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| Pope Francis failed to recommend the controversial idea of married priests (AFP Photo/Filippo MONTEFORTE) |
Rome (AFP) - Pope Francis on Wednesday pleaded for social justice and environmental respect for the Amazon basin, but did not recommend the controversial idea of married priests.
In a highly
anticipated text, Francis urged Catholics to "feel outrage" over the
exploitation of indigenous people and destruction of land devastated by illegal
mining and deforestation.
But there
was no mention of priestly marriage, a controversial suggestion made by Amazon
bishops last October as a way to increase the number of priests who could
perform Mass in remote areas.
Instead,
the pope argued for more missionaries and for women and lay people to take
larger roles in the region. He also urged more training for priests to better
interact with Amazonian cultures.
Francis has
weighed in before on the hotly debated question of whether to allow "viri
probati" -- married "men of proven virtue" -- to join the
priesthood in remote locations.
In January
last year, he said he did not believe that optional celibacy should be allowed
but conceded "some possibilities for far-flung places", a statement
that opened the door to speculation that he might make an exception for the
Amazon.
In 2017,
Francis convened 184 bishops -- over 60 percent of whom hailed from the Amazon
region -- to reflect on the Amazon.
Among other
proposals in a final document, the bishops suggested ordaining "suitable
and esteemed men of the community" who had "a legitimately
constituted and stable family".
But the
suggestion aroused fierce opposition from traditionalists within the Church,
concerned that exceptions could pave the way to the abolition of priest
celibacy globally.
Francis'
text released on Wednesday was a so-called apostolic exhortation in response to
the bishops' document.
'Injustice and crime'
Francis has
made his name as a defender of the marginalised -- whether the poor, migrants
or prisoners -- and his Amazon text focused on the local people's "history
of suffering".
Saying the
Amazon's ecological problems should not be separated from social ones, he
highlighted how marginalised indigenous people were forced out of their homes
by illegal deforestation and mining.
Those
people were now living on the outskirts of cities marked by "an increase
of xenophobia, sexual exploitation and human trafficking," he wrote.
"We
need to feel outrage, as Moses did, as Jesus did, as God does in the face of
injustice. It is not good for us to become inured to evil," wrote the
pope.
"The
businesses, national or international, which harm the Amazon and fail to
respect the right of the original peoples to the land and its boundaries, and
to self-determination and prior consent, should be called for what they are:
injustice and crime."
However,
Francis acknowledged the challenges faced by the Church in remote areas of the
Amazon, urging bishops to send out more young missionaries, in keeping with his
status as the first pope from the Jesuit order -- famous for its missionary
work.
The pope
stressed the need for ministers who could "understand Amazonian
sensibilities and cultures from within" and highlighted the potential role
for nuns as well as lay women and men.
"It is
not simply a question of facilitating a greater presence of ordained ministers
who can celebrate the Eucharist," he wrote.
Among those
he hinted could take a bigger role in the Amazon were "permanent
deacons" -- men who serve as ministers in the Church but are not priests
and so can be married.
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Clerics at the Church of England synod in York take a 'selfie' as they celebrate
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"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God/Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)
“… I gave you a channelling years ago when Pope John Paul was alive. John Paul loved Mary, the mother. Had John Paul survived another 10 years, he would have done what the next Pope [The one after the current one, Benedict XVI] will do, and that is to bring women into the Church. This Pope you have now [Benedict XVI] won't be here long.* The next Pope will be the one who has to change the rules, should he survive. If he doesn't, it will be the one after that.
There is a large struggle within the Church, even right now, and great dissention, for it knows that it is not giving what humanity wants. The doctrine is not current to the puzzles of life. The answer will be to create a better balance between the feminine and masculine, and the new Pope, or the one after that, will try to allow women to be in the higher echelon of the Church structure to assist the priests.
It will be suggested to let women participate in services, doing things women did not do before. This graduates them within church law to an equality with priests, but doesn't actually let them become priests just yet. However, don't be surprised if this begins in another way, and instead gives priests the ability to marry. This will bring the feminine into the church in other ways. It will eventually happen and has to happen. If it does not, it will be the end of the Catholic Church, for humanity will not sustain a spiritual belief system that is out of balance with the love of God and also out of balance with intuitive Human awareness. …”
"Recalibration of Free Choice"– Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth, 4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical) 8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)
“ … Spirituality (Religions)
Number one: Spirituality. The systems of spiritual design on your planet are starting to change. This is not telling you that certain ones are going to go away. They're simply going to change. Some of the largest spiritual systems, which you would call organized religion on the planet, are shifting. They're going to shift away from that which is authority on the outside to authority on the inside. It will eventually be a different way of worship, slowly changing the rules while keeping the basic doctrine the same.
The doctrine of the Christ has always been to find the God inside. The teachings were clear. The examples of the miracles were given as an example of what humans could do, not to set a man up for worship as a God. So when that has been absorbed, the teaching of the Christ can remain the teaching of the Christ. It simply changes the interpretation.
The teachings of the great prophets of the Middle East (all related to each other) are about unity and love. So once the holy words are redefined with new wisdom, the Human changes, not the words of the prophets. In fact, the prophets become even more divinely inspired and their wisdom becomes even more profound.
You're going to lose a pope soon. I have no clock. Soon to us can mean anything to you. The one who replaces him may surprise you, for his particular organization will be in survival mode at that point in time. That is to say that fewer and fewer are interested in starting the priesthood. Fewer and fewer young people are interested in the organization, and the new pope must make changes to keep his church alive. That means that his organization will remain, but with a more modern look at what truly is before all of you in a new energy. It is not the fall of the church. It is instead the recalibration of the divinity inside that would match the worship that goes on. It's a win-win situation. The new pope will have a difficult time, since the old guard will still be there. There could even be an assassination attempt, such is the way the old energy dies hard. That is number one. Watch for it. It's a change in the way spiritual systems work. It's a realignment of spiritual systems that resound to a stronger truth that is Human driven, rather than prophet driven.…”
"Listening to the Voice of Spirit" (2) - Feb 20, 2016 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (DNA Efficiency is on average at 35 percent now) - (Text version)
“… With free choice, the percentage of DNA efficiently started to go down as humanity grew. As soon as the DNA started to lose percentage, the gender balance was dysfunctional. If you want to have a test of any society, anywhere on the planet, and you want to know the DNA percentage number [consciousness quota] as a society, there's an easy test: How do they perceive and treat their women? The higher the DNA functionality, the more the feminine divine is honored. This is the test! Different cultures create different DNA consciousness, even at the same time on the planet. So you can have a culture on Earth at 25 percent and one at 37 - and if you did, they would indeed clash. …”
“… You're at 35. There's an equality here, you're starting to see the dark and light, and it's changing everything. You take a look at history and you've come a long way, but it took a long time to get here. Dear ones, we've seen this process before and the snowball is rolling. There isn't anything in the way that's going to stop it. In the path of this snowball of higher consciousness are all kinds of things that will be run over and perish. Part of this is what you call "the establishment". Watch for some very big established things to fall over! The snowball will simply knock them down. …”
