Chicago laity wants to pick

[iloveangels]

From the article:

“One of the most active members of the group seems to be Paul Culhane of St. James’ parish, a Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Northern Illinois University. The university set up a blog especially, inviting people to reflect and list the qualities the new pastor should have.”

There you have it. A political science professor and a liberal university are behind this. Political science professors are usually socialists and communists.

He probably just needs to write a paper and that’s what this is all about. Publish or perish etc.

 

[Tony_the_mad]

From the article:

“One of the most active members of the group seems to be Paul Culhane of St. James’ parish, a Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Northern Illinois University. The university set up a blog especially, inviting people to reflect and list the qualities the new pastor should have.”

There you have it. A political science professor and a liberal university are behind this. Political science professors are usually socialists and communists.

Stereotype much?

 

[Tony_the_mad]

I’m doubtful that I would want the laity of Chicago picking bishops, although they are certainly entitled to voice their needs. The article mentions that “they fear that a pastor who is entirely oriented towards orthodoxy” will be chosen.

Even as a liberal, I find this quotation to be disturbing. To me, liberal and conservative are political terms. The Church is neither liberal nor conservative, but orthodox. One cannot be too orthodox.

But of course, the first and primary job of any bishop is to preserve orthodoxy. He is a successor to the apostles. Handing down the faith intact and whole–preserving orthodoxy–is his job.

Your use of the term ‘preserve’ illustrates what I think is most wrong with our Church leaders. They have forgotten the parable of the talents. They have sought only to protect and preserve the Church. They are the steward who buries the talent instead of investing it with the bankers. The Lord expects more. When they finally meet the Lord, what will they say? That ‘we have kept the faithful 99 safe and they are of high quality’.

And what will the Lord say? That they should have been the ‘Good Shepherd who leaves his flock to seek after the one who is lost.’? That ‘the sick are in most need of a doctor’? Or that ‘they should become all things to all people so as to save a few’? Perhaps I am wrong and he will say ‘woe to you who have led my little ones astray’ to those who are not orthodox enough.

I apologize for dumping on you here. You are a person whose ideas I respect, which made me examine them in more detail than I normally would. I strongly agree with you that the primary job of the Bishop is to ‘hand down the faith whole and intact’. Where, I possibly disagree is in the method. I see way too much myopic focus on a too limited number of ‘controversial’ issues, while letting other less controversial issues rot, such as getting Catholics to appreciate the Sacraments of Penance, Marriage, and even the Eucharist.