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Gay Saints?
Entry Feed TrackbackRead this at Gibbs Cadiz‘ blog –
Andrew Sullivan’s telling of the tale needs no rephrasing or embellishment–so here it is, verbatim.
The Last Laugh of Cardinal Newman
The Vatican, in preparation for the beatification of John Henry Newman, decided to disinter the famous cardinal’s remains from the burial ground he wanted. Why? Well, it is not unusual to re-bury saints, but it is also undeniable that the Vatican was worried about Newman’s stated desire to be buried next to his great love, Ambrose St John. From Wiki:
“[Newman] had stated on three occasions his desire to be buried with his friend, including shortly before his death in 1890: ‘I wish, with all my heart, to be buried in Fr Ambrose St John’s grave–and I give this as my last, my imperative will’, he wrote, later adding: ‘This I confirm and insist on.’”
The tombstone’s cryptic inscription for the two men who loved one another and lived together (by all accounts celibately) reads:
“Ex umbris et imaginibus in veritatem (‘Out of shadows and phantasms into the truth’)”.
The inference that Newman might have been yet another gay saint was too much for the current pontiff, hence his decision to violate Newman’s last wishes and separate him from his beloved for ever.
It’s vital for the Vatican to insist that even celibate gay men are so mentally disordered that they are ineligible for the priesthood, along the lines of Benedict’s new policy. To add Newman to the list of priests that the current Vatican would bar from a seminary would be embarrassing even for the current Pope. But there’s a punchline: the tomb was empty! Newman had been buried in a wooden coffin and not a trace of him remained:
“There was no body to exhume, nothing at all. Not a trace of bone, hair, human remains or anything except this plate.”
Yes, there is a God. The remains of Newman and St John will be physically commingled for ever–and not even a bigot like Benedict can do anything about it. [Source]
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Do you really have to politicize everything? Just because Cardinal Newman said something like that does not mean he is homosexual. There were far more different, more profound forms of friendship in those times– intimate yes, but not sexual. And unless you forget, it is customary in Italy to expose a holy figure’s remains for veneration; they do it for beati and for saints, so ‘raising Newman to the glory of the altars’ is not to be construed as something political. But of course, Sullivan knows more than that, he’s a syndicated journalist, and obviously anything and everything he says is right. Uh huh. Is this what ‘gay pride’ has come down to? What an unfunny joke it has become.
Andres at Oct 15, 08 at 11:46 am
I understood . . . that the exterior world, physical and historical, was but the manifestation to our senses of realities greater than itself. – Cardinal Deacon John Henry Newman
Jc at Oct 15, 08 at 3:21 pm
this is a nice and touching story, as a young boy i was schooled in an exclusive catholic school and it was tough for a gay person to fully express himself and not face discrimination from fellow students and teachers and guidance counselors and even from the principal and rector too. however, strange as it seems, i found a book in our library entitled “boy saints”… perhaps it was meant to inspire boys like us to become saints… if i may say that it was quite very…gay because it details the lives of young boys who are very holy and celibate. i remember the story of one boy saint who when he hears swear or curse words actually faints! another is how as a young boy this saint would bathe in a pool of freezing water with the other boys in the seminary to tame down their passions maybe readers can find similar stories on google. Later on as a rebellious teenager I found another book lives of gay saints written by an openly gay jesuit priest (who was later defrocked for supporting gay issues). i don’t know its really difficult to discern about religion. trying to be moral only to appear even more immoral. whatever happened to “let he has no sin, cast the first stone” principle?
paul bastardi at Oct 15, 08 at 4:36 pm
woooooooooo! asteg!
mewtong at Oct 15, 08 at 9:07 pm
He probably ascended to heaven body and soul to be united with his most beloved one. What a slap on the face to that Prada wearing nazi pope…hahahaha!!!!
Sanch at Oct 15, 08 at 9:12 pm
ahhh baloney! there are no saints. catholicism is outdated. why continue to be enslaved and hope for homosexual integration into the Church? how futile.
find your spirituality elsewhere people.
berserkerzcrit at Oct 15, 08 at 10:44 pm
I went to an all boys school during elementary, I kinda enjoyed it, lots of nice boys to play with, I even found a father figure with the priests in that school, sadly, my parents had to pull me out… they noticed that Im starting to get soft and gayish so they transfered me to a coed school during grade three… It was soooo sad, looking back, I’m wondering how fun it would have been to grow up with all those boys around me… tsk, tsk, tsk…
carl at Oct 16, 08 at 12:41 pm
lets cheers with their love.., `til death… love doesnt prefer whoever you are? and no matter whom it is….it never boast and self sacrificing..accdg to me heheheh..thnks god bless Migs..,,, miss u pls visit my site even once in a while thnks again….at ehernaiz007@blogspot.com..i want to hear a comment from u…..mwahhhh hugs….
ef at Oct 16, 08 at 4:51 pm
well I think there were two guys with Jesus who were gay. Nope not Peter or Judas. Guess who?
my yellow shirt at Oct 16, 08 at 9:20 pm
the pope does not wear prada and he was never a nazi.
utboy324 at Oct 17, 08 at 3:59 pm
Another proof that the Catholic Church has become a joke. It baffles me why so many gay people still cling on to this dinosaur which repeatedly assaults reason and outright condemns homosexuals. If god/God is your answer, 2 responses: (1) You don’t have to be in a religion to have a relationship with god/God and (2) There are other religions out there far more welcoming of homos. And, yes, who says there is a God/god? (Oooo, blasphemy! Give me a break!)
rustcell at Oct 19, 08 at 2:32 pm
I was raised as a devout Catholic and finished my primary and secondary education in an exclusive Catholic school for boys in Makati. I learned a lot of life lessons and found my true friends there. I fell in love with my guy bestfriend (who’s older than me) and had a young seminarian as a “brotherly” figure… If John Henry Newman wished to be buried with Ambrose St. John, it doesn’t prove that he’s gay. Besides, it doesn’t matter if a saint is gay or not. What matters most is what he or she did to propagate the Faith. It is sad to know that the leaders of the Catholic Church continuously shun and condemn actions they deem to be “immoral”. Instead of drawing the Church closer, they are the ones who are causing discord and enmity.
Crish at Oct 19, 08 at 8:14 pm
It’s not about whether “Was he gay or not?”, I think the better question is, “So what if he was gay?”
rustcell at Oct 20, 08 at 3:41 am
What should be said to those who think Newman’s wishes should be honoured and that Ambrose St. John’s remains should be removed with his?
Throughout his life as a Catholic, Newman always insisted that whatever he wrote he wrote under the correction of Holy Mother Church. That was his constant refrain. If the Church decrees that his remains should be removed to a church, then Newman’s undoubted response would be that of his last testament. like everything else he wrote, he wrote under correction of higher authority.
And if that higher authority decrees that his body be removed and that of his friend left, then Newman would say without hesitation, “so be it”.
http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/newmexhum.HTM
gostav at Oct 22, 08 at 11:46 am
catholicism has a lot of loop holes with regards to deep faith, church has always been the vital point as to who is to be beatified. there is always a reason and for that i live it to the vatican.
Afghan Guy at Oct 22, 08 at 8:30 pm