Open season?

By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Jul 19, 2004

Not long ago it would have been shocking to see American bishops contradicting each other in public, and utterly unthinkable that a spokesman for one bishop would dare to contradict another prelate. Now it's becoming routine.

For the latest example, notice how Bishop D'Arcy was slapped down by Father Chris Coyne when the bishop dared to say that homosexual men should not be ordained to the priesthood.

(Father Coyne went on to say that Boston's standards for vetting seminarians are wonderful. We've seen plenty of evidence for that proposition, haven't we?)

Here's what I'm still waiting to see: The first time when a liberal bishop earns an open rebuke from a conservative colleague for a foolish public statement. If you can cite an example of that rare phenomenon, please let us know.