Optional Obedience

If you were planning on having a convention or a large meeting of Catholics, part of your planning would consist of contacting the bishop of the Diocese where it would be held. Some people that I know who planned such events certainly saw this as a necessary step. That is unless you are the American Catholic Council and not only do you not inform Archbishop of Detroit Allen Vigneron, you ignore him when he tell you to cancel the event.

The virtue of obedience is of course one sorely lacking among “Progressive” Catholics who want to always dissent and only assent when it agrees with them. It is very easy to get rid of or silence faithful Catholics since these Catholics actually obey their bishops even when they disagree with them and they don’t go publicly whining about maybe be shuffled off to a smaller parish in the countryside. Simply where there is no obedience to proper authority in the Church there is also no holiness. A disobedient reform movement is no reform movement at all.

So what fresh young voice have they scheduled? Why the heretic Hans Kung of course. It would seem to me that denying papal infallibility among other things certainly follows under the Canon law definition of Heresy as the obstinate post-baptismal denial of some truth which must be believed with divine and catholic faith, or it is likewise an obstinate doubt concerning the same. That this group links to other dissident groups include pro-homosexual acts and women’s ordination is also no surprise. In fact usually if you have the world America or U.S. in your name you are a heterodox Catholic. (i.e. America mag, U.S. Catholic, americancatholic.org, etc). Usually this is because they place a higher allegiance to the idea of democracy than they do to the Catholic part. They complain about the hierarchy when really they aspire to replace it to be able to direct us. After all they know better than the consistent teaching of the Church.

So a thumbs down to this phony reform group and thumbs way up for Archbishop Allen Vigneron and his concise statement.

The Archdiocese of Detroit has been contacted by concerned members of the faithful about a movement called the American Catholic Council. Self-described as “bringing together a network of individuals, organizations, and communities to consider the state and future of our Church,” they have planned a national gathering in Detroit for the weekend of Pentecost 2011. The American Catholic Council movement and its national gathering are not conducted under the auspices of the Detroit archdiocese, the universal Roman Catholic Church, or any entity or organization affiliated with the archdiocese or the universal Roman Catholic Church.

Although their stated purpose is to “respond to the Spirit of Vatican II by summoning the Baptized together to demonstrate our re-commitment and the documents issued by the American Catholic Council offer some valid aspirations for the Church, in fact, the goals proposed are largely in opposition to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council and the Holy Spirit, which inspired the Council.

The archdiocese wishes to commend and embrace all true efforts at Church renewal – the American Church Council’s agenda is not such an effort. Some of the advertised speakers and groups organizing the effort espouse positions which are clearly contrary to Catholic faith, leading to alienation and estrangement from the Church. The Archdiocese of Detroit cautions any Catholic against participating in the American Catholic Council local listening sessions and national gathering in June 2011. Catholic parishes, schools, and institutions are not to host any meetings, gatherings, or “listening sessions” associated with the planning of the June 2011 American Catholic Council. Priests, deacons, and ecclesial lay ministers will want to avoid lending support to such a misguided effort. On behalf of the archdiocese, Archbishop Vigneron has asked the organizers to cancel their plans for this national gathering that distorts the true Spirit of Vatican II. He asks us all to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit so that we may embrace authentic development of faith and morals, and shun efforts which threaten unity.

Father Z on Dissenter’s Ball