A Double Standard

I remember that Christmas Eve when I attended Mass at St. Stan’s. Estimates put the size of the crowd at nearly 3,000 and with the tiny church bursting at the seams many late comers had to be ushered to the adjoining parish hall to celebrate via CCTV. Some were the curiosity seekers, while others were there to show solidarity with the little Polish parish and the new maverick priest who were now locked in a bitter power struggle with the Archbishop of St. Louis, Raymond Burke.

The cause of the struggle has been hashed and rehashed in the media and is of little importance today. The whole brouhaha has taken on a new central theme. Some of the faithful of the parish now seek the ouster of the rebel priest arguing that his teachings don’t conform to the principles of the Catholic church. This by the same people who solicited the aid of this renegade preacher. I can’t help to think : what hypocrisy.

This priest is definitely guilty of some sins in the eyes of the church and those with conservative views as to what their religion is all about. He has opened the doors of the church to those previously denied access. He has embraced those with alternative lifestyles and afforded these “sinners” the opportunity to receive the Sacraments of the church. He committed the big no-no of assisting in the ordination of two women to the priesthood. He distributes communion to divorcees. One might say that he has a very liberal viewpoint of what religion should be all about. Valid arguments for the church to give him the old heave-ho.

One of his more vehement opponents was once his staunchest proponent and herein lies the hypocrisy. One of the main tenets of the church is obedience to the bishop, whether or not you inwardly feel that he is right or wrong. So we now are faced with the line of reasoning that it is fine to disregard some teachings, but not others. Cafeteria Catholics is the term.

For those of you who don’t know me, I was once faced with this same dilemma. I was active in a Catholic ministry giving my time to promote the faith in rural areas, somewhat of a low scale missionary , praying with people and a tool for healing both physical and emotional infirmities. I volunteered in hospitals and my parish. But I looked around and had questions. How could I blindly obey some teachings that I thought were wrong? I couldn’t. Way too many rules and regulations that exclude some from seeking God until they got their head on straight. One morning on the way to work, I switched the channel on the radio from a Catholic station to a rock station.

In the coming days the process to formally defrock the priest will commence. St. Stan’s will once again be priest less. A search for a successor will be launched. Where will a priest be found who on one hand disputes the authority of the bishop and on the other hand complies with other teachings of the church? You can’t pick and choose your beliefs like you can choose your vegetables.