life-after-RC

Prayer request (with update)

Kind readers, many of you who were in the Legion or who visited Cheshire years ago may remember Fr Stephen Gormley. He was wheelchair-bound after a car accident and has in recent years been entrusted to the care of his family. Word has now spread that he is near death, and I know he -- and all the family -- would benefit by your prayers. Don't forget Fr Eugene Gormley, who remains in the Legion, but who will be able to be with his family at this difficult time.

UPDATE: Stephen Gormely passed away on the morning of September 1st -- a First Saturday -- surrounded by his loving family. Prayers for his soul and for the souls of all the faithful departed. May he intercede for us who remain in this vale of tears. RIP.

"Manipulate or die"

This exLC has spent much time unwinding from the Legionary spin he lived, and pondering the toxins at the heart of the Movement. Consider this recent post, which has many important points:

I wanted to follow up on the idea in my previous post that it is essential for a legionary to manipulate others. The fact is, twenty four years in the congregation gives you a chance to know a lot of people and a lot of legionaries. It was a real Noah's ark.

We were all thrown  into the same boat. Some made it to the deck, some navigated, some took the helm, and the great majority swabbed the deck. I swabbed.

But what was it that got you to the deck? What was it made you stand out and make it to the top? Everyone that entered had talents. Some more than others. That was no guarantee that you were going to be called to the deck. There had to be another quality that was sought after, something that made you stand out.

Leadership qualities were a must. But it was in the definition of a leader that we find so many answers. A leader in the Legion (in practice, not in theory) is anyone who is able to manipulate other to the desired end.

I mentioned a priest I knew who had many personal problems, but was given a pass on these and honored because he was so successful in getting rich people onto the boat. The quality that dictates success is to win people over to the cause, get inside their minds, convince them, no matter what the cost to you or them.

It is a very calculating way of doing things. You need to plan, get to know the person, play on his or her weaknesses, and promise rewards. It is very much akin to the Prosperity Gospel so common in Brazil where evangelical churches preach prosperity under the guise of God's blessing. It's more subtle in the legion, but it's there. Maybe it's not material blessings in this life, but it is eternal salvation.

And those who are able to latch on to this way of doing things are the ones that survive, or persevere in legion lingo.

If you don't get it, you are marginalized or pushed out. It's as simple as that - manipulate or die.

The striking thing is the vision of personal holiness preached in the legion is not rewarded.

I knew another priest who was a real example of authentic priestly zeal. People loved him for this. There were no limits to his generosity. He would dedicate hours to confession, visit the sick, council anyone who asked, and spend quality time in prayer. But he was marginalized, because he wasn't getting the required fruits. He was ridiculed by other legionaries as being a new St John Vianney. And that was sad: a man who was truly on fire for the Lord and for souls was treated as second rate, or lower.

The number of superiors and other honored legionaries I knew who had very visible faults but were given great prestige was countless. Sometimes I would hear mid-morning snoring coming from their rooms. Others would waste time on unholy practices on the computer; nothing immoral - just not measuring up to the standard they preached of using time well.

I don't know if you can call it a double standard. In a way it was. But it didn't matter how many vices or defects you had, as long as you were bearing the right fruits: money and vocations.

Just a final word on marginalizing. The Legion is good at creating place to send unwanted priests. The Mission Territory of Quintana Roo in Mexico is the best of all. But there are administrative positions created, auxiliary posts, and so many other places to send non-productive priests or religious. I held a lot of these posts. But I could never be satisfied with that. I wanted to be more productive. I wanted to feel more fulfilled.

I do feel more fulfilled now than ever. Parish life is very rewarding. I try very hard not to manipulate people. I listen to them and offer solutions, and respect their freedom. After all, that is what God does. 

"I trust in our papal delegate"

This speaks for itself:

On August 7, 2012, I celebrated my 20th anniversary of consecrating my life to Christ.  Much has happened during those 20 years, discoveries and events that I could never have imagined.  There was sin and pain contrasted by love and joy, failures and difficulties woven through triumphs and accomplishments, darkness and blindness followed by enlightenment and clarity.   Although I didn’t use the words “in good times and bad, for richer and for poor, in sickness and in health, until death do us part…” but isn’t that what I promised Christ, poverty, chastity and obedience?  I love my vocation to be consecrated to Christ in Regnum Christi, despite all our past history of errors, there has been a lot of good.  Personally, I have received so much! I have discovered and known deeply Christ as my best friend, my spouse, my God.  I don’t think I have a right to tell God He made a mistake in calling me to this group or that He should make sure things are done differently or that I will throw in the towel until He straightens things out a bit more.  Humanly, it sure would be nice to have a different past, a simpler future.  However, I continue to believe in the Regnum Christi Movement not because everything is done right but I trust in our papal delegate; and in God’s presence and His capacity to make Himself known through us, despite us!

One of the consecrated set up 20 votive candles on an altar of a small chapel in our house and left me the rite of consecration.  There, with my hands on the altar of sacrifice, I renewed my promises of poverty, chastity and obedience to Christ. Thank you, Jesus, for the grace of perseverance thus far!  Sustain me for another 20 years or until I join you for eternity! Thank you Jesus for your love and friendship, your trust in me despite my weaknesses!

It cannot go unsaid: these consecrations are not recognised by the Church, and do not fit the prescribed norms that apply to real Consecrated Virgins.

The consecrated virgin lives in full communion with the Church through her spiritual bond with her Bishop, the representative of Jesus Christ in her diocese; and she shares in the concerns of her diocese through their on-going communication. The consecrated virgin is responsible to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. She receives the sacraments regularly and is faithful to private prayer. She keeps as a special focus of her prayer the intentions of her Bishop and clergy and the needs of her diocese. Consecrated virginity is a distinct form of consecrated life in the Church. Therefore, while it is related to other forms of consecrated life, it is not identical to any of them. The consecrated virgin living in the world, as expressed in Canon 604, is irrevocably "consecrated to God, mystically espoused to Christ and dedicated to the service of the Church, when the diocesan bishop consecrates [her] according to the approved liturgical rite."

ADDENDUM: I'll leave the response to Therese Ivers, JSL, OCV

Allow me to briefly clarify a few things. 

Consecrated Virgins do NOT make promises or vows of any kind to their bishop.  Like a priest, the bishop prays the prayer of consecration over them and they become the Bride of Christ.  The Consecrated Virgin is a member of the Order of Virgins (like a priest whether he's diocesan or religious is in the Order of Presbyters), but it's not a Religious order.  She reports to her bishop directly, who represents Christ to her in her apostolic works. 

A laywoman with private promises is not in the consecrated state.  She *might* be imitating those in the consecrated state (like apostolic society members imitate religious life but remain lay or ordained), but she is not living a Church form of consecrated life (except approved forms and apparently RC is not one because they were approved as a third order kind of movement with LC) and she is not in the consecrated state.

Private vows are just that.  Private.  You can make a private vow to make a pilgrimage to Our lady of Knock shrine.  You can promise poverty, chastity, and obedience (I do NOT recommend this if you are a layperson not attached to any Church recognized group that is capable of receiving the promise - and the RC groups do not qualify as being legitimate superiors to whom one may promise obedience and have these promises received in the name of the Church which is a requirement for consecrated life (not to mention consecrated state which is an entirely different thing altogether).  Your pastor can dispense you from any and all private vows that don't harm the rights of another.  As a matter of fact, I discourage all laywomen who ask from making any private vows of obedience and poverty because it doesn't make sense outside of a communal environment with an authentic superior and the ability to share the burden of administering property.

Again, CVs are not 3gfs nor or 3gfs CVs for the simple reason that they are ontologically different.  CVs do NOT make vows or promises as part of their vocation.  NONE.  They represent the Church.  They are given a special annointing of the Holy Spirit.  They alone specifically share the title of Bride of Christ with the Church (as one CV pointed out in a post at Phatmass.  They are commissioned to be "apostles in the Church and in the world", they are told to do the works of mercy.  They have a special bond with the bishop.  They are in the consecrated state not lay state.  They are consecrated body and soul as a bride of Christ.  None of these things are true of 3gfs.  They are laywomen making private promises to God that in all probability are invalid anyway given the circumstances, bound together in a rather destructive social group with only a slightly higher standing in the Church than the local parish bingo group or the some other random group.  They were not and are not consecrated.  They are dedicated. Consecration comes from the ministry of the Church upon those to be consecrated in approved forms of life or institutes.

I would say the the RC structure - if it were to become a form of consecrated life - would be most similar to a Secular Institute or even a Society of Apostolic Life.  They don't even come close to imitating the Order of Virgins (consecrated virgins).

LC comment on the reform

 

No one is indispensible

In a recent comment, it was noted that Pinecrest Academy [a K-12 school in Atlanta with a shrinking population] will host eight members of the Movement dedicated to offering spiritual direction to the student body. With this ongoing unreformed reform allowed by the Church, it is hard for many to trust the hierarchy, since it would seem that the well-being of the flock isn't always the priority. "Neptune" followed with this insight:

The reason it is hard to figure out or make sense of the Church is the wake of LC/RC is because people do not want to believe that the whole purpose of the mess is to invert the person and the Church,

LC turns everthing inside out--tradition shows Christ dragging souls out of hades. The LC teaches people they will drag others to Heaven (alas, they cannot drag themselves into Heaven, so note that no one can drag another.

LC inverts the internal forum and makes people dependent on feedback--not a well-formed conscience but on constant external feedback (that's why they need so many counselors).

People who had been sucked into the LC/RC have the worst time with this simple key because it requires them to admit they were wrong. That's hard to do.  Especially for smart people.

Even if they get to the point of admitting the error, they don't want to admit that they spent so much of their life abetting this evil institution. It's OK. Christ can drag people out of Hades, so He can drag you out of that hell, too.

This last point is the worst of their inversions. Christ says: sine Mihi nihil potestas. The corollary is that without Christ you can only do evil - like drag people to hell. I say this to illustrate the demonic trick of the LC/RC inversion. First, they put you on a quest for perfection. Second, they deform you to be reliant on them and not Christ. Third, they make progress your work alone (not Christ's). Fourth, they trick you to think you are Christ.

Obviously, that's the error of Eden played out into a system and process. To undo this chain of errors is difficult on the psyche of a person who had noble intent all along. But, that's what the mess is.

It's been repeated often in this forum that the only way out of this Movement is on your knees. Only by finding the humility to embrace the humiliation of having been suckered by MM can one being to change his or her perspective. Since pride was such an important element in our formation ("you are the elites, the world depends on your fidelity!") we are more wired than most to reject the notion that we fell for a cult (and a paederast, and a charlatan, and a liar).

Humility is Christ-like; thinking that the world needs a particular person (other than Christ) or group (other than Holy Mother Church herself) is prideful and wrong. Judas tried to tip God's hand with his own recipe for salvation, and it didn't end well. Nothing is indispensible but the Blood of Christ.

"difficult to define"

With all due respect (from Jim Fair):

I was blessed last week to be in Rome for meetings with other communications directors from territories of the Legion of Christ.

There I was with folks from Italy, Germany, Austria, Mexico, Spain and Chile.  And they all were patient with the unilingual American (yours truly) who needed constant translation help.

The week had many highlights, but for me a special moment came Wednesday morning when we had Mass in one of the chapels in the catacombs under St. Peter’s Cathedral.  I found myself in the heart of the Vatican, with three Legionaries celebrating a Mass attended by Legionary brothers, consecrated members and plain old Regnum Christi members like me.

Some in the congregation were people I was meeting for the first time; others were long-time friends and professional colleagues.  But what struck me was that despite being from different countries and different cultures, we all were members of the Regnum Christi Movement.  We were all Roman Catholics with a common spirituality and mission.

We often talk of being part of a spiritual family, something I find difficult to define.  But Wednesday morning, in that holy place, I felt very much to be part of the family.  And I am deeply grateful for my many brothers and sisters.

I only want to say that if those in charge of communications for the Legion are unable to define their mission, their charism or the nature of the "family" to which they cleave, then there is still a problem. This is not meant to be an insult to the sincere faith of many members, but the same old plea: the Church herself provides the universality, orthodoxy and communion that we cherish -- what exactly is the unique and unparalleled L/R mission that must attach itself to that body despite the baggage and scandal? Why must it endure when the downside is a constant reminder of duplicity and sin?

Today is the grand feast of Saint Dominic, and one site reminds us of his gift to the Church:

The Order of Preachers “is known to have been established, from the beginning, for preaching and the salvation of souls” (Primitive Constitutions). The Fundamental Constitution of the Order of Preachers underscores the priority of this apostolate. The five distinctive elements comprising the uniquely Dominican way of life (the common life, the evangelical counsels, the common celebration of the liturgy, assiduous study, constancy in regular observance) “together prepare and impel us to preach; they give our preaching its character.” By their religious profession, Dominicans become “fully committed to preaching the Word of God in its totality” so that they live “an apostolic life in the full sense of the word, from which preaching and teaching ought to issue from an abundance of contemplation.”

Every Dominican I know (and here surrounding RI's Providence College there are many) embodies this mission, and attaches him/herself to the community for this very reason. They don't conflate their existence with that of the Church, nor do they struggle to explain what drives them.

Prayers continue for the members of the Movement, and perhaps the intercession of Saint Dominic will assist in clarifying what, presently, remains difficult to define.