Around New England
Major Donor To Archdiocese of Boston Disagrees With Catholic Church On Marriage and Priesthood
November 19, 2023
Longtime donor and fund-raiser Jack Connors told a newspaper columnist recently that the Catholic Church should allow women to become priests and should bless same-sex marriages.
Connors, 81, a wealthy philanthropist, was a lay adviser to Cardinal Bernard Law when he was archbishop of Boston and has also been close to Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the current archbishop of Boston.
Joan Vennochi, a columnist for The Boston Globe, reported on Monday, November 13 that Connors likened the Catholic Church to the business world – where, he said, “Change and adaptation are critical.”
Vennochi wrote:
As Connors acknowledges, no one has asked him to design a future church. “But in my church, men and women will be equal,” he said “Today, in my church, women are second class and gays need not apply, even though many of the priests are gay.” If that basic model doesn’t change, he said, “they’ll send more and more people away, when they are supposed to be bringing them in.”
The Catholic Church teaches that marriage is between one man and one woman, and that there is no such thing as marriage between people of the same sex. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says that same-sex sex acts are “gravely disordered” and are “contrary to the natural law,” but that people who feel same-sex attraction can “resolutely approach Christian perfection” through chastity, friendship, prayer, and grace from the sacraments.
As for women priests, the Church notes that Jesus chose men to be the first priests and bishops, not women, and says the Church doesn’t have the ability to ordain women to the priesthood.
New to NewBostonPost? Conservative media is hard to find in Massachusetts. But you’ve found it. Now dip your toe in the water for two bucks — $2 for two months. And join the real revolution.
