Dean's Appeal to the Church
Donation protected
I'm Dean, father of a beautiful child, married to his mother, living in the same community which I served since 1995 as a Catholic priest. I see married life and caring for children as perfectly compatible -- in fact, blessed and wonderfully synergistic -- with ministry as a priest. Please help me share this good news with the Church!
In these troubled and disheartening times, I need your help to create this positive testimony for life in the Roman Catholic Church. The issues I address are critical. And though my appeal is based on lived experience and common sense, many Catholics fear or misunderstand the call for change to the rule of celibacy. Still, one of my first supporters commented: "I donated because I agree that priests should be allowed to marry. To love, marry and have children is God-given," she wrote, calling this a "gift" of "human nature... that nobody should be denied." Amen... but in fact, an option for some married men to be priests is not for their sake alone, but for the common good of the Church and the world.
Please take time to read the following appeal and to view the videos explaining my position and my mission. Here are the links, first for a 5-minute introduction, and then for my full 20-minute presentation:
https://vimeo.com/roadfinch/download/350464472/73e553a517
https://vimeo.com/345869320
For a brief (2 minute - i.e. highly edited, though favorable) Fox 40 news feature from September 5, 2018, see:
https://fox40.com/2018/09/05/former-stockton-priest-speaks-out-about-international-church-scandal/
On my website, www.deanmcfalls.com, you'll learn more about my background and writings. Your donations may be made via PayPal here, or by sending a check c/o P. O. Box 1000, French Camp, CA 95231-1000. Comments can be sent via my email (see the website), on Facebook, or via snail mail to my website. Thank you so much! And remember, whatever you give is entirely up to you, including whether or not to include a "tip" to help the GoFundMe team carry out their work.
Please note that most people are contacting me directly via my PO Box, FB or email.
My GoFundMe Proposal and Objectives
Goal 1: To prioritize above all the safety, well-being, and future of our children, witnessing publicly to the inherent dignity and infinite value of every human life.
Goal 2: To work toward ending the ban on married Catholic priests; to labor for a new beginning (though not at all new in the history of our Church) allowing some married men, in certain circumstances, to serve the faithful as Latin Rite priests.
Goal 3: To support, encourage, and challenge priests who have fathered children to do everything in their power for the benefit of those children and of the mothers involved.
Goal 4: To remind Catholics of the respect and gratitude we all owe those priests who, after years (at times, decades) of service, have entered the vocation of marriage. Many live anonymously, so to speak"in the shadows", and carry on with hearts saddened by the loss of their priestly ministry -- even as they strive to be faithful husbands, fathers, citizens and servants.
As a priest who left ordained ministry to care for his child, I would approach these goals with humility and discretion, care and compassion, yet also with patient determination.
Mission: For the sake of the Catholic faithful and a healthier Church, and to foster an authentically pro-life and life-giving leadership, I'll launch a campaign of published books, supportive websites, and diverse resources, testifying to the beauty of fatherhood, the dignity of every human life, and the essential harmony between marriage and priesthood.
The sad facts: Confidence in the Catholic leadership is very low. Sexuality and priesthood, once taboo, are frequent media topics, nearly always in a negative light and related to scandals. Over the centuries, too many priests have manifested sexual issues or behaviors which the Church they represent deems unacceptable or even condemns. Thousands of victims have suffered abuse and rejection. Meanwhile, millions of Catholics are under-served due to the shortage of priests. Yet countless vocations are lost because so many priests leave ministry for marriage, and so many more never reach ordination because they, too, feel called to family life.
What I'm proposing: By allowing God the Father to call some men both to married life and to the priesthood (as has been the case for centuries in the Orthodox and Eastern Rite Catholic churches), a healthier psychological and sexual balance will gradually be restored. Many more priests will be available to serve the needs of the faithful.
(Regarding celibacy understood as charism, or gift, please read and or listen/to Fr. Richard Rohr's brief response to renewed allegations of cover-ups in the highest levels of Church hierarchy from August 2018. This link is also posted in my update of August 25, 2019:) https://cac.org/fr-richards-statement-on-the-new-revelations-of-priestly-abuse-and-coverup-2018-08-20/
A recent example: In May, a well-known, highly respected, orthodox and articulate Catholic priest announced his departure from ministry and his plan, after 25 years' vocational journey, to start a new life. He now serves Fox as a resource on ethics and the Church. For a brief interview (8 3/4 min) with Fox's Martha MacCallum, click this link:
https://video.foxnews.com/v/6046700307001/#sp=show-clips
My story: Raised Christian and active from childhood in our church, then a seeker since 1970, a committed Catholic since 1981, an international activist since 1982, a missionary since 1990, and priest from 1995 to my child's birth in 2013, I was always on fire for my faith and highly motivated as a minister. But my son's coming-to-life made absolutely clear for me what I'd sensed from the beginning: something essential had been missing, and that was the gift of another human life. While the circumstances of his conception were a source of scandal, and we've had to pay the price publicly, our son is an angel sent from heaven. He was -- and is forever -- meant to be.
In fact, our son has been the greatest blessing of my life. I want to share this with the Catholic Church. The time has come for certain men to be both fathers of families and Latin Rite priests -- without having to come in through the back door as an ordained minister of another faith community who becomes Catholic. And the time came long ago for the Church to accept and take responsibility for the fact that some priests do, during their ministry, become fathers. Their children deserve to be cared for, loved, and protected, as do the women who find themselves pregnant, or who are raising those children alone.
Married in the Cathedral, living in the same community I'd served since 1994, I've written several books, taught in the public schools, worked with forty Head Start families, renovated homes with my wife, and volunteered with a variety of agencies and causes. But, beyond trying to be a responsible father and husband, I have a mission to fulfill. Yet funds are lacking and time is running out. That's why I need your help.
It has proven impossible for me to land the kinds of jobs for which my life has best prepared me. Time after time, I run up against invisible barriers and obstacles. Meanwhile, the years go by without my fulfilling the central goal of making my story and testimony known and without reaching out to priests and others who need our support.
Out there in cyberspace and in the world of Faith, there are people whom God has blessed with the means and the desire to work for renewal in the Catholic Church. If you are one of these, please take to heart what I'm proposing. Know that I'll never leave this Church, nor attack her ministers, but I am calling on the Church to become more fully and authentically Pro-Life. It's a matter (as I've said) of granting God the freedom to call men to both states of life. It means recognizing that marriage and priesthood, far from being mutually exclusive, should be seen as complementary and synergistic, as capable of being "married" and of bringing new life to the Church.
I pledge myself to use any gifts and revenues responsibly, channeling donated funds to free us up for the mission I've described. I'll render an account to those who share in my work. I'll always continue to practice the Catholic faith, with prayer and charity, frequent mass and confession, regular spiritual direction, love for Jesus and respect for our shepherds. As for our son: he loves the Church, his Lord, the Blessed Mother, the angels, and the saints -- and his parents, as well!
Before closing, I need to tell you that, after nearly six years of countless efforts to communicate with our bishops and church spokespersons about what I've written above, I have received a total of zero (0, not any) answers -- not even in the form of a text, a phone message, or an indirect acknowledgment (except, in two cases, by a secretary). For them, it seems I vanished into thin air on September 21, 2013, even if our local bishops and priests have been polite and affirming to us as a family. It is for this reason I've decided to take my campaign into the public sphere.
That's why I did this 20 minute interview last March for a national radio program:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRZP1mNurR0
For Spanish speakers, here's my 2013 interview with Jorge Ramos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaz871n0bjg
I also recommend the Huffington Post's article of September 30, 2013:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dean-mcfalls-priest-fathers-child_n_4016571
Regarding the defamatory story Fox 40 carried, see this interview from Sept. 29, 2013:
https://fox40.com/2013/09/29/stockton-priest-speaks-out-after-welcoming-son-into-world/
Thank you for your support. God bless you all. Dean McFalls
P. O. Box 1000, French Camp, CA 95231-1000.
In these troubled and disheartening times, I need your help to create this positive testimony for life in the Roman Catholic Church. The issues I address are critical. And though my appeal is based on lived experience and common sense, many Catholics fear or misunderstand the call for change to the rule of celibacy. Still, one of my first supporters commented: "I donated because I agree that priests should be allowed to marry. To love, marry and have children is God-given," she wrote, calling this a "gift" of "human nature... that nobody should be denied." Amen... but in fact, an option for some married men to be priests is not for their sake alone, but for the common good of the Church and the world.
Please take time to read the following appeal and to view the videos explaining my position and my mission. Here are the links, first for a 5-minute introduction, and then for my full 20-minute presentation:
https://vimeo.com/roadfinch/download/350464472/73e553a517
https://vimeo.com/345869320
For a brief (2 minute - i.e. highly edited, though favorable) Fox 40 news feature from September 5, 2018, see:
https://fox40.com/2018/09/05/former-stockton-priest-speaks-out-about-international-church-scandal/
On my website, www.deanmcfalls.com, you'll learn more about my background and writings. Your donations may be made via PayPal here, or by sending a check c/o P. O. Box 1000, French Camp, CA 95231-1000. Comments can be sent via my email (see the website), on Facebook, or via snail mail to my website. Thank you so much! And remember, whatever you give is entirely up to you, including whether or not to include a "tip" to help the GoFundMe team carry out their work.
Please note that most people are contacting me directly via my PO Box, FB or email.
My GoFundMe Proposal and Objectives
Goal 1: To prioritize above all the safety, well-being, and future of our children, witnessing publicly to the inherent dignity and infinite value of every human life.
Goal 2: To work toward ending the ban on married Catholic priests; to labor for a new beginning (though not at all new in the history of our Church) allowing some married men, in certain circumstances, to serve the faithful as Latin Rite priests.
Goal 3: To support, encourage, and challenge priests who have fathered children to do everything in their power for the benefit of those children and of the mothers involved.
Goal 4: To remind Catholics of the respect and gratitude we all owe those priests who, after years (at times, decades) of service, have entered the vocation of marriage. Many live anonymously, so to speak"in the shadows", and carry on with hearts saddened by the loss of their priestly ministry -- even as they strive to be faithful husbands, fathers, citizens and servants.
As a priest who left ordained ministry to care for his child, I would approach these goals with humility and discretion, care and compassion, yet also with patient determination.
Mission: For the sake of the Catholic faithful and a healthier Church, and to foster an authentically pro-life and life-giving leadership, I'll launch a campaign of published books, supportive websites, and diverse resources, testifying to the beauty of fatherhood, the dignity of every human life, and the essential harmony between marriage and priesthood.
The sad facts: Confidence in the Catholic leadership is very low. Sexuality and priesthood, once taboo, are frequent media topics, nearly always in a negative light and related to scandals. Over the centuries, too many priests have manifested sexual issues or behaviors which the Church they represent deems unacceptable or even condemns. Thousands of victims have suffered abuse and rejection. Meanwhile, millions of Catholics are under-served due to the shortage of priests. Yet countless vocations are lost because so many priests leave ministry for marriage, and so many more never reach ordination because they, too, feel called to family life.
What I'm proposing: By allowing God the Father to call some men both to married life and to the priesthood (as has been the case for centuries in the Orthodox and Eastern Rite Catholic churches), a healthier psychological and sexual balance will gradually be restored. Many more priests will be available to serve the needs of the faithful.
(Regarding celibacy understood as charism, or gift, please read and or listen/to Fr. Richard Rohr's brief response to renewed allegations of cover-ups in the highest levels of Church hierarchy from August 2018. This link is also posted in my update of August 25, 2019:) https://cac.org/fr-richards-statement-on-the-new-revelations-of-priestly-abuse-and-coverup-2018-08-20/
A recent example: In May, a well-known, highly respected, orthodox and articulate Catholic priest announced his departure from ministry and his plan, after 25 years' vocational journey, to start a new life. He now serves Fox as a resource on ethics and the Church. For a brief interview (8 3/4 min) with Fox's Martha MacCallum, click this link:
https://video.foxnews.com/v/6046700307001/#sp=show-clips
My story: Raised Christian and active from childhood in our church, then a seeker since 1970, a committed Catholic since 1981, an international activist since 1982, a missionary since 1990, and priest from 1995 to my child's birth in 2013, I was always on fire for my faith and highly motivated as a minister. But my son's coming-to-life made absolutely clear for me what I'd sensed from the beginning: something essential had been missing, and that was the gift of another human life. While the circumstances of his conception were a source of scandal, and we've had to pay the price publicly, our son is an angel sent from heaven. He was -- and is forever -- meant to be.
In fact, our son has been the greatest blessing of my life. I want to share this with the Catholic Church. The time has come for certain men to be both fathers of families and Latin Rite priests -- without having to come in through the back door as an ordained minister of another faith community who becomes Catholic. And the time came long ago for the Church to accept and take responsibility for the fact that some priests do, during their ministry, become fathers. Their children deserve to be cared for, loved, and protected, as do the women who find themselves pregnant, or who are raising those children alone.
Married in the Cathedral, living in the same community I'd served since 1994, I've written several books, taught in the public schools, worked with forty Head Start families, renovated homes with my wife, and volunteered with a variety of agencies and causes. But, beyond trying to be a responsible father and husband, I have a mission to fulfill. Yet funds are lacking and time is running out. That's why I need your help.
It has proven impossible for me to land the kinds of jobs for which my life has best prepared me. Time after time, I run up against invisible barriers and obstacles. Meanwhile, the years go by without my fulfilling the central goal of making my story and testimony known and without reaching out to priests and others who need our support.
Out there in cyberspace and in the world of Faith, there are people whom God has blessed with the means and the desire to work for renewal in the Catholic Church. If you are one of these, please take to heart what I'm proposing. Know that I'll never leave this Church, nor attack her ministers, but I am calling on the Church to become more fully and authentically Pro-Life. It's a matter (as I've said) of granting God the freedom to call men to both states of life. It means recognizing that marriage and priesthood, far from being mutually exclusive, should be seen as complementary and synergistic, as capable of being "married" and of bringing new life to the Church.
I pledge myself to use any gifts and revenues responsibly, channeling donated funds to free us up for the mission I've described. I'll render an account to those who share in my work. I'll always continue to practice the Catholic faith, with prayer and charity, frequent mass and confession, regular spiritual direction, love for Jesus and respect for our shepherds. As for our son: he loves the Church, his Lord, the Blessed Mother, the angels, and the saints -- and his parents, as well!
Before closing, I need to tell you that, after nearly six years of countless efforts to communicate with our bishops and church spokespersons about what I've written above, I have received a total of zero (0, not any) answers -- not even in the form of a text, a phone message, or an indirect acknowledgment (except, in two cases, by a secretary). For them, it seems I vanished into thin air on September 21, 2013, even if our local bishops and priests have been polite and affirming to us as a family. It is for this reason I've decided to take my campaign into the public sphere.
That's why I did this 20 minute interview last March for a national radio program:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRZP1mNurR0
For Spanish speakers, here's my 2013 interview with Jorge Ramos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaz871n0bjg
I also recommend the Huffington Post's article of September 30, 2013:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dean-mcfalls-priest-fathers-child_n_4016571
Regarding the defamatory story Fox 40 carried, see this interview from Sept. 29, 2013:
https://fox40.com/2013/09/29/stockton-priest-speaks-out-after-welcoming-son-into-world/
Thank you for your support. God bless you all. Dean McFalls
P. O. Box 1000, French Camp, CA 95231-1000.
Organizer
Dean McFalls
Organizer
Stockton, CA