Catholic sex scandal
Posted September 15, 2009 Fr. Richard McBrien : . . . it is a relatively new development that the pope appoints all the bishops in the Roman Catholic church. For most of the history of the church, especially during the First Christian Millennium, the selection of bishops rested with the clergy and laity of each diocese, in keeping with Pope Leo the Great's dictum, "He who is to preside over all must be elected by all." “Today's common practice in which bishops move up a career ladder from a smaller diocese to a larger diocese, and from bishop to archbishop, was explicitly prohibited by the Council of Nicaea in 325 and again by the Council of Chalcedon in 451. A reform movement in the 11th century tried unsuccessfully to restore the ancient practice where the clergy and laity as well as the neighboring bishops played a key part in the selection process. This is “consent of the governed,” a principle of democracy. In today’s Church, suppression is tightening instead of...