Friday, January 15, 2010

Marcial Maciel is not the founder of the Legionaries of Christ!

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 I have almost finished my book about my twenty years in the Legion of Christ. I met Marcial Maciel when he was 42 years old. He most certainly was the founder of the congregation when I joined. As I write, the Legion is going through a rigorous audit by the Vatican. Allegedly the findings will be published in March. I say let's wait for the results before spouting more diatribes against the Legion. At this stage of the game, what is to be gained by relentless attacks?
The following is my translation and slight paraphrasing of a note on a Spanish language blog called "Todo Maciel." I don't think it is an exaggeration to say the blog is anti-Maciel and anti-Legion. That's not a problem. It is a problem when bloggers (myself included!) let emotion get in the way of facts and substantial analysis. Here is the excerpt which caught my attention:
"Maciel is not a real religious founder. The Legion is the work of a group of co-founders. Maciel should be consigned to the History of the Church as a "pseudo-founder."
For the Church, a founder is a person inspired by the Holy Spirit which leads the creation of something new in the history of salvation: a new way of following Christ, certain pastoral priorities, a peculiar aspect of evangelization (charisma). Well, Maciel meets the last two requirements: he istarted something new that has led to a new organization, but does he not meet at all the first and fundamental requirement: to be inspired by God."

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