Anyone’s who has actually read this blog has probably seen it coming. And it’s happened at last. My time as a priest is up.
I have now officially retired as a priest (archpriest, actually) in the Church of Antioch. This doesn’t mean I lose any of the powers of the priesthood. But then again, not even the Pope could take them away, even if I were a Roman priest.
Comments Off
The summer movie season is in full swing, and so far two films have gained my notice for their clerical characters: The Da Vinci Code, where prelates plot with murderous monks to conceal juicy secrets about Jesus, and Nacho Libre, a light-hearted comedy about a monk who becomes a Mexican wrestler.
Not much reason for the cardinals to go to the matinees these days. Long gone indeed are the days when the film industry catered to the Catholic crowd with safe and morally uplifting propaganda like Going My Way.
For the last several years, I’ve been working on a list of movies, which I call The Fallen Priests Film Festival. Every feature film or TV mini-series I could find that had priests or nuns or indeed, any kind of Christian minister in trouble is included there. I’m sure there’s many more, but I think I’ve found the most important ones by now. I’ve found quite a surprising amount.
Comments Off
Most clergy abuse survivors feel incredibly isolated. And usually for good reason. The abuse is often blamed on them by the perpetrators, who, standing in for God, weild shame like a bullwhip.
In the process of dealing with their memories, they isolate even more. After all, who wants to hear about this horrible stuff? And, if they ever develop the courage to speak out about their abuse, it can rip their families and communities apart.
Comments Off
Welcome to my new weblog. This site is for all those unhappy and puzzled Roman Catholics who wonder what went wrong with their church.
I may have some small insight into that to share. Like many abuse survivors and would-be reformers, I have witnessed the institutional Church lie, deny, obfuscate, and squirm, trying to protect and preserve its secrets, its privileges, and its power. And this, I have found to my horror, is nothing new.
Comments Off