Archbishop Flynn moves Fr. Altier

[brendan1104]

[img]http://www.desertvoice.org/Image/frland1GreenJF.jpg[/img]

Father Robert Altier

[quote]Father Robert Altier to be Assistant Chaplain of Nursing Home

Father George Welzbacher, pastor of the Church of Saint Agnes, has issued a statement regarding the unexpected reassignments of both himself and Father Robert Altier. Effective June 19, Father Welzbacher will be leaving Saint Agnes parish at his own request and, after a brief sabbatical, move to the parish of Saint John in Saint Paul, Minnesota. But the biggest surprise is Archbishop Harry Flynn's shocking decision to remove Father Altier from Saint Agnes and appoint him as assistant chaplain of a nursing home in an outlying district 30 miles southeast of Saint Paul-Minneapolis.

At the age of 45, Father Altier has served 17 years in the priesthood, 14 of those as Assistant Pastor at the world-renowned Church of Saint Agnes, and now Archbishop Flynn has decided it is just and proper to relegate him to a nursing home. This is a priest who generously spends long hours in the confessional bringing souls back to God, who has been responsible for guiding numerous young people to offer their lives in religious vocations, who for 17 years has painstakingly given instruction through his Fundamentals of Catholicism course to over 150 people each year and brought hundreds of converts into the Catholic Church, who is renowned for his skills in spiritual direction, who acts as board member and advisor to several orthodox Catholic organizations, and who up until recently had been preaching to a worldwide audience via A Voice in the Desert website and Relevant Radio broadcasting.

The Archbishop stated in a public email on March 20 that he asked Father Altier to cease his multi-media apostolates because it "might be beneficial to him and to the parish of St. Agnes." Apparently, he thought Father needed more time to fulfill his responsibilities at the parish. His Excellency then went on to invite people to "visit Saint Agnes where Fr. Altier continues to actively minister" if they wanted to hear him preach. But now he will reside at a nursing home. Isn't this a contradiction to what the Archbishop originally told us in his message of March 20?

The nursing home in question is Regina Medical Center in Hastings, Minnesota. (You can visit their website pastoral page at [url="http://www.reginamedical.org/index.asp?pageID=page_39.htm"]http://www.reginamedical.org/index.asp?pageID=page_39.htm[/url] and the nursing home information can be found at [url="http://www.reginamedical.org/index.asp?pageID=33"]http://www.reginamedical.org/index.asp?pageID=33[/url] ) This nursing home is a modern 61-bed facility which is currently served by a kindly 75-year-old priest. A chancery official has stated that this present priest chaplain will continue in his current position at Regina; therefore, Father Altier will serve as assistant chaplain. In addition, there is already a religious sister on site who is responsible for ministering to the nursing home and assisted living residents, and she also will continue in her present position. As there is only one scheduled Mass each day which will be prayed by the current chaplain, there are virtually no daily requirements for the assistant chaplain to fulfill besides praying his own private Mass, providing the occasional sacraments of Anointing of the Sick and Confession, and infrequent counseling for residents, patients, or their families. A small hospital is on the premises, but no major surgeries are done there and no trauma unit exists. With approximately 10-12 parishes in the archdiocese lacking a resident priest, it is certainly surprising that a priest of Father Altier's caliber would be sent to a destination where he will have an overabundance of time on his hands.

Since March 1, Catholics worldwide have been asking the following questions: Why did Archbishop Flynn silence Father Altier? Why did he shut down a Catholic website known for its fidelity to the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church? The first clue came when Archdiocesan spokesman Dennis McGrath told the Star Tribune, "I surmise that Father Altier's contrarian position on VIRTUS is the issue." VIRTUS and its related program Talking About Touching (TAT) are the answers proposed by the Bishops of the United States to the sex-abuse scandal which broke out in 2002. Unfortunately, these graphic sex-ed programs are in direct violation of Vatican teachings on human sexuality and do nothing to stop predators but instead place the burden of protection on young children themselves. Archbishop Flynn served as chairperson of the USCCB's Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse which developed these programs and he chose to proliferate it throughout his archdiocese beginning in the 2006-2007 school year, with pilot program testing to start in the spring of 2006. As the material content of these programs became more widely known, concern grew over their appropriateness. And because many aspects of VIRTUS and TAT are contrary to Church teaching (see sample lessons at [url="http://www.primaryeducators.org/lessons.php"]http://www.primaryeducators.org/lessons.php[/url] ), Father Altier felt it was his duty to inform parents in an effort to protect the young children who would have their innocence irrevocably shattered by such programs. As parents became aware of the dangers of VIRTUS and TAT, they explored the possibility of using an alternative program: Formation in Christian Chastity (FICC) from the Diocese of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. (For information, visit [url="http://www.primaryeducators.org/"]http://www.primaryeducators.org/[/url] ) According to a statement made by Father George Welzbacher, pastor of the Church of Saint Agnes, FICC is the program preferred by Archbishop Flynn himself! (You can read Fr. Welzbacher's statement at [url="http://www.desertvoice.org/responseoffraltierandfrwelzbacher.htm"]http://www.desertvoice.org/responseoffralt...rwelzbacher.htm[/url] )

It is interesting that the Archbishop would choose to exclusively promote VIRTUS/TAT when he actually prefers FICC. LifeSiteNews and other Catholic news services have stated that VIRTUS enjoys the support of homosexual activist groups around the country. (See article [url="http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06040706.html"]http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06040706.html[/url] ) The program is also endorsed by none other than Planned Parenthood. Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz of the diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, recently stated that it was a well known fact that the members of the National Review Board responsible for mandating the use of these sex-ed programs are "ardent advocates of partial birth abortion, other abortions, human cloning, and other moral errors." (See article [url="http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06040302.html"]http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06040302.html[/url] ) And so it was that at a recent meeting of approximately 200 local Catholic school principals and religious education directors on February 10, 2006, the question was asked about "what was going to be done about local priests that were stirring up the pot about the chancery's safe-environment initiative." Sister Fran Donnelly, the Saint Paul-Minneapolis archdiocesan director of the Protection of Children and Youth Initiative, answered that "[Vicar General] Fr. Kevin McDonough is getting out a two-by-four." (You can read her response at [url="http://thewandererpress.com/a3-9-2006.htm"]http://thewandererpress.com/a3-9-2006.htm[/url] ) As Father Altier has been at the forefront of the efforts to stop the infiltration of VIRTUS in our archdiocese, it is clear to see that the two-by-four Sister Donnelly was referring to came to Father Altier on Ash Wednesday in the form of the Archbishop's request that he take his material off the internet and stop participating in broadcasts on Relevant Radio.

And now that Father Altier will be sent to a nursing home, one can see just how cruel this two-by-four has been, and continues to be. The fact that the Archbishop delivered his initial request on Ash Wednesday speaks volumes. It made for a very harsh Lent for Father Altier and all of you worldwide who have come to rely on Father's sound spiritual instruction on the internet and radio. Yet Our Lord said that a light shines brighter in the darkness, and so Father's continuing example of obedience and gentleness during this trial is a beacon for all of us on how to live the truly Catholic life. He had told us that he "would go down for the sake of the children" because he truly loves each and every soul. We thank God for his courage and for any priest who would be willing to do the same. Bishop Bruskewitz, Bishop Vasa, and a handful of others are standing firm in refusing to allow these horrendous sex-ed programs into their dioceses. (To learn about the scandalous origins of these programs, see [url="http://thewandererpress.com/a11-3-2005.htm"]http://thewandererpress.com/a11-3-2005.htm[/url] ) Fortunately, the superior they report to -- Pope Benedict XVI -- is in full unity with Catholic doctrine and these bishops have maintained their allegiance to the Holy Father without yielding to pressure from dissident factions within the Church. (Bishop Vasa's statement is at [url="http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004/jul/04072107.html"]http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004/jul/04072107.html[/url] ) But for Father Altier, his future is in the immediate hands of Archbishop Flynn.

Most regretfully, we do not see the same obedience from our Archbishop as we are witnessing today in Father Altier. (For details concerning the Archbishop's conduct go to [url="http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/mar/06030602.html"]http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/mar/06030602.html[/url] ) The archdiocese continues to sink deeper and deeper into depravity while the homosexual community is pandered to, and meanwhile we witness this wrongful action and extreme marginalization committed against a priest who has been a faithful son of Holy Mother Church. Why should it be that our own elderly Archbishop is personally thanked by the gay Rainbow Sash movement for his support of the homosexual agenda within the Church, and a good, holy, young orthodox priest like Father Altier gets sent to a nursing home? What a contrast this is!

We initially suggested that you contact Most Reverend Harry J. Flynn in a charitable manner to express your concerns about Father Altier's situation, but now you may want to contact the following Vatican officials to express your grave distress at the blatant injustice we are seeing unfold before our eyes -- because, after all, one wonders what will be next.

His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI PP.
Apostolic Palace
Via del Pellegrino
Citta del Vaticano
Vatican City State, 00120
phone: 011.3906.6988.10.22
email: av@pccs.va
fax: 011.3906.6988.53.73

His Eminence Dario Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos
Prefect
The Congregation for the Clergy
Piazza Pio XII 3
00120 Vatican City State
phone: 011.3906.69.88.4l.5l
Fax: 011.3906.69.88.48.45

His Excellency The Most Reverend Pietro Sambi
Apostolic Nuncio to the United States
3339 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008-3687
phone: 202-333-7l2l
fax: 202-337-4036

See www.desertvoice.org for more information [/quote]


[quote] Catholic lay leaders support embattled priest
Rev. Robert Altier was ordered to cease the broadcast of his homilies and their publication on-line.

Friday, May 05, 2006
by Martin Barillas

Leaders and members of several Roman Catholic lay organizations are circulating a petition addressed to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Minneapolis-St. Paul (MN) Harry J. Flynn to rescind an order silencing the popular priest, Rev. Robert Altier.

Kenneth M. Fisher of California, founder of Concerned Roman Catholics of America, authored the petition, which calls for the archbishop to “reconsider his unjust silencing of this good priest.”

Among the signatories currently are Mary Ann Kreitzer of Les Femmes, Georgene M. Sorenson of Romans in the Desert, Katherine Garrigan of Fidelity, and Valerie Lubitz, Michael A. Curtis, Carol Suhr – all of Los Pequeños de Cristo. Fisher vows to forward the petition and resolution to Archbishop Flynn, as well as the Apostolic Delegate in Washington DC and members of various dicasteries at the Vatican once a sufficient number of signatures are appended.

Rev. Robert Altier was ordered to cease the broadcast of his homilies and their publication on-line.

The letter sent by archbishop to the priest ordering him to desist has not yet been published, although a diocesan spokesman averred that it was because of Father Altier’s “contrarian” views about a Planned Parenthood-approved sexuality curriculum being proffered by the diocese to Catholic children. Father Altier has been outspoken in his dissent from Roman Catholic bishops who have selected such programs that have been approved by persons affiliated with pro-abortion organizations such as: Feminist Majority, and the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS).

In an homily delivered in 2005, Father Altier delivered a scathing denunciation of the VIRTUS program that had approval from Roman Catholic bishops.

Father Altier criticized the bishops’ recourse to “raising awareness” to sexual abuse and inappropriate touching of children by adults.

Father Altier especially scoured the bishops for hiring Teresa Kettelkamp – a Catholic educator who has received an award from the Feminist Majority, which is led by famed feminist and pro-abortion advocate Eleanor Smeal. Father Altier expressed concern over letters sent by Kettelkamp in the name of the bishops that require compliance with “Safe Touch” programs that have since come under fire by numerous Catholic lay people and organizations.

In a homily transcribed last year, Father Altier said “These things are nothing sort of disgusting, and, if I may say, they completely violate the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church.”

Father Altier’s recorded homilies and on-line discussions of Catholic morality had gained a considerable following not only in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area but further abroad in the US. Saying this year during Lent that the silencing has been a “gift from God” and “I am merely an instrument that God is using for a much larger purpose.”

Martin Barillas is a former US diplomat and human rights observer who served in Latin America, Europe, and the US. He is now Religion News editor for Spero News. [/quote]

Edited May 13, 2006 by homeschoolmom

[Seven77]

Fr. Altier!? He has awesome homilies.

O Mother of God, help us!

[Pio Nono]

JMJ
5/12 - St. Pancras

Welcome to St. Paul.

[Cam42]

It is a travesty. I have tried to get ahold of him, but it is hard. As soon as I do, I will give an update.

Please pray for my friend. Thank you.

[the_rev]

[mod]See phorum guidelines: *Effective immediately, any negative criticism of the current Magisterium will result in deletion, and a warning from the moderators. - dUSt[/mod]

[brendan1104]

[mod]See phorum guidelines: *Effective immediately, any negative criticism of the current Magisterium will result in deletion, and a warning from the moderators. - dUSt[/mod]

Edited May 14, 2006 by dUSt

[brendan1104]

[mod]Pictures too big. - dUSt[/mod]

[img]http://www.desertvoice.org/Image/frland1GreenJF.jpg[/img]

Father Robert Altier preaching...

[jezic]

this reminds me of the story of St. Padre Pio.

While it may seem unfair, archbishop is a bishop and an Apostle. His reasons are his own.

It is my prayer above all that those involved become an imitation of Christ on a very intimate level. It suggests the quality of Fr. Altier's character to continue to holy obedience to his bishop.

[MissScripture]

[quote name='jezic' post='979690' date='May 12 2006, 10:46 PM']
It suggests the quality of Fr. Altier's character to continue to holy obedience to his bishop.
[/quote]
Exactly. He is doing what he should be in obeying the bishop.
Keep in mind, God is in ultimate control, and He does things that we don't understand. Who's to say that something great won't come out of this whole situation? We don't know what is going to happen. Just keep praying that things work out for the best.

[JP2Iloveyou]

I do not post on Phatmass much anymore for various reasons, but this just screams for someone to respond to it. Some of you people, for lack of a better way of saying it, have seriously overstepped your bounds. How arrogant are you to think that you know better how a bishop should assign his priests? Hasn't anyone ever heard of the virtue of humility? How about obedience? Rev, you say you don't like Archbishop Flynn? Have you ever met the man, or are you basing your opinions on things that you have read, most of which are distorted by the media and extreme right-wing Catholics with an agenda? I'll have you know that St. John Vianney in St. Paul is among the finest college seminaries in the world, let alone the United States. St. Paul's Seminary is doing a fine job as well.

Seriously, Fr. Altier is wonderful, I'm sure, but in so many cases in the priesthood, you reap the fruit that others have sown before you. Many priests will tell you this. What is so wrong with going to a nursing home? Some of what I'm reading on here reeks of Donatism, the belief that the value or worth of the sacraments depends on the priest's own holiness. This was declared a heresy! Augustine railed against it. I'm sure Fr. Altier would say the exact same thing. Be careful brethren, pride is a dangerous, dangerous sin to fall into, and often we fall into it very subtly. The devil wants us to think that we are going along well on our own accord, or that we know better than the man whom God has chosen and appointed to lead that particular Archdiocese.

Sorry for being so over the top, but nothing irritates me more than reading of Catholics unjustly criticizing a bishop.

[the_rev]

[mod]See phorum guidelines: *Effective immediately, any negative criticism of the current Magisterium will result in deletion, and a warning from the moderators. - dUSt[/mod]

[Thy Geekdom Come]

"For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself. But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God." -Acts 5:38-39

[homeschoolmom]

I'm curious why Fr. Altier has been Associate Pastor at St. Agnes for 14 years in the first place.

[Piccoli Fiori JMJ]

My Catholic Co-Chaplain here at school wrote in and complained about Fr. Altier to Relevant Radio saying he wasn't respresenting the Church's teachings. That made me sad... very... I really enjoyed listening to Father's wisdom! I miss hearing his voice now... but he is loyal to being obediant. He will be rewarded greatly if this was all done wrongly...

[jezic]

[quote name='JP2Iloveyou' post='979747' date='May 13 2006, 12:15 AM']
I do not post on Phatmass much anymore for various reasons, but this just screams for someone to respond to it. Some of you people, for lack of a better way of saying it, have seriously overstepped your bounds. How arrogant are you to think that you know better how a bishop should assign his priests? Hasn't anyone ever heard of the virtue of humility? How about obedience? Rev, you say you don't like Archbishop Flynn? Have you ever met the man, or are you basing your opinions on things that you have read, most of which are distorted by the media and extreme right-wing Catholics with an agenda? I'll have you know that St. John Vianney in St. Paul is among the finest college seminaries in the world, let alone the United States. St. Paul's Seminary is doing a fine job as well.

Seriously, Fr. Altier is wonderful, I'm sure, but in so many cases in the priesthood, you reap the fruit that others have sown before you. Many priests will tell you this. What is so wrong with going to a nursing home? Some of what I'm reading on here reeks of Donatism, the belief that the value or worth of the sacraments depends on the priest's own holiness. This was declared a heresy! Augustine railed against it. I'm sure Fr. Altier would say the exact same thing. Be careful brethren, pride is a dangerous, dangerous sin to fall into, and often we fall into it very subtly. The devil wants us to think that we are going along well on our own accord, or that we know better than the man whom God has chosen and appointed to lead that particular Archdiocese.

Sorry for being so over the top, but nothing irritates me more than reading of Catholics unjustly criticizing a bishop.
[/quote]

the thing is that at a nursing home, his homilies do not have as much of an impact. I mean they are still important, but it is different preaching to them then it is to a room full of adult Catholics.

Maybe God does want to give some of them a new light, however as an associate would then be a strange move. Considering the priestly shortage in other areas of the diocese and Fr. Altier's personal characteristics, he would seem better fit for another parish in my opinion. As an associate at a nursing home 50 miles away is just kind of strange. 2 priests for an obscure nursing home at one corner of the archdiocese. That sounds peculiar to me.

What discord there is present i hope is resolved soon. Now, i am not an expert on archbishop Flynn or Fr. Altier but there seems to be something. Usually it is not our place to comment on the actions of a bishop and even here that may be warranted, however we must note our precedent of history and the valiant defense of the truth against bishops of past times. We have many examples of saints that bishops or Vatican officials did not like who persevered in faith. We must all pray that Fr. Altier does the same.

And yet maybe in some way this is for the best. He might be writing a book, or preparing something big. Sometimes too priests just need a break to regather themselves physically and spiritually to prepare for the next stage.

We will see in the coming times.

[Ash Wednesday]

How is it that people that live in nursing homes somehow aren't adult Catholics?

[Theoketos]

Could whoever posted the pics please resize them so this thread can more easily be read?

[Seven77]

Father's website-- A Voice in the Desert:
[url="http://www.desertvoice.org"]http://www.desertvoice.org[/url]


[quote]...the Apostles 2000 years ago... rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name [Acts 5:41]. All of this is part of God’s loving providence and [b]He will bring about a greater good from this than any of us can ask or imagine. [/b]Can you think of a better way to live out the Lenten observance?

Regarding the letter from the Archbishop, I will not release it to anyone. This is done solely out of respect for the Archbishop. He did not request that I not release the letter; it is my decision to act in this manner out of respect for his Excellency.

The Archbishop acted within the bounds of his jurisdictional rights (canon 831 §2) and I simply have to obey. The rest is up to our Lord and Our Lady. It is so wonderful because I am at peace and filled with joy knowing that through obedience I am doing the will of God.

Who could ask for anything more in this world than to know with certainty the will of God for you at any given moment and to be able to live it out in peace and joy? The whole thing is a pure gift from God. This is my take on the whole situation, but as I mentioned above, this cannot possibly be about me. I am merely an instrument that God is using for a much larger purpose. So, if you want to write an article, you really do need to look at what God is doing here.[/quote]

[cmotherofpirl]

I really don't think anyone here is qualified to discuss the diocesean assignments given to priests by their bishop. God is ultimately in chage and obedience is a virtue for clergy and laity alike.

[Fidei Defensor]

God bless Father for taking his assignment in Holy Obedience.