Friendship, Ecuminism, and Scandal

No one is saying that we should not be grateful or thankful to St. Paul's for what they did after the fire at St. Michael's. What I'm asking is what the boundaries of that relationship should be. It seems clear to me that homilies and Lenten missions step way outside of what is appropriate. What I'm concerned about is provoking scandal in the faithful.

Here's what the Catechism says about scandal:

Respect for the souls of others: scandal

2284 Scandal is an attitude or behavior which leads another to do evil. The person who gives scandal becomes his neighbor's tempter. He damages virtue and integrity; he may even draw his brother into spiritual death. Scandal is a grave offense if by deed or omission another is deliberately led into a grave offense.

2285 Scandal takes on a particular gravity by reason of the authority of those who cause it or the weakness of those who are scandalized. It prompted our Lord to utter this curse: "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."86 Scandal is grave when given by those who by nature or office are obliged to teach and educate others. Jesus reproaches the scribes and Pharisees on this account: he likens them to wolves in sheep's clothing.87

2286 Scandal can be provoked by laws or institutions, by fashion or opinion.

Therefore, they are guilty of scandal who establish laws or social structures leading to the decline of morals and the corruption of religious practice, or to "social conditions that, intentionally or not, make Christian conduct and obedience to the Commandments difficult and practically impossible."88 This is also true of business leaders who make rules encouraging fraud, teachers who provoke their children to anger,89 or manipulators of public opinion who turn it away from moral values.

2287 Anyone who uses the power at his disposal in such a way that it leads others to do wrong becomes guilty of scandal and responsible for the evil that he has directly or indirectly encouraged. "Temptations to sin are sure to come; but woe to him by whom they come!"90


Note especially no. 2285. When presenting a woman in a Roman collar are we just encouraging those who disregard church teaching and entrenching them in their error, rather than teaching them the truth? Are we following Paul's injunction to be mindful of the 'weaker brother' when we make the faithful uncomfortable like that? Is St. Michael's doing fulfilling its role as teacher of the faithful when it is just confusing that vast middle?

The abortion and homosexuality questions are even more troubling. This is from a website (http://www.spiritrestoration.org/Church/Denominational-stand-on-the-issue-of-abortion.htm) I found:

The Evangelical Lutheran of Church in America (ELCA) is a union of three smaller Lutheran denominations which merged in 1988. Each had different views on on abortion. In 1990, the ELCA adopted a statement that accepts abortion but only as a "last resort" in the most extreme circumstances. The statement goes on to say that it opposes abortion ist except in the cases of "clear threat to the life of the woman", "extreme fetal abnormality" incompatible with life, and in cases of rape and incest. Beyond these cases "this church neither supports nor opposes" other abortion-restricting legislation. At the ELCA's 1997 convention, a resolution to restrict ELCA funding of abortions to the three cases stated above was rejected 70%-30%. The ELCA funds elective abortions in the church’s health care coverage for pastors and professional church workers, and some Lutheran-affiliated hospital perform elective abortions.


Very squishy, and they actually pay for abortions on demand. Add to this the likelihood of approving of homosexual relationships.

The Catholic Church has stated that Catholic universities and hospitals and other Catholic organizations are not to give platforms to anyone who is a known supporter of abortion rights. Archbishop Burke in St. Louis, before he left to become the Vatican's chief jurist, even resigned from the board of a Catholic hospital when they insisted on having Sheryl Crow do a planned benefit for them. This is the kind of witness the Church and the culture needs.

I'm not pretending I know what St. Paul's position on the issues is, but if it toes the denominational line, it is troubling that we would give them a platform to teach and instruct our flock.