One chooses freedom. One chooses responsibility. One chooses personal healing. One chooses forgiveness. One chooses Faith. One chooses life.
I must be bold, but I disagree with Mary Kenny in The Catholic Herald last week on her take of Rome and the Eucharistic Congress. Why the Irish feel that the problems in the Church should affect their Faith is beyond me. A good priest said years ago that if people blame their falling away from the Church on the sexual abuse cases, they had other reasons for going, such as using contraceptives or irregular marriages. Those who have been following my blog know my personal feelings on this from family members who were abused-one does not lose the Faith because of trauma or sin.
Mary Kenny in her article seems sadly out-of-touch with her own people. When I was in Ireland a few months ago, it was clear to me that the populace was contracepting. I hardly saw any babies. I met couples in cohabitation without marriage, and even in upper middle-class areas, where I visited friends, addictions abounded. Worst of all, the great evil of unforgiveness shrouded the consciousness of even the best of Catholics, (see my posts from January and February).
Kenny and the Irish do not need to place any blame on Rome for the lack of faith. I think the Irish are like my compatriots in Wisconsin-they walk around with a chip on their shoulder, daring someone to knock it off in order to start a row. Sorry, but it is time to grow up. The individual lay person is responsible for his or her faith, period. A child becomes a man or a woman when that person accepts responsibility for life and grace.
The Vatican has been unresponsive because the Irish government would not cooperate with safety procedures needed for a Papal visit. Money was supposed to be the issue, but like spoiled teens, the Irish in government were making a point--we do not need to be seen as Catholic anymore. If only 34% of the Irish are even Sunday Catholics, why should the other 60% plus get excited about the Eucharistic Congress. Indeed, false ecumenism is part of the week, which turned off many good, orthodox Catholics. Also, the Irish only have themselves to blame for a lack of welcome to the entire Church outside of Ireland. Who wants to go to a Mass where afterwards the people go on and on about the past? Our God is a God of the living, not the dead.
A five post day....