FORT WORTH — The heads of U.S. Catholic religious orders, meeting August 21 at the Forth Worth Convention Center, sent a message of defiance to American bishops and the Vatican. The theme of the conference was “No Longer Bystanders: Creating Peace in Violent Times.”
The heads of religious orders belonged to the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and the Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM). CMSM represents 20,000 priests and brothers belonging to male religious orders, and LCWR represents 74,000 Catholic nuns in the United States.
Participants brainstormed about the numerous forms of violence and ways that they should be countered. However, little mention was made of men and women religious' potential role in mitigating violence by fostering the culture of life and respect in society. There was virtually no mention of abuse scandals within religious orders, which victims protested earlier in the week.
Instead, the leaders of religious orders took aim at the pope and bishops, using violence rhetoric to describe the Catholic Church's policies. The Reverend Michael Crosby of Milwaukee bemoaned what he called “the controlling power of the clergy” and called the Church's unwillingness to compromise its doctrine a “sinful, structural, and systemic violence.” Among the instances of violence cited by participants was the movement by bishops to refuse Holy Communion to pro-abortion politicians and their supporters.
Both organizations are marked by antagonism toward the hierarchy and Church teachings and their emphasis on political activism in a secular humanist context. The Vatican has approved an alternative group to represent religious congregations; the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious was established at the request of orders that were deeply concerned at the direction taken by LCWR.
LCWR can be contacted at 301-588-4955 (phone), 301-587-4575 (fax) or at webdirector@lcwr.org. CMSM contact information: 301-588-4030 (phone), 301-587-4575 (fax), executive director Ted Keating, SM can be reached at tkeating@cmsm.org.
(This update courtesy of LifeSiteNews.com.)
