All three bishops who addressed CTA Conference 2000 tackled controversial issues that are high on CTA's agenda.
Lucker on Curia
Bishop Ray Lucker took on the Roman Curia, calling it the biggest obstacle to the unfinished reforms begun at Vatican II. He said the issues forced off the table at Vatican II and reserved to papal decision still haunt the church — like ordination of married men, birth control, and reform of the Curia itself. But even though most bishops are looking over their shoulders in fear of displeasing Vatican bureaucrats, he said, “Renewal is part of the life of the Church, empowered by the Holy Spirit. There's no stopping it.”
The standing ovation Lucker got from CTAers was never more timely. Age 74 and battling cancer, the New Ulm, Minn., bishop who speaks proudly in public of his CTA membership, told the Pope last summer he was ready to step down. Rome accepted his resignation two weeks after the CTA event.
Labayen on faith in Asia
Bishop Julio Labayen of Infanta, the Philippines, articulated the approach to evangelization in Asia which makes him and his fellow Asian bishops suspect to Cardinal Ratzinger and Vatican doctrinal watchdogs. “We know that because of the Church’s exclusive and patronizing approach to mission, Christians are hardly three percent of Asia's people,” he said. “For us, Christians, Jesus is the Way. But the one saving God of the cosmos surely must have accompanied other peoples in their story and tradition. Where God walked with them, they are accountable to his saving will, in exactly the same way that we are accountable to God in our Judeo-Christian tradition.”
Labayen recounted a recent interfaith meeting in Kuala Lumpur, where he articulated his faith in Jesus Christ. “I told the group of Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists, ‘My faith in God who rooted himself in human flesh, which we have in common with you of other religions, impels me to work with you for an inclusive community.’ When I stepped down, they exclaimed, ‘What you just said is what we are all looking for.’”
Gumbleton on homosexuality
Bishop Tom Gumbleton addressed homosexuality and the Catholic Church by reading letters from gay and lesbian Catholics and from their parents about the wrenching pain of being labeled ‘disordered’ and ostracized by the church they love. He said that “Always Our Children,” the NCCB pastoral letter reaching out to gays and their families, carries more weight than when it was first published, because after minor changes to please the Vatican, it was reissued with Vatican approval.
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| Fellow speakers at CTA: Bishops Tom Gumbleton, Julio Labayen, and Ray Lucker. |
Church teaching on homosexual behavior is still developing and changing in the light of human experience, Gumbleton said. “Moral teachings do change. For centuries the Church taught that every act of intercourse by a married couple must be open to procreation. That changed when Pius XII approved the rhythm method.” Gumbleton implored his audience to keep listening to the experience of gay and lesbian people.
In the question period, a priest asked him if most bishops are still homophobic. Gumbleton said, “We are all affected by the homophobia of our society, and that includes the bishops.” He shared the now familiar story of his own journey from anger to acceptance when his own brother told his mother and his siblings that he was gay.