Fr. Geoff Farrow, a Catholic priest who defied his bishop and came out against California Proposition 8, recently had a conversation with a “personal hero,” Episcopal bishop Gene Robinson.
I can’t help but wonder if Fr. Geoff will be heading into the Episcopal church soon, seeing as how many of his supporters seem to be members of TEC. Since the 1970s, there is a revered tradition of liberal Catholic priests becoming Episcopalian, as the Catholic Church has refused to liberalize, i.e. embrace every upper class social trend that comes along (as Serge might say); Matthew Fox comes to mind as one example.
By the way, as I mentioned before, don’t bother leaving a comment on Fr. Geoff’s blog that disagrees with him, even if it is charitable, because I haven’t seen one comment on his blog yet that takes any issue with his views.
[Note: for more information about the case of Fr. Geoff Farrow, my original entry The Case of Fr. Geoff Farrow explains what all the fuss is about.]
David Bennett
Jennifer
asimplesinner
Fr. J.
Chad T.
Jorge Flores
Jonathan B
carmelbennett
nicenehobbit
Jason S
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papaz
Dave Hartline
faceman
If he does head to the Episcopal Church, let us rejoice and offer a solemn Te Deum (and good riddance!). The Episcopal Church seems to be the catchall cesspool now for every heretic and liberal who wants liturgy without doctrinal truth. Let em go! Helps keep Christ’s Church free of trash.
I just can’t not post again on this. I just went to this guy’s blog. He most certainly isn’t Catholic any more. I would say why doesn’t his bishop defrock him but he’s in California where every nutty, evil, wacky, liberal idea is not only tolerated but encouraged…especially BY the bishops there!
What’s most upsetting is that non Catholics will read his blog (or hear about him) and say, “See! See what the Catholic Church tolerates…we KNEW she was the Great Whore!” And people like him WON’T leave…even though they know damned well they are no longer Catholics…they stay for the simple purpose of tearing down the Faith FROM WITHIN!
Frankly, I want to encourage everyone who reads this to FLOOD “Father” Geoff’s superirors with letters…the nastier the better…and to PRAY against this man. Period.
Hobbit,
I am pretty sure he is suspended. His blog was started because his bishop relieved him of his duties. Go to his blog and read his first few entries, and you will see that this is the case. I haven’t heard much about his bishop’s recent response, but I can’t imagine his bishop is loving reading Fr. Geoff’s blog!
David,
I read it more thoroughly after I had my little theo/ecclesial fit over it this morning! LOL! You know me…charge in with banners blazing!
This seems to go hand-in-glove with the TEC MO of recruiting liberal and gay (and most certainly gay liberal) folks to either enter seminary or incardinate with them if they are ex-Catholics… Anyone recall disgraced Gov. James McGreevey’s (sp?) announcement he was going to enter seminary for the Episcopalians… (He had been a Catholic.)
Start to look at the recruitment history and the training of Episcopal clergy and one will note that they sought out idealogues or idealogues sought them, and they ALWAYS get fast-tracked and get given preference in certain areas. (One ex-TEC now Catholic clergyman noted with bemusement and sadness that just being a lesbian woman who was willing to be rostered without assignment would and could make academic requirements disappear… and “alternative formation” easy. Just do some powder puf “diaconal formation” in house under the supervision of a clergyperson who (as likely as not) spent the preponderance of their seminary years taking CPE courses and NOT theology or philosophy… And after a few years you will quietly be ordained to the rank of presbyter… Maybe NEVER stepping foot inside a seminary.
All this has been done to stack the deck… Lots of “yes persons” for the bishop…
>700,000 members and shrinking fast, I just don’t take them the least bit seriously anymore.
Welcome home to all those who have or are about to become Catholic.
Thanks for the mention and link.
The reason more such don’t become Episcopalians is ethnic/class loyalties real or imagined, a cultural difference as described by people like RC Thomas Day, not theology. They’re liberal Protestants but (at least in their minds) working-class non-Anglo white and don’t like Anglican high churchmanship (which ironically has more in common with traditional orthodox Catholic practice). IOW the Irish hate the English and that trumps hating the Pope.
Also a reason why some Anglo-Catholics stay put – they know the lib-Prot wannabes running RC institutions locally, like Fr Geoff, don’t want them. IOW if I’m the rector of St Spikey’s and my laissez-faire liberal male bishop leaves me in peace so my congregation have the full practice of religion, and the local RC chancery has members of the Women’s Ordination Conference and Call to Action holding positions of power, what practical incentive is there?
I’ve never heard of lesbians being fast-tracked through Episcopal ordination without real training but, given how popular the gay thing is with that church’s leaders I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s happened. I remember their first woman bishop, Barbara Harris, was similarly jumped up. A retired city worker, her theological training consisted of a few graduate courses at a local college. Also, she’s black which made her doubly blessed according to political correctness’s well-meant views. As the old story goes, now if she were a black lesbian… ‘Conceived, conceived, conceived immaculate!’ They’d think about naming churches after her while she’s still alive.
My guess is somebody tried to push McGreevey through but that ended when it was found out by the media. Normally, going to theological college and then applying to the bishop for ordination training – ‘Well, you might as well approve me; I’m already in seminary!’ – is ‘just not done’ and a good way NOT to get approved. It’s arrogant! After church denials that he was on the ordination track I never heard about it again.
Yes, the Episcopalians are slowly shrinking. They’re irrelevant in a society whose political correctness has passed them by – logically people don’t see the point of doing church on those terms. Which is why chasing fashionable social trends isn’t a big draw. (True of all the mainline churches. They think it’s still the 1960s when they still had social clout and used it to march with Dr King and protest Vietnam. They haven’t had that power in society in about 30 years.) One of their biggest seminaries, Seabury-Western in metro Chicago, has just all but gone out of business (no longer training ordinands who live at the college). They may dip below a million nominal members but I don’t think they’ll disappear. (There are viable denominations with only tens of thousands of members – like the Slav Orthodox ones in America.) They don’t reproduce enough to replace themselves let alone grow. My guess is they’ll limp along attracting highbrow/snobbish converts angry at their evangelical upbringings and a limited number of p*ssed-off ex-RCs (see above). In short, gay, gay, gay, gay, gay.
-In short, gay, gay, gay, gay, gay.-
LOL We could have summed up everyone’s response with this. LOL