[Gocamino] [saintjames] Catholicism not required

[blaroli at aol.com]

Hi John,

I’m sorry that you had such a bad experience.

All families have “bad apples”, and the Catholic family being so huge (more than one thousand million) has a goodly number of them.

I’ve met my share of bad priests, and then some. One of them once denied me absolution because I raised a philosophical question. He dismissed me and, cruelly, said that he hoped I didn’t get hit by a car and killed because I was walking around in sin and would go to hell for all eternity. Very upset, a few days later I talked about it with a young Jesuit priest who told me to realize that priests are human and, as such, full of imperfections, and that, anyway, priests are only the caretakers of institutional needs and not the essence of the church which is the relationship between the human soul and God.

 He also reminded me, quite emphatically, that it is the act of confession itself, the recognition of one’s sins and the resolve not to repeat them, that brings absolution, and that no human priest can do so except symbolically. The young Jesuit told me to think of  the other priest as a “nut”.

It seems that the priesthood, like the army, attracts some troubled and troublesome individuals who cause harm to themselves and others.  But then, there are the countless d legions of nuns and priests who are good, warm, dedicated, earnest, nurturing and very selfless.  Yet the ones that stick in our minds are the bad ones.  I wonder why.

At any rate, in the Camino, and the Santiago Cathedral,  several priests have told me that any Christian with a loving and receiving heart may follow Jesus’ words to”Do this in memory of Me”, that is, receive communion.

 

This is not an apology for the church; we Catholics are the primary recipients of the hurt and harm wreaked by its “bad apples”. But then, there is the rest of the 2,000 years old family:  supporting,  loving,  everywhere and profoundly inspiring with its John Paul IIs,

Mother Theresas, St. Francises, and Sisters  Joan and Ruth at the Santiago Cathedral.

 

Warm regards,

 
Rosina

-----Original Message-----
From: Watson, John <watsonj at trinity.vic.edu.au>
To: saintjames at yahoogroups.com
Sent: Thu, 21 Jun 2007 10:22 pm
Subject: RE: [saintjames] Catholicism not required






Very interesting, Rosina
I now sing in an Anglican (Episcopalian) choir in Australia but was
raised a Presbyterian. Such was my upbringing, there was almost no
interaction between Catholics and Protestants. Indeed, there was animus
on both sides where kids would chant provocative rhymes at each other.
At Teachers' College my best friend was Catholic and one of his friends,
a gorgeous girl, was keen on me. We chatted and walked together, but I
never invited her out. The concern was "conversion" and walking away
from the family. It wasn't until I was a parent and at a wedding of
Catholic man and Presbyterian girl that the scales fell from my eyes.
The Presbyterian minister who had been invited by his Catholic priest
neighbour to participate addressed him with the words, "My brother in
Christ ..." Yes, we ARE brothers and sisters in Christ!
In my church, people in good standing from other Christian churches are
invited to take part in communion. Even in the more rigid Presbyterian
church of my youth people were invited to the table if they "love(d) the
Lord in sincerity and truth".
On my first (2000) Camino I took communion, figuring it was Jesus'
table. In 2005 there was a great fuss made in many places. In one, the
young (Benedictine?) priest took us all into an inner room next to the
vestry set out like a small museum. We were all given cards in different
languages to participate in prayers, and then he began to speak. By the
time he got to English he was ranting and literally frothing at the
mouth. Over and over he reiterated that if we could not give our
allegiance to the Catholic Church and obey the Bishops, we could not
participate in the Mass. While my head rebelled, I felt constrained not
to join in. It was most upsetting to me, and I hardly attended a service
after that. (I did, in Rabanal. Having broken a toe in the shower, I
needed all the help I could get.) Even in Compostela, I did not approach
the altar. 
I'll go again, God willing, in 2010 when I have fully retired.
Completing the Camino - stepping out in faith daily, making wonderful
friends (all Catholics), wallowing in the art, architecture, history,
myth, and culture, being ministered to by angels and ministering in turn
- remains the single most life-changing time of my life, marriage apart.

And who can adequately describe it?
John Watson



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