NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger
By Tom Moran/ The Star-Ledger
Last Sunday, Star-Ledger editorial page editor Tom Moran wrote about his struggles with Catholicism, describing himself as a “refugee from the Catholic Church.”
This week, the Star-Ledger is publishing letters from our readers about their own struggles. This is Part 2 of 3.
Letter was divisive, hurtful
Being a Catholic has always been part of my heritage and the center of my religious identity. Whenever I attend Mass I feel a spiritual connection with God and a sense of community with the congregation. I believed the rules of the Church should be followed and my conscience should be my moral compass.
And yet I find the views expressed in Archbishop Myers’ letter, and shared by much of the hierarchy to be divisive and hurtful. If I do not agree with all the proclamations in his letter does this negate my faith of the last eighty years and mean I should refrain from receiving Communion? I resent being told I should choose a presidential candidate based solely on his views on gay marriage and abortion , ignoring the social issues that affect everyday lives. There should be room in the Church for both liberals and conservatives. It is when the separation of church and state is ignored that religious freedom is threatened. …
Left church after daughter slighted
My wife and I were born into Catholic families, educated in Catholic and Jesuit schools, attended Mass with our three children weekly and assisted in our parish’s Youth Group during their high school years. Our youngest daughter was the first female altar server in the parish, an invitation she accepted from a sensitive, thoughtful Franciscan priest, ahead of his time.
On the day of her sister’s Confirmation, she was assigned altar server, a spiritual moment to be shared between them. Shortly after dropping our younger daughter off with her neatly pressed white robe, she run to her mother and me with tears in her eyes, explaining that “a priest said I could not be on the altar with the bishop.” Quite upset, we approached this man, the secretary to the bishop, who stated that only boys could be altar servers. I explained our history and involvement with the church and with youth. I let him know his position proved to my daughters, indeed all women, they were second class citizens in the church. I was told this was not the personal position of the bishop, but “he could not risk being photographed on the altar with a female,” and “he would certainly continue to represent the rights of females in the church.”
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.