Wednesday, May 01, 2002
Over at Louder Fenn, Jimmy Tomato stated:
I think that it is sound policy to hold back every single dime from the diocese and every parish around. This is our chance for a limited revolution: not to change the rule of celibacy or rewrite the liturgy, but to tell bishops simply one thing: Stop the molesters. Certainly more faithfulness would cure this problem, but it is also amenable to worldly solutions like strict policies regarding molesters and seminaries.
Oh sure, that sounds like a nice idea and all, but since Mr. Tomato suggested it, perhaps he has thought this through a bit more and can tell us, for instance, how long this "boycott" is going to last? A day, a week, a month, a year or an entire generation? And in the meantime, what does Mr. Tomato think about the parishes that will have to close down because they can't pay their bills, or pay their staff? What about the Catholic schools that rely on parishoner tithes to operate? Should we start praying that the government gives us the "big ok" on waivers? What about Catholic societies that work at the parish level, like St. Vincent de Paul? Are we going to make victims of the poor who rely on those charitable donations to ease their suffering (see my commentary of 4/28/2002)? What about individual parish outreach programs? Do we just let them fall to the wayside while a few parishoners throw a hissy fit?
He also states:
The momentum is on the side of the laity; if we lose it, the change may indeed come over a generation, but with much sorrow in the meantime.
Which may be the saddest commentary of all. This should not be an "us versus them" issue. We're all the Body of Christ, are we not?
I think that it is sound policy to hold back every single dime from the diocese and every parish around. This is our chance for a limited revolution: not to change the rule of celibacy or rewrite the liturgy, but to tell bishops simply one thing: Stop the molesters. Certainly more faithfulness would cure this problem, but it is also amenable to worldly solutions like strict policies regarding molesters and seminaries.
Oh sure, that sounds like a nice idea and all, but since Mr. Tomato suggested it, perhaps he has thought this through a bit more and can tell us, for instance, how long this "boycott" is going to last? A day, a week, a month, a year or an entire generation? And in the meantime, what does Mr. Tomato think about the parishes that will have to close down because they can't pay their bills, or pay their staff? What about the Catholic schools that rely on parishoner tithes to operate? Should we start praying that the government gives us the "big ok" on waivers? What about Catholic societies that work at the parish level, like St. Vincent de Paul? Are we going to make victims of the poor who rely on those charitable donations to ease their suffering (see my commentary of 4/28/2002)? What about individual parish outreach programs? Do we just let them fall to the wayside while a few parishoners throw a hissy fit?
He also states:
The momentum is on the side of the laity; if we lose it, the change may indeed come over a generation, but with much sorrow in the meantime.
Which may be the saddest commentary of all. This should not be an "us versus them" issue. We're all the Body of Christ, are we not?
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