I PERSONALLY THINK PRIESTS NEED A GOOD PASTORAL HEART BUT WE NEED NOT THROW THE BABY OUT WITH THE BATH WATER

I have never demanded anyone leave a Catholic Mass or prevented anyone from entering our Church for any liturgy including Mass. All are welcome, believer and non-believer, saint and sinner, criminal and the upright. But we do make it clear that in order to receive Holy Communion (and this is not even necessary for someone in a state of grace, it is an optional gift to be received) that the person must be a Roman Catholic in good standing (meaning no impediments) and properly disposed (in a state of grace which implies if one is in a state of mortal sin, one must not receive).

What I find disingenuous about some of the discussion at the Synod on the Family about inclusiveness is that it makes it sound like Catholic priests are shutting the door on people who are disordered, not Catholic and just plain nasty. We don't. Anyone can come to a Catholic Mass as long as they aren't disruptive!

Where we become more guarded is at Holy Communion. If you have broken the one hour fast, you can't receive. If you are not a Catholic, you can't receive. If you are in a state of mortal sin, you can't receive. Mortal sin is qualified as having three things present: 1. serious matter (breaking any of the 10 Commandments); 2. One knows that it is wrong; 3. One commits the sin with full consent of the will.

The problem is that people don't believe in mortal sin as cutting them off from God and possibly leading them to hell at the personal judgment. They think they can even live in mortal sin if they are doing some kind of good in other ways or if they are nice people.

While there are many sins against charity that are institutionalized, such as belonging to hate organizations such as the KKK (which also is an impediment to receiving Holy Communion, no matter how much good this groups might do for their members!) we can't say to people that their irregular situations as long as some good is being accomplished allows you to go to Holy Communion in a state of mortal sin, especially if that sin is public and institutionalized!

But with that said, I agree with what John Thavis on his blog this morning reports as one of the talks given by Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro in front of Pope Francis to the Synod. I should say I agree with some points of Fr. Spadaro:

Spadaro makes six points, and Thavis summarizes them here (my comments in red):

1. The church must never use the family as an ideological weapon, but respond to the needs of real people who are living in complex, fragile situations. The church’s traditional ways of talking about the family are no longer understood by many people today, and that poses a challenge for pastors. (This is obvious to most of us!)

2. Pope Francis’ vision of the church as a “field hospital” is more than a poetic image – it is an ecclesial model, the opposite of a “besieged fortress.” The main battlefield today is people’ inability to truly love, and to move beyond their own individualistic interests. The church’s first concern must be to avoid closing its doors to these people. (Just what I said above in my post! I agree!)

3. Some see the church and its truths as a permanent lighthouse shining on people’s lives. But a lighthouse stays in one place, and is incapable of reaching people who have moved away from church teaching. The better image is a torch or lamp capable of accompanying and consoling families in all their forms, “no matter how ambiguous, difficult and many-sided.” (I agree, parish ministry is about this but it isn't "either/or" but "both/and" in terms of the light house/torch image!)

4. The church’s pastoral response on homosexuality need careful reconsideration, especially because it impacts the church’s mission with young people. “We always need to be aware that the attitude we express toward situations that we define as ‘disordered’ and ‘irregular’ among couples will determine how younger generations of children approach the church,” he said. The very question of homosexuality, he added, may deserve better attention from the church, with greater focus on listening and discernment, rather than considering it solely in terms of “disorder.” (When our Catholic High School fired a popular non-Catholic band director because he was entering into a civil same-sex marriage in another state, a significant number of our Catholic kids and parents were outraged at the administration and the Church. He was a nice guy and he is! While not a Catholic, and even after he was fired, I would not have prevented him from attending Mass if he wanted to do so (he doesn't and never did on Sunday) but he wouldn't be able to receive Holy Communion and his public marriage would be an impediment to becoming Catholic. But the Church got a black eye with more progressive Catholics who didn't see his same sex "marriage" as a sin but as good, a virtue!)

5. The sacraments are meant for healing, and when it comes to situations like divorced and remarried Catholics, the church needs to ask itself whether it can simply exclude such couples from the sacrament of reconciliation. In other words, he said, in light of God’s mercy can there really be any “radically irretrievable” situations? The answer is no. (Are there or aren't there any impediments to receiving Holy Communion??? Of course there are and we need to make explicit why one must be in a state of grace to receive Holy Communion)

6. In general, the church’s doctrinal patrimony needs to be seen in the light of the modern human condition. That means aiming above all at the salvation of each person, helping him or her grow as much as possible in faith. (If become a Church of enablement of sin rather than repentance from sin even if other aspects of one's sinful life are good, like the KKK member who does good things for his KKK buddies, do we lead people to salvation (heaven) or to damnation (hell)? I think we have many enablers in the Vatican and in high places who are wearing blinders along with their ideologies.)

One note: Father Spadaro spoke about readmission of divorced and remarried to the sacrament of reconciliation, not Communion. The one implies the other, but supporters of the idea are now underlining the confession aspect. Cardinal Walter Kasper, who has argued in favor of such an opening, put it this way in an interview today with Corriere della Sera: “Under the current discipline, these people (divorced and remarried without an annulment) can confess but cannot receive absolution. A person who has an abortion yes, those who divorced and remarried no.” ( A person who has an abortion and repent of this and goes to Holy Communion it is presumed will not be living a lifestyle of abortions and working in an abortion clinic even if that worker in the abortion clinic is doing some good in comforting her patients as they get an abortion. You see where this flawed logic goes for KKK people, abortion providers, those in same sex marriage and those in adulterous marriages!)