What would you expect from the meeting of bishops at February 21-24, 2019?

[AlbMagno]

Wow, the people in this thread have the gift of Prophecy

 

[Here-I-am-Lord]

I am not sure the current crisis of clerical abuse and sexual crimes against minors can be treated from the viewpoint of strict Catholic orthodoxy. Where would this lead us from here?

This would lead to orthodox solutions. If the flock likes orthodox solutions, then people will follow an orthodox leadership. If the flock rejects orthodoxy, then enforcing orthodox solutions will cause more troubles to come.

focusing only on “clericalism” and abuse of minors, with no mention of active homosexual activity among clergy

The Synod was called to address the sexual abuse problem. So it is natural that a focus will be on that. As a risk factor for future sexual abuse, gay activity among clergy might be condemned.

Honestly I am not expecting anything more than lip service to come out of this meeting.

It will depend on the stance and firm resolution of the bishops. If our bishop corps is reliable, then reliable outcome can be expected. If the bishop corps is unreliable, then who is to be blamed?

I fear there may eventually be another great schism, over either women’s ordination, blessing and “marrying” homosexual couples in the Church…or both.

I don’t think these issues would be taken up at the February meeting.

Wow, the people in this thread have the gift of Prophecy

It is not about prophecies, more like about looking for guidance in faith matters during troubled times.

 

[curious_cath]

If the flock likes orthodox solutions, then people will follow an orthodox leadership.

The leadership of the Catholic Church, Vatican and the Curia needs to be more progressive than the average believer. We the faithful tend to look at the scandals with dismay and contempt. We like to run back 500 years in church history and demand full power to dogmas. But the Pope and his Cardinals should look beyond this superficial reaction. He will maintain the rule of Christ in the church through compassion. Give me, Lord, a genuinely compassionate heart, so that I never turn away my face from suffering.

 

[curious_cath]

If the flock rejects orthodoxy, then enforcing orthodox solutions will cause more troubles to come.

I already see more troubles to come. Archbishop Vigano claims Pope Francis should repent and be converted. It is a quite subversive comment, I reckon. He says about the Supreme Pontiff:

“I urged him then, and I now urge him again, to tell the truth, repent, show his willingness to follow the mandate given to Peter and, once converted, to confirm his brothers (Luke 22:32).”

Despite Grave Problems, the Lord Will Never Abandon His Church

REGISTER SYMPOSIUM: I continue to have hope, because the Lord will never abandon his Church.

www.ncregister.com

 

[VanitasVanitatum]

Actually I’m pretty optimistic. It’s kind of funny since I’m cynical toward most people.

 

[Here-I-am-Lord]

Actually I’m pretty optimistic.

Optimistic, I assume, means that much will be achieved at the Bishops’ Synod in restricting the troublemakers and limiting further damages. My worry is that Archbishop Vigano, who voiced again a pretty stinging opinion piece in the National Catholic Reporter, might be considered a troublemaker by many. I believe he is more like a whistle blower, not a troublemaker by any means! So he should be praised rather than condemned.

 

[Here-I-am-Lord]

It is not only Archbishop Carlo Vigano who has doubts. Cardinal Gerhard Muller is also very very critical:

“It has been said that if priests and bishops were allowed to practice homosexuality with persons over 18 years of age, boys and young men would be protected. Therefore, the prohibition, rooted in divine law, to keep practicing homosexual candidates away from the priesthood must be dropped. Those “enlightened” individuals place themselves above Revelation by wanting to free the word of God from prejudice against homosexual practice. They discriminate against those who are not homophile and mercilessly persecute them.”

The Rotten Fruit of Secularization

REGISTER SYMPOSIUM: Only he who lives according to the commandments of God can be a good shepherd and a model for the flock.

www.ncregister.com

 

[Stuartonian]

I would expect Nothing

 

[jack63]

I too wish I understood what to expect from this meeting. Also, I wish I understood how it effected the United States and Europe. We prayed today at my parish for the success of this meeting. That is the first time I’ve heard this meeting mentioned in my parish.

Maybe I’ll ask what seems to be some obvious questions and maybe somebody will have obvious answers that I’ve completely missed.

Here is the thing I just don’t understand. In the United States it does not seem like there is significant ongoing abuse of children (under 18) that is occurring. It seems like these terrible things ended in 2002 or shortly after that once the Catholic church instituted polices for prevention. Even the release of info in Pennsylvania is from before approximately 2002. Am I wrong? Assuming I’m right, what is the conference about? Why is it necessary? Is it necessary only for other parts of the world and not the US?

Is this conference more about holding clerics accountable for decades old incidents? Is that actually its main focus? If so, nobody going to be terribly excited about digging into incidents that happened 20 - 40 years ago.

Is it about keeping clerics chaste? I agree that there are legitimate concerns here; however, I’m not sure what good a major meeting of Bishops will do to help this in even the best case scenario.

I’m certainly not criticizing the meeting for taking place, and I pray for success. I just would like to understand this better. Bottom line why is the meeting necessary (at least for the US) when policies instituted by the Catholic church in the US have been fairly effective since approximately 2002 to prevent abuse?

 

[Here-I-am-Lord]

Is this conference more about holding clerics accountable for decades old incidents?

I believe the problem is related to actions taken by state attorney generals to hold high ranking Catholic clerics accountable for covering up criminal sexual activity against minors. Litigation may force the church to open its archives. Then even more questionable practices may come into light. The church also has to demonstrate efficient prevention policies to convince civil authorities that the church is able to provide safe environment to children.

 

[angel12]

Don’t expect a quick fix .

This is going to take years .

That’s the problem – it’s been years.

 

[Rob2]

That’s the problem – it’s been years.

True @angel12 .

I don’t think many understand the gravity of the situation .

The Church is gravely broken , torn , damaged .

There will be further disclosures in the coming years .

It will get worse before it gets anywhere near better .

It is the worst crisis for the Church since the Reformation .

Personally I think it warrants an Ecumenical Council .

 

[angel12]

I’m not sure about a Council, but I’m with you 100% on the rest.

 

[KevinK]

Years? They’ve had decades to fix it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

More under “What do I expect”

• focusing only on “clericalism” and abuse of minors, with no mention of active homosexual activity among clergy
• heightened emphasis on clergy who have sinned by having relations with women
• hemming and hawing about whether celibacy should still be required
• insisting that including more women in Church leadership will solve all problems

Really pessimistic, but that’s what we’ve been hearing now for an awfully long time.

 

[curious_cath]

My reason for pessimism is the lack of protection of the unprotected: the falsely accused priests and bishops! Yeah, I know it is against the trend. The crowds demand heads to fall and blood to flow. In both real and allegorical sense.

But

• who is going to separate the sheep from the goat?
• Who is going to tell, which accusations against respected priests and bishops has merits and which accusations have no merit at all?

Cardinal Blase “Cupich is predicting Rome’s synod will focus on “accountability and transparency” in developing procedures to “safeguard children.” He added, “[In] this meeting the priority focus will be on protecting children because they are particularly defenseless and voiceless.””

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/the-sex-summit

I don’t see the safeguards against those anti-Catholic sharks who penetrate the church’s intimate spheres with the aim of benefiting from the mess caused by the uproar of the crowd and making profit from the misery of the church. The bishops at the meeting won’t make any effort to protect the vulnerable among themselves who did not commit anything wrong, still targeted for profit and monetary gain.

In Guam, for example, a small but devout Catholic archdiocese, hundreds of sexual abuse charges are being settled out of court right now.

Guam Archbishop appeals verdict Catholic News

If you follow the news, you may recall that here was a canonical trial against Archbishop Anthony Sablan Apuron that had been appealed. Pope Francis told the media recently that he will make a decision in the case: “I took it upon myself and I made a commission of canonists to help me,” Francis explained, adding: “It is a complicated case on one hand, but also not difficult because the evidence is very clear.” “But I cannot prejudge,” he said. “I’ll wait for the information, and then I will…

It was admitted that the church won’t make any effort to separate credible accusations from baseless defamatory charges. All accusers will get settlement, an undisclosed but considerable amount of money, unless they decide to refuse the money and go to court.

 

[Pattylt]

From my outsider point of view I think the USA church has addressed the protection of children. What I feel is still lacking is addressing the coverups and putting in clear policies to prevent THAT from happening again. Some form of transparency about how that was handled and what will now take place needs to be discussed and made clear that coverups will never happen again as best as can be humanly possible.

 

[Here-I-am-Lord]

A good source of further information from a parallel topic:

What Can We Expect From the Vatican Summit? Catholic News

Father Hans Zollner, who is on the organizing committee for the Vatican Summit, says this is what we should expect from it during his briefing for journalists in Rome: It will be first and foremost about raising awareness, including that the scandal of abuse is not a “Western” problem, but happens in every country. Organizers hope that by listening to victims and leaders who have learned things the hard way, participants will be inspired to adopt a culture of accountability and transparency. T…

 

[Here-I-am-Lord]

Cardinals Raymond Burke and Walter Brandmüller are writing at the eve of the Vatican meeting:

"The plague of the homosexual agenda has been spread within the Church, promoted by organized networks and protected by a climate of complicity and a conspiracy of silence. The roots of this phenomenon are clearly found in that atmosphere of materialism, of relativism and of hedonism, in which the existence of an absolute moral law, that is without exceptions, is openly called into question.

In the face of this situation, Cardinals and Bishops are silent. Will you also be silent on the occasion of the meeting called in the Vatican for this coming February 21st?"

Dubia cardinals to bishops at Vatican abuse summit: 'Will you also be silent?' - LifeSite

Cardinals Burke and Brandmuller have issued a crucial statement ahead of the Vatican event.

www.lifesitenews.com

 

[VanitasVanitatum]

clear policies to prevent THAT from happening again

Are you aware if such exist or not?