From "St. Therese - The Story of a Soul" to female priests

[japhy]

The parish I attended this previous weekend (not my home parish) recently performed a dramatic adaptation of “Story of a Soul”, the autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. After Mass, the pastor made a few announcements, the last of which was about the wonderful reception of the performance. Then he said this (paraphrased):

“As people were leaving, I heard one young girl say to her mother ‘I want to be a nun because of St. Thérèse!’” [At this, the congregation chuckled sweetly.] “The mother told the girl that it would mean she couldn’t be married or have children, to which the daughter responded, ‘Oh, then I’ll be a priest.’” [At this, the congregation laughed.]

That was a very stupid thing for the priest to say, even as a joke, since I got a feeling that parish was a very liberally-leaning one (I couldn’t help but notice numerous liturgical abuses). Way to go.

 

[Newzie52]

The parish I attended this previous weekend (not my home parish) recently performed a dramatic adaptation of “Story of a Soul”, the autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. After Mass, the pastor made a few announcements, the last of which was about the wonderful reception of the performance. Then he said this (paraphrased):

“As people were leaving, I heard one young girl say to her mother ‘I want to be a nun because of St. Thérèse!’” [At this, the congregation chuckled sweetly.] “The mother told the girl that it would mean she couldn’t be married or have children, to which the daughter responded, ‘Oh, then I’ll be a priest.’” [At this, the congregation laughed.]

That was a very stupid thing for the priest to say, even as a joke, since I got a feeling that parish was a very liberally-leaning one (I couldn’t help but notice numerous liturgical abuses). Way to go.

I don’t see any harm here; it was simply a young child showing youthful innocence and naivete and the parishioners responding in an appropriate way. (The mother’s remark does illustrate, perhaps, the reticence of parents to have daughters enter the convent these days, but that’s another thread…)

 

[japhy]

I don’t see any harm here; it was simply a young child showing youthful innocence and naivete and the parishioners responding in an appropriate way. (The mother’s remark does illustrate, perhaps, the reticence of parents to have daughters enter the convent these days, but that’s another thread…)

But I doubt that anecdote was factual. I have a feeling in the pit of my stomach that it was his way of offhandedly shilling for female priests.

 

[Newzie52]

But I doubt that anecdote was factual. I have a feeling in the pit of my stomach that it was his way of offhandedly shilling for female priests.

Well, anything’s possible, but that seems like jumping to conclusions to me (unless you know that this particular priest has spoken out in favor of female ordination before.) It just sounds like one of many funny anecdotes our priests (in a very conservative area) have told as well.

 

[thistle]

The parish I attended this previous weekend (not my home parish) recently performed a dramatic adaptation of “Story of a Soul”, the autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. After Mass, the pastor made a few announcements, the last of which was about the wonderful reception of the performance. Then he said this (paraphrased):

“As people were leaving, I heard one young girl say to her mother ‘I want to be a nun because of St. Thérèse!’” [At this, the congregation chuckled sweetly.] “The mother told the girl that it would mean she couldn’t be married or have children, to which the daughter responded, ‘Oh, then I’ll be a priest.’” [At this, the congregation laughed.]

That was a very stupid thing for the priest to say, even as a joke, since I got a feeling that parish was a very liberally-leaning one (I couldn’t help but notice numerous liturgical abuses). Way to go.

I don’t see any problem with this and you shouldn’t be so judgemental of the priest.

 

[scylla]

Would it have been appropriate if he made a joke about a nun having sex? He made a joke about heresy and insinuated a support for it. In a time where there are many Catholics confused about the faith should we confuse them more?

Definitely inappropriate and we should pray for this priest. Nothing new these days there are plenty of priests who need to return to orthodoxy. Many priests have been put through a seminary system which still needs a lot of work.

Scylla

 

[Morning_Star15]

The parish I attended this previous weekend (not my home parish) recently performed a dramatic adaptation of “Story of a Soul”, the autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. After Mass, the pastor made a few announcements, the last of which was about the wonderful reception of the performance. Then he said this (paraphrased):

“As people were leaving, I heard one young girl say to her mother ‘I want to be a nun because of St. Thérèse!’” [At this, the congregation chuckled sweetly.] “The mother told the girl that it would mean she couldn’t be married or have children, to which the daughter responded, ‘Oh, then I’ll be a priest.’” [At this, the congregation laughed.]

That was a very stupid thing for the priest to say, even as a joke, since I got a feeling that parish was a very liberally-leaning one (I couldn’t help but notice numerous liturgical abuses). Way to go.

I don’t know if it’s just me, but this seems to be more in support of married clergy than female clergy, since the girl wants to be a priest in order to be able to get married and have children, which she can’t do as a nun. I’m surprised that this little girl would associate the priesthood with marriage and children.

 

[Newzie52]

I don’t know if it’s just me, but this seems to be more in support of married clergy than female clergy, since the girl wants to be a priest in order to be able to get married and have children, which she can’t do as a nun. I’m surprised that this little girl would associate the priesthood with marriage and children.

I just think it was was it was - an anecdote about a childish statement by a little one who is too young to know about Church discipline, etc. The funny part of the anecdote was, the way I understood it, that she thought priests are - ordinarily - married with children. (Though I know a couple who are, both Latin and Eastern rite.)

 

[DaughterSorrow]

I think it’s harmless.

But the comment is also ironic, because Therese herself desired the priesthood but knew she could not attain it.

 

[otjm]

Would it have been appropriate if he made a joke about a nun having sex? He made a joke about heresy and insinuated a support for it. In a time where there are many Catholics confused about the faith should we confuse them more?

Definitely inappropriate and we should pray for this priest. Nothing new these days there are plenty of priests who need to return to orthodoxy. Many priests have been put through a seminary system which still needs a lot of work.

Scylla

Would you be so offended if the priest had mentioned that St Therese wanted tremendously to be a priest? Would you presume from the comment that he supported women becoming priests?

She did, and making the comment would not necessarily show anything, other than what St Therese wanted.

You seem to be jumping to conclusions.

 

[scylla]

No I would not be offended as it is true, I am not offended by truth. I know if I was a woman I would have loved to be a full habited nun, as I sure am a pretty lousy mother. I see the dignity a nun has and how one should act, which is much what St. Therese would have seen. Who wouldn’t want to be a priest, to be able to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the ultimate a man can do in this life.
What bothers me is irresponsible comments that lead people into error.

Jokes such as these are inappropriate for large groups especially these days with catechesis in such horrible shape. There are plenty of confused people, some who even think that female priests are a possibility and we should do our utmost to not misrepresent the truth of that being against the faith.

I would rather be jumping to conclusions, than to be lukewarm in my faith, I am quite serious about truth. Jesus stressed it pretty strongly that it would be better to be killed than to lead people astray.

In Christ
Scylla

 

[crenfro]

That was a very stupid thing for the priest to say, even as a joke, since I got a feeling that parish was a very liberally-leaning one (I couldn’t help but notice numerous liturgical abuses). Way to go.

I agree with you.

Not a good idea to squelch the beginnings of a possible vocation. Children should not be dismissed in this way. They are also parish members worthy of respect. Children should not be demeaned, especially in a place where they allegedly are supposed to be learning about God’s love.

No wonder there’s a problem with religious vocations.

Woe to those who lead the innocent astray – I think I’ve heard that somewheres…

 

[otjm]

No I would not be offended as it is true, I am not offended by truth. What bothers me is irresponsible comments that lead people into error.

Jokes such as these are inappropriate for large groups especially these days with catechesis in such horrible shape. There are plenty of confused people, some who even think that female priests are a possibility and we should do our utmost to not misrepresent the truth of that being against the faith.

I have no problem with truth either. I do have a problem with people jumping to conclusions with insufficient evidence.

It is obvious that none of us heard his tone of voice, and that often tells a lot more than the words. To me, the comment was a funny observation on childhood, and nothing more. Perhaps, because I do not expect women to ever become priests, and because it is not an issue with me, I do not presume from a comment, particularly one like this, that there is some hidden agenda. I know there are people who are constantly looking for a hidden agenda, and take every comment and run it through their “instant analysis machine” to find how it might be a clue to some off-the-wall, or dissenting, or heretical position.

I don’t.

He was talking about a young child’s observations. By God’s grace I had twin daughters, and they were a constant source of hilarity with their child-like observations of the world. I took, and still take, this comment as nothing more than that.

Is it possible he had an agenda? I didn’t fall off the back of the rutabaga truck as it rolled through town; I know there are priests who have the issue. But I need something way more indicative of such than a comment which on the face of it is as innocent as this one appears to be.

I would rather be jumping to conclusions, than to be lukewarm in my faith, I am quite serious about truth. Jesus stressed it pretty strongly that it would be better to be killed than to lead people astray.

In Christ
Scylla

And I would suggest that jumping to conclusions is more often a sign of an issue with the jumper than it is with the person being judged. One can be strong in the faith without presuming that anyone and everyone else is not. And it is presumption that causes us to misjudge others who make innocent comments that get twisted around to show something that does not exist. We then have distanced outselves from a fellow Cmember of the Body of Christ; I fail to see that Christ is honored in doing so.

It might be recalled that as much as Jesus corrected the Pharisees, it was a Pharisee who provided Him with the burial chamber. Not all Pharisees were wrong. Those He corrected were. And while the language of the Gospels can lead one to the conclusion that all Pharisees were condemned, that would be incorrect.

I further disagree with you about the use of humor. I have no problem with being as serious as a heart attack; but life is not all heart attack. Humor is a levelling mechanism that prevents us from taking ourselves so seriously. Those who take themslevs too seriously are often about a heart beat away from pride, if that.

I would not presume that a parish that is seeing something on the life of St Therese was particularly “liberal”, to begin with. Given the weightiness of the subject matter, a little humor is not out of place. Balance is healthy, and a night of serious matter balanced wtih a bit of humor from a child is not wrong, not indicative of hidden motives, and is a light shining on thruth - and Truth.

The OP commented about liturgical abuses. Since the OP did not detail them, I am not going to presume that the OP is either right or wrong. I have seen way too many issues called an abuse for no other reason than that the observer did not like them. It is a side issue to the thread, and not worth getting into.

But even presuming that the priest did not follow the GIRM correctly on all points, that still does not make the comment anything more than a delightful observation by a child. It is not indicative of other deep and dark issues.

There are some who feel that all humor has no place at all in church. Having heard it used well, and used poorly, I would tend to prefer that it not be used much at all. But I am not offended by a comment that holds up our idiosyncracies, nor one that seems as innocent an observation by a child as this.

In short, this seems to be a tempest in a tea pot. There are real issues out there; this isn’t one of them.