In a particularly bitter piece in the Hackensack Record, ex-priest William O’Fallon wrote an Op-ed article urging Catholics to revolt against the Church. He praised the Pope for his teachings on war and poverty but blasted him for his “close-minded” stance on issues of sexuality. O’Fallon admitted in the New Jersey newspaper that when he was a priest, he counseled mutiny. Here is a what he once told his parishioners in St. Louis:

“I told them that I felt it was sinful if they did use the rhythm method of birth control; I remarried divorced Catholics; I officiated at the marriages of fellow priests who wished both to marry and to remain in the ministry; I encouraged my parishioners to question church authority, to try to rid themselves of the constant guilt that we Catholics have a tendency to carry around, and not to take everything that the church taught as positively coming from the mouth of God.”

O’Fallon stated that he did not commemorate his 23rd anniversary of being suspended from the priesthood. Dr. Donohue replied in the following manner:

“And just as ex-cons tell stories of how they abused the system to get what they wanted, so this ex-priest brags about how he abused the Church until he was given the gate. Small wonder he didn’t “commemorate” his ouster from the priesthood 23 years ago. But not to worry, those who know him now will do the celebrating for him.”

Columbia Union College, a Seventh-Day Adventist school in Maryland, was denied funding by the state because it was deemed a “pervasively sectarian” institution. The state turned down Columbia’s application for aid in 1992 under the Rev. Joseph A. Sellinger Program, which provides funding to private colleges, including religious ones. In June, the school sued the state with the help of the Center for Individual Rights.

The Tacoma Park college is challenging Maryland’s decision, claiming that denial of funds on the basis of religious viewpoint constitutes a violation of free speech and religious liberty. This is an important case for all religious schools because it allows the government to determine what is “pervasively sectarian” and what is merely “sectarian.” This language has previously been cited by other court rulings as a way to block assistance to Catholic schools. The league hopes that Columbia prevails in the end.