US SCOUTS ALLOW GAY LEADERS

A boy scout carried a rainbow flag during a gay pride parade in San Francisco last year. The group on Monday ended its nationwide ban on openly gay adult

The Boy Scouts of America on Monday ended its ban on openly gay adult leaders.

But the new policy allows church-sponsored units to choose local unit leaders who share their precepts, even if that means restricting such positions to heterosexual men.

Despite this compromise, the Mormon Church said it might leave the organization anyway. Its stance surprised many and raised questions about whether other conservative sponsors, including the Roman Catholic Church, might follow suit.

“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is deeply troubled by today’s vote,” said a statement issued by the church moments after the Scouts announced the new policy. “When the leadership of the church resumes its regular schedule of meetings in August, the century-long association with scouting will need to be examined.”

Only two weeks ago, the Mormon Church hinted that it could remain in the fold so long as its units could pick their own leaders.

The top Boy Scouts leaders, including Robert M. Gates, the current president and a former defense secretary who pushed for the new policy, did not immediately respond to the Mormon declaration. In previous statements, Mr. Gates expressed the hope that with the exemption for religious groups, the Boy Scouts might avoid a devastating splintering.

Many scouting leaders said they had not expected the Mormon Church’s sharp response and threat to leave.

“My assumption was that the concept voted on today had been fully vetted so as to avoid any unnecessary surprises,” said Jay Lenrow, a longtime volunteer scout leader in Baltimore who is on the executive committee of the Scouts’ northeast region and serves on the organization’s national religious relationships committee.

“I can only say that I’m hopeful that when the leadership of the L.D.S. Church meets and discusses the issue, that they will find a way to continue to support scouting,” Mr. Lenrow added.

Mormons use the Boy Scouts as their main nonreligious activity for boys, and the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts units they sponsor accounted for 17 percent of all youths in scouting in 2013, the last year for which data have been published.

Under the policy adopted Monday, discrimination based on sexual orientation will also be barred in all Boy Scouts offices and for all paid jobs — a step that could head off looming lawsuits in New York, Colorado and other states that prohibit such discrimination in employment.

One legal threat was immediately averted. In response to the change, the New York State attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman, announced on Monday that his office was ending its investigation of the Scouts for violating state anti-discrimination laws.

The Boy Scouts’ national executive board, composed of 71 civic, corporate and church leaders, adopted the changes with 79 percent of those who participated in a telephone meeting voting in favor, according to an announcement issued by the Scouts. The announcement did not say how many board members were not present.

The policy change, which was expected, was widely seen as a watershed for an institution that has faced growing turmoil over its stance toward gay people, even as it struggles to halt a long-term decline in members. It was praised by gay-rights organizations as a major if incomplete step toward ending discrimination.

In 2013, facing growing public and internal pressure, the Scouts decided that openly gay youths could participate, but not adults. That approach satisfied no one, forcing the ejection of gay Eagle Scouts when they turned 18 but still causing some conservatives to quit.

Mr. Gates gave an urgent warning in May that because of cascading social and legal changes, the organization had no choice but to end its ban on gay leaders.

In a statement on July 13, the Mormon Church seemed to suggest that it could accept the compromise adopted on Monday. The statement said that any new leadership standard must preserve for its churches “the right to select Scout leaders who adhere to moral and religious principles that are consistent with our doctrines and beliefs.”

But the tone of Monday’s statement from the Mormons, after the formal announcement of the new Boy Scouts policy, was markedly more negative.

“The church has always welcomed all boys to its scouting units regardless of sexual orientation,” the statement by the Mormon Church headquarters said. “However, the admission of openly gay leaders is inconsistent with the doctrines of the church and what have traditionally been the values of the Boy Scouts of America.”

The statement also suggested another reason the Mormons are considering withdrawing from the Boy Scouts: the possible creation of its own boys’ organization to serve its worldwide membership.

“As a global organization with members in 170 countries, the Church has long been evaluating the limitations that fully one-half of its youth face where Scouting is not available,” the statement said.

Some conservative evangelical churches ended ties with the Boy Scouts after the 2013 decision to admit openly gay youths. Total national enrollment of youths, which had declined by a few percentage points in many prior years, fell by 6 percent in 2013 and by 7 percent in 2014, to 2.4 million.

More departures by religious conservatives are likely, said Russell D. Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. Mr. Moore expressed skepticism about the Scouts’ promise to let church-sponsored units exclude gay leaders on religious grounds.

”After the Scouts’ shift on membership, they told religious groups this wouldn’t affect leadership,” he said. “Now churches are told that these changes will not affect faith-based groups. Churches know that this is the final word only until the next evolution.”

But scouting executives hope that with Monday’s change they can renew ties with corporate donors, schools and public agencies and attract parents who had steered their children away from scouting because of the policy.

“Moving forward, we will continue to focus on reaching and serving youth, helping them to grow into good, strong citizens,” said the statement Monday from the Boy Scouts.

The toughest challenge, Scout leaders say, may be to capture the time and enthusiasm of today’s increasingly urban, diverse and over-scheduled youths. To increase their appeal, the Boy Scouts have built new adventure camps with mountain biking and zip lines, and have created new merit badges in fields like robotics and animation.

PAT SAYS:

The move by the US Boy Scouts is an excellent move and another step in the furtherance of equality.

It means that any boy or teenager in the USA who is gay will feel deliberately welcomed by the Scouting community.

It also means that scout leaders who happen to be gay will not feel like second class citizens or leaders under some kind of suspicion.

Anybody and everybody wishing to be a scout leader realises that there is a code of conduct required of all who are involved, particularly in the area of child protection.

The new decision takes away that irrational cloud of suspicion over leaders who happen to be gay.

Anybody working with young people, regardless of their own situation, is called to the same standard. 

Once again, of course, the stone age attitudes of the so called Christian churches are shown up.

But gradually these churches, thankfully, are losing their influence.  

THREE HANDLES FOR THE BISHOP !

THREE HANDLES FOR THE BISHOP!

IS ROME ON THE WAY OUT?

• 
  The ruins 

Fr. Peter Daly 

Jun. 15, 2015Pa
rish Diary

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Back in 1990, I took a journey to Greece with a classmate from the seminary. In Delphi, we stood on the hill overlooking the ruins of the ancient shrine. At one time, it was the spiritual center of the ancient Mediterranean world. For more than 800 years, people flocked to consult the famed oracle, bathe in the springs and worship in temples of Apollo and Athena. Today, nobody comes to worship. It is a ruin, an archeological museum. Looking at the shrine, I wondered out loud to my classmate: "Could this happen to us? Could what happened in Delphi happen in Rome?"

Religions rise. Religions fall. Is the Catholic church going out of business?

It's a fair question.

Religion seems to be disappearing from Western culture, the homeland of Roman Catholicism.

The Pew Research Center report "America's Changing Religious Landscape" documented the rise of the religiously unaffiliated among American adults. The so called "nones" rose from 16 percent of American adults in 2007 to 23 percent in 2014. In the United States, all Christian groups lost "market share": Evangelicals were down 0.9 percent, Catholics down 3.1 percent, and mainline Protestants down 3.4 percent.

In only seven years, American Catholics lost about 3 million adult members, easily wiping out every single convert we made through RCIA, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.

No matter how hard we paddle in the new evangelization, we are carried downstream by the current of culture. A Religion News Service analysis on the Pew study carried the headline: "Forget the numbers. The big story is that religion has lost social influence."

This is especially true for young adults, who are increasingly unaffiliated with religion. Only about 56 percent of young millennials (people born between 1990 and 1996) have a religion, while 78 percent of baby boomers are church members. As the boomers die off, the church declines.

A look at the statistics about the Catholic church in the U.S. may give us cause to think we are "circling the drain." A few bullet points tell the tale:

• In the last 25 years, we have a net loss of 2,137 parishes nationwide: In 1990, there were 19,620 U.S. Catholic churches. Today, there are 17,464.
• The New York archdiocese announced the consolidation of 112 parishes in October 2014, effectively closing 31 parishes. In December, it announced that it is considering closing another 38 parishes.
• The Boston archdiocese has closed more than 125 parishes in the past 25 years. In November 2012, it announced the consolidation of the remaining 288 parishes into 135 "parish collaboratives."
• In the Chicago archdiocese, Catholics declined from 43 percent of the population in 1980 to 35 percent in 2015. Chicago had 1,000 fewer priests in 2014 than it had in 1980. In last 20 years of Cardinal Francis George's administration, everything was down: 2,000 fewer nuns, 21 fewer parishes, 74 fewer elementary schools and 11 fewer high schools. There were also 10,000 fewer baptisms, half as many weddings, and 33 percent fewer funerals annually.
• Nationwide, Catholic priests are an endangered species. Today, there are 3,496 U.S. parishes that have no resident pastor. There are nearly 20,000 fewer priests in the United States than there were 25 years ago, dropping from 52,124 to 38,275.
• Half the diocesan priests in the United States will retire in the next five years. Many dioceses in the U.S. do not have sufficient funds to pay their pensions.
• Religious orders of brothers and sisters are disappearing even faster than diocesan priests. There are only about 50,000 U.S. nuns today, down from almost 180,000 in 1965. The only really bright spot in the vocations picture is the permanent deaconate. We have more than 17,000 permanent deacons, up from about 900 in 1975. Maybe marriage helps.
• Sacramental participation is way down. Today, only 24 percent of U.S. Catholics go to Mass on a typical Sunday. In 1970, it was closer to 50 percent. In 2014, there were less than half as many Catholic weddings as in 1980; more than 200,000 fewer infant baptisms than in 1980; and 50,000 fewer funerals than in 1990.

Of course, things vary from place to place. There was growth in the South and West, mostly because of migration and demographic shifts. But overall, there is decline.

Internationally, we have even bigger problems. The passage of the same-sex marriage referendum in Ireland by 62 percent indicates the church has lost authority on sexual issues. In Vienna, the archdiocese announced a plan in 2012 to close more than 500 parishes over the next 10 years, reducing their parishes from 660 to 150 because of a shortage of priests. Every day in Latin America, we lose thousands to evangelicals and Pentecostals.

So it's not a foolish question. Are we going out of business?

I think the answer is both "yes" and "no." "Yes" if you think of the church as an institution in the 1950s model. "No" if you think of the church as a movement of the followers of Jesus Christ.

The parish of my childhood -- church, school, rectory, convent -- is mostly gone. Almost half of the Catholic schools in the United States have closed in the last 40 years: In 1965, there were 11,198 schools; today, there are 6,793. We cannot hang on to institutions. We are not maintainers of buildings.

For us priests, it is discouraging. We have to wonder, have we wasted our lives?

In my little world, things are fine. The pews in my parish are mostly full. The bills are paid. But I can't help but hear the echo of problems in other places. Worst of all, much of our decline comes from self-inflicted wounds, the sins of priests.

But the church has faced challenges before. It has survived the fall of the Roman Empire, the Black Death, the Protestant Reformation and the European Enlightenment. It survived various revolutions, be they French, Russian, industrial or scientific.

The conservative critique is exhausted. We cannot turn back the clock or ignore the changed cultural landscape. This is not a matter of liturgical style or catechetical instruction. The natural sciences trump Scripture today. Women in our culture are no longer subservient to or dependent on men. Gay people have finally found their voice and their self-respect in Western culture. Clericalism is dead.

It is no good for the church to shout, "Women, back to the kitchen! Nuns, back to the cloister! Laity, back to your pews! Gays, back in the closet!" The toothpaste is out of the tube. We can no more bring back the church of the 1950s than we can bring back the Papal States.

Despite all, I'm looking forward in hope. Something will rise in the ruins of the old church. People will still need religion. We will always look for ways to make life holy, happy and sacred. We still have souls. People need ritual to grieve and celebrate. We always will seek meaning, desire forgiveness and wonder about death.

The church is relevant so long as the teaching of Jesus is relevant. As the Letter to the Hebrews says, "Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).

Institutions come and go, but the Gospel goes on, speaking to the human heart.

So can Delphi happen in Rome? Yes. Perhaps it already has.

[Fr. Peter Daly is the pastor of St. John Vianney parish in Prince Frederick, Md.]

CATHOLICISM IN DECLINE IN GERMANY

German Catholic numbers rapidly decline, new figures show

Cologne Cathedral in Germany (AP)

Official data from the German Catholic Bishops' Conference shows that 217,716 left the Church last year

A large number of Germans have renounced their membership of the Catholic Church, according to new statistics.

Figures show that the numbers leaving the Church in 2014 was 22 per cent higher than in the previous year, going from 178,805 to 217,716.

Not only has this news affected the size of the Catholic community but also the amount of income that the Church receives via the Church tax.

If a person is baptised as a child in Germany they are considered a member of the Church and liable to pay the Church tax, an arrangement that was formalised in the 19th century. It is believed that the existence of this tax acts as a factor in motivating many to make a formal renunciation of their faith. It is also thought that only around a third of German Catholics actually pay the tax.

Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference, said: “Behind the numbers of Church withdrawals are personal life decisions that we in each case profoundly regret but also respect the freedom of choice.”

He added that German Catholics live in “an open and pluralistic society” and that they will continue to proclaim the “joy of the gospel”.

Despite more than 820,000 people leaving the faith over the last five years, Germany’s Bishops’ Conference recorded almost 24 million Catholics in the country, making up nearly 30 per cent of its population.

Nevertheless, the exodus of 2014 was particularly large with last year’s figures representing an increase of more than 50 per cent of the number of Germans who left the Church in comparison to 1990.

POPE FRANCIS ON DISEASES IN RC CHURCH LEADERSHIP

Pope Francis has made no secret of his intention to radically reform the administrative structures of the Catholic church, which he regards as insular, imperious, and bureaucratic. He understands that in a hyper-kinetic world, inward-looking and self-obsessed leaders are a liability.

The leadership team is called constantly to improve and to grow in rapport and wisdom, in order to carry out fully its mission. And yet, like any body, like any human body, it is also exposed to diseases, malfunctioning, infirmity. Here I would like to mention some of these “[leadership] diseases.” They are diseases and temptations which can dangerously weaken the effectiveness of any organization.

1. The disease of thinking we are immortal, immune, or downright indispensable, [and therefore] neglecting the need for regular check-ups. A leadership team which is not self-critical, which does not keep up with things, which does not seek to be more fit, is a sick body. A simple visit to the cemetery might help us see the names of many people who thought they were immortal, immune, and indispensable! It is the disease of those who turn into lords and masters, who think of themselves as above others and not at their service. It is the pathology of power and comes from a superiority complex, from a narcissism which passionately gazes at its own image and does not see the face of others, especially the weakest and those most in need. The antidote to this plague is humility; to say heartily, “I am merely a servant. I have only done what was my duty.”

2. Another disease is excessive busyness. It is found in those who immerse themselves in work and inevitably neglect to “rest a while.” Neglecting needed rest leads to stress and agitation. A time of rest, for those who have completed their work, is necessary, obligatory and should be taken seriously: by spending time with one’s family and respecting holidays as moments for recharging.

3. Then there is the disease of mental and [emotional] “petrification.” It is found in leaders who have a heart of stone, the “stiff-necked;” in those who in the course of time lose their interior serenity, alertness and daring, and hide under a pile of papers, turning into paper pushers and not men and women of compassion. It is dangerous to lose the human sensitivity that enables us to weep with those who weep and to rejoice with those who rejoice! Because as time goes on, our hearts grow hard and become incapable of loving all those around us. Being a humane leader means having the sentiments of humility and unselfishness, of detachment and generosity.

4. The disease of excessive planning and of functionalism. When a leader plans everything down to the last detail and believes that with perfect planning things will fall into place, he or she becomes an accountant or an office manager. Things need to be prepared well, but without ever falling into the temptation of trying to eliminate spontaneity and serendipity, which is always more flexible than any human planning. We contract this disease because it is easy and comfortable to settle in our own sedentary and unchanging ways.

5. The disease of poor coordination. Once leaders lose a sense of community among themselves, the body loses its harmonious functioning and its equilibrium; it then becomes an orchestra that produces noise: its members do not work together and lose the spirit of camaraderie and teamwork. When the foot says to the arm: ‘I don’t need you,’ or the hand says to the head, ‘I’m in charge,’ they create discomfort and parochialism.

6. There is also a sort of “leadership Alzheimer’s disease.” It consists in losing the memory of those who nurtured, mentored and supported us in our own journeys. We see this in those who have lost the memory of their encounters with the great leaders who inspired them; in those who are completely caught up in the present moment, in their passions, whims and obsessions; in those who build walls and routines around themselves, and thus become more and more the slaves of idols carved by their own hands.

7. The disease of rivalry and vainglory. When appearances, our perks, and our titles become the primary object in life, we forget our fundamental duty as leaders—to “do nothing from selfishness or conceit but in humility count others better than ourselves.” [As leaders, we must] look not only to [our] own interests, but also to the interests of others.

8. The disease of existential schizophrenia. This is the disease of those who live a double life, the fruit of that hypocrisy typical of the mediocre and of a progressive emotional emptiness which no [accomplishment or] title can fill. It is a disease which often strikes those who are no longer directly in touch with customers and “ordinary” employees, and restrict themselves to bureaucratic matters, thus losing contact with reality, with concrete people.

9. The disease of gossiping, grumbling, and back-biting. This is a grave illness which begins simply, perhaps even in small talk, and takes over a person, making him become a “sower of weeds” and in many cases, a cold-blooded killer of the good name of colleagues. It is the disease of cowardly persons who lack the courage to speak out directly, but instead speak behind other people’s backs. Let us be on our guard against the terrorism of gossip!

10. The disease of idolizing superiors. This is the disease of those who court their superiors in the hope of gaining their favor. They are victims of careerism and opportunism; they honor persons [rather than the larger mission of the organization]. They think only of what they can get and not of what they should give; small-minded persons, unhappy and inspired only by their own lethal selfishness. Superiors themselves can be affected by this disease, when they try to obtain the submission, loyalty and psychological dependency of their subordinates, but the end result is unhealthy complicity.

11. The disease of indifference to others. This is where each leader thinks only of himself or herself, and loses the sincerity and warmth of [genuine] human relationships. This can happen in many ways: When the most knowledgeable person does not put that knowledge at the service of less knowledgeable colleagues, when you learn something and then keep it to yourself rather than sharing it in a helpful way with others; when out of jealousy or deceit you take joy in seeing others fall instead of helping them up and encouraging them.

12. The disease of a downcast face. You see this disease in those glum and dour persons who think that to be serious you have to put on a face of melancholy and severity, and treat others—especially those we consider our inferiors—with rigor, brusqueness and arrogance. In fact, a show of severity and sterile pessimism are frequently symptoms of fear and insecurity. A leader must make an effort to be courteous, serene, enthusiastic and joyful, a person who transmits joy everywhere he goes. A happy heart radiates an infectious joy: it is immediately evident! So a leader should never lose that joyful, humorous and even self-deprecating spirit which makes people amiable even in difficult situations. How beneficial is a good dose of humor! …

13. The disease of hoarding. This occurs when a leader tries to fill an existential void in his or her heart by accumulating material goods, not out of need but only in order to feel secure. The fact is that we are not able to bring material goods with us when we leave this life, since “the winding sheet does not have pockets” and all our treasures will never be able to fill that void; instead, they will only make it deeper and more demanding. Accumulating goods only burdens and inexorably slows down the journey!

14. The disease of closed circles, where belonging to a clique becomes more powerful than our shared identity. This disease too always begins with good intentions, but with the passing of time it enslaves its members and becomes a cancer which threatens the harmony of the organization and causes immense evil, especially to those we treat as outsiders. “Friendly fire” from our fellow soldiers, is the most insidious danger. It is the evil which strikes from within. As it says in the bible, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste.”

15. Lastly: the disease of extravagance and self-exhibition. This happens when a leader turns his or her service into power, and uses that power for material gain, or to acquire even greater power. This is the disease of persons who insatiably try to accumulate power and to this end are ready to slander, defame and discredit others; who put themselves on display to show that they are more capable than others. This disease does great harm because it leads people to justify the use of any means whatsoever to attain their goal, often in the name of justice and transparency! Here I remember a leader who used to call journalists to tell and invent private and confidential matters involving his colleagues. The only thing he was concerned about was being able to see himself on the front page, since this made him feel powerful and glamorous, while causing great harm to others and to the organization.

Friends, these diseases are a danger for every leader and every organization, and they can strike at the individual and the community levels.

US ABORTIONISTS SELLING BODY PARTS

I was very shocked to discover that the US abortion provider PLANNED PARENTHOOD is selling the pre-ordered body parts of aborted babies !!!!!

What they are doing is totally against USA law and so they are doing it secretly.

I have always said that abortion is NEVER a GOOD THING.

At best aborting a baby is choosing the lesser of two evils - as in those rare cases when you have to choose between the life of the mother or the life of the baby.

But the thoughts that American doctors are involved in trading body parts is, to me, mind blowing and horrific.

Are they not just doing the kind of things that the Nazis did in their concentration camps?

It just shows you what so called "respectable" people are capable of.

I think that the American government needs to act quickly and thoroughly on this human rights crime and make an example of any doctor involved.

Sometimes in life if people will not do the right and good thing for its own sake they must be forced to do it out of fear of punishment.

JIMMY CARTER AS CHRISTIAN - GAY MARRIAGE

JIMMY CARTER - AS CHRISTIAN - SUPPORTS GAY MARRIAGE

Former President Jimmy Carter said in an interview that he thinks Jesus would approve of gay marriage.

"I think Jesus would encourage any love affair if it was honest and sincere and was not damaging to anyone else, and I don't see that gay marriage damages anyone else," Carter said in a HuffPost Live interview with Marc Lamont Hill published Tuesday.

"I believe Jesus would approve gay marriage," he said. "That's just my own personal opinion."

Carter said while he supports same-gender weddings, he doesn't think churches who disagree with the practice should be required to perform them. "But those two partners should be able to go to the local courthouse or a different church and get married," he said.

Carter, who identifies as a "born-again Christian," was on the Huffington Post program to discuss his new book, A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety. Carter's faith and spirituality are heavily talked about in the memoir.

PAT SAYS:

It is both interesting and inspiring that Jimmy Carter (90) - as a born again American Christian and Sunday School teacher is saying that Jesus would have no problem with gay marriage.

Of course I would agree with him.

I believe that those who support gay marriage are following the teachings of Jesus himself.

Those who are against it are following man made religion - with all its prejudices and hang ups.