I
do want to mention that we're finally releasing the tape set of the bombshell
talks Fr.
Benedict
Groeschel gave to a CRISIS group earlier this year. Fr.
Benedict
pulled no punches in exposing the true cause of the sex
abuse
scandal in the Church. What he said surprised us all -- it
wasn't
what we were expecting. In fact, it wasn't even anything I was thinking.
But
I must say, he convinced me. And I've been considering his words
ever
since. Anyway, we've been flooded with requests for the tapes.
Now
we've got them available. If you're at all interested, have a
look
at the link below. Deal
LEARN THE REAL CAUSE OF THE CRISIS IN THE CHURCH
Sex
abuse scandals... irreverent liturgies... homosexuality in the
seminaries...
liberal theology preached from the pulpit...
You
know all about the crisis in the Church. But you've never heard
the
full story. When did the collapse in the Church occur... and what
REALLY
caused it?
Fr.
Benedict Groeschel knows. He was there when it happened...
10
years BEFORE Vatican II.
What
he saw will surprise you.
Click
here to learn more:
http://www.crisismagazine.com/products.htm
More Comes Out On The Secret Meeting...CRISIS Magazine July 31,
2003
The
meeting was confined to the invitees, the discussions were confidential, and
no-one would talk about it on the record.
Dear
Friend,
Over
the past week, we've been following up on several recent
stories.
Right now, I want to get you up to speed on two of
them...there
have been some fascinating developments...
First
off, let me tell you what more we've learned about the secret
meeting
between Catholic dissidents and bishops. As you recall, about
2
weeks ago, the Boston Globe uncovered a meeting between several
bishops
and a group of left-wing Catholics (held, unbelievably
enough,
at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center here in Washington,
D.C.).
Discussions at the meeting wandered from the current crisis in
the
Church to the various liberal "solutions"...women's ordination,
married
priesthood, etc. (These last two points came out in the
break-out
sessions.)
Many
Catholics -- myself included -- were outraged that such a
meeting
would be organized for bishops to hear from "prominent
Catholic
laity," and then stacked with left-wing dissidents. There
wasn't
a conservative to be seen.
Add
to that the fact that the get-together was secret, and you've
got
a real mess. (Incidentally, some people have complained about my
describing
the meeting as "secret." Let's review: Information about
the
meeting was confined to the invitees, the discussions were
confidential,
and no-one would talk about it on the record. Guess
what?
I call that secret.)
By
the way, in case you're wondering which bishops attended, there
were
four: Wilton Gregory, President of the USCCB; William Friend of
Shreveport,
LA; Robert Lynch of St. Petersburg, FL; and Theodore
Cardinal
McCarrick of Washington, DC.
Especially
shocking to some of us was the fact that Cardinal
McCarrick
not only attended, but was described in the Globe article
as
the host of the meeting. This seemed out of character for the
normally
careful McCarrick.
What
gives?
Susan
Gibbs, the director of communications for the archdiocese,
recently
told CRISIS that McCarrick was NOT the host of the meeting,
as
the Boston Globe article had claimed. (Apparently, the Globe
reporter
described him as such because McCarrick is the ordinary of
Washington,
DC...the site of the meeting.)
According
to Gibbs, McCarrick had been contacted by a businessman
interested
in calling together a meeting of Catholic business leaders
to
speak "informally and confidentially" about the current situation
in
the Church. This businessman (presumably Geoffrey Boisi, a former
vice-chairman
of JP Morgan Chase, and the man responsible for
organizing
the event) then put together the guest list and program on
his
own, with no input from McCarrick.
Two
additional sources -- both highly reliable -- confirmed to
CRISIS
the accuracy of Gibb's statement. In fact, they added a bit
more...
Apparently,
McCarrick got hoodwinked. They claim he wasn't made
aware
of the list until days before the meeting, when nothing could
be
done about it. Furthermore, the cardinal was none too happy about
the
guest list...and perhaps even less pleased with the way the
conference
proceeded (it devolved into a tiresome liberal Catholic
whine-session,
our sources say).
We've
tried unsuccessfully to contact Boisi for his comment. And
others
who have reached him haven't been able to get him to talk on
the
record. Nevertheless, we're still trying, and would be happy to
report
his side of things.
So
that's the latest on the meeting.
I
also wanted to give you a quick update on last week's e-letter
(talking
about the ridiculous charges of anti-Semitism being launched
against
Mel Gibson's new movie). In it, I mentioned a group of
Catholic
college and seminary professors who had somehow managed to
get
an early script, and were attacking Gibson for it. As I mentioned
in
my email to you, having seen the movie and read their criticisms,
it
was clear they had no idea what they were talking about.
The
professors involved were Philip Cunningham of Boston College
(surprise!),
Lawrence E. Frizzell of Seton Hall University, John
Pawlikowski
of the Catholic Theological Union, and Mary Boys of Union
Theological
Seminary.
As
you may also have seen, the current issue of The New Republic has
a
tiresome article by Paula Fredriksen of Boston University (what is
it
about Boston?) charmingly titled, "Mad Mel." She too charges the
film
with anti-Semitism.
I
really don't think all the liberal caterwauling is going to hurt
the
movie. For some people, the Gospels themselves are anti-Semitic.
There's
nothing we can say to convince them otherwise, no matter how
hard
we try.
That's
it for today. But before I go, I do want to mention that
we're
finally releasing the tape set of the bombshell talks Fr.
Benedict
Groeschel gave to a CRISIS group earlier this year. Fr.
Benedict
pulled no punches in exposing the true cause of the sex
abuse
scandal in the Church. What he said surprised us all -- it
wasn't
what we were expecting. In fact, it wasn't even anything I was
thinking.
But
I must say, he convinced me. And I've been considering his words
ever
since. Anyway, we've been flooded with requests for the tapes.
Now
we've got them available. If you're at all interested, have a
look
at the link below.
Alright,
I'm done with the plug.
I'll
talk to you early next week,
Deal
LEARN THE REAL CAUSE OF THE CRISIS IN THE CHURCH
Sex
abuse scandals... irreverent liturgies... homosexuality in the
seminaries...
liberal theology preached from the pulpit...
You
know all about the crisis in the Church. But you've never heard
the
full story. When did the collapse in the Church occur... and what
REALLY
caused it?
Fr.
Benedict Groeschel knows. He was there when it happened... 10
years
BEFORE Vatican II.
What
he saw will surprise you.
Click
here to learn more:
http://www.crisismagazine.com/products.htm
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