Schüller in Los Angeles: decrying 'dictatorship' of church hierarchy

by Gabrielle Canon | Aug. 5, 2013

Los Angeles--It was 7:15 p.m. Friday. Seats in the dimly lit auditorium adjacent to the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Pasadena, Calif., were beginning to fill. More than 200 Catholics from the Los Angeles area had gathered to hear the presentation by Austrian priest Fr. Helmut Schüller, who is calling upon Catholics to defy church hierarchy.

As a leader in a worldwide reform movement, Schüller has spent the last two and a half weeks meeting congregations in cities throughout the United States as part of his "Catholic Tipping Point" tour. Sponsored by 10 Catholic organizations, each presentation details the intentions behind the "Call to Disobedience," a document published by the Austrian Priests' Initiative.

The lights flickered, signaling that the event was about to begin, and as people began to quiet, Fr. Kevin Steen, a local priest and host of the event, took the microphone. The evening began with a prayer, followed by prayers for intercession led by members from the congregation. Each petition outlined the objectives the reformers in attendance hoped would be addressed.

"Celebrating the beauty of God's image in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people -- we pray," a woman quietly said into the microphone. "Lord, hear our prayer," the congregation answered.

http://ncronline.org/news/theology/sch-ller-los-angeles-decrying-dictatorship-church-hierarchy