By Deacon Keith Fournier
Catholic Online
May 12, 2009
http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=33532
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| The real story behind this fall in the life of this celibate priest is the media feeding frenzy. The secular press has used it to attack the countercultural witness of consecrated celibacy in Catholic life. |
Celibacy has nothing to do with what occurred between the young priest from Miami and the woman with whom he broke his vows.
MIAMI, Fl (Catholic Online) – You have seen him everywhere by now, on television, in the newspaper and all over the internet. That young, handsome, photogenic priest named Fr. Alberto Cutie. One sample morning article from MSN gets right to the heart of the real problem, poor reporting. The headline reads “Celebrity priest backs celibacy, but may marry” and is then followed by a “teaser line” right below it in bold type “Fla. clergyman known as ‘Father Oprah’ says he may leave Catholic Church.” The claim is not true.
Father Cutie has never said he was going to leave the Catholic Church. He is defending the Catholic Church in interviews. He is also defending the call to consecrated celibacy. In a CBS “Early Show” interview he made it very clear,“We want to do things right, but sometimes we fall short. And I fell short." This fallen priest has taken a leave of absence with the approval of his Bishop. He is considering leaving the priesthood, a process under Canon law which is sometimes the best approach in situations like this. Such a process is undertaken only under pastoral care which Fr. Cutie is receiving.
The real story behind this fall in the life of this celibate priest is the media feeding frenzy. The secular press has used it to attack the countercultural witness of consecrated celibacy in Catholic life. Fr. Cutie was exceedingly popular and is a very gifted communicator. He was the head of the Archdiocese of Miami’s Radio Paz and Radio Peace broadcasts and loved by the faithful. He has been affectionately named “Father Oprah" because he dispensed advice for people in relationships on Radio and in his syndicated column. He also authored a popular book entitled "Real Life, Real Love: 7 Paths to a Strong, Lasting Relationship." Celibacy was not the “cause” of Fr. Cutie’s sin.
The reports demonstrate the agenda; using this story of a priest who broke his vows as an opportunity for talking heads and ill informed pundits to mock the Catholic Church. Many have presented the vocation of consecrated celibacy as an “antiquated practice.” They made smug comments about how “behind the times” the Catholic Church is and how long it will take to change such outdated practices. They even took polls! All of this has nothing to do with the facts of this story - a young celibate priest sinned. He broke his vows and had an affair with a woman. This came to light when he and that woman were photographed in inappropriate behavior.
This has become a platform from which some who do not understand the Catholic Church and others who do not like it have chosen to attack a practice which is a part of the history of Christianity. All of the discredited claims concerning how the discipline of celibacy in the Catholic Church came about are once again being presented to the public as ‘facts’. You have heard the most prevalent- that celibacy wasn’t imposed in the Church until the 6th (or 9th, or 10th) century and that the motive for imposing celibacy was to prevent Church property from being inherited by the children of the clergy. Both fall short of the truth. The witness of consecrated celibacy “for the sake of the kingdom” goes back to the invitation of Jesus Christ (Matthew 19:12). It is bolstered by the witness of some of the Apostles and encouraged by their pastoral experience (see, e.g. 1 Corinthians 7) of the early Church. It is a gift and treasure for those who embrace it and for the Church which has been deeply enriched by their witness.
This way of life was even more "counter cultural" in the Semitic world of the time of Jesus than it is today in the West. The prophetic witness of voluntary celibacy has endured beyond the ranks of celibate clergy for over two millennia. It is flourishing in the inspired vowed life of monastic orders and the sacrificial witness of religious men and women. It is experiencing a great renewal in our day in the new “ecclesial movements”, the associations of lay men and woman serving the Church in and through their daily work in the world. Many of them have chosen celibacy, not to avoid marriage, but to live as a prophetic sign of the kingdom and be more available for mission and ministry.
At the heart of both marriage and consecrated celibacy is a response to the invitation of the Gospel to follow Jesus Christ as his disciples. All who are joined to Jesus Christ are invited into the nuptial mystery of eternal communion with God in and through Him. Married men and women live that response in a “mediated” way through the love they are called to give to their spouse which becomes a sign of Christ’s love for His Church. Celibate men and women live it in an “immediate” way. By forsaking one spouse they are freely able to give themselves to Christ’s bride the Church and stand as a prophetic sign of the Kingdom to come. A priest who has vowed celibacy before ordination is married to Christ and His Church. To break that vow is to be unfaithful. It is similar to a married member of the Clergy being unfaithful to his wife.
Archbishop John Favalora issued an apology: "I am deeply saddened by the news surrounding Father Cutie. I apologize on behalf of the church in Miami to the parishioners of St. Francis de Sales Parish, where he serves as administrator, to the listeners and supporters of Radio Paz and Radio Peace and to the entire Archdiocese. Father Cutie made a promise of celibacy and all priests are expected to fulfill that promise with the help of God”. Father Cutie released a statement: "Before God full of love and mercy, I ask the forgiveness of those who may be hurt or saddened by my actions. The commitment I made to serve God will remain intact. I am grateful for the love and support I have received from so many in our community."
Finally, let’s turn to the issue of married clergy. There already are married clergy in the Catholic Church. I am one. I am a Deacon, the first Order of Clergy in the Catholic Church. The sacrament of "Holy Orders" unfolds itself through three stages as deacon, priest and Bishop. The decision for marriage in our lives was made before our ordination to the clerical state. It was a separate calling and invitation. I have been happily married for thirty three years. My wife and I raised five children and we will soon welcome our sixth grandchild.
Similarly, our brothers called to priesthood in the Eastern Catholic Church in communion with Rome are chosen from both the ranks of the celibate and the married. That has been the Eastern Christian practice from antiquity. So there have always been married Catholic priests.Finally, a growing number of ministers from other Christian communities embracing full communion with the Catholic Church are being ordained to both the Deaconate and the Priesthood as married men with explicit dispensation from the obligation of celibacy. Is it possible to reopen consideration of married men for priestly ordination? Yes. However, the actual question is "should married men be once again admitted to candidacy for the priesthood"? There is more than semantics involved.
Fr. Alberto Cutie’s fall from grace is sad. It was also scandalous. He has repented for his sin and is following the proper path for his own restoration as a Catholic Christian. However, celibacy has nothing to do with what occurred between the young priest from Miami and the woman with whom he broke his vows. The Media’s effort to use this scandal to commit detraction against the Catholic Church is one more sign of the growing intolerance of the Catholic Church in America.
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