An English bishop was criticised this week for sanctioning a diocesan study programme which promotes discussion of God as “She”.The programme, written to help parishes in the Nottingham diocese prepare for their Diocesan Assembly next year, includes a session designed “to explore our ideas of God and how He/She works in the world”.
A Year of preparation for the Assembly was formally launched by Bishop Malcolm McMahon OP of Nottingham on September 11. The study pack, prepared by a working party of priests and lay-workers, has now been circulated to parishes and Catholic organisations across the diocese. It includes scripture readings, prayers and other resource material. God as “She” is included in the group leaders’ notes for stage one, session three under the general heading “God! What difference Does He make!”.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that God is “neither man nor women: he is God”. But it is unequivocal in declaring God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to be the foundation of the Catholic faith. Concerns about the focus of the assembly were raised earlier this year, when The Catholic Herald reported that the assembly would be looking at alternative images of God as “God the Mother”. The official assembly prayer is to “God the Creator”, rather than God the Father.
Fr Ken O’Riordan, head of the working party that drew up the document, denied that the assembly would be dominated by a feminist or gender-based agenda. Speaking in July, he said: “That would be a distortion of what we are trying to do. We are just trying to get people to think more clearly about God and the Incarnation.”
The organisers are hoping that 500 representatives from parishes and organisations in the diocese will attend the conference which is being held at Loughborough University next September.
Bishop McMahon has called on “everyone, young and old to reflect on what it means to be part of the Catholic Church in today’s world”. Each section of the course material begins with a quote from Bishop Peter Cullinane of Palmerston North, New Zealand: “If we refuse to plan for the future which we see is coming, we betray both our past and our present.”
But there are signs of increasing disquiet from priests and parishioners.
One parishioner said this week that the assembly pack was “uninspiring” and unlikely to have the desire effect of bringing people together to discuss their faith and the future of the diocese.
He said: “I’m extremely disappointed. The whole thing reads like a 1960’s hippy retread. We’ve been here before and it doesn’t work. It is inane and vacuous. I would be amazed if anyone was inspired by this kind of drivel.”
He warned there was a very real threat that the assembly would be hijacked by “interest groups” unless more people became involved.
“I’m concerned by what isn’t included. We want adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and a strong pro-life input. Let’s keep in touch with papal teaching. I don’t think the Pope is even mentioned here,” he said.
Neither Bishop McMahon the diocesan press officer nor Fr O’Riordan were available for comment.
