The big news out of the USCCB General Assembly yesterday was that the bishops will not be voting on “Standards of Episcopal Conduct” with respect to the homo-clerical crisis as had originally been planned.
As widely reported by numerous Catholic and secular media outlets, theVatican or the Holy See intervened at the eleventh hour to preempt the vote until sometime after February when the presidents of the world’s episcopal conferences are set to meet with Bergoglio in Rome.
As reported by National Catholic Register, at a press conference yesterday, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, President of the USCCB, “indicated that the directive came not from Pope Francis, but directly from the Congregation for Bishops.”
This is total and complete hogwash.
According to its official profile, the Congregation for Bishops has no such power over the proceedings of a national episcopal conference; rather, it is charged with “receiving the deeds and decrees [approved by a given episcopal conference] and, having consulted the Dicasteries concerned, give the decrees the necessary recognition.”
That’s the extent of the Congregation for Bishops’ power in this case; either to grant, or not to grant, a recognitio for any text that may have been voted upon and approved by the USCCB. Only the pope (or the guy wearing the costume at any rate) has the power to issue the directive that DiNardo announced yesterday.
The bottom line is that Bergoglio himself threw a monkey wrench into the USCCB’s plans. Why he did so is a matter of speculation, but one has good reason to suspect that he wants to be certain that the real underlying problem at hand, at least as he sees it, is adequately addressed; namely, clericalism.
From the earliest days of his “so-called pontificate” (to quote Fr. Nicholas Gruner yet again) Bergoglio has been making it crystal clear that he does not intend to pose a threat of any kind to clerical homo-deviants. In fact, he has gone out of his way to elevate them to positions of power and prestige. (Archbishop Viganò’s testimony concerning Bergoglio’s treatment of Uncle Ted is but one example.)
As such, it comes as no surprise that he has taken steps to reign in the USCCB prior to voting on this matter as a means of providing cover for the clerical homo-faction; just to make sure that it is in no way threatened or blamed.
Those of us who are all too familiar with the USCCB know that Bergoglio had absolutely nothing to worry about in the first place. In truth, the big vote on “Standards of Episcopal Conduct” was never going to result in anything more than a PR maneuver anyway.
As reported by Catholic News Agency:
Of principal concern to many bishops is that they take action in order to convey to Catholics that they find sexual abuse and coercion intolerable, and that they will not abide the presence of wolves in their midst.
Yes, that sounds about right; the bishops’ principal concern has long been all about keeping up appearances. If this were not the case, we wouldn’t be having this conversation today.
In any event, it would seem that the U.S. bishops have a genuine dilemma on their hands. According to CNA:
To convince American Catholics that the Church is serious about addressing the abuse crisis, they seem to have no choice but to continue to express serious dissatisfaction with Rome’s directive, even while expressing their obligation to obey it.
A couple of things stand out here.
First, one notes that Catholic News Agency is ever so careful to speak of “Rome’s directive,” even though everyone with a pulse knows that it came directly from the Heretic-in-Chief.
Secondly, as previously discussed, the USCCB is under no “obligation” to obey a letter from the Congregation for Bishops; none whatsoever.
Lastly, and most importantly, rather than laboring to convince American Catholics that they are serious about addressing the abuse crisis, the mitred hirelings of the USCCB should be way more concerned, individually, with how they’re going to convince Our Lord that they’re serious about being Catholic shepherds. To do this, it is going to be absolutely necessary for them to confront the ravenous wolf and heretic Bergoglio head-on.
UPDATE: As I was about to publish this post, it came to my attention that Archbishop Viganò just issued a similar message:
Dear Brother Bishops in the US,
I am writing to remind you of the sacred mandate you were given on the day of your episcopal ordination: to lead the flock to Christ. Meditate on Proverbs 9:10: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom!Do not behave like frightened sheep, but as courageous shepherds. Do not be afraid of standing up and doing the right thing for the victims, for the faithful and for your own salvation. The Lord will render to every one of us according to our actions and omissions.
I am fasting and praying for you.
Fasting and praying. Sounds like a good idea to me.
