Moderate named new head of Catholic Church in Belgium

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Pope Francis today named Jozef De Kesel as the new Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels and de facto leader of the Catholic Church in Belgium.

Currently Bishop of Bruges, he is seen as a moderate in comparison to his conservative predecessor, Archbishop André-Joseph Léonard, whose offer of retirement aged 75 has been promptly accepted by the Pope.

Bishop De Kesel, 68, has called for a relaxation of mandatory celibacy for priests and said that women’s ordination is “negotiable.”

At a press conference announcing his appointment in Brussels today, he is reported to have stressed his “respect” for gay people adding that respect for each person, regardless of their sexual orientation, “is a value that the Gospel shares with modern culture."

thetablet.co.uk/news/2812/0/moderate-named-new-head-of-catholic-church-in-belgium
 
gilliam said:
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Bishop De Kesel, 68, has called for a relaxation of mandatory celibacy for priests and said that women’s ordination is “negotiable.”

At a press conference announcing his appointment in Brussels today, he is reported to have stressed his “respect” for gay people adding that respect for each person, regardless of their sexual orientation, “is a value that the Gospel shares with modern culture."
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That’s not a good definition of moderate. If it was the case, 90 percent of Bishops would be Reactionary.
 
SWolf said:
That’s not a good definition of moderate. If it was the case, 90 percent of Bishops would be Reactionary.
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It was the title of the article in the Tablet. Personally I don’t like calling anyone by a label like that, it is too political. See my signature.
 
Looks like the Tablet article was a little wrong. More information:

Bishop De Kesel, while largely popular among faithful in Belgium and abroad, is not without criticism. In 2010 he said he hoped that women could one day be priests, although in 2012 he underlined that the Church is unable to do so. He also believes celibacy for priests should be optional, but also says that this a decision that the Church as a whole should make. No chance of married priests (barring converts or the like) in Brussels anytime soon, then.

While he is a practical man, not blind to the realities around him, the new archbishop does not think that modernisation of Church and priesthood is the answer to everything. In 2013 he said, “Modernising the Church will not mean that people will return.” He added, “More personnel will also not solve our problems. It goes far deeper. Filling as many positions as possible with lay people, or allowing priests to marry, means staying blind to the real problems.” He has a clear vision of the Church, saying in an interview on the occasion of his appointment as auxiliary bishop of Mechelen-Brussels in 2002: “The Church should not be a dictatorship, but neither should she degenerate into a half-hearted thing that denies its own values and visions.”

incaelo.wordpress.com/2015/11/06/jozef-de-kesel-returns-to-brussels-but-now-as-archbishop-2/
 
gilliam said:
It was the title of the article in the Tablet. Personally I don’t like calling anyone by a label like that, it is too political. See my signature.
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I know, it wasn’t directed at you.
 
gilliam said:
Looks like the Tablet article was a little wrong. More information:

Bishop De Kesel, while largely popular among faithful in Belgium and abroad, is not without criticism. In 2010 he said he hoped that women could one day be priests, although in 2012 he underlined that the Church is unable to do so. He also believes celibacy for priests should be optional, but also says that this a decision that the Church as a whole should make. No chance of married priests (barring converts or the like) in Brussels anytime soon, then.

While he is a practical man, not blind to the realities around him, the new archbishop does not think that modernisation of Church and priesthood is the answer to everything. In 2013 he said, “Modernising the Church will not mean that people will return.” He added, “More personnel will also not solve our problems. It goes far deeper. Filling as many positions as possible with lay people, or allowing priests to marry, means staying blind to the real problems.” He has a clear vision of the Church, saying in an interview on the occasion of his appointment as auxiliary bishop of Mechelen-Brussels in 2002: “The Church should not be a dictatorship, but neither should she degenerate into a half-hearted thing that denies its own values and visions.”

incaelo.wordpress.com/2015/11/06/jozef-de-kesel-returns-to-brussels-but-now-as-archbishop-2/
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This information is comforting and perhaps is better support of the title of the original article than the original artical was. Thank you for sharing it. The quotation from the original article was, if you believe anything from a news source anyway :), disquieting.

–Jen
 
From interview:
You did not take part in the Synod on the family, but will probably get to work with its proposals. What will stay with you from this Synod?
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“The Synod may not have brought the concrete results that were hoped for, such as allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Communion. But it is unbelievable how much it was a sign of a Church that has changed. The mentality is really not the same anymore.
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I may be a careful person, but I do not think we should be marking time. Mercy is an important word for me, but in one way or another it is still somewhat condescending. I like to take words like respect and esteem for man as my starting point. And that may be a value that we, as Christians, share with prevailing culture.”
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incaelo.wordpress.com/2015/11/06/just-before-the-announcement-an-interview-with-archbishop-de-kesel/
 
A disaster. The Belgian church has already gone through much suffering at the hands of its bishops, the Pope appears to want to add to it.
 
Could I ask for prayers for the Archdiocese of St Paul/Minneapolis.
We are awaiting the appointment of our new Archbishop.
 
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