Why do we need to be concerned about what happens in people's bedrooms?

The State Journal-Register printed a story two days ago titled "Local Catholics encouraged by pope's document" about area reactions to the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia.

From a journalistic standpoint, Steven Spearie does a good job in providing quotations expressing both support and disapproval of what Pope Francis has written and of the Church's constant teaching and has given sufficient time for people to have actually read Amoris Laetitia.

The article isn't by any means earth-shattering, but several of the quotations used provides a glimpse into a certain mindset that seeks to "pigeon hole" Jesus, if you will, especially this one:

"The church is never going to equate same-sex marriage with sacramental marriage," cautioned [Jerry] Bauman. "But as long as people are clothing the naked, feeding the hungry and visiting prisoners, like Jesus said, why do we need to be concerned about what happens in people's bedrooms?"

While Bauman is quite right that the Church will not - indeed, cannot - equate same-sex relationships with marriage and is right to emphasize the corporal works of mercy, he ignores another important aspect of Jesus' ministry. Bauman implies that Jesus is only concerned about our public actions and not what we do in the privacy of our homes and bedrooms. However, if one reads all of the Gospels, this claim is seen to be quite false. Why is the Church concerned about what happens in people's bedrooms? Because Jesus is concerned about what happens in people's bedrooms?

Consider the account of the woman caught in adultery:

Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle. They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him. Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more” (John 8:3-11).

Two things should be noted here. First, adultery normally happens in someone's bedroom and, second, Jesus clearly calls adultery a sin. Clearly, then, Jesus is concerned about what happens in people's bedrooms he wouldn't have called adultery a sin and because Jesus is concerned about it, so is the Church.

Jesus also said, "But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matthew 5:28). He also said, "whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery" (Matthew 5:32).

It cannot be denied that Jesus condemns the sin and calls the sinner to repentance. This is precisely what the Church - and Pope Francis - does, but not every sinner wants to repent.

Must the Church call saints and sinners alike to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, and to the visit prisoners? Yes, of course. But the Church must also call saints and sinners to instruct the ignorant, to admonish the sinner, and to forgive injuries.

In Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis calls those living in objectively adulterous relationships because of the bond of a prior marriage to meet with "a pastor capable of acknowledging the seriousness of the matter before him" who can help "the responsible and tactful person" better understand their present relationship in light of the truth of Jesus Christ (300).

In this discussion, the man or woman in an irregular relationship must be reminded of the truth of marriage. Namely, that

Christian marriage, as a reflection of the union between Christ and his Church, is fully realized in the union between a man and a woman who give themselves to each other in a free, faithful and exclusive love, who belong to each other until death and are open to the transmission of life, and are consecrated by the sacrament, which grants them the grace to become a domestic church and a leaven of new life for society (292).

The capable pastor will help them see how their present relationship relates to this reflection of the love of Christ for his Church and will call them to realize this reflection insofar as it is possible through a call to conversion. This is why Pope Francis says,

I encourage the faithful who find themselves in complicated situations to speak confidently with their pastors or with other lay people whose lives are committed to the Lord. They may not always encounter in them a confirmation of their ideas or desires, but they will surely receive some light to help them better understand their situation and discover a path to personal growth (312).

In the midst of his discussion of all of this in Chapter 8 of Amoris Laetita, Pope Francis reminds us something that is of great importance, which most people seem to simply skipped over in the reading and discussion of Amoris Laetitia:

Naturally, if someone flaunts an objective sin as if it were part of the Christian ideal, or wants to impose something other than what the Church teaches, he or she can in no way presume to teach or preach to others; this is a case of something which separates from the community (cf. Matthew 18:17). Such a person needs to listen once more to the Gospel message and its call to conversion (297).

The State Journal-Register ran a story yesterday about comments the Most Reverend Thomas J. Paprocki made about sexual abuse lawsuits in 2007 (with my emphases and comments):

The newly appointed bishop of the Springfield Diocese, Archdiocese of Chicago Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Cicero, has a good reputation among some in Chicago.

But a comment he made in 2007, equating lawsuits filed by victims of clergy sexual abuse with the devil’s work, continues to sting victims’ advocates [note well that the commment was directed to lawsuits, not to victims].

“First of all, he’s known as a very smart man, with a sharp mind,” said Robert Herguth, editor of ChicagoCatholicNews.com, an independent online publication covering the Catholic Church in the Chicago region. “He’s a civil lawyer as well as a canon lawyer. But he’s also somebody who’s been in the trenches, in terms of helping the poor.”

Although Herguth doesn’t know Paprocki personally, those who do have told him, “He’s a pretty nice guy.”

“He’s also an unusual priest — in terms of his legal background and in terms of his hobbies,” Herguth said.

Paprocki is president of the Chicago Legal Clinic, which provides legal services to “underserved and disadvantaged” residents in the Chicago area, according to the clinic’s website. He also is a marathon runner and hockey fan [while interesting, this has nothing to do with the story].

“He’s also relatively young,” Herguth said. “What this tells me is that he’s somebody who might be a mover and shaker in the hierarchy who might move up in the future.”

During an analysis of primary election records among leaders in the Chicago Archdiocese last December, Herguth found that Paprocki took Republican ballots in the 2006 and 2008 primaries [this has nothing to do with the story].

Herguth said he knows of nothing that connects Paprocki with any sex abuse scandal.

But the most controversial incident involving Paprocki is a comment he made during a homily at a Mass for judges and attorneys in Grand Rapids, Mich., in 2007. According to a Chicago Tribune article about the event, Paprocki said, “the principal force behind (sex-abuse lawsuits) is none other than the devil.”

Paprocki clarified his remark by saying such lawsuits unfairly burden whole congregations and charitable organizations [and he's right, especially considering how much the lawyers themselves take home; typically, it's at least 50%]. But advocates of sex-abuse victims remain critical of the comment.

“In our experience, most often, the boys and girls who are molested (by clergy) come from extraordinarily devout homes,” said David Clohessy, executive director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. “To essentially equate victims speaking up and exposing predators and seeking justice with the devil [that's not what he said; true justice does not require massive payouts] has a very chilling effect and would discourage victims and witnesses and whistle blowers from coming forward,”

“This isn’t a casual, off-the-cuff, inappropriate comment,” Clohessy said. “It’s a carefully orchestrated, deliberate comment by a very smart man who must know what the impact will be.”

Clohessy said he’s also not aware of any specific incident of sex abuse involving Paprocki directly or indirectly. But Clohessy said Paprocki shouldn’t be let off the hook.

“There certainly have been auxiliary bishops who have shown leadership on this issue, who have openly criticized their supervisors. It has not happened often,” Clohessy said [and no evidence is given that Bishop Paprocki did not speak out. Remember, too, that he was not ordained a Bishop until 2003, well after the overwhelming majority of cases of abuse took place].

“In Chicago, where there are hundreds of hundreds of cases, it’s inconceivable he was out of the loop on every single case or not once did the rest of the Chicago (Archdiocese) hierarchy make a decision that he disagreed with.”

As for Paprocki’s legal work, he and his clinic have a good reputation [this also has nothing to do with the story].

“They do fantastic work. They consist of very motivated, idealistic, passionate attorneys who come in at critical times of people’s lives — evictions, foreclosures,” said Robert Acton, attorney and executive director of Cabrini Green Legal Aid, a sister agency to Paprocki’s Chicago Legal Center.

“The bishop’s reputation is great. He is well regarded.” Acton said. “He’s certainly demonstrated a life of social impact and compassion.”

SJ-R welcomes Bishop Paprocki

In his press conference Tuesday the Most Reverend Thomas J. Paprocki, Bishop-Designate of Springfield in Illinois, noted that Mr. Lincoln said he always found a friend in Springfield's State Journal-Register; Bishop joked that he hoped to find the same.

In this morning issue, the SJ-R has an editorial titled, "An enthusiastic leader for local Catholics," the text of which follows, with my emphases:

THE REV. THOMAS PAPROCKI won’t officially assume his duties as bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Springfield until June 22, but he’s already made a name for himself.

It’s not often, after all, that one meets someone with a resume that includes Catholic priest, lawyer, hockey goalie and veteran of 16 marathons in 15 years.

THE VATICAN on Tuesday announced the appointment of Paprocki to succeed Bishop George Lucas, who became archbishop of Omaha last June. A native of Chicago and currently auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago, the 57-year-old Paprocki gave area Catholics and the community as a whole reason for optimism in his introduction Tuesday.

“I went to law school as a priest, which some people found to be a bit interesting,” he said. “The reason why I did that was because of my belief of what the church teaches about caring for the poor… That’s what I wanted to do as a special sort of focus with my ministry, and I was doing that and continue to do that with legal services for the poor.”

Paprocki is president of the Chicago Legal Clinic, which provides legal services to those who otherwise could not afford it. He said Tuesday that among his plans upon taking office will be working with government and social service agencies to help those hardest hit by the struggling economy.

Whether you’re Catholic or not, that attitude is encouraging.

WHEN LUCAS became bishop here in 1999, one of his biggest tasks was dealing with allegations of sexual misconduct by priests under his predecessor. The result was a 2006 investigation, overseen by former U.S. Attorney Bill Roberts, that led to the removal or suspensions of eight priests. A report from that investigation acknowledged that the misconduct “seriously eroded the trust of parishioners and the community at large.” It was a significant admission that went a long way toward restoring that trust.

Paprocki comes in at a better time for the diocese, but also as the Church deals with new misconduct allegations elsewhere. Again, the Springfield diocese should benefit from Paprocki’s experience in Chicago, where he has been a delegate to the board that investigates allegations of sexual misconduct against minors.

“I know what a painful and what a troubling issue that this sin and this crime is,” Paprocki said.

As he introduced himself on Tuesday, Paprocki made an impression as an energetic, affable and enthusiastic leader. We look forward to his applying his vast experience to the Springfield Catholic Diocese and the overall community.