Mass confusion (a setup of the Church by homosexual activists)

[markomalley]

From California Catholic Daily:
A controversy over the refusal of a San Diego parish to hold a funeral Mass for the deceased owner of a gay bar was a “set-up” by homosexual activists, an associate pastor at Our Lady of the Rosary Church said at a midday Mass yesterday.
The parish’s associate pastor, Fr. Louis M. Solcia, spoke about the controversy during noon daily Mass yesterday, a parish insider told California Catholic Daily. Fr. Solcia minced no words in describing the uproar over a decision by priests at the parish to refuse a funeral Mass for John Sanfilippo, who owned the San Diego gay bar the SRO Lounge and had been involved in a long-term same-sex relationship before his death.
Sanfilippo died on June 24 and his family and “partner” of 30 years had sought to have a funeral Mass for him at the downtown San Diego parish. Initially, plans for the funeral Mass moved forward and it was scheduled for June 30. But when Mr. Sanfililppo’s “partner” telephoned the parish to discuss further details, priests determined that a Mass would be inappropriate, the parish insider reported.
That decision prompted homosexual activist Nicole Murray Ramirez to post a letter on the church’s front door addressed to San Diego Bishop Robert Brom, calling on him to clarify diocesan policy on the issue of funeral rites for homosexuals. Following a similar incident in 2005, Bishop Brom apologized to the loved ones of a man, also the owner of nightclubs catering to gays and a homosexual-rights activist, who had been refused a funeral Mass.
The parish insider said priests at the parish (the pastor is away) decided that burial services would be appropriate but not a Mass because it appeared that Mr. Sanfilippo had not received the Last Rites, had not gone to Confession and was not a practicing Catholic**.**
Compare this to the secular media coverage (also posted in this thread):
Local businessman and **devout Catholic **John Sanfilippo died last week after struggling with emphysema. Friends said Sanfilippo planned for the funeral mass to be held at Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Church in Little Italy, where Sanfilippo had attended for decades. Friends said he even left the church a large sum of money in his will.
Would have sure been nice had News10 given a couple of details that appeared in CalCatholic. Like the fact that this Sanfilippo was the owner of a gay bar and that he was not a practicing Catholic…not to mention the fact that the parish offered a funeral service, just not a funeral Mass.

I guess it’s not reasonable to expect the MSM to ask the right questions…much less give honest reportage.

 

[Teelynn]

These people refuse to believe they are living in sin?..grave sin…and totally against the teachings of the Church. That’s number one. Number two, the Church has an obligation to act in accordance with Catholic teachings…an obligation, not a suggestion. And number three, there actually has been too much confusion on this issue within the Church. We have too many clergy of a relativist theological bent within the Church that might have gone along with all this. I dream for the day that all of the clergy will live and stand strong for the truth of the Catholic Church. Our Bishops absolutely NEED to stand strong no matter how much pressure is placed upon them. Oh yes, we are in the midst of war, not to doubt that for a nanosecond.

 

[LemonAndLime]

Well I think the mistake of calling him a “devout” Catholic was more the journalist relying on what the family told them, rather than checking their facts.

 

[Dave_B]

These people refuse to believe they are living in sin?..grave sin…and totally against the teachings of the Church. That’s number one.

If God hates gay people, why does he keep on making them? btw Im straight. But I wonder what really motivated this thread.

 

[Fink]

Well I think the mistake of calling him a “devout” Catholic was more the journalist relying on what the family told them, rather than checking their facts.

Have you ever thought that the journalist may have meant to say “devoid”, rather than “devout”?

Silly wee lassie!

 

[Fink]

If God hates gay people, why does he keep on making them? btw Im straight. But I wonder what really motivated this thread.

The Church does NOT teach that God hates “gay” people. Its the ACT thats hated.
Have you heard: “Love the sinner, but hate the sin.”? The Catholic Church is obliged to speak the Truth, even when it`s not politically correct!

Why do some people insist on perpetuating that old lie about the Church and her members?
Can you answer that question?

 

[babylonsfalling]

If God hates gay people, why does he keep on making them? btw Im straight. But I wonder what really motivated this thread.

Who in this thread said God hates gay people…anyone?

 

[sojo]

So the Pastor was out of town at the time, and two other priests made the decision based on his not having last rites (is that a requisite to a Catholic funeral Mass?), not having gone to confession (how did they know - do we get registered each time we go to confession?), and not a “practicing Catholic” (again, what is the definition of a practicing Catholic - do we get attendance marks for each time we attend Mass?)

Everyone seems so delighted to jump all over this “homosexual” who just wants to stir stuff up, but it seems two priests who may not have all their facts in a row based a decision on fear of scandal.

The family who declared this man a “devout Catholic” might know more than two priests who might never have met or ministered to this man - especially in light of the fact that the pastor of the church was out of town?

 

[Fink]

Who in this thread said God hates gay people…anyone?

We probably won`t see him again on this thread.
Other posts would indicate…disruption/stirring, then moving on. Hmm.

 

[markomalley]

If God hates gay people, why does he keep on making them?

Who definitively said He (vice he) made them?

btw Im straight.

Thanks for the clarification. I’m sure we all are thoroughly relieved

But I wonder what really motivated this thread.

As I alluded in the post opening this thread, a comparison between the Catholic media article excerpted in the OP and the corresponding secular media article (along with a hyperlink to the thread that dealt with that secular media article), it is blatantly obvious that the secular media reporter was either a) too lazy to investigate the situation thoroughly, b) too ignorant of the Church to intelligently analyze the situation and ask the proper questions, or c) pushing a particular agenda.

The specific incident, itself, is not terribly newsworthy for people outside of greater San Diego and thus, in of itself, would not be appropriate for this forum.

The disparity in the secular media reporting and Catholic media reporting is worthy of review and comment in this forum.

FWIW
IMHO
YMMV

 

[babylonsfalling]

We probably won`t see him again on this thread.

Probably not…the answer to my questions is self evident anyway. Nobody said anything about God hating homosexuals.

When people need to insinuate or create something out of thin air that was never said in the first place, it seems they’ve kind of admitted by default that they can’t argue against anything that really was said.

 

[Fink]

Probably not…the answer to my questions is self evident anyway…

…it seems they’ve kind of admitted by default that they can’t argue against anything that really was said.

Dead right.
I smell something; and its not a rose. The thread sabotage was quite successful. Classic guerilla tactics. Better to ignore that type. Thats easy to say, in hindsight.

 

[manualman]

If God hates gay people, why does he keep on making them?

Same reason He keeps making the rest of us sinners: He loves us all and wants us to turn away from our sins, be forgiven and be healed of our self destructiveness.

 

[Sarika]

Same reason He keeps making the rest of us sinners: He loves us all and wants us to turn away from our sins, be forgiven and be healed of our self destructiveness.

 

[Dave_B]

The Church does NOT teach that God hates “gay” people. Its the ACT thats hated.Have you heard: “Love the sinner, but hate the sin.”? The Catholic Church is obliged to speak the Truth, even when it`s not politically correct!
Why do some people insist on perpetuating that old lie about the Church and her members? Can you answer that question?

Yes, Ive heard “love the sinner, but hate the sin”, but doesnt this attitude create a climate of discrimination.

I’m was simply asking a question, really no offense intended

 

[Dave_B]

We probably won`t see him again on this thread.
Other posts would indicate…disruption/stirring, then moving on. Hmm.

I always read the posts. But dont also get chance to respond when busy.

I’ll try to be less disruptive. Sometimes you can send a comment without thinking.

 

[chief714]

So the Pastor was out of town at the time, and two other priests made the decision based on his not having last rites (is that a requisite to a Catholic funeral Mass?), not having gone to confession (how did they know - do we get registered each time we go to confession?), and not a “practicing Catholic” (again, what is the definition of a practicing Catholic - do we get attendance marks for each time we attend Mass?)

Everyone seems so delighted to jump all over this “homosexual” who just wants to stir stuff up, but it seems two priests who may not have all their facts in a row based a decision on fear of scandal.

The family who declared this man a “devout Catholic” might know more than two priests who might never have met or ministered to this man - especially in light of the fact that the pastor of the church was out of town?

I might be wrong because I briefly read everyone’s comments, but I thought that the OP stated that based on the conversation the Priest had with this man’s “homosexual” partner he made a judgement call that He could not give a funeral “Mass”. I’m under the impression the Father made this call because he didn’t feel he could give this “Mass” for someone who “died in obvious grave sin”? yet he did offer funeral services.

It is up to the Father is it not? Who are we to judge the father and claim that he is trying to avoid scandal? Shouldn’t we be praying for our Priests that God would give them the strength to stand firm in this world where they push the Church to bend to the world’s beliefs? Instead of pointing a finger at a man who has devoted his every waking moment to God?

Plus, it’s not like the Church sways on it’s beliefs about homosexuality. It’s pretty firm in it’s stance. If this man truly did attend Mass as often as they say, then I’m sure he knew the Church’s belief on this matter and has probably been thru the Bible a few times…

Most of all… Should we not be praying for this man named Sanfilipo? My goodness… PRAY! Pointing fingers is childish…

 

[Corki]

Is there some reason why a funeral Mass would be a “right” for anyone?

I see this as analogous to weddings. When there is a large number of wedding attendees who are not Catholic or otherwise not disposed to receive Communion, a wedding ceremony without the Mass is usually recommended. It seems that this funeral was going to have a very large number of attendees who were not disposed for Communion. It was a good pastoral decision to have a funeral that did not include the Mass.

 

[Corki]

So the Pastor was out of town at the time, and two other priests made the decision based on his not having last rites (is that a requisite to a Catholic funeral Mass?), not having gone to confession (how did they know - do we get registered each time we go to confession?), and not a “practicing Catholic” (again, what is the definition of a practicing Catholic - do we get attendance marks for each time we attend Mass?)

Last rites or recent Confession would be a requisite for someone who might be considered a public sinner. There is quite a bit of precedence for this, for example, with politicians who live openly with paramours. It’s not so common in the US but it is not something that is out of the range of prudential action either.

As for “practicing Catholic,” yes, we get attendance marks - metaphorically. Every parish I know keeps track some way of who are the practicing members of the parish. Whether it’s collection envelopes, volunteer logs or whether your kids are in CCE, the parish has a very good idea who is practicing their faith in terms of parish life. But practicing also means living a public life consistent with Church teaching. Owning a “gay” bar and living with a same-sex partner does not seem to be (from the outside) to be a public life consistent with Church teaching.

 

[tm30]

From California Catholic Daily:
A controversy over the refusal of a San Diego parish to hold a funeral Mass for the deceased owner of a gay bar was a “set-up” by homosexual activists, an associate pastor at Our Lady of the Rosary Church said at a midday Mass yesterday.
The parish’s associate pastor, Fr. Louis M. Solcia, spoke about the controversy during noon daily Mass yesterday, a parish insider told California Catholic Daily. Fr. Solcia minced no words in describing the uproar over a decision by priests at the parish to refuse a funeral Mass for John Sanfilippo, who owned the San Diego gay bar the SRO Lounge and had been involved in a long-term same-sex relationship before his death.
Sanfilippo died on June 24 and his family and “partner” of 30 years had sought to have a funeral Mass for him at the downtown San Diego parish. Initially, plans for the funeral Mass moved forward and it was scheduled for June 30. But when Mr. Sanfililppo’s “partner” telephoned the parish to discuss further details, priests determined that a Mass would be inappropriate, the parish insider reported.
That decision prompted homosexual activist Nicole Murray Ramirez to post a letter on the church’s front door addressed to San Diego Bishop Robert Brom, calling on him to clarify diocesan policy on the issue of funeral rites for homosexuals. Following a similar incident in 2005, Bishop Brom apologized to the loved ones of a man, also the owner of nightclubs catering to gays and a homosexual-rights activist, who had been refused a funeral Mass.
The parish insider said priests at the parish (the pastor is away) decided that burial services would be appropriate but not a Mass because it appeared that Mr. Sanfilippo had not received the Last Rites, had not gone to Confession and was not a practicing Catholic**.**
Compare this to the secular media coverage (also posted in this thread):
Local businessman and **devout Catholic **John Sanfilippo died last week after struggling with emphysema. Friends said Sanfilippo planned for the funeral mass to be held at Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Church in Little Italy, where Sanfilippo had attended for decades. Friends said he even left the church a large sum of money in his will.
Would have sure been nice had News10 given a couple of details that appeared in CalCatholic. Like the fact that this Sanfilippo was the owner of a gay bar and that he was not a practicing Catholic…not to mention the fact that the parish offered a funeral service, just not a funeral Mass.

I guess it’s not reasonable to expect the MSM to ask the right questions…much less give honest reportage.