Who can be a "Canonical" member of the Ordinariate?When I read this, I was concerned to follow up as conscientiously as I could. Had the Complementary Norms for Anglicanorum coetibus been quietly updated, and had I missed it? Well, I checked them out, and Article 5 §2 still reads:First, all of our parishioners — whether diocesan or Ordinariate Catholics — are full members of our parish community. To become a "canonical" member of the Ordinariate, however, is to officially put yourself under the care of the Ordinariate's bishop. Any person who receives their sacraments of initiation, any protestant who has been converted by the ministry of the Ordinariate, or any Catholic whose faith has been enriched and deepened by participation in the life of the Ordinariate may become a member of the Ordinariate. It is a simple process. Please talk to Fr. Fletcher if you're interested or have questions about this.
A person who has been baptized in the Catholic Church but who has not completed the Sacraments of Initiation, and subsequently returns to the faith and practice of the Church as a result of the evangelizing mission of the Ordinariate, may be admitted to membership in the Ordinariate and receive the Sacrament of Confirmation or the Sacrament of the Eucharist or both.There is a footnote to this paragraph that says, "This paragraph was added to the text of the Complementary Norms according to a decision of the Ordinary Session held on 29 May 2013, approved by Pope Francis on 31 May 2013." It is apparently still in effect and is the current version. An explanatory note dated April 9, 2019 linked at the bottom of the Norms makes no mention of any changes to Article 5 §2.
Another puzzling entry on the Presentation FAQ page reads (emphasis mine),
What diocese is Presentation Catholic Church a part of? <This is so far the only mention of the ordinariate, or even of Anglicans, I can find on the parish web site, but that stuff is now dismissed as just fine print. So far, I can't find any reference to Anglicanorum coetibus, which still refers to itself as aOur parish is a part of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter — a structure that was originally created by the Pope for former Anglican communities, clergy, and individuals seeking to become Roman Catholic, and which has now grown to nourish and serve Catholics of all backgrounds through its liturgy and tradition.
structure for regulating the institution and life of Personal Ordinariates for those Anglican faithful who desire to enter into the full communion of the Catholic Church in a corporate manner. This Constitution is completed by Complementary Norms issued by the Apostolic See.In other words, company policy as published continues to be that the ordinariates are for Anglicans who wish to enter the Church in a corporate manner. According to the Complementary Norms, it is not intended primarily for initiated Catholics, who may certainly come to mass and stay for coffee hour, but they can't be counted as canonical members. So the FAQ page, as far as I can see, directly contradicts published company policy.
And this is important, because the Church counts numbers. Bp Lopes must report numbers of canonical members. Beyond that, Bp Lopes has had to reassure his brother bishops, like Bp Barnes in San Bernardino, that he's directing his efforts toward Anglicans and Catholics who aren't fully initiated. If someone like Bp Barnes were to get the impression that the ordinariate had quietly widened its mission, this could be problematic, as it could be seen as poaching.
Now, there may well be revisions under way. Clearly the person to contact over any questions, as stated in the FAQs, is Fr Fletcher, who might well be able to point to, say, a clarification in a statement from Bp Lopes on the ordinariate web site, or he might give some other guidance to clear up my confusion. Given the Catholic principle of subsidiarity, my first duty is to contact Fr Fletcher. So I sent him this e-mail yesterday afternoon:
Fr Fletcher, I’m contacting you because the FAQ entry on ordinariate eligibility on the Presentation web site makes you the contact point for questions. The FAQ entry adds “or any Catholic whose faith has been deepened” by participation to eligibility for membership. However, Article 5 §2 of the Complementary Norms still says, “A person who has been baptized in the Catholic Church but who has not completed the Sacraments of Initiation, and subsequently returns to the faith and practice of the Church as a result of the evangelizing mission of the Ordinariate” is eligible but says nothing about any Catholic otherwise deepened in faith. As far as I’m aware, the 2013 revision of the norms is the most current. Can you clarify policy in this matter?A perfectly acceptable reply might be to refer me to the ordinariate press office or Fr Perkins, but so far, I've had no reply at all to what seems to me is an entirely reasonable question, and Fr Fletcher is listed as the contact point for any such questions.Thanks!
If I hear further from Fr Fletcher, or perhaps from someone in Houston whom he's asked to respond more authoritatively, I'll be happy to update this post. I'll have more to say on this tomorrow.
