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Much Ado About Something

Will the Vatican's Seminary Visitation Make Any Difference?

BY JOHN ECK

Whether for good or no effect at all, an apostolic visitation of U.S. seminaries and houses of priestly formation began in late September. Though Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, the archbishop of military services for the United States, is coordinating the visitation, it ultimately falls under the authority of the Holy See's Congregation for Catholic Education. Pope John Paul II called for the visitation late last year as a response to the priest sexual molestation scandal.

Though some may fear (or hope) that "visitation" is a euphemism for "inquisition," whether it will be so thorough or effective remains to be seen. The Vatican last opened a visitation of U.S. seminaries in 1983, and since then the sexual molestation crisis has harrowed the Church in America, not to mention the continuing stream of heterodox, though not always heterosexual, seminarians who have entered the ranks of the clergy. Things might be no worse than they were in 1983, but they aren't (except for a handful of new orders) much better, either.

One may derive some hope, however, from the fact that this year's visitation differs from the previous one in two important respects. For one, it appears that it will be shorter. According to a 1987 L'Osservatore Romano article written by Cardinal William Wakefield Baum (then prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education), the previous visitation lasted four years, 1983 to 1987. This year's visitation is expected to cover the majority of seminaries and houses of formation by the end of the Spring 2006 semester, a timeframe which may reflect a greater sense of urgency on the part of the Holy See.

The mode of reporting the visitors' conclusions will differ in this visitation. In the visitation of the '80s, according to Cardinal Baum, at the end of a week long visitation, "a verbal report" was given to the seminary; the report was then "put into writing and submitted to the Holy See," which made "an analysis of it," and then addressed "a final report on the seminary to the bishop or religious superior who is responsible for it." This academic year's visitation, however, bypasses seminary officials and even the local bishop.

According to the visitation's "Frequently Asked Questions" report, teams of three or four visitors will visit each seminary or priestly house of formation; they will review documentation provided by the institution in question, and will interview faculty, students, staff, and recent alumni. No report, oral or otherwise, will go to the seminary or bishop; rather, "each team will submit its report to the Holy See, which will offer confidential evaluations to the appropriate bishops and religious superiors." Once all the reports are in and distilled, "the Holy See will be in a position to offer an assessment to the bishops and major superiors of the United States." If the visitation identifies "concerns" (as the visitation document puts it), the Holy See will contact "the bishop and/or religious ordinary (superior) who oversees the seminary or house of formation" so that he might "address them."

The fact that the visitors will not communicate their findings to seminary officials directly will help assure that human respect not blunt the edge of critique. This is necessary, since it appears the visitation will address problems that go right to the heart of the malaise in U.S. seminaries. According to an August 19 Apostolic Visitation press release, visitors will examine admissions criteria for seminary candidates and "the programs of human formation and spiritual formation aimed at ensuring that they can faithfully live chastely for the Kingdom." The 1983 visitation addressed such concerns, but after twenty years and hundreds of sexual abuse scandals, seminary formation for chastity might draw a closer scrutiny than heretofore.

Will visitors examine seminary admissions policies vis-à-vis homosexual candidates? Not surprisingly, documents released by the visitation do not say. That the Holy See itself has not released a promised document regarding the ordination of homosexual men might suggest that the question of homosexual admission will not even be addressed. In addressing the question of celibacy, however, the "Frequently Asked Questions" document seems to have only heterosexuals in mind. The "resources" a seminary formation program offers a man judged capable of living a life of celibacy includes "the development of an appreciation for the proper relationship between men and women and for the gift of celibacy." No mention is made of developing an appreciation for the proper relationship between men and men -- a desideratum, at least, if homosexuals are considered acceptable candidates for the seminary.

But speaking to the National Catholic Reporter in mid-September, Archbishop O'Brien said that, while priests with "same-sex attractions" have done "very well" remaining celibate, "generally speaking, in my experience, the pressures are strong in an all-male atmosphere. And if there have been past failings, the church really must stay on the safe side.... The same-sex attractions have gotten us into some legal problems." Though, said O'Brien, the Church is not "hounding" homosexuals out of the priesthood, "anyone who has engaged in homosexual activity, or has strong homosexual inclinations, would be best not to apply to a seminary and not to be accepted into a seminary."

Clerical celibacy will not be the visitation's only focus; visitors will look into the more important area of the "intellectual formation of seminarians," examining "fidelity to the Magisterium, especially in the field of moral theology, in the light of Veritatis Splendor" (Pope John Paul II's 1993 encyclical, the "Splendor of Truth").

The public will not directly know the results of the visitation, since reports to bishops and seminary officials will be confidential. The effectiveness of the endeavor may not be seen for years. In the meantime, however, the reactions of seminary officials and prelates might indicate the results. Speaking of the visitation in the '80s, Cardinal Baum wrote in L'Osservatore Romano that "by and large, the seminaries have actually enjoyed the visitations." If this time next year the absence of such enjoyment on the part of seminary officials is apparent, one may conclude that the visitation, this time around, has been a success.

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