AZ and Bishop Tom Gumbleton

Many of us here in Tucson had looked forward to a talk to be given last night by Bishop Tom Gumbleton (whom I call the peace bishop.) But that never happened. Instead we only saw him via a DVD and heard him via a CD.

Here in a nutshell is the story: At age 75, he turned in his resignation as an auxiliary bishop in Detroit, as required by Vatican rules. It was accepted right away, though many bishops are kept in office well beyond 75. (An interesting example is the cardinal archbishop of Detroit, Adam Maida, who will soon be 77.) Then Bishop Tom (now 77) was also ordered to leave his parish, St. Leo's, even though he is healthy and energetic and there is no mandated age limit for pastors of parishes.

While his anti-war efforts--he was one of the first bishops to speak out against the Vietnam war and has gone to Iraq several times--have long irritated the warmonger class, other actions have put him under fire from other high places. Learning of his own brother's struggle as a homosexual, he became an advocate for gay and lesbian rights. And in January of last year, in contradistinction to the Ohio coalition of bishops, he addressed that state's House Judiciary Committee to endorse a law that would open a one-year window for victims of sexual abuse by priests to file lawsuits even if the abuse took place decades ago.

Invited by the Tucson chapter of Call To Action to speak here (CTA calls for Catholic renewal in the spirit of Vatican II), he learned that he was not welcome to speak at any Tucson diocesan property. So First Christian Church offered their sanctuary, which is where about 170 of us gathered last night--but without Bishop Tom. (He was also going to speak in Phoenix today.) A knowledgeable source has told me that the pope's US nuncio (ambassador) has declared that an outside bishop cannot speak in another bishop's geographical territory without the latter's permission. In any case, the door was barred both here and in Phoenix. And that is terribly, terribly sad.