When I ask the question is there any chance there will be a prophetic church in Ireland I already know the answer. The answer is “No -not if it continues the way it is going.” That is why, as I have already written elsewhere, the only hope for a prophetic church in Ireland is if there are enough people and priests to adopt the Liberation model of Church and adapt it to the Irish situation.
A prophetic church lives in solidarity with the poor and always stands up for the poor and oppressed. A prophetic church will not be a wealthy church hoarding priceless possessions and much valuable property.
A prophetic church stands for Community- for the Common Good-the good of all citizens.
A prophetic church stands for Diversity. It does not make distinctions on the basis of ethnicity.
A prophetic church stands for unity and inclusion -there is no “them” and “us”. The language used in the liturgy should reflect this inclusivity.
A prophetic church stands for God’s Creation -for all living creatures and for the sacred earth.
The Irish Catholic church has to make some serious decisions if it is to become a Church of the Poor based on the theology of liberation.
The first serious decision concerns the training of future priests. This should be the responsibility of the Bishops and the Faithful.
Future priests must be people who believe in change and living in solidarity with the poor.
Future priests must be people who care for the Earth.
Future priests must be people who care for the sick and dying.
Future priests must be people who care about Justice and speaking the Truth to Power as preachers and justice activists. The clerical church in Ireland must be dismantled.
“The Church can only be resurrected,” says Canadian spiritual writer, Jacques Gauthier, a 70-year-old Catholic author, preacher and retreat master. He says that not even the mess the Church is in now can kill the good news of the Gospel
Gauthier has written some eighty books on spirituality during a lifetime marked by something he’s called his “hippie” period, followed by several years in a Trappist monastery and, finally, a long and fruitful marriage with children and grandkids.
He reflected on his life, especially how it has been marked so clearly by God, in a recently released autobiography.
Gauthier spoke about the spiritual influences on his life and his hopes for the Church.
What can we change in the way we live to help purify the Church? Gauthier replies:
“I believe that the main thing is simplicity. We must be simple with others. And with the Lord, we must not wait for the censor. We must also welcome the humiliations in our lives. To believe that everything is good, beautiful, smooth and perfect smells bad. This is one of the traps of clericalism, along with the taste for power. Any aggression is an abuse of power! This is the danger when you are in a position of authority.
“I see it when I speak to young people and when I preach retreats to them. It is very stimulating because they have a great innocence, with no ulterior motive. The only thing that interests them is that we are true when we speak.
“The rigidity and clericalism that the pope denounces can also exist among the laity – the need to give oneself a title, a role or a function… That’s why I never wanted to be a deacon, even though I was often asked. I am baptized, called to holiness, that is enough.”
There is a lot there to think about.
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