Neo-paganism/Wicca in Catholic settings?

[Deacon2006]

Liberian:

Catholics for a Free Choice, at least, is (from what I understand) one woman named Frances Kissling, a fax machine, a good nose for publicity, and a lot of money from the abortion industry. Not much of an organization, but a serious thorn in the side of the faithful.

• Liberian

If you go to her web site you see that she has a new age ritual that women should do before they have an abortion.

God Bless

 

[TeriGator]

vegpotter:

Can I ask specifically what this book charges these groups/people with? They are all generic charges, what do you mean by them? I, too, went to Fontbonne, but I’ve never heard of most of the rest of these groups/people, so I have no idea what they are like.

The book was written in 91, and reported events that occurred in the 1980’s, but I don’t know if anything occurred in subsequent years. That’s kind of what I wanted to find out here.

Fontbonne hosted two conferences in 1987, titled “Women Alive! A Nurturing Network invites all women to catch the wave of Womenspirit Rising.” It was organized by Joleene Unnerstall, who “left the School Sisters of Notre Dame to become a New Age ‘tranceformationalist’.”

Conference workshops included

• Creating a Sacred Circle
• Past Lives and Present Wisdom
• Chakras: Spiritual Energy Centers
• Group Channeling
• Using Crystals for Meditation
• The Goddess Within

Conferences at other locations were described in greater detail, and often included invocations of the four spirits (aka four corners), frequent references to the goddess, prayers invoking Holy Virgin Huntress Artemis, drawing of sacred circles, and even naming the participants themselves as witches. I could go on with many more details, but it would amount to basically retyping the entire book.

Not only are pagan rituals and speech common, at most of the conferences the speakers rip into the Church with angry and hateful speeches, often saying that the only way to change the Church is to remake it in the image they want: worshipping the goddess instead of God, doing away with all hierarchy, eliminating the concept of sin, allowing abortion and birth control, and accepting all sorts of sexual freedom. Most of them say that they remain in the Church because they want to create a revolution from within, rather than disassociate themselves from the Catholic Church and create their own religion.

 

[vegpotter]

TeriGator:

The book was written in 91, and reported events that occurred in the 1980’s, but I don’t know if anything occurred in subsequent years. That’s kind of what I wanted to find out here.

Fontbonne hosted two conferences in 1987, titled “Women Alive! A Nurturing Network invites all women to catch the wave of Womenspirit Rising.” It was organized by Joleene Unnerstall, who “left the School Sisters of Notre Dame to become a New Age ‘tranceformationalist’.”

Conference workshops included

• Creating a Sacred Circle
• Past Lives and Present Wisdom
• Chakras: Spiritual Energy Centers
• Group Channeling
• Using Crystals for Meditation
• The Goddess Within

Conferences at other locations were described in greater detail, and often included invocations of the four spirits (aka four corners), frequent references to the goddess, prayers invoking Holy Virgin Huntress Artemis, drawing of sacred circles, and even naming the participants themselves as witches. I could go on with many more details, but it would amount to basically retyping the entire book.

Not only are pagan rituals and speech common, at most of the conferences the speakers rip into the Church with angry and hateful speeches, often saying that the only way to change the Church is to remake it in the image they want: worshipping the goddess instead of God, doing away with all hierarchy, eliminating the concept of sin, allowing abortion and birth control, and accepting all sorts of sexual freedom. Most of them say that they remain in the Church because they want to create a revolution from within, rather than disassociate themselves from the Catholic Church and create their own religion.

Ahhh…that’s why this is so unfamiliar. I graduated in '99 and I can tell you that nothing like this was going on in my time there. Yes, they are probably a bit more liberal than many would like, but nothing like what you describe!! So, I would take this with a grain of salt, it is an issue to be aware of, but much has changed in 14 years.

 

[Celia]

Deacon2006:

If you go to her web site you see that she has a new age ritual that women should do before they have an abortion.

God Bless

Yeah, I saw that…yikes.

 

[TeriGator]

vegpotter:

Ahhh…that’s why this is so unfamiliar. I graduated in '99 and I can tell you that nothing like this was going on in my time there. Yes, they are probably a bit more liberal than many would like, but nothing like what you describe!! So, I would take this with a grain of salt, it is an issue to be aware of, but much has changed in 14 years.

That is good news indeed. Since I have not had a chance to investigate this further yet, I am grateful for any updates I can get. :tiphat: