On these Blogger pages we explore TOPICS in our desire to respond to Jesus' call to walk with Him in our world as his missionary disciples empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring to humanity the Good News of the Father's love manifested and given in Jesus, the Divine Mercy. G.S.
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There is a crisis currently in the R. C. Church, with the emergence of sexual abuse, as well as other forms of abuse, done to vulnerable people. This is only a symptom of the underlying problems.
A recognized general principle for understanding human society is to look not just at where we are, but to also see from whence we come, and also where we are going or trying to go.
Human societies have profoundly changed in the past two millennia, especially in what is called Western Society, as it is found in Europe, the Americas, Oceania, and with the spread of its values east and south into Asia and Africa. The Ten Commandments given by God to his Chosen People and, through them, to humanity, are essential principles. However, leaders who govern - in the Church as in society - need many more principles and skills, without neglecting or ignoring these basic Ten Commandments. We have only to observe how Pope Francis has tried to persuade Russia's leader to end the war on Ukraine in order to properly consider and appreciate how great a challenge it is to work to protect the innocent, stop and avoid war, and make peace instead. These are a few factors involved.
- Christian churches, and worship centers for other religions, are all embedded in the societies in which they are situated. They cannot escape influences and pressures from their ambient society. They must be vigilant to monitor those influences and work to moderate them.
- The historical passage in the last few centuries from Christendom to open western societies, with similar passages in eastern and southern regions, has deeply impacted churches.
- There was at the outset in the Mediterranean world the gradual clericalization of the Church after the age of the Apostles and Fathers of the Church.
- Simulteneously, there was a development which had a greater impact on the Church with the gradual invasion of their societies in the dwindling Roman Empire by the barbarian tribes from the north and east of Europe. When the civil authorities proved to be powerless in the face of the barbarian tribes invading their society, the populace looked to their bishop to protect them. Bishops tried to muster their resources to militarize and protect the population, and the Bishop of Rome, the Pope, was particularly successful for a time.
- There has been a great impact by the emergence in modern times of societies giving priority to individual and personal rights of citizens - giving people an individual identity - as opposed to a social identity linked to one's village, town, city, tribe, nation, or worldly prince or monarch.
- There was therefore over the last two millennia a corresponding emergence of dual dimensions to the leadership of local churches - in both dioceses and parishes - as well as in ecclesial movements and organizations: leaders had to deal with geographic and political entities; while at the same time they had to deal with the demands for individual and private rights.
- The passage from primarily illiterate populations to heavily educated and professional populations highlighted the inadequacy of the Church's expectation that Holy Orders should be sufficient to empower and enable priests, in addition to their sacred and pastoral duties, to also manage every aspect of the life of a local church.
In a concise summary, here is a single statement of the problem as we find it today.
Whereas during the time of Christendom, when clerics were among the few people of their time with an education; it was reasonable for the Church to expect clerics to be able to lead and govern a local parish church or ecclesial movement. Then, with the emergence of more complex societies, with many more citizens - and even the majority of citizens in many places - having benefitted from higher education, formation in trades, and professional formation and training; the topography of human societies at every level has dramatically changed. In the Roman Catholic Church, as in many other Christian churches, the exercise of ecclesial leadership has developed into a dual role: that of PRIEST, yes, but also that of PASTOR or ADMINISTRATOR.
It is becoming increasingly evident - sometimes painfully so - that a man having received Holy Orders may be a holy man and an excellent priest, but he may simultaneously be a terrible pastor. Western society - with its governments, private and publicly traded companies, and NGO's, non-governmental organizations - has evolved so rapidly in the realms of human resources and personnel management, workers rights and unionization, that many churches have not been able to keep pace with those changes.
R.C. priests, even some recently ordained, suddenly find themselves assigned to pastor, as the responsible leaders of worshipping assemblies, along with parish staff and volunteers. They are responsible for financial management, the maintenance and repairs of buildings, the management of personnel and volunteers, and the protection of vulnerable people, among many other files and issues. However, in most cases, they have never received the proper formation pertinent to each of those areas. They may not be familiar with any of those concerns; unless they had experience in their previous life as private citizens.
In the Archdiocese of Montreal, where for two years now there is a general service to the population of an Ombudsman; this can and does open up situations in which a priest finds himself accused of some form of abuse, which may be nothing more than a problem to be resolved by a proper human resources department or personnel office, if the parish had one of these or both. This diocese, like many others, has not had the time, expertise, or financial resources to develop such departments and services, and has only recently begun to do so from scratch. As a result, everyone is caught short, surprised and in shock at the allegations transmitted by the Ombudsman. In some cases, a priest may even have been suspended for a year or more due to one or more personality conflicts, which could and should have been resolved at the source without having recourse to such drastic measures as a long-term suspension.
In addition to the first grievous wrong done by such a summary suspension, both to the priest and to the faith community which he had been serving, justice may not be served well at all by such a process. This is particularly true when the complainant may have had an axe to grind personally against the priest. If such were the case, then the entire process would be in effect co-opted by an abusive lay person, turning the entire process on its head.
If the true problem is not identified early and competently handled; then a succession of injuries may ensue, like the toppling of a long series of dominoes, leading ultimately to the destruction of the life and mission of the faith community itself.
When wisdom, prudence, and charity are lost; there isn't much left upon which to build truth, goodness, and beauty, those three transcendental qualities of God, in the context of human lives and society. We have heard that a professional review of this process is under way, and we eagerly await the results, and, in the meantime, entrust ourselves, our people, and our Church into the hands of Almighty God; whose Church we are.
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On these Blogger pages we explore TOPICS in our desire to respond to Jesus' call to walk with Him in our world as his missionary disciples empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring to humanity the Good News of the Father's love manifested and given in Jesus, the Divine Mercy. G.S.
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© 2006-2024 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2006-2024 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC
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