THE ASSOCIATION of Catholic Priests has responded with disappointment
to the dismissal of its call for public dialogue with the Irish bishops
on changes necessary to reinvigorate the church and to address the
steep decline in vocations to the priesthood.
A rejection of such
engagement might have been expected, however, in view of a recent
Vatican report that urged greater discipline and orthodoxy within the
Irish church.
Founded two years ago and with a membership now exceeding
1,000, the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) has challenged
established conventions and offered trenchant support for wide-ranging
church reforms based on the letter and spirit of the second Vatican
Council.
Responding to these developments, a meeting of bishops
declined to meet the leadership of ACP and suggested that future
engagement on such issues should take place at local level, using
established structures, such as the Council of Priests.
Individual
councils are composed of both elected members and those nominated by
bishops.
They are purely consultative in nature.
Meetings are called by
members of the hierarchy who set the agenda, preside over discussions
and decide on statements they consider appropriate.
A very
different approach was envisaged by the ACP leadership. They spoke of
the need for openness and transparency in formal meetings where church
attendances and a decline in vocations would be discussed.
There was,
they said, a need to inform Rome about the realities of the present
situation and to address a disconnect between people and priests,
priests and bishops and between the bishops and Rome.
In particular,
they were concerned about what would happen when more priests retired.
Would the Irish church become “a Eucharist-free zone” and face effective
collapse?
A turning point may have been reached in relations
between members of the hierarchy and these challenging priests.
Certainly, there is an increasing emphasis on discipline.
Founding
member Fr Tony Flannery has been silenced by the Roman Curia because of
his writings. Conflicting views exist among churchgoers.
Conservative
Catholics who advocate priestly celibacy and oppose the ordination of
women, accuse association members of engaging in incitement to heresy
and schism.
Others favour a dynamic church.
However, a more dogmatic
approach by the hierarchy would be in keeping with the programme of
reform set down by the Vatican.