NOM BLOG

Former Adviser to U.S. Bishops Dan Avila Explains His Choice to Step Down

 

Those of us who know Dan, know that it is very like him to sacrifice his job and his income, rather than permit any act of his to bring any distraction to the bishops he serves. God bless him and his family in his future endeavors.

The National Catholic Register:

Daniel Avila says he resigned from his position at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops because of his “desire to see the bishops continue their effective and courageous witness without distraction."

... In a statement released exclusively to the Register (see below), Avila explained the resignation for the first time. He said he quickly realized that the firestorm following his Oct. 28 column had the potential to obstruct the mission of the nation’s bishops in the public-policy arena.

“The USCCB must advance the Church’s policy positions recognizing the inviolable dignity of every human being and the inalterable nature of marriage as the union of one man and one woman. These are not matters of speculation for the Church, but risked being obscured by the aftermath from my own speculations,” he wrote.

He said that in accepting his resignation, the USCCB had demonstrated a “commitment to marriage and dignity of all persons.”

... Jeffrey Mirus, president of Trinity Communications, provided commentary about Avila’s column on his website, CatholicCulture.org.

In his commentary, Mirus said, “Avila chose to write on a supremely sensitive issue. He did not get it quite right, and the bishops rather understandably want to control the message, keeping it absolutely free from theological misunderstanding. One would, of course, like to see equal control over Catholics who publish the view Avila attempted to refute."

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