Unity means listening to a new age nun?

Rev. John K. Nesbella of St. Mary's Rectory, in the diocese of Altoona- Johnstown wrote a letter to his local newspaper where he lists the documentable problems with Sr. Jose Hobday speaking at the Catholic Life Conference Saturday at Mount Aloyisius College. The article ends with this:

...“You can't do these things and be a good Catholic, anymore than a terrorist who attacks his own country can claim to be an American patriot. The very first commandment states: "Do not have false gods before me, Fr. Nesbella writes, and says that “Hobday is free to invent her own religion with goddesses or lesbians or whatever. Someone has to stand up and say: That is not the Catholic faith. If you do some of these things you're probably not even a Christian.”

“The point is not to condemn Hobday, it is to protect the faithful from learning and repeating her dissent and errors,” he concludes.

Nevertheless, Most Rev. Joseph V. Adamec, Bishop of Altoona-Johnstown, have said that

“as Bishop of this Diocesan Church, I appreciate the good will of our Faithful and their desire to bring their concerns to my attention. Having done that, it is incumbent upon them to foster unity and peace within the Church, rather than division. Furthermore, Sister Jose ought not to be condemned before we have an opportunity to hear her. And, above all and regardless of anything else, our attitude needs to be that of Jesus in similar situations.” Full article

Would someone from the Arian Brotherhood be allowed to speak before being condemned? It seems to me to would be highly prudent to check the background of a speaker first and if there are problems to try to determine if these opinions are still held. But a wait and see attitude when red flags have been raised is not about peace and unity. Just how much peace and unity has come about by allowing this speaker? I thought the request was "Feed my sheep" not "Poison my sheep" with false doctrine.

Posted by Jeff Miller at September 29, 2002 2:12 PM | TrackBack