Coverage: Former Abp. of Zimbabwe Pius Ncube admits adulterous affair

Last September I blogged at length about the resignation of Zimbabwen Archbishop Pius Ncube.

At the time, the truth of the matter was difficult to determine. For the full backstory, read the original post.

Today, things are very clear:

"It is true, I do admit that I did fail in keeping God's commandment with regard to adultery," admitted Pius Ncube ...” "Having failed in keeping the Seventh Commandment Thou shalt not commit adultery, I would like to apologize to you, I'd like to apologize that so many of you were praying for me, for the fact that so many of you standing with me in fact suffered so much." (via CNA, more from CWNews.)

Ncube was the most vocal opponent of the President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, whom from all reports, is a thoroughly nasty dictator. It is a great blow that his personal sin has destroyed his ability to effectively help the plight of Zunbabwen citizens. It didn't help that he long denied the truth of the adultery charges.

One report said he was "widely tipped as a future Nobel Peace Prize winner" but has now been "ordered to stop speaking out about conditions in his devastated country" by Rome. Zimbabwe has the highest infaltion rate and lowest life expectancy. There is areport that Ncube is now in the United Kingdom awaiting a Vatican decision.

Frontier Africa TV has a short video clip of the his admission, and scenes from his ministry. It's moving.

He says:

"I'm not going to be silenced. I don't mind so much what people do to me personally, but what I do mind is the damage and evil to the people coming from the government of Zimbabwe.

More from the Sunday Herald.

I've been watching to see how the media treats this situation:

Zimbabwe has lost in the immediate term what was one of the most courageous and best-known voices of opposition to Mugabe. In the longer term, the controversy will inevitably raise questions about the gap between how prelates in Rome believe the faithful in Africa should behave, and the reality on the ground.

It is no great secret among those who live in Africa that Roman Catholic priests on that continent often honour the vow of celibacy as much in the breach as in the practice. Some priests have children, while others listen to the quiet advice of their bishops to practice birth control. Roman Catholic nuns sometimes defy papal doctrine and freely distribute condoms to their flocks to help counter the HIV/Aids pandemic, which is cutting a swathe through Africa. Many Zimbabweans and other Africans are likely to see as disproportionate the Vatican smothering of a powerful focus of opposition to Mugabe on account of an all too human failing - one that the Zimbabwe regime was bound to spot and exploit.

While this account misses some important distinctions, on the whole, it's not far from the truth. Clerical discipline is not universally observed in Africa, but I don't think that's a closely-kept secret even outside Africa. And we all hope and pray that it improves. Certainly there are amazing examples of fidelity and obedience in Africa as well. But those stories don't make headlines.

And this isn't the first time in human history that a person forfeited their ability to do good because of personal sin. The devil gives extra attention to those called to great things, and so we should pray for this man, and all individuals who face these struggles, especially priests and bishops.

A last word from Ncube:

"I think Christ would condemn the violence, widespread rape and torture by government agencies and the Mugabe-loyal youth militia," he said. "I don't think Christ would have survived in Zimbabwe. We're all being held to ransom by one despot. Mugabe's government doesn't like people who speak the truth. Plenty of people who criticise the government have died mysteriously. Christ wouldn't have had a chance."

But Christ was the sinless man who died for our sins, Ncube's included. We could all benefit from looking to the example of Christ whose witness to the truth was perfectly free from every hint of sin, Ncube included.

update: In the Light of the Law makes the technical point that the archbishop has admitted to violating his vows of continence, not (strictly-speaking) celibacy.

I would also add, reflecting on the story a bit more, that I am concerned about Ncube's ongoing problem with obedience to the Church. The circumstances of his interview with the reporter seemed to be contrary to the Vatican's wishes, for instance, and he seems to drop some hints that he does not intend to be silenced. Well, I hope as part of his penance he remains faithful to his vow of obedience.

Controversy: "Senator's Inquiry Into Megachurch Money Hypocrisy Sparks Church-State Showdown"

Something to get us all depressed and cynical on a Monday morning:

The New Testament reports that Jesus rarely used fancy modes of transportation to get around. He walked most of the time, although Matthew and other gospels mention that he once rode a borrowed donkey into Jerusalem, where he burst into the Temple and tossed out the money changers.

Nearly 2,000 years later, some who claim to speak in Jesus' name are taking a different view. Consider Bishop Eddie Long, who pastors a megachurch in Lithonia, Ga. With a salary approaching $1 million a year and a nine-bathroom mansion situated on 20 acres, Long's choice of vehicles reflects his opulent lifestyle: He drives a $350,000 Bentley.

Far from casting out money changers, Long is likely to join them. In a 2005 profile in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, he defended his high-flying ways, insisting, "I pastor a multimillion dollar congregation. You've got to put me on a different scale than the little black preacher sitting over there that's supposed to be just getting by because the people are suffering."

Long's lack of humility has probably done him no favors.

[Read the full story.]

I'm not sure when else I'll ever get to fit this in, but that Joel Osteen guy [picture] really irks me. Anyone who uses a BA in television production as his sole credentials to preach is begging the question, if you ask me.

And it's not only the "lack 0f credentials," but also his constant posturing as a preacher-healer with next to no scriptural content, rarely mentioning sin, and constantly dealing in platitudes. This is no true help.

O'Malley uses "scandal" to describe Catholics voting for pro-choice politicians, while Lori suggests jumping through hoops

Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston, saying the Democratic Party has been persistently hostile to opponents of abortion rights, asserted yesterday that the support of many Catholics for Democratic candidates "borders on scandal."

In his sharpest comments about the political landscape since he was installed as archbishop of Boston four years ago, O'Malley made clear that, despite his differences with the Republican Party over immigration policy, capital punishment, economic issues, and the war in Iraq, he views abortion as the most important moral issue facing policymakers.

"I think the Democratic Party, which has been in many parts of the country traditionally the party which Catholics have supported, has been extremely insensitive to the church's position, on the gospel of life in particular, and on other moral issues," O'Malley said.

Acknowledging that Catholic voters in Massachusetts generally support Democratic candidates who are in favor of abortion rights, O'Malley said, "I think that, at times, it borders on scandal as far as I'm concerned."

"However, when I challenge people about this, they say, 'Well, bishop, we're not supporting [abortion rights],' " he said. "I think there's a need for people to very actively dissociate themselves from those unacceptable positions, and I think if they did that, then the party would have to change."

O'Malley urged the Democratic Party to be more open to abortion opponents. "My plea with Democratic leaders is always that they make space for prolife politicians, and I have many prolife Democrats come to me and say that they're not making space for them. I think that that is a very serious problem, particularly in a state like Massachusetts, where it is so heavily Democrat." - Boston Globe

Someone is reaping the good fruits of the Fall Meeting. CWNews summarizes here.

Meanwhile Bishop William Lori prevaricates over the proposed hypothetical of whether one can legitimately vote for a pro-abortion politician because of "grave proportional reasons":

After the briefing concluded, Lori responded to a reporter’s question about another situation, in which one candidate may hold an anti-abortion position but oppose other concerns of the church, while that candidate's opponent may be pro-choice but sympathetic to the church in other ways.

“That’s such a hypothetical question, it would be very hard to answer as asked,” Lori said. “I think what we are saying is that if a voter is confronted with a dilemma of a pro-life candidate who is in some other way flawed or unfit for office, or likely to discredit the pro-life position, one might be in a dilemma, a difficult situation.”

“A situation could arise that the pro-life candidate would be in some other way unsuitable,” Lori said. “It could be that the way in which he would advance the pro-life cause might do more harm than good. It might be that his opposition to other human goods is so rabid that a conscientious voter might be put in a dilemma. In that case, you have to weigh that over against the other candidate.”

“The main point of the statement,” Lori said, “is that you can’t easily reach that decision. You can’t reach it because you prefer one party over another, you can’t reach it because in addition to everything else the candidate is going to make you feel better. It can't be because of economic advantage.

“You really have to go through some hoops to come to that conclusion,” Lori said. “I think that the more who go through those hoops, the better off we’re going to be.”

... huh? "Hoops"?! Let's all go through hoops?!

First of all, this isn't "such a hypothetical question." People regularly defend voting for a pro-abortion politician because they believe that candidate so-and-so proportionally is better on the "other life issues" (such as, say, immigration and health care).

However, the twin statements in this new USCCB document (PDF) which claim that abortion is "not just one issue among many" and "must always be opposed" strike me as formulations that do not admit of proportionalist evaluations: if you put "abortion" on one side of the scales and "health care" on the other - the scale's going to definitively fall one way. You can't have it both ways.

Or, to contextualize the dilemma, how can we have one Bishop saying that voting for pro-choice politicians "borders on scandal" while another Bishop can go around claiming that "You really have to go through some hoops to come to that conclusion" (whatever he actually meant)?

Either it's clear, or it isn't. So, which is it?

Update: CNA posts its coverage here. Diogenes finds O'Malley's addition of the qualifier "borders on" to be needless, and then presents ample facts to support his claim. His conclusion:

"If you're looking for something that "borders on" a state of scandal, I'd say: New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island."

Oh my, that's just brilliant.

Fr. Francis Mary Stone & EWTN

As many of you have heard, Fr. Francis Mary Stone, the host of EWTN's popular Life on the Rock TV program was supposed to host a segment last Thursday on the topic of Campion College in Sydney as well as Australia's upcoming World Youth Day.

Instead, I'm told that this letter was read by a substitute:

Dear Family,

Regretfully, I have a message that does not come without significant pain to both you and me. I have to tell you in all honesty and truth, that I have been personally involved with helping a widow and her struggling family. Over the course of time, the mother and I have grown very close. As a result, I am compelled to take some time off to prayerfully and honestly discern my future.

I am truly sorry of the impact this may have on so many. I am not unaware of the gravity and magnitude of the situation, yet after much wise counsel, it is really something that I must deal with now for the good of all.

With that said, it is best that I deal with it away from EWTN. Therefore, I have asked for and graciously been granted some extended time to prayerfully discern my vocation.

To those who are part of the EWTN family locally, and others throughout the world, especially all those who have supported me so faithfully in my priestly vocation and ministry here on Life on the Rock, I sincerely apologize. I ask for your prayers and understanding during this time that is so very difficult, but yet so very necessary.

Please lift me up in your humble prayers to Jesus through Mary, our Mother, in Grace and Mercy.

Fr Francis Mary, MFVA [I have verified the text personally. - AmP]

I would join others who have been calling for prayers on behalf of Fr. Francis Mary. We should also remember in our prayers the fact that he is in a very grave situation.

Needless to say, Fr. Francis Mary's letter has caused a great deal of grief to his viewers, and I think it's important to allay some of the fears I've seen people express.

I'm not sure how EWTN has gone about addressing this situation, but I would say that in cases of public scandal like this it is important for EWTN to take Fr. Francis Mary's decision as a teaching opportunity. Cases of laicization are not unheard of, and in all of our learning from priests we must distinguish their authentic teaching (which rests upon the Rock of Christ) from the particular teacher (who sadly does not always perfectly participate in the grace of Christ the Teacher).

That said, this turn of affairs is very public, and EWTN should take care that its viewers are not scandalized beyond what is already a sad (but not irredeemable) situation. From all I've seen been able to determine thus far, it seems that EWTN has decided to purge most references to Fr. Francis Mary from their website and recurring video spots. I even had to go to a 3rd-party website to find his picture.

Catholics should feel no embarrassment in this situation, and EWTN should give the full truth of the matter to the viewers that come to it for exactly that. While we are all saddened when a prominent Catholic figure missteps, none of us should be surprised by temptation. Some thoughtful editorializing would be entirely proper and pastoral in an upcoming Life on the Rock episode. (I should note that since I don't regularly watch the show I don't have a sure way of knowing that this response hasn't in fact already been done or is planned.) I realize that it can be difficult to handle situations such as this one, but the primary concern should be the care of souls, not the reputation of the network, etc. I've read through quite a few message boards and comment threads to find that a great number of people have been disappointed by this news, and at the same time there seems to be scant little that EWTN has done to provide context and reconciliation. I trust that EWTN viewers will be given something more than Fr. Francis Mary's statement? Maybe some sort of notice over at the Life on the Rock webpage?

[update: scroll down this post to read my comments on the LOTR segment now that I've heard the audio.]

And I would also hope that discussion of this situation in general does not generate into finger-pointing (at Fr. Francis Mary, the widow, EWTN, his brother friars, etc). Prayers are primary here, and no one knows the full details of the situation. I'm just concerned that the general principles that apply in such matters are expressed forthrightly by those who have previously worked with him.

If anyone has youtubed last week's Life on the Rock segment, I'd be much obliged....

Update: For whatever reason (the Internet gods are fickle), this post is getting a huge influx of visitors from search engines and blog crawlers. Welcome to the new readers. Let's keep the discussions exemplary.

Update 2: The EWTN website allows you to watch the most recent Life on the Rock episode in RealPlayer video format here. As of Sunday night (11/4), I couldn't get that link to work. I hope the problem is merely technical.

The mp3 of the show, however, is still available here (large file). My summary and comments:

The substitute, Fr. Anthony Mary, does make a note before reading the letter that it is "difficult for him, and may not be appropriate for younger viewers." He asks that parents be attentive to what their children are hearing and then proceeds to read the letter. (I wonder what kinds of parent-child conversations ensued?)

After reading the letter, Fr. Anthony Mary addresses the EWTN audience and says that this is a time when all involved are in great need of prayers and support. Always remember, Fr. Anthony Mary says, that no one is beyond the power of God's mercy or redemption. They ask for prayers one again, then go to a break (in which the lengthy advertisement is ironically a priest giving his personal vocation testimony and talking about his desire to be a priest until the day he dies, etc.) and then resume the show.

Interestingly, the substitute anchor begins by adding that "evil and sin do not have the last word - there's always hope" referring to Fr. Francis Mary's plight, which, to my mind, is a much more negative evalation of the circumstances than most commenters are generally giving it. There might be something to consider here.

Update 3 (Nov. 7): Steve Ray dims hopes that we'll see Fr. Francis return to LOTR:

I have had other independent confirmation of the validity of the e-mail. From what I hear it is a bit worse than what the official announcement told us. It seems EWTN is clearing reference to him off their website and I guess I don't blame them. It is sad to hear this kind of news, but I pray he will be treated with mercy and God's will will be done in his life.

I think that's the final word in this unfortunate chapter.

Update 4 (Nov. 11): Once again, this post is getting a huge influx of visitors, which leads me to believe that some television or radio program recently mentioned the story and now folks are searching the internet for more details (you've come to the right place) .... am I right?