So After Pope Francis’s Opening, These Things Happened

Jim Burroway

September 25th, 2013

After the Jesuit magazine America published an interview with Pope Francis last week in which the pontiff chastised the church for “insist(ing) only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods,” a couple of events took place which, in my view, reinforced my caution that while we can be greatly encouraged by Francis’s comments, its important not to get too carried away. Specifically, I pointed out that nothing in church doctrine had changed. Further, I cautioned that just as under Benedict XVI, the entire Church was not the Pope and hierarchy, but the laity as well; so, too, today the entire Church is not the Pope and laity, but the hierarchy as well. A couple of events since last week bring all of that back into sharp focus.

First, there’s the excommunication of the former Father Greg Reynolds, of Melbourne, Australia. Fr. Reynolds says that he was excommunicated over his support for women’s ordination and gay Catholics. That excommunication took place last May, before the Pope’s more recent comments and before his comment last July responding to a question about gay priests with another question: “Who am I to judge?” Chronology may or may not explain the church’s inconsistency in its approach to Reynolds. Another explanation may be found in this report by the independent and often critical National Catholic Reporter:

The letter, a copy of which NCR obtained and translated, accuses Reynolds of heresy (Canon 751) and determined he incurred latae sententiae excommunication for throwing away the consecrated host or retaining it “for a sacrilegious purpose” (Canon 1367). It also referenced Canon 1369 (speaking publicly against church teaching) in its review of the case.

I have no idea as to the circumstances or veracity of that middle accusation. It may be real, or it may be a red herring. Of the three accusations, that one by far would be the most serious, and its inclusion here greatly clouds the issue. Reynolds has addressed the first and third accusation, but so far I’ve found no comments from anyone on the second one, except for Reynold’s broader comments saying he doesn’t know why he was excommunicated. As I said, there may be nothing to it, or there may be more than Fr. Reynolds is disclosing. Until that is sorted out, the question of Reynolds’s excommunication remains not so cut-and-dried in my mind.

Much less murky is the decision by Providence College, a Catholic institution in Rhode Island, to rescind its invitation to John Corvino, chair of Wayne State University’s philosophy department, to discuss the ethics (and not the theology) of gay marriage in a debate with a Providence theologian. Corvino’s invitation, which was co-sponsored by nine departments and programs, was cancelled in an announcement last Saturday by college provost and senior vice president Hugh F. Lena, who cited a church document that says that “Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles.” This, of course, wasn’t an “honor,” but a debate and discussion, which, last I checked, was supposed to be one of the hallmarks of higher education. Corvino responded:

The reference to “awards, honors, or platforms which would suggest support for their actions” applies, for example, to allowing such politicians to present commencement addresses or to receive honorary degrees. By contrast, I am an academic speaker. Both the person introducing me and I would state clearly that my views were not those of the Catholic Church; moreover, a respondent from the Providence College theology department, Dr. Dana Dillon, would follow immediately to explain the Church’s position on marriage. Far from suggesting “support” for my views, the College would have ample opportunity to express precisely the opposite.

The silver lining however is a pretty big one. It exposes Providence College to suspicions that it is not confident in its ability to defend church doctrine when it comes to marriage equality. That’s a pretty pathetic patch of ground for a supposedly prestigious Catholic college to stand on, if you ask me. Also, the timing of the cancellation’s announcement — on the Saturday after Pope Francis’s interview went online — couldn’t have been better to guarantee the most favorable publicity. For Corvino:

So, Providence College has done wonders for my media exposure. In the last 24 hours I’ve talked to The New York Times, the Associated Press, The Huffington Post, the Providence Journal, the Detroit Free Press, a half dozen radio producers (I’m about to go on WPRO with former Providence mayor Buddy Cianci), and MSBNC (which may have me on “Last Word” tomorrow or Thursday night).

Rick2L

September 25th, 2013

In my view, the excommunication of Father Reynolds was more a result of his refusal to accept the suspension of his priestly duties while his case was being adjudicated. The church views this sort of disobedience as particularly unacceptable. Bishop Lefebre (sp.) wasn’t excommunicated for his radical rejection of Vatican II until he refused the same order.

Marcus

September 25th, 2013

Where does the belief that debating someone is tantamount to legitimizing their views originate? I’ve heard the same argument from marriage equality supporters.

And yes, one has to question the quality of the intellectual discourse on social issues in the college’s lecture halls.

Jay

September 25th, 2013

The serious charge against Fr. Reynolds is the misuse of the Eucharist. One report says that he was denounced because he gave a consecrated wafer to be used in services officiated by women priests and that part of it was given to a dog! This might seem silly to those of us who are not Catholics, but the Catholic doctrine of “real presence” (which means that Christ is literally present in the consecrated wafer and wine, as opposed to the belief of most Protestants that the wafer and wine are merely symbols of Christ’s body and blood) is a central belief. It is unlikely that he was excommunicated because he supported gay marriage or the ordination of women. However, some of the actions in support of women’s ordination, such as participating in masses officiated by women, may have crossed the line.

Jaime

September 25th, 2013

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/25/catholic-military-chaplains-gay_n_3989043.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay%20Voices

This adds more discussional grist.

Jaime

September 25th, 2013

http://www.milarch.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=dwJXKgOUJiIaG&b=6536793&ct=13291927&notoc=1

Original doc

Jaime

September 25th, 2013

Memo title:
“Question Pertaining to Cooperation with Evil:”
From above linked doc.

Steve

September 25th, 2013

In other news a top Vatican official wants to deny Nancy Pelosi the magic cracker, because she doesn’t carry out Catholics commands in her political decisions:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/nancy-pelosi-crosses-vatican-official-abortion-rights-article-1.1466255

The Pope’s words mean nothing. It’s just empty PR. The church is the same misanthropic, misogynistic, homophobic, immoral, child-raping cesspool it’s always been.

Hunter

September 26th, 2013

Re: Providence College: When all else fails, shoot yourself in the foot.

It’s quite obvious that the powers that be at the college share an attitude that’s quit prevalent on the “Christian” right: “debate” means “I speak, you listen” and allowing an opposing opinion to be voiced equals supporting it. It’s sort of the obverse of the idea that criticizing something one of them says is a violation of his First Amendment right to freedom of speech — which does not hold true when they criticize someone else.

markanthony

September 26th, 2013

I get the sense that PC is a deeply conservative place. More in line with Liberty or John Hancock College than UND or BC. Its a victory that John Corvino was invited to speak at all.

I second Hunter above. They were clearly nervous about the power of his argument.

tristram

September 26th, 2013

It appears that PC has done some quick damage control and will host a debate on the subject of marriage equality between John Corvino and one of Robert George’s Princeton proteges. Apparently Gergis, with the Princeton imprimatur, has the intellectual heft that does not exist in the PC ranks.

http://www.boston.com/news/education/2013/09/25/school-reschedules-gay-marriage-prof-talk/MlP4wfqAFaLC9qPiPdnUGJ/story.html

Markanthony

September 26th, 2013

The professors at PC must be furious with their administration over this. What a hash. John Corvino’s reponse is touching:

http://johncorvino.com/2013/09/response-to-providence-colleges-rescheduling-of-my-event/

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