Cardinal writes to CCV editor

Dear Jim,

your reply to cardinal Gracias is full of overenthusiastic praise and unnecessary humility as if he has done some great act of benevolence and heavenly sympathy towards some miserable creatures! All this is baseless exaggeration of a sentiment that the ignorant and slavish faithful are expected to show towards bishops. What he has done is just give a short reply to innumerable letters you had sent him seeking clarity about an urgent question that concerns the entire church. There is no word of excuse in his letter for keeping you waiting for so long, nor any details about the questionnaires he speaks of. Let us be cautious about taking his words on their face value. We have to have proof of what he claims to have done either from his own office or from elsewhere. There too he has given you no hint as to where to look for this proof. I'm hesitant to believe him. If any survey had been done, how come that even Laititude or individuals we have approached had had no idea about it at all? And he doesn't mention  at all about the measure of participation of the Lay people in the survey. He should at least have given you a place or person for further contact and inquiry about the matter. Even if such a survey took place, it was dominated by the clergy, according to his own words. And what kind of farce that must have been!

Zacharias Nedunkanal 

Chacko Kalarickal, Washington, Michigan

        According to the archbishop of Bombay: "It  (family survey) was discussed by the Priests’ Council, the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council, all Parish Councils, groups of priests, and some of the Commissions in the Archdiocese."

      This survey was supposed to be conducted among the Catholic families. The intention of the questionnaire was to get a feed back from those who live family life,  not for a discussion among the councils, the Archbishop  referrers to in his letter. Not only that, he is claiming that the archdiocese of Bombay did an extensive study. Who did that study? not the lay people/Catholic families? What a pity!  That means the archdiocese didn't send the questionnaires to the lay faithful to get their response and  so he must have sent the response of  Bombay priests to Rome.

       It is plain and simple. As an archbishop he should be ashamed of cheating the Catholic families and I think he should not have  sent  such an email to Dr. Kottoor.   And Dr. Kottoor, you are doing an excellent job but you were in too much of a hurry to praise the archbishop.

Chacko Kalarical.