Catholic Citizens of Illinois told reporters that a letter sent to Archbishop Francis George by a group of 43 pastors is an attempt to intimidate the prelate. "It represents an initial attempt on the part of the small number of socially, politically and theologically liberal pastors to intimidate the archbishop," said the group's co-founder Mary Anne Hackett. "It's condescending and arrogant intent is clear."
The letter, dated October 10, is the results of a forum attended by the pastors in which they raise questions about Archbishop George's leadership style because of his criticism of the lack of kneelers in a church, directives that priests abide by rules governing which vestments to wear at funerals, and ordering liturgical retraining for deacons among other issues. "Some of us felt that you might have handled these matters differently if you had previous experience as a pastor of a parish," the letter said. "We will resist being treated as branch managers for some huge international corporation who simply take orders from headquarters, be that at the Vatican or at the Pastoral Center."
Archbishop George, who is a member of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate order, was archbishop of Portland, Oregon before his appointment to Chicago on May 7. The archdiocese issued a statement on Tuesday saying that the archbishop "is grateful for the conversation [the letter] has generated. He is also grateful to those concerned for him. But there is no need to mount a defense when there is no attack."