Olmstead tells priests to withdraw their names from a statement

Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted privately has ordered nine Catholic priests to withdraw their support from an interfaith statement supporting gay rights.

Two of the nine priests who signed the Phoenix Declaration in January 2003 confirmed they received “personal and confidential” letters from the bishop last week. In the letter, Olmsted tells the priests and one religious brother to remove their names “under obedience” to him. No consequences are spelled out for those who decline.

A copy of the letter was not available, and, as of Tuesday, none of the priests had asked that their names be removed.

Get this quote from one of the priests:

Meyer said the letter [from the bishop]is troubling because its reflects a renewed “push for orthodoxy on social and sexual issues.”

Oh. You’re right. That’s really too bad, Father.

And then..judge denies O’Brien request to visit the Vatican

Maricopa County holds more authority over Bishop Thomas J. O’Brien than the pope these days.
That became evident Tuesday when Judge Stephen Gerst, relying on the recommendation of the Maricopa County Probation Department, rejected O’Brien’s request to make a 13-day papal visit to the Vatican next month.