What Sister Wendy said

Dear Priest-Readers,

Go to JoeMyGodand read what this good woman had to say on the Huffington blog.

Finally, someone with the courage to trust God. To trust the Holy Spirit. To go to the root of the Good News rather than try to manipulate it into all sorts of painful and inhumane contrivances under the cloak of upholding tradition. In your hearts, you know she's right. Doesn't it make you want to be as courageous as she is, and to proclaim what you know to be true?

Color Me Blue

To My Fellow Priests:

Guys. Can someone please tell me who in the Archdiocese of NY is responsible for this ridiculous and hilarious piece of...

And how do I get a copy of the whole thing? An instant classic.

UPDATE: Here it is I think you'll agree that the page showing the priest and altar boy in the sacristy is really wrong on so many levels. So are the pages that attempt to show male pedophiles bearing candy and male internet predators. Pity the nice men of this world who just happen to look like these guys and will now send kids screaming to other adults. This is really amateur stuff.

Also, the coloring book attempts to address the problem of a child who has been abused by an adult he or she trusted. Now who do they tell? It's handled in a clumsy and confusing way. Jesus Christ.

"You mean I'm not..."

From the archives, an article in New York Times:

Without a 'Father' or 'Son,' Baptisms Are Ruled Invalid



Published: October 9, 1993
A Roman Catholic priest told several families that the baptisms he had performed were declared invalid because he altered a reference to the Holy Trinity.

For "Father, Son and Holy Spirit," the Rev. William Larkin said he had substituted "God our Creator, through Jesus the Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit." He said his motive was to be more sensitive to women.

A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston said Auxiliary Bishop John P. Boles had written to Father Larkin's order, the Paulist Fathers, saying that the word changes would invalidate the baptisms.

and tomorrow?

One wonders where these pay-offs will all lead.

They may appease the victims, but the structure that produced and nurtured the problem hasn't really changed, has it? Cutting off the top of a weed doesn't make your garden much better. You need to pull weeds. You need to plan your garden and make wise choices. You need to be attentive. You supposed shepherds of flocks. Talk to me again when you've put down your drinks, and your wallets and your forks and your keys. I'm having a tough time hearing you over the din of your recreations.

A Good Reporter

Gerald Renner has died. He co-wrote with Jason Berry the book entitled Vows of Silence: The Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II. His book showed how sexual abuse within the Legionaries of Christ was allowed to flourish because that order was pleasing to the Vatican in its conservatism.

I had a few conversations with Mr. Renner. I found him to be one of the few non-clergymen to really understand all the components of pressure on the mind of a priest that will make him decide on one course of action or another. He got it. He also had a disarming way of leading a conversation into unexpected terrain. The mark of a good reporter.

The Legionaries of Christ have my 84 year old mother on their mailing list. They constantly bother her with requests for money.

I remember them from Rome. They were extremely handsome in an identical way as if they had all been recruited by the same man who had a particular taste, and that was indeed the case.

Why Not?

I am the Number One Official Gay Priest of the Roman Catholic Church.

None of the others seem to be interested in claiming this title. Any that want to can wrestle me for it.

It occurred to me that there ought to be a reservoir of thought on the subject of gay priests that I would maintain in addition to my other blog, Farmboyz/PergeModo, which is more preoccupied with New York City, Fort Lauderdale, art, sex, travel, socializing, architecture and fiction.

Some would say that I ought to be labeled "Ex-Priest". Not really. Two Monsignor friends of mine recently checked into my offical status at the chancery office of my diocese. The record contains no mention of termination. It simply stops when I stopped holding down a parish assignment. I guess they wanted to keep the door open with hopes that I might return. That may change should I begin to be read more widely, but I cannot see the point of worrying much about that. There is air to be cleared, and I am in the rather unique position to do it.

For those beginning to salivate:

I do not intend to "out" any gay priests or bishops or cardinals or popes.

I do not intend to express hatred and rage toward the Catholic Church because I feel neither hatred nor rage, only profound disappointment.

I do intend to help people realize that most priests are gay and that there are some valid reasons for their hiding this fact, as well as a mountain of invalid reasons.

It would give me no satisfaction to injure the Catholic Church. It would give me great satisfaction to move that Church forward even slightly in the direction of complete acceptance of homosexuality and its activities.

I do intend to shoot at hypocrisy and stupidity whenever and wherever it is given voice within the ranks of the Catholic clergy.

OK?