Not exactly a surprise that the Holy Father would tap a canon lawyer of Archbishop Burke’s quality as Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura the highest judicial authority within the Church – not counting the Pope. He will of course be missed being a true shepherd we have come to know and love. Saint Louis Catholic has some good commentary on this and what he calls the upcoming “unrestrained glee of the so-called progressive crowd who will not be able to contain themselves.”
We will certainly miss how quickly Archbishop Burke responds to scandal as evidenced by a letter he wrote to some women “priests” who were advertising in the Catholic section of the newspaper’s worship section
Both of you know that this is the height of false advertising, the Archbishop writes. The work that you carry out is not part of the Roman Catholic Church. It is in direct and contumacious rebellion against Roman Catholic teaching and practice. You have been excommunicated and have shown yourselves contumacious. You have incurred, automatically, the censure of excommunication because you have broken communion with the Roman Catholic Church…. I instruct you to cease immediately any reference to your activities as Roman Catholic or as constituting a Roman Catholic parish.
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These women advertised in this Catholic newspaper? Why was this allowed? Am I missing something?
Not a Catholic newspaper, “the Catholic section of the newspaper’s worship section” — presumably the page in the secular paper devoted to ads from religious groups of all denominations.
Thanks, Jeff, for the link and your great work.
Hey, hey!
If you’d like to hear Archbishop Burke speak, he’ll give a lecture on the Primacy of Conscience at the SF Bay-Area conference on Humanae Vitae!
http://www.cornerstoneconference.org
That is: http://www.cornerstoneconference.org
I’m sorry, but this is very disappointing. Why? Because we needed him to shake up another one of the American archdioceses the way he shook up St. Louis!
Cardinal Egan should have been made Prefect of the Signatura, and Burke should have succeeded him at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Imagine Burke’s patient faith and adherence to tradition, plus his media savvy, in the media capital of the world!
Or, imagine him undoing the mess in Los Angeles!
And now — poof! I’m sorry, but this was a missed opportunity.
I agree that this is a missed opportunity for Los Angeles. I firmly believe that Archbishop Burke is the only man in America with a chance in hell at undoing the damage done in LA. I now have to hope and pray that I’m wrong, and that there is someone else out there who can revive the patient without killing him. Although, it is good to see him in a position to receive the red hat.
I too am disappointed that the US is losing him so soon. I can hope his replacement is similarly minded. Each time I read about his actions in the news I think, “So THAT”S how a Bishop is supposed to act.”
However, it is good that the Pope is rewarding him for his service. One hopes that he will attain a position of great influence.
Mahony is not yet ready to retire for a few more years. Perhaps there is still hope?
“Cannon Lawyer” is misspelled…unless you wish to shoot lawyers from a cannon, which is not a bad idea.
Has anybody taken a close look at where Archbishop Burke is going? The Apostolic Signatura is the highest court of the Church, but it basically does little other than make sure the Sacra Rota Romana (highest appellate tribunal) administers justice correctly. He seems to be prefect of a congregation that oversees procedures. This is not a step up; there’s more here than meets the eye. He is going to the Vatican’s equivalent of Siberia.
Why would anyone want to leave the influential archdiocese of St. Louis to become a prefect of a procedural court in the Vatican? Huh?
It’s almost like Cardinal Law going to Rome to take over a congregation that oversees the Vatican archives. Sure it’s Rome, the position is prestigious, but it’s a punishment, not a promotion. Maybe my suspicions are unfounded, but it doesn’t add up.
Has anybody taken a close look at where Archbishop Burke is going?
I had withheld my comments on this previously but now I see that I was not the only one to be suspicious of this assignment. All day Friday, during sad discussions with tearful friends, I was troubled because it seemed that there was more to this matter that we were not told. With the election quickly approaching and the ‘Catholics for Obama/abortion’ scandals, combined with my suspicious inclinations, it seemed to me that nefarious forces might have been at work to ensure that one of the most vocal bishops in the US be silenced.
I’m with Peter on this and I do believe that there is much more to this assignment than meets the eye. Then again, I could be all wrong. So much was being done, the seminary being expanded, more priests being ordained, and so forth. And that’s after just 4.5 years here. It doesn’t add up to me. When was the last time any of us heard about Agostino Cardinal Vallini, the previous Prefect?
I’m no expert – but a friend of mine who has much more insight and perspective than me said that, while it is a shame to lose him, Abp. Burke is apt to enjoy more influence in the long run through this appointment.
I for one will simply trust the Holy Father’s judgment.
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