Christian Apologetics Society

Jesus replied, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God."
- Matthew 22:29

Isaiah 55:11
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it
Gen 1:3
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light
Matthew 26:26
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body."
Malachi 1:11
My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations," says the LORD Almighty.
John 20:23
If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.
James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
James 2:14
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
Luke 20:38
For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.
Rev 21:27
Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.
1 Cor 3:15
If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
Psalm 51:5
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.
John 3:5
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Titus 3:5
Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
1 Timothy 3:15
but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
Acts 22:16
And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

Womenpriests Excommunicated

The big religious news story of the week seems to be Catholic Archbishop Burke of Saint Louis imposing some good old-fashioned church discipline on two seperated Catholic women. The women in question simulated ordination as Catholic priests in willful disobediance of their church. Much like Peter's three time denial of Christ, the women also denied three times any attempts at reconciliation with the church. Since the women didn't understand that they had automatically excommunicated themselves by their actions and claimed not to have been excommunicated for their simulated odination, the Archbishop humored the women by presenting them with formal decrees of excommunication. We'll bet that came as a surprise since these women and their fellow separated sisters have long taken pride in claiming that none of the priestesses have been excommunicated beyond the original group.

The official response seems to be from priestess Bridget Mary. "Roman Catholic Womenpriests reject the penalties of excommunication, interdict, and any other punitive actions..." Interesting. Rather than rejecting the excommunication, the priestesses seem to acknowledge that they are under excommunication, they just reject the penalties.

Rather than address the decree of excommunication and offer any defense as to why the women are not guilty of schism, Bridget Mary's response continues for six full paragraphs starting with a repetition of urban legends regarding women in the early church. Bridget Mary follows with an erroneous appeal to sensus fidelium by stating "Since 70% of U.S. Catholics favor women’s ordination". As Catholics in the U.S. make up less than 5% of the Catholic Church, Bridget Mary is claiming that this 4% constitutes the sense of the faithfull without any input from or surveying of the remaining 96% of the Catholic Church. Nonsense.

Bridget Mary continues on with an out-of-context quote from the current Pope on the need to follow conscience over ecclesial authority. Conveniently Bridget Mary omits the accompanying requirement to inform and develop our conscience to conform to Christ's Church.

Bridget Mary follows that weak argument with "Roman Catholic Church laws are often contradictory." The claim now is that canon 1024 limiting ordination to men contradicts canon 894 which states that baptism is the gateway to the sacraments. Rather than explain the supposed contradiction, Bridget Mary tosses in an opinion by Ida Raming, a fellow excommunicated priestess. Baptism is indeed the gateway to the sacraments because without baptism a person remains a sinner and is incapable of receiving the graces imparted by God through the sacraments. Baptism does not guarantee one will ever receive any of the following sacraments, but does make their reception possible, provided all other conditions are met. There is no contradiction between the two canons.

Bridget Mary then states "Recent scholarship affirms that women were ordained in the first twelve hundred years of the church’s history." Ordained to what? Bridget Mary claims to Holy Orders; however, we recently examined how the ordination for women deacons did/does not include Holy Orders, but ordination to service.

Bridget Mary concludes with "Roman Catholic Womenpriests are leading the way to a renewed Roman Catholic Church...". Don't think so. Over 600 attended the simulated ordination, but only about 35 now attend services by the two priestesses. A photo of Bridget Mary's home church also shows a handful of elderly attendees. The future church is not present in the photo. Neither example bodes well for a "renewed" church, but for a historically quick death of a heretical schism that will likely become an interesting footnote in church history.

Again to recap, the women priestesses acknowledge being excommunicated, reject the penalties, and they and their parent organization offer no rebuttal to the charges of schism beyond some interesting, but disassociated, tidbits of history and personal opinion. Seemingly, none of the 53 existing priestesses is a canon lawyer or that part of their priestly formation was omitted. The reality show continues.

Others with interesting comments on the excommunication:

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam

In the Light of the Law

ST. John's Valdosta Blog

Excommunication Blotter

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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