Posts Tagged Brian Fraga
Editorial: Knoxville Catholics deserve an update on Vatican’s investigation of Bishop Stika / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Voice of the Faithful on May 17, 2023
Kristy Higgins, a Chattanooga resident, explained local Catholics’ desire for some sort of update. “We want to at least be assured that our concerns have been heard,” she said. ‘Even if the answer is that there’s nothing to these allegations, that we’ve investigated and we’ve determined there’s nothing to it. Then great. But give us that, at least. Show us that someone cares about us.’
By National Catholic Reporter Editorial Staff
“There are relatively few positions in the country that have the job security of a Catholic bishop. In his diocese, as the church’s Code of Canon Law puts it, the bishop has ‘all ordinary, proper, and immediate power.’ No one there can contravene his orders or force his removal from office. Neither can the national conference of bishops, nor can any regional ecclesial entities.
“Even Elon Musk, the new lord of Twitter and aspiring president of Mars, ultimately reports to various boards of directors. Catholic bishops report to the pope directly, and only he can choose to remove them.
“Given that organizational reality, one can understand the dilemma of a Catholic in the Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee. As NCR staff reporter Brian Fraga highlights in a thorough and wide-ranging investigation, many parishioners there are feeling demoralized and unsure what power they have to effect change in their diocese. They certainly deserve some answers.
“Bishop Richard Stika, already a polarizing figure for his brash style of leadership, now stands accused in two lawsuits of allegedly obstructing investigations into clergy sexual abuse, and intimidating people who reported being abused. Stika denies the allegations.
“In 2021, several priests in Knoxville formally filed a complaint to the Vatican about Stika’s alleged misconduct, availing themselves of the new process Pope Francis created in 2019 to report suspicions of abuse or cover-up by bishops. (That process is outlined in the apostolic letter Vos Estis Lux Mundi, which the pope concretized as permanent church law this March).
“One of the priests who filed the complaint told NCR he has been ‘deeply discouraged’ by the process since they made their report. An apostolic visitation, or formal investigation into Stika, was not conducted until a year later, in late November and early December 2022. As of May 2023, there has been no update on what the investigators, Bishops Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, and Barry Knestout of Richmond, Virginia, have found.”
By National Catholic Reporter Editorial Staff — Read more …
See also, “Lingering Vatican investigation of Tennessee bishop leaves diocese demoralized,” By Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter
Pope Francis faces chance to radically reshape U.S. Catholic hierarchy / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Voice of the Faithful on March 20, 2023
Thirteen American archdioceses and 21 dioceses could need new bishops by 2025.
National Catholic Reporter
“If Pope Francis continues to serve as bishop of Rome for another two years, he may have a notable opportunity to refashion the U.S. Catholic hierarchy. Dozens of bishops, several in historically significant archdioceses, will be required by canon law to submit resignation letters upon turning 75.
“At least 13 archdioceses and 21 dioceses could have new episcopal appointments by February 2025. In addition, two dioceses — Fairbanks, Alaska, and Houma-Thibodaux, Louisiana — are operating without bishops. The number of episcopal openings could increase because of deaths or resignations.
“If he names new bishops to all those local churches, Francis will have appointed 64 percent of the U.S. episcopate since becoming pope in March 2013. Forty-six percent of current U.S. bishops are Francis appointees, said Catherine Hoegeman, a Missouri State University sociology professor who tracks U.S. episcopal appointments.
“‘Over the next two years, it looks like Francis is going from [having appointed] a little less than half of active bishops to a little less than two-thirds. I think that’s a notable shift,’ said Hoegeman. Since 1969, she said, popes have made an average of 15 episcopal appointments every year in the United States.
By Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
Bishops, theologians talk frankly about synodality at Boston College conference / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Future of the Church, Synod of Bishops, Synod on Synodality, Voice of the Faithful on March 8, 2023
‘It’s not enough simply to maintain and adapt what has existed until now; it is necessary to creat something new,’ Rafael Luciani
National Catholic Reporter
“For the second consecutive year, dozens of theologians and bishops from across the United States gathered together to discuss how the Catholic Church can better live out the synodal path that Pope Francis has said is what ‘God expects of the church of the third millennium.’ The conference, ‘The Way Forward: Pope Francis, Vatican II, and Synodality,’ was held March 3-4 at Boston College.
“Several bishops over the event’s two days were forthright in describing their thoughts and experiences during the local consultative process of the 2021-23 Synod of Bishops on synodality, noting challenges during the process and some resistance to the synod. (The bishops spoke in conversations that were under the ‘Chatham House Rule,’ meaning that journalists covering the event were free to report on the discussions but not identify who made any particular comment. The rule is intended to encourage open and frank discussion.)
“One bishop said he felt a tension between listening to people’s unvarnished thoughts about the church and his understanding of his role to be a ‘conservator’ or defender of Catholic doctrine.
“Another bishop commented that better catechesis must be a part of the synodal process moving forward because most participants in his diocese saw the Catholic Church more as an institution than a spiritual communion.”
By Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
Read also, “Boston College conference didn’t just discuss synodality. Bishops and theologians modeled it,” by Michael Sean Winters, National Catholic Reporter
Effort to educate Catholic priests on what to do when accused of abuse draws criticism
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Clergy Sexual Abuse, Priests, Voice of the Faithful on July 11, 2022
“I understand the anguish of priests who are wrongly accused and yanked out of a parish without any explanation. But for all of that anguish that they experience, it is minor compared with the pain, the loss and the betrayal experienced by survivors, their families and their parish communities,” said Donna Doucette, executive director of the reform group Voice of the Faithful, which was founded in Boston after the 2002 reporting on abuse and cover-up in that archdiocese.
Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter
“A new initiative by a group representing U.S. Catholic priests to inform clerics of their canonical rights when they are accused of misconduct, including sexual abuse, is attracting criticism from survivor advocates, who say it could help cast accused priests in an overly sympathetic light.
“But the clergy behind the effort by the Association of U.S. Catholic Priests, or AUSCP, argue it is necessary. Over the last 20 years, they say, diocesan leaders have failed to respect priests’ rights under canon law — in some cases allowing accused clerics to languish in administrative “limbo” for several years while civil and church authorities investigate allegations made against them.
“‘And in so many cases it’s virtually impossible to prove their innocence, because it’s pretty hard to prove a negative,’ Fr. Mike Sullivan, a parish priest in Minnesota who is a canon lawyer and a member of the association’s Mutual Support Working Group, told NCR.
“That working group, after nearly two years of consulting with bishops, canonists and priests, has crafted a document that delineates clergy members’ rights under the Code of Canon Law when accused of wrongdoing, including sexual abuse.”
By Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
Synod phase for local listening gets an uneven start in U.S. dioceses / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Synod on Synodality, Voice of the Faithful on December 14, 2021
The synod on synodality, as it is referred to in church circles, is an ambitious endeavor that some observers have described as the ‘biggest consultation exercise in human history.’
National Catholic Reporter
“Kevin Beck said the only thing he has seen thus far from his diocese in Colorado Springs, Colorado, about the 2021-23 Synod of Bishops on synodality is an article in the diocesan newspaper that reported the bishop was reviewing the consultation process.
“‘That was in October, and we haven’t heard anything since,’ said Beck, who is organizing his own online listening session for a group of lay Catholics in the diocese to offer their input and have their voices heard.
“‘We’ve drafted a set of questions that we’re going to send out to people who said they want to participate so they can have time to think about what they want to say,’ said Beck, who told NCR that he wished his diocese was ‘more excited’ about the synod.
“‘Maybe some bishops or priests are afraid of what might come out of it, or they just might not know how to organize something,’ he said. ‘I mean it’s an awfully big operation when you think about what the synod is asking parishes to do.’
“The synod on synodality, as it is referred to in church circles, is an ambitious endeavor that some observers have described as the ‘biggest consultation exercise in human history.'”
By Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
Synod on Synodality, links to coverage of Synod by National Catholic Reporter that includes a link to a continually updated map of dioceses with Synod consultation plans
Also see Voice of the Faithful’s “Listening to the Faithful: Preparing for the Synod’ webpage — Listening to the Faithful: Preparing for the Synod 2021-2023 | VOICE OF THE FAITHFUL (votf.org)
Francis is set to open a worldwide synod process. U.S. dioceses don’t seem prepared. / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Future of the Church, laity, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on September 29, 2021
Although Francis has previously asked for local consultation to occur before other synods during his pontificate, no earlier process has been so wide-ranging.
National Catholic Reporter
“With about three weeks to go before Catholic prelates around the world are due to open a first-of-its-kind grassroots consultation period as part of an expanded vision for the Vatican’s Synod of Bishops, church officials across the U.S. are still figuring out exactly what that process will look like.
“A range of dioceses contacted by NCR in recent weeks said they were still working out the details for the consultation period and would be in a better position to comment on the synod in coming weeks, after Pope Francis formally opens the two-year synod process with a ceremony in Rome on Oct. 9.
“Officials who agreed to interviews described plans that relied on parish listening sessions, online surveys, Zoom meetings and other avenues to get feedback from laity.
“‘It’s a great opportunity for me to learn and for bishops all over the world to develop better habits of consultation with our people,’ Bishop Christopher Coyne of Burlington, Vermont, told NCR …
“Francis announced in May that he would be expanding the scope of the next synod, originally set for 2022. He postponed the Vatican meeting of bishops, now set for October 2023, to allow first for periods of consultation in every local diocese and at the continental level.
“Although Francis has previously asked for local consultation to occur before other synods during his pontificate, no earlier process has been so wide-ranging.”
By Brian Fraga, National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
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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