DIVORCED PERSONS. RE-MARRIED PERSONS. 

YOU ARE WELCOME HERE!

Divorce is a tragedy, but no one is exluded.  This is probably the most significant difference between the Roman Catholic and Old Catholic and Ecumenical Catholic Communion & Diocese of Texas.  We recognize that human beings often marry to young or without sufficient reflection, or in the heat of passion that masks deeper problems, or for a variety of other personal reasons.  We feel that divorce should not be an unscalable wall standing between two unhappy beings and the Sacraments that can bring to them comfort and healing.  We recognize that Christ's message is of love and forgivenesss. If mortal sin can be forgiven, a failed marriage can too.  Likewise, we offer special counseling to the divorced, both to welcome them back to Catholicism, and also to help them find, if they so choose, the wisdom to make marriage work for them, again!  Call is for questions.  All you calls can be kept strictly confidential if needed: Monsignor Rob Hall (254) 350-8060.

POSITIONS ON BIRTH CONTROL & MARRIED PRIESTS

Each denomination establishes its own Code of Canon Law and virtually every single one has ruled that conception is a matter of conscience, basically a decision that a married couple make, ideally after some prayer and consultation with their spiritual advisor.

The Roman Catholic Church does not condone the use of contraception, and is the only major religious group in all Christendom with a celibate clergy.  Celibacy has been a requirement of the Roman Church only since the year 1100 or so.  For the first thousand years of Catholic history, priests, bishops and even popes were married.  Requiring celibacy of all ordained priests and bishops prevents many worthy individuals from serving Christ in the priesthood.  Along with many other Old Catholic jurisdictions, we have long since treated celibacy as a special calling, not a requirement.

THELOGICAL TEACHING FOR 

EQUALITY IN SACRAMENTAL MARRIAGE

     The sacraments of Baptism and Communion form the basis of Christian life.  From these two primary sacraments derive the five other rites traditionally ascribved as sacraments.  Three of these -- confirmation, marriage, and ordiation -- are rites of commitment that derive from the primary Christian covenant of Baptism.  Confirmation is the time at which God blesses the adult ratification of the baptismal covenant.  Marriage is the time at which God adds a speical blessing to persons who wish to work the rest of their lives together fulfilling their baptismal covenant.  Ordination is the time at which God adds a special blessing to persons wishing to serve in the diaconal, priestly, and espicopal functions of the Church.

     There is no other logical basis by which marriage can be called a sacrament.  Although marriage may serve a number of other functions, including companionship and child-raising, these functions cannot raise it to sacramental status.  That status is achieved only by its relationship to Baptism.  It is closely akin to ordination, in that God unites married people together for the pupose of joint ministry in the kingdom.  Although we disagree with the conclusion, it is clear to see that this is the underlying theological basis for the Roman Catholic Church's prohibition of any other person being both ordained and married.

     Baptism is and always has been open to all people.  It is God's free gift, not our human action.  Infants, adults, males, females, gays, straights, etc., are baptized.  It is because of our Baptism -- and only because of it -- that we are sacramentally qualified to receive the graces of marriage and ordination.  This is not to say that everyone is emotionally ready to be married or intellectually ready to be ordained (or vice versa!).  But it does mean that Baptism is the spiritual grace that makes marriage or ordination possible.

     Marriage as a sacrament technically has nothing to do with sex.  It is not about sexual intimacy and it is not about procreation.  It is about ministry.  We believe that sexual intimacy is an important part of the bond that makes the married couple good team mates.  We beleive that a stable marriage is the most appropriate environment in which to raise children.  But these things are neither the core purpose nor requirements of marriage. 

     To limit marriage to any sexual subset of the population is not consistent with this sacramental view.  The dynamics of male-male and female-female partnerships are essentially equivalent to those of male-female partnerships.  In all such cases, the magic lies in the balance that the individuals provide for each other.  The result is "greater than the sum of the parts."  This is why God blesses marriage.  Through it God can make servant teams that are more powerful than the individual players would be by themselves.

     Gay, lesbian, and hetrosexual marriage are, therefore, exactly equivalent in the eyes of God and should be so equivalent in the eyes of both the Church and the state.  To argue that marriage must be restricted to male-female couples destroys the essential nature of the sacrament.  It reduces the gracious act of God to something merely physical or biological.  It restricts the sacraments of Christ and hinders the work of the Holy Spirit.  We know and have seen the Holy Spirit work in marriages of all gender compositions.

     The Ecumeical Catholic Church specifically the Ecumenical Catholic Diocese of Texas has held these doctrines since its founding.  It has conducted many gay and lesbian marriages, and uses exactly the same liturgy for them as for hetrosexual marriages.  There simply is no distinction at a sacramental level, and gender is considered to be totally irrelevant as far as the sacramental aspect of the relationship is concerned.

     State laws which arbitrarily sanction some sacramental actions and not others infringe upon our religious freedom and the freedom of our members.  For this reason,  we have always stood for the equalization of marriage laws.  If the state is to grant special privileges to some of the person who participate in a sacrament because of that participation (i.e., those married in hetrosexual marriages) then it must indiscriminately grant those privileges to all who participate in the sacrament.

     To this end, we call the state to let the various denominations determine their own qualifications for marriage and ot recognize all those marriages.  Certainly there are people who qualify for marriage in other religious institutions that would no so qualify in the Ecumenical Catholic Church (we have baptismal and premarital counseling requirements).  Likewise, we do not expect all of our people to be accepted as marriage candidates within other religious institutions.  But the state must be neutral when it comes to religion.  It is not.  It has taken the bad marital theology of some churches, which in turn is derived form non-religious social prejudices, and set it in law, thus discriminating against our sacraments.

     Likewise we call upon our fellow Christians -- particularly those who recognize marriage as a sacrament -- to seriously reopen their theological consideration of the sacramental nature of marriage.  We ask them to put aside the blinders of hetro-sexist society and to explore with the openness of the Spirit.  We ask them to explore with intellectual honesty in their search for truth.  In doing so we are confident that they will discover that God can and does use the sacramental marriage team of gay men, lesbian women, and hetrosexuals with equal dignity, equal power, equal love, and equal grace.

     We know that the Dominion of Heaven has been enhanced by gay and lesbian couples throughout history.  This even includes some such as Saints Sergius and Bacchus who were openly recognized and officially canonized as saints in the very early Church.  Rather than stand against the progress of the Spirit, we especially call upon the churches of Christ to boldly stand for love and truth, and to pave the way toward marital equality in the United States and the world.  To do otherwiswe is to limit the Holy Spirit to a subset of the population and to darken the all-saving Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Saints Sergius & Bacchus  and  Saints Perpetua & Felicity

Blessed (Father) Mychal Judge, OFM (FD-NYC)  9/11 Trade Center Bombing

X  POLICE CHAPLAIN ROBERT D. HALL

Master Texas Police Officer / 20+ year Police Veteran / Special Investigator / Ordained Catholic Priest & Bishop / Franciscan Brother / Father of two sons

As Ecumenical Catholics - we support the

Police Chaplains Corps of South Texas as a part of the active ministry of the Franiscans of the Holy Cross (OFC) in Texas.  To find out more about Police Chaplains and their duties, or the Police Chaplain Corps of Texas, see: www.ofcfranciscans.org.