The opinion of the International Movement We Are Church

Today Pope Francis has announced in Consistory the date of the canonization of Pope John Paul II on April 27, 2014 - together with Pope John XXIII.

The decision concerning Pope John Paul II is not agreed by all in the Catholic Church. The International Movement We Are Church has expressed its opinion already in a press release on 16 January 2011.

Pope John Paul II was a pope of great contradiction. His tragedy lies in the discrepancy between his commitment to reform and dialogue in the world and his return to authoritarianism within the church.

It was his penchant for spiritual authoritarianism that contributed to the greatest tragedy of his tenure as pope: the sexual abuse of thousands of children globally. By holding church hierarchy paramount above the needs of the people, John Paul II perpetuated a toxic environment in which priests were permitted, often repeatedly, to sexually abuse children as long as the criminal behaviour was kept secret, preserving the public image of untarnished leadership.

Perhaps one of the best reflections of this is seen in John Paul II’s strong relationship with the Legion of Christ and its founder Marcial Maciel. Maciel is accused of decades of serious abuse against women and youth, much of which was allowed to percolate due in part to the 1983 bylaws John Paul II approved for Maciel’s religious order that demanded secrecy and prohibited criticism of its founder.

It was John Paul II’s same need for hierarchical control that also lead to the constriction of theology with scarring impact on people’s lives. His attempt to discredit liberation theology left thousands working for liberation without the full theological and ecclesial support they deserved while suffering under brutal political regimes.

Spiritual authoritarianism was also seen in John Paul II’s attempt to suppress discourse on gender equality which, in turn, deprived the Catholic world of the gifts women would bring to church leadership. His stance against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people places him in complicity with local churches and governments who continue to deny the civil and moral equality of LGBT persons. Additionally, his repeated denouncements of condom use complicated the moral choice of millions around the world attempting to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and promote sexual health.

The International Movement We Are Church believes that beatification and ultimately sainthood should not be measured by whether a “miracle” can be attributed to a particular person, but rather, whether someone’s life truly embodies the values of Christ who sought, not power, but the well being of God’s people. 

Por ocasião da Abertura do Semestre no Mestrado em Ciências da Religião da UNICAP, com a aula inaugural do teólogo Carlos Mendoza, sobre “Perspectivas antissistêmicas e futuro das religiões”, no dia 15 de agosto de 2013, às 15h, no auditório do CTCH da Universidade, será lançado o Núcleo de Estudos José Comblin. O lançamento contará com palavras de abertura do amigo de Comblin e estudioso da sua obra, o pastor Paulo César Pereira, além de apresentação de número da Revista Paralellus dedicado a Comblin (http://www.unicap.br/ojs-2.3.4/index.php/paralellus) e do site do Núcleo (http://www.unicap.br/comblin).

(Google translation into English)  On the occasion of the opening of the semester in the Master of Science in Religion UNICAP, with the inaugural class of the theologian Carlos Mendoza on "Perspectives antissistêmicas and future of religions", on August 15, 2013, at 15h, in the auditorium of the CTCH University, will be released the Study José Comblin. The launch will feature opening remarks from Comblin friend and student of his work, Pastor Paulo César Pereira, besides presenting issue of the Journal dedicated to Paralellus Comblin ( http://www.unicap.br/ojs-2.3.4 / index.php / paralellus ) and the website of the Center (http://www.unicap.br/comblin ).

 Outreach Secretary, Didier Vanhoutte, has sent us the following pictures from the theology conference he is attending in Thailand.  He is sending messages each day to the IMWAC Council and these will be compiled into a report after the conference.  He is delighted to be among a group of enthusiastic, highly committed and devout Catholics.  

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Statement by the We Are Church movement.

12 August 2013

[Spanish] [Portuguese] [French] [German]

With the first meeting of the eight Cardinals at the beginning of October 2013 Pope Francis will start the reform of the curia. It is of the utmost importance to the future of the Roman Catholic Church. It should not take place behind closed doors, but transparently and as an open dialogue with the local churches.

On the 14th of April, 2013 Pope Francis announced a reform of the curia. He constituted a worldwide commission of eight cardinals. The Pope expects the first suggestions of this commission to be handed in by the beginning of October. So far no pontifical task has been announced for this body. So far none of the Cardinals involved has made any comment. But the reform of the curia as a first step to a structural reform of the whole Roman Catholic Church is so important that the basics should be discussed in public.

That is why the INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT WE ARE CHURCH asks the following questions now, before the first meeting of the commission at the beginning of October 2013:

1. What are the objectives of the intended reform, what concepts are behind it and what are the Cardinals’ concrete proposals?
2. Did the cardinals consult their national and continental bishops’ conferences and lay organisations beforehand?
3. What action is there going to be in the face of the worldwide scandals of abuse and cover-ups?

Nominating an international advisory committee is an important step to a more cooperative and participatory Church leadership, given the many serious crises (Vatileaks, Bank of the Vatican, Society of St Pius X, lack of cooperation and so on) and wrong decisions made by the church leaders. But further steps have to be taken. The Roman Curia has hardened to an absolute power over the past centuries!

It is important that the much needed reform not only increases the efficacy of the curia but helps the spirit of transparency; so that collegial plurality and democratic structures in the institutional Church have a chance to develop (e.g. ‘separation of powers’: independence of legislature, executive and judiciary). Women, who constitute more than half of the church members, are hardly ever represented or involved in decision making. New structures of communication and leadership have to be developed. They should correspond with the demands of the Gospel and meet the requirements of a worldwide net of communities of the faithful in different cultural settings. It has to be asked how a lobby of homosexuals could have been established in the Vatican, as Pope Francis said, and what action is to be taken to prevent such future lobbying. The question of why any form of lobbying exists in the Vatican should be answered.

Pope Francis himself talked about „new wine in old wineskins“ and referred to the tradition of the Church that allows renewal of theology and structure by means of dialogue with people from different cultures  (c.f. the Pope’s sermon on the 6th of July, 2013). That is why he is expected to make fundamental decisions during his papacy. These will entail the abandonment of obsolete principles and doctrines in order to secure the future well being of the Catholic Church.  A commission of experts in church history, systemic theology and exegesis has to be convened as soon as possible to addresses concerns over dogmatic questions.

With all due respect for tradition and continuity, a fundamentally new culture and structure must be developed, and the process should be characterized by dialogue, communion, reform and openness – according to the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), which still provides valid and precious guide lines. For the Vatican this means, more communication instead of control, more spirituality and open-mindedness instead of sanctions.

The We Are Church movement believes that key decisions must be about:

1. Decentralization of decision-making in the church and the giving of more rights and responsibility to the Church at local levels
2. Representation in Rome of all churches in the world
3. Emancipation of women at all levels
4. Collegial responsibility and the abandonment of absolutist and monarchical structures
5. The implementation of human rights in the Church
6. A code of behaviour, including accountability of church leaders to the people of God.