Joliette, QC-The Abbé Raymond Gravel, parish priest of St.Joachim de la Plaine in the diocese of Joliette, is well known for his dissident views on Church teaching. When the Vatican published its letter rejecting same-sex "marriage" on July 31, 2003, Father Gravel denounced it publicly, making a big splash in the newspapers (Globe, August 6,7, 2003). His bishop laughed it off and refused to rebuke him. When questioned about the incident, the spokesman for the Assembly of the Quebec Bishops, Msgr. Louis Dicaire also dismissed it with, "The Catholic Church is a faith community, not a pressure group" (National Post, August 1, 2003).

It is not surprising therefore that during the recent federal election campaign in June 2004, Father Gravel once again mocked Catholic moral teaching. Not only does he not uphold Catholic teaching, he contradicts it, telling the media that he is in favour of homosexual "marriages," and that he is pro-abortion. "I am pro-choice," he told journalist Leo Kalinda, and "there is not a bishop in the world who is going to prevent me from receiving Communion, not even the pope." This was a reference to the debate in the U.S. whether Catholic pro-abortion politicians should be allowed to receive Holy Communion.

On June 20, 2004, Campagne Québec-Vie issued a press release quoting these defiant comments, and reiterating once more the solemn teaching of the Church about abortion and homosexual activities repeated time and time again over the last 40 years.  It called for an end to this situation and asked the Bishop of Joliette to suspend the priest's faculties, or at least deliver him a public warning. By its silence, the Catholic hierarchy gives the impression of sanctioning the grave doctrinal errors of Abbé Gravel, it said. 

Msgr. Gilles Lussier, Bishop of Joliette, replied to Campagne-Vie on June 30, by enclosing a reply from Gravel. The latter referred to a radio broadcast in which Leo Kalinda asked his opinion of declarations by Bishop Henry of Calgary about Paul Martin being morally incoherent in his proabortion position, and of Archbishop Burke of St. Louis, Mo., who wants the priests of his diocese to refuse communion to publicly pro-abortion politicians.  Gravel called it an "abuse of power" by these Church authorities.  Abortion is not the only act which destroys life, he said-the inequality between rich and poor, the exploitation of little ones, fanaticism and religious extremism, wars and terrorism do so as well. Instead of condemning desperate women who see no alternative to abortion, we need to give them our compassion and assistance. We have no right to pass judgment on them.

Comment:

Doesn't Fr. Gravel know that the Church has criteria for judging? What about the bishop? No rebuke, no reprimand, no suspension. As if to say, just continue your work, Father, because we are short of priests.

"If salt has lost its taste. it is nolonger good for anything except to be thrown out and trodden underfoot."

(Mt 5:13).