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Wednesday 4 November 2009

All God's Children Got "Special Anxieties"

The California bishops passed a resolution affirming... er, thanking... well, maybe supporting...
What does "supporting" mean -- agreeing with? siding with? providing coffee and blankets?
It could mean so many things, it may end up meaning nothing.
The California bishops voted last week to pass a statement of support on behalf of U.S. women religious who are facing a Vatican investigation....

In the letter addressed “Dear Sisters” the cardinal writes:

“We are all aware of the special anxieties which surround our women religious these days,” wrote Mahony, “and I am writing to offer you my prayers of gratitude and my support for all of your members. The bishops of California met last week and passed a statement of support for all of you, and I am pleased to send a copy of that statement to you.”

He praises “the historical presence” of women religious in California beginning back in the 1800s. “I can honestly state that there would not exist our Catholic schools, hospitals, and social service outreach apostolates without you.”

The cardinal goes on to write that women religious in Los Angeles “opened the first hospital, established the first schools, and provided the first social services to those most in need.” He added that our “church’s history of outreach after the example of Jesus Christ and the Gospels would not exist today without your initiatives and creativity.”

Um, yes.

And that relates to what members of those orders as they exist today are doing, exactly how?

I was pretty sure we don't hold people responsible for what their predecessors did, for good or ill.

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