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L.M.: Did
Christian Sannyasa
you and Bede reorganize that?
W.T.: No, no, no. It was Bede and Abishiktananda who did. It is the ancient sannyasa initiation which is thousands of years old. There are Christian elements in it, in some of the readings, which I would use.
L.M.: What do you look for in those who are ready to consider sannyasa initiation?
I
W.T.: I am very receptive to people who are coming to the point of awareness and can make that commitment. I would have to discern that, but I wouldn't turn anyone away whom I feel that the spirit is calling. I certainly wouldn't give them psychological testing, and make them wait five years. have been very critical of that in the church. They need to do some screening; but I think that they often screen out the Holy Spirit in the candidates that God sends. That, they don't want. Jesus says simply three words, "Come follow me." Not, come after you take your psychological exam and have your medical check-up; not, after you get three recommendations and a letter from your pastor, and all the canonical documents and transcripts.
L.M.: You do have at the same time this deep, abiding love for the church. Yet the church shouldn't be put ahead of the gospel-the gospel should be leading the church.
W.T.: Yes, that's the thing. I love the church very dearly. But I am aware that the church needs reform, constantly. The culture of the Catholic Church is very Eurocentric, and is very tied to the Roman Empire. A lot of that culture is not the gospel; a lot of things in that tradition are not good simply because they are traditional.
L.M.: Can you think of one?
W.T.: Yes, the attitude toward women needs to be reexamined, because a lot of that developed through a patriarchal culture. In a very real sense, the first priest was a woman. It was Mary, the mother of God. What does a priest do but make Christ present sacramentally?
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