Austrian bishops reject call for lay celebrants of Mass

VIENNA - Austria’s Catholic bishops have rejected a call by dissident Church members for laypeople to begin celebrating Mass in parishes with no priests.

The bishops said that some demands connected to “this call for disobedience at the initiative of priests and laity are simply unsustainable” and breach “the central truth of our Catholic faith.”

“As bishops, we are all naturally concerned about our Church’s real and serious problems — Austrian dioceses are facing up to the situation and taking opportunities to innovate,” said a statement issued at the end of the Nov. 7-10 meeting.

On Nov. 5, the Austrian branch of the We Are Church movement said laypeople should start making up for clergy shortages by consecrating and distributing Holy Communion, as well as preaching and presiding at Mass.

The bishops said they had discussed “heavy demands for change” at their plenary meeting. However, they said, “the summons to disobedience has not only left many Catholics shaking their heads, but also triggered alarm and sadness.”

“Disobedience is a word of struggle which nothing can hold back,” the bishops said. “Whoever openly and willingly takes over the duty of celebrating the sacred liturgy in the Church harms the community and himself and shows a reckless attitude.”

We Are Church was formed in 1995 following the resignation of Cardinal Hans Hermann Groer of Vienna amid sexual abuse allegations. It is linked to similar groups in other countries, including Germany, Ireland and the United States.

On its web site, the movement said the priest shortage was caused “by the official Church’s approval of outdated rules.”

Hans Peter Hurka, the group’s Austrian chairman, told Catholic News Service Nov. 11 that the bishops “don’t seem to realize the train has already left and they’re still standing on the platform.”