US Catholic Bishops Give $322,000 to Organization Promoting Apostasy, Women’s Ordination, Witchcraft

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The Catholic Church exists for a single purpose: the salvation of souls. At the Great Commission, Our Blessed Lord told His disciples to "teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matt. 28:19–20).

So, when an institution bearing the name "Catholic" is little more than a perpetual supply chain to organizations who act directly and specifically against what Our Lord commanded His faithful to do, Catholics are left scratching their heads and wondering if there is any faith among the stewards of that money at all.

Since 2006, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), a project of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has funneled $322,000 to just such an organization. That money found its way, through a series of seven grants, into the coffers of the Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center (IPJC), a bastion of heretical and immoral materials.

The Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center (IPJC) received the following grants:

• $30,000 (2006–2007)
• $27,000 (2007–2008)
• $40,000 (2008–2009)
• $50,000 (2013–2014)
• $55,000 (2015–2016)
• $60,000 (2016–2017)
• $60,000 (2017–2018)

It is important to note that this money was provided by every diocese in the United States that participates in the CCHD collection. Whenever a diocese takes up the CCHD collection (typically the third Sunday of November), 25 percent of that funding remains with the diocese while the other 75 percent goes to the national CCHD and is redistributed to groups like this one.

And before we explore the serious issues with this organization, it is also worth noting that in 2012, IPJC received an award from the CCHD and was featured in the book Beyond Empowerment: A Pilgrimage with the Catholic Campaign for Human Development by Jeffry Odell Korgen. Clearly, this is not an organization unfamiliar to the CCHD, which, as you will soon see why, calls into serious question the CCHD's vetting standards.

IPJC and the promotion of women's ordination and apostasy from the Catholic Church

The summer 2015 issue of IPJC's quarterly magazine, A Matter of Spirit, was based around the theme of women in the Church. Several articles in this issue lament the "patriarchy" they see in the Catholic Church and — despite definitive Catholic teaching reserving the sacrament of Holy Orders to men — claim that the Holy Spirit is pushing for the priestly ordination of women. Co-authors Victoria Ries and Fr. James Eblen state:

Given the transformation of the community in the power of the Spirit, both as persons and as a body, and given the mission to transform the world, perhaps now is the time to engage the question of full inclusion of women in the Catholic Church. Pope Francis has said that "the Church has spoken and said no" to the ordination of women, but perhaps the Spirit has something else in mind. In many cultures of the world, women are serving as executive leaders in politics and business. Some ecclesial cultures have embraced the reality of women as bishops and priests. If the "missionary impulse" toward such a world gives the work of evangelization priority over Catholic practices and customs that impede the mission, then perhaps the Spirit is calling for change for the sake of the world. Perhaps the call that some women experience to priesthood is the work of the Spirit — a work of inclusion that will speak of equal dignity for all women and the transformation of all societies in which women are not included or valued as equals. Perhaps the Church is being called to take the lead in this full inclusion of women. If so, this is truly a message that will transform the church and the world. May we have ears to hear and hearts to respond! [emphasis added]

Later, in the same issue, IPJC featured an article by Tara Young-Brown who explains she left the Catholic Church to pursue ordination in the United Church of Christ.

Read the rest at The Lepanto Institute.

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