Archbishop Burke

Catholics should be truly alarmed by the appointment of Archbishop Raymond Burke to the position of prefect of the Apostolic Signatura (NCR, July 11). Be prepared for the Inquisition of the 21st century. This bishop is scary in that he is determined that things will be done only his way. In his farewell column in the St. Louis Review, Archbishop Burke noted that "the secular media" have focused on various controversies during his brief stay in St Louis. He actually compares himself to "the crucified Christ." Archbishop Burke singles out by name one small community of nuns who assist him by doing secretarial and domestic work. He fails to name communities of religious women that are much greater in number and have served the archdiocese for much longer periods of time. Clearly, this man undervalues the work of women who perform at the same level as men. In the same issue of the St. Louis Review, a full page is given to the publication of the interdict regarding St. Louise Lears.

What is wrong with this man? Although the archbishop couches his statements with holier-than-thou language, the reality is that his actions clearly disregard the teachings of the Gospel. The archbishop appears to foster the kind of mindset seen during the days of the Spanish Inquisition and the Sen. Joseph McCarthy witch-hunt in this country. The church has been plagued by corrupt or power-hungry bishops and popes over the centuries. This appointment sends chills up my spine as I really don't trust Archbishop Burke and I believe that he is capable of doing great harm to the church. His record speaks for itself.

EDWARD McCAREY McDONNELL

Baltimore

Until Tom Roberts' article about Archbishop Burke's contributions to St. Louis, I did not know that the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest existed, or that it uses the traditional Latin Mass exclusively, apparently with the blessing of 50 dioceses worldwide and about 10 in the United States. It is quite remarkable that any bishop would allow a group to use the old Latin Mass exclusively since Pope Benedict XVI explicitly outlawed that in his letter of July 7, 2007, to all Catholic bishops, accompanying the issuance of his motu proprio on the use of the Roman liturgy.

In the sixth paragraph from the end of the letter, the pope insisted that both the post-Vatican II vernacular liturgies and the old Latin rite had to be respected. He wrote: "Needless to say, in order to experience full communion, the priests of the communities adhering to the former usage cannot, as a matter of principle, exclude celebrating according to the new books. The total exclusion of the new rite would not in fact be consistent with the recognition of its value and holiness." Archbishop Burke is a stickler for canon law when it suits his purposes. NCR would do the church a service if it would publish a list of all the dioceses that sanction this group that totally excludes the new rite so that the Vatican could take appropriate corrective action.

GERALD FLOYD

Houston

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