Vaticano interviene conferencia de religiosas de Estados Unidos

La vida religiosa católica de los Estados Unidos no se escapó de la intervención de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la fe del Vaticano, que viene tomando fuerza en otros países del mundo como recientemente ha sucedido en España y en Ecuador.

En el seno de los Estados Unidos, un importante sector de las congregaciones religiosas femeninas, de religiosos y laicos, con una profunda libertad de espíritu basada en el Evangelio, han acompañado procesos muy importantes para la renovación de la iglesia católica como su postura clara contra el militarismo, su compromiso con los migrantes, las reflexiones sobre el derecho de las mujeres que se sienten llamadas al sacerdocio, la objeción de conciencia a las leyes que atentan contra la vida, la inter – religiosidad, la ecoteología, la teología afroamericana, entre otros temas.

El 18 de abril pasado se conoció de la intervención del vaticano a la Conferencia de Religiosas de Estados Unidos, tal como ellas lo relatan (ver noticia completa en inglés abajo). La decisión del Vaticano ocurrió pocos meses después que en diciembre de 2011 la Congregación para la Doctrina de la fe del Vaticano elaborara un informe de sistematización de un cuestionario respondido con transparencia por integrantes de las congregaciones religiosas femeninas de los Estados Unidos.

El Vaticano concluyó que: “la corriente doctrinaria y la acción pastoral de LCWR (Conferencia de Religiosas, por sus siglas en inglés) es grave y un motivo de gran preocupación, también debido a la influencia de las acciones de LCWR de las Congregaciones religiosas en otras partes del mundo. (…) La Santa Sede debe intervenir, con las medidas prudentes necesarias para llevar a cabo la reforma de la LCWR. La FCD (Congregación para la Doctrina de la fe por sus siglas en inglés) dijo también debe “examinar las diversas formas de intervención canónica para la resolución de los aspectos problemáticos presentes en el LCWR “.

La intervención de los delegados de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe comprendió
además, la revisión de los Estatutos, planes y programas pastorales y de formación, Asambleas Generales, revisión de la aplicación de las normas litúrgicas y textos, revisión de la afiliación con la Red y el Centro de Recursos para la Vida Religiosa, de la LCWR.

La Congregación para la Doctrina de la fe del Vaticano, criticó, entre otras, las posturas defendidas en las asambleas y la falta de apoyo de LCWR a la enseñanza de la Iglesia sobre la ordenación de las mujeres, la concepción de la vida y la homosexualidad. Afirma que la documentación ” revela que, si bien ha habido una gran cantidad de trabajo por parte de LCWR en la promoción de las cuestiones de justicia social en armonía con la doctrina social de la Iglesia, no dice nada sobre el derecho a la vida desde la concepción hasta la muerte natural, una cuestión que forma parte del intenso debate público sobre el aborto y la eutanasia, temas de importancia crucial en la vida de la Iglesia y la sociedad. El punto de vista bíblico de la Iglesia, de la vida familiar y la sexualidad humana, no son parte del orden del día LCWR, tal como lo promueve la enseñanza de la Iglesia. Por otra parte, ocasionales declaraciones públicas del LCWR que no están de acuerdo con las posiciones adoptadas por los Obispos, que son auténticos maestros de la Iglesia de la fe y la moral, no son compatibles con su finalidad. ”

El documento de la FCD reconoce las contribuciones de las mujeres religiosas de la Iglesia en los Estados Unidos en numerosas obras, pero precisa que: “la evaluación pone de manifiesto graves problemas doctrinales que afectan a muchos en la vida consagrada”, generando una crisis
“caracterizada por una poca fundamentación cristológico y el enfoque de la consagración religiosa.”

En las asambleas anuales de la Conferencia de Religiosas “las conversaciones, los discursos teológicos no académicos en sí mismos, tienen significativa contenido doctrinal y moral con consecuencias que a menudo se contradicen o ignoran la enseñanza del Magisterio.”

La Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe expresa que: “Muchos de los materiales preparados por el LCWR para estos fines (Documentos Especiales) no tienen una suficiente base doctrinal. Estos materiales recomiendan estrategias para el diálogo, por ejemplo, cuando las hermanas están en desacuerdo sobre cuestiones básicas de la fe católica o de la práctica moral, pero no está claro si este diálogo se dirige a la recepción de la enseñanza de la Iglesia. ”

La intervención vaticana es una muestra del retroceso que hemos venido presenciando en la iglesia católica desde el Concilio Vaticano II, desde su concreción en América Latina con los documentos de Medellín y Puebla. Es tiempo de pensar en cómo rodear una construcción de iglesia, particularmente la femenina, que se ha mantenido fiel al Evangelio, más allá de los límites impuestos por la institucionalidad. Es la oportunidad, también, de convocar a nuestras/os ancestros, el espíritu de quienes nos precedieron en profecía y martirio, para que nos expresen su palabra: Dorothy Day, la madre Alfred Moes, Drothy Stang, Yolanda Cerón, Cecilia González, René García Lizarralde, Juan XXIII, Samuel Ruiz, Oscar Romero, Leonidas Proaño, Hélder Cámara, Pablo Evaristo Arns, Méndez Arceo, Gerardo Valencia Cano, Javier Ruíz,

Una fecha apropiada para esta reflexión es pentecostés, en el que tomamos especial conciencia de la presencia del espíritu del Dios de Jesús en nuestra historia, que nos llama a la autenticidad en la vivencia del evangelio en nuestra historia.

Why This Is Important

On April 18, 2012, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) launched a crackdown on the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), an umbrella group that represents more than 80 percent of the 57,000 women religious in the United States.

We, the undersigned, stand in solidarity with the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR). We are shocked by the Roman Catholic hierarchy’s recent crackdown on nuns in the United States. The mandate forced upon LCWR, which threatens their works of justice, is a prime example of how the hierarchy in the Roman Catholic Church misuses its power to diminish the voice of women. We value the prophetic witness of women religious and appreciate their commitment to social justice.

Texto de la noticia completa en ingles
http://ncronline.org/news/women-religious/vatican-orders-lcwr-be-closer-teachings-and-discipline-church

Breaking news: Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the USCCB have called for a “reform” of LCWR, the main, and largest, organization of women’s religious congregations in the U.S. The Vatican statement comes after an investigation of the LCWR, in conjunction with its investigation into the “quality of life” of US women’s religious congregations, and finds “serious doctrinal problems” with the LCWR’s activities, especially in its selection of speakers at conferences.

Vatican Names Archbishop Sartain To Lead Renewal Of LCWR

April 18, 2012

Critiques doctrinal aspects of LCWR assemblies, publications
Faults work with Network social justice lobby, financial, legal Resource Center
Calls for advisory group of bishops, sisters and other experts to assist in renewal.

WASHINGTON—The Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) has called for reform of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and named Archbishop Peter Sartain of Seattle as its Archbishop Delegate for the initiative.Bishop Leonard Blair and Bishop Thomas John Paprocki also were also named to assist in this effort.

The CDF outlined the call in a “Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious” (http://www.usccb.org/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&pageid=55544), released April 18. The document outlines findings of the 2008 CDF-initiated doctrinal assessment of LCWR, conducted by Bishop Leonard Blair of Toledo, Ohio, which included his findings and an LCWR response submitted at the end of 2009, as well as a subsequent report from Bishop Blair in 2010.

A statement by Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, is also available at
http://www.usccb.org/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&pageid=55673
The 2010 report included “documentation on the content of LCWR’s Mentoring Leadership Manual and also on the organizations associated with the LCWR, namely Network andthe Resource Center for Religious Institutes,”CDF said. Network is a social justice lobby founded by nuns. The Resource Center provides religious orders with legal and financial advice.

The Archbishop Delegate’s role is to provide “review, guidance and approval, where necessary, of the work of the LCWR,” the CDF document said.
The mandate for the Delegate “will be for a period of up to five years, as deemed necessary,” the document said. It calls for additional advisers – bishops, women religious and other experts – “to work with the leadership of the LCWR to achieve the goals necessary to address the problems outlined in this statement.”It also asked for a formal link between the Delegate and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

“It will be the task of the Archbishop Delegate to work collaboratively with the officers of the LCWR to achieve the goals outlined in this document, and to report on the progress of this to the Holy See …. In this way, the Holy See hopes to offer an important contribution to the future of religious life in the Church in the United States,” the CDF document said.

CDF said Pope Benedict XVI approved CDF’s taking action January 14, 2011, two days after a regular session of the CDF decided that “the current doctrinal and pastoral situation of LCWR is grave and a matter of serious concern, also given the influence the LCWR exercises on religious Congregations in other parts of the world.” CDF also recommend that after the Apostolic Visitation of Religious Communities of Women in the United States, the final report of which was submitted to the Holy See in December 2011, “The Holy See should intervene, with the prudent steps necessary to effect reform of the LCWR.” It also said CDF would “examine the various forms of canonical intervention for the resolution of the problematic aspects present in the LCWR.”

The mandate for the Delegate includes:

·Revision of LCWR statutes

·Review of LCWR plans and programs, including its General Assemblies

·Creation of programs for LCWR member congregations in initial and on-going formation

·Review LCWR’s application of liturgical norms and texts

·Review of LCWR affiliation with Network and the Resources Center for Religious Life.

The doctrinal assessment criticized positions espoused at LCWR annual assemblies and in its literature as well as the absence of support from LCWR for Church teaching on women’s ordination and homosexuality.

CDF said that the documentation “reveals that, while there has been a great deal of work on the part of LCWR promoting issues of social justice in harmony with the Church’s social doctrine, it is silent on the right to life from conception to natural death, a question that is part of the lively public debate about abortion and euthanasia in the United States.Further, issues of crucial importance in the life of the Church and society, such as the Church’s Biblical view of family life and human sexuality, are not part of the LCWR agenda in a way that promotes Church teaching. Moreover, occasional public statements by the LCWR that disagree with or challenge positions taken by the Bishops, who are the Church’s authentic teachers of faith and morals, are not compatible with its purpose.”

The CDF document said “the Holy See acknowledges with gratitude the great contributions of women Religious to the Church in the United States as seen particularly in the many schools, hospitals, and institutions of support for the poor which have been founded and staffed by Religious over the years.” It said CDF “does not intend to offer judgment on the faith and life of Women Religious in the member congregations which belong to the conference.”
Nevertheless, CDF said, “The Assessment reveals serious doctrinal problems which affect many in Consecrated life,” calling it a crisis “characterized by a diminution of the fundamental Christological center and focus of religious consecration.”

The document listed the principal findings of the LCWR doctrinal assessment.
On LCWR annual assemblies, it said, “The talks, while not scholarly theological discourses per se, do have significant doctrinal and moral content with implications which often contradict or ignore magisterial teaching.”
On formation of religious superiors and formators, the CDF said, “Many of the materials prepared by the LCWR for these purposes (Occasional Papers, Systems
Thinking Handbook) do not have a sufficient doctrinal foundation. These materials recommend strategies for dialogue, for example when sisters disagree about basic matters of Catholic faith or moral practice, but it is not clear whether this dialogue is directed towards reception of Church teaching.”
Archbishop Sartain acknowledged the significance of the CDF assignment.
“In the four dioceses I have served, I have had the privilege of working with many women religious from a large number of congregations.For most of those congregations, the LCWR plays an important role of support, communication, and collaboration, a role valued by the sisters and their congregational leadership.I am honored that the CDF has entrusted this important and sensitive work to me, because the ministry of religious sisters, especially here in the United States, is deeply respected and paramount to the mission of the Church.Just as the LCWR can be a vital resource in many ways for its members, I hope to be of service to them and to the Holy See as we face areas of concern to all.”

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Keywords: Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, CDF, Leadership Conference of Women Religious, LCWR, Archbishop Peter Sartain, Bishop Leonard Blair, Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, “Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, “Mentoring Leadership Manual,” Network, Resource Center for Religious Institutes,”United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, Pope Benedict XVI, women’s ordination, homosexuality, women religious.
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