Maryknoll Priest, Fr. Roy Bourgeois
attended Janice Sevre-Duszynska's ordination
in Aug. 2008.
http://news.change.org/stories/catholic-priest-faces-dismissal-for-support-of-womens-ordination
"Father Roy Bourgeois, a Catholic priest of 39 years, felt obligated to speak his conscience -- and it told him that women should be allowed to be priests too. His outspoken opposition to sexist discrimination could cost him dearly, however, as he now faces dismissal from his position and excommunication."
"The Women's Ordination Conference (WOC) has launched a petition on Change.org in support of Fr. Bourgeois and other Catholics who believe that women deserve the same clergy rights as men in the Church. "I cannot possibly speak out about injustice in society and at the same time be silent about this injustice in my church," Bourgeois affirmed. WOC -- along with cosponsors the Association of Roman Catholic Womenpriests, Call To Action, and Roman Catholic Womenpriests-USA -- wants the Vatican to know that a respected priest shouldn't be kicked out for supporting women's ordination when there's no scriptural prohibition for this practice.
"After much reflection, study, and prayer, I believe that our Church's teaching that excludes women from the priesthood defies both faith and reason and cannot stand up to scrutiny," Fr. Bourgeois wrote in response to his threatened removal from office in the Maryknoll Catholic order. 'This teaching has nothing to do with God, but with men, and is rooted in sexism. Sexism, like racism, is a sin. And no matter how hard we may try to justify discrimination against women, in the end, it is not the way of God, but of men who want to hold on to their power..."
Over the past decade, 120 women priests and 10 female bishops have been ordained by the Roman Catholic Womenpriests, thanks to the courageous defiance of their brothers in clergy who believe that the call to serve God extends to both sexes, in spite of the penalty of automatic communication for ordaining a woman priest. (A documentary, Pink Smoke Over the Vatican, explores this movement.)
"...The Vatican does not excommunicate the pedophile-priests who have raped and sodomized Catholic youth, or punish the bishops who covered up these crimes," stated Bridget Mary Meehan of the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests, one of the petition sponsors. "Yet, now in this outrageous action they stand ready to defrock Fr. Roy, priest of the people and prophet for justice who has served God for over 40 years as a well-known peace and justice activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee."
"Fr. Bourgeois is standing strong in his beliefs, refusing to recant his support for women priests, but he needs you to stand with him. The Women's Ordination Conference and their allies will hand-deliver petition signatures on October 17. Click here to tell the Vatican to keep Fr. Roy Bourgeois where he belongs: in the pulpit. And start putting women up there too, while they're at it."
Author: Alex DiBranco is a Change.org Editor who has worked for the Nation, Political Research Associates, and the Center for American Progress. She is now based in New York City.
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