What a surprise. A Jesuit writes a column that appears in the Cincinnati archdiocese newspaper that questions the Church’s teaching on homosexuality. If this is the sort of thing that’s acceptable in the archdiocesan newspaper there, no wonder so many of their priests are capable of writing the recent open letters demanding consideration of priestesses and optional celibacy.
Fr. Ken Overberg, in this column, like those Cincinnati priests, asks that the Church re-consider what is already defined. He says Catholic teaching is clear that the homosexual condition is not a matter of morality, but homosexual activity is, but then cites “Always Our Children”, a product of a committee of non-bishops at the USCCB, clearly not part of the Church’s Magisterium. That’s telling.
Personalities aside, the actual work of theologians like Overberg and Keenan deserves scrutiny to detect their strategic use of ideas to undermine moral theology. It seems to me that their efforts take place on two fronts: biblical theology and philosophy. On the first, they employ (or usually appeal to, as the world of theology is very compartmentalized) the historical critical method (with nothing but agreement from non-Catholic professors) to find support for their positions (a twisted employment of so-called proof texts). On the other, they have recourse to any philosopher – from Occam to Rorty and everyone in between – that rejects the concept of nature, thus liberating human beings from h at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) (I’m over my limit.)
The above poster is certainly correct, but the first line of defense ahould be to discipline these dissenters. Excommunication and removing these people from teaching positions is a must, yet it is rarely done.
Is it any wonder so many Catholics vote for pro abortion pols and hold beliefs that are no different than our pagan culture?
“Excommunication and removing these people from teaching positions is a must.”
Our Church is full of false prophets…
Fr. would do better if he didn’t get off the blocks on the wrong foot. Only five references? There are more than that, starting with the creation account in Genesis 1-2.
The refusal to interact with the primary treatise on the subject, “The Bible and Homosexual Practice,” by the Presbyterian biblical scholar Robert Gagnon, is telling. A stacked deck for discussion, indeed.
Here’s Prof. Gagnon’s website—excellent articles on a lot of subjects, including the false slavery analogy.
http://www.robgagnon.net/
Yeah, you’re right, Dale.
Anyone who actually reads the Bible understands that from beginning to end, God made men and women for each other – and that one of our primary purposes (actually the first of God’s commands) – is to go forth and multiply.
Homosexual practice is consistently and always condemned in the Bible – for it defiles the body, it uses a great gift from God in a way that it was not intended, and it thwarts the purpose for which it was intended.
People should ask themselves: Would Christ ever have said to a man – yeah – go engage in sodomy – a filthy and disgusting practice which harms the body?
The Jesuits in particular are much corrupted by an idolization of and acceptance of sodomy.
I am taken to task for discussing homosexuality so often in regard to the plight of the Church. It is a pink elephant in the living room. How can anyone not see how those with that affliction do not have an overly powerful influence in the Church today?
It comes out in many ways, but it is nothing short of an overt and covert attempt to turn over the teachings of our creator.
It can’t be ignored as a serious threat.
How can people be so blind?
How does dissenting theology get into a Diocesan newspaper? The good people of Cincinnati should hold back all financial giving until questions are answered. The silence must stop.
While I think the above comments are for the most part correct, the problem isn’t that dissidents simply misread certain passages of scripture – they’re not stupid. Instead the problem is that they approach scripture armed with hermeneutical theories that reject a correspondence between words and things, or they insist on the mere relative importance of such a correspondence (after all, e.g., biblical Hebrew lacks a word for nature, so the concept of nature that the Church insists on is contingent to our culture and its relationship to the Greeks, which did have a concept of nature…). It is undeniable that there are elements of language that are time and culture bound. The task for faithful Catholics is to articulate ways to acknowledge that without corrupting the authentic meaning of scripture. Liberal theologians, and their non-Catholic allies, dominate theology departments. Even though their ideas are rotten, they are the ones pumping out ideas in academe. It’s time for faithful theologians to start speaking up, and not only within the safe confines of Catholic ghetto (no offence intended; I couldn’t think of a better word) schools.
I think homosexuals have socialized society so much in accepting this barbaric act that no one really knows what it is. It is the same with “abortion”. Certain images used to come to mind when one uttered the words abortion or homosexuality. Now, softened images of a woman holding a rose appears in the yellowpages and two men decorating an apartment together come to mind.
Get with the program, Father. You are asking the Church, (God) to accept as right, two people committing not only sodomy but (as any nurse in an emergency room knows bottles, rats, and any other object that is available for insertion into human persons!
These acts are base! Barbaric! Savage! They promote disease and the debasement of all people. Private sins do have public consequenses! Homosexuality is a grave crime against humanity and the dignity of all persons.
This priest is a wolf in sheeps clothing! He needs many, many prayers ! He should go to a good and holy priest for confession. But first, he must pray to the Holy Spirit for the light of Christ again! He definately has lost it!
Lord, please have mercy on your priests so attacked by Satan and the World! Guard them with your own purity!
One More thing! Tomorrow is First Friday. Maybe some of you could remember this priest to The Sacred Heart of Jesus at Mass or Eucharistic Adoration tomorrow. Maybe we could all offer acts of reparation too. Jesus would like that.
Maybe they should be supressed again??
A Jesuit. Figures. Yes, they should have suppressed them again years ago.
Some of the worst dissent originates with them and has for 40 years.
*sigh*
Maybe you should read the list of Good Jesuits at my blog?
http://credibility.blogspot.com/2004/07/jesuits-badgood.html