I was waiting to see what would happen in this case. This is the priest who came out on the eve of the synod and held a presser to push the Catholic Church to change its teachings because of his own attractions. And yeah, he was there with his boyfriend just so everyone could get a picture for posterity’s sake.
You might recall that he was removed from his position with the CDF, not because he was actively gay, but because he attempted to embarrass the bishops on the eve of the synod.
Yahoo reports:
Bishop Ryszard Kasyna has decided that Krzystof Charamsa should no longer be able to celebrate mass, administer sacraments like communion and baptism or wear a cassock, according to a statement on the website of their northern Pelplin diocese…
Bishop Kasyna said he was forced to defrock Charamsa for failing to abide by his vow of celibacy following an earlier official warning.
“Considering Father Charamsa’s lack of will to correct his behaviour and public statements indicating he will continue to break rules governing the behaviour of Catholic priests,” the bishop decided to defrock him, the statement said.
“This penalty is intended to encourage Father Charamsa to mend his ways and can be rescinded depending on his behaviour,” it said.
While Charamsa can no longer perform priestly duties, he has not been excommunicated, a move that would entirely banish him from the Catholic church.
The news report refers to it as a punishment and that’s understandable but the bishop is right. It is a mercy to him. Hopefully this will serve as a wakeup call for him but just as importantly it needed to be done so as to prevent even more confusion among Catholics.
