“We acknowledge that our role in the Church inevitably puts us in a position in which we may be criticized for some actions. Catholic media have the right to engage in such criticism carried on in the spirit of civility already described.”United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Civility in the Media 2000
“The Christian faithful are free to make known to the pastors of the Church their needs…they have the right and even at times the duty to manifest to the sacred pastors their opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church and to make their opinion known to the rest of the Christian faithful…”
Code of Canon Law, Canon 212:2-3 1983
Archbishop of Westminster:
The Catholic News Agency reported that Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster, England, in a November 26 press conference, said he supports same-sex civil partnerships. He is reported to have said that “civil partnerships actually provide a structure in which people of the same sex who want a lifelong relationship and a lifelong partnership can find their place and protection and legal provision.” In the same news article, the Archbishop Nichols is quoted as saying, “Clearly, respect must be shown to those who in the situation in England use a civil partnership to bring stability to a relationship.” William Oddie, a commentator for the Catholic Herald in the U.K., wrote that “the chairman of the bishops’ conference said that the English Church supports civil unions between homosexual persons, unions which have been given the legal right to adopt children.”
So there you have it! The Archbishop of Westminster, along with other bishops in England, gives tacit approval to at least some form of same-sex union. Scandalous? Indeed, it is! Besides lending credence to that which is gravely sinful, there is something else to consider.
The reason why I address this story from the Catholic News Agency is not so much because a prominent Catholic bishop publicly supports civil partnerships of same-sex couples. Rather, what I wish to draw your attention to is something even worse and even more dangerous: And that is the silence of his brother bishops.
Old and New Shepherds:
The Catholic Church holds up, as models to imitate, the Fathers of the Church and the Saints. But what happens when the Fathers of the Church, most of whom were bishops, did one thing and the bishops of today are doing another? How do reconcile these opposites?
One prominent Father of Church and Saint is Pope St. Gregory the Great. He gave the following admonition: “Wherefore, it is necessary that they [Bishops and Pastors] should guard themselves more cautiously against a fault, as by their misdeeds they not only perish themselves, but are responsible for the souls of those whom they ruin by their example.” He further adds, “…the pastor who does not eradicate the evil which he observes, comes to that state which his negligence deserves, namely, not even to recognize the sins of his subjects.” This is to say that pastoral negligence in reproving others, whether it is souls committed to his care or his peers, will eventually lead to blindness of sin.
I can cite countless admonitions from both Church Fathers and Saints to this effect. Error and sin are bad enough. But silence by those in authority who can help redress the harmful effects is equally reprehensible. To be sure, any bishop or priest leading souls astray about something as important as sexuality, marriage or family causes a great deal of harm in the Body of Christ. Yet, God has not only given us human rights in the natural order but he has also given us rights in the supernatural order, that is, as members of his Mystical Body, the Church.
The Sacrament of Holy Orders and the Catholic priesthood in general exists for the human soul; not the other way around. When the former encroaches upon the latter, a way to remedy the situation should be available to the faithful. An example to this effect is in the case of child abuse. When a child is abused by his parents, other adults or authorities are duty bound to intervene. The same applies to the children of God in the Church.
Code of Conduct: Silence
Former U.S. President, Ronald Reagan, once said that one of the commandments of the Republican Party should be that a fellow Republican shouldn’t criticize another Republican. This code of conduct serves a good purpose. It solidifies and brings unity to a political party. Catholic bishops too have something known as Episcopal collegiality. It is a fraternal brotherhood among Catholic bishops. Like no other fraternity or institution, Catholic bishops have observed this code of conduct with great attention; much better than the Republicans have, to be sure. But like any good thing, it can be used to a fault. When the good of the Church and the salvation of souls are at stake, then it this collegiality ought to be suspended. Silence should be broken. The “other adults” (i.e. brother bishops) should intervene on behalf of God’s children who have been scandalized and potentially lost. The Apostles and the Church Fathers, pastors who the Church has held up as models, did just that!!
Suspending the Code:
St. Paul, for instance, was a bishop of the Church in the first century. St. Peter was a bishop too. But not only a bishop- the Bishop of bishops –he was our first pope. As such, St. Paul was his inferior. Yet, when St. Paul noticed that St. Peter was giving scandal to gentile Christians in his pastoral practices (not his infallible teachings on faith and morals), he, St. Paul, publicly reprimanded the pope. He gives the following account in Galatians:
“And when Kephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he clearly was wrong…But when I saw that they were not on the right road in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Kephas in front of all, ‘If you, though a Jew, are living like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?’” (Galatians 2:11,14)
About three hundred years later, St. Cyril, Archbishop of Alexandria, took to task a man named Nestorius, the Archbishop of Constantinople. St. Cyril publicly accused Nestorius of heresy. In fact, Nestorius taught that the Blessed Virgin Mary was not the Mother of God and that Jesus had two personalities or persons in his one being. It wasn’t until the General (or Ecumenical) Council of Ephesus convened in 431 A.D. that Nestorius was formally condemned.
And just recently, at the November 2011 General Assembly of the U.S. Bishops, Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, CT called upon his brother bishops to be "watchmen." According to the prophet Ezekiel and the early Church Fathers, a watchman is he who sounds the alarm for his flock when good sheep get lost or when a wolf approaches. In either case, a watchman raises his voice so that the fog of confusion is dispelled; just as St. Paul and St. Cyril did with respect to their brother bishops. But when watchmen are intimidated into silence, or when they deem it "unChristian" to correct a brother who errs or sins, it can spell disaster for the sheep.
Salvation over Collegiality:
Today, in the Catholic Church, we do not have a lot of cases of bishops who go public with doctrinal heresy. However, we did, over the last fifty years, and still do, have plenty of cases that involve pastoral scandals like the one cited above i.e. Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster. In the first millennium of Christianity, and even up to the twentieth century, bishops in the Church were well aware that the salvation of souls took precedence over their collegiality with other bishops. And us lay people have the same obligation. Loyalty and trust are dispositions that characterize friendships. But if I should ever discover mistreatment or abuse of children under my brother, friend or neighbors roof, I am morally obligated to intervene their behalf. Wouldn’t it seem that when souls and their eternal destiny is at stake it is even more incumbent that our Spiritual Fathers intervene by publicly expressing disapproval?
Son, Not Critic:
I express my concerns as a son of the Church not as a critic of the clergy. Although the USCCB and the Code of Canon Law has made known that Catholics do have rights and can exercise them by making known their concerns as to pertains to the good of the Church to other Christians, I am nevertheless mindful of the caution the Saints have given over the years in such matters. Indeed, St. Gregory the Great and St. Catherine of Sienna go even further in their admonition to Catholics who observe the faults of their superiors.
Great Caution with Corrections:
Pope St. Gregory the Great cautions Christians that when they observe the faults of their superiors, they are to do it with a reverence of a spiritual son or daughter; not as disgruntled critic who has nothing to loose by hurling accusations at them. He said, “Subjects are to be warned not to judge rashly the way of life of their superiors if, by chance, observe anything reprehensible; otherwise, their just criticism of what is wrong may plunge them by pride into lower depths themselves.” St. Gregory goes on to say, “They must be warned that in observing faults in their superiors, they do not become too disrespectful to them. On the contrary, should the faults be of very serious nature, their private judgement should such that constrained by the fear of God they still do not refuse to bear the yoke of reverence in subjection to them.” (Pastoral Rule: part III, chapter 3)
About seven hundred years later in St. Catherine’s book, The Dialogue, God reminds Christians that when they slander or deride their Pastors, they really assault Him. St. Catherine records His warning as such: “The reverence you pay to them is not actually paid to them but to me, in virtue of the blood I have entrusted to their ministry…Therefore, you must not sin against them, because if you do, you are really sinning not against them but against me…For this reason no one has excuse to say, ‘I am doing no harm, nor am I rebelling against the Church. I am simply acting against the sins of evil pastors.’ To me redounds every assault they make on my ministers: derision, slander, disgrace, abuse. Whatever is done to them I count as done to me.”
Notice that Pope St. Gregory the Great, or any Church Father for that matter, never declared that the laity, in observing the faults of their the clergy, is forbidden nor is it a sin. The thing to keep in mind is that we are sons and daughters of our spiritual fathers, namely, the bishops. As such, making known our grievances and even addressing problems which need immediate attention should be done- not only for the good of the Church at large -but out of love for the bishop themselves. The faults and sins of our bishops should grieve us. And if we feel duty bound to vocalize our concerns it should be accompanied with prayer and spiritual sacrifices.
You see, as troubling as Archbishop Vincent Nichols' tacit approval of same-sex civil unions is, there is more at stake. Our response to this, that is, the Church's response to scandals of this nature will determine if a Christian civilization is still a viable option in this world!
