"Breaking the Holy Ceiling: Group to Ordain the First Catholic Priest in Cincinnati"/ARCWP to Ordain Debra Meyers

http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-27770-breaking_the_holy_ce.html

"Despite strong Vatican opposition, one group is preparing to ordain Cincinnati’s first Roman Catholic woman priest on May 25.

The Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests (ARCWP) already ordained a woman priest in Louisville, Ky., and it’s hoping to carry the movement around the country, including Cincinnati.

The Vatican and local Catholic leaders oppose the movement, and the ordination isn’t technically legal under the Catholic Church’s rules. But ARCWP says its ordinations put pressure on the Vatican to pull back rules that are keeping it in the past.

Locally, Debra Meyers will be ordained as the first Catholic woman priest. Meyers holds a Ph.D. in history and women’s studies and a master’s in religious studies. She is currently a professor of history and women’s studies at Northern Kentucky University, and she also serves the Resurrection Community in Cincinnati where she promotes equality and social justice. For Meyers, this is a chance to break the glass ceiling and prove women can take up the highest roles in Catholic organizations, which she says is a necessary next step for the Church to keep up with the times.

CityBeat interviewed Meyers about her ordination." The full interview, edited here for clarity and brevity, is available at citybeat.com.

Lunch with Christ Sophia Community Louisville/ Janice Sevre-Duszynska's garden in KY.

Betty, Mary Rose, Kim, Bridget Mary and Janice

Janice, Betty, Bridget Mary and Annie

Janice in her garden in KY.

Janice with her Salmon Poppy

Janice with Peonies

Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community Celebrates Pentecost

Is The Cincinnati Enquirer Afraid of the Archbishop of Cincinnati?

 

Is The Cincinnati Enquirer Afraid of the Archbishop of Cincinnati?

Release date: May 20, 2013

Contact: Janice Sevre-Duszynska, D.Min. (media),

859-684-4247, rhythmsofthedance@gmail.com

Bishop Bridget Mary Meehan, 703-505-0004, sofiabmm@aol.com

Why would The Cincinnati Enquirer not cover an ordination because it is “illegal” in the Roman Catholic Church?

We sent The Enquirer the press release for the Saturday, May 25^th ordination of Cincinnati’s first woman priest, Dr. Debra Meyers. She will be ordained at 1 p.m. at St. John’s Unitarian Universalist Church, 320 Resor Avenue in Cincinnati 45220.

(See press release below).

The local media has covered our ordinations across the country because they are news and of interest to the public. Reuters and The Louisville Courier Journal covered our recent April 27^th ordination of Dr. Rosemarie Smead in Louisville.

We wonder why The Cincinnati Enquirer is not interested? Does it have anything to do with the institutional church’s stance on women priests?

Women priests are leading the Catholic Church into a new era of justice and equality for women in the church. We are the “Rosa Parks” of the Roman Catholic Church. We think a news blackout by The Enquirer because we are “illegal” according to church authorities is one view, but not the view of the majority of Catholics who would welcome news of the first woman priest ordination in Cincinnati.

Historic First Ordination in Cincinnati as Dr. Debra Meyers will be ordained a Roman Catholic Woman Priest

Release date: May 7, 2013

Contact: Janice Sevre-Duszynska, D.Min. (media) 859-684-4247,

rhythmsofthedance@gmail.com

Bishop Bridget Mary Meehan, 703-505-0004, sofiabmm@aol.com

Dr. Debra Meyers, 513-735-2876, drmeyers@aol.com

On Saturday, May 25, 2013, Dr. Debra Meyers of Batavia, Ohio will be ordained a priest in the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests. The presiding bishop will be Bridget Mary Meehan of Falls Church, Virginia and Sarasota, Florida. The ceremony will take place at 1 p.m. at St. John's Unitarian Universalist Church, 320 Resor Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio 45220.

All are welcome.

Media are invited to a pre-ordination conference on Saturday, May 25, at 11:30 a.m. at the church with the candidate and Bridget Mary Meehan. Call Janice (859-684-4247) to schedule an interview. Respectful filming/photo taking during the ceremony is acceptable.

The ordained is theologically prepared and has many years of experience in ministry.

Dr. Debra Meyers earned a Ph.D. in History and Women's Studies and a MA in Religious Studies with an emphasis on pastoral care. The author of several books, she is a professor of History and Women's Studies at Northern Kentucky University. Her ministry focuses primarily on single mothers and their children who make up the vast majority of impoverished people in our country. She also serves the Resurrection Community in Cincinnati where they are living the Gospel of equality and social justice. Dr. Meyers is a wife, the mother of two successful children and a grandmother.

"God called me to the Catholic priesthood as a child and every step of my academic and spiritual life as well as my social justice activism has prepared me to serve God's people as a pastor," said Dr. Meyers. "I thank ARCWP for the opportunity to fulfill God's call."

Since two-thirds of the world's poor are women, justice and equality must be top priorities for our church. Our world and church can no longer function without the voices of women's lived experience. Women priests are visible reminders that all women are images of God.

On March 13, five hours before the new pope was elected, a woman priest celebrated Mass in Rome. The church is at a crossroads with a new pope and women priests. This paradigm represents a holy shakeup and is pregnant with potential for renewal and change. Pope Francis's simplicity and solidarity with the poor and marginalized is the Good News that Catholics have been waiting for. Now is the time to embrace women.

http://ncronline.org/news/vatican/embrace-women-s-gifts-protesters-say

We are encouraged by the tender gesture of Pope Francis who washed the feet of women in prison on Holy Thursday, thus breaking the sexist tradition of washing only men's feet.

During the Easter homily Francis affirmed women as the first witnesses to the Resurrection. "This tells us that God does not choose according to human criteria...The women are driven by love and know how to accept this proclamation with faith: they believe, and immediately transmit it, they do not keep it for themselves."

Women who have accepted the call from God to priesthood and who have become women priests want to share "the joy of knowing that Jesus is alive, the hope that fills their heart."

The Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests calls on Francis to embrace the full equality of women, including women priests.

Women priests are answering the call and our movement is growing since it began in 2002 with the ordination of seven women on the Danube. There are now 150 in our Roman Catholic Women Priests' Movement in the world, including 100 in the U.S. living and serving in over 60 inclusive Catholic communities and welcoming all to receive the sacraments.

According to a recent CBS Gallup Poll, over 70% of Catholics in the U.S. support women priests. There is no shortage of vocations as women are now saying "Yes" to this call and are being ordained. Two women will be ordained priests and two will be ordained deacons in Falls Church, Virginia in June.

See:

http://www.associationofromancatholicwomenpriests.org/

http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/

"Twas the Night Before Pentecost"/Enjoy!

http://questionsfromaewe.blogspot.com/2013/05/twas-night-before-pentecost.html

Link to Mailing addresses for Sr. Megan, Greg and Michael/Transform Now Plowshares

Link to mailing addresses for Greg Obed, Sister Megan Rice, and Michael Obed, social justice advocates who broke into nuclear weapons facility to witness for non-violence and justice.
http://transformnowplowshares.wordpress.com/2013/05/17/mailing-addresses-for-greg-megan-and-michael/

Teresa Forcades, Radical Nun from Traditional Order Supports Women Priests/Full Equality for Women in the Church

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/video/2013/may/17/teresa-forcades-radical-catalan-nun-video?guni=Network%20front:network-front%20main-5%20Multimedia:Network%20front%20-%20multimedia:Position2

"A Pentecost Reflection" by First Roman Catholic Woman Priest from South America, Olga Lucia Alvarez, ARCWP

Translated from Spanish to English by Judy Lee, ARCWP

www.arcwp.org
http://evangelizadorasdelosapostoles.wordpress.com/2013/05/15/es-la-iglesia-un-agente-de-cambio/

Olga Lucia Alvarez is a Roman Catholic Woman Priest in Colombia

 

In her reflection Olga Lucia Alvarez (the first Roman Catholic Woman Priest in Colombia) is connecting Pentecost to the commissioning of all of the baptized and to the power of the Eucharist that is essential to our strength as a people who are agents of change, who live the reign of God and the divine in our humanity as Christ empowers us. She says without the Eucharist there is no justice or deep caring possible by us or through the church. She prays for the healing and the renewal of the church through the Eucharistic power of the Holy Spirit, wisdom Sophia this Pentecost.

Olga Lucia begins with the picture of our women priests baptizing a baby girl who is Aida's grand daughter.

Judy Lee, ARCWP baptizes Aida's grand daughter in Colombia, South America



 

Olga Lucia notes our jobs and the jobs of parents and grandparents a nd God parents to raise this child in a faith of love and justice. 
She then shows the community of Janice and Rosemarie at prayer and then shows excerpts from the life of Saint Laura, the first Colombian Saint to be canonized on Sunday past by Francis I. The point is, she notes, that the people of God are empowered with Pentecost power to create justice and wipe out poverty here and now.
What a wonderful sacramental meditation for all of us.
translated from Spanish by Judy Lee , ARCWP, www.arcwp.org
http://evangelizadorasdelosapostoles.wordpress.com/2013/05/15/es-la-iglesia-un-agente-de-cambio/

Mary of Magdala, Apostle to the Apostles/ Video on Youtube available to Public

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dD3htra0nHU

In this clip, I review the role of Mary of Magdala as the apostle to the apostles, as an example of Jesus' vision of Gospel equality. This is a GodTalk production that originally aired on cable tv at FPA.
Enjoy!
Bridget Mary Meehan, arcwp.org
www.godtalktv.org

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/05/15-7

"Pope Francis:Twenty Things You Didn't Know"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/the-pope/9931413/Pope-Francis-20-things-you-didnt-know.html
"He's had a girlfriend, he loves the tango, and at one point he worked as a bouncer. Here's 20 things you didn't know about this most humble of Popes."

Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests/WWW.ARCWP.ORG/Update 2013/NEW VIDEO on YOUTUBE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTBrJSZk5t0

Watch new youtube video with update 2013 on the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests
Visit us at www.arcwp.org

A Male Priest's Support of Woman Who Will be Ordained by the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests in June

http://www.phrogge.com/
"What can I possibly say to her in the face of her profound personal courage? I feel humbled even to be in her presence. I have been a priest for a few years, but, then, I am of the accepted gender, while she is not. The accepted gender has been determined solely by others of the same gender, who claim to be acting “after the example of Christ, and at his command”*. Other than the minions of the accepted gender’s managers, few folks these days believe the institution’s stated excuses for not allowing women to be ordained. Yet, with the emotional investment of the institution and its religious police, taking such a step is an act of courageous faith....
I think she is following Jesus’ words to us that, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must take up their cross every day and follow me”. She, and other such priests before her, display courage, no doubt of that. She will be subject to threats, name-calling, vitriol, and undoubtedly “christ-like paternal concern” from management. She has a tough road ahead of her, made even more difficult by those claiming to be acting in Jesus’ name, doing things and having attitudes that Jesus didn’t have or do. The “Catholic Taliban” is alive and well.
She has a solid prayer life, no doubt of that. She will need it on her journey. She will have the support of a Eucharistic Community, even though institutional management will vehemently deny folks who support and agree with her the right to use these words. But the Eucharistic Reality will still surround them. When Jesus said “wherever two or more gather in my name I am with them” he didn’t say anything about getting anybody’s permission or authorization, what words to use or clothes to wear.
I wish her courageous firmness, and perhaps a bit humility, on her journey. She will need it. Jesus’ followers are not always the kindest or most charitable folks. She will learn as she celebrates Eucharist the power and reality of Jesus’ words – all of them. Hopefully she will come to “recognize and know what she does, and imitate what she handles”**. Perhaps she will come to recognize Jesus present in the most unexpected folks, relationships, and situations, and realize that grace has brought her to where she is needed, and grace is always powerfully real...."
Bridget Mary's Response:
Thank you, dear Brother, for your open, loving support of a future woman priest. Your words are a source of inspiration to many.
Bridget Mary Meehan, arcwp, www.arcwp.org

Rosemarie Smead, ARCWP, Newly Ordained Priest- First Liturgy in Louisville, Kentucky, May 11, 2013

"God of amazing surprises, Creator of tiny bugs and awesome plants. Designer of earth's wonders, Giver of life and laughter, we praise your passionate love hidden, yet revealed, everywhere in the cosmos."

Rosemarie Smead, arcwp, in stole seated at table with Christ Sophia Inclusive Catholic Community

So began the Eucharistic Prayer of newly ordained priest Rosemarie Smead's 1st Liturgy in Louisville Saturday evening, May 11th. More than 50 gathered in the children's chapel of St. Andrew United Church of Christ. Fittingly, she chose Bridget Mary's wondrous and awe-inspiring "Liturgy to Celebrate New Life, Creation, and New Beginnings."

Donna Rougeux, arcwp with yellow stole, shared homily with Janice Sevre-Duszynska, arcwp

We were at five tables with Eucharist bread and wine at each for the Body of Christ to consecrate, belonging to the Christ Sophia Inclusive Catholic Community. A family therapist who has worked with teenagers for many years, Rosemarie wore the "children of the world" stole with a tablecloth of the same design. After housekeeping, (email sign-up list, our brochure, and a brief summary of our ARCWP community), we stilled ourselves with the chant, "Seek the Face of God" by Susan Butler. Our Gospel reading was from John 14: 11-20.

Janice Sevre-Duszynska, arcwp, in white stole shared homily with Donna Rougeux, arcwp

..."I will ask the One who sent me to give you another Paraclete, another Helper to be with you always -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept since the world neither sees Her nor recognizes Her; but you can recognize the Spirit, because She remains with you and will be within you. I won't leave you orphaned; I will come back to you."

We priests from Lexington, Donna Rougeux and I, were invited to give the homily. Donna focused on the letting go and coming into new life of the spirit. I spoke about my week with the prophetic Transform Now Plowshares activists who obeyed the promptings of the Spirit of Truth and entered the Y-12 Nuclear Weapons Complex in Knoxville, Tennessee: Sr. Megan Rice, Greg Boertje-Obed and Michael Walli.

"You are the Body of Christ" we said to each other around the tables. This was a first experience for some who later articulated how moving and renewing an experience it was for them. In the hush of our Communion joy, we chanted "Do Not Be Afraid" and "Whichever Way You Turn" (there is the face of God) also by Susan Butler.

After we sang four stanzas of "All Are Welcome" Rosemarie outlined the needs and responsibilities of the community and gave a schedule for Liturgies which will be held there the first and third Saturday of each month at 5 p.m. "Thank you for your courage to support a renewed priestly ministry," Rosemarie said. We shared each other's company and some of us went for supper at Kingfish on the Ohio River.
article by Janice Sevre-Duszynska, arcwp
For more information on women priests or the Christ Sophia Inclusive Catholic Community, contact our website at www.arcwp.org






 

"Invisible War Exposes Pervasiveness of Sexual Assault in U.S. Military"/ The Rape of Military Women Should NOT Be an "Occupational Hazard" that Merits "No Redress"

http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/invisible-war-exposes-pervasiveness-sexual-assault-us-military
"According to the victims and their advocates in the film, the crux of the problem seems to lie with unit commanders who have no legal training, and sometimes no higher education. It is up to them to adjudicate cases, whether or not accusations move through the military justice system. Often, they are the assailants or their buddies are; meanwhile, victims can be prosecuted for various reasons: giving a false report (even if they didn’t) and committing adultery (even if they were raped and are not even married.)
Almost all of the victims have attempted suicide at least once. One of the saddest moments in the film is when Cioca finds and reads the suicide note she wrote for her mother. After one attempt, Cioca said she decided to live once she learned she was pregnant, hoping the life within her would not have to live through what she had.
Equally sad is the story of one Navy recruit who joined the military because her father, still in the Army, encouraged her. He breaks down when he recalls the phone call that told him she was no longer a virgin because she was raped.
Almost all of these young women joined the military out of idealism and the desire to serve their country. The reports of rapes and assaults at the prestigious Marine Corps Barracks in Washington, D.C., are stunning.
Two days after seeing the film in April 2012, Secretary for Defense Leon Panetta took away the right to adjudicate rape cases from commanders.
The film does not tell us what the military, overall, is doing to make rapists and assailants accountable. A pitiable percentage of these sexual predators are prosecuted; there are virtually no consequences for rapists in the military, nor is there a database for offenders. They only make it to the national database if they receive more than one year’s punishment for a crime (that the military then deems equal to a felony).
The lawsuit filed by the former servicewomen, many of whom are interviewed in the film, was thrown out. The Department of Defense deemed that their rapes and injuries were the result of an “occupational hazard” and therefore merited no redress...."
Bridget Mary's Response:
The Obama administration needs to take action immediately to punish the crime of rape in the military with serious jail time. No more denials or hand-slapping or looking the other way by the brass can be tolerated. The culture must be changed in this case from the top down. It is time for Obama to hold the military accountable. A database for offenders must be established for all of these assults, and all assults prosecuted. No more punish the victim policies!  The rape of courageous women serving our country should not be an "occupational hazard" that merits "no redress!" Bridget Mary Meehan, arcwp, www.arcwp.org

First Disciples Create Model for Dealing with Contention in the Church by Bishop Tom Gumbleton

http://ncronline.org/blogs/peace-pulpit/first-disciples-create-model-dealing-contention-church

..."God is present for everyone, but we have to be alert to God. In the Catholic catechism, there's a definition of what our conscience is, and it's actually taken from the Second Vatican Council: the divine voice echoing in the depths of our heart as a law written by God in human hearts.
The divine voice of God echoing in the heart of each one of us, but we have to be quiet at times. We have to separate ourselves from all the things going on in the world around us in what people call now "centering yourself" -- going into the depths of your heart and hearing God speaking to you. God is there, but we have to take the time to listen. As we learn from the Acts of the Apostles, the apostles and elders together with the whole church decided what to do; they listened to the whole church.
There's a great teaching in our church called the sensus fidelium, the sense of the believing people. God speaks not just through the pope or to the bishops, the hierarchy. God speaks in the depth of the heart of each of us. The church has to enter into dialogue as that first community of disciples did to listen to one another, draw from the depths of the Spirit speaking to all of us, and then come to our conclusions. Now you might say, "That's impossible; that will never happen."
I just discovered yesterday or the day before that actually something very similar to this has just happened in a church in Germany. The bishops there gathered together 300 people for a four-day period to discuss what changes, what reforms needed to be developed within the church. Afterward, the president of the German Bishops' Conference spoke, and he said that one of the things that he, the bishops, and the church now were going to call for would be the ordination of women to the diaconate.
That's something we've been told you can't even talk about. Now the German church is saying, "Yes, we're calling for that." We're in a new time. We need more ministers in our church. There are women who claim and hear God speaking within them, calling them to minister. Now the German church having gathered together, listened to one another, and listened to the Spirit speaking to them are saying, "We need this reform now." And we do, I think.
It seems very obvious that we have just an extraordinary lack of ministers in our church. Why else are we closing all of our churches? We don't have enough ministers. Basically, that's the real reason. Now the church is listening in Germany, at least. That means, though, the church can do the same thing everywhere. We need to do that in our church. It starts with each one of us.
Try to listen deeply to what God is telling us about these things that are going on in the world around us, about the whole issue of homosexuality, about the issue of ordination of women, about the issue of how we bring peace into our world, about giving up violence, listening to God, bringing about change in ourselves and then trying to be bringing about this change in our church as we enter into deep dialogue with one another."

Motherly Advice for Bishops/ Happy Mother's Day!

http://questionsfromaewe.blogspot.com/2013/05/motherly-advice-for-bishops.html

Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests/Professional Photos by Giulia Bianchi

 http://forwomenpriests.tumblr.com

If you share any of these photos, please re-post them
"courtesy of www.giuliabianchi.com

Here are a few of Guilia Bianchi's professional pictures of Rosemarie Smead's at Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests  Ordination on April 27, 2013 in Louisville, KY.

 

Sister Megan Rice Interview VIDEO and article in Irish Central

http://www.irishcentral.com/news/-Catholic-nun-among-three-convicted-of-break-in-to-US-defense-nuclear-bomb-facility--VIDEO-206901161.html
Click on this link and watch powerful video of Sr. Megan Rice sharing why she broke into nuclear bomb facility -Y12 in Oak Ridge Tennesssee.

The activists admitted cutting several fences, walking through the complex for hours

By

IrishCentral Staff Writers,

"An elderly Catholic nun is among the three people convicted for damage they caused when they broke into a defense facility where enriched uranium for nuclear bombs is stored.

Sister Megan Gillespie Rice, 82, Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed admitted to cutting the fence and gaining access to the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee in July 2012.

The defendants called themselves "Transform Now Plowshares," a reference to the biblical phrase: "They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks."


The jury deliberated for almost three hours before returning a guilty verdict in Knoxville federal court. The Irish Times reports that Rice stood straight up and smiled when it was read.

The three peace activists were convicted of damaging a national defence premises. The penalty for such a crime carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years.

Prosecutors claim the break in at Y-12 disrupted operations endangered U.S. security and caused physical damage that cost over $8,500 to repair.

“These are people of conscious, nonviolence and justice. And they certainly put the US government to shame,” Paul Magno, a supporter of the activists and member of the group Plowshares, said afterward.

“We are a nation of laws. You can’t take the law into your own hands and force your views on other people,” Assistant US Attorney Jeffrey Theodore had said in a closing argument.

Janice Sevre-Duszynska, a member of the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests who attended the trial to support Rice, said the activists were “challenging unjust, inhumane and immoral behavior filled with insatiable insecurity and greed.”

“My hope is that the people wake up to the freedoms being taken away in the name of so-called security as well as to the egregious waste of their hard-earned taxpayers’ money,” she said in a statement..."

Left/ Janice Sevre-Duszynska, ARCWP at liturgy with Plowshare Activists and Supporters before Trial

 

The New/Old Approach to Women Religious

John Chuchman sacredtorch.com

Pope Francis and LCWR; "More Papacy Changes, More it Stays the Same"/Disappointing for Women in the Church

http://ncronline.org/blogs/grace-margins/lcwr-more-papacy-changes-more-it-stays-same
by Jamie Manson
"...If there is a point on which both Francis and the sisters agree, it is the importance of "touching the flesh of the poor Christ in the humble, the poor, the sick, and in children."
But Francis does not seem to understand that it is precisely because women religious regularly touch that wounded body of Christ that they have such rich theological imaginations and a longing to delve into the spiritual questions of our time. Their intensely sacramental lives of service help clarify their priorities in their pursuits of justice and mercy.
All that women religious have done -- the work they have committed to, the leadership style they have developed and the theologians they invite to their meetings -- has been inspired by their ministry to the broken body of Christ. What Francis and the doctrinal congregation may interpret as a "deviation from doctrine" or a "failure to obey" are really just the fruits of women religious fulfilling their vocation as a prophetic life form.
Perhaps the greatest irony is that the Vatican is punishing women religious for failing to strictly adhere to doctrines that they have had no voice in developing and no role in shaping -- precisely because they are women.
The look and feel of the papacy may be changing under Francis, but the fundamental understanding magisterium's authority and the requirement that the women obey the men, I'm afraid, will continue to stay the same."
[Jamie L. Manson received her Master of Divinity degree from Yale Divinity School, where she studied Catholic theology and sexual ethics. Her NCR columns have won numerous awards, most recently second prize for Commentary of the Year from Religion Newswriters (RNA).]

Blessing by Woman Priest Janice Sevre-Duszynska Outside Jail Holding Peace Activists known as Transform Now Plowshares: Sister Megan Rice, Jim Walli and Greg Boertje- Obed

Janice Sevre-Duszynska, ARCWP, Shares Blessing for Peace Activists outside Jail In Tennessee

http://ncronline.org/news/peace-justice/activists-who-broke-security-complex-found-guilty-face-30-years-jail
Actvists face 30 years in prison.
They are prophets for our time, reminding us that God calls us to live in love, do justice, and reflect compassion. Sr. Megan, Jim, and Greg should have received  a medal from the government for exposing  the security violations at the site.

Jesuit Bill (Bix) Bischel, Oblate of Mary Immaculate Carl Kabat, ARCWP Janice Sevre -Duszynska, Franciscans Jerry Zawada and Louis Vitale outside Federal Court in Knoxville in support of Transform Now Plowshares

Jesuit Bill (Bix) Bischel, Oblate of Mary Immaculate Carl Kabat, ARCWP Janice  Sevre -Duszynska, Franciscans Jerry Zawada and Louis Vitale outside Federal Court in Knoxville in support of Transform Now Plowshares
http://transformnowplowshares.wordpress.com/

Who is my neighbor?

Posted by tnplowshares

Dear friends,
First, the facts. Greg, Megan, and Michael were found guilty today of both counts brought against them — sabotage and depredation of government property — and they were remanded from the courtroom as we sang them rounds of “Rejoice in the Lord Always,” and “Vine and Fig Tree.” The prosecution has stated that the defendants stand convicted of a “crime of violence”; if this is the case, law requires that they remain in prison until sentencing. They will spend the night in jail, and we will return to the courtroom tomorrow at 9:00 to see what the judge will decide.
In light of these heavy facts, it might seem irrelevant to share with you the evidence presented today in the courtroom. But truth-telling deserves to be celebrated — even if the jury wasn’t swayed, glimmers of truth did make their way into courtroom, thanks to the sharp minds and firm convictions of the defendants and their lawyers. Such good news should be shared.
A lot of evidence was presented today: Francis finished his questioning of Megan and the government cross-examined her. Michael, Col. Ann Wright, and Greg were also questioned and cross-examined, and lastly the judge read the jury instructions and allowed closing arguments before sending the jury out to deliberate.
Greg’s testimony came after the afternoon break, and in a way it tied together much of what had been said all day. He called to our attention the story of the Good Samaritan stopping to help an injured man on the road to Jericho. We see people on the roadside lying wounded, and our job is to do something to stop the violence and help the victims. Greg outlined the violence that we are obligated to stop in our world today: the United States is the only country to have over 700 military bases all over the world; we are the only nation that uses drones to kill people around the world; and we use nuclear weapons to threaten people around the world, weapons whose very manufacturing causes sickness and death.
Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan because someone has asked him, “Who is my neighbor?” The answer to this question is a major point of disagreement between the defense and the prosecution. “Do you consider yourself an American?” the government prosecutor asked Sister Megan Rice. “I believe I am a citizen of the world,” answered Sister Megan. “Boundaries are arbitrary.” The prosecutor went on to ask if Sister Megan had ever protested nuclear weapons by traveling to nuclear powers other than the United States. She responded that national borders are arbitrary lines; each and every human life on the planet is threatened by the use of nuclear weapons. Michael too was asked where he considered home. “I am a citizen of heaven and I travel here and there,” he replied. We are all citizens of heaven first; this loyalty takes precedence over any national allegiance we might have.
Greg cited a second story too, after the parable: the story of the Emperor’s New Clothes. It was a little boy who revealed what was missing, Greg said — and he was the only one who dared speak. The emperor here is the United States DOE, and it does not have effective fences. What is more, the emperor doesn’t have real security. Greg explained, “Real security comes when we foster justice among all the nations.”
Ann Wright’s expert knowledge of U.S. security withstood all efforts of the government to discredit her testimony. She established firmly that the emperor has no clothes, insofar as Y-12 does not have effective internal security tests. If Y-12 was running internal security tests, there would never have been so much critical security apparatus that was broken or otherwise not in place. “That’s where the problem lies,” said Col. Wright. That is the key.” Col. Wright testified that Greg, Megan, and Michael’s action improved national security by pointing out this national security deficiency, even if that was not their intention.
Throughout the government’s closing arguments, the prosecutors accused the defendants of disobeying the rule of law, taking the law into their own hands, forcing their will on other people. How ironic! Disregard of the rule of law and treaties is exactly the behavior that the United States engages in, in their foreign policy, that Michael, Megan, and Greg came to Y-12 to address. The same smoke and mirrors allow the government prosecutors to accuse the defendants of “crimes of violence.” How absurd, when crimes of violence are precisely what Greg, Megan, and Michael desired to put an end to when they came to Y-12.
“The teachings of Jesus are practical, doable, worthy of emulation,” Michael said from the witness stand today. “Our role is to try to open their eyes,” Greg said, “to come out of the ways of death.” Megan said, “I believe we are all equally responsible to stop a known crime.” As we think of our friends in jail tonight, let us allow their words to echo in our hearts and minds.

No turning back on spiritual justice for women | National Catholic Reporter

No turning back on spiritual justice for women | National Catholic Reporter
New book on the women's ordination movement in the Roman Catholic Church by Mary Jeremy Daigler

“Debate over morality vs. security plays out in Tenn. Trial.” /Washington Post/ Janice Sevre-Duszynska, ARCWP Present in Prayer/Solidarity

"From 9 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, morality and conscience did quiet battle with protocol and budgets in Courtroom 1A of U.S. District Court, to which dozens of supporters marched that morning through downtown Knoxville, led by two Buddhist monks chanting a Japanese prayer for peace.

 “They had white roses, Bibles . . . no dynamite, no machine guns . . . none of the tools you’d anticipate someone having to hinder the national defense.”(Christopher Irwin, attorney for co-defendant, Michael Walli.) p. C9 Washington Post

Janice Sevre-Duszynska, ARCWP with Sr. Megan Rice and other justice activists outside courtroom on break at Tenn. Trial

"Pope Francis To Nuns: Don't Be Old Maids"/Needs to Address Issue of Justice and Equality for Women in Church

 Pope Francis,  pleazze, lose  the "old maid" termniology for the Sisterhood! Old Maids" is  a patronizing, insulting term that should never be associated with nuns of a certain age who have spent years working with people on the margins with little thanks from their brothers in the hierarchy including the Vatican!  As feminists point out, it is more of the same, men defining women and is no longer acceptable or advisable! Many Catholics are hopeful that you will appoint nuns to some of the top jobs in the Vatican Curia, and show a new attitude toward women in the church. Justice for women in the church is a human rights issue that needs to be addressed." It is my prayer that you will be a breath of fresh air for  the reform and renewal of our church. I am a Sister for Christian Community and an ordained member of the international Roman Catholic  Women Priests Movement.  Women Priests offer the church the  charism of a renewed priestly ministry in partnership with the people with whom we serve. Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP, www.arcwp.org 

 

thttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/08/pope-nuns-old-maids_n_3236008.html?ir=Religion
05/08/13 05:52 Associated Press

"Pope Francis has told nuns from around the world that they must be spiritual mothers and not "old maids."
Francis also warned the sisters against using their vocations for personal ambition, saying priests and sisters who do so "do more harm to the church."
Francis has complained frequently about such "careerism" in the church – a buzzword that is frequently used to describe Holy See bureaucrats.
The pope made the comments during an audience Wednesday with about 800 sisters attending an assembly of the International Union of Superiors General, which gathers the leaders of women's religious orders from some 75 countries.
The meeting came before Francis' general audience in St. Peter's Square, where in a break with tradition, he walked around a quadrant of the square greeting pilgrims. "

"Diaconate for Women Not Enough"/ German Catholic Women's Association Say Proposed Diaconate Falls Short

http://www.thetablet.co.uk/latest-news/5278

The Catholic Women's Association in Germany (Katholischer Deutscher Frauenbund, KDFB), which has around 220,000 members nationwide, has questioned a proposal for a special deacon's office for women.

Last week Archbishop Robert Zollitsch, president of the German bishops' conference, floated the idea of an office for women that would not require ordination.

That "is not enough", the KDFB said.

KDFB spokeswoman Ute Hücker told Germany's newspaper in English, The Local: "Catholic women in Germany want to see deacons who are women. We want the full office and the training that goes with it," she emphasised. "Eighty per cent of the active members of the German Church are women," she said. She noted that women were already voluntarily doing the work done by deacons such as visiting the sick.


Bridget Mary's Response:
A diaconate without ordination would be a sham- mere window dressing to satisfy the growing demand for full equality of women in the church. The Vatican knows full well that you cannot separate ordination from the diaconate. Deacon, Priest, and bishop are related and require ordination. It is time for the Vatican to follow the example of Jesus in the Gospels and embrace full equality of women in the church. I like the idea of opening up leadership positions like Cardinals  to women and calling for real reform of the Vatican Curia with women leaders in decision-making roles. The international Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement is leading the way toward  justice and equality for women in the church with a renewed priestly ministry in an inclusive, empowered communityof equals. Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP, www.arcwp.org

Transform Now Plowshares on Trial in Knoxville, TN. Trial of Sister Megan Rice, Michael Walli, and Greg Boertje-Obed

 

The Transform Now Plowshares has a website/blog where you can keep up with trial developments on a daily basis. While you’re at the blog you can sign up (see the upper right hand column) to get updates by email.
“Let’s stop pouring our billions into false, impossible security.” — Sister Megan Rice
Transform Now Plowshares URL: http://transformnowplowshares.wordpress.com/