Diane's thoughtful letter

Dear Editor:

As I read Bishop Herman’s article in The St. Louis Review (Bishop Hermann: 'I thought you should know':Obedience is still a virtue), I noticed several incidents in which the Bishop refers to the charism of unity and how the Catholic church is open to “creating a new order and keeping it in the church.” He also talks about obedience to the Word of God. Unfortunately, he does not consider that “dissenters” may be listening to the Word of God within their own conscience and obeying God above the Church.

As I have witnessed the administration of Church Law in the last six months, I have seen little regard for God’s teaching of Love of God or Love of Neighbor. Christ himself constantly questioned the laws of his Church, and dissented against unjust Church laws, yet the Catholic Church has increasingly placed Church law over Love of Neighbor in several instances. When Catholics follow their conscience in prayer and meditation, when they place love of community over love of institution, when they reject blind obedience and conscientiously discern their own relationship with their God of Love, why does the Catholic Church consider them “dissenters”?

For example, it seems that the current answer to the priest shortage is to create mega churches of 5000+ families. How can any pastor be a good shepherd to so many people he cannot even know? How can any member of such a large community come forward to share their gifts or work in lay leadership? There are waiting lists for Eucharistic ministers! How is this following “God’s Word?” Where does Jesus call us to blind obedience? He certainly didn’t practice that in his own Jewish faith.

Jesus talks about being the “Good Shepherd”, who drops everything to find a “lost” sheep and bring it back to the fold. He didn’t use process servers in back alleys, he went to the lost sheep himself and worked with it to free it from whatever was holding it. If choosing to love your neighbor, whether they are gay, lesbian, woman, man, child, rich or poor, intelligent or not, means I am a “dissenter,” then I guess the Church will just have to live with that, because I have no intention of leaving. I would prefer that the Mother Church re-examine the Gospel and listen to God’s Word in its treatment of its own flock!

Sincerely,

Diane Gozdzialski