It sounds like the reflexive criticism of a campaigner who encouraged by social media upvotes can only criticise. To my mind, it seems an excellent streamlining. Of course it is dependent on updated diocesan records, but it seems an excellent starting point.
In the US most dioceses require a "suitability letter" sent from the priest's diocesan chancery to the diocese where a travelling priest wishes to celebrate the Sacraments.
It is a drawn out process in some places but respects the priest, his privacy and is not "hackable."
Speaking personally, I HATE the suitability letter system, and would much prefer this card.
When I travel, I have to plan out every Mass weeks ahead of time and get in touch with a whole slew of different priests to ask "permission" to concelebrate Mass (a permission Can. 903 does not allow them to deny, but not everyone realizes that). I would much prefer the flexibility that this card offers, of being able to walk into any sacristy 10 minutes before Mass and suit up, as is possible in Europe. I hate not being able to be spontaneous on vacation.
There are nuances. Most exactly, if I can prove I am a priest, they must allow me to celebrate Mass in the church. But it does not have to be a specific Mass or a public Mass. They can give me a side altar at 7:00am if they really want, but it is usually easier just to allow me to concelebrate.
> Clergy will be asked to present their cards to the organizers of Masses, pilgrimages, and other Catholic events in France or abroad, for example at World Youth Days.
Will they, though? I am still thinking about the Anglicans (in the case of "abroad").
Ok child safety aside, is this article saying that currently the only thing you need to provide to show you have the proper faculties / orders to perform a sacrament is a letter from the diocese? Is no one at least a little uncomfortable with the idea that it would be harder for a teenager to buy alcohol than for any random person to pose as a priest?
There are plenty of scanned images of diocesan letterhead out there, probably with the Bishop's signature and whatever stamps you'd expect to see on an official document. If it's an embossed seal, what are the chances that someone's going to know what the seal of <random midwest diocese> ought to look like? I can literally buy a custom seal-embosser-thing on Amazon for not a whole lot of money.
When I was ordained a decade ago, there were still priests I knew complaining about the loss of the old celebret card, which was valid for a set period of time rather like most IDs.
The issue with QR codes is that the human eye cannot easily tell whether one has been changed from its previous pattern.
I am imagining a situation where, say, a bishop (let's call him Pricka) knows the abuse record of one of his priests. Pricka has enough cash to pay a programmer to build a copycat website, and he knows the priest's confidential code (being his bishop), so he can incorporate that and enter a fake clean record for him. (He doesn't know the code? No problem, make the fake site accept any code, all that matters is it looks the same and gives access to a clean record. Keeping up appearances, right?) Finally, he has the programmer generate a QR pattern for the copycat site, and tamper with or print a new ID card for the priest so that it shows the new pattern.
This is perhaps unlikely as it requires some technical awareness uncommon among those of a certain age. But I doubt it would be difficult. I hope France is designing these cards with security in mind and taking steps to educate users on the possibility of hacked cards.
Putting aside the gross misuse of diocesan funds to create such a website (which would create a paper trail for the bishop's negligence and a potential leak in the programmer who could go to the press about this), I'm not entirely sure this would be an issue since it would be hosted on an entirely different site. The QR code is, I imagine, an encoded URL leading to some diocesan website. A wrong URL in a browser is easier to snuff out than a different QR code. And even then, the diocese could also just create an app that the QR code opens instead of the web browser, which the fake URL would not be able to do.
Also, if the bishop is going go through the trouble of creating a fake website just to cover one of his abusive priests, why didn't he just do what he could to prevent Rome from hearing about the abuse to begin with? This is a lot of trouble to go through to cover for a priest who has already been compromised and puts the bishop's own position in jeopardy.
All good points. This hypothetical (like many scams) does rely on folks not paying close attention, and I think the app idea is a great one. You're right that it'd almost certainly be more trouble than it's worth. It's just that the onetime-cybersecurity-nerd in me quivers at the mention of QR codes and at any possibility for circumvention... I wish I didn't immediately jump to suspicion, but that's where it seems the church is at these days.
It would seem an enterprising developer could put together a software package that operated as a national or international priestly registry, with each priest's account tied to the diocese in which they are incardinated and providing various diocesan officials view access to answer a number of these questions. What would be the possibility of the USCCB developing something like this for priests in the US?
Better yet, how about they just stop allowing homosexuals into the seminary, and ordaining men with obvious character flaws, sexual deviancies and anything less than absolute adherence to the magisterial teachings of the church?
The purpose of this ID is to allow a priest to visit and concelebrate Mass while he is out of his diocese. It shouldn't have anything to do with sexual abuse but about really being a priest with the authority to say Mass and hear confessions. And it sounds a lot better than exchanging several documents, which could also be forged, and probably much more easily than a QR code,in order to obtain that permission.
The Australian Bishops and Catholic Schools have instituted a system like this. A special card is given to priests who are on active duty to help Schools (especially random receptionists) know who is 'legit' after a couple of weird incidents of an impersonator (a separated parent trying to access their kid after they had a Domestic Violence Protection Order put in place) and a retired priest from outside the school community rocked up to a different school to say Mass without invitation or scheduling on the school's part. The card has a number that corresponds to a database of Priests nationally in good standing and in active ministry that the School can cross check.
Its not perfect, but it makes it much easier for receptionists, and admin people to say no if they think something is fishy, and for accurate records to be kept around who was doing what where.
This is my story of sexual abuse by Fr James Donaghy, subsequent cover up by a bishop, and the attempt to pervert the course of justice by a judge (a close personal friend of the bishop).
I can see problems with this system, but it does have at least the one advantage of convenience over the current system used here of obtaining a current 'letter of good standing' (or whatever it's officially called), which can take a week to obtain in my experience.
I've got to ask the question we're all wondering... If this is in the top three most stupid ideas, what are the other two?
It sounds like the reflexive criticism of a campaigner who encouraged by social media upvotes can only criticise. To my mind, it seems an excellent streamlining. Of course it is dependent on updated diocesan records, but it seems an excellent starting point.
I'm afraid to ask, though it is a stupid idea.
In the US most dioceses require a "suitability letter" sent from the priest's diocesan chancery to the diocese where a travelling priest wishes to celebrate the Sacraments.
It is a drawn out process in some places but respects the priest, his privacy and is not "hackable."
Speaking personally, I HATE the suitability letter system, and would much prefer this card.
When I travel, I have to plan out every Mass weeks ahead of time and get in touch with a whole slew of different priests to ask "permission" to concelebrate Mass (a permission Can. 903 does not allow them to deny, but not everyone realizes that). I would much prefer the flexibility that this card offers, of being able to walk into any sacristy 10 minutes before Mass and suit up, as is possible in Europe. I hate not being able to be spontaneous on vacation.
Does canon 903 really say they must let you concelebrate?
There are nuances. Most exactly, if I can prove I am a priest, they must allow me to celebrate Mass in the church. But it does not have to be a specific Mass or a public Mass. They can give me a side altar at 7:00am if they really want, but it is usually easier just to allow me to concelebrate.
I'm not that fond of the letter system as a deacon, either.
> Clergy will be asked to present their cards to the organizers of Masses, pilgrimages, and other Catholic events in France or abroad, for example at World Youth Days.
Will they, though? I am still thinking about the Anglicans (in the case of "abroad").
Ok child safety aside, is this article saying that currently the only thing you need to provide to show you have the proper faculties / orders to perform a sacrament is a letter from the diocese? Is no one at least a little uncomfortable with the idea that it would be harder for a teenager to buy alcohol than for any random person to pose as a priest?
There are plenty of scanned images of diocesan letterhead out there, probably with the Bishop's signature and whatever stamps you'd expect to see on an official document. If it's an embossed seal, what are the chances that someone's going to know what the seal of <random midwest diocese> ought to look like? I can literally buy a custom seal-embosser-thing on Amazon for not a whole lot of money.
Because vanishingly few people try to pose as a priest whereas half of teenagers try to buy alcohol….
You're not wrong. Our Archdiocesan celebret looks like exactly what you would expect if someone wanted to forge one poorly.
Of course, it is written in Latin, so that is slightly harder to forge.
Ours come with a seal, as I recall, though I haven't looked at an actual letter in years.
Although i have no better ideas to offer, this feels like a dystopian movie.
“Show me your papers!”
This honestly seems easier than having to go through the process of requesting letters of good standing every single time you go somewhere.
Correct!!
When I was ordained a decade ago, there were still priests I knew complaining about the loss of the old celebret card, which was valid for a set period of time rather like most IDs.
The issue with QR codes is that the human eye cannot easily tell whether one has been changed from its previous pattern.
I am imagining a situation where, say, a bishop (let's call him Pricka) knows the abuse record of one of his priests. Pricka has enough cash to pay a programmer to build a copycat website, and he knows the priest's confidential code (being his bishop), so he can incorporate that and enter a fake clean record for him. (He doesn't know the code? No problem, make the fake site accept any code, all that matters is it looks the same and gives access to a clean record. Keeping up appearances, right?) Finally, he has the programmer generate a QR pattern for the copycat site, and tamper with or print a new ID card for the priest so that it shows the new pattern.
This is perhaps unlikely as it requires some technical awareness uncommon among those of a certain age. But I doubt it would be difficult. I hope France is designing these cards with security in mind and taking steps to educate users on the possibility of hacked cards.
Putting aside the gross misuse of diocesan funds to create such a website (which would create a paper trail for the bishop's negligence and a potential leak in the programmer who could go to the press about this), I'm not entirely sure this would be an issue since it would be hosted on an entirely different site. The QR code is, I imagine, an encoded URL leading to some diocesan website. A wrong URL in a browser is easier to snuff out than a different QR code. And even then, the diocese could also just create an app that the QR code opens instead of the web browser, which the fake URL would not be able to do.
Also, if the bishop is going go through the trouble of creating a fake website just to cover one of his abusive priests, why didn't he just do what he could to prevent Rome from hearing about the abuse to begin with? This is a lot of trouble to go through to cover for a priest who has already been compromised and puts the bishop's own position in jeopardy.
All good points. This hypothetical (like many scams) does rely on folks not paying close attention, and I think the app idea is a great one. You're right that it'd almost certainly be more trouble than it's worth. It's just that the onetime-cybersecurity-nerd in me quivers at the mention of QR codes and at any possibility for circumvention... I wish I didn't immediately jump to suspicion, but that's where it seems the church is at these days.
It would seem an enterprising developer could put together a software package that operated as a national or international priestly registry, with each priest's account tied to the diocese in which they are incardinated and providing various diocesan officials view access to answer a number of these questions. What would be the possibility of the USCCB developing something like this for priests in the US?
I may be in minority but I don't see the problem with this. Basically is just an updated version of the letter from your bishop.
Better yet, how about they just stop allowing homosexuals into the seminary, and ordaining men with obvious character flaws, sexual deviancies and anything less than absolute adherence to the magisterial teachings of the church?
The purpose of this ID is to allow a priest to visit and concelebrate Mass while he is out of his diocese. It shouldn't have anything to do with sexual abuse but about really being a priest with the authority to say Mass and hear confessions. And it sounds a lot better than exchanging several documents, which could also be forged, and probably much more easily than a QR code,in order to obtain that permission.
The Australian Bishops and Catholic Schools have instituted a system like this. A special card is given to priests who are on active duty to help Schools (especially random receptionists) know who is 'legit' after a couple of weird incidents of an impersonator (a separated parent trying to access their kid after they had a Domestic Violence Protection Order put in place) and a retired priest from outside the school community rocked up to a different school to say Mass without invitation or scheduling on the school's part. The card has a number that corresponds to a database of Priests nationally in good standing and in active ministry that the School can cross check.
Its not perfect, but it makes it much easier for receptionists, and admin people to say no if they think something is fishy, and for accurate records to be kept around who was doing what where.
This is my story of sexual abuse by Fr James Donaghy, subsequent cover up by a bishop, and the attempt to pervert the course of justice by a judge (a close personal friend of the bishop).
https://youtu.be/fUTlAGxZLIA
I can see problems with this system, but it does have at least the one advantage of convenience over the current system used here of obtaining a current 'letter of good standing' (or whatever it's officially called), which can take a week to obtain in my experience.