The Pope’s
wish?
(Handout distributed February 2003)
Supporting Bishop Grahmann’s Resignation
Bishop Charles Grahmann has failed to resign following a long history of
making tragic errors in the Dallas Diocese. The Pope himself indicated
he wanted a resignation when he assigned a coadjutor bishop three years
ago, 7 years before the traditional retirement age for a bishop. Bishop
Grahmann had requested an assistant bishop. Instead a coadjutor bishop was
appointed. This practice is described in church documents as one going back
many years. In 1965 His Holiness, Pope
Paul VI wrote in his Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops, CHRISTUS DOMINUS: “The pastoral office of Bishops should be so constituted for the
governing of dioceses that the good of the Lord's flock is always the supreme
consideration. Rightly to achieve this goal, auxiliary bishops will frequently
be appointed because the diocesan bishop cannot personally fulfill all his
episcopal duties as the good of souls demands, either because of the vast
extent of the diocese or the great number of its inhabitants, or because of the
special nature of the apostolate or other reasons of a different nature.
Sometimes, in fact, a particular need requires that a coadjutor bishop be
appointed to assist the diocesan bishop.” (See part III, Section 1 “Coadjutor
and auxiliary bishops” at http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_decree_19651028_christus-dominus_en.html
(Note: an online copy of
this document at www.wearethechurch.org/handout.html has
linked footnotes so that exact sources for all quotations used here can be
easily seen.)
While the above quote is not necessarily
negative, when an extensive search of Catholic publications is made you will
find quotes that indicate more about the nature of such an appointment. Quotes
are found such as “The appointment of a coadjutor bishop was widely seen as
an expression of concern by the Vatican...." (From a Catholic World
News story dated 8-23-99 entitled Mexico Bishops Reassert
Pope's Role In Bishop Succession and
online at http://www.cwnews.com/Browse/1999/08/10931.htm.)
Another quote was found from John Allen, experienced Vatican
correspondent: “the appointment of a coadjutor bishop ... is a time-honored
Vatican solution for troubled dioceses, avoiding the necessity to remove the
existing bishop while effectively placing the diocese under new
management." (From the 12-20-02 issue of the National Catholic Reporter
and located in an article entitled “Theories
surround Law’s visit located online at http://www.natcath.com/NCR_Online/archives/122002/122002k.htm.)
A more recent article from the 6-9-02 Dallas
Morning News, Inside the Dallas diocese, workers sense tension at top, stated:
"Bishop Grahmann said he petitioned the Vatican in 1998 for an assistant
bishop because his diocese had doubled in size and he needed the help. ... He
expected to receive an auxiliary, a bishop with no right of succession. Some
church leaders said the appointment of a coadjutor was a signal that the
Vatican wanted Bishop Grahmann to step down." (Located online at http://www.dallasnews.com/religion/bishops/stories/060902dnmetdalbishops.6ed75.html.)
Bishop Grahmann’s decisions have cost the Dallas Diocese thousands of members along with millions of dollars lost in litigation due to errors he continues to fail to credibly acknowledge. This damage to Catholic credibility in Dallas severely hurts our ability to protect the unborn and other vulnerable peoples we are normally seen as serving and protecting.
Sadly, as we walked the streets Friday evenings from December through June with signs asking for Bishop Grahmann to resign, the people passing on the streets often greet us with encouragement. When we stand on sidewalks outside of Catholic Churches on Sunday morning it is very rare that anyone does not agree with our demonstration, and then most often it is only to ask us to demonstrate elsewhere, but they support the cause. It certainly appears that a majority of Catholics support the resignation of Bishop Grahmann. Where does this leave the credibility of Bishop Grahmann?
There are many questions that have been presented to, or should be presented to, Bishop Grahmann that have not been answered? Please go to the website www.wearethechurch.org, to see where these questions are collecting. To date these questions are not being addressed by the Bishop or by the people who are described as speaking for him. They are questions relating to the Rudy Kos case and many of the decisions made since that tragic time in the life of our Diocese, many apparently not related to the Kos case.
By our silence Catholics are giving the impression
we support Bishop Grahmann.
Please sign the petition asking for Bishop Grahmann's immediate resignation that is now online at www.concernedcatholics.com. Also help to spread word of this petition to other Catholics you may know.
Please also write Bishop Grahmann at 3725 Blackburn, Dallas, TX 75237. Let him know of your concerns. Let him know if you have signed the petition asking for his immediate resignation as found at www.concernedcatholics.com.