USA: Excommunicated African Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo ordains two married clergymen as priests

At the Trinity Reformed Church in the U.S. state of New Jersey, a controversial ceremony is taking place this Sunday (December 10). Excommunicated African Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo is ordaining two married clergymen---deacons Raymond Grosswirth and Dominic Riccio--- as part of a three day summit encouraging married priests to unite. Priests and Archbishop from the United States, South America, Africa, the Philippines and Europe attended the ceremony which marked the end of a three-day conference on this divisive subject within the Roman Catholic Church. Archbishop Milingo, who was excommunicated from the church in September after he ordained four married men as priests, stressed the importance of recognizing these marginalized priests: "We are going to get the priests who have been suspended, who have been suffering so much, they will come back. Whenever they are with me, just now, they celebrate mass, which in their own places they have been forbidden to celebrate mass, but as soon as they are with me, they celebrate mass and they've got extreme happiness, they're very very happy." The new priests, both American, expressed their joy and relief after the ceremony: "This is the culmination of 31 years for me. I've been waiting 31 years for this to happen and I cannot fully express in mere words the grace and gratitude that I feel of all mighty God for this opportunity to be blessed, to be ordained by his Grace Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo." Said Father Grosswirth: "I just want to state that I do love the Church, it's not my goal to cause conflict. I rather hope that the Holy Father comes to his senses and realizes that there is one celibate priest per 3,500 Catholics in the world and I hope that by my actions today he will come to realize that there is a genuine need for not only married priests but the ordination of women as well." The two newly ordained priests acknowledged and thanked the many married priests and their wives for their support. After the event, Archbishop Patrick Trujillo reflected on the significance of the day and the importance of women: "So, we are only reclaiming and taking position on what pertains to us and to the village of God and at the same time, this event holds importance because it places emphasis on the importance of women as well as that of matrimony." The two new priests assisted with Communion during a Mass that followed the ordination. Milingo, 76 and the former archbishop of Zambia, married in 2001 a Korean woman, Maria Sung, in a mass ceremony in 2001 held by Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. But later he left her to live in near seclusion for several years at a convent near Rome. In July he surfaced in Washington to unveil his group Married Priests Now!, and Sung was by his side during the group's weekend conference. Priests were permitted to marry during the first millennium, but marriage was condemned by the Church at the Second Lateran Council in 1139. Members of the group say they have written to Pope Benedict to ask him to work with them, but have yet to receive any reply.

ITN Source | December 11, 2006

Tags:. .marry. .jersey. .significance. .grace. .encouraging