What-if scenario - A Priest teaching wrongly

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what-if scenario - Let’s say a Catholic witnesses a priest teaching wrongly during a homily - something serious such as… Saying fornication isn’t a sin or something…

Say the person confronts the priest about it privately and the priest refuses to accept the Church’s teaching.

What should a Catholic do in that situation?
Is there a website for catholic laity to contact someone in the Church who can correct the Priest or something?
 
If you have already talked to the priest. You can write the bishop. I’ve recorded things in the past to document it. It is really sad that this happens often in some places. Others seem relatively unaffected by priests teaching wrongly.
A word of caution. Dont always assume that because you dont like or agree with his theology that he is doing something that needs to be corrected. Also bishops cannot act on every complaint about a rouge priest or a priest that someone or even several people think is rogue. There are not a plethora of priests to go around.
 
  1. I dont think we should dictate simple matters like that.
  2. No. I dont want to derail the thread. Snd I dont want to make this about “bad” priests of which my current location has a few. Let’s just say I’ve heard anything from bad theology, that isn’t a big deal to heretical or evil things.
 
It’s been my experience that priests rarely teach anything that is outright heterodox or in error from the pulpit. They may neglect to teach on certain topics, or their emphasis may fall in a certain direction, but what you hear from the pulpit is pretty much plain vanilla Catholicism.

That is not to say, though, that it can’t happen. I think this is something that is more to be feared in the confessional, in individual counseling, or in the classroom.

If the bishop condones this, there is really nothing you can do. If you are confronted with a church where the Catholic faith is not taught in its fullness, or if modernist errors creep in, consider going to another parish.

Traditional Latin Mass parishes (what some call the “Extraordinary Form”) don’t seem to have this problem. I am not suggesting that the Novus Ordo (“Ordinary Form”) is heterodox, I am just stating the fact.
 
I report them to the Bishop. But I don’t confront them.

There is usually a website for the Diocese. I haven’t ever been to a city that doesn’t have one.
 
In this situation, a Catholic should turn to Jesus and pray. Did I understand what was said correctly? What was the priest trying to say to me? To others?

Jesus will answer. You may not recognize it, but your heart will grow stronger. You will appreciate why Jesus put this priest in the pulpit for you to hear.
 
While sometimes that is a good way to deal with things you may not agree with, there are priests that are absolutely NOT put there by Jesus to mislead…
 
Hoosier-Daddy said:
there are priests that are absolutely NOT put there by Jesus to mislead…
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Yes I agree. That is why I encourage asking the Lord, because priests are not put there to mislead. I have never heard a priest who wanted to mislead when he preached. Most are aware that Christ is present when the Gospel is read, and that their efforts serve that presence. Ask the Lord to show you what was intended.
 
If you attempt (I would say at least twice) to communicate this to the Bishop, and he does not respond or responds inadequately; the next step is the Apostolic Nuncio. After him is the Pope. Currently, the USA Nuncio is His Excellency Archbishop Christophe Pierre.
[Apostolic Nuncio - nunciature.usa]

In the USA, his office is:
Apostolic Nunciature in the United States of America
3339 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20008-3610
Phone: 202-333-7121
Fax: 202-337-4036
nuntiususa@nuntiususa.org
 
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Depending on where you live, your complaint might be passed to the ( I’m not sure if this is the correct name) Vicar Forane. For us, he is the person in our deanery that handles complaints.

For our diocese, they are listed on our web site. We have four, one for each deanery.

Obviously, you can start with your Vicar Forane. It might save time.
 
Dovekin said:
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Hoosier-Daddy:
there are priests that are absolutely NOT put there by Jesus to mislead…
Click to expand...
Yes I agree. That is why I encourage asking the Lord, because priests are not put there to mislead. I have never heard a priest who wanted to mislead when he preached. Most are aware that Christ is present when the Gospel is read, and that their efforts serve that presence. Ask the Lord to show you what was intended.
Click to expand...
I really dont know what “ask the Lord” means in this context.
 
Dovekin said:
In this situation, a Catholic should turn to Jesus and pray. Did I understand what was said correctly? What was the priest trying to say to me? To others?

Jesus will answer. You may not recognize it, but your heart will grow stronger. You will appreciate why Jesus put this priest in the pulpit for you to hear.
Click to expand...
This is the context. What do you not understand?
 
Guest1 said:
What should a Catholic do in that situation?
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Pray for the priest.

Discern whether you want to discuss the matter with him personally.

Discern, if the conversation goes differently than you’d hoped, whether you feel it proper to escalate the issue to his boss.
 
Ok, let’s say a priest is saying there is no hell. Or teaching separately on more personal situations. What does asking Jesus look like. How does he answer and us it the same truth for everyone?
 
Why would I know any of the things you ask about?

Hearing the gospel proclaimed at mass is a theophany, Christ is present. The homily is at the service of that experience. That experience of Christ is part of the relationship between him and the people present. It is from that relationship that any one of those people will ask Jesus about it.

I know nothing about any of that experience for your hypothetical. It is inrensely personal. Even if I did, I am not going to guess what the reponse from Jesus will be. I am not Jesus. Maybe he will say “well done, good and faithful servant.” Or “Get behind me Satan.” He could say “what do you care what I do with him? You, follow me.” If I knew what Jesus would say, that is what I would have talked about.

I do not understand your reticence about asking Jesus.
 
And I don’t understand what you are trying 6o communicate. Maybe we can just move on with the subject of the thread.
 
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