Progressive Catholics Outline Priorities for New Pope

Progressive Catholics Outline Priorities for New Pope

4/6/2005 1:47:00 PM

To: National Desk

Contact: Linda Pieczynski, 630-655-8783 or 630-399-6924 (cell) or 630-323-6924 (home), Crystal Chan, 773-404-0004 ext. 285 or 773-262-7202 (home), both of Call To Action

CHICAGO, April 6 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Pope John Paul II's departure has left countless people around the world mourning and anticipating what the next pontiff's priorities will be. Linda Pieczynski, spokesperson for Call To Action, the nation's largest church reform group, stated, "We are hoping for a pope who forcefully spreads the message of peace and non-violence throughout the world in these troubled times as did Pope John Paul II. It is critical to continue his legacy in that area. But, the Church needs a leader who also listens to all the people of the Church because the Holy Spirit lives and breathes through all of us as the body of Christ. The new pope must recognize that there is wisdom to be shared by the laity which will assist him in confronting those matters left undone by the previous pope, especially on issues of human sexuality. He may also need to distance himself from some of the positions taken by Pope John Paul II in order to deal with the important issues facing the institution."

"For example, the next pope must take action regarding the priest shortage which threatens the sacramental life of Catholics. There are over 3,000 parishes in the United States without a priest and there are many priests who are pastors of multiple parishes. We hope that the new pope recognizes the necessity of lifting the mandatory celibacy ban," said Pieczynski.

"We are hoping that the bishops will see the need to select someone who will be collegial in his interactions with them and less authoritarian in dealing with those who disagree with him so that creativity is not suppressed and theological development may flourish in academic freedom. We also strongly encourage him to adopt the recommendation from the National Review Board -- a lay group the bishops created to address the sex abuse crisis -- that there be lay involvement in the selection of bishops. We need to build structures in our church which reflect a more participatory structure."

The women's role in the Church will continue to be a major issue despite the previous pope's ban on discussing women's ordination. "According to a recent AP poll, most American Catholics, 60 percent, said women should be allowed to become priests," Pieczynski pointed out. "The importance of integrating women fully into all church ministries is not only an issue of justice and equality for all members of the Church, but an acceptance of God's calling of women to the priesthood, which will not go away. The Church needs the fullness of the gifts women bring to the Church," declared Pieczynski. "Women will be closely monitoring how the next pope approaches this issue."

"We pray for a new pope who is a healer, who will reach out to victims of sexual abuse and who will promote reconciliation instead of polarization between Catholics within the Church. No matter who is selected, we have faith that the Holy Spirit will lead the Church on a path that will take us to new and surprising places we could never dream of for ourselves," concluded Pieczynski.

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Call To Action is the largest Catholic church reform group in the U.S., composed of 25,000 laity, religious, priests and bishops and 40 local chapters. It advocates reforms in the Catholic Church such as the ordination of women; optional celibacy for priests; change in birth control teaching; Church financial and leadership accountability; equality for homosexuals and minority groups; clergy sex abuse reforms; and focus on the church's peace and social justice teaching. Their comprehensive web site is: http://www.cta-usa.org.

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