Post-clerical Church
Bishop Derio Olivero of Pinero, writing in L’Osservatore Romano, gave a very positive review to the book A Post-clerical Church: Authority and Gospel by Fr Roberto Maier, Carlos Castillo Mattasoglio and Gemma Serrano.
“Talking about abuse means, then, talking about power. Indeed, it means raising the question of how to manage power within the Church. It means searching for a new form of Church, capable of overcoming the separation between clergy and laity, in the wake of the Second Vatican Council with the category of ‘People of God’.
“The separation leads to the creation of a ‘caste’ that is apart, or rather that is above. A caste that ‘possesses’ the truth and imposes it. Without control, precisely because it is separated.”
Bishops want the truth
The bishops of Venezuela appealed to the authorities to publish the correct results of the presidential election held in July: “The words of Jesus Christ, ‘The truth will set you free’, have insistently resonated in our minds and hearts, so we would like to reiterate the appeal to the National Electoral Council to […] publish in detail the results of the electoral process on July 28, in which the people’s desire for change has been evident.”
Speak freely
Fr Timothy Radcliffe urged the Synod participants to speak “with freedom”. “St Paul wrote to the Galatians, ‘For freedom, Christ has set us free.’ (5.1). Our mission is to preach and embody this freedom. Freedom is the double helix of the Christian DNA. It is the freedom to say what we believe and listen without fear to what others say, in mutual respect. This is freedom of the children of God to speak boldly, as the disciples boldly declared the good news of the resurrection. We do not have the right to keep silent.”
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)