'A question of faith and discipline'

Cardinal Francis George's suspension of the Rev. Michael Pfleger last week could emerge as a pivotal moment not only for the future of the charismatic priest, but for the legacy of the spiritual leader of 2.3 million Catholics in the Chicago Archdiocese.

In his 14 years as archbishop, the 74-year-old George has remained committed to a conservative interpretation of church teachings, views that have clashed with many priests and parishioners.

His confrontation with Pfleger, a South Side priest beloved by his African-American congregation at St. Sabina, has come down to what the cardinal views as his sacred duty: to enforce Roman Catholic policies, including priests' adherence to their promise of obedience.

In his early years as head of the archdiocese, George was known for tense relationships with priests. The cardinal, scholarly and exacting, spoke his mind when he saw things that strayed from church guidelines, such as the absence of kneelers or incorrect placement of the tabernacle.

In 1997, frustrated Chicago priests scolded George for his criticisms in a letter and branded him with the nickname "Francis the Corrector."

In his letter last week informing Pfleger of the suspension, George made it clear that the priest had broken a promise of obedience by publicly stating that he would leave the Catholic Church if forced to accept a new assignment as a school administrator.

George's strongly worded letter was both a reprimand to Pfleger and a reminder to other priests about appropriate church conduct.

"A Catholic priest's inner life is governed by his promises, motivated by faith and love, to live chastely as a celibate man and to obey his bishop," the cardinal wrote. "Breaking either promise destroys his vocation and wounds the Church."

The letter clearly outlines the duties of a priest, said the Rev. James Halstead, chair of religious studies at DePaul University.

"Isn't that wonderful?" Halstead said. "So you see this is about promises, and canon law and what that means in the church."

The Monsignor Patrick Lagges, director of the Hesburgh Sabbatical Program at Chicago's Catholic Theological Union, said George's actions were known in church legal circles as a "medicinal penalty," meant to urge priests to return to obedience to the church.

The Chicago Archdiocese's personnel policy states that "a pastor will serve no more than two consecutive six-year terms as pastor" in a specific church. Pfleger has been pastor of St. Sabina for 30 years.

The policy mandating six-year terms was enacted after a 1972 vote by what was then the archdiocese's council of priests, and became a national policy the next year. The policy was put in place in Chicago under Cardinal John Cody, in part to keep pastors from becoming too entrenched and to allow younger priests to become pastors.

On Friday, the cardinal indicated that the ball now is in Pfleger's court.

"The move is not a question right now," George told WBBM-TV's Roseanne Tellez as he prepared to leave O'Hare International Airport for Rome. "The question is his own identity as a Catholic priest. The move, that's all moot. The question is far deeper than that. It's a question of faith and the discipline of the priesthood. So, we'll have to have a conversation."

In recent years, relations between the cardinal and most priests have warmed toward understanding and mutual respect.

But Pfleger challenges the traditional values of the Catholic Church, said the Rev. Hycel Taylor, a longtime friend of the priest and a retired theology professor at Northwestern University.

Pfleger has said he believes the church should ordain women and that priests should be allowed to marry. Even his preaching style is far from traditional Catholicism and closer to the rhythms of Protestant African-American churches.

"We kid him all the time about being more Baptist or black in his way of preaching and ministering," said Taylor, the retired pastor of Pilgrim Baptist Church on the South Side. "But he has been good for the Catholic Church because it needs that kind of diversity."

John L. Allen Jr., a noted scholar on Catholicism, said one of George's main concerns is Catholic identity — the belief that in a highly secular world, the full sense of what it means to be Catholic is sometimes watered down.

"If a core matter of Catholic identity is at stake, he's willing to draw a line in the sand to defend it," Allen said.

He said George is also determined to defend the bishops' authority at a time when it is fashionable for some Catholics to treat what the bishops say as just one opinion among others.

"If he perceives a priest is defying that authority, he'll act — as he's doing in this case," Allen said.

George's letter said Pfleger's disobedience was not related to his activism or style of ministering. Last year, when Pfleger received a social justice award from the archdiocese, the cardinal praised him and said he "acts out of love."

But last month, when Pfleger appeared on the national "Smiley & West" radio show and threatened to leave the Catholic Church, many priests said they knew the cardinal would strongly disapprove.

"If I were the cardinal, I would have been furious about that," said the Rev. Don Nevins, pastor of St. Agnes of Bohemia Church in Little Village.

While Pfleger is suspended, the Rev. Thulani Magwaza, associate pastor at St. Sabina, is administrator of the parish. The Rev. Andrew Smith, a priest at St. Ailbe Parish on the South Side, is his assistant.

Pfleger's next move will be closely watched, and not just in Chicago. He is well known in civil rights circles, and St. Sabina has hosted prominent African-Americans, including poet Maya Angelou, Martin Luther King III and film director Spike Lee.

"He is my dear brother, my deeply loved brother, both in the faith but also as a human being and as a freedom fighter," said Princeton University scholar and activist Cornel West. "He is a crucial part of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."

Source