From the blog of CNS:
Power outage at USCCB, CNS
Power is out this morning at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops after a line of severe thunderstorms rolled through Washington yesterday afternoon. And since we’re in the USCCB building, it means we may not be able to open today. More later.
What is there to say?
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Deo Gratias?
rofl
Is it really a bad thing if the USCCB were to shut down? I can’t think of another conference of Bishops who think of themselves more highly than this group. What I love is that Bishops like Olmsted, Chaput, and Bruskewitz pick and choose what they want from the USCCB, because…..they CAN. There is nothing binding about anything they do and yet they perform this musical number twice a year to make it sound like they have all the power in the world. Really is amazing to see the cajones these guys have.
stgemma,
Not completely true. The Holy See does give the USCCB some binding power.
I’d like to see the USCCB shut down permanently!
Wonder if God was trying to say something when His lightning cut the power….hmmm….just askin’….!
I’m with you Irish girl, i do wish the USCCB would have a permanent power outage
If USCCB were shut down would another group replace them? Is it optional for a country to have a conferance of bishops?
Elly
Are we sure it just happened this morning? Perhaps they should hold a meeting of the executive administrative committee to discuss the possibility of what the implications of this newfound discovery means to the Church in the U.S., the preliminary results of which will be contained in a “gray book,” or is it a “black book”? It’s hard to tell in the dark.
In many ways the ‘power’ was shut off some time ago, about the time the USCCB lost its backbone.
I’m a little surprised – I thought the power issues were mostly in Montgomery County. Up here in Silver Spring we were sans electricity for about 7 hours – but it was on by 10pm.
I’ll avoid the usual shots at the USCCB. I have too many (orthodox) friends that work there now.
Athelstan,
The power is on two blocks down 4th St. from the conference but the street light was out on the Conference’s block and they had the movable stop signs there instead.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Act_of_God
It was an equal-opportunity storm. No grocery stores, restaurants or gas stations near my home open for lack of power or hot water.
Sure takes a lot of self control not to make a pointed (but negative)comment!
A logical result of giving too much “power to the people” during the Vatican II Revolution.
If you’re talking about a warning from above, to quote Al Jolson, “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet”
The Ratzinger Report:
“We must not forget that episcopal conferences have no theological basis, they do not belong to the structure of the Church, as willed by Christ, that cannot be eliminated; they have only a practical, concrete function. [….] No episcopal conference, as such, has a teaching mission; its documents have no weight of their own, save that of their consent by the individual bishops.”
The USCCB is irrelevant in it’s present status.
BTW when’s the funeral?
My understanding is that episcopal conferences were required by the Second Vatican Council. However, the American bishops have been meeting together to consider pastoral, social, and political since the late 1700’s. The first such meeting was the Synod of Baltimore in 1791, this was followed by the nine provincial councils of Baltimore and then the three plenary councils of Baltimore. The reason why the USCCB meets in November is because the Baltimore councils met in November. The councils of Baltimore produced the Baltimore Catechism and launched parochial schools across the country (to name just a few accomplishments). The real embryonic form of the USCCB came later. During World War I the bishops created the National Catholic War Council to show that Catholics were patriots and were losing there lives for their country. This was an immensely successful effort to reduce anti-Catholic bigotry (Protestants believe that Catholics couldn’t be good Americans and keep their allegiance to the Pope). After the war this organization was renamed The National Catholic Welfare Council/Conference. The Conference aimed to respond to Benedict XV’s call to implement the labor reforms called for by Leo XIII in Rerum Nevarum. This organization in turn was renamed the United States Catholic Conference (USCC), which focused on social/political issues, in addition the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB)was formed. In 2001 both of these conferences were united under the title, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
There are about 100,000 people without power in the area. Two people died when the line of storms went through – one of them was six. This was bigger than the USCCB.