Posts Tagged Archbishop Gerhard Muller
Making a Case for Women Deacons
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Voice of the Faithful, Women Deacons on June 10, 2013
In April, the president of Germany’s bishops’ conference called for establishing an office for female deacons. The bishop of Regensburg responded that the “the office of bishop and deacon is inseparably bound to priest and bishop” and “the tradition that only men may be ordained is based on the Bible.” Gerald O’Collins, writing in The Tablet, has responded:
Bishop Voderholzer (of Regensburg) seems to have overlooked not only a document co-authored by his predecessor in Regensburg, Bishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller (now Archbishop Müller and prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), but also an addition to the canon law of the Western Church made by Pope Benedict XVI.
Read O’Collins’ entire article, Unlock the Door: The Case for Women in the Diaconate, by clicking here and click on this title, Women Deacons: How Long Will It Take for the Catholic Church to Open this Door, to read a paper commissioned by Voice of the Faithful® and promulgated during VOTF’s 10th Year Conference in Boston last September.
Voice of the Faithful® Expects Pope Francis to ‘Act Decisively’ in New Jersey Clergy Sexual Abuse Case
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Clergy Sexual Abuse, Voice of the Faithful on May 8, 2013
The Roman Catholic archbishop of Newark has allowed an admitted child molester to continue contact with young people, and Church reform movement Voice of the Faithful® expects Pope Francis to “act decisively” as he said last week the Church must do in cases of clergy sexual abuse. Acting decisively should include holding accountable any bishop who fails to act responsibly in sex abuse cases. The question here: Will Pope Francis hold the archbishop accountable?
A New Jersey newspaper reported Apr. 28 that Newark Archbishop John Myers allowed a priest who had admitted groping a boy to continue working with children. This violated an agreement that barred the priest from ministering to children or holding any position involving children. The priest, Rev. Michael Fugee, has since resigned.
In addition to violating a probation agreement made by the diocese, Archbishop Myers appears to have violated the Church’s own canon laws. Voice of the Faithful® supports the position of Wisconsin priest and canon lawyer Rev. James Connell, who last week called for a Vatican investigation of this matter. In a letter to Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller, prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which oversees clergy sexual abuse cases, Connell worte that, by allowing Rev. Michael Fugee to continue in ministry, Myers may have violated the Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing with Allegations of Sexual abuse of Minors by Priests or Deacons, which has the force of canon law.
Voice of the Faithful® expects the Vatican to act on Connell’s request and for Pope Francis to initiate an investigation if the CDF fails to act and to make all proceedings public.
The Vatican has been aware of clergy sexual abuse for centuries, was presented a detailed report in the mid-1980s and has faced worldwide publicity since 2002. In the past year, a monsignor and a bishop have been convicted for their involvement in the scandal and other bishops have been named in grand jury reports. Within the past month, the disclosure of tens of thousands of pages of secret documents has caused the current archbishop of Los Angeles to curtail the former archbishop’s public appearances. Similar disclosures have prompted a government inquiry in Australia, which started last week. This past weekend, an Ugandan priest forced the Church in Africa to confront clergy sexual abuse, which the hierarchy and conservative Church interests there have kept secret.
Voice of the Faithful® is a worldwide movement of concerned Roman Catholics working to support survivors of clergy sexual abuse, support priests of integrity and increase the laity’s role in governance and guidance of the Church. More information is at our website.
America Magazine Commentary Sees Hope for the American Nuns
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Religious Women, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on April 18, 2013
Pope Francis, the CDF and the LCWR by James Martin, S.J., in America magazine
Today (April 15) the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a statement about the ongoing oversight and “reform” (to use their word) of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the main umbrella organization of women religious in the United States, which represents roughly 80% of American Catholic sisters and nuns. In their statement, the Congregation noted that the new prefect of the Congregation, Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller, as well as Archbishop J. Peter Sartain, the Holy See’s Delegate for the Doctrinal Assessment of the LCWR, met with the Presidency of the LCWR. Archbishop Müller also noted that he had spoken with Pope Francis, who “reaffirmed” the findings of the Assessment, and the “program of reform.” The LCWR issued a statement, which listed the participants in the meeting in full, and said that the meeting was “open and frank.” Several things need to be kept in mind before people jump to conclusions about what this may or may not portend.
Voice of the Faithful
A lay movement for governance reform in the Roman Catholic Church, responding to the clergy sexual abuse scandal and supporting survivors.
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