"So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known." Matthew 10:26
[OPEN LETTER] Fr. James & Friends - Greetings in Christ Jesus!
Yesterday you banished me from your Twitter and Facebook kingdoms. And locked the doors. For simply offering a message: "The only 'orientation' that matters is the one we all share: from sin to salvation in Jesus Christ." I just want to know, how did that offend you?
In spite of this intolerance, I have to believe you're about dialogue. I humbly avail myself to the truth in these considerations:
To be moral is to judge. Not in the sense of "to condemn," but in the Christian sense of "to evaluate" (CCC, 1778). It's impossible not to judge. To disagree is to prove my point.
What matters is that we judge rightly. It's not between you and me, but each of us and God. Not according to "truth" any of us can presume to create, but according to Truth Whom created us. If "truth" is "to each, his/her own," nothing is wrong. And nothing is right. None of us have anything to say about anything. Ever.
You and others like to emphasize that the church is a "hospital for sinners." I couldn't agree more. Understood in light of the one who gave us the metaphor: St. Augustine. Let's not minimize the metaphor. A hospital isn't about hanging out in the lobby and drinking coffee. A hospital's defining purpose, the measure of its success, is healing. It's about diseases being diagnosed, and getting on the path to healing.
Is this what you're about? In your extensive writing and speaking, where, anywhere, do you name the disease? Where do you call homosexual activity a grave sin (as with all extramarital sexual activity, CCC, 2357)? Where do you lead them to restoration?
Without the diagnosis and healing part, a church, like a hospital, is absurd. Salvation is absurd. Faith is absurd.
Which of us don't have desires that merit our self-control? If we are to regard moral depravity as an identity, why do you exclude "adulterers" or "pornographers"? Are those afflicted with these objective disorders any less challenged? Who are you to say they're not? Who are you to judge? Based upon your own standard, how would that not make you bigoted and hateful?
The big questions: What kind of "love" abandons his beloved to a life of suffering, in this world and the next? (testimony of Joseph Sciambra) What kind of "love" remains silent in the presence of a loved one who is inhabiting a kingdom that is crumbling?
This is a tale of two kingdoms. At the end of the day, each of our lives reveals us to be about "truth" we presume to create, or Truth who created us. Fr. James, respectfully, your words and actions reveal the true meaning of that "S.J." attached to your identity: Is it "Society of Jesus" or "Society of James"?
The Jesus whom you profess sacrificed Himself for the good of other. Unto death. That's what love looks like. That's what a loving father does. We want our sons and daughters to attain eternal glory. We recognize that's not paved by a path we can presume to define, but the Path that defines us. It is difficult. It always requires kindness and compassion. But these are nothing if not at the service of truth.
You are a priest of God. For God. For His purposes. Those around you are looking for moral definition and clarity. Not yours, but God's. Their lives depend upon it. Recognize Him who is love. Not as you might fashion Him, but as He plainly is.
The love of God revealed in Jesus Christ impels us to faithfully and relentlessly clarify the keys to His Kingdom. Even as we ourselves fall short. Even as we ever-more earnestly strive for the same. Accordingly, we will continue "blowing the horn" and circling your kingdom with fasting and prayer. Whether that take seven times. Or seventy times seven. Because that's what love does.
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