What a great priest to represent us at the synod. Great choice.
Fr. Planty points out that those in the Church in the U.S. have been engaging in a "synodal" way for many decades. I agree but would only add one thing. While we do a great job in bringing people together to discuss, creating a culture where people's voices are heard, we don't always do it in the context of prayer. While most of our meetings begin and end with short prayers, it is rare that they will done along with longer periods of mental prayer or prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
That is a great point. I fall into that trap myself often - just wanting to get the business accomplished and only afterwards thinking, "Maybe a lectio session would have been fruitful."
As if the laity, who have a tough enough time getting their voices heard by the clergy, have time for that. I've got multiple kids and businesses. I don't have time for some youth ministry style retreat. I just want to talk to my bishop.
I've always wondered if a lot of the consternation online was rooted in that synodality keeps getting presented as some new focus ("a new way of being church"). To us it just seems like an exaggeration but maybe in other parts of the world this really is new and exciting? It's interesting to see Father bring up the same point.
As he said, we have a democratic background, for one. We have very egalitarian attitudes: Europeans are often shocked over how Americans can be overly-familiar with strangers. But I also wonder if American culture's puritan/protestant/anti-Catholic history and classic 'rugged individualism' could give us an affinity for lay-led initiatives and more resistant to clericalist attitudes. (As a long time youth ministry volunteer and Church employee, the USCCB's "Co-workers in the Vinyard of the Lord" is still read and recommended in ministry circles.)
If these attitudes come more naturally to Americans than Europeans, then that would make sense of the nuncio's remarks last Fall: criticizing the bishops for not leading more evangelical efforts while completely missing America's abundance of lay-led evangelical initiatives (FOCUS, Augustine Institute, Formed.org, etc).
indeed. here in Fr Planty's own diocese, we have the lay-led "Arlington Latin Mass Society," the DC area Una Voce chapter. We're a 501(c)(3) and very active. Rome has no idea what to do with a group like ours.
Not surprisingly, Fr. Planty is down-playing the role of the TLM in the synodal process in Arlington. I attended a few of these listening sessions myself (including at Fr. Planty's own parish), and I can tell you the dominant theme was access to the TLM. It was certainly not "inclusiveness," whatever that means. The people who showed up to those sessions were the Trads. We went out of our way to make our voice heard.
As for our numbers locally in Arlington, there are 2000-2500 souls who attend the TLM every Sunday, or most Sundays. We have the most active and organized Trad lay apostolate in the United States, the 501(c)(3) Arlington Latin Mass Society. There are many non-Trad "conservative" Catholics who wish Rome would leave us alone to worship in peace, so we have lots of allies beyond our numbers.
As a percent of Sunday Mass attendees, it's right around 2%. Is that a small number? Sure, but it's bigger than a lot of the racial and ethnic minority communities which are catered to by the chancery. We Trads are made to feel as an unwelcome burden far too often.
While there are beneficial initiatives, outreach and ministries, I see nothing in the Diocese of Arlington that can truthfully be described as "catering" to racial and ethnic minorities.
they have an entire office of multicultural ministries. there are events this office does with distinct ethnic and racial groups. where's the office for the 2500 Trads?
use whatever verb you want. they are ministered to. we are considered a headache to be managed. believe me, you can feel that attitude here from the chancery.
I was privileged to attend a few Masses that Fr. Planty celebrated at St. Charles Borromeo in Arlington. A sound and engaging homilist; a reverent and inspiring priest at the altar. Good choice.
What a great priest to represent us at the synod. Great choice.
Fr. Planty points out that those in the Church in the U.S. have been engaging in a "synodal" way for many decades. I agree but would only add one thing. While we do a great job in bringing people together to discuss, creating a culture where people's voices are heard, we don't always do it in the context of prayer. While most of our meetings begin and end with short prayers, it is rare that they will done along with longer periods of mental prayer or prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
That is a great point. I fall into that trap myself often - just wanting to get the business accomplished and only afterwards thinking, "Maybe a lectio session would have been fruitful."
As if the laity, who have a tough enough time getting their voices heard by the clergy, have time for that. I've got multiple kids and businesses. I don't have time for some youth ministry style retreat. I just want to talk to my bishop.
Polyglot? Gospel formation and clarity? Sensibility regarding the TLM?
Fr. Planty should rank among the papabile!
I've always wondered if a lot of the consternation online was rooted in that synodality keeps getting presented as some new focus ("a new way of being church"). To us it just seems like an exaggeration but maybe in other parts of the world this really is new and exciting? It's interesting to see Father bring up the same point.
As he said, we have a democratic background, for one. We have very egalitarian attitudes: Europeans are often shocked over how Americans can be overly-familiar with strangers. But I also wonder if American culture's puritan/protestant/anti-Catholic history and classic 'rugged individualism' could give us an affinity for lay-led initiatives and more resistant to clericalist attitudes. (As a long time youth ministry volunteer and Church employee, the USCCB's "Co-workers in the Vinyard of the Lord" is still read and recommended in ministry circles.)
If these attitudes come more naturally to Americans than Europeans, then that would make sense of the nuncio's remarks last Fall: criticizing the bishops for not leading more evangelical efforts while completely missing America's abundance of lay-led evangelical initiatives (FOCUS, Augustine Institute, Formed.org, etc).
indeed. here in Fr Planty's own diocese, we have the lay-led "Arlington Latin Mass Society," the DC area Una Voce chapter. We're a 501(c)(3) and very active. Rome has no idea what to do with a group like ours.
Not surprisingly, Fr. Planty is down-playing the role of the TLM in the synodal process in Arlington. I attended a few of these listening sessions myself (including at Fr. Planty's own parish), and I can tell you the dominant theme was access to the TLM. It was certainly not "inclusiveness," whatever that means. The people who showed up to those sessions were the Trads. We went out of our way to make our voice heard.
As for our numbers locally in Arlington, there are 2000-2500 souls who attend the TLM every Sunday, or most Sundays. We have the most active and organized Trad lay apostolate in the United States, the 501(c)(3) Arlington Latin Mass Society. There are many non-Trad "conservative" Catholics who wish Rome would leave us alone to worship in peace, so we have lots of allies beyond our numbers.
As a percent of Sunday Mass attendees, it's right around 2%. Is that a small number? Sure, but it's bigger than a lot of the racial and ethnic minority communities which are catered to by the chancery. We Trads are made to feel as an unwelcome burden far too often.
While there are beneficial initiatives, outreach and ministries, I see nothing in the Diocese of Arlington that can truthfully be described as "catering" to racial and ethnic minorities.
they have an entire office of multicultural ministries. there are events this office does with distinct ethnic and racial groups. where's the office for the 2500 Trads?
The term you used was "cater". Ministering to people is not catering to them.
use whatever verb you want. they are ministered to. we are considered a headache to be managed. believe me, you can feel that attitude here from the chancery.
I will use the verb I want and it will not be one belittling of racial and ethnic groups.
you're reading context into my word choice that simply isn't there.
there are niche groups in this diocese that are valued and nurtured, and there are niche groups that...aren't.
I was privileged to attend a few Masses that Fr. Planty celebrated at St. Charles Borromeo in Arlington. A sound and engaging homilist; a reverent and inspiring priest at the altar. Good choice.