Archbishop John Nienstedt: A Good Bishop Steps Aside for the Good of the Church

This good Bishop stepped aside for the good of the Church he serves. He embodies the words of Augustine - For you I am the bishop; with you I am a Christian.

His words were clear and humble - In order to give the Archdiocese a new beginning amidst the many challenges we face, I have submitted my resignation as Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis to our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and I have just received word that he has accepted it.The Catholic Church is not our Church, but Christ's Church, and we are merely stewards for a time. My leadership has unfortunately drawn attention away from the good works of His Church and those who perform them. Thus, my decision to step down.- Archbishop John Nienstedt

St. PAUL, Minn. (Catholic Online) - His words were clear and humble: "In order to give the Archdiocese a new beginning amidst the many challenges we face, I have submitted my resignation as Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis to our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and I have just received word that he has accepted it."

"The Catholic Church is not our Church, but Christ's Church, and we are merely stewards for a time. My leadership has unfortunately drawn attention away from the good works of His Church and those who perform them. Thus, my decision to step down."

Sadly, many in the old school Press will offer reports indicating otherwise. They have no grounds. Many in the blogo-sphere and online media will engage in rewrites and parrot the pile on allegations which have too often become a substitute for fair and accurate reporting.

He ended his statement with these words, "I leave with a clear conscience knowing that my team and I have put in place solid protocols to ensure the protection of minors and vulnerable adults. I ask for continued prayers for the well-being of this Archdiocese and its future leaders. I also ask for your continued prayers for me."

I believe him. All of this troubles me, for many reasons. 

While the situation in the Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis needs a thorough investigation - and a robust response from the Church - there is often an agenda in some main stream media coverage of men like Archbishop Nienstedt, because of his fidelity to the truth concerning the nature of marriage and the family. 

This Archbishop was the target of a false personal allegation against him in the past. He voluntarily stepped aside and was fully vindicated. I wrote about it here. Through all of that, he did not complain once. He did the honorable and humble thing. He stepped aside from public ministry. His reaction to the news of his vindication on Tuesday, March 12, 2014, further showed me the mettle of the man: 

"I am thankful to the Saint Paul Police for their thorough investigation, as well as to the Ramsey County Attorney's office for their professional work regarding this matter. I look forward to returning to public ministry during this Lenten season, especially during Holy Week and the great feast of Easter." 

"While I look forward to my return to public ministry, I remain committed to the ongoing work needed to provide safe environments for all children and youth. I continue to offer my prayers for all victims, their families and their communities, as well as to all who have been harmed by clergy sexual abuse. I once again offer my apology to all who have been affected by these terrible offenses."

So, why did he step down? I believe it was precisely because Archbishop John Nienstedt understands the nature of his office - and that it has been entrusted to him for the Church. In one of his pastoral letters, the Bishop of Hippo, St. Augustine, wrote concerning being a Bishop, "Believe me, brothers and sisters, if what I am for you frightens me, what I am with you reassures me. For you I am the bishop; with you I am a Christian."

Augustine also once compared a Bishop who lacked the necessary courage to preach the Gospel and defend the faith to "a scarecrow standing in a vineyard."  Archbishop John Nienstedt was no scarecrow. he was a spiritual warrior for the truth.

While I fully support the action of the Archbishop - and the Vatican response - I am saddened for another reason. We are losing one of the most articulate and courageous voices defending marriage and the family - right when it is under an assault unlike anything in history. 

In his apostolic exhortation on the Eucharist, the Sacrament of Charity, Pope Emeritus Benedict summarized the duty of Bishops, other Clergy and all of the faithful when confronted with the current cultural assault on authentic marriage:  "Marriage and the family are institutions that must be promoted and defended from every possible misrepresentation of their true nature, since whatever is injurious to them is injurious to society itself."

Archbishop John Nienstedt understood this obligation - and fulfilled it. He was heroic in his defense of marriage and the family. He also understood his vocation as a teacher. In 2010,  along with his brother Bishops in Minnesota, he engaged in a six week catechetical campaign to do all that he could to ensure that the faithful understood the truth about marriage and the family and society founded upon it.

A DVD entitled Preserving Marriage in Minnesota was sent to all Catholics to help them properly inform their conscience and engage in political participation based upon the truth concerning Marriage as revealed in the Natural Law, confirmed by Revelation and consistently taught by the Magisterium of the Catholic Church.  It was not only well done, it was an absolutely accurate representation of the unchangeable truth concerning marriage.

He was pilloried in the propaganda Press for this heroic effort to stem the assault on marriage in his home State. As a direct result of his fidelity in defending the truth about marriage and family, this Archbishop faced an unrelenting assault in the Media for months!

On Aug 2, 2013, he spoke at the NAPA Institute Conference for Catholic Leaders. The Archbishop gave a brilliant talk entitled Family as the Foundation of Culture.   It is still a great resource for anyone engaged in defending marriage and family. It can be read in its entirety and downloaded here. His address offers a blueprint which should be used in our continuing effort to defend marriage.

In the part his address dealing with "two views of marriage", he made the following observation: "If indeed marriage is the foundation of the family and the family is the cornerstone of society, then it is essential to the progress of any civilization that the consequences of choosing between a conjugal view or a revisionist view of marriage be weighed carefully and thoughtfully, especially in regard to the other negative forces that are impinging on the social reality of family life.

"Today, many evil forces have set their sights on the dissolution of marriage and the debasing of family life.  Sodomy, abortion, contraception, pornography, the redefinition of marriage, and the denial of objective truth are just some of the forces threatening the stability of our civilization.  The source of these machinations is none other than the Father of Lies.  Satan knows all too well the value that the family contributes to the fabric of a good solid society, as well as the future of God's work on earth."

The Archbishop was correct. Satan is the enemy of the Church. In the words of the Apostle Paul "our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Eph. 6:12)

Not only is the devil real, he is angry when people like Archbishop John Nienstedt expose his lies and defend the truth.  Marriage and family have been inscribed by the Divine Architect into the order of creation. Marriage is ontologically between one man and one woman, ordered toward the union of the spouses, open to children and formative of family.

Family is the first vital cell of society; the first church, first school, first hospital, first economy, first government and first mediating institution of our social order. The future of a free and healthy society passes through marriage and the family.

Marriage as existing solely between one man and one woman was not an idea manufactured by religion or civil government. It precedes both. Though affirmed, fulfilled, and elevated by our faith, the truth that marriage can exist only between one man and one woman is not based on religion or revelation alone, but on the Natural Moral Law, written on the human heart and discernible through the exercise of reason.

In response to his request, I pledge to pray for Archbishop Nienstedt. I  invite my readers to do the same. This good Bishop stepped aside for the good of the Church he serves. He embodies the words of Augustine, "For you I am the bishop; with you I am a Christian."

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Deacon Keith A. Fournier is Founder and Chairman of Common Good Foundation and Common Good Alliance. A married Roman Catholic Deacon of the Diocese of Richmond, Virginia, he and his wife Laurine have five grown children and seven grandchildren. He is a human rights lawyer and public policy advocate who served as the first and founding Executive Director of the American Center for Law and Justice in the nineteen nineties and has long been active at the intersection of faith and culture. He serves as Special Counsel to Liberty Counsel. He is a senior contributing writer to The Stream.

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