Author: Richard Chonak

Bp. O’Donnell retires in Lafayette
The Most Rev. Edward O’Donnell, bishop of Lafayette (Louisiana), burdened with health troubles at the age of 71, has resigned his office and announced the appointment of his successor, the Most Rev. Michael Jarrell, at present bishop of Houma-Thibodaux.
For most writers in Catholic blogdom, Bp. O’Donnell’s most notable mark on the world was a dubious one as a censor of Catholic literature. He caved in to the demands of uninformed protestors and banned Flannery O’Connor’s writings from his schools because some of her characters used racially offensive words. He silenced Fr. Bryce Sibley’s witty blog for six months after a complaint from some offended seminary apparatchik. I’m sure the bishop has many good qualities, but from the outside, he didn’t appear to be a Profile in Courage. In any case, he’s stepping down now, which is a good enough penance for dissing Flannery O’Connor; I wish Bp. O’Donnell a happy and holy retirement.
A detail about the new bishop leads me to pose a question for my canonist co-blogger:
Hey, Pete, Is Pope JP II giving bishops the third degree?
It sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it? Perhaps a new approach for getting to the root of the abuse scandals?
But, no, the “third degree” I’m asking about is not an interrogation in the manner of Monty Python‘s cardinals, but an academic doctorate. The Houma diocese’s biographical note on Bp. Jarrell says:

A native of Opelousas, LA, Bishop Michael Jarrell was born May 15, 1940. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy (1962) and a Master of Arts in Philosophy (1963) both from Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. He has been granted a Doctor of Divinity degree by Pope John Paul II. Bishop Jarrell was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Lafayette in 1967. He was appointed Second Bishop of Houma-Thibodaux on Dec. 29, 1992. His ordination to the episcopacy and installation took place March 4, 1993.

How is it that Pope John Paul confers degrees on bishops, and why the Doctor of Divinity?
Is the degree in some sense honorary? Here in the States, that particular degree seems to be granted mostly by Protestant div schools, so when a bishop carries it, the effect is only a slight honor, as if to say : here’s a bishop who does not have one of the well-known degrees in theology (STD), canon law (JCD), or a civilly-recognized degree (PhD).
Is it granted in order to make the bishop comply with canon 378? That provision requires that a suitable candidate for the order of bishops must

hold a doctorate or at least a licentiate in sacred Scripture, theology or canon law, from an institute of higher studies approved by the Apostolic See, or at least be well versed in these disciplines.

I hope somebody knowledgeable will clear up this mystery soon, before anti-Catholics begin to reproach the Pope as running a diploma mill like that of Frederick Buechner’s character Leo Bebb.

Call the Fire Department!

The bishop of Manchester, New Hampshire, is not very popular these days: abuse survivors and outraged bloggers blame him for covering up molestations in the Boston archdiocese; and parishioners in the town of Jaffrey are shocked to find that he had assigned them a new pastor who had been previously involved in sexual misconduct with a young man.
However, has your bishop done anything this good lately to teach the faithful about the Holy Eucharist? Bishop McCormack has announced a seven-week program of special Sunday Masses, school lessons, and devotional events to strengthen Catholics’ understanding of and appreciation for the Sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood.

To help all Catholics to understand and share the joy of the Eucharist, I am inviting all parishes and institutions of the Diocese to use a seven-week period during the fall of 2002 for prayerful reflection and celebration of the meaning of the Eucharist in our lives. The theme of the celebration is “Do This In Memory of Me – Christ, Our Bread of Life”.
Beginning the week of October 6, 2002 and concluding with the week of November 17, 2002, seven specific themes on the Eucharist will be celebrated successively in parish weekend liturgies, catechetical programs, parish and Catholic school educational programs, discussion groups and deanery-wide events. Simply stated, the goal of our effort is to foster among all Catholics a deeper appreciation and love of the Lord as we encounter Him personally in the Eucharist.
As I write this letter I realize how excited I am about this plan. We all firmly believe in the Eucharist, the Father’s precious gift of His Son through the power of the Holy Spirit to us, His people gathered for worship. Yet, we also recognize the continuing need to foster a deeper and more loving appreciation of Christ’s personal presence among us, a wonderful presence that invites us always to give joyful thankful praise. During the fall of 2002, people will have an opportunity to focus their attention on the many different dimensions of the Eucharistic Mystery.
As we take time to deepen our faith in the Eucharist through prayer and reflection I am confident that God will grant us the awareness and grace to move effectively in our pastoral mission and efforts to bring the “good news” to our communities. It is for this reason that I ask you to join with me and the other members of the Church of New Hampshire in making “Do This In Memory of Me – Christ, Our Bread of Life” a priority in your personal life as well as in the life of your parish or institution during the fall of 2002.
With prayerful best wishes, I remain
Sincerely yours in our Lord,
+John McCormack
Bishop of Manchester

It’ll be good to see what came out of the US-Vatican mixed committee that revised the policy on sex-abuse cases:

George said it “isn’t fair” to say the policy has been watered down.
“What we achieved is a kind of clarity,” he said.
George indicated the procedures for reporting abuse are clearer and more detailed than in the previous document, and that the definition of sex abuse has also been clarified.

This article describes the bishops participating:

Church insiders say that while the Vatican officials probably reflect diverse views, they were chosen for their official duties rather than their personal views. Of the U.S. bishops, Lori is expected to defend the norms as they are, Levada may seek modifications, Doran is the canon law expert and George is believed to have the clout and diplomacy to bring everyone else to an agreement.

You have to give them credit for fast work. Or at least fast acceptance of revisions recommended by the Curia.

The Church in France has had it up to here with Halloween, and is waging a campaign against it:

Halloween in France took a new twist Thursday, with the Catholic Church sending protesters into Paris and launching a campaign with rock music to refocus attention on All Saints’ Day — a religious holiday that falls a day after Halloween.
Television talk shows turned their attention to the subject. Bakeries passed out fliers about the holiday’s patron saints, and a small group of protesters gathered outside Planet Hollywood on the Champs-Elysees to denounce the Halloween-mania.
Arnaud Guyot-Jeannin, president of “The No to Halloween Collective” was quoted in Le Parisien newspaper as saying his group was comprised of Christians opposed to the commercialism of Halloween, in which “the monstrous and the ugly is exalted.”
The Rev. Benoist de Sinety of the Paris diocese said the main issue was not the domination of American culture or globalization.
“We wanted to take the occasion to get people to reflect on something more profound than Halloween — the meaning of life,” he said.
According to the church, Halloween comes at the expense of All Saints’ Day, which falls a day later and is celebrated in this majority Catholic country as a religious holiday and a day for families to pay respects to their ancestors by visiting cemeteries.
The Catholic Church has taken the lead in creating a variety of activities it hopes will distract from the costumes and trick-or-treating.
The Diocese of Paris — clearly targeting French youth — has organized a night of rock, reggae and R&B concerts to be held Halloween night in the square in front of Saint-Sulpice Church, which will be kept open all night to take confessions.

Vive those persnickety French!