LETTERS

ARTICLES

NEWS

FOLLOW ME

ROAMIN' CATHOLIC






Contents © 1998
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.

LETTERS
JUNE 1998

---

THE FAITH IS GOOD PRISON READING

May the grace and peace of our risen Lord be with you all at San Francisco Faith. As the new Catholic chaplain at Mule Creek State Prison, allow me to extend the thanks of our entire community of faith for the editions of your fine publication. As I am sure you are aware, reading materials are a true blessing to the many incarcerated Catholics in California's prisons.

We have many men from the San Francisco Bay Area here at Mule Creek and to have your publication as an addition to the materials we can offer the men serves a double purpose. By allowing these men insight into the religious goings on in their home communities, it lets them feel less alienated from the communities they hope to be reconciled to, and it allows them to hear the Good News and realize it is lived out in the lives of the society they have become separated from.

I wish to thank you once again for the subscription to your publication and wish you all success.

Fr. Diogo Baptista
Chaplain, Mule Creek State Prison


DON'T WRITE ABOUT RODRIGUEZ

I was appalled to read your April article on Richard Rodriguez [see "The Paradox of Richard Rodriguez" and "Rodriguez on Catholicism and Culture", April]. From its tone and content, I guess we are supposed to think of him as a "good" homosexual because he speaks out about the "apparent homosexual subculture within the Catholic priesthood." We don't need Richard Rodriguez to wring his hands about this. Such coverage merely gives Rodriguez and his ilk more of an opportunity to beat softly the "gay agenda" into our minds.

Virtually every time I see him on television, or read his articles, he has to mention that he is "gay" and also that he is Catholic. Why do you give him another forum to spread his message that "gay is okay" if you are an otherwise "reasonable" Catholic?

I recently read Rodriguez's hit piece on the Boy Scouts, a commentary he wrote for Pacific News Service. He accused the Boy Scouts of being un-American and discriminatory against "gay" Scout leaders, and praised the "Roman Catholic nuns who taught me to consider my soul's obligations." In looking at him today, I think he should have paid less attention to the nuns' values and more attention to those promoted by the Boy Scouts.

Towards the end of the article, Rodriguez states, "One of the things you and I should hold ourselves accountable for is our performance as public Catholics..." What nerve. Through his writings which always mention that he is a Catholic, he is more accountable than those of us who are not in the public eye. Yet for each time he mentions he is a Catholic, he has to throw in his "gayness." What confusion he is causing by his pairing of Catholic and "gay." These are incompatible. If Rodriguez is a recovering homosexual, and trying to lead a chaste and moral life, he should not use the word "gay" in reference to himself, and he should renounce and denounce the "gay lifestyle." Since he does neither, he is scandalizing the Church by his writings and behavior. We don't need San Francisco Faith to further Richard Rodriguez's agenda.

Laurette Elsberry
Sacramento


RODRIGUEZ'S ANTI-BRITISH DIATRIBE

I would like to comment on your article, "Rodriguez on Catholicism and Culture." First of all, I have to say that as a traditional Catholic I heartily concur with the writer's remarks regarding the vindictive and scurrilous attack by Christopher Hitchens on Mother Teresa, but as an Englishwoman I was greatly offended to find that what could have been a well-deserved criticism degenerated into a thinly veiled, anti-British diatribe.

Your writer's bias was very obvious with his use of stereotypical terminology such as "Brit twit," coupled with sarcastic remarks on the British accent and "the superiority of having been born in England," etc.

If remarks such as these had been directed at any other minority, there would have been howls of outrage, but your writer seems to feel that he has carte blanche to denigrate the British with impunity. I can assure him that we do not consider America as an empire or its people as colonials. His remark that "caring too much is bad form in London" is ludicrous when one remembers the public outpouring of grief on the demise of Princess Diana.

This type of racial stereotyping has no place in what is an otherwise excellent, traditional Catholic newspaper and I hope that in the future a little more care will be taken to consider the sensibilities of your readers.

M. Samuels
San Francisco


A GREAT SIGN OF HOPE

I'm a seminarian from the archdiocese of Denver, and during a trip to San Francisco last week, I read your newspaper. I must admit that it's a great sign of hope for the region. I found it to be honest and true, orthodox and funny. What a great combo! I pray you continue your mission of apostolate in serving the faithful. Don't ever give in to discouragement, for there is coming a "great springtime for the Church." God bless you and keep up the work of the Lord.

Raymond P. Adams


A LOVING SUGGESTION

I have a suggestion. Suppose you went to your next editorial board meeting and said, "We are changing the name of the paper to Love. We are going to treat the bishops and the priests and the lay people we talk to with respect, and we are going to listen to their point of view and try to understand it and then enter into dialogue with them, challenge them, share humor and laughter with them and sense that they are your brothers and sisters in Christ." Imagine what could happen! Your paper would become good news--a gospel message! Instead...

Rev. Anthony E. McGuire, Pastor
St. Anne's Church, San Francisco


KEEP DISSIDENT PRIESTS ON THE DEFENSIVE

Just a few words to thank you and to encourage you to continue publishing San Francisco Faith. Your truly orthodox Catholic publication is most needed during these difficult times. The fact that the misguided, angry liberals, including priests and nuns, write you nasty, and to use their big word "mean-spirited," letters shows that you are being effective. Keep it up!

It is great to know that publications such as yours seem to exist in many dioceses where for the most part diocesan newspapers are not worth reading if one seeks official church teachings.

My heart goes out to Catholics who cannot find local parishes where a decent and reverent mass is offered and therefore have to travel miles and miles to find a parish which has not been contaminated by radical Catholicism.

Mr. and Mrs. Constantino N.N. Santos
Atascadero


IS DISSENT FROM CHURCH TEACHING LOVE?

Why is it that Church dissenters refer to those of us who are faithful to the Magisterium as negative, critical, mean-spirited, stupid, etc. Dissenters use these words to describe the orthodox Catholics, when in fact these words describe them.

If liberals love the Church, why then is disobedience rife among them? After all, obedience is part of love. Most priests no longer obey the bishops, and most bishops no longer obey the Pope. As one prominent American bishop stated recently, "I am not the Pope's branch manager." Is this love?

Let us return to a Church of unity and order, which no longer exists because liberals fail to respect and obey legitimate ecclesiastical authority. I pray that it will happen soon.

Jim Teves

TOP