Weakland predicts his successor will push
uniformity
By JOHN L. ALLEN JR.
NCR Staff
In a candid Jan. 6 letter to Milwaukee priests, Archbishop Rembert
Weakland predicted his successor is likely to be a
middle-of-the-roader who will restrict diversity in liturgical and
pastoral practices.
Weakland said he cannot predict who his successor will be, but
said that he will probably reflect a general movement in the church toward
uniformity.
If my generation, the first after the council, erred in some
of its more radical implementations of Vatican Council II, it did so out of
zeal and unbridled enthusiasm, but with a clear theological perspective it
derived from Vatican Council II, Weakland wrote.
I fear the restorationist implementation that is
characterizing the second post-conciliar generation will err on the side of
rigidity, rubricism and a fear of the gifts of individuals, especially of the
laity, and build their renewal more on reaction than on theological
insights.
The subsequent or third generation may well just get it
right, but most of us by then will already have seen the fullness of
Truth, he wrote.
The text of the confidential 10-page letter was published Feb. 25
by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Weakland, known as one of the few liberal stalwarts in the
American hierarchy, will reach retirement age in April 2002. He said the letter
reflected requests from different groups of priests to reflect on what changes
they might expect when he steps down.
Weakland said that when he came into office 22 years ago, the
prevailing philosophy favored diversity at the parish level. Today he sees,
both in the archdiocese and in the universal church, a trend toward
standardization.
Locally, Weakland said that frequent changes in pastors and
collaboration among parishes has made pluralism a source of irritation
and division, as communities struggle to reconcile ingrained
differences.
In the church at large, Weakland said the introduction of the new
Code of Canon Law in 1983 marked a turning point. The age of
experimentation, as minimal as it seemed to some, has moved into an
age of more consistent and uniform practice in rubrics and laws, he
wrote. One could say that this leveling process came too soon
but there is no way of rewriting history.
Weakland said that his successor will inherit an archdiocese with
many strengths, such as pastorally minded clergy, a solid financial situation
and active social ministries.
Nevertheless, Weakland said his successor is likely to make a
number of changes. Everyone will have to make sacrifices for the sake of
unity, he wrote. Those who have not made the changes that are a
part of the accepted or prescribed practices in the United States, especially
in the liturgy, will have to swallow their pride and make them.
Weakland broke the likely changes into several categories.
On sacraments, Weakland said his successor will probably not
permit general absolution (a form of penance in which sins are forgiven in a
group rather than individually), and he will probably insist on administering
first confession before first Communion.
On liturgy, Weakland said the new archbishop is likely to insist
that people kneel during Mass from the Holy, Holy, Holy to the end of the great
Amen, but he will probably not abolish the Kiss of Peace or prohibit lay
(including women) servers, readers and Communion distributors. He will,
however, probably be more rigorous about letting lay people distribute
Communion and may insist that such ministers are better trained.
Weakland predicted that the custom of holding hands during the Our
Father will not last long, and confesses that he personally finds it
childish and uncharitable -- in that it makes so many people, especially
elderly, feel uncomfortable.
He said the new archbishop probably will insist that priests
concelebrate Mass, rather than participating as if they were lay
people, and probably will demand that the Holy Thursday chrism Mass be
treated as a sign of unity among ordained priests, rather than a celebration of
the priesthood of the faithful (as it is presently styled in Milwaukee).
Weakland predicted that his successor would promote devotional
practices such as benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, public recitation of
the rosary and Stations of the Cross. He notes the concern that such customs
may replace the Mass as the touchstone of Catholic identity; I have no
idea how my successor will keep a balance in this regard, Weakland
writes.
Weakland suggested his successor may want priests to move back
into rectories instead of private residences. He also said there will be
pressure from Rome to increase the retirement age (presently 68) in light of
the priest shortage. He said his successor may want to bring in priests from
Africa, India or the Philippines, but the priests council should be
consulted before that happens. He said his successor may prefer to use deacons
rather than laity for various ministerial roles.
The new bishop may try, Weakland wrote, to avoid naming lay people
as parish directors in the absence of a priest. He also said that a new bishop
will almost certainly bar resigned priests from ministerial roles.
Weakland said Milwaukee is swimming against the
current in putting future priests and lay ministers in the same formation
programs.
Weakland counseled priests to accept the changes, while
encouraging discussion about the issues they raise. Holding out at this
moment on any issue as a prophetic stance does not strike me as helpful
pastorally to our people, even though I would hope that debate about so many
aspects of renewal would continue to take place among us, for they are not
finished issues.n
The full text of the Weakland letter is available on the
NCR Web site at http://www.natcath.org/ncr_onli.htm under
Documents.
National Catholic Reporter, March 10,
2000
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