[Magdalen] Life's blessings

[James Oppenheimer-Crawford]

I suspect it is common in any course where a person has invested a lot of
time and effort and then been turned away.
Of course, if you have good reason to think your search is justified, then
when someone says no, you naturally ask why not.
When the response is, "It is my discernment, and I will not discuss it,"
(Mark Sisk's exact words were that is was not his policy to discuss it, as
if that showed that his hands were tied?) then that is unhelpful and
appears disingenuous.  It makes the authority look smarmy and suspicious.
(I say you aren't suited, but I don't HAVE TO explain my reasoning, so I
won't)
The continual evasion of any responsibility for their actions (refusing to
put anything in writing or even to speak on the telephone about anything,
no matter how trivial, but requiring the applicant to submit a huge list of
things in writing) just makes them look paranoid -- which I think is
justified.
Since they are unbound by any sort of ethics of how to proceed, one wonders
just what they are afraid of. I am sure they had no reason to be afraid of
me. But they certainly were afraid of something.
When the canon for ministry visited to discuss the matter (necessary since
no other form of communication word of mouth would do), I got the
impression that she was embarrassed, and would rather have been anywhere
else.

I told her I would not have her job for all the tea in China. She said she
was gratified that I still had a sense of humor.

James W. Oppenheimer-Crawford
*“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved,
except in memory. LLAP**”  -- *Leonard Nimoy

On Mon, Nov 7, 2016 at 11:04 PM, Cantor03--- via Magdalen <
magdalen at herberthouse.org> wrote:

>
>
> In a message dated 10/21/2016 3:43:48 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> oppenheimerjw at gmail.com writes:
>
> but just  recently a
> conversation turned to it again, and I found myself still hurt,  angry,
> and
> humiliated.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>
>
> The symptoms you describe were common in those rejected in the
>  process of application for the RC diaconate.
>
>
>
>