Bishop Cancels Speaker Series at Dominican Retreat House
If the water in the well is allowed to become polluted, no one should be surprised when the people who drink it become ill. I begin with this simple analogy in order to illustrate the serious oversight required in those who have responsibility for the welfare of others, e.g., parents, catechists and religion teachers, spiritual directors, clergy and bishops.
Children are entrusted by God to their parents, whose responsibility it is to oversee their physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual growth. Indeed, as the Rite of Baptism states, parents are the first teachers of faith for their children. Therefore, it follows that parents must oversee what their children are being exposed to in terms of television, radio, books and magazines, music, and the internet. This oversight must be accompanied by honest and positive discussions with their sons and daughters as well as by the good example of parents themselves.
Those entrusted with forming people in the faith, for example, catechists, religion teachers, spiritual directors, clergy and bishops, likewise have a weighty responsibility to see to it that what is presented to God’s people is fully in accord with the teachings and discipline of the Church. Obviously, the criterion for evaluating this is the Teaching Office of the Church, that is, what the Pope and bishops authentically teach for the welfare of God’s people. Their teaching is rooted in Sacred Scripture and Tradition.
This responsibility of oversight is essential to the episcopal office. The very word "episcopal" is derived from the Greek word meaning "to oversee." Every bishop, then, is to take seriously this responsibility to insure that the people entrusted to his pastoral care must be formed in the faith in ways that are in accord with the Truth as it is proposed and explained by the Sacred Scriptures, Church Tradition and the Teaching Office of the Church.
In light of this responsibility, which I also consider a privilege, I have recently been involved in a situation concerning a Women’s Spirituality Series scheduled at the Dominican Retreat House in McLean. The presenters were: Diann L. Neu (Feb. 29), Dr. Mary E. Hunt (March 28) and Mary Lou Sleevi (April 25). As soon as I became aware that these three presenters were reported to be opposed to the official teachings of the Church, I asked my staff to investigate the matter thoroughly.
This objective and thorough research demonstrates without any doubt that Diann Neu and Mary Hunt are co-founders and co-directors of an organization which calls itself WATER (Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual). The Summer 1998 issue of Waterwheel (Volume 11, No. 2), a quarterly newsletter of WATER, contains an article authored by Mary Hunt and entitled "Fifteen years of WATER." In this article, Dr. Hunt refers to herself "as a Catholic feminist liberation theologian, pro-choice and lesbian." In that same article, she informs us that "…WATER started out of our house [referring to Diann Neu], one of us at the dining room table, the other in the study, making phone calls, writing letters, trying out ideas, raising money.
Research also confirms that Diann Neu has authored a prayer service referred to as "liturgy" and called "Eucharist" in its call to celebration: "…Let us take a moment of quiet to prepare for the Eucharist." A version of this service was celebrated at a Call to Action conference in Detroit, MI and at a Women-Church Convergence meeting in Washington, D.C.
Additional research reveals that Mary Lou Sleevi’s paintings appear to be the focal point for those who believe that women must "oppose the patriarchal church." Her paintings are accompanied by words of "empowerment," which may sound innocent enough but they take on a whole new meaning when they are applied in a feminist context. Moreover, these presenters are reported to belong to organizations which have publicly supported positions opposed to the Church, i.e., Women’s Ordination Conference, Catholics for a Free Choice and Call to Action.
Given the above and additional documentation, I informed the retreat house staff, first through Father Mark Mealey, OSFS, Episcopal Vicar for Pastoral Services and Moderator of the Curia, and then by letter that these three presenters hold positions contrary to the formal teachings of Church, positions clearly expressed in their writings, presentations, addresses and visual arts. To promote the unity of faith and the pastoral care of the Christian faithful, I asked that the invitation to these presenters be withdrawn.
I subsequently received word from the sisters that "we will comply with your request to ‘not sponsor these presenters, Mary E. Hunt, Mary Lou Sleevi and Dianna L. Neu, in the Women’s Spirituality Series offered on February 29, 2000, March 28, 2000 and April 25, 2000.’" Therefore at my request, this series has been cancelled.
I am told that many fine programs of spirituality, e.g., the retreat for those who are ill, take place at the Dominican Retreat House. Therefore, I am distressed that this series would have been planned. I am confident that further dialogue between myself and the Dominican Sisters who staff the Retreat House will provide clarification on this issue and prove beneficial to the future mission of the Retreat House. My goal is to insure, to the best of my ability, that God’s people will drink water that will not prove harmful to them on their journey of faith.
My involvement in this situation gives me the opportunity to outline the process I normally follow when someone contacts me about a troubling issue. I first seek comments and observations from the other party or parties on what has been reported to me. If that is not possible and/or if I judge that more research is needed, an objective and thorough investigation follows. Once informed, I then address the issue either in person (or through a staff member) and/or in writing. I follow this process because every person should be treated with respect even if his/her views and/or actions are erroneous. In so doing, I try to imitate our Holy Father, who is always clear about the specific issue yet respectful of the person.
Although I fully affirm that persons who dissent from the formal and authentic teachings of the Church are in error and therefore, cannot be permitted to speak in our Catholic institutions, I am saddened that often the letters I receive attack persons rather than their positions. Such was the case in this recent situation.
My criterion in evaluating any situation pertaining to faith and morality is the official teaching of the Church as proposed and explained by the Pope and the College of Bishops, no more and no less. Likewise, the discipline of the Church provides an additional criterion in particular issues. My only agenda as a bishop is the agenda of the Church.
Yes, all of us — parents, catechists and religion teachers, spiritual directors, clergy and bishops — must take great care that the water, which the people entrusted to us drink, is not polluted. Let us pray for and support one another so that God’s people can drink freely and without harm from the water of Truth.
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This item 2581 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org
