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| STRONG WITH THE WEAK, WEAK WITH THE STRONG |
As we reported yesterday (first post here), Fr. Justin Wylie, a South African priest serving as attaché to the Holy See's United Nations Permanent Observer Mission, was dismissed from his regular functions as a priest in the Archdiocese of New York following a sermon on the urgent need for the Archdiocese to send true and sympathetic shepherds to serve (and guide) those who attend the Extraordinary Form of the Mass in the Archdiocese.
We can now add that a correspondent of the blog spoke personally to Monsignor Edward Weber, the director of priest personnel for the Archdiocese of New York, regarding the astonishing, unprecedented, and violent dismissal (with letters sent even to his employer, the Holy See's United Nations Permanent Observer mission, and his native diocese). The monsignor told this correspondent that the removal of Fr. Wylie did not go through his office (whose whole purpose is the administration of priestly personnel affairs), but came "directly from the Cardinal's office".
We can now add that a correspondent of the blog spoke personally to Monsignor Edward Weber, the director of priest personnel for the Archdiocese of New York, regarding the astonishing, unprecedented, and violent dismissal (with letters sent even to his employer, the Holy See's United Nations Permanent Observer mission, and his native diocese). The monsignor told this correspondent that the removal of Fr. Wylie did not go through his office (whose whole purpose is the administration of priestly personnel affairs), but came "directly from the Cardinal's office".
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The contrast of how Fr. Wylie was handled with how was considered, for instance, the affair involving another visiting priest, from the Diocese of Oakland, Califonia, could not be greater. Some years ago, this visiting priest from Oakland had been arrested for a lewd act in public in that city (police report - very graphic content).
Yet last fall he was a regular Sunday and weekday celebrant at the Church of Our Saviour in Manhattan. The Church posted this pleasant goodbye on Facebook when he departed:
He was in residence at the nearby parish of Our Lady of the Scapular and St. Stephen, where he gave an Advent workshop. When parishioners learned of his background and complained to the Archdiocese they were told that he was in good standing with his bishop in Oakland and therefore was acceptable to the Archdiocese.
The visiting priest from Oakland did not celebrate the Traditional Mass.
