Tag Archives: Personal Ordinariates

Peregrinus Continues the Discussion

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Here's Part Two of "Reluctant Anglicans" by Peregrinus. It appears on his blog, Peregrinations, and has been posted also on Fr Stephen Smuts' blog. Since there was a good discussion resulting from the posting of Part One, I thought our readers would like to continue with the series.

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Reluctant Anglicans (2)

The questions presented here in the first "Reluctant" post have caused quite a flurry of comment on other blogs. I will attempt to summarize some of the constructive comments since our purpose is to seek clarification for those sincerely seeking to respond to our Lord's prayer that we all may be one.

So, here is a partial summary with the caveat that any condensation will be incomplete and since, as repeatedly mentioned, this is a process which is unfolding over years there are no easy, much less permanent, responses apart from those which are made by the CDF and other agents of the Holy See.

With this in mind, here we go with a first attempt at summary.

1. Authority

A number of posts have raised concerns about "private judgement" in relation to questions of authority. Some have pointed out that, amongst others, J.H. Newman held that there was a role for and necessity for the Church to elicit the voice of the laity in the determination of many matters including the reception of doctrine.

As it applies to the Ordinariates there are a number of matters which affect how this role might be defined in the governance of parishes, sodalities and ordinariate structures generally.

Anglicanorum Coetibus outlines clearly that it is expected that the councils and committees which are to be part of the structure being erected will reflect the engagement and contributions of laity in oversight at various levels. This has been a developing part of Anglican patrimony which will continue in the Ordinariates.

For Newman consultation with and participation by the laity is an important aspect of faithful discipleship as it relates to the stewardship which we collectively share for the Church Militant. In no way does consulting the laity detract from the proper role of doctrinal development and definition through the Petrine office or the role of the Magisterium in governing. In fact, the role of laity was seen by Newman as complementary to the Magisterium and as a sign of a vibrant Church with an educated laity – something Newman stove for in his work to establish a Catholic university in Ireland and in other aspects of his ministry.

The role of the laity as an aspect of patrimony is not then to be confused with the issue of "private judgement" in matters of doctrine.

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NOTE TO READERS

Due to time constraints, posts on this topic will continue at irregular intervals. For those interested there is much more discussion on the "The Anglo-Catholic" blog and Fr. Smut's blog amongst others.

Time does not allow a full digest of the constructive comments made there so discussion here will be selective but those who post comments to this blog will receive full consideration and, as stated, constructive comments will be posted here.

More to follow.

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Important Questions, Important Answers

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Over on his blog, Peregrinations, there is the first of a series of posts by Peregrinus, and in it are some interesting questions which could form the basis for useful discussion. I happened to see it on Fr Stephen Smuts' blog, and thought it worth reprinting here.

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Why are some Anglicans reluctant about the Ordinariates?

by Peregrinus

This begins a series of posts which will seek to address questions that people have about the process of entering into full communion with the Catholic Church through the Personal Ordinariates being erected to receive Anglicans.

IMG 4689 Important Questions, Important Answers

Barriers at St. Peter’s, Rome

There are, of course, many reasons for the reluctance of many Anglicans and others to enter a process for reception through the ordinariates. Anglicanorum Coetibus (AC) is the Apostolic Constitution crafted by Pope Benedict XVI to allow Anglicans, the Anglican patrimony and those drawn to the Church through the Anglican ethos to share full communion in response to our Lord’s prayer that we all may be one, ut unum sint.

AC is a thoughtful, realistic and generous ecumenical response to requests made over the past thirty years by Anglican bishops and faithful to enter into full unity with the Catholic Church while retaining those elements of Anglican culture and tradition which conform to the Catholic faith.

This post will list some of these concerns and future posts will seek to address these from a Canadian perspective.

First a few facts and estimates:

- To date there are eight bishops worldwide (by my count which may be out of date) who have been received into full communion and ordained.

- Around a hundred priests (with more in process) have been received and ordained

- Something going on a couple of thousand lay Anglicans have been received or are in a process to be received into the three ordinariates that currently serve the UK, the USA, Canada and Australia.

These numbers, though small, change monthly. Generously, the Holy Father has bestowed the rank of prelate of honour (Monsignor) upon each of the received former Anglican bishops following their ordinations.

Three of these former Anglican bishops have been created “ordinaries” that is leaders with jurisdiction for those who enter the non-territorial personal ordinariates erected:

1. Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham (OOLW) for England, Scotland and Wales

2. Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter (OCSP) to include jurisdiction for those received in North America including Canada and the USA

3. Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross (OOLSC) for Australia and, presumably, contiguous regions

These ordinaries act with authority and jurisdiction like that of bishops of a diocese without the limitation of geography within the respective Episcopal Conferences to which they relate e.g. Msgr Steenson of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter acts in concert with the conferences of bishops in Canada and the USA.

On a personal level, for example, an individual person received into the Ordinariate in Toronto comes under the same “ordinary” jurisdiction as someone in Houston,TX i.e. Msgr Steenson and does not come within the jurisdiction of the Cardinal Archbishop of Toronto though, naturally, the ordinary and the cardinal co-operate in every way possible to promote the unified witness of the Catholic Church.

IMG 1729 Important Questions, Important Answers

Anglican Use Mass celebrated on Sundays at Sacré-Coeur Parish in Toronto

All of this should indicate that there is a warm and generous welcome for Anglican clergy and people. Some Anglicans and others, however, demur, delay or have additional questions about the process for a variety of reasons and from varying circumstances. A few have decisively (for now anyway) decided to continue as Anglicans or Anglican Catholics or Anglo-Catholics as they variously describe themselves.

This article will begin to explore some of the concerns that people have in a non-partisan manner by listing questions that have been raised. Together we seek some answers or responses to the many details that an unfolding process presents.

Clarification has been the purpose of all of the postings on this blog and so your responses and other questions and constructive comments are invited. These will be vetted and presented to advance the discussion and illuminate what, as we have said, has been and will continue to be a developing process with many twists and winds along the “narrow way” that we are called to by the Gospel.

To record some of the concerns of people, I have been compiling a list over the summer of 2012. Here it is for your consideration.

1. Authority

Is there still a place for the voice of the laity in the Ordinariate?

Will the Ordinary have real control over the administration and assets of the Ordinariate which, in the case of Canada and the USA, is spread over a continent.

What role will the local bishops have and can Anglican patrimony be restricted by an unsympathetic bishop?

Is there any way that conservative Anglicans (those who have evangelical sympathies and others) might be persuaded to enter into full communion?

2. Liturgy

Will the liturgy be familiar to Anglicans or will there be such changes that worship feels foreign? Will the great Anglican musical tradition be nurtured and developed within the Ordinariates?

Will the RSV and King James (A.V.) bibles be used? Is it a “deal breaker” as some have said if the KJV is not used at Mass? Can the KJV be used for other services, the Offices, group and private devotions, etc., even if the RSV is the authorized text for lections at Mass?

Will priests be required to use the approved Anglican Use of the Roman Rite or will they increasingly move to the Ordinary or Extraordinary forms of the Roman Rite? Who decides?

3. Economics

What assets will groups be able to bring with them and what say will they have in the use of these assets. With whom will the deeds for property reside?

Will small communities be able to afford to pay priests a living wage? Will priests have to work for the local RC diocese dividing time between Anglican Ordinariate congregations and other parish or chaplaincy work?

Will there be support from local dioceses and conferences of bishops in terms of health care, pensions and retirement care for priests and other employees of the Ordinariate?

4. Culture and Sharing

Pope Benedict has expressed his concern that Anglicans bring their patrimony with them to share with other Catholics. How will this happen? What form will this sharing take or will Anglicans be absorbed into the larger Western Rite Catholic community eventually?

Will young men who marry continue to be approved for ordination? Will the seminaries make allowance and provision for married candidates for ordination?

How will formation for the clergy of the Anglican ordinariates take place? Will everything be centred in Houston?

Will the Anglican Use parishes such as Our Lady of the Atonement in San Antonio, TX be included ultimately in the ordinariate? What will relations between AU and Ordinariate parishes and groups be in the meantime?

So, we welcome your thoughts on these matters and your further questions as we seek to follow our Lord in the way of unity under the guidance of the Holy Father and of those entrusted with the implementation of AC.

In light of the many ups and downs of any movement to unity within the Body of Christ we would do well to keep in mind the words of a young Ordinariate member: “An Apostolic Constitution is for the ages. It will be here for any remaining Anglicans in 200 years.”

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Your responses are most welcome in the comments here, but since Peregrinus is asking the questions, you might like to go to his blog and post some comments there, too.

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A Poll of Our British Audience

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It has been suggested that since the majority of Anglo-Catholics in Britain, having used the English Missal while the Tridentine Rite prevailed, and having followed Rome's lead in adopting the Missal of Pope Paul VI in its rather banal and unfaithful English translation, Anglo-Catholics in England, Scotland, and Wales have become accustomed to modern liturgical language and quite a bit detached from the Prayer-Book tradition (insofar as the Eucharistic rite is concerned, at least).  So this poll is for inhabitants of Great Britain only.

If you are a resident of England, Scotland, or Wales, which style of liturgical language would you prefer to prevail in the Ordinariates?

View Results

loading A Poll of Our British Audience Loading ...
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The King James Bible

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Peter Karl T. Perkins wrote in the comments section the following:

The King James Bible is the single most important text in the English language. It has had more influence than any other. Its felicitous expressions are unmatched. They are what has made English what it is, with all its beauties and faults. It not only reflects that culture and patrimony; it has formed it. I find it hard to imagine parallels to this removal. An abolition of this sort effectively divorces the liturgy of the ordinariates from the very font of the culture and patrimony they claim to conserve. Words fail on this occasion, and it is precisely the failure of words that is the subject here.

-snip-

When ordinary people from every walk of life attend the Mass or Office they are not there to reflect on precise meanings from ancient texts. Their attendance connects them to an entire ethos and worldview. In a flash, it's gone.

I agree with PKTP in this, but it is not a deal-breaker for me as far as the Ordinariate is concerned.  I still hope, however, that reason will prevail and this most precious foundation of English-speaking civilization will be preserved in the Ordinariates, even if, as someone else suggested, it is preserved as a kind of Extraordinary Form, that might include the English Missal and so on.

For how many, I wonder, if the fact that it is not so far allowed in our Ordinariate readings a deal-breaker?  For those who have not joined the Catholic Church, what does this signal to you?  Absorption?  For those who are already Catholic, is this one of the reasons you have decided not to join?

If you could advise Msgr. Burnham and the international liturgy committee what would you tell them?  If most of the folks in the Ordinariate want the King James Bible, let's let them know.  If most don't really care, well, then we'll know.

 

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Fr. George Rutler on Post-Comfortable Christianity

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Fr. George Rutler has a great essay in Crisis Magazine about Post-Comfortable Christianity.  Here's an excerpt.  Please go over an read the whole thing:

There is in Paul a model for Catholics at the start of the Third Millennium which began with fireworks and Ferris wheels but is now entering a sinister stage.  Like Paul, it is not possible to be a Christian without living for Christ by suffering for him, nor is it possible to be a Christian without willing to die for him when he wants.   The Christian veneer of  American culture has cracked and underneath is the inverse of the blithe Christianity that took shape in the various enthusiasms of the nineteenth century and ended when voters were under the impression that they finally had a Catholic president.

This new period is not “Post-Christian” because nothing comes after Christ.   We can, however, call it “Post-Comfortable Christian.”  Niebuhr, looking out from New York’s Neo-Athens on Morningside Heights with its Modernist Christian seminaries and highly endowed preaching palaces and office towers of denominational bureaucracies, caricatured the Messiah of mainline religiosity: ”A God without wrath brought men without sin into a kingdom without judgment through the ministrations of a Christ without a cross.”  The virtual collapse of  those institutions on Morningside Heights, is mute testimony to the truth of his irony.

The bishops of the United States have asked the faithful to pray for religious liberty, now facing unprecedented assault. The national election in November, 2012 will either give Christians one last chance to rally, or it will be the last free election in our nation.  This can only sound like hyperbole to those who are unaware of what happened to the Slavic lands after World War I and to Western Europe in the 1930’s.   St. Paul  was writing to us when he wrote to the Galatians and Corinthians and Washingtonians – or rather, Romans – in his lifetime.

Unless there is a dramatic reversal in the present course of our nation, those who measured their Catholicism by the Catholic schools they attended, will soon find most of those institutions officially pinching incense to the ephemeral genius of their secular leaders, and universities once called Catholic will be no more Catholic than Brown is Baptist or Princeton is Presbyterian. The surrender will not come by a sudden loss of faith in Transubstantiation or doubts about Papal Infallibility.   It will happen smoothly and quietly, as the raptures of the Netherworld always hum victims into somnolence, by the cost factor of buying out of government health insurance.

After Mass today up in Ottawa we had a similar discussion.  Canada already has "universal" healthcare, or socialized medicine, so it wasn't about that.  (And interestingly, when it was proposed in Parliament there were assurances tax dollars would never fund abortion!  Now we fund abortion on demand in Canada, with no law against killing an unborn child at any stage of pregnancy.)

Instead it was about  Catholic schools, which in Ontario receive tax dollars from Catholic parents who have their taxes directed to the separate school system.  Many now argue those Catholic schools are Catholic in Name Only (CINO).  One of the people in the discussion said he guessed that if you decided to take the faithful Catholic teachers and the faithful parents who want their children raised in the Catholic faith, you'd have a remnant of about ten per cent.  Otherwise the public Catholic school system is not much different from the regular public school system.

While in the United States, Catholic institutions face pressure on the HHS mandate, in Canada, various provincial governments are forcing anti-Catholic curricula and policies on Catholic schools, even private schools and, soon, we fear, even homeschooling parents.  Whether it is indoctrinating children into relativism disguised as a religious and ethical studies program in Quebec, or sexual education programs that teach kids how to masturbate or explain how to have safe [censored] sex (at the sixth grade level, no less), Caesar is feeling his oats and churches look like weak, decayed, compromised structures that will give way.

So, what are your hopes for the Ordinariates in this Post-Comfortable Christianity climate?

My biggest hope is that they will be part of a revival similar to the "various enthusiasms" of the 19th Century, only a revival that also has substance in addition whatever kinds of manifestations followed those revivals.

If there is no revival, then I hope they will be little islands of preservation, that keep the Catholic faith, beauty and tradition alive as the world around grows darker and more and more dangerous for Christians.

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English Wisdom: Triumvirate

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Here's another contribution from former Our Lady of Walsingham parishioner, Vincent Uher.  This piece, for me at least, begs the question of when and how are we to see Governing Councils in the Ordinariates come to be.  Under Anglicanorum cœtibus, the Governing Council of a Personal Ordinariate has considerable sway, its approval necessary for a number of key pastoral decisions, such as erecting a new parish or advancing postulants to Orders.  These are unusual limits placed on the power of a Catholic Ordinary (and my only guess is that this was intended to be a nod to Anglican synodal government), but they are clearly mandated in the primary legislation and norms.  Presently, the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter is "governed" by the Ordinary, his assistant, Fr. Scott Hurd, and (truth be told) several "interested" Catholic bishops.

In England, at least, there has already been established some form of collegiality and aid to the Ordinary, Msgr. Newton.  It is this temporary arrangement which Mr. Uher addresses his latest piece and which we propose for our reflection.

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English Wisdom: Triumvirate

I think my family and friends in Britain have been blest greatly with a triumvirate at the head of your Ordinariate in Britain. While one must necessarily be appointed to make the final decisions, having a council of three at the top is a far better situation than having one leader in isolation. Even if in Britain this is more ad hoc than a canonical structure, I would hope this sort of triumvirate model would become the norm for the Ordinariates. Msgr. Newton has shown great, great wisdom through it.

Of course, it would be different in North America and in Australia. My family and friends in Australia might imagine the Ordinary being named and then two others raised up (as Monsignors of the Protonotary Apostolic or something like it) who would perhaps be former bishops in TAC, the Australian Anglican Church or former priests of the same. It would be incredibly wise to create from the marvellous incoming Church in Torres Strait such a Monsignor to serve in this triumvirate.

In North America it would make sense to create such a triumvirate under Msgr. Steenson as well. The territory is vast, and the Ordinariate is not the only expression of the Anglican Patrimony in the Catholic Church in North America. By way of example, a former Anglican Catholic bishop in Canada would make an excellent choice as another Monsignor with oversight for the Canadian deanery. And it would be prudent and very wise to make the senior pastor of the Pastoral Provision parishes also a Monsignor with similar oversight responsibilities among those in the Pastoral Provision but serving in concert with his brother in Canada and together with Msgr Steenson's leadership of the Ordinariate.

I offer these thoughts to my family and friends who are far more influential than I. No one seems much interested in what a lay hermit in Texas thinks of these things. So I entrust the ideas to you if they are worthy. The one thing that has become clear to me is that a single Ordinary with a Vicar General and an office assitant is an irreduceable minimum that should have been given more provisions for the journey by Rome. It is too small an organisational model to be effective with so great a missionary task.

I know some will say, But look here! In North America, the Ordinary has got health insurance for us this May. And look at all of the men being ordained through the training programme he developed. I am in no way trying to take away from these stellar achievements. One should applaud the Ordinary right heartily for being willing to take up a task where Rome provided no money and the USCCB offered no immediate help with Insurance from the get go. We see that as an historian and a scholar he is absolutely the right person for all of these tasks at the onset. There are other considerations though where he would be well served to have brothers — a Msgr. 'Canada' and a Msgr. 'Pastoral Provision' with which to work in this common mission.

What has developed in England from Msgr. Newton's excellent leadership and vision is clearly a model worth repeating. And it really is worth reapting everywhere an Ordinariate is established or where they might be a mixed situation like that in North America … say in India for example. My family in India have some very clear thoughts about these things, but sadly… and it is sad that this is the case across the board, there is only the most limited collaboration with the Laity in Christ of the Anglican Patrimony, a matter that should be corrected post haste. Bishops and priests don't make the Church. Jesus Christ and all of His Faithful make the Church.

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Giving Up on the Ordinariate?

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In so many words, a couple of weeks ago I expressed my grave concern for the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, and my conviction that God was not leading me to participate in this voluntary juridical structure at this time.  I can not do so without violating my conscience.  I believe that both the spirit and the letter of the Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum cœtibus are being twisted or ignored and that the Holy Father's express will is being openly flouted.  The Ordinariate in the United States has (slowly) gotten off on the wrong foot and is doomed to failure unless very significant course adjustments are made.

I remain loyal to the Catholic Faith, to the Anglican Patrimony which is in accord with that Faith, and to the Holy Father's spectacular vision for Christian Unity.  I may not be able to enter the Ordinariate at this time, but I continue to pray for the experiments in reconciliation which we have come to call Personal Ordinariates, and that, perhaps one day, when the Ordinariate ship is righted, I will be able to fully and joyfully consent to membership.

I also am privileged to continue my work with the Contributors here on The Anglo-Catholic.  Some of them share my concerns; others hold to a different view.  That has always been the case.  This blog is not the tool of any diocese or jurisdiction; its existence and import do not depend on the success of any endeavour which springs from the Pastoral Provision, the Anglican Use, or the Personal Ordinariates.  Its mission is very simple: to draw into the communion of the Holy Roman Church as many Anglicans and as much of their unique and beautiful Patrimony as possible.  We have always seen this work as a mission, and one to be pursued with fervour!

And regardless of our varying positions on individual issues or what we are permitted to express in public, all of us here know that with God nothing is impossible.  What might look like an impending failure now, may quickly turn around to be a glorious success!

I write the above by way of a preface for the article below.  Mr. Vincent Uher was a long-time member of Our Lady of Walsingham in Houston and has recently posted this piece on his personal blog.  He has asked that we give it the largest possible circulation, and, as it raises grave concerns over the future of the Ordinariate project in North America, it is something we should all consider carefully.

Ed. — Everything from the title to the bottom of the post was written by Mr. Uher and the emphases are his.

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Giving Up on the Ordinariate?

When a friend learned that I was withdrawing my application for membership in the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter and its Ordination process, she asked if I were giving up on the Ordinariate.  Quite to the contrary, I shall pray for the Lord God to prosper everything that is of Him that is within it.  The Church will be enriched by those entering in the USA and Canada, and many will find the real home for which they have been longing.The Lord has given me a different vision and course to take for now, but I can envision a future where I am a member of one of the Personal Ordinariates.  There are many places in the Catholic Church where I am very welcome, but the new US Ordinariate is not where I need to be.

As a former Angican priest and a member of some years in an Anglican Use Parish in Texas, I have seen the best and the worst of the Pastoral Provision.  I remain enthusiastic about Anglicanorum coetibus.  However, I was given a very different vision from the Lord of what He requires and expects from Catholics of Anglican heritage than what one finds in the advent and development of the US Ordinariate in its organisation.

One wag has suggested that the Ordinariate will be that perfect marriage of the worst of Catholic secrecy and Anglican navel-gazing.  The central and fundamental problem is the lack of any expression of a clear vision or a willingness to embrace all Anglicans desiring to enter and all previous Anglican Use Catholics.  Also, there has been a great dishonouring of some of the faithful and some of the clergy who have built up the Anglican Use parishes.  All of this will stunt the growth of the US Ordinariate and set its new DNA at odds with the vision of Pope Benedict XVI expressed in Anglicanorum coetibus and subsequent norms.

One could say 'vision' is the main issue but it is not simply generating a mission statement or vision statement and congratulating each other over having done so.  No, vision is far broader and more significant.  There is no expressed vision for the US Ordinariate beyond a vague "living out" of Anglicanorum coetibus, and that is not enough.  Without a vision one is left with the satisfying of the personal tastes of those in charge, and that is a recipe for catastrophe to be avoided at all costs.

Some would say, as they always do, that it is too soon.  But on the contrary, the vision and missionary objectives should have been set before the whole thing was inaugurated.  Why didn't it happen that way?  None of the men involved seem to have ever planted a new church, and apparently none of them have been in charge of a new business start-up.  Naturally, they will only replicate the DNA of their own experience and values, and those values are certainly Christian but they are not missionary, "missional", or that of the New Evangelisation enunciated by Blessed Pope John Paul II.

The US Ordinariate is clearly not set up to lead but to follow.  Though it could make rapid strides in the New Evangelisation, its leadership prefers to take baby steps.  If one bears that in mind, then a big hurdle can be overcome for those who may be disappointed in what they are encountering.  But let us be clear, those baby steps are important and need to be celebrated when taken.  For those for whom those baby steps are enough then the US Ordinariate is a good fit.

The Ordinary is a historian and scholar and not a missionary.  (The grace of office and the grace of state do not make one a missionary.)  The gifts and skill-sets are different, and one must pray that the very special gifts possessed by the Ordinary will provide what the new clergy and new people need at this time.

Without a vision the people perish, and to simply say you are "living out Anglicanorum coetibus" is completely meaningless.  Without a missional orientation and a clear expression of comprehension of the Anglican patrimony … who are its people and clergy first and foremost — all included, no exceptions … then there can only be a very limited embodiment of what Pope Benedict XVI had hoped to provide to the Church and the world through his extraordinary gift.

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Without a clear vision, one is usually left with reactionary responses to problems.   Time for some folks to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest Christifidelis laici among other things… and learn to embrace the gifts and talents being brought forward by the laity with an eager desire to serve.  Any leader who says to such willing people, No thanks for we've got that covered, has profoundly missed the mark.  Learn to make use of such people.  You will be held accountable by the Lord for those driven away from the bosom of the Church otherwise.

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How Old Is Too Old?

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This has the makings of what could be an interesting discussion. It’s not so much a theological question, although it does impinge on our understanding of priesthood and vocation. It’s a disciplinary question which apparently already has been decided, at least for the time being. It touches on sociological mores, and our attitude towards a portion of human society. The question? At what age is a man too old to be ordained?

The question is prompted by an email discussion in which this very matter was raised. As I said, it appears that the issue has been settled by those who have the responsibility to decide such things, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be discussed.

Here are some excerpts from the email conversation:

“I have been much saddened to have been informed lately that men coming into the Church here in the States from Anglican clerical backgrounds aged 80 or above, regardless of their orthodoxy and state of good health (and, seemingly, regardless of what they were led to expect in the past) will not be ordained in the Catholic Church.”

* * *

“Do you mean the age limit of 80 years? It would seem that it applies to all clerical converts (although those of whom I have heard being ‘rejected’ on that basis all were ordained in a Continuing Anglican body), and it has been described to me as ‘a decision of the CDF.’”

* * *

“It would seem 80 is a reasonable benchmark. Bishops are asked to submit their retirement at 75 and cardinals cannot vote for pope once over 80. Many dioceses expect priests to retire at 75. Given life expectancy green bananas can be a bad choice at 80 plus. One thing to recall, the church is consistent.”

* * *

“I see no reason to ordain men that old. It would be a kind sentimental gesture, but the Church ordains men to do a job, which a man of 80 is not likely to do, or do for long. The Church is being generous enough just in letting us in. A friend in his early sixties was told he was too old to ordain. In his case, since he had a pension to take care of him in his old age and would have been a superb priest, this seemed to me foolish, but the diocese felt it had a responsibility to its elderly priests and understandably didn't want to accept the responsibility (personal and financial) for someone who'd only be active for ten or so years. One can point out that he and others have their pensions, but old ways of doing things die hard.”

* * *

“Here in xxxxx, the archbishop ordained an 80 year old man who had been widowed and had been a permanent deacon, from what I can recall. He lived three years and had a wonderful ministry. He only recently died.”

* * *

“There was a dear old 'traditional' time when Roman Catholics believed in the intrinsic and infinite value of each offering of the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Some of us still do. Probably those trashed old men do. Who can measure the benefits to the Church Militant and the Church Expectant of an old man faithfully offering the Holy Sacrifice, even if it is only for a few hundred times, in his eighties, before he dies?”

* * *

“One would think there would be ministries for them if only to say daily mass. But I have heard it said more than once that a married priest costs more than single. Despite its social teachings, the church often makes decisions based on dollars and cents or pounds and pence. I know a church secretary who wanted to work part time after 25 yrs service. The pastor decided to hire someone else part time because the secretary would still get benefits whereas someone new part time would not. Now that priest is an accountant but not a pastor.”

* * *

“Eighty year old ex-Anglicans will undoubtedly have a house and a pension. All they would ask would be the right to say Mass as long as their health permits it, and to give any help they can to the local church … during vacancies, when clergy are on holiday, on the pastor's day off, when a church cannot be given a salaried priest.”

* * *

“I hope that out of generosity and compassion there will be dispensations in this area. Those who have put everything on the line to lead their flocks into the Catholic Church I would hope need not be humiliated and punished for doing so.”

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There are some interesting issues raised in the discussion. Of course, a vocation to the priesthood – no matter how sincerely one senses the call by God – must be ratified and issued by the Church… although we should remember that the Church is led by an 85-year old Pope who is certainly energetic and sharp. It’s obvious God still uses him, and that in itself lends some flavour to the conversation.

70mass 244x300 How Old Is Too Old?

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Great News from Scranton!

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St Joseph Scranton1 300x290 Great News from Scranton!

Here's the story from the website of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter:

The new U.S. ordinariate for Anglican groups entering the Catholic Church achieved a milestone on May 8, 2012 when Reverend Eric Bergman became its first priest. The Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter was established by Pope Benedict XVI on January 1 in response to repeated requests by Anglican groups and clergy who were seeking to become Catholic. It is similar to a diocese, though national in scope.

Fr. Bergman, 41, is a former Episcopal priest who was ordained a Catholic priest five years ago for the Diocese of Scranton. Since that time, he has been chaplain to the 150-member St. Thomas More Anglican Use Society.

The group will become St. Thomas More Parish at St. Joseph Church and will be located at the former St. Joseph property in Scranton’s Providence neighborhood starting in late August. The ordinariate purchased the property from the Diocese of Scranton for $254,000, with $200,000 of that amount raised by the St. Thomas More community during a three-week period this spring.

“This is a significant moment in the young history of the ordinariate. I am grateful to Bishop Joseph Bambera and to the Diocese of Scranton for their support,” said Monsignor Jeffrey N. Steenson, the Ordinary. “The incardination of Fr. Bergman, and the reception of several Anglican communities across the United States and Canada over the past few months, are tangible signs of Christ at work in this new undertaking.”

Approximately 60 current or former Anglican priests are preparing to be ordained Catholic priests for the ordinariate, with 30 ordinations expected in the next few months. Ordinariate parishes will be fully Catholic while retaining elements of their Anglican heritage and traditions, including liturgical traditions.

Fr. Bergman noted, “I am particularly grateful to Bishop Bambera, and to Msgr. William Feldcamp, pastor of St. Paul’s Parish and St. Clare’s Church, who has been instrumental in the maintenance of our ministry over the years. St. Thomas More has thrived, and we look forward to our future as an ordinariate parish.”

Underscoring the historic nature of this announcement, Bishop Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, commented, “I was pleased to be able to cooperate with Monsignor Steenson in order to help facilitate Father Bergman’s incardination process. For the past five years, Father Bergman has faithfully supported the Diocese of Scranton. We are grateful for his service and wish him continued blessings in his ministry.”

Fr. Bergman, a native of Bethlehem, PA, graduated from James Madison University before obtaining a Master of Divinity degree from Yale. He was ordained an Episcopal priest in 1997, and served in Scranton as curate at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church and as rector of the Church of the Good Shepherd. He became Catholic in 2005 and was ordained a Catholic priest in 2007. In addition to serving as chaplain to the Anglican Use Society, he has been chaplain at Holy Cross High School in Dunmore, PA and at Mercy Hospital in Scranton. He and his wife, Kristina, have seven children ages 6 months to 10 years.

St. Joseph was established as a Lithuanian-language parish in 1895 and is a former home of Venerable Maria Kaupas, foundress of the Sisters of St. Casimir, who was a housekeeper at the parish in the late 19th century. A miracle attributed to her intercession is before the Congregation for the Causes of Saints that, if approved, will lead to her beatification. The parish property includes a church, parish hall, rectory, convent, school, parking lot and four garages.

Congratulations to Fr. Bergman and the wonderful people of St. Thomas More!

A2 Brianna 0675 Great News from Scranton!

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Palm Sunday in Orlando

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As promised, here are a number of high resolution photographs from the Procession and Mass of Palm Sunday at the Ordinariate-bound Cathedral of the Incarnation in Orlando, Florida.  On this day, Monsignor Jeffrey Steenson made his first visit to the Cathedral of the Pro-Diocese of the Holy Family.

DSC 0872 Palm Sunday in Orlando

Here comes the Procession...

DSC 0881 Palm Sunday in Orlando

Watch that zuchetto!

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