An Open Letter to Sons and Daughters of God
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The following represents the open letter I read to all members of the Living Catholic Stewardship on August 26, 2025.
Recently, I met with our Pastor regarding the Filii Dei [Sons of God] and Filiae Dei [Daughters of God] stewardships. The meeting was to report on progress and plans for the stewardships and to also discuss ongoing spiritual concerns individually held by myself as it related to our individual needs as parishioners. The outcome of that meeting was somewhat surprising and unexpected. There were a number of things communicated during that meeting that are of public concern and some that have bearing only on my family individually and won’t be discussed or disclosed herein or elsewhere as they are personal matters between my family and our Pastor.
After thoughtful discernment, I must share with you that our stewardships will no longer be meeting on parish grounds for Sacred Heart. This decision comes not because of any fault in our teaching on matters of the faith, but because our Pastor—who bears canonical authority for the care of this Parish—has determined that the stewardship, though absolutely faithful to Catholic teaching, does not fit the present mission of the Parish. Its existence was solely for the purpose of advancing that mission.
I want to provide all of you with a clear, thoughtful and honest explanation, rooted in my lay interpretation of the life and law of the Church, so that you may understand both why this decision is binding and how we may properly continue in fidelity and charity if this is so desired.
Also, I want to make this plainly clear: I am an obedient Catholic and I believe each of us have a responsibility to be so. Failure in obedience to the teachings, practices and beliefs of the Church has led to the state I believe the Church to be in—i.e., lukewarm faith in the central tenants of our faith, lack of liturgical discipline, lack of Mass attendance and lack of community.
Many have taken a “buffet” approach in terms of our faith—i.e., choosing what things they will accept and discarding those that don’t accord with their individual judgment and this has led to a fracturing of the faith and widespread division and lack of unity among the faithful. And, this manifests in issues large and small—from giant political issues like abortion to whether or not to hold hands during the Our Father in Mass. ALL of them stem from individuals subverting their personal preferences over the obedience to Holy Mother Church. This is, unfortunately, an ongoing tragedy wounding the Body of Christ.
Why does it matter you might ask [and I was asked routinely]? Because Christ himself indicated that faith in the small things is reflected in the big things.
Christ states in Luke 16:10 -
He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in that which is greater: and he that is unjust in that which is little, is unjust also in that which is greater.
While I would never presume to speak for our Pastor, I suspect we are both operating from this very same admonition—which concludes the Parable of the Unjust Steward—and it is a difference in opinion as to the spiritual ends of our respective prudential judgment. And THAT is the lesson of this open letter—we have our respective stations and mine is submissive to his. I may not and will not substitute MY prudential judgment over that of my Pastor—even if I were to honestly and faithfully disagree. Our Pastor has deemed the stewardship of Filii Dei to be contrary to his mission and, in his prudential judgment, has indicated it may no longer continue for this reason. Further, I may no longer serve in any public facing leadership matters within the Parish so as to avoid any confusion in the advancement of his mission. On this, I faithfully submit. I have resigned from my positions within the Knights of Columbus and have agreed to immediately suspend operations of the Filii Dei on Parish grounds.
1. Affirmation of Our Faithfulness
It is important to state plainly:
Nothing taught in this stewardship was improper. We have drawn solely from Sacred Scriptures, Sacred Tradition, the Catechism, and the Magisterium via Encyclicals and other Documents binding on the faithful.
No accusation of error has been made. Rather, the concern raised by our Pastor is pastoral: our fidelity to liturgical norms and orthodoxy has raised questions among some parishioners, and Father has judged that such rising questions are disrupting parish unity.
This situation, then, is not about right teaching versus wrong teaching. It is about pastoral governance, prudence and the limits of lay apostolates within parish life.
2. The Authority of the Pastor
Holy Mother Church is clear: the Pastor governs the parish in the name of Christ and under the authority of the bishop.
Canon 515 §1: “A parish is… entrusted to a parish priest as its proper pastor.”
Canon 519: “The pastor is the proper shepherd of the parish… carrying out the functions of teaching, sanctifying, and governing under the authority of the diocesan bishop.”
Canon 528 §2: The pastor is responsible for the liturgy and the building up of the parish community, ensuring unity and order.
Canon 530 enumerates functions reserved to the pastor, showing that governance of parish life cannot be separated from his role.
Thus, if the pastor decides that a particular stewardship may not use parish property, his authority is absolutely binding. This is true even if his prudential reasoning may differ from our own. We are obligated to subordinate our judgment in these matters. This is what it means to be Catholic. We are to respect the hierarchy.
3. The Duty of Obedience
The faithful are not left free to ignore lawful governance simply because they may disagree. The Church binds us to obedience:
Canon 212 §1: “The Christian faithful… are bound to follow with Christian obedience those things which the sacred pastors, inasmuch as they represent Christ, declare… as rulers of the Church.”
Canon 223 §2: “Ecclesiastical authority is entitled to regulate, in view of the common good, the exercise of rights which are proper to the Christian faithful.”
Canon 273 reminds clerics, and by extension the faithful, of the obligation of obedience to sacred pastors.
Magisterial teaching confirms this:
Pope Leo XIII: “It is an unruly thing, and not lawful, to withdraw oneself from obedience to legitimate authority” (Diuturnum Illud, 1881).
St. Pius X: “The true friends of the people are neither revolutionaries, nor innovators: they are traditionalists” (Notre Charge Apostolique, 1910).
Thus, even if painful, obedience in this matter is the path of fidelity to the Church.
4. The Lay Apostolate and Its Limits
The laity have both the right and the duty to evangelize. Yet, this right is not absolute; it must always remain in communion with the hierarchy:
Canon 216: “No undertaking shall lay claim to the name ‘Catholic’ without the consent of competent ecclesiastical authority.”
Canon 225 §1: “Since all lay people are deputed by God to the apostolate through baptism and confirmation, they are bound by the general obligation and possess the right… to work so that the divine message of salvation may be known and accepted by all persons.”
Canon 225 §2: Laity are called to bring the Gospel into the world, but always “in accordance with their condition.”
Vatican II, Apostolicam Actuositatem (Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity), §24: “The hierarchy has the duty to regulate the exercise of the apostolate of the laity, and it is the duty of the laity to accept this regulation obediently.”
Therefore, while we have acted faithfully, the continuation of our stewardship within the parish requires pastoral consent. Once withdrawn, we cannot in obedience, continue it on parish grounds.
I wish to make clear—our Pastor has NOT suppressed our stewardship. It is free to continue but may not do so on Parish grounds. However, the effect of this decision is instructive in its own right—it is NOT, in the judgment of our Pastor, advancing Parish life.
5. The Right to Make Our Needs Known
The Church does not leave the faithful voiceless. Respectful expression of our concerns is both permitted and at times required:
Canon 212 §3: “According to the knowledge, competence, and prestige which they possess, the Christian faithful have the right and even at times the duty to manifest to the sacred pastors their opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church and to make their opinion known to the rest of the Christian faithful, without prejudice to the integrity of faith and morals, with reverence toward their pastors, and attentive to common advantage and the dignity of persons.”
[emphasis added]
It is important to understand—this stewardship, through its leadership, unapologetically and routinely raised questions privately about some of the liturgical practices of Sacred Heart. The routine utilization of Protestant Pentecostal worship music during Mass, the lack of sacred silence, the sometimes generalized lack of reverence in the Mass among the faithful, the interruption of, and limited availability of, the Sacrament of Reconciliation were all grave concerns which were brought to our Pastor in the hopes of charitable reformation for the betterment of the Parish.
It was honestly believed that the existence of this stewardship might help to educate the faithful about certain practices and the important maxim lex orandi, lex credendi—i.e., the law of prayer being the law of belief. This is the concept that the more serious and sanctified the Mass, the more fervent and reinforced the belief in the faith would be. These actions were undertaken not for subversive purposes but, rather, to strengthen the Parish and the faithful.
These actions may have created some discontent and passionate feelings leading to some uncharitable behavior as it relates to these issues—as shared by our Pastor. This is unfortunate and was highly discouraged by this stewardship. For these latter reasons, our Pastor has adjudged it necessary to end the stewardship on Parish grounds.
Please understand—it is my current intention to shut down this stewardship in its entirety. As an obedient Catholic, I believe it is incumbent upon me to advance Parish life. In accord with Apostolicam Actuositatem, I believe it required that I no longer continue this stewardship since my Pastor has adjudged my actions injurious to his mission.
HOWEVER—If you believe this stewardship has borne fruit and should continue off site which is both permitted and somewhat encouraged by our Pastor, I ask you to explain your position with Father charitably and respectfully. Should there be an appropriate interest in this regard, arrangements may be made for off site continuance. And also, it should be noted that our Pastor DOES see value in our stewardship and has continued to offer support in its off-site continuance. I want it made clear that this is not a war between our Pastor and this stewardship. I join him in his efforts to promote Parish life and strengthening of the Faith. But, again, we have different stations and different vocations. And we, as the laity, are called to respectful obedience to his prudential judgment.
6. Moving Forward
Brothers and sisters, these moments test our humility and obedience, but it does not end our mission as Catholics. Our call from Holy Mother Church remains: to pursue holiness, to witness to truth, and to labor for the glory of God.
Please pray for our Pastor and the Parish, that unity may be preserved and Truth upheld. Let us also continue to strengthen one another, whether in private fellowship, in study outside parish grounds, or in the simple daily witness of Christian life.
Our stewardship has never been about opposition, but about faithfulness and clarity of belief and doctrine. That fidelity now requires us to submit in obedience to lawful authority while still keeping alive the fire of truth in our hearts.
With gratitude for all of you,
In Christ,
An obedient, faithful Catholic Man.