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Article: FIring teacher didn't help the children. (canon purity and pastoral concerns)(Column)
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- June 6, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In all the years I have functioned as a theologian (37 and counting), no one has ever written to me after reading one of my books, articles or columns, or come up to me after a course or lecture, to inform me that I had motivated them to leave the Catholic church.
On the contrary, I have had hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Catholics over these years tell me that what I wrote or said had given them hope and an incentive to remain in the church.
I must confess that I occasionally wonder if I have done the right thing in every case. So many good people remain in the church only to be poorly served by it, especially women whose service to the church is the ...