Patheos Blogger Gushes Enthusiastically for Call to Action Import

SPLC Blogger Priest

Edit: What hath Patheos to do with Jerusalem? It's pretty clear to a lot of people out there by now that the Neocatholic crowd, which strikes a conservative front, is deep down, truly hostile to Catholicism and loves to attack personalities while it promotes personalities and anti-Catholic agendas like the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Indeed, this penchant isn't the sole province of Patheos bloggers, but other long-standing termites at work on the Barque of Peter. In light of Catholic Answers' recent attack on "traditionalism", Patheteos Blogger attacks from "Father" Longenecker and here, among others, it is interesting to note what a former Buddhist and exponent of centering prayer has to say about dissidents and their deviant doctrines, which are usually sidestepped or minimized by other Neocatholic bloggers on Patheos and elsewhere. Let us point out, also, as the author does, that the Austrian dissident priest, Helmut Schüller, is in good standing with the Catholic Church while others, like the Society of St. Pius X, are not.    It's a good thing that Patheos bloggers, even if they aren't particularly orthodox, are also, at least, in good standing with the Church!

Thus we address the recent story about the dissident Pastor's Initiative which is headed by a renegade Austrian priest, Father Helmut Schüller, on a Patheos Blog called On the Way [Or "In the Way"?] by Phil Fox Rose. Fox begins by blandly describing the activities and background of the Pastor's Initiative, which is Austria's Call to Action crowd, some of its reasons for being, and even explained that he himself had attended one of these anti-Church conferences. While he goes to great lengths to describe and enthuse about, Schüller's work, particularly his attacks against the authority of the Church, promotion of aberrosexualism and defiance of Cardinal Schönborn of Vienna, he makes his own allegiances much more clear when he later expresses his disappointment at the fact that most of those in attendance are over 60. He laments that Schüller is restricted to speaking at Protestant churches and believes this is a message Catholics need to hear. You will remember that Cardinal Sean of Boston doesn't even want this Austrian carpetbagger around.

Fox enthuses about Cardinal Schönborn's inaction:

Some of this, perhaps, is possible because of Cardinal Schönborn’s open-mindedness – it’s hard to imagine the same being tolerated in most American dioceses. In fact, because it’s been made clear his message is unwelcome and several local bishops have forbidden him to appear on church property, all the venues for Schüller’s American tour are Protestant churches or secular buildings except one, Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia, which is hosting him in active defiance of Archbishop Chaput. As Schüller said on Tuesday at Judson Memorial Church in Manhattan, this is not a problem for him, but it is a problem for American Catholics. It is not a prohibition of him to speak — he can speak anywhere. It’s really an attempt to prohibit the Catholic laity from listening to his message.

He later expresses his pleasure in the comments to a dissident nun, that there are young people participating in this We Are Church disobedience.

Sr. Christine, I'm delighted to hear about the involvement of young adult Catholics. I was reacting to what I saw at the New York event as well as Fr. Schuller's own remarks on the subject, but it is encouraging to hear that there is a serious young adult component nationally. On the Eucharist without a priest present, I did understand that Fr. Schuller meant using bread previously consecrated by a priest. I intended the term "Eucharist" to refer to the consecrated host, not to the mass, and called it "communion services" elsewhere in the piece. I've changed the wording in that one case to avoid confusion. Thanks for pointing it out. I appreciate your comments. Peace, Phil