Order Dismisses a Priest Trying to Ordain Women

[1holycatholic]

The New York Times:

Order Dismisses a Priest Trying to Ordain Women

The Rev. Roy Bourgeois, who refused to renounce his increasingly public campaign to see women ordained as priests in the Roman Catholic Church, has been notified of his dismissal by his religious order, the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers.

A letter to Father Bourgeois, signed by the superior general and the general secretary of the Maryknoll order in the United States, said the dismissal was necessary because of his “defiant stance” in opposition to church teaching.

“Your numerous public statements and appearances in support of the women’s priests movement continues to create in the minds of many faithful the view that your position is acceptable to our Church,” the letter said, adding that Father Bourgeois had caused the church “grave scandal.”
…

:coffeeread:

 

[Theophorus]

To see such disobedience and so many misguided actions from Fr. Roy Bourgeois is truly sad.

Father Bourgeois said. “And they can’t get that out of me. For me, the real scandal is the message we are sending to women: you’re not equal, you cannot be priests, you’re not worthy

What utter tosh!

It seems to me that Fr. Bourgeois does not recognise the dignity afforded by God to laity as laity. Father Bourgeois’s message: ‘Your not good enough unless your a priest’ stinks of clericalism of the worse kind.

In addition to his disdainful attitude towards the laity, Fr. Bourgeois puts himself above the Pope and the Magisterium and takes to himself the authority of God.

The Church, as Pope John Paul II said, does not ordain women not because she won’t but because she can’t! She hasn’t been given the authority to ordain them. Fr. Bourgeois’s in attempting to ordain women is saying he knows better than the Church and ultimately that he knows better than God this attitude also stinks of clericalism.

This is the type of clericalism the Church can do without. I pray that Fr. Bourgeois repents and humbles himself as I do not wish to see him cut himself off from the church but it appears this will not happen.

truly truly sad

 

[barb_finnegan]

Well, it’s about time, Maryknoll!

Should have done this before it got out of hand…

‘Father’ Roy, why don’t you just go over to the Episcopals? They got everything you want-priestesses, even bishopesses! Go and take your ‘priestess wanna-bes’ there-they’ll have lots of places vacated by those Episcopalians who are fleeing to the Anglican Ordinariate.

[yeah, I know this sounds nasty-but I’m in kind of a crabby mode today-too bad]

 

[Fink]

What utter tosh!

It seems to me that Fr. Bourgeois does not recognise the dignity afforded by God to laity as laity. Father Bourgeois’s message: ’Your not good enough unless your a priest’ stinks of clericalism of the worse kind.

truly truly sad

Good point!

i wonder what good he thinks the canon lawyer will do him.
Maybe he`ll put all of those power-hungry know-nothings in Rome in their place, just like Hus and Luther and the other great “reformers” (supposedly) did.

 

[lux]

I’ve wondered before how the argument regarding the Church’s not having the authority to ordain woman as priests has not been refuted by invoking the loosing and binding powers given her by Jesus?

 

[TevereNauta]

Thank the Lord that the Maryknoll Fathers finally got their act going! “By their fruits you shall know them…” Father Bourgeois was nothing less than a cancer in the Church, I pray for his repentence and conversion (and BTW, is his name some kind of socialist double entendre given his beliefs?)

Anyways, all the heterodox I’ve ever met were slavish fans of this fellow. So in a way it is sad, Father Bourgeois was a good heretic barometer if nothing else.

 

[1holycatholic]

I’ve wondered before how the argument regarding the Church’s not having the authority to ordain woman as priests has not been refuted by invoking the loosing and binding powers given her by Jesus?

That’s not how the Church understands binding and loosing:

[Christ Builds His Church on Peter

General Audience November 25, 1992](http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/audiences/alpha/data/aud19921125en.html)
…
Jesus indeed said to Peter: “I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Mt 16:19). This is another simile Jesus used to show his will to confer on Simon Peter a universal and complete power guaranteed and authenticated by heavenly approval. This does not mean only the power to formulate points of doctrine or general norms of action. According to Jesus, it is the power of “binding and loosing,” that is, of doing whatever is necessary for the life and development of the Church. The opposing terms “binding-loosing” serve to show the totality of the power.
…

 

[brumano]

I’ve wondered before how the argument regarding the Church’s not having the authority to ordain woman as priests has not been refuted by invoking the loosing and binding powers given her by Jesus?

A really tough question but the powers are to loose or bind; they have the power to bind according to revealled truth and the male priesthood is fully revealled in the person of The Lord Jesus as High Priest and the massive weight of Scripture and Sacred Doctrine so they must bind, so they have done so inerrantly for 2000 yrs and as the Scripture you refer to states it has been bound “in Heaven and on Earth” by The Lord Himself. Pope John Paul II is right it cannot be changed, it is part of eternal unchanging truth.
The enormous far reaching powers to loose and bind that are given to the Apostolic Church have to do with discretionary matters as the Apostles and their successors see them; not so much with changing or for whatever reason trying to change essential truth.
There are other things that cannot be changed; an example you can easily agree to is the truth of the Holy Eucharist; a Pope or even the entire hierachy of The Church could not change it and expect that that change would be bound.

 

[ringil]

Well this priest had to know this would happen,

The Church needs to ensure that it’s ministers preach faithfully and not sew dischord.

Perhaps this guy will go the way of Cutie- write a book- make some money- whatever.

 

[lux]

Yes I see, “according to revealed truth” is the key to the entire question of authority to loose and bind. Thank you. I was looking for an answer that would explain this doctrine to those who may attempt to use Mat 16 as an argument to dissent.

 

[Ahimsa]

COLUMBUS, Ga. — Father Roy Bourgeois sat in his modest apartment on Tuesday, Aug. 16 with only seven hours left to say two words: I recant.

These words would free him of a looming dismissal from the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (Maryknoll). Father Bourgeois was ordered to recant his open campaign in favor of ordination of women as priests, a position in direct conflict with Church doctrine.

“Wednesday is the day,” Father Bourgeois said in a conversation with the Register on Aug. 16. “I poked the beehive of the patriarchy, and those bees got very upset with me. I am in very serious trouble. Yes, we have to obey our leaders. But above that is loyalty to conscience, and conscience is very important to God.”
…
The letter cited a variety of passages from canon law, which disciplines Catholics who teach “a doctrine condemned by the Roman Pontiff” and refuse to “retract” after a warning by the Apostolic See or by the ordinary.

But will Fr. Bourgeois face excommunication, or will he simply be dismissed from Maryknoll?

 

[Dale_M]

But will Fr. Bourgeois face excommunication, or will he simply be dismissed from Maryknoll?

According to the article, he has already been excommunicated, being informed of such by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in letter dated Sept.27, 2008.

 

[Ahimsa]

According to the article, he has already been excommunicated, being informed of such by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in letter dated Sept.27, 2008.

I think that was a warning (or at least eventually revoked) related to his participation in a woman’s priesthood ordination, though, otherwise, how could someone excommunicated still be a functioning priest?

 

[Dale_M]

I think that was a warning (or at least eventually revoked) related to his participation in a woman’s priesthood ordination, though, otherwise, how could someone excommunicated still be a functioning priest?

I admit that I haven’t been following the case very closely, but it seems his public faculties as a priest were suspended when he was notified of his excommunication.
macon.com/2011/08/13/1664203/bourgeois-faces-expulsion-from.html

A canon lawyer, J.D. Flynn, explains in more detail:

As an excommunicated priest, he cannot be a minister of the sacraments and his participation in the life of the Church is limited, Flynn explained.

However, he is still a member of the Maryknoll order until he is dismissed and he is still recognized as a priest under church law.

“The process of laicization removes him from the clerical state, to clarify that he has no ability to exercise ministry in the Church,” Flynn said.

Bourgeois’ excommunication was a “medicinal penalty” intended to evoke repentance.

“When that didn’t work, and only when that didn’t seem to work, and Father perdured, did the Church begin the formal process she’s using now, which is separating Father from the formal ministry of the Church,” Flynn told CNA.

dfwcatholic.org/maryknoll-order-to-dismiss-priest-who-advocates-women%E2%80%99s-ordination14195/.html

 

[Fink]

If hes incapable of understanding why women cant be “priestesses”, he has no business being a priest, himself. He should be removed from the scene; and the sooner: the better.

 

[Fink]

He`s in good company: Luther, Calvin, Knox, Wycliffe and other assorted heretics.

 

[Little_One0307]

I have a question, not to derail the thread. But if he is excommunicated, he is still a priest right? When one is laicized it can’t remove the indelible marks of Holy Orders? So when a priest is laicized what does it do to his mark of Holy Orders?

Thanks.

God bless.

 

[Ahimsa]

VATICAN CITY — A U.S. Catholic priest who supports ordination for women was detained briefly by police Monday after marching to the Vatican to press the Holy See to lift its ban on women priests.

The Rev. Roy Bourgeois and about a dozen supporters had marched down the main boulevard leading to the Vatican holding a banner “Ordain Catholic Women” and chanting outside St. Peter’s Square “What do we want? Women priests! When do we want them? Now!”

Police prevented the group from entering the piazza and told them to take down their banners since they didn’t have a protest permit. When police then tried to confiscate the banners, members of the group resisted, resulting in Bourgeois and two supporters being taken away in police cars, witnesses said.

 

[George_Stegmeir]

It goes to show you- You do not mess with the Italian police! They are not as tolerant of protest as the American police.

 

[Corki]

So much for him submitting to his superiors and getting his excommunication lifted.