.- Today marks the 40th anniversary of the often debated papal encyclical Humanae Vitae, in which Pope Paul VI reaffirmed the Church’s teaching against contraception. Looking back at the events as he experienced them, Cardinal James Francis Stafford writes that the reaction by dissenters to the papal document involved a level of infidelity which divided the ranks of the clergy to such an extent that they have still not recovered.
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“Lead us not into temptation” is the sixth petition of the Our Father. Πειρασμòσ (Peirasmòs), the Greek word used in this passage for ‘temptation’, means a trial or test. Disciples petition God to be protected against the supreme test of ungodly powers. The trial is related to Jesus’s cup in Gethsemane, the same cup which his disciples would also taste (Mk 10: 35-45). The dark side of the interior of the cup is an abyss. It reveals the awful consequences of God’s judgment upon sinful humanity. In August, 1968, the weight of the evangelical Πειρασμòσ fell on many priests, including myself,” the cardinal began.
“The summer of 1968 is a record of God’s hottest hour. The memories are not forgotten; they are painful. They remain vivid like a tornado in the plains of Colorado. They inhabit the whirlwind where God’s wrath dwells. In 1968 something terrible happened in the Church. Within the ministerial priesthood ruptures developed everywhere among friends which never healed. And the wounds continue to affect the whole Church. The dissent, together with the leaders’ manipulation of the anger they fomented, became a supreme test. It changed fundamental relationships within the Church. It was a Πειρασμòσ for many” ...
Read all of Priests still suffering from effects of Humanae Vitae dissenters.
UPDATE: In light of brother Aramis's comment, here is another sad reality facing those called to the priesthood: Media (is) crucifying priests. A reason why we need to protect our Catholic priests who bring us God's grace through the Sacraments, who are faithful to the Magisterium of the Church, who safeguard the epistemology, ontology, and anthropology of the deposit of faith.
1 comment:
As a convert, a little pup at that, officially coming into the Church a mere 3 years ago, I have not read anything like this. Its not that it is a real shocker for me, however it does give me pause when I go to get up on my soapbox and then face a long-time Catholic who went through this period of darkness and dissent in the American Church.
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