Word: priesthoods
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...thanks to Andrew Sullivan for his thoughtful essay, "The Vatican's New Stereotype," on the Roman Catholic Church's new rules barring gays from the priesthood [Dec. 12]. He expressed so well how I have been feeling--like an outsider in the church that was my home for 67 years. Although I have at times disagreed with church teachings, I have always felt like part of the fold. But the new exclusion cuts me to the core. I don't recognize Jesus in the new rules. It is more than a homosexual issue; it wounds my heart, which is aching...
...Catholic Education has remained in the news for weeks, with flip-flopping interpretations that managed neither to limit criticism nor to clearly articulate the pontiff's purpose. And that, despite some optimistic interpretations by progressive Catholics, seems to be to sound a loud "No" to new gays entering the priesthood, with the caveat that defining who is a homosexual is not always a simple task...
...gays-in-the-priesthood saga was not the first troublesome episode of poorly managed information flows from the Curia since Benedict took over. Most notably, a leaked version of the Vatican's reaction to the July 7 terror attacks in London erroneously included the Pope using the highly charged phrase "anti-Christian" to describe the bombing. Several sources have traced the incorrect draft to Secretary of State Angelo Sodano's office. Navarro-Valls, who reportedly is at odds with Sodano, is still running the press office, but is less and less visible. Meanwhile, Benedict himself doesn't seem particularly preoccupied...
...Seven months into Benedict XVI's papacy, however, some Vatican watchers have noticed that the Vatican PR machine is not exactly purring along. Tuesday's official release of the Vatican's long-awaited document reinforcing a ban on gays from the priesthood concludes a messy chapter on how not to do damage control...
...appeal as much to voters who wanted to hear comfortable words. Philippe Dahbi Rockenhausen, Germany Gays Need Not Apply You reported that pope Benedict XVI may reaffirm a ban on homosexuals entering the seminary [Oct. 3]. The Pope may be intent on a "thorough cleaning up of the priesthood." But given the Roman Catholic Church's history of sexual abuse of children by the clergy, why has it taken so long for anything to be done? Can it be that aberrant behavior and hypocritical attitudes are finally costing the church sizable amounts of money? Richard Kusnierek Orange Park, Florida...