An
Open Letter to Franc Cardinal Rodé, Prefect
Sacred
Congregation for Institutes of
Consecrated
Life and Societies of Apostolic Life
“On
The Suppression of St. Philip Neri House,
7
February 2007
Franc Cardinal Rodé, Prefect
Sacred Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated
Life and
Societies of Apostolic Life
Piazza Pio XII, 3
00193,
Your Eminence,
The purview of the Sacred Congregation for Institutes of
Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life embraces all matters concerning orders and
religious congregations, secular institutes, and societies of apostolic life
including associations of the faithful erected with the intention of becoming
institutes of consecrated life or societies of apostolic life.
St. Philip Neri House located at
This “Open Letter” has as its objective, the securing of a ruling from your Congregation that will bring about the suppression of St. Philip Neri House and the removal of Father Sirico as its superior. St. Philip Neri House is currently seeking membership in the Confederation of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri.
The circumstances surrounding the erection of St. Philip Neri House and the selection of Father Sirico as its superior is a matter of grave public scandal, and constitutes a clear and present danger to the spiritual welfare of Catholic men seeking vocational advice and spiritual direction from Father Sirico and other members of the community at St. Philip Neri House.
A
Portrait of an Apostate, Marxist, Active Homosexual, Gay Rights Activist
Father Robert A. Sirico was born on 23 June 1951, in
In 1972, Sirico established a different kind of “church” -
a satellite of the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Church
(UFMCC) founded by homosexual activist Rev. Troy Perry in
In 1975, Rev. Sirico moved to
On
21 April 1975, Rev. Sirico made the annals of “gay” history as a pioneer “gay
rights” activist when he performed the first same-sex “marriage” in the
One
year later, on 12 April 1976, Rev. Sirico, dressed in a black clerical suit
with a Roman collar made the pages of the Seattle
Post-Intelligencer under the headline “‘Male Slave Mart’ Raid in L.A.
Called a Mistake. ”
As
reported by the Seattle P-I, on April 10, 1976, Los Angeles
policemen dressed in riot gear arrested 40 persons participating in a
homosexual “slave market” held at the Mark IV Health Club in Hollywood. The
bathhouse was operated by a sadomasochist cult called the Leather Fraternity.
Nude “male slaves” were led on stage by an auctioneer and inspected by
potential buyers. “Slaves” went for $10-75. The undercover policeman at the
auction told the press that he picked up
a man for $16 following assurances from the auctioneer that the ‘volunteer for
charity’ would perform specific sex acts on him. The auction room came complete
with its own dungeons and cell blocks and sadomasochist apparatus including
leather harness restraints and chains.
The
event was sponsored by the
The UFMCC in
On 13 May 1989, after
completing his novitiate with the Paulist Fathers at their House of Studies in
THIS ORDINATION SHOULD NEVER
HAVE TAKEN PLACE.
On
2 February 1961, all superiors of Religious Communities, Societies without
vows, and Secular Institutes received a copy of the document “Careful Selection
And Training Of Candidates For The States Of Perfection And Sacred Orders” from
the Congregation for Religious. The
Congregation noted that while the Instruction was “privately circulated” its
contents were “a matter of public law.” The principle subject of the discourse
of the Instruction is the proper vetting and training of candidates for Sacred
Orders. The Instruction was in force, but obviously not enforced by the
Paulists, at the time of Sirico’s ordination.
On
the matter of the selection of seminary
candidates, the essence of which is the discernment of character, the tone of
the 1961 Instruction is exacting, even strident Moral certitude as to the
fitness of the candidate for ordination is demanded of the superior. The
Instruction firmly acknowledges that chastity is the heart of religious life
and the priesthood. Any candidate unable to observe ecclesiastical celibacy and
practice priestly chastity, no matter what other “outstanding qualities” he
possesses, is to be barred from the religious life and the priesthood.
The
1961 Instruction specifically prohibits the advancement to religious vows and
ordination of habituated onanists as well “as those afflicted with evil
tendencies to homosexuality or pederasty, since for them the common life and
priestly ministry would constitute serious dangers.”
Even
though, by the late 1980s, the Paulists were routinely ordaining known
homosexuals for the priesthood, their ordination of Sirico was especially
alarming given his long habituation to the vice of sodomy and his public record
of homosexual activism.
Sirico Seeks
After
his ordination, Sirico was assigned to the
Unhappy
with his situation, Sirico toyed with
the idea of seeking exclaustration from the Paulists provided he could
incardinate in the Diocese of Grand Rapids, but Bishop Robert John Rose did not
want him apart from the Paulist Order. Instead, Sirico petitioned and was
granted a one-year sabbatical by the Paulists.
In 1990, only a year after his ordination, Sirico
underwent another career change. He became the President of the newly created
Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and
Sirico Moves to
Sirico moved out from under the authority of his Paulist
superiors and away from the Diocese of Grand Rapids to the “gay-friendly”
Diocese of Lansing under “gay-friendly” Bishop Kenneth Povish, a backer of the
notorious New Ways Ministry. Sirico was assigned a rural parish by Chancellor
James A. Murray while continuing to
commute to his job at the Acton Institute in
In 1998,
St. Philip Neri House currently claims four residents including three priests – enough to erect an oratory and be incorporated into the Confederation of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri. The residents include Father Sirico, Father David Grondz, Father James Richardson, and Brother Basil, an associate of Father Grondz.
Fathers Grondz and Richardson were ordained by Bishop James A. Murray for the Diocese of Kalamazoo on 13 May 2006 at St. Augustine Cathedral. In addition to their assignment at St. Philip Neri House, both are also engaged in pastoral work for the diocese.
Questions of moral turpitude have arisen in connection with the seminary life of these three men, and with the close existing relationship between Grondz and Sirico, which I am unable to confirm or deny. However, as Prefect for the Sacred Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life you will be in a position to investigate seminary records and interview former oratory residents and visitors so as to render a fair verdict on these particular questions.
I have been in contact with men who have discerned at St. Philip Neri House. Their reports suggest disturbing patterns of behaviors at the House including catty, effeminate conversations; inappropriate touchings especially by Superior Sirico; the use of sexually explicit films including “gay” flicks as part of the oratory’s “Home Night” program; and violent exhibitions of [homosexual] rage by Sirico.
These
reports come as no surprise to anyone with even a minimum understanding of
homosexual behavior. The very nature of homosexual relationships in the
religious life and societies of apostolic life precludes the existence of the
oratory concept envisioned by Saint Philip Neri, the father of the Societies of
Apostolic Life movement. Homosexual
relationships poison the well of friendship, discipleship, and stability – the
hallmarks of an Oratorian community.
Petition Put Forth to the Congregation
Based on the complaints noted above, I place the
following petitions before you as Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for
Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life:
1.
That you instruct the officers of
the Confederation of the Oratory of St. Phil Neri, specifically, the Procurator General Very Reverend Edoardo Aldo Cerrato, C.O. from
the Rome Oratory and the Delegate of the Holy See for the Oratory, Very
Reverend Felix Selden, C.O. from the Vienna Oratory, to withdraw from active
consideration the request of the St. Philip Neri House of Kalamazoo, Mich. for
oratory status, pending an investigation of the above charges.
2.
That a formal board of inquiry, independent of the Oratorian Confederation and
its members, be established to examine
the above charges against Father Sirico and St. Philip Neri House.
3. Upon finding
these charges to be valid, that the Congregation order the dissolution and
suppression of
St. Philip Neri House.
As you must be well aware, the Holy Father has frequently
spoken out against the very concept of homosexual “unions” and “marriages.”
What do you think his reaction will be when he learns that the first “gay”
minister to perform such a ceremony in the
In a press statement of 4 March 2006, you said that
One
of the favorite sayings of Saint Philip Neri was “Christian joy is a gift of
God flowing from a good conscience.” May you do your duty in the matter of St.
Philip Neri House and Father Robert A. Sirico, and sleep with a good conscience
this night.
Sincerely
in Christ,
Randy
Engel, author, The Rite of Sodomy
Randy.Engel@riteofsodomy.com
cc. Archbishop Gianfranco Gardin, Secretary
Very Rev. Felix
Selden C.O.,
Very Rev.
Edoardo Aldo Cerrato C.O.,
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Action
Line 13 February 2007 Dear Brothers and Sisters
in Christ – According to Cardinal Franc
Rodé, Prefect
for the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of
Apostolic Life, Letters, e-mails and faxes
and phone calls to the Congregation in support of an investigation of St.
Philip Neri House under the leadership of Fr. Robert A. Sirico are needed
now! Contact: Franc
Cardinal Rodé, Prefect Sacred
Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies
of Apostolic Life Piazza
Pio XII, 3 00193, Phone +39. 06. 69884121 Fax +39 .06. 69884526 E-Mail Please give this “Open
Letter” the widest circulation possible. No permission is needed to post it
on your website or print it in your newsletter. Copies of this “Open
letter” have already been sent out to all Oratories of St. Philip Neri
throughout the world. Let our universal battle
cry be Alto quien vive!! Loosely
translated its means: Anyone on the battlefield who is still alive, stand up
and fight!! Fight for your Faith! Don’t Give Up! Randy Engel, author, The Rite of Sodomy – Homosexuality and the Roman Catholic Church [www.riteofsodomy.com; Randy.Engel@riteofsodomy.com,
1-724 327-7379. |