It doesn’t surprise me even as it surprised me. I am ever amazed at the response I get from readers in certain circumstances, even as I have, over time, learned to expect it.
Since I posted about Fr. Kalchik, and since I wrote about a dream in which there was a haven for priests in a Western state, and especially since I posted about how some (not all!) bishops deal with troublesome priests – The Psych Strike Gambit – quite a few of you have written to offer help to priests who are under fire.
- Some of you have offered your homes.
- Some of you have offered to set priests up somewhere.
- Some of you have in a generic way said that they are praying hard.
- Some of you, quite a few, have told me that you know priests in these situation.
- Some PRIESTS have written about their own experience with The Psych Strike Gambit played by their bishops (or religious with superiors).
Is this something that has to go somewhere?
I don’t know what that would be, exactly.
I had a glimpse, as mentioned elsewhere, of a community set up almost like the Camaldolese, wherein each man has his own “cabin” but there is more of a community life than in a Carthusian set up.
If suddenly some wealthy guy in the mountains of Montana or Idaho or Wyoming sends photos of this sort of place already built and ready to go…
… wouldn’t that be interesting?
You never know. Providence works mysteriously.
I think it is fascinating that the new Gower Abbey church was fully consecrated in the traditional rite. Those Benedictines have the apostolate of praying for bishops and priests.
Timely.
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I am reminded of the movie “The Scarlet and the Black”…
I’m adding the provision of just such a place (or places) to my prayers. I know many others are doing the same.
Father, it’s really helpful to have something sort of concrete in mind as you have described!
I know a lot of folks have mixed feelings about Rod Dreher and his blog, but he gets results, and he is trustworthy. He has pulled no punches on McCarrick and has told the Kalchik story. He has been honestly sympathetic to traditional Catholics, but still pursuing the truth. He is a gumshoe reporter who checks facts, paper trails, and witness stories. He has a very large Rolodex. He has been meticulous in keeping confidential claims that were unverified and protects identities. I’d suggest people tell him their stories and let him start showing how widespread this is.
In addition to what the laity are willing to do (and there are many of us willing to help), I can’t help but wonder if the Church in America isn’t moving towards a time in which priests will have to work to support themselves. [And that, my dear chantgirl, is what I have been doing with this blog all these years. It provides freedom to move, a tremendous burden in paying my bills, and both protection and vulnerability at the same time. It is a tightrope I walk every day. It is why I live the mendicant life as a diocesan that many religious nominally vow. Some Eastern priests often also have to get jobs, especially if they have wives and families.] There are many factors pointing to a precipitous decline in both Church coffers and lay attendance. Your average suburban Novus Ordo Mass congregation leans heavily elderly, with the majority 6o+ years. Without anything else going awry, that by itself would point to major parish closures and mergers in the next 10-20 years as the elderly have less disposable income, and the baby boomers in particular have not saved enough for retirement.
Add in the looming AG investigations in multiple states, the huge settlements, the public view of the Church as a hypocritical cesspool of perverts, and the institutional collapse could accelerate.
At this point, I doubt I am the only mother thinking that I would strongly discourage a son from entering any diocesan seminary, as even a good bishop could be gone tomorrow, and recent rulings from Rome appear to make it much more difficult for a seminarian to apply to a different seminary if he has been asked to leave by his current one. Even Ecclesia Dei orders like FSSP and ICKSP, which offer great formation for their priests, could be snuffed out if the mood strikes. We have only to look at the FFI to see how quickly they could be torn down.
While I don’t prefer the idea of priests having to work for a living, we may be approaching that point out of necessity, and if my sons want to go to seminary, I may ask them to consider learning a trade first- something they could learn in 2 years or so. [While an authentic call from God must never be thwarted, it is also a GREAT idea to be able to go fishing like St. Peter or make tents like St. Paul. In any event, it can only expand a man’s abilities, which is good.]
Lately I have had three saints in mind for our current situation:
St. Paul- driven from place to place, in and out of prison, had to support himself by his own labor
St. John of the Cross- thrown into prison by his own religious confreres
St. Padre Pio- suffered the stigmata during a century when priests were committing serious sexual abuses, and also managed to get permission to only celebrate the EF Mass during the major upheaval after VII
I can’t believe I’m saying this, really this is just totally insane…just insane. I’ve had a love one go into a war zone and I had to ask these questions.
Father, I don’t know much about where you are, but I imagine you will, one day, eventually be under another Bishop to whom you will owe your obedience. What if he orders you to stop and delete your blog? (anybody know what ever happened to Fr Paul Nicholson btw?) How would we know if you’re safe if one day you just “disappear”?
Am I dreaming here? I mean is this real?
[This is all very real. It is surreal reality. And, believe me, every day when I tear a new sheet off my calendar I get a little chill down my spine, because I can feel it coming.]
I’m just throwing this out there, but maybe it’s time to bring back the Sacred Heart Nighy Holy Hour devotion.
http://www.sacredheartholyhour.com/
Certain protestant denominations value a pastor with a trade licence. A man trained as a plumber or electrician can earn his own way in tough times or if they have to move suddenly.
[Something that lay people could do is, I suppose, help older priests – if they want – get some night school and a trade. Useful in any event and it could be sobering for the priest, as well.]
Might you, Fr. Z, be able to post some advice for others perhaps seeking the priesthood, on how to be ordained somewhere and then be able to minister elsewhere in a manner that would allow them some flexibility in preaching and practicing orthodoxy without being under the bishop’s thumb or microscope, so to speak? Just like you they would also have to support themselves, but if that is what it takes to in some small way ensure that the true Faith is defended and practiced, men may need to have some practical advice from you whom the Lord has favored with such a gift and responsibility. Thanks.
chantgirl, I can assure you that many faithful Catholic parents are wondering whether encouraging priestly vocations is the right thing to do just now. The responses parents got at our parish town hall meeting about the current crisis did not leave me feeling very confident. In fact, our pastor said that a chaste homosexual man could be ordained to the priesthood, in his opinion.
Having said that, I also understand Father Z’s assertion that authentic vocations must be honored and followed. In my diocese, there are some priests who are speaking out about the current crisis and encouraging the faithful to join them in fasting, Adoration, repentance, and prayer for our beloved Church. Where would we be without these faithful priests?
I recently wrote a blog post about the beloved saint, Padre Pio, who suffered so much at the hands of the hierarchy of the Church. Eventually he was allowed to resume saying Mass for the faithful and to hear confessions (up to 16 hours a day!), but how he must have suffered when he was required to say Mass in private and stay out of the confessional…truly a saint for our time as well as his own.
I am praying every day through the intercession of St. Michael for our holy priests and for our Church. I am so glad to know that I am not alone.
Father, I kindly ask if you or anyone who is reading my post can help assist Father David Nix, who is now homeless after reporting abuses in the Archdiocese of Denver.
http://padreperegrino.org/2018/09/27/whistleblowing1/
@Johann I cannot express how much it tears at my heart. I cannot do anything from a temporal level, but Fr Nix is in my prayers too.
What has become of my Church?
The St. Luke’s Institute reminds me of some of the horror stories I read about years ago in “Goodbye Good Men.” There were stories about a psychiatric hospital in New Mexico where priests who had problems with homosexuality, pedophilia, and alcoholism were often sent (many stories were from the 1980s).
Sadly, many of these priests ended up ministering in nearby geographic areas such as Pueblo and Amarillo (and Amarillo did have its share of trouble in the 1980s).
It’s a similar story to what is often heard about certain private psychiatric hospitals – when the insurance expires, the patient is miraculously cured and released.
Johann, do you have an address for Fr. Peregino, to which money can be sent? Follow my name to send me an email if you care to. Thanks.
Fallibilissimo,
Dear Father, I hope and pray, that for such case of emergency you think about prophylactic, secret measures, ideas, canonical and electronic hideaways….