As you may know Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco has been under pressure from pro-same sex marriage groups and their supporters not to attend a pro-marriage rally. Among them is Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Minority Leader in the US House of Representatives, a Catholic well known for public support and activism in favour of abortion and other issues which are contrary to Christian teaching. Pelosi rebukes the Archbishop for his decision to go to the rally. In essence the Archbishop is being bullied, a modus operandi which is commonplace among militant advocates for gay rights.
Well the archbishop has responded with a well written letter (link here) in which he openly states a number of facts Pelosi and her colleagues like to ignore, among them the very bullying pro-marriage people and organisations have had to endure these past few years.
The Archbishop is no stranger to attack. Friends in San Francisco tell me that he is constantly under pressure from civil authorities, organisations and individuals both within and outside the Church, who try to force him to abandon Christian teaching on life and sexuality. There is a great deal of opposition to his governance of the Archdiocese even among the clergy, some of whom would identify more with the Church enemies than her friends. While he is aptly called Cordileone - lion heart, he needs our prayers, as do all faithful bishops who struggle and often suffer to proclaim the Gospel and guide the flock along the right road.
That said, I wonder when the Church is going to deal with prominent Catholics who have spent their lives publicly defying Catholic teaching, bullying faithful bishops, priests and people and faithful organisations, and yet proclaim they are Catholics in good standing and march up to receive the Eucharist every chance they get. Whether some in authority in the Church would like to admit it or not there is now a serious case of scandal, quite apart from desecration, which needs to be addressed. So far few in authority have dealt with it. Charity and unity are often cited, but I sometimes wonder is it more a case of cowardice and convenience?
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