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Fr. Chris Carpenter Excommunicated in Diocese of Phoenix, Arizona

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Fr. Chris Carpenter made it clear that he rejected the teaching of the Church concerning human sexuality. He was very public in his rejection.

Deacon Keith Fournier Hi readers, it seems you use Catholic Online a lot; that's great! It's a little awkward to ask, but we need your help. If you have already donated, we sincerely thank you. We're not salespeople, but we depend on donations averaging $14.76 and fewer than 1% of readers give. If you donate just $5.00, the price of your coffee, Catholic Online School could keep thriving. Thank you. Help Now >

Highlights

By Deacon Keith Fournier
Catholic Online (https://www.catholic.org)
5/7/2009 (1 decade ago)

Published in U.S.

PHOENIX (Catholic Online) - Fr. Chris Carpenter is now called by some the "Chancellor of the Diocese of St Joseph the Worker in Southern California". Only he is no longer allowed to hold himself out as a Roman Catholic Priest. He separated himself from the Catholic Church and incurred the penalty of excommunication. That has now been formally recognized by an official decree. However, Chris Carpenter still calls himself a priest. Only now he claims to be a priest for the so called "Reformed catholic church."

The group has absolutely no connection to the real Catholic Church, has rejected fundamental Catholic teaching and has become a haven for what the Apostle Paul called those who preach "another gospel" (Gal. 1:6) The group is also rapidly ordaining actively homosexual men and women. All of this while dressing itself up in the clothing and language of the Catholic Church and claiming to stand in the lineage of the apostles.

Fr. Carpenter is also pursuing what he enjoyed doing for fun in Arizona when he was a movie reviewer for the Catholic Sun, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Phoenix. He was then known as "Father Flick". He was the pastor of Christ the King Parish in Mesa, Arizona until he took a leave of absence allegedly for health reasons. Now he does his movie reviews for "Movie Dearest" a movie review site which is overtly and flamboyantly homosexual. It calls itself "A Celebration of Film for Gay and Gay-Friendly Movie Fans".

Fr. Chris Carpenter made it clear that he rejected the teaching of the Church concerning human sexuality. He was very public in his rejection. When he joined the pretend church he wrote a public E mail to some of his friends telling them, "I'm very happy to report that I have been accepted as a priest of the Reformed Catholic Church... We are a progressive, international, rapidly growing (including in the Phoenix area) communion descended from the 'Old Catholics' who broke with Rome in 1870 over papal infallibility." He excitedly explained that the "Reformed catholic Church" supported the ordination of women, practicing gays and lesbians. He boasted that "...We use the same liturgy, rites and prayers as the Roman church...." And that "their leadership has welcomed me with open arms, and I am grateful".

The Priest had moved to Southern California after taking a leave of absence from his ministry in the Diocese of Phoenix. Upon his arrival he joined a "gay and lesbian ministry" in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He also sought priestly faculties from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for an entire year, but to no avail.

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So he is now, in his own words, the first "Reformed Catholic Priest" in California. He has already been given several titles by the group and a prominent place on their website. While still involved in pastoral care in Arizona Fr. Carpenter had signed the so called "Phoenix Declaration" which, among other doctrinal errors, demanded the ordination of "gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered" persons. He did so with eight other Catholic Priests. He later removed his name under obedience to the Bishop. However, he never rejected the errors set forth in the Declaration.

So now Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix has done what he had to under the teaching of the Church and Canon law. He has recognized what Fr. Chris Carpenter brought upon himself. This straying priest has placed himself outside of the full communion of the Roman Catholic Church. The formal decree of excommunication was issued last month and made public this week. The decree forbids Carpenter from presiding at Mass, offering the Sacraments or holding himself out as a Catholic priest.

Fr. Fred Adamson is the vicar general of the Phoenix Diocese. He gave this statement concerning the sad state of affairs: "It is important for the bishop to publicly clarify the status of a priest when he has taken such a step to distance himself from the Catholic Church... "The bishop's desire is for reconciliation and unity."

We ask our readers to pray for the repentance and conversion of Fr. Chris Carpenter. This is a time when the assault upon the truths proclaimed by the Catholic Church has reached a fever pitch. However, the promise of the Master to the Apostle Peter are our greatest anchor in these storms, the "gates of hell will not prevail" (Matt. 16:18).

We also ask our readers to pray for Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted as he continues to pastor the faithful in the Diocese of Phoenix.

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