You Can Tell a Lot About A Person by His Enemies

In this case I am refering to Archbishop John C. Nienstedt, co-adjutor of the St. Paul/Minneapolis Archdiocese. He has come under a lot of fire lately for doing his job of upholding traditional Catholic teaching on Homosexuality.

What set this off was an article he recently wrote in the Archdiocesan newspaper The Catholic Spirit entitled Four points on the church's teaching about homosexuality. This article was written because of St. Francis Cabrini Catholic Church's plans to bring in former Iowan Carol Curoe & her father to speak on her active homosexuality.

In the article he upholds the US Bishops directive for Catholic parishes to not give a platform to those who held public positions contrary to the church's defined teaching. He also gave an endorsement to groups like Courage, a Catholic organization that helps those experiencing same-sex attractions lead chaste lives. & of course for those who want to flaunt the Church's teachings & encourage a sinful lifestyle Archbishop Neinstedt's article was bound to draw their ire.

In fact they scheduled a protest last Sunday. ("Catholic" Homosexuals Demonstrate against Bishop Nienstedt's Too "Authoritative Teaching") According to the article, the Vigil for Solidarity with LGBT Catholics "attracted, according to organisers, approximately 325 people at the Cathedral of St. Paul on Sunday, December 2. Slogans on the signs carried by protesters read "The Body of Christ Has Gay Genes Too!" and "Vatican Homophobia is 'Intrinsically Disordered'". They demanded that the Catholic Church abandon its dedication to what it believes to be objective truth revealed by God and start to formulate doctrine according to the "consensus" of the laity and the "lived experience" of homosexuals."

1 of the organizers was Michael J. Bayly, the head of the quasi-official Catholic Pastoral Committeeon Sexual Minorities of St. Paul Minneapolis. He said "that the protesters objected to the Church's manner of "authoritative teaching" that does not "include participation of the laity"."

The article goes on to say: "The group wants the Catholic Church to depart from Catholicism and "to consult gay Catholics or their families" when formulating doctrine." Bayly claims: "With regards to the issue of homosexuality, the 'body of the faithful' is still very much engaged in the journey towards 'consensus'. And in other areas relating to human sexuality, the consensus that has been reached is at odds with the teaching of the hierarchical church [sic]."

Sorry, this change he is advocating for will never happen. As the Archbishop rightly points out in his article, the church's teaching on homosexuality is "derived as it is from an understanding of the natural moral law. "

He goes on to say: "we must uphold the truth of our Catholic faith, which can often be quite challenging and demanding for any of us, while at the same time, welcoming into the community those who feel isolated and marginalized.

This is the same tension St. Augustine recognized of "hating the sin, but loving the sinner." It is a "careful line," but one that calls for conversion - a conversion that leads to eternal life."

While drawing criticism from the media & the above mentioned groups, Archbishop Nienstedt's actions have also won him some praise & very vocal support. (Archbishop Under Fire for Church Teaching on Homosexuality Supported by Catholic Parents) 1 group in particular is Minnesota Majority, a non-partisan issue advocacy group seeking to restore traditional values to Minnesota's public policy.

They have the following statement on their website: "You don’t have to be Catholic to be concerned about the harsh attacks recently levied against John Nienstedt, Coadjutor Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. For the second time in less than a week, Archbishop John Nienstedt has been publically vilified for simply communicating the Catholic Church’s teaching on human sexuality. In today’s Minneapolis Star Tribune, Nick Coleman castigated the Archbishop for his recent column in the Catholic Spirit newspaper in which the Archbishop concisely and charitably explained the Catholic Church's teaching regarding a homosexual's obligation to chastity and the Church's obligation to support and encourage such a chaste lifestyle. Nick Coleman’s criticisms, together with those of other homosexual activists, expose a deep-seated intolerance and hatred some have towards those who hold traditional values regarding human sexuality." They ask supporters to write to encourage the Archbishop in his stand as well as to write the Star Tribune about Coleman's column. Good idea, the column is a hit piece that clearly is aimed at undermining Catholic teaching & the Archbishop's authority.

Archbishop Neinstedt has also issued a response to the column. In it, he shows how his stand is truly the compassionate one. He also points out Coleman's errors about Catholic teaching found in the column. He concludes the response by saying: "As a priest and bishop, I have the responsibility before God and in the name of Jesus Christ to call all men and women to conversion, the first step of which is recognizing sinful activity for what it is. Sometimes that is not a comfortable thing to do, but it is always the compassionate thing to do."

Praise God for a shepherd who understands his vocation & is willing to live it out. He needs our prayers & support. May God give Papa Benedetto the wisdom & guidance to appoint more shepherds like him in the days ahead. & may Archbishop Neinstedt's courageous stand encourage other bishops to follow his example.