Paris, France, Feb 16, 2010 / 19:30 pm
An emotional “open letter” from Father Julien Durodie of the Legionaries of Christ in Paris to his brother priests of the movement has reopened debate within the order over how to proceed in the immediate future. The Legionaries are currently undergoing an apostolic visitation by order of the Holy See.
Despite the fact that Fr. Durodie told CNA, “I do not intend to open a debate, as if I did not feel free to speak with my superiors and brother Legionaries in a constructive conversation outside email exchanges,” his open letter has reached a vast number of current and former members of the Legion.
The priest went on to explain that by sending the open letter, he was not going against the directives of the movement's Superior General Fr. Alvaro Corcuera, who explicitly requested on January 24 that all email debates among members of the Legion come to an end.
“I believe the exchange of opinions through emails between numerous groups of priests, as has taken place recently, is a display of trust and the love we have for each other. But I think that it will never end if we continue like this and we may even cause misunderstandings and opposing positions,” Fr. Corcuera wrote.
Fr. Durodie added in his email to CNA that his “open letter is only intended to console the souls entrusted to me in Paris (for this reason it is in French, and I never asked nor wanted it to be translated into Spanish or English).” Nevertheless, his letter has been widely circulated among members of the Legion and Regnum Christi in several languages.