I have been receiving your emails all year. To be frank they have made me concerned and at times wondering what was going on at St Vincent's. I have met and spoken to the priests at Redfern and so I have both stories. Yet I cannot help but be disappointed by the angry tone of your emails. All you do it would seem to me is complain about how bad you've got it. How you hate change and how you hunger for the past. May I suggest respectfully, move on.
Despite your differences I'm sure there are many good things to celebrate about your faith community. I know as a priest I value those parishioners who support me even though they differ in option. Please accept this email as a challenge.
My name is Monica and I am a NeoCat as you call the way. I've read some of the articles which are posted on the site and I can't tell you how disturbed I am that this movement within our Church is the cause of much division in certain parishes. I am a revert to the Church and I belong to a wonderful little parish in NJ which just introduced the Way about 4 months ago. Being a CCD teacher I have learned much about Church's teaching and have fallen in love with the truth. I stay as far away as possible of anything that goes against Church's teaching. Moreover, if given the chance, I defend the Holy Mother Church and her teachings. I am sure that this email will not be posted, but in any case I'd like to address one of the points listed in Pam Aitkins and Clive Maher against the priest in her parish.
1. The priest said that the church is only bricks.
There is a big difference between the church and the Church. I am afraid that the priest's words were horribly misinterpreted. I am sure that he was referring to the building itself which we all tend to call "church". Even a malformed priest knows that the Holy Catholic Church is not made up of bricks - each of us make up the body of the Church. Those of us who walk this earth are part of the Church Militant, those who have gone before us and are in Purgatory are members of the Church Suffering, and the saints and Martyrs who are in Heaven are members of the Church Triumphant, the head of the Church being Christ Himself. It is the Holy Spirit who unites and binds us together as one entity. This is basic Catholicism 101 - any child in my parish's CCD program knows that we are the Church, not the building in which we celebrate the Holy Mass; that church is made up of bricks.
It took me a long time for me to become convinced that the Catholic Church is the one true Church founded by our Lord; anything that she teaches through her ministers comes from the fullness of faith which was entrusted to her by Jesus Himself; and so I subject myself to her authority. If the bishop of Rome approved "The Way", who am I to question it? Unfortunately, through out Church's history it is her own members, laity and clergy alike, that tear at her and cause disharmony by trying to impose our own point of view instead of accepting the Church's authority to rule us in matters of faith and morals. That's how the Protestant reformation began with Martin Luther. In His wisdom the Lord knew that if left to us His Bride, the Holy Mother Church would be torn to shreds by our fallen nature. It is only because the Holy Spirit lives within Her that the Church has survived our wrong doings for over 2000 year and will continue to do so until the Lord's second coming as Jesus promised. Personally I would not be so quick to bite the hands that feed, give my soul my Lord's body, blood, soul and divinity - specially when all the facts are unknown. In order to find out if all these allegations are true or not your parish members have the opportunity to walk in "The Way". To continue to take a stand against "The Way" without getting all the facts is pure ignorance and plain disregard of the Church's authority to rule and guide the flock. Thank you for taking the time to read this email; may God bless you and cause His face to shine upon you.
Monica
Sts. Joseph & Michael Parish Co-Responsible
3rd Neo-Catechumen Community Fruits of The Way
A friend recommended we take a look at the Church Mouse website. We have read the information it presents carefully and thoroughly. We are regrettably left with the conclusion that you are behaving like spoilt little children who aren't getting their own way.
Where we live our priest, close to retiring age and in average health, is looking after two fairly large parishes singlehandedly. In our diocese one priest is responsible for three parishes. In our country there are people who might get Mass once a month, or even longer. Friends in far west Queensland see their PP once every three months.
And here you are, a small parish community with two priests, a small parish community surrounded by other Catholic parishes and priests. But you don't have the priest who suits you and the way you like the parish to operate, so you kick up a stink and carry on. Has it ever occurred to you all to stop and think just how blessed you are to have resident clergy, to have daily Mass, to have the sacraments and priestly pastoral care on hand?
Might we suggest the time you spend whingeing, writing to the Cardinal, gossiping and note taking be instead spent praying for two things: (1) a sense of unity and charity within your community (priests and people) and (2) praying for vocations so that a few more of us might have the privilege of resident priests. That would be a far more useful and Christian way of using your time.
I am an Australian priest of the Archdiocese of Agana in Guam, Micronesia. I had already read in the Australian press about what Peter Maher described as the "cultural shenanigans at Redfern with the arrival of the Neocatechumenal Way priests" and so, while I was in Sydney last year, attended Mass at St. Vincent's one Sunday morning.
My recollections were not, however, about any cultural insensitivity on the part of the priest and the deacon who assisted at the liturgy, but more because it was one of the few parishes I encountered where everyone seemed to participate. It was also obvious that there were some who had a personal axe to grind, but these people did not seem to be Aboriginals (very few of whom were in attendance).
The article by Peter Maher in the Autumn issue of The Swag made two accusations against the priests at Redfern:
"They have little time for the inverted sense of mission that Redfern parishioners have lived and breathed for thirty years." And
"They find it hard to appreciate inverse symbolic action as resistance and the indigenous people's rejection of their need to convert them to repentance for their drunkenness and rebel rousing."
Without giving concrete examples of just what these accusations imply, or allowing the Parish Priest an opportunity to reply, I consider the article to be one more example of "accusation by labeling, no further proof required." I also wonder whether the majority of parish priests anywhere in the world are applying or even understand such standards.
It was not mentioned if Peter Maher visited the parish, whether he spoke to a goodly number of parishioners, aboriginal or otherwise, or to the priest and deacon who have taken up "The challenge of Redfern". In the name of all that is fair, I hope and pray that he did!
John Wadeson
Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Seminary
130 Chalan Seminariu
Ylig Bay, Yofia 96915
GUAM
Source: Letters to the Editor, The Swag, June 2004. The views expressed in "Letters to the Editor" are those of the authors of each letter and not necessarily the views of the Swag Editor or the NCP Executive.
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