The egregious breach of decency that led a Catholic parish priest to deny communion to a lesbian woman at her mother’s funeral has received widespread and well-deserved condemnation. Even the Archdiocese of Washingto, DC admitted that the priest had violated their policy. In a little note, a vicar promised Barbara Johnson and her family that he would celebrate a Mass in memory of her mother. They deserve sympathy on their loss, a full-blown apology from the institutional Church, and time to deal with their grief in peace.
Instead, Ms. Johnson has courageously endured media attention to bring to light some rapid change in Catholicism. The change is a shift in authority. It is evident in the struggle over President Obama’s health care plan where it is clear that the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops is but one of many Catholic voices in the public arena. Closer to home/Rome, people no longer consider it the purview of the clergy to judge who is part of the Catholic community and thus eligible for communion, and who is not.
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