“Banned in Boston” Austrian priest Helmut Schüller begins first U.S. tour

Contact:  Erin Saiz Hanna, ehanna@womensordination.org 202.675.1006

Sr. Christine Schenk, chris@futurechurch.org 216.513.3647

Fr. Helmut Schüller, 917.743.4953 (US)

"Banned in Boston" Austrian priest Helmut Schüller begins first U.S. tour,

calling for institutional change and inclusive priesthood

Fr. Helmut Schüller will begin his first U.S. speaking tour, The Catholic Tipping Point: Conversations, in New York, Tuesday, July 16. Covering fifteen cities coast to coast, the tour is sponsored by ten progressive Catholic organizations that support calls for inclusive and transparent changes to Church governance, including among them greater lay participation, inclusive ministries, and justice for LGBT persons within the Church.

Fr. Helmut Schüller, founder of the Austrian Priests’ Initiative, issued a global "Call to Disobedience" in 2011, calling for the admission of women and married people to the priesthood as well as greater lay leadership and transparency in Church governance. The statement was positively received by more than 70% of Austria’s priests. Similar reform movements have spread to Germany, France, Ireland, England, Switzerland, Australia, and the U.S., and include thousands of priests.

Schüller’s U.S. tour comes in the midst of a steadily worsening priest shortage. A recent study from the National Federation of Priests’ Councils found that for every 100 priests who retire, only 30 are available to replace them. 

Upon announcement of The Catholic Tipping Point tour, Cardinal Sean O’Malley of the Archdiocese of Boston issued a statement forbidding Fr. Schüller from speaking on Catholic property in the diocese, the first time a speaker has been banned from the proposed host site in eleven years. 

Following its launch on Tuesday, July 16, in New York, the tour includes a presentation at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Monday, July 22, and concludes in Long Island on August 7. Throughout the tour, Fr. Schüller, sponsors, and Conversation attendees will wear red ribbons symbolizing the spirit of Pentecost and calling for inclusion of the laity at every level of leadership and decision-making in the Church.

National organizers have requested a meeting with Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The tour will culminate with an offering of these ribbons to the Cardinal.

 For more tour information and local contacts visit www.catholictippingpoint.org.

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