FLORIDA
Breitbart
by THOMAS D. WILLIAMS, PH.D. 21 Sep 2014
A letter and petition accusing Bishop Frank Dewane of the Diocese of Venice, Florida, of authoritarian leadership will soon be on its way to Rome, asking Pope Francis to intervene.
The campaign has been orchestrated by two liberal groups agitating for a more lay-directed Church. The Southwest Florida chapter of Call to Action wrote the letter, together with the support of the local chapter of Voice of the Faithful.
Call to Action, a group pushing for radical reform such as the ordination of women and a relaxing of sexual ethics, has accused Bishop Dewane of employing scare tactics including bullying and intimidation in his dealing with lay people. It also accuses him of dismissing several pastors and firing more than 20 workers without reason or hearing.
The letter calls Bishop Dewane “a man who operates more like the CEO of a large corporation than the shepherd of his community.”
Call to Action, though a Catholic dissident group, apparently thinks it can harness Pope Francis for its cause. “While Pope Francis values openness, dialogue, and consultation,” their letter states, “our bishop suppresses the open exchange of ideas.”
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.