Chuck Colbert's Nastygram to Roman Catholics

First, a housekeeping item. We'll be getting the video of Fr. Unni's homily up shortly, but the quality is still not good.

My thoughts on Chuck Colbert's article..

Quite the nastygram against Roman Catholics.

I know Chuck as a reasonable, kind, compassionate man. I am dumbfounded by the chicanery and religious bigotry manifested in this article.

Let's start with common ground in Chuck's article: Catholics have not done a good job preaching and teaching moral theology with respect to homosexuality. Our vocabulary and pastoral approach needs some work. We can teach or witness with conviction and love while being sensitive to vocabulary that pours salt into wounds.

Our parishes and schools are training camps for evangelists. We can't enable but we can acknowledge that gays and lesbians have been hoodwinked into believing the Roman Catholics hate them and we can be sensitive to that reality.

I was speaking to a gay man recently about the controversy and he asked me to try to walk in his shoes. I wasted no time telling him that we have all walked in his shoes in one way or another.

Long before secular/cultural discussions on homosexuality took place in the public square, women were the victims of the same kind of cultural brainwashing.

Everyone loves a good crusade against the oppressed. They had a good run painting women as slaves to marriage and motherhood. The village idiots jumped right on the bandwagon. They went from teaching young girls how to recognize a decent, loving, loyal and responsible man and reserving our sexuality for him, to teaching young girls to hop into bed with emotionally crippled and irresponsible men.

Here's some savvy advice to teach your daughters: If you're thinking of a sexual encounter with a man whom you worry might be carrying sexual diseases from all the women he's slept with - He's a jerk. A twisted soul who will only bring you misery and heartache. Run. When you are far enough away, take a good look in the mirror to figure out what is causing you to be attracted to men who treat you as their human doormat and receptacle for their defective libidos. You've got some problems with self-esteem and self-respect that need emergency treatment.

I digress.

The point is, stomping on the moral compasses of naive people has all been said and done before. Long before Unni, priests with pony tails and bongs in their closet hoodwinked a generation of women into believing our sins were virtues and that Rome just didn't get it.

When all was said and done,the men carrying out that crusade had as much respect for women as Charlie Sheen. That disrespect is something women share with the current cultural lilliputians.

Meanwhile, what may account for conservative Catholic vitriol over St. Cecilia’s ministry with gay and lesbian Catholics?

A local psychotherapist offered an observation.

"What this entire experience has taught is about the venom that comes from these ‘Catholic’ bloggers towards gay people,” said Charles Martel, a licensed clinical social worker in private practice.

“From a psychological perspective, their level of anger and rage reflects that the issue of homosexuality seems to be something that they have unresolved personal conflicts about, and clearly are struggling with,” he added.

What Colbert fails to disclose is that the Rainbow Ministry is a dating support club for gay Catholics operated by gay marriage advocates in the basement of a Roman Catholic Church.


How's this for irony: I actually think it is Unni and prelates like him, including Bishops, who hold contempt for gays. Gays are the only sinners in the history of the Catholic Church whom they cultivate taking pride in immorality and sexual sin, knowing they are robbing them of their salvation.

They are spitting on them and telling them it's hydrotherapy.

You want to talk about self-loathing latent homosexuality, you need look no further than prelates and their Chancery-enablers robbing lesbians and homosexuals of Paradise.

Catholics holding them accountable for victimized gays are actually not the boogiemen.

What's next for the Rainbow Ministry? "We are in the process of reaching out to Waltham House," a center for homeless gay and lesbian youth, said Charles Petit, a parishioner, adding, "We got a letter from them, asking us to come out and talk about why this church is different from other Catholic churches. We're thinking about having a barbeque.”

But what is "different" from St. Cecilia's is never clarified in Chuck's article. He dances around it.

Permit me to tell you what it is: Fr. Unni is amoral and immoral man who is spreading his own errors and enticing and enabling others to spread theirs. Surely Colbert realizes Catholics are duty-bound to evict Cardinal O'Malley's friends with benefits ministries from the basements of our Churches.


As far as I am concerned, the Cardinal's support of a ministry operated by older, sexually active gay men and their recruitment of teenagers confused about the messages the culture is feeding them by promiscuous is a violation of the Dallas Charter and we are in the process of reporting it as such.

There is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that the organizers have no idea of the dangers of bringing young men confused about human sexuality into a ministry in the basement of a Catholic Church that will be a magnet for a pedophile. Nonetheless, the Bishops know or should know and a formal complaint that Cardinal O'Malley is violating the spirit of the Dallas Charter will be filed.


Fr. Unni has already destroyed his career. Rome will no more elevate an immoral man with a history of advocating promiscuous sex than they would a woman.

One more thing Chuck is right about - we have never been angrier.

Not even when the Cardinal made a contract with the Commonwealth to hire abortionists to execute infants and promised to give them a free ride to their subcontractors were we this angry.

Fr. Unni's Message on the Parable of the Sower: "The Nomatterwhatness of God Fills Us With Mercy"

I'll bet you never heard that one before. I'm wishing I never heard it, but I'll get to how Fr. Unni got that message out of the parable of the sower in a minute. First, some good news:

Parishioners at St. Cecilia's were told that though they billed today's Mass at St. Cecilia's as a 'welcome' Mass, everyone is welcome at all Masses - said he thought everyone has known that all along.

He also stopped referring to faithful Catholics as hate mongers. We are now known at St. Cecilia's as the people who "don't get it". And, we're in good company because the Pope and 2000 years worth of Church teachings are with us.

You have to love the irony that today's Gospel was the parable of the sower, where the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven are lost to people whose souls are inadequately prepared to receive the Word.

Enough suspense.

Fr. Unni's homily explained exactly whose souls are inadequately prepared to receive the Word - it's the 'hard liners' and religious authorities who just 'don't get it'.

You see, Jesus opposed religious authority because He said stupid stuff like everyone was welcome, come to Him wracked with shame, whether you are gay or a prostitute or any other person on the margins. Religious authority and hard liners don't get it. Remember that Nicodemus came through the roof.

Fortuitously, he read the Gospel of Matthew before and after the parable of the sower and you know what he found? That Christ said if he had gone to Sodom and did what He did for outcasts, they would have gotten it.

Get it?

No?

He knew this was all going to be open for misinterpretation, but he is not giving the green light -no no - it's about loving people taking care of other people.

Jesus said 'these people' are people who lay heavy burdens and rules upon you but if you come to Him, He will give you rest. Know who you are. God sees who you are and He will give you rest. Stand in your own strength.

Do you get it, he asked?

I was only one in the pews around me shaking my head 'no' but there must have been others because he went on to clarify what he was talking about. That's when he gave the quote that ties it all together. It's all about shame and compassion. Shame bad. Compassion good.

He had a book written by "Greg Boyle" who apparently explains that shame is at the root of all addiction. God loves all woundedness into health. God finds in them total acceptability in their being. Self cannot survive without love. The absence of self-love is shame. The sinner is the outcast. Shame speaks lies. You're not at home with yourself. If we don't believe in ourselves, we will never come to the Table. If somebody tells you that you can't come to the Table, it isn't the Catholic religion.

So much for the theology of unworthy reception of the Eucharist but I digress.

If we don't believe in ourselves, we will never come to the Table. Let shame go because the nomatterwhatness of God fills us with mercy.

The strategy of Jesus was not about taking the right stand on issues, it is about standing in the right place. Compassion stands in awe of what others carry in life rather than judging them. Jesus eats with them, that's it. He eats with them. Eating with outcasts renders them acceptable.

Some people ask him why he needs a Rainbow Ministry. He tells them he listened to gay older men in their 60s, 70s and 80s - and all you say is tell me a story of who is feeling squashed - there needs to be a place. People saying this is the Unni gospel of sodomy just don't get it. With compassion, margins get erased.

The seed is God's compassion and acceptance. What kind of soil are we?

Are we stingy or open?

Everyone is holy love. There is no shame. Shame is healed. There is nothing to be ashamed of. Do we get it?

And with that, he flung open his vestments and swirled around like he was getting ready to fly, and up the stairs he went as the congregation broke open into wild applause. (In fact, there was a lot of clapping throughout the whole Mass, which I don't have the wherewithall to describe right now.)

I am not putting words in Unni's mouth - these are all his words. Somebody taped the homily. As soon as I receive it, we'll get it uploaded to the internet. I can't even get into the nightmare of the intercessions.

I couldn't count the times I was brought to my knees in reparation, my heart moved with pity for the gentle, kind and loving souls surrounding me, being so spiritually abused. God help them.

It doesn't take much to find how frightening Fr. Unni's gospel of no shame actually is, as one of our readers found a St. Cecilia bulletin dated October 24, 2010 with a printed article by Michael Gelenfield who has been accused of repeated sexual abuse. Not even repeated sexual abuse is to be ashamed of at St. Cecilia's. Shame speaks lies, let shame go because the nomatterwhatness of God fills him with mercy, total acceptability in his being.

Wasn't this the problem?

Oh wait..I think I get it now...being a friend of the Catholic hierarchy has its perks, doesn't it.

CJ Doyle's Press Release - Archdiocese Abandons St. Cecilia's

The Humble Capuchin: The Artful Dodger's Adventures and Ad Hominems

I apologize for the light blogging. Most blogs are people who use their talents to comment on theology and politics. While I do that here too, I'm really an activist with a blog which means the bulk of my work is done behind the scenes. You'll see a pattern if you read here. When something scandalous is going down and is posted here, the radio silence that follows means what time I have is being devoted to direct contact with the parties, with other Catholics, and disclosing and communicating what is going on to the Nuncio and the Holy See. Articulating our requests/expectations for intervention, etc.

There is a pervasive pattern of responding to scandal in the hierarchy of the Catholic Church in Chanceries across the USA.

They first try sweetness and flattery. They want you to be their friends. You are so smart, you see, they need you to serve on some committee. Your valuable insights and fidelity will be trumped on every policy because they've stack the committees with people who oppose Church teaching of course, but in the meantime, they've silenced your voice in the public square.

If the complaints are physical or spiritual abuse, they will throw money at you. The money comes piggybacked with a confidentiality agreement to get you to sit down and shut up.

When all tried and true tactics fail, they malign and slander. This is memorialized in the Archdiocese of Boston's public relations campaign in response to complaints of the spiritual abuse of parishioners at St. Cecelia's by Fr. John Unni.

The worst of the statements is here in this Lifesite article:

The spokesman also shot back at criticism of the archdiocese’s handling of the situation from Catholics on the blogosphere.

“I’m not going to let these people attack the Cardinal’s integrity nor his 40 plus years of priesthood,” said Donilon, defending O’Malley’s record defending the unborn and marriage, and calling the attacks “outrageous and disgraceful.”

“This isn’t about defending Catholicism, this is about hurting, defaming, denegrating people, and speaking mistruths, and manipulating words and positions of the cardinal and archdiocese. I think they’re malicious,” said Donilon.

As Judie Brown pointed out here, Catholics who want Church teaching promulgated are quite accustomed to Cardinal O'Malley's character assassinations.

There is no difference between this current situation and the problematic nature of the sale of a string of Catholic hospitals to Cerberus Capital Management with the agreement that the hospitals could easily drop their Catholic credentials with a $25 million payment (payoff) to the archdiocese.

Clarity of Catholic teaching has somehow evaded the Archdiocese of Boston in the wake of its efforts to placate the world and its expectations rather than fostering a spirit of healing to those who are troubled and confused.

The nice, kind, humble, pastoral Capuchin once again uses his media relations to characterize complainants as no good so and so's.

Thank you for writing to me expressing your concerns/prayers. I appreciate them and use them. But I don't want you to ever be concerned that these tactics have (or will) intimidate me. I'm out here as a witness. I'm here to remind them (and you) that my allegiance is to God and the Church He left to serve souls for the benefit of our salvation.

What they say bounces off of me like a flea on a dog that's been treated with frontline.

I have written to Mr. Donilon, the Cardinal, his secretaries, his lawyers, the Nuncio and the CDF and told them, and in no uncertain terms, it is my expectation that they cease and desist from using intimidation tactics by characterizing people this way.

Additionally, I shot a flare across their bow that was quite specific on what kinds of things they are to restrain Fr. Unni vis-a-vis his screwball intimidation and slander tactics. We'll see what happens.


There is an excellent set of ten questions posted at BHE that exposes the fundamentals of the artful dodging the Cardinal is doing to cover up and protect Fr. Unni's long history of spiritual abuse at St. Cecilia's which has been laid out on the internet over the past several weeks.

Rescheduling the timing of a Mass they claim was simply a Mass open to all parishioners is a ridiculous and deceptive ruse. The problem with the Archdiocese is, they have never had the good sense to surrender their lies at the foot of the Cross until they are completely discredited by the truth. The handwriting is on the wall but they are too consumed with their charades to read it and recognize its warning.

There's an art to living a life of lying by omission and the commission of ad hominems when somebody reveals your lies. The Boston Archdiocese is the crown jewel of that kingdom.

We have arrived at this desolate place in Catholic history because priests and prelates deprived a generation of Catholics the deposit of our teachings to avoid conflicts with people offended by them.

Cardinal O'Malley is advancing us from the deprivation to the next stage, overtly misleading the flock with false teaching and maligning, intimidating, slandering Catholics who are publicly exposing the chaos of his misfeasance and malfeasance.

This is an on-going story. Boston bloggers have another story cooking on what the Archdiocese does to people who proclaim Church teaching, so stay tuned.

As promised, here's a spectacular editorial that was published in this week's edition of the Fall River Anchor on the pastor care at St. Cecilia's and the Archdiocese of Boston.

Fr. Landry is a priest who will take any soul on that he feels is derailing. Nevermind the courage to take on a Bishop, *I* have been on his radar more than once in my public ministry. That's what you call valor! His demeanor is forthright. He doesn't just drop a hint, or say what he feels he needs to say as a priest. When you try to defend yourself, he stays in the ring. Goes above and beyond to try to get you to see it. A lover of souls and salvation... and a royal pain when you don't want to hear it. :)

His introductory paragraph summarizes the problem quite well:

The ongoing controversy at St. Cecilia’s Church in Boston over the scheduling, postponing and re-theming of a Mass originally planned to celebrate Boston’s gay “pride month” has brought to the surface issues that extend far beyond the boundaries of one parish or archdiocese. The controversy touches not only on the subject of the pastoral care of the Church toward those with same-sex attractions, but on the much larger matter of the purpose of the Church’s pastoral care to anyone and everyone: Whether the Church, her priests and parishes will faithfully, lovingly and courageously care for people with the fullness of the Gospel; or whether her ministers and ministries — perhaps out of too much fear to give offense, a lack of faith in the teachings of the Church, or a faint-hearted notion of what true love demands — will dilute the Gospel of its saving power by stripping it of the uncomfortable and countercultural teachings that some listeners most need.

Here, he disabuses the artful dodgers of the notion that we can't see what they are doing:

Cardinal O’Malley’s intentions to dissociate the Mass from “gay pride,” however, sadly haven’t succeeded, as many members of the parish and of the media have continued popularly to refer to the Mass as a gay pride Mass. Those who have ceased to draw explicit attention to the connection with gay pride have continued, however, to use coded language — “a welcoming Mass” — to communicate that supporters of the gay agenda do not have to worry about being made to feel uncomfortable at the Mass over the incompatibility of the gay agenda with Church teaching. The expression “welcoming Mass” now being employed to refer to the July 10 liturgy does not mean merely that people will be received with genuine Christian hospitality. Like the expression “welcoming parish” used in various places (such as the 200 “gay friendly” parishes promoted by pro-gay websites), it’s a euphemism that communicates to those who may be living in objective discordance with the teaching of Jesus and the Church —like those engaging in the gay lifestyle, living in irregular marriages, cohabitating, undergoing in-vitro fertilization, or actively supporting the practice of abortion, gay marriage or other practices contrary to the faith — that not only will they never have to hear a peep about any of these unpleasant topics, but very likely neither will they hear anything suggesting the necessity of concrete conversion, confession, and of being in doctrinal, sacramental and moral communion with Christ and his mystical Body the Church in order to receive Jesus worthily in Holy Communion....

Do read this treasure of an editorial in its entirety. Fr. Landry says he'll be writing more on the pastoral conundrum next week which I'll be sure to link here at TTC.

The Cardinal has been given documentation that Fr. Unni has not just been depriving his parishioners of Church teaching to make them feel at ease, he has been leading them to rebel against Church teaching and further, heckle it should it be proclaimed. The Cardinal has clarified that this kind of pastoral care has his 'full confidence' and 'support' and he has referred to Fr. Unni as a great pastor.

Since the Cardinal is not ignorant of Fr. Unni's methods of making people feel comfortable, and since he is aware that every Mass ever said in the history of the Catholic Church in every parish across the planet earth welcomes all parishioners and the wider community, there is no other conclusion to draw but that Cardinal O'Malley is on board making people feel comfortable by not only depriving them, but with training them to rail against Church teaching.

I'll leave you with a beautiful reflection written by St. Gregory of Nyssa to remind you of what is being stolen from our brothers and sisters at St. Cecilia's and other Catholics:

…If you draw from him the thoughts in your mind and the inclinations of your heart, you will show a likeness to Christ, your source and origin, as the gleaming water in a jar resembles the flowing water from which it was obtained.

“For the purity of Christ and the purity that is manifest in our hearts are identical. Christ’s purity, however, is the fountainhead; ours has its source in him and flows out of him. Our life is stamped with the beauty of his thought. The inner and the outer man are harmonized in a kind of music. The mind of Christ is the controlling influence that inspires us to moderation and goodness in our behavior. As I see it, Christian perfection consists in this: sharing the titles which express the meaning of Christ’s name, we bring out this meaning in our minds, our prayers and our way of life.”

Christian Perfection by St. Gregory of Nyssa, Bishop http://divineoffice.org/

Have You Been Going to The Sacred Liturgy and Parishes Without an Invitation?

All Catholics need to be made aware of two very important clarifications made this week by Cardinal O'Malley about worship and our Roman Catholic Sacred Liturgy.

To our abject horror, it appears we have been uninvited guests at our local parishes and Sacred Liturgies.

For those who are new to the theological and Liturgical controversy in the Archdiocese, let me catch you up to speed on what brought the Archbishop's most recent clarification on Liturgies in Boston.

Once upon a time, there was a parish run by the Jesuits called the "Jesuit Urban Center". It is now closed. The Jesuit Urban Center was the premier spot for Catholics who wanted to be liberated from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The priests there focused their efforts on gay Catholics. Among other things, they had a dating ministry for gays and lesbians which was voted in 1999 as the "Best of Boston" in the category of gay cruising. Not a nominal feat considering it trumped online dating services, barrooms and clubs.

The parish subsequently was cut loose from the Catholic Church and the building was boarded up. The "ministry" transitioned over to St. Cecilia's where Fr. Unni has been operating it, now called The Rainbow Ministry.

Fr. Unni's Rainbow Ministry has been quite busy over the years. You won't find much of their history now on their website. Fr. Unni has deleted the evidence of how he has brought in speakers promoting sexual promiscuity, gay marriage, gay liberation theology. However, Boston Catholics were wise enough to retrieve and store information before he was aware that he would be under the microscope.

A few of the things stored have already been released and are documented HERE. Do take the time to read the bulletin linked in the post which should give you the gist of what Fr. Unni has been up to. Scroll down to page 2 and you'll see speaker Chuck Colbert who describes himself as promoting, among other things, 'gay liberation' and 'gay marriage'. Chuck Colbert's 'gay liberation' literally includes disrupting the Catholic Sacred Liturgy when moral teachings are proclaimed.

The Cardinal urges us to emulate Fr. Unni who is teaching his parishioners to heckle the teachings of the Catholic Church. That apparently is what dignity, respect, love and compassion looks like to the Cardinal. Unni, he said, is an outstanding pastor.

We have scoured St. Ceclia's website, bulletins, ministries and interviewed numerous Catholics who have attended St. Cecilia's. There isn't a shred of evidence he's ever proclaimed Church teaching on faith and morals.

That brings us to a few weeks ago when the St. Cecilia's Rainbow Ministry advertised a trip to the Gay Men's Chorus, which they described as a 'kickoff to gay pride weekend'. Along with that announcement was the now infamous announcement of the gay pride mass. Both of these announcements are in THIS bulletin.

When area Catholics raised concerns with the Cardinal, the Nuncio and the Holy See, the Cardinal 'postponed' the gay pride mass to July. They claimed the Mass was all on the up and up theologically. Why, any fool can see it was simply poor timing which led to the 'unintended' impression that Fr. Unni and the gay pride mass was celebrating gay pride. They simply wanted to schedule one Mass that was open to all parishioners. What a splendid idea.

I didn't know all the other Masses in Boston were closed to all parishioners, did you?

The organizers of the gay pride mass were very confused and hurt at the distancing of the mass from gay pride activities and not simply from all the years of the Cardinal letting Fr. Unni hoodwink them. They claim the 'archdiocese' collaborated with them on the planning of the gay pride mass:

“I am very hurt. (Having) worked so hard for all this stuff, it’s very difficult to stand by and watch this,” said John Kelly, chairman of the Rainbow Ministry.

Kelly and other members of the group say they’d been planning the Mass since January and said the archdiocese was aware of it.

Iandoli also explained the need for a Mass, “specifically to celebrate Gay Pride, because it is difficult to be proud unless you are both loved and supported,” he said.

Fr. Unni publicly characterized Catholics concerned about matters of the soul as hateful people who object to the presence of gays and lesbians in the pews. He positioned himself and St. Cecilia's as the sole priest in the diocese whose parishioners welcome the presence of gays and lesbians. It is heartbreaking to see Mr. Kelly and others be so exploited and hurt.

Moreover, it is very disconcerting to see all Catholic Masses theologically alienated from welcoming all. What a thing to sacrifice to protect a wayward pastor. It can not stand.

For those of us who have spent the better part of our lives loving our gay friends, relatives, neighbors, colleagues while holding on to our witness of why we live chaste lives under circumstances defined by Church teaching, the Cardinal and his Administration have re-calibrated relationships and witness to be hostile to their presence in Church.

The hurt this misunderstanding inflicts upon gays and lesbians, to the witness and ministries of every priest and Catholic in the Archdiocese, is damage which cannot be measured.

The local Bishop, Bishop Robert Hennessey was present at the Mass when Unni did it, and the Cardinal's spokesperson delivered the message that Fr. Unni has the Cardinal's full confidence and support.

Last week, they released the following statement with the announcement the gay pride mass had been 'rescheduled':

The Archdiocese of Boston is committed to evangelization and to being a welcoming Church for all of God's people. St. Cecilia's is a wonderful example of the exceptional parishes in the Archdiocese which seek to serve the Catholic faithful with grace, dignity, respect, compassion and love and being devoted to the Gospel and Christ's saving ministry.

The reports that the Mass, originally scheduled June 19th, was cancelled are not accurate. Rather the Mass was postponed. As indicated in the statement of the Archdiocese on June 10, a Mass welcoming the wider community of the faithful, including gays and lesbians, will be held. The Mass has been rescheduled to Sunday, July 10th at 11am.

We respect the desire of those individuals organizing and participating in the prayer service. We know that the postponement of the June 19th Mass has been disappointing to them. Our hope and prayer is that we can come together as one community of Catholics sharing in the Lord’s divine love for each of us.”

I don't know where he got this notion, but the Cardinal is of the conviction that every other priest, Catholic parish and Liturgy in the Archdiocese of Boston reserves their parishes only to people whom they extend a welcome by invitation. (More on this in a minute were the Cardinal holds to this conviction again in this week's edition of the Pilot.)

What an absurd theological position to take on the Sacred Liturgy.

According to the Cardinal, Fr. Unni and St. Cecilia's in the Cardinal's shining example of what 'grace' looks like when you are teaching dogma and doctrine and celebrating the Eucharist.

Positively. Frightening.

The Archdiocesan-endorsed gay-pride prayer service was led by Peter Meade, who, God Bless him, has been quite forthright in declaring his opposition on the teaching of the Church on Marriage in the public square.

Judie Brown speaks out about the sowing of confusion at Renew America. Earlier in the week she also issued a magnificent press release:

DELUSIONS IN THE ARCHDIOCESE OF BOSTON

Judie Brown, president and cofounder of American Life League, issued a public statement regarding the most recent announcement from Boston’s St. Cecelia’s Church that the archdiocese of Boston had given permission to reschedule a Mass intended to celebrate LGBT pride.

"Even with the deliberate parsing of words, it is clear to the faithful and the public that this Mass is intended as an affirmation of homosexual activity. St. Cecelia’s own church bulletin confirmed this as true: “a Mass in celebration of Boston’s Pride Month.”

To allow the holy Mass and Catholic teaching to be subverted in this way demonstrates a heretical failure of Catholic leadership in the Boston archdiocese.

You can read ALL's press release in its entirety HERE.

Of course, the press hailed the triumphant return of the gay pride mass this week.

As is typical of the current occupants of the Chancery, the bigger the mess gets, the more they dig themselves into the hole.

I would like to be a fly on the wall in their think tanks.

His Eminence: What will we say now?

Terry Donilon:

"Let me also make abundantly clear, the rescheduled Mass is not an endorsement of gay pride activities. There has been much confusion about this issue and it has not been accurately covered in the secular or Catholic media.

Headlines such as the Globe’s “Mass Marking Gay Pride Is Back On” are completely wrong. This gives the unfortunate impression that we are allowing the Mass to celebrate gay pride week/month. We are not. The Mass was postponed so as not to tie it to gay pride activities. The rescheduled Mass will occur on July 10th at 11am and will be a welcoming Mass for all of St. Cecilia’s parishioners."

The fly: No, no, your Eminence - that is a PR disaster! Everyone knows it was scheduled as a gay pride mass to begin with, so when you use the word 'rescheduled', they're going to go right back to the bulletin notice and retrieve the definition of the character of the Mass originally scheduled.

Terry Donilon:

Tearing down the Church! Tearing down the Church!

Maligning and misrepresenting the Cardinal! Hate mongers who don't want to worship with gays and lesbians, that's what they are, Cardinal, that's what they are!

Fly, As you can see from the Cardinal’s statement below, he acknowledges that there has been much confusion. The Mass was postponed so as not to be identified with Gay Pride Week or Gay Pride Month. The Church has not and will not be put in such a position where it appears we are going back on our word that we will not support such activities. The rescheduled Mass will occur on July 10th at 11am and will be a welcoming Mass for all of St. Cecilia’s parishioners.

The fly: Yes, there is confusion Terry. You are the author of it.

Delaying it a week, a month, a year -you can't distance the Mass from the years of sex liberation and pride ministry Fr. Unni has been operating. The evidence is all over the internet. The bulletin is right there for people to read. It wasn't a Mass welcoming the wider community at all. You will look like a liar.

People are going to ask what makes the 8am or the 6pm Mass unwelcome to all of St. Cecilia's parishioners? What about next week at St. Cecilia's?

Do you want people to think Masses all over town are not open to all parishioners unless it is especially scheduled that way? Masses are reserved for invitees only unless an announcement is made? It is poppycock. Chicanery.

Terry Donilon:

You malicious, maligning, defaming manipulating degenerates. Speaking mistruths. Outrageous and disgraceful.

According to the lifesite article, even the Globe didn't swallow that whopper:

Archdiocesan spokesman Terrence Donilon on Thursday said he had unsuccessfully asked the Globe to change its headline.

Here's how the Cardinal's statement panned out:

Cardinal O’Malley statement published in The Pilot (June 22, 2011)

“The philosophical and political agenda of Gay Pride in relation to marriage and sexual morality is incompatible with the Church’s teachings. For that reason, Father Unni rescheduled a Mass of welcome for all his parishioners to a time that would not associate the Mass with the Gay Pride agenda.

I realize that Catholics who have same sex attractions are often criticized by their friends for coming to Mass and that the parents and friends of homosexual members of our Church are distressed that their loved ones feel rejected by their Church. We want all baptized Catholics to come to Mass and be part of our community, but we cannot compromise the teaching of the Church rooted in Scripture and tradition.

We hope that all Catholics will come to experience the love of Christ in our community and that in that love they will find the courage and strength to embrace the cross that is part of the life of discipleship.

It is regrettable that there has been so much confusion about this matter. I hope the statement on my blog of last week and The Pilot editorial “A teachable moment” will help people to understand the Church’s teaching. We must be a community that reflects both the love and the truth of the Gospel.”;

Imagine that. It was all a big misunderstanding. Fr. Unni was simply scheduling a Mass that was open to all parishioners.

Too bad Christ and the Apostles didn't think of that, eh?

What an epiphany on Mass etiquette. Do you think the Pope will make an announcement on Fr. Unni's idea to open up a Mass to all parishioners?

Maybe somebody should rush the idea over to Rome and they'll have enough time to make changes in the General Instruction of the Roman Missal.

I keep running to the mailbox to see if I've been invited to Mass to my local parish tomorrow. Does anyone have the Pilot? Is there a new section on who is getting invited where and when? A special invitation for malicious maligning defaming manipulating degenerates?

Can somebody crack the code? Is it a dispensation?

I don't know what to do. Should we stay home?

Coming from a Cardinal, these statements are regrettable indeed.

I have one more, rather sober observation about these developments.

This statement from a parish council member at St. Celicia's indicates a very dangerous situation:

And Iandoli offered strong words of encouragement to gay youth. “I urge you to come out,” he said “The closet is a hateful, lonely, silent, and unholy place.”As Iandoli explained, “If you can, come out when you are ready and when it is safe, I think your yoke will be easier, your burden lighter. The freedom that comes from being honest with yourself, accepting yourself, and sharing that information about yourself when appropriate will release terrible psychological pressure and give you new energy and life.”

This is not a reflection of Mr. Iandoli or anyone else who may currently be in the Rainbow Ministry. He sounds like a good-hearted soul who is just trying to bring people he loves back to Christ. I am certain this is an innocent remark made and Mr. Iandoli is unaware of the ramifications of mingling a ministry where mature men want to mentor the sexuality of gay youth inside of a parish setting.

However, aside from the bad theology, it is impossible to police it. What we have learned from former victims of abuse is that though 99% of it may simply older men who are trying to 'give freedom' or 'ease the 'terrible psychological pressure', this kind of a ministry is a magnet for a pedophile to slip in under the radar. They look for youth who are psychosexually struggling and the 'mentoring' escalates to give them personal sexual experiences.

One would think that after the last decade, the last place we'd invite gay youths to be mentored would be a parish in the Archdiocese of Boston.

We shouldn't be surprised, I suppose. The Dallas Charter is not about preventing abuse inside of parishes, it's about drilling children on the names of body parts so children can testify, should they have the courage to go to the police.

Growing up around Irish Catholics immigrants and their descendants, there's an old Sir Walter Scott quote they would never let you forget:

Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.