Confronting Power and Sex in the Catholic Church: Reclaiming the Spirit of Jesus

Front Cover
Liturgical Press, 2008 - Family & Relationships - 307 pages

Drawing on his own experience in responding to abuse, Bishop Geoffrey Robinson methodically offers a critique of the church's use and misuse of power, from the pope proclaiming infallibly down to the preacher claiming a divine authority for every word spoken from the pulpit. Going back to the Bible and, above all, to the teaching of Jesus, he presents an approach to sexual morality that is profound, compassionate, and people-centered. He stresses the priority of the hierarchy of holiness over the hierarchy of power.

He offers nothing less than a vision for a church of the third millennium 'a church that wants to see in its members the responsibility appropriate to adults rather than the obedience appropriate to children and wants to help al people to grow to become al they are capable of being.

You will love or hate this book but not be ale to remain neutral.

Through the story of sexual abuse and the church's response, I came to the unshakeable belief that within the Catholic Church there absolutely must be profound and enduring change. In particular, there must be change on the two subjects of power and sex.
'From the Introduction

Bishop Geoffrey Robinson, who has degrees in philosophy, theology, and church law, was Auxiliary Bishop in the Archdiocese of Sydney from 1984 until his retirement in 2004. In 1994, he was elected by the Australian Bishops to the National Committee for professional Standards, coordinating the response of the Catholic Church in Australia to revelations of sexual abuse, and from 1997 until 2003 he was cochairman of this committee.

 

Contents

VI
25
VII
26
VIII
30
IX
40
X
45
XI
49
XII
50
XIII
57
XLIX
172
L
175
LI
177
LII
193
LIII
195
LIV
201
LV
204
LVI
210

XIV
61
XV
65
XVI
73
XVII
75
XVIII
77
XXIV
78
XXV
79
XXVI
80
XXVII
84
XXVIII
87
XXIX
88
XXX
93
XXXI
96
XXXII
99
XXXIII
105
XXXIV
116
XXXV
129
XXXVI
132
XXXVII
137
XXXVIII
139
XXXIX
144
XL
145
XLI
149
XLII
153
XLVI
158
XLVIII
164
LVII
214
LVIII
217
LIX
220
LX
225
LXI
231
LXII
235
LXIII
237
LXIV
241
LXV
250
LXVI
258
LXVII
260
LXVIII
265
LXIX
268
LXX
271
LXXI
282
LXXII
287
LXXIII
289
LXXIV
290
LXXV
293
LXXVI
296
LXXVII
297
LXXVIII
300
LXXIX
302
LXXX
304
Copyright

Other editions - View all

Common terms and phrases

Bibliographic information