Letter To The Editor

Just in case you missed it...

The Monitor Newspaper
September 28, 2005

To the Editor:

Church Official Can Only Do So Much.

Both Messrs. Rodriguez (9/7/05) and Vasquez (9/21/05) are right in claiming that the administration of Holy Spirit Parish in McAllen is responsible for the sorry state of affairs into which that parish has fallen.

But the pastor can only do so much, good or bad, on his own without the acquiescence of the bishop. In the Catholic Church, bishops have all the power. Simply because they are bishops does not grant them divine wisdom and behavior, or the great Church Doctor St. Athanasius would never have proclaimed, "The floor of hell is paved with the skulls of bishops."

Distant Rome prefers not to know what is going on in the dioceses as long as it can safely ignore it, and the bishop can appoint and move pastors at will. So, if the once vibrant Holy Spirit Parish is going downhill, it must be the bishop’s will.

Not surprising for a bishop who apparently has done only the bare minimum (if that) required by Rome and U.S. law in shedding light on the problem with sexual predation by clergy in the diocese.

Not only Catholics, but all people in the Valley should be demanding full disclosure from the bishop on this issue, so that we can defend our children from sexual predation. According to law, we have the right to know who convicted sex offenders are and where they live.

You would think that the church would adhere to a higher standard. Demand that they do.
Guy Hallman, McAllen


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