After reading the 181 page report of the Grand Jury of this diocese --Why have hope?

-Lately, the pathetic vocations situation has improved slightly, we had 4 men recently ordained. I personally know 3 priests recently ordained and 1 soon to be ordained who are very orthodox.
-Bishop Murphy, while far from perfect, has corrected some of the wrongs done for 20 years under Bishop McGann, ie..14 years after Ecclesia Dei this diocese finally “allowed” a weekly traditional latin mass. He has also been aggressively promoting vocations and the orthodox religious communities here (there are 2). He has also invited a group of Benedictine nuns from Africa to come here.
-All pedophile priests have been thrown out albeit way too late and too reluctantly.
-The dissenters and their supporters, including Bob Keeler from Newsday, are already whining about the “young rigid priests” who don’t celebrate Mass “their way”.
-The bureaucrats in the diocese are on the defensive which is good.
-Unlike in the past, the most recent case of molestation, involving Michael Hands, resulted in arrest, conviction, and immediate removal of his ability to function as a priest. (The diocese would not even put up his bail).
-At a recent parish lecture, the 2 youngest people in the Church (me and a woman who seemed to be of college age) both defended orthodoxy
-According to an insider, the seminary has gotten better over the past few years (it still has people teaching there who don’t belong in a Catholic institution, small victory but I’ll take it)
-My least favorite columnist in the diocesan paper finally retired and they now occasionally print George Weigel’s columns.
-A “Faith on Tap” program has been started
-The great community that taught me runs 2 schools that are more popular than ever
-Unlike in the past, there was actual enthusiasm for World Youth Day, including from the bishop. (I think WYD’s critics have valid points but that’s for another post)
-Fr. Groeschel, who says he lectured and was thrown out of both seminaries used by our diocese, was asked to give the annual priests’ talk by Bishop Murphy. This never would have happened under McGann.
-The diocese will get less money in its annual appeal and its weekly collections causing it to shape up.


And then there is my favorite priest, ordained less than a year and orthodox. This guy is great. He does not wear the parish vestments, he has his own more traditional ones which includes the chalice veil. (Only priest I know that uses one, except for the priest at the tridentine liturgy). His homilies are intelligent and written out, he does not ramble. At midnight mass he quoted G.K. Chesterton, Viktor Frankl, Fulton Sheen, and Jean Paul Sartre! And sang What Child Is This acapella while connecting each verse to the Gospel message. He has had a book review published in Crisis magazine. On the Sunday with the Gospel of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, when some priests deny this miracle, he demonstrated the silliness of 1 popular theory. The people gathered to listen to Jesus on a hillside in the desert. They all had bread and fish with them, but listened to Jesus speak for about 1 hour and a half. Then they whipped out their fish and bread, which had been in the hot desert sun the whole time, and shared it with all. He called it the Soggy Fish Sandwich Theory. On Feast days and Solemnities, he uses Eucharistic Prayer I and sings the preface. He convinced the Pastor to underwrite the bus rental for the Pro-Life March on Washington. Funny, smart, and holy, I can’t wait to see what he is like once he reaches 30.