Sigh.
How to put this delicately?
( . . . still waiting for inspiration.)
Okay, let’s not put it delicately.
Archbishop emeritus of Lusaka Emmanuel Milingo is out of control. (Actually, that was pretty delicate compared to what I’m tempted to write.)
Worse, he’s out of control and rampaging through the United States, campaigning for married priests with his own civil law wife (I have to be in the qualifier becaue he’s not really married to her; he is impeded from being able to validly contract a marriage due to his holy orders, so his union with her is automatically null–same thing goes for all the non-laicized priests who "left the priesthood" to get "married"; see Canon 1087), who was personally picked for him by the long-time lunatic and antichrist, Sun Myung Moon.
HERE’S GENERAL BACKGROUND ON MILINGO.
Now, to address the question posed in the title of this post: Just how do you deal with an enfant terrible like this?
I mean, if you’re B16, you’ve got to do something. You can’t just let him rampage through downtown Tokyo, detroying buildings left and right.
AND PRESS ACCOUNTS INDICATE THAT SOMETHING IS, INDEED, IN THE WORKS.
But preciesely what’s going on isn’t fully clear.
I’m kinda confused. On one hand, I am a faithful Catholic. If the Church teaches it, then it is the law and must be followed. Thats just what I believe. However, I realize there is a difference between the revealed infallible Truth, and just “Church law” (which is necessary for the smooth running of our Church, but which does change from time to time.)
I thought priestly marriage (man to woman, not man to church) was more of a rule than any revealed truth, and therefore alterable? Am I wrong?
The celibate priesthood is a discipline that priests must follow in the Latin Rite. Regardless of it’s infallibility, no Catholic, ecspecially a Bishop, should ever put himself at odds with Canon Law like Archbishop Malingo has.
If his excellency, and I use that term lightly here, really thought the discipline needed to be changed, there are rational avenues at which to join in the debate. I don’t understand these mavric clerics. If they don’t want to be part of a Church that requires obedience and loyalty, Catholicism probably wasn’t their best choice.
Catchy title. (will have to read the whole thing when I have more time)
I understand that the “wheels of the Church” turn slowly, and that is a good thing, overall, especially when it comes to doctrine.
But in matters of discipline, regarding the priest abuse crisis in the U.S., for instance, or yahoos like Milingo, I would like to see swifter and more decisive action.
You can often tell a good deal about a person by what they approve, and the Church needs to be very clear about what she stands for, and against.
Skeetor,
You correct in thinking that celibacy is not an essential dimension of priestly orders. Likewise, you are making an important distinction between revealed truth as mediated by Scripture and Tradition, and Canon Law. However, it is also important to note that much of Canon Law is derived from principles and deductions from Revelation.
While celibacy is not essential to the priesthood and episcopacy, it may be worthwhile to mention that both the Western and Eastern Churches are clear that no marriage may take place after ordination to priestly orders. Marriage must take place prior to ordination according to the ancient traditions, Eastern and Western, of the Church. This makes Milingo’s campaign for married clergy all more absurd since he holds up his own (post-ordination) marriage as a paradigm.
Evangelical Catholicism
Now I have that song in my head, and parodies will surely follow.
Haven’t read the links yet, but I hope at the very least he is stripped of his voting rights in the next conclave.
Has the Church ever allowed ordained clergy to marry?
I recognize that married men are sometimes, in some circumstances, in some rights allowed to be ordained, and that prohibiting ordination to married men in the Latin Rite is a discipline that could, at least theoretically, be changed. But as Michael points out, that is different than allowing clergy to marry.
I am simply not aware of the Church ever allowing that.
John E.
He is not a Cardinal, so fortunately he will have no voting rights in the next conclave. I think it is safe to say whatever B16 desides it won’t be to make him a Cardinal.
Brother Cadfael,
I am not aware of the Church ever allowing it either, though word is it is also a discipline, not a sacramental impossibility if Canon Law is changed.
Milingo is actually even more of a disaster for those who would like to see the law and practice in the West closer to that in the East, and even for those in the Eastern Catholic churches which would like to see them return to the traditional practice of the East in this matter. By association with Milingo, the whole issue of a married parochial clergy is tarred with the idea of self indulgence and outright nuttiness.
Susan Peterson
I’ve been following the antics of Archbishop Milingo ever since he came to the attention of the media a few years ago, and I fairly early came to the opinion that he’s, well, not quite sane.
Note that’s a personal opinion. I’m not a psychiatrist. I don’t even play one on TV.
So working under the assumption that he is suffering from some sort of mental illness, just how culpable is he under canon law for his words and actions?
–arthur
Could he be possessed or something? What I am getting at is that he has done a lot of exorcisms in his past, could something related to that be affecting his behavior?
Jimmy, I think your first paragraph just about says it all… I mean, once you made the connection to “Rev.” Moon, I think that pretty much certifies him as a nut.
Why doesn’t the Church simply defrock him? Excommunication is not enough. He’s probably already excommunicated just by the mere act of participating in a religious service of Sun Myung Moon. But this is clearly not a man that ought to retain valid orders as a bishop!
Now, the truly sad part of all of this is that he’d almost fit right in as a bishop in the United States. 🙁
Bingo. AFAIK, it’s the same in the Eastern Churches, both Catholic and Orthodox. Married men can sometimes be ordained; ordained men, even ordained permanent deacons, cannot marry.
I doubt the devil would actually possess this Bishop. Why not? Because Archbishop Milingo is already controlled by his self pride and disobedient nature. The grappin has more devout followers of Christ to inhabit than an unstable Bihop.
First, let me say that Jimmy is right Moon is an antichrist.
Second, why is our Congress crowning anyone?
Third, there are cases of “oikonimia” in which a priest or deacon whose wife has died is allowed to remarry. They are rare to be sure, usually it’s when the priest or deacon have young children.
But the discipline is that bishops are almost always chosen from the monasteries. Except for the Eastern Catholic Churches in America, where the problem of Bishop John Ireland has not been resolved. The clergy of America in the Eastern Churches are overwhelmingly forced to be celebate, which is against their patrimony. A few married priests are out there in the Ukrainian, Melkite, Maronite and Romainian Churches. The Byzantine Catholic Church of America (Ruthenian) has ordained very few married men.
Besides all of that, discipline or not, every priest in the Latin rite takes a vow of celibacy, a vow that one would need to be released from by someone else.
Milingo has made claims in the past that the Magesterium is jealous of his “charisms.” Thus, you see, his “persecution.” Never mind the fact that he’s following this Moon crank and got hitched and on and on. Jealousy.
Coupla buttons shy of cassock.
Happy HoneyMoonie!
You tell me, but the bishop seems to be possesed.
It doesn’t feel right when staring at his picture.
It is my understanding that clergy can only be married (in the Roman Catholic Church) under the circumstances that they were and ordained minister, married and converted to Catholism.
I really wonder, and this may seem inflammatory and I don’t mean to be offensive to anyone… BUT
We have so much weird stuff going, on married preists, women preists and a bunch of other weird anti-tradtional stuff being called for, especially in America.
It brings to mind the passage in the bible where Jesus says the sheep will be seperated from the goats. I wonder if some of this stuff is like that, I mean this guy is a real goat if you ask me. I wonder why God is asking us to deal with and fight all this heresy?
Please, please let me be a sheep. I want to be a sheep…
How did he ever become a bishop in the first place? I’m not asking retorically, but in all seriousness. Was he elevated by John Paul II? I know that he had some rather ‘edgy’ appointments, such as Mahoney, but this is even farther out there than Mahoney.
….How do you find the words that mean Milingo? A fliberty gibbet, a will of a wisp, a clown?
….It’s been in my head all day!
Many a thing you know you’d like to tell him. Many a thing he ought to understand.
Thanks Suzanne for passing it around!:^)
This archbishop is persisting in public grave sin. Don’t tell me politicians voting for abortion is public sin but this guy’s parading around with his “wife” is not. How is it that he was not excommunicated and removed from office immediately?
OK, I read the Wikipedia artical, and it sounds like this guy was a radtrad/maverick exorcist and was removed from office, then became a wacko liberal and “got married”, then left his “wife” was reconciled to the church and did penance, and now has turned wacko liberal again and reunited with his “wife” again this August. Sounds like its time for more action against him, though with this crazy history I do think he is likely insane and/or possessed. I would not be surprised if his preoccupation with the Devil in the early years combined with disobidient unapproved attempted exocisms may have resulted in he himself becoming possessed. Maybe.
Honestly, when is Rome going to stop elevating the worst of the worst to the episcopacy? There just have to be better candidates than the kinds of people that have been made bishops in the last 20 years or so.
I also hear that Miligno is collaborating with Dan Brown to do a story about exorcism.
Anon. Looks like this guy has been has been a bishop since 1969, and he was removed under JPII in I think 1983.
Roman Scristan,
The sad thing is, I can’t tell if you are joking or not.
The sad thing is, I can’t tell if you are joking or not.
My thoughts exactly!
How do you solve a problem like Milingo:
He sneaks around and can’t be found,
Until he’s on TV…
He takes a Moonie for a wife,
Embracing heresy;
And underneath his mitre,
Seems his lost his sanity.
I heard him once professing Docetism.
He’s always breaking canons
But his penitence is real
He’s always late for everything
Except for every meal
I hate to have to say it
But I very firmly feel
Milingo’s even worse than Charlie Curran!
I’d like to say a word in his behalf
(then say it, Sr. Margaretta)
Milingo makes me… laugh.
How do you solve a problem like Milingo?
How do you make a bishop keep in line?
How do you find a word that means Milingo?
A flibbertijibbet! A will-o’-the wisp! A clown!
If bishops are dogs, Emmanuel is a dingo
Which even a German Shepherd couldn’t tame.
So how do you make him stay
And shut up for just one day?
How do you keep a crosier from his hand?
Oh, how do you solve a problem like Milingo?
How do you keep a Moonie’s feet on land?
When I’m with him I’m distressed
Things he blesses don’t seem blessed
And you never know what stunt he’s pulling next
He’s defiant as M. Luther
Wacky as Rosemary Reuther
He’s a bishop! He’s a nutcase! He’s a wreck!
He’s a Gnostic without Gnoss
Like a crosier sans a cross
He could make a Trappist hermit scream out loud
He is funny, he wild
Pray his wife is not with child!
He’s a headache, he’s amusing
He’s a looooooon
How do you solve a problem like Milingo?
How do you make a bishop keep in line?
How do you find a word that means Milingo?
A flibbertijibbet! A will-o’-the wisp! A clown!
Many a thing you know you’d like to tell him:
Celibacy’s not just a papal whim
So how do you make him stay
And shut up for just one day?
How do you keep a crosier from his hand?
Oh, how do you solve a problem like Milingo?
How do you keep a Moonie’s feet on land?
Brilliant, Tim!
Would a 2×4 upside the head do the trick.
Ohhhhhh Tim F.,
That is amazing! Next time put a warning up or else I am going to need a keyboard shield. That was coffee-out-my-nose hysterical!!!
Tim F.,
I could NEVER come up with anything remotely so funny!
You have a unique gift, and I mean that sincerely.
Or, as Homer Simpson would say, “You are so smart. You are so smart. S-M-R-T…I mean S-M-A-R-T!!!”
Mary
Tim F.,
Unless writing song lyrics/poetry/satire is your day job, quit your day job, now. We can’t have talent like that going to waste.
Tim F better NOT quit his day job. you know, tim?
Maybe some racism here?
Dr. Erick,
The reason there are few married priests in America in the Eastern Catholic churches is that American Bishops acted heavy handed and in the late 1800s and early 1900s a Bishop Ireland (I think of Minnesota) (called the Father of Modern American Orthodoxy sarcastically) treated the Catholic Ruthenians and others so badly they had a mass exodus out of the Catholic Church into the Russian Orthodox Church and founded the Orthodox Church of America.
The American Bishops, unjustly it seems, got Rome to not allow, with some exceptions, married ordinations at least not in the US (some went to Rome or came from the Old Country mostly Carpathian mountains, Ukraine etc)
There are also married priests who were Anglicans and some others who were granted special waiver and privilege because of conversion, pastoral status, and special circumstances.
Married priests (before ordination) is allowed and should be the norm in most (non hierarchical and non monastic) Eastern Catholic priests.
I have no idea what this man’s proper title is as I write it, Archbishop, former Archbishop, a plain Mr? It is confusing. But what is not confusing is that his announced 2006 quest to reconcile Catholicism with the married priesthood is insulting to all the married priests out there including my own parish priest in Chicago who has been doing great work at St. Peter & Paul Romanian Byzantine Catholic Church and who became a priest legitimately after his marriage.
A few people have brought up the problem of Bishop Ireland. I think it’s reasonable to say that Pope JP II’s apology to the Orthodox covers Ireland’s acts. What it does not cover are post apology acts. *That* is the real problem, that Ireland’s anti-East attitude did not die with him.
If I visit the local RC Church, will my young children be turned away from the communion line? My personal results are mixed. I know of one case where a byzantine catholic boy was not allowed to be an altar boy in an RC parish specifically because of his rite.
Milingo shares the idea with Ireland that Byzantine Catholics are not “real”. If he did, there would be no need to reconcile clerical marriage with the Church.