Outrage, mounting protests at Gramick/Nugent silencing
Sr. Jeannine Gramick, SSND, and Fr. Robert Nugent, SDS, were ordered by the Vatican July 13 to abandon permanently their ministry to lesbian/gay persons and their families, but immediate and growing protests seek to reverse that decision.

In a decree personally approved by the Pope, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) said that "from the beginning" of their 20+ years of joint work in gay/lesbian ministry, the nun and priest advanced "doctrinally unacceptable positions regarding the sinfulness of homosexual acts and the objective disorder of the homosexual inclination." CDF admitted that Gramick and Nugent clearly understood the Church's teaching, but ultimately decided that "neither had expressed personal adherence to the teaching in sufficiently unequivocal terms."

The CDF ruling was remarkable for its severity, banning two pastoral ministers for life from their chosen work when an internationally renowned theologian like Brazilian Leonardo Boff was initially silenced for only a year. It was also amazingly short on specifics, offering no examples of how the pair had questioned Church teaching.

CTA voices protest

In a public statement and in letters of protest, CTA board president Linda Pieczynski voiced CTA's outrage. CTA believes that this severe penalty sends a very negative message to the gay and lesbian community and to their families and can be wrongly interpreted by some to justify violence against homosexuals. The same note was sounded by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), representing 90 percent of the women religious in the U.S. "Deeply saddened" by the CDF decision, LCWR said that Gramick and Nugent "have worked to change attitudes that, unchecked, have led to derision and physical violence against lesbian and gay people." LCWR added that the CDF decision "adds to the anguish of many sisters who minister to those at the margins of Church and society." It commended Gramick's SSND congregation for establishing a fund to support ministry to the lesbian-gay community.

"What precisely, is the issue here?" CTA's Pieczynski asked. "Are we talking about what they actually have said or what they believe in their own hearts? Gramick and Nugent are known to always stay carefully within official Church teaching in their workshops and writings." They are popular presenters at CTA conferences and regional events. In a July 23 release, Gramick said, "I have refrained from public statements of my personal views about homosexual behavior and homosexual orientation because these are the areas of contention between the Magisterium and lesbian/gay Catholics." As a bridge-builder, she said she tried to present respectfully both official teaching and the concerns and views of lesbian/gay Catholics. But she insisted the Church's teaching about the dignity and rights of lesbian/gay Catholics deserves more emphasis than the teaching about homosexual activity or orientation. "Those who minister to divorced/remarried are not expected to constantly proclaim the immorality of divorce/remarriage," Gramick said. "Military chaplains are not expected to constantly proclaim the immorality of war. The expectations of those in lesbian and gay ministry should be similar."

What you can do

At ChurchWatch press time, Nugent had announced he will obey the Vatican ban. Gramick said she would take a month of personal prayer and discernment before deciding what to do. Nevertheless, New Ways Ministry (NWM) -- the organization they co-founded in 1977 -- has launched a letter-writing campaign to seek reconciliation between Gramick/Nugent and the Vatican. Read on for the details.



Write letters

New Ways Ministry urges supporters of Jeannine and Bob to write, email or fax personal letters to the following:

Send copies to:
Sr. Jeannine Gramick, SSND
322 Jodyway
Timonium MD 21093

Fr. Robert Nugent, SDS
637 Dover Street
Baltimore MD 21230

For updated information and action opportunities, check the New Ways Website: http://members.aol.com/NewWaysM
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