Dear Archbishop Nienstedt,
You are misleading the faithful. I am referring to your statements that 1)
Catholics should vote “yes” on the Marriage Amendment and 2)They should oppose parts of “Obamacare”, especially
the stipulation that a woman’s birth control pills would be covered through her
employer’s insurance.
What is most misleading about these two
positions is your insistence that a “yes” on the Amendment and a “no” to the
coverage of birth control are central to our Catholic faith. Not only do you
believe that it is your duty as bishop to instruct the faithful about this
faith but in addition, you declare that your struggle is necessary to preserve
the “religious liberty” of the Catholic Church.
And there is more. You believe that you are entitled to force your own
moral understandings not only on your Catholic “faithful”, but on others who do
not share your convictions and beliefs.
I am presently reading a book by a Catholic
moral theologian, Margaret Farley. The
title of the book is “Just Love.” Let me
share with you the four sources she expects a moral theologian to use before
making a decision. They are: scripture,
tradition, secular disciplines and contemporary experience.
Very little is written in scripture about
homosexuality and nothing about birth control.
The tradition of the Catholic Church offers a variety of opinions and
practices on both subjects. Most of
these opinions and practices have been shown to grow out of the negative
understanding of both sexuality and of women in the long history of our
church. Most scholars in the secular
disciplines of psychology, sociology, medicine and education offer a view of
homosexuality, women and marriage that differ very much from yours and your
brothers in the hierarchy.
In regard to contemporary experience, let me
share with you that my husband and I have a daughter, Claudia. Claudia is married to Lisa. Together they adopted four children.
In no way does our daughter’s marriage
threaten my husband’s and my marriage of
almost 44 years. These four
grandchildren are nurtured and loved and
are thriving just as much our other grandchildren.
Please stop using the resources of the
Archdiocese, especially the financial resources, to advocate the restriction of
basic human rights and choices. The
message of our brother Jesus has little to do with controlling others’
sexuality and much more with justice and love.
Regina Nicolosi
Roman Catholic Bishop, Retired Chaplain
250 Overlook Lane
Red Wing, MN 55066
651 388 6059
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