of the Church. The Church consideres religious life and religious vows to be a spiritual gift from the Holy Spirit, but not an essential gift. The Church can exist without religiuos life, though the Church admits that its spiritual life would suffer, because the life of penance, community, obedience, sacrfice, chastity, poverty, obedience and other practices of religious life are a source of grace for the Church.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
Click to expand...
Okay one more (and I know this is off topic so move it if need be): Are all religious brothers priests? Or are there men who take religious vows but do not receive holy orders?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top