They've come for Fr. Altman...

I believe he’s challenging the Bishop on the “ineffective” accusation. If it is a lie, and it is, shouldn’t he??

 

Sparrow, these are my questions too. When we will be confronted within our own church to accept false teachings, are we to just go along with it? Or are we to stand up and speak the truth? Even if it’s a Bishop or our pastor teaching false teachings. I hope it never comes to that for us, but the way things are going it is possible.

 

I hope one day we will get a good and holy Pope who will ask coward and sinful Bishops to resign. This is a general statement, it does not apply at all to the Bishop in question here. Also, as Padraig said, obedience is key.

 

He are my concerns: I’ve seen evidence of a cult of personality building up around Father Altman. (Please note that I bear no ill will towards him whatsoever!) Some are giving him a higher status than simply a parish priest (ie. modern day John the Baptist). Someone has portrayed him in a painting as a living saint with Our Lady of Grace in the background and above Father Altman, with rays coming from Her hands and passing through the back of his hands and out towards us. It’s as you’d see on a holy card of a Marian martyr of the Faith. Neither of these things are helping his cause in any way.

Also, about a year ago I saw my first video of Father. He became so worked up during his sermon during Mass that he interrupted the actual flow of the Liturgy maybe twice afterwards to continue to address his concerns. That is not a good sign. He surely needs our prayers!

 

Agreed. And "proper hierarchical authority" must be LEGAL. If your bishop directed you to close down this site, yes, you would be right to close it down. (I hope you would then go through the proper canonical channels to have this directive reversed.) Your maintaining this site is not something required by our faith, and so obedience would require that you close this down.

HOWEVER ... For a bishop to order a priest to not preach against abortion, or to not preach against homosexual activity, for whatever reason, would not be a legal order: to remain silent in the face of evil is to give approval to that evil. We cannot oppose evil by accommodating it; by assuming that there will be a "tit for tat" equivalency in terms of what they will do if we pull back from the truth just a little, to go along to get along.

Unless and until his bishop can come up with a concrete reason to remove Fr. Altman from his post, then I believe Fr. Altman is within his rights and his duties to go through the canonical legal process regarding his removal. An accusation of being "ineffective" is not a concrete reason (especially if there is no generally recognized standard of "ministerial effectiveness" employed equally, across the board, for all the priests in a diocese). A declaration that he is "divisive" is not a concrete reason. As Christians we are called to be divisive, since the world will always hate us; and as long as we continue to say, "This is right and this is wrong" in the face of a culture that says nothing is wrong if we want it to be right, we will be divisive.

 

Here are my thoughts. First, those who are saying he has a legal right to challenge his bishop on this are completely missing the point of obedience. The purpose of obedience to one's superior is spiritual; it benefits our soul greatly by humbling us. God works great wonders in a soul through humble obedience, ESPECIALLY when the order is unjust, unfair, humiliating, or based on something untrue. This situation is nothing new. God has tested His saints by allowing them to be treated unfairly by their superiors all through history. The humility of someone earnestly following God's will compels them to close their mouth when the feeling arises that they should come to their own defense. God is their defense. They submit to Him and wait for Him to come to their aid.

Second, his bishop called him "ineffective." His rebuttal was that more people have come to his parish and donations are up. But what did his bishop mean by ineffective? I don't know, but I can tell you the impression Fr. Altman has always left on me from his homilies: he speaks some truths but there is no peace, love, or humility radiating through his words. I don't walk away from his homilies reflecting on how I can better love God and neighbor and conquer my own faults. So yes, I would agree that in that regard, his homilies are "ineffective." Perhaps that is what his bishop meant; I don't know. But telling your congregation that bishops are failures and you're a success doesn't strike me as inspiring humility or charity, which is what we desperately need. People don't usually need help noticing the faults of others; we do that well enough on our own.

Third, I think there's a lesson in this for all of us. We can all get carried away with condemnation, detraction and pride. We often have good intentions or are just venting because we are hurt by being let down by many in our Church. But our Church is our mother. It's harmful to blast her failings all over the internet and to strangers, when we don't know if someone's faith is hanging by a thread. We add to the harm then; we disrespect our mother; we stir up further discontent, anger and pride, while we hold ourselves up as knowing what SHOULD be done. We'd do it so much better, wouldn't we? We are puffed up with spiritual pride, which is EXACTLY what obedience to unjust silencing would help combat. Perhaps we can let the good bishop have the benefit of a doubt, that he is trying to help his priest's soul, and perhaps, in turn, that will help ours.

 

Speaking truth is important in such a chaotic time, but I also think it's important to remember that how we as Christians convey that truth matters, especially to those outside of the church or those in the church that are currently in error.

I think you see examples of this when Jesus approaches the woman at the well or when Paul debates in the square to the Athenians about the altar to the unknown God. In both examples the truth of sin and judgment are addressed while still showing love and charity to those who are not currently in a right relationship with God.

I think a lot of what this priest has said is theologically sound, but there are ways to teach truth without calling people Godless or brats. I'm not sure that language softens a hard heart to conversion.

Prayers for this priest and the Bishop.

 

Whether the bishop's accusations are just or unjust, obedience is central to our faitb. Fr.Altman is rejecting obedience, and sending a message to the faithful that he does not have to listen to his bishop, and he will fight him.
A good sum of money has been raised to hire a cannon lawyer so he can prove himself right, and the bishop wrong. Jesus obeyed His Father.

 

As I noted earlier, I don't see this as the bishop's accusations being just or unjust; I see this as whether or not the bishop's orders are legal, which is a totally different thing.

 

I walked around for years completely unaware of the destruction going on in the Church. Believing Pray, Pay and Obey was the secret of Salvation. I have been grateful for courageous Priests like Father Altman, who speak the Truth as far as the Gospel is concerned, and put it in perspective.

It seems Father Altman has put his Bishop in a difficult position with no doubt other Bishops feeling persecuted by hearing themselves called to task by a mere underling like Father Altman. Father Altman might be pricking their consciences and the truth hurts, so it's pay back time. IMHO

And if he takes canonical measures to defend himself, it is only natural for a mere human to defend oneself. How many times have we read in the Bible that the Apostles had to fight to defend themselves. This usually meant preaching the Gospel even to those in authority, especially to those in authority.

Of course in those days Bishops had not formed a platform of power and authority for themselves, with a nice little privileged life of respectability in cahoots with civil authority, and this seems to be the problem these days.

While we have Michael Voris and Church Militant, we will be reminded when the Bishops abuse their authority to protect their lordships. Jesus did warn His Apostles and Disciples not to lord it over people, and I have come to believe that is what the Bishop are doing without being aware of the destruction it brings on the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ Who is The Head. Remember we are the Mystical Body of Christ, or members of.

It did not seem to me Father Altman was simply singing his own praises when he spoke about his success in his Parish, it seems more like he was making the point that from a financial point of view, he had been exemplary, and his sacking was not about failing as a parish Priest, it was about the way he broadcast the failures in the hierarchal system, which we have all come to realise thanks to Priests who tell us what is going on at their own peril.

All we can do is Keep Watch and Pray that dear God does not put us to the test. These are surely trying times.

 

Update - Fr Altman has been asked to resign not told to resign.

 

I listened to this last night but fell asleep before it finished. (I hadn't even said my evening prayers yet! But I wanted to hear his side of things. He is very brave. And he loves Our Lord and the people entrusted to him)

 

BREAKING: Fr. Altman’s bishop has asked him to resign
'What really is at play here, dear family, is that other shepherds are offended because I simply state the fact that they abandoned their sheep in a time of need. If this alleged virus was allegedly a fraction as dangerous as they said it was, it was all the more reason to keep our churches open and get you the sacraments so that you stayed in a state of grace. They put your eternal souls at risk!'
Mon May 24, 2021 - 11:07 am EST

Fr. James Altman.
By Doug Mainwaring
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LA CROSSE, Wisconsin, May 24, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Father James Altman, the priest whose video message last fall “You can’t be a Catholic and a Democrat” went viral and who has fearlessly criticized the U.S. bishops for needlessly shutting churches and denying the faithful sacraments during the COVID-19 pandemic, announced on Pentecost Sunday that his bishop has asked him to resign for being “divisive and ineffective.”

Bishop William P. Callahan began threatening the outspoken priest with “canonical penalties” in September, even as public support for the priest surged among rank-and-file Catholics around the country and the world.

After delivering a powerful Pentecost Sunday homily, Altman explained: “I regret to inform you, they want my head on a platter. They want my head now for speaking the truth. I apparently have created enemies in the hierarchy.”

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“To paraphrase the great, great Cardinal Burke, ‘When I die, I will stand in judgment before the Lord, not any Bishop of the church, nor as the great Cardinal Burke specifically said, the USCCB,’” said the embattled priest.

Instead of getting choked up or pulling back, Altman doubled down on the truths he has been proclaiming to the chagrin of many U.S. bishops.

What really is at play here, dear family, is that other shepherds are offended because I simply state the fact that they abandoned their sheep in a time of need.

If this alleged virus was allegedly a fraction as dangerous as they said it was, it was all the more reason to keep our churches open and get you the sacraments so that you stayed in a state of grace. They put your eternal souls at risk!

They despise me for speaking that simple truth. For speaking the truth that Jesus commanded His Apostles: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you, even though I know the world is going to hate you, I send you to baptize, to forgive the repentant, and to feed my sheep.”

. . .

I do not know how any ordained priest, or bishop, or cardinal, could fail to feed his children. But I do know this. I am not the divisive one. I am not the ineffective one. I am not the one disrespecting my office.

They have done a great job being divisive. They have done a great job of being ineffective and they have done a great job of disrespecting their office all by themselves, without any help from me.

“Jesus warned the Apostles and us that if the world hated him, it would hate us, just because we are trying to be faithful. In other words, the world will be divided by the truth,” he continued. “There will be we who are faithful, who follow the truth, divided from those who are not faithful and who oppose the truth.”

“So dear family, you have to ask yourself, why is anyone accusing me of being divisive? Like as if that is a bad thing, if we know that the truth divides, exactly as Jesus said it did, and I am speaking the truth. In 14 months, no one has said I haven’t,” said Altman.

“Then why is any ‘good Catholic’ complaining about me being divisive?” he asked. “The answer, dear family, is no ‘good Catholic’ is complaining. As a matter of fact, good Catholics from around the world have been very, very supportive.”

Altman said he is working with a canon lawyer.

“In response my canon lawyer asked for clarification – asked for the justification and a chance to review what was in my file that suggested I was so divisive and ineffective,” explained Altman. “And I say all this only because, I'm no expert on canon law, but understand only that while we are contesting bishop's request — and we are — he could in theory appoint a parish administrator whilst I remain a pastor without duties until the appeal goes through Rome, which could take up to a year or more.”

Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, offered his support for Altman via Twitter.

“Fr James Altman is in trouble for speaking the truth,” said Bishop Strickland. “I originally supported him when he spoke bold truth during the election. I continue to support him for speaking the truth in Jesus Christ. He inspires many to keep the faith during these dark days.”


“Let us pray for him,” he added.

Father Richard Heilman, without mentioning Altman’s name, wrote on Facebook: “With tears in my eyes, I write: I have never met a more humble, kind, holy priest in my life. Those who have met him, know.”

“This is war, folks. The vipers in the episcopacy are playing for keeps, while ‘conservatives’ play for what they can hold on to ... for now,” declared Lepanto Institute President Michael Hichborn.

“Fr. Altman is showing priests EVERYWHERE what it means to be a MAN of God! It means putting everything on the line, and being willing to suffer whatever comes in the face of witnessing to the Truth,” continued Hichborn.

“These godless, gutless bishops, who allow the James Martins of the world to spread their festering cancerous rot, say nothing about the filth infesting the Church or those pushing it ... but they hamstring, hang, draw and quarter good Priests who dare to give spiritual and moral truth to feed their flocks!” he said.

Developing...
https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinio...il&utm_term=0_12387f0e3e-3d6df8c035-409904318

 

This is why we are being warned over and over to follow the true Magisterium. We were told by Our Lady what was to come, and it is playing out in real time now:

“The work of the devil will infiltrate even into the Church in such a way that one will see cardinals opposing cardinals, bishops against bishops. The priests who venerate me will be scorned and opposed by their confreres…churches and altars sacked; the Church will be full of those who accept compromises and the demon will press many priests and consecrated souls to leave the service of the Lord."

They take down a faithful priest who bravely spoke the Truth about these vipers in our hierarchy, a day after that news breaks, we have this breaking news:
https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/bishops-press-gomez-to-halt-communion
"A group of more than 60 bishops has written to Archbishop Jose Gomez this month, pressing for the U.S. bishops’ conference leadership to suspend discussion of the subject of Eucharistic coherence ahead of the USCCB’s June meeting, despite a recent letter from the Vatican’s doctrinal office counseling the bishops to continue discussing the matter. Discussion on the topic was scheduled in March through the ordinary USCCB procedure for setting meeting agendas.

The letter was signed by several U.S. cardinals, including Cardinal Wilton Gregory of Washington, Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago, and Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston. New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan was originally a signatory to the letter, but he withdrew his name from the text after it was sent.

It urged that committee work in process on “Eucharistic coherence” be stopped, and that a planned discussion on the subject be removed from the schedule of the bishops’ June meeting"

So we have cardinals and bishops defending outright heretics like Biden and Pelosi who promote and defend the murder of unborn children, and attack the likes of Father Altman, for speaking Truth.

It may be helpful to review Our Blessed Mother's other warning of what is now upon us, and prepare accordingly, and make sure you understand what is true and who to obey:

“As I told you, if men do not repent and better themselves, the Father will inflict a terrible punishment on all humanity. It will be a punishment greater than the deluge, such as one will never seen before.

“Fire will fall from the sky and will wipe out a great part of humanity, the good as well as the bad, sparing neither priests nor faithful. The survivors will find themselves so desolate that they will envy the dead.

“The only arms which will remain for you will be the Rosary and the Sign left by My Son. Each day recite the prayers of the Rosary. With the Rosary, pray for the Pope, the bishops and priests.”

 

There is a time for obedience and a time for truth - normally they should align but in society today (particularly in Catholicism) they seem to be in opposition. I believe it's time for TRUTH to reign...

 

Yep, that's clear as day to you and me, but not so for others which is why heaven has not left us bereft and instead has given us ample warning and guidance of the current situation we find ourselves in.

Our Lady of Akita laid it all out in the 1980s, ample warning and it's happening now in real time...I believe it's why Sister Agnes received another visitation when this all kicked off (the day after the Pachamama desecration at The Vatican). It was go time then as that was the final insult to God I believe, mocking the 1st Commandment right there in The Vatican, by the hierarchy, including our current Pope

 

Will we just let all our good priests be silenced by their Bishops until there are none heard anymore? It's bad enough that it has gone on this long, particularly since we've seen the rise of "the spirit of Vatican II"! The laity are leaving in droves due to no sound teaching from the pulpit and when we do get some brave priests like Fr Altman, they attempt to silence them?! So just allow most Catholics to go on not believing that Christ is present in the Eucharist, abortion is ok, gay sex is acceptable... NO. Time to go underground?

 

Fr. Mark Goring went through a similar situation when he was told by his superiors to 'cease and desist ' when he had made a number of You Tube videos regarding the abuse crisis in the church. His response was immediate and unhesitant, "I am a man of obedience,” Goring stated. “You’ve asked me to cease and desist. So I will cease and desist.” He asked his viewers to remember that when he was ordained he promised before God to be obedient to his superiors. He said he assumed that it was the time for him to enter into the silence of St. Joseph. It is painful when the truth is silenced, but Fr. Altman does not need a cannon lawyer, God will see to it that the Truth will prevail.

 

Eventually yes, we will go underground. Make sure to stay with the true Magisterium!

"The church will become small and will have to start afresh more or less from the beginning.


She will no longer be able to inhabit many of the edifices she built in prosperity. As the number of her adherents diminishes . . . she will lose many of her social privileges. . . .

It will be hard-going for the Church, for the process of crystallization and clarification will cost her much valuable energy. It will make her poor and cause her to become the Church of the meek . . . The process will be long and wearisome as was the road from the false progressivism on the eve of the French Revolution — when a bishop might be thought smart if he made fun of dogmas and even insinuated that the existence of God was by no means certain . . . But when the trial of this sifting is past, a great power will flow from a more spiritualized and simplified Church. Men in a totally planned world will find themselves unspeakably lonely. If they have completely lost sight of God, they will feel the whole horror of their poverty. Then they will discover the little flock of believers as something wholly new. They will discover it as a hope that is meant for them, an answer for which they have always been searching in secret.

And so it seems certain to me that the Church is facing very hard times. The real crisis has scarcely begun. We will have to count on terrific upheavals. But I am equally certain about what will remain at the end: not the Church of the political cult, which is dead already, but the Church of faith. She may well no longer be the dominant social power to the extent that she was until recently; but she will enjoy a fresh blossoming and be seen as man’s home, where he will find life and hope beyond death." — from Faith and the Future (2009)