Marching Out of Step

What have we heard from the pulpit lately in regards to religious liberty and the HHS Mandate. I can tell you, that aside from the very first letter, which was read prior to Mass and by a lay person, I have heard nothing. Notta. Zilch. Zero. I have confirmed reports that some priests in the area didn't even read the letter, and went as far as making light of it; essentially saying that it was long and confusing and that it was hard to understand (presumably that it was not worth the time to read.)

It is a no wonder that the media has had a field day with Catholics. Not only can they easily find "Catholics" that say they are "authentically Catholic" but disagree with this, that, or the other thing, but they can often go a step further and find a priest that will say the same. We in the pews want a strong, consistent, and clear message. Instead though, what we usually get is a muddled and ambiguous explanation of what we probably should do.

Strong Bishops, Weak Priests

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Our Bishops, all of them in this case, have said multiple times where we as a Church stand on the HHS Mandate, and yet we still have priests that are drawing nuances, grey areas, and exceptions. But why? What is the point? Is there really wiggle room on this, or is it that individual priests don't feel like being obedient? I am willing to listen to an argument based on fact and logic that gives legitimate reasons for these different viewpoints but I have heard none of that. Instead, the priests that disagree with this are simply silent. They ignore the letters, they play down the issue, and they act as if this really isn't a big deal.

The Pulpit

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I would say that if you haven't heard every single letter that your local bishop has penned about this issue from the pulpit, then your priests have let you down, and they have let the Church down. Certainly, this is my opinion, but as a member of the faithful who considers himself well briefed on issues within the Church, I can say that I have not heard the issue discussed enough. We, the faithful, find efficacy in priests teaching from the pulpit. There is something that connects the sacred nature of a priests role, to his words, when he says something from a pulpit. Since the Archbishop can't come to every parish, he must teach through other surrogates of Christ. When priests ignore these penned letters, they snub the bishop and snub the Church.

If we are all to march in step with Christ, if we are going to be a unified Ecclesia Militans, and defend Holy Mother Church we must all be on the same page. We can't do this though, as long as certain priests decide to ignore the Bishops, and worse yet ignore the Church. When they are marching out of step, they are leading us down a path of destruction and despair. So let us pray for our priests, that they are courageous and bold in their duties, and find the obedience and strength to lead the faithful in the footsteps of Christ.

In case you haven't heard about Religious Freedom from your priest, you can read all of Archbishop Schwietz's letters and the Catholic Anchor's coverage here:

• Anchorage Archbishop calls Catholics to oppose federal contraception mandate   
• U.S. bishops issue new warning regarding contraception mandate   
• Abp. Schwietz reiterates call for faithful to oppose HHS contraception mandate   

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