A Call to Action

Progressive and liberal Roman Catholics have an obligation to the Body of Christ, the People of God.

Our obligation is to live and proclaim our faith openly and honestly even if we must suffer the wrath of the hierarchy.

We are frustrating the urgings of the Holy Spirit when we hide in the pew or the sanctuary. We claim numbers in parishes, rectories and chancery buildings some say even the conference of bishops but where are these folks when they are needed.

We claim to BE the church. But, are we being the church when we cower under the glare of hierarchical scrutiny? Are we being the church when we hide in the safety of our small eucharistic communities? Are we being the church when we contribute to the marginalization of those who do stand up by our silence and inactivity?

Haven't we admired those who took to the battlefield and fought the good fight for their cause? What about 16th century Reformers, 19th century Old Catholics, Dorothy Day, John Kennedy, John XXIII, Oscar Romero, Martin Luther King Jr, Hans Kung, and on and on and on! The Holy Spirit has given us our heroes and models.

NOW it's our turn!

If we allow the pope and the hierarchy to set the agenda, define the rules of engagement, and pick the battlefields, we set ourselves up for defeat. We must step outside of their sphere of influence. That is why I believe we need an Independent Roman Catholic Church. That is why I believe we must identify ourselves as ROMAN Catholics.

Most independent Catholic jurisdictions I have known over the last seven years, and that's quite a few, say they don't care what the Roman church thinks or does. Ok, I'm fine with that for them. But, I do care. I am ROMAN Catholic and proud of it. I am not going to allow the hierarchy to deprive me of my rights as a ROMAN Catholic.

If you believe you have rights as a ROMAN Catholic and are being denied those rights then you MUST rise up against that kind of tyranny no matter how benignly it may present itself. Benign tyranny perpetrated on the People of God, the Body of Christ, by those who claim to be His anointed ministers is the most insidious and heinous of all spiritual crimes that I can imagine. This is second only to those of us who know what's going on and do not stand up publicly and definitively against it!

NOW is the time!

These are not deluded or misguided old men. These are intelligent, committed, and powerful people who are on a mission. They know what they believe. They know what they want. They know how to get it. And they are about the business of accomplishing their mission. To think otherwise is to bury your head in the sand while the church sinks deeper and deeper into an exclusive cult.

The Roman Catholic church of today's Vatican is not the community of faith that Jesus intended.

It is our obligation to recruit others to join us in non-violently establishing a place in the Roman Catholic church for progressives and liberals. It's our right to belong!

That's where I stand.

Jerry Brohl, COSF
Society of Blessed John XXIII