South Florida is all abuzz with word that a popular Cuban-American priest has fallen in a love with a woman.  As would be expected, the Roman Catholic Church will have none of it. The handsome TV priest, Rev. Alberto Cutie,  has been swiftly removed from roles of responsibility to  shake it off and get back to thinking his only love must be centered on Jesus Christ and the church.  His Miami Beach parish is divided over his pecadillos.

How encouraging that a red-blooded male raises new questions about  the church’s bizarre millenia-old obsession with celibacy.  Cutie, 40, apparently has had a relationship with a woman for some two years, but it took a Spanish tabloid, TVnotas, to make it public by publishing 25 papparazzi photos of  him and the female, including some of them embracing on a beach.   Since 1999, the youthful, charismatic priest has had TV programs watched across the Americas and as far away at Spain.  The Puerto Rican-born pastor, ordained in 1995, headed the Archdiocese of Miami’s Radio Paz  (Radio Peace) broadcasts.  His warmth and personality had won him the affectionate title of  “Father Oprah,” suggesting he had the wide appeal of an Oprah Winfrey.  He further was author of a book, “Real Life, Real Love; 7 Paths to a Strong, Lasting Relationship.”

He has now appeared on  Spanish and English news shows to address his behavior and offer thoughts on whether he will start behaving himself and kiss off the relationship with the woman; or leave the priesthood and maybe marry the woman.  “I’m now in the process of thinking about all those things, of making decisions,” Cutie told the Associated Press. “And my bishop has given me the time to think about it. This is a difficult time. It’s a time of transition, it’s a time of thinking about the future.”

Of course, priests choosing women and love over the church — or choosing both females AND the church – are not new.  Clandestinely, priests have had robust relationships with females since the church imposed the celebacy rules in the 11th century. Supposedly, goes the argument, an unmarried clergyman can give his undivided attention to God and not be distracted by things like women or children.  Then, supposedly all the self-restraint and denial will mean embracing a holier life and draw one closer to Jesus. Scholars believe the church was more able to pay priests paltry  wages to single people living on their own.  (Just look at the health cost savings alone.) Moreover, they wouldn’t be bequeathing any acquired wealth, upon their deaths, to heirs.

According to historical sources, Pope Benedict VIII in 1022 banned marriages and mistresses for priests. In 1139, Pope Innocent II voided the existing marriages of priests. Moreover, all new priests had to divorce their wives.  But it may not have been until the 16th century that such rules were really enforced.

One group, “Celibacy Is The Issue,” is a national lay organization that works for change. It contends it is made up of 2,500 former Catholic clerics who resigned, many of them subsequently to marry.  Many boldly carry out priestly duties without the blessing of the church, some under the group “Rent A Priest.” 

Pity a priest like Cutie who has to say, “I believe that I’ve fallen in love, and I believe that I’ve struggled with that, between my love for God and my love for the Church and my love for service,” he was quoted by AP. He said, “I think we all have ideas and we have ways of living.” Regretably, Cutie also said, “We want to do things right, but sometimes we fall short. I fell short.”

And here is a huge worldwide church begging for males to step forward to be priests and to sacrifice a central part of the humanness – the gift  to love, to  be husbands and have children. The stark shortage will continue until one pope has the intellectual courage to change a cruel rule that neither serves itself nor the genuine all-male believers who want to serve.  And that all applies to women who want to serve in religious life.

May there be other ordained Roman Catholic priests and nuns who challenge the oppressive and unhealthy rules.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix has made public the action of Bishop Thomas Olmsted to excommunicate Father Chris Carpenter, former pastor of Christ the King Catholic Church in Mesa and one-time “Father Flick” film reviewer for The Catholic Sun newspaper. Ordained in 1995, he served the Mesa church from 1997 to January 2006.

The Sun’s Web Site on Monday posted a story by the Sun’s editor Rob DeFrancisco that said the bishop sent a letter to Carpenter, who now lives in Long Beach, Calif., notifying him that he has been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church for aligning with the Reformed Catholic Church, which is not in communion with Rome and which embraces such progressive ideas as female and married priests.   On April 21, we made public Carpenter’s letter to friends in which he stated he was sending a letter that week to Olmsted to say he had no choice but to leave Roman Catholicism.  He said he was finding new spiritual fulfillment in Reformed Catholicism and was newly appointed vicar for California. “Their leadership has welcomed me with open arms and I am grateful,” he said.  He explained that he found it likely that, once Olmsted got his letter, he could be excommunicated or disciplined in other ways. That came to pass.

The Sun’s Web story explained, “According to canon law, baptized Catholics who knowingly place themselves outside  of full communion  with the church  and in opposition to the legitimate authority of the church are subject to excommunication.”  Said the Sun: “The excommunication became ‘automatic’ once Fr. Carpenter became affiliated with the Reformed Catholic Church. The bishop’s notice to him, ‘the Decree of Excomunication’ was the formal declaration of what had already happened by virtue of his schismatic act.”

By putting himself in “scism,” Carpenter has willingly separated himself from the Roman Catholic Church and censure follows. With this action, the 41-year-old  Phoenix native cannot participate in a Roman Catholic Mass celebration  “or in any celebration of worship,” the Sun said. “He is also prohibited from celebrating or receiving any of the sacraments and cannot represent himself as a priest.”  That is a Roman Catholic priest.

Carpenter intends to be busy as the first  Reformed Catholic Church priest in California. He is at work establishing a parish in Long Beach that he has named the Community of the Resurrection, and he will remain active in a non-denominational interfaith hospice chaplain. He has long been open about his disagreements with Olmsted. He was among nine priests ordered by the bishop in 2004 to take their names off the Phoenix Declaration letter that Arizona clergy signed calling for full acceptance of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people in the life of faith communities.  He would say later that “something died as a result of the personal and public showdown  … A chilling effect has been experienced throughout all Catholic parishes and institutions concerned about outreach and ministry to LGBT persons.”

The Sun explained the actions this way, “The primary purpose of excommunicationis to repair the scandal caused by the teachings and actions of the cleric, to restore justice inthe church and to reform the offender.”  The bishop said he was sad to take the action and was praying for Carpenter’s “reconciliation with Christ and His Church.” 

My sense is Carpenter is not looking back and believes he is out in front in serving Christ’s true church.