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Contents © 1998
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.

LETTERS
APRIL 1998

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DON'T TALK ABOUT PROBLEMS IN THE CHURCH

Your negative reporting has no relation whatsoever to the wonderful lay people of my parish. Your stupid article entitled "Why don't We Kneel" [March Faith] is typical. You might recall that Jesus and the apostles reclined at the Last Supper. You, no doubt, would find that offensive. They should have knelt! And your ad for the New Oxford Review is extremely distorted and offensive.

Why are all ultra-conservatives papers so negative? Can't you find anything positive in this church and world of ours? Even liberals love the Church.

Fr. Richard B. McCafferty, S.J.
Pastor, St. Charles Borromeo Church
Livermore


I AM SADDENED BY THE FAITH

We are in a time of prayer for Christian unity and I am strongly compelled to write you and ask that you drop my name from your mailing list. You undoubtedly received my name from Roman Catholic Witness, which is also being requested to stop sending me that destructive paper. I am saddened that well-meaning Catholics feel the need to buck their church and its lawful magisterium by circulating these papers.

The city of St. Francis has as its patron one who was called to build up the church and it would be well for you to contemplate the idea. Divisiveness will only cause more pain to the body of Christ who is still praying for unity among his members. As St. Paul warns, if we don't love we have nothing.

I want to make it known that Fr. Jim Schexnayder is doing a very needed and dedicated work in the face of some awful bigotry [see "Where's the Dignity?" January]. I thank him and would appreciate your publishing this letter. He went out of his way to go to the hospital to visit my brother recently when it looked like he was dying of AIDS/pneumonia. He continued to visit and support him when he needed that support. He is where Christ wants to be. Please ask your readers to pray for unity among Catholics as well as Christians of all persuasions.

Terry Snider
San Leandro


STICK TO FEEL-GOOD JOURNALISM

I find the newspaper divisive and critical at times towards certain people and groups. If we have to do some news reporting as Catholics, we have to be more positive and more pleasant. The world as it is presents so many challenges, contradictions and even persecutions to us who would like to profess and live our faith to the core. Why not cover more stories and anecdotes of heroism, dedication and newsworthy causes of Catholics and Christians alike? There are many oridinary people who live their faith with heroism but they never are known, nor given due credit for their dedication. Why emphasize so much the misdeeds of priests?

Percy Sison
San Francisco


ST. BOZO'S IS EVERYWHERE

Regarding past letters: How amusing that a monsignor and a university vice president try to kill the messenger: San Francisco Faith. Orthodox Catholics try to conform to God's laws, and do not expect the Church to conform to modernism.

To the monsignor: Just two Sundays ago, a guest priest changed the words of Christ from "fishers of men" to "fishers of people." Another young priest, now transferred, weekly changes the words of Christ to be "inclusive." St. Bozo's is everywhere.

To the university vice president: many Catholic universities, just like most secular universities, have been henpecked by secular humanists. To obscure this with the notion that one could get a "minor in Catholic Studies" at a Catholic university is absurd. All the American Studies programs -- be they women's, black, chicano, etc. -- are politically and socially liberal. How many staff in your university's Catholic studies departments voted for Clinton? Probably about 95%. How many are devout Catholics who openly agree with what the Catechism has to say about homosexuality and abortion? Probably about 5%.

Gregory S. Wood
Los Banos


THE CHURCH ISN'T A SOCIAL HALL

Brother Michael Meister from St. Mary's had a strange reason for not discussing transubstantiation with students [see "Everything Accepted but Orthodoxy" January]: "...because they have an insufficient understanding of human dignity, destiny, values, good and evil, ends and means, justice and peace the common good, etc." I can not believe college students have such an insufficient understanding! And what do any of those have to do with discussing the Real Presence of Christ? As a toddler we call our mother "mother" and we haven't a clue about all those subjects Brother mentioned.

Then there was the articles about Fr. Sullivan from St. Lucy's and Bishop Ryan of Monterey [see "Why Don't We Kneel?", March Faith]. No wonder Mother Angelica of EWTN sells portable kneelers. Don't let human respect keep us from giving Jesus the respect he is due. Fr. Sullivan does not own St. Lucy's.

I have been in a few churches where you can't find the Blessed Sacrament. They have him out of sight. I'm not suprised that statistics state only 27% of Catholics believe in the Real Presence. For whatever reason this practice was started, it doesn't work. How could people believe Christ is present in the Host at the consecration of the mass when priests have removed from sight the tabernacle containing the consecrated host in the Blessed Sacrament.

If people are only looking for community and a family meal, they can go to a restaurant. The Church isn't a social hall. It is where we come together to worship God who made us and who allowed himself to be crucified to redeem us.

Mary Lou James
Antioch


HE IS A TROJAN HORSE

A thousand thanks for standing up to heretic priest Terrence Sullivan [see "Why Don't We Kneel?", March Faith]. He has lost the faith, but won't admit it. I think he is a trojan horse in the Church. His hypocrisy is blatant.

John Blazevic
Auburn

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