Outspoken Catholic Pastor Is Replaced, to His Flock’s Regret (Gumbleton)

[struggle4progress]

By LAURIE GOODSTEIN
Published: January 26, 2007

In his last Mass as pastor at the inner-city parish in Detroit where he had served for 23 years, Auxiliary Bishop Thomas J. Gumbleton told his parishioners that he was forced to step down as pastor because of his lobbying efforts on behalf of the victims of sexual abuse by the clergy, a stance that put him in opposition to his fellow bishops.

Last weekend, the archbishop of Detroit, Cardinal Adam Maida, sent a letter to the parish, St. Leo, saying that Bishop Gumbleton had to be removed because of church rules on retirement. But as Bishop Gumbleton, who turns 77 on Friday and had already retired last year as a bishop, told his parish last Sunday, there are many pastors even older than he who are allowed to continue serving.

“I’m sure it’s because of the openness with which I spoke out last January concerning victims of sex abuse in the church. So we’re all suffering the consequences of that, and yet, I don’t regret doing what I did because I still think it was the right thing to do,” he said, as the congregation rose and erupted in applause.

Bishop Gumbleton, though he never led a diocese, is known nationally in church circles as a liberal maverick. He co-founded the peace ministry Pax Christi and accompanied antiwar delegations to Haiti and Iraq. He broke ranks with church teaching by preaching in favor of acceptance of gay men and lesbians and the ordination of women ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/26/us/26bishop.html

[Warpy]

1. The only priests I knew who were great human beings

were outspoken rabblerousers who had been transferred to extremely poor, inner city parishes as their punishment for asking embarrassing questions. The go along to get along types were rewarded by wealthy parishes in the burbs, and I knew far too many of them when I was growing up.

Auxiliary Bishop Gumbleton will either be offered a poor parish about to be shut down or be offered a meaningless desk job in the Vatican.

[noamnety]

2. A little more about him for those who don't know him

"... During his time as bishop, Gumbleton also caused further upset, as he wore a mitre at a church service on which were symbols of the cross, a rainbow and a pink triangle. ...

In the past the bishop has caught attention due to his public protesting towards violent actions. In 1999 he was arrested outside The White House along with eleven other anti war protesters for disturbing the peace. Bishop Gumbleton has more recently been a very vocal opponent of the war in Iraq, being arrested once again outside The White House for engaging in civil disobedience, he was arrested along with United Methodist Bishop C. Joseph Sprague, Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Nobel Peace Prize laureates Mairead Corrigan Maguire and Jody Williams and members of pacifist organisations. Gumbleton has distinguished himself as being the only Roman Catholic bishop in America to have taken such action in protest of the war."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Gumbleton

(He's also an associate member of Veterans for Peace.)