During March, I wrote extensively about Catholic writer-lecturer Edwina Gateley who was apparently too controversial to be allowed to speak at the Franciscan Renewal Center in Paradise Valley without the Diocese of Phoenix monitoring her remarks. The center is a Catholic facility, and the bishop has a policy that Catholic critics not have the privilege to use church property for their forums.Gateley, 63, author of 10 books, had been engaged to speak to a retreat for nuns for a week in early June, but she balked when she was informed that Bishop Thomas Olmsted wanted to have her talks taped for review to ensure Catholic orthodoxy and congruity with church teachings. Gateley insisted that what she planned to say, especially about the feminist realm of the divine, met the test, but she said such tapings would violate copyright terms she has with the company that markets her lecture CDs. Catholic reform groups, most notably Call to Action and the Arizona Center for Theological Studies, came to her defense, and a Friends of Edwina Gateley group rallied to raise funds comparable to the $4,000 she would have gotten for the retreat. Then they booked her to speak to the public on June 10 at CrossRoads United Methodist Church in Phoenix.Catholic Women Will Not Be Silenced read a 6 by 5 -inch advertisement published June 8 in the Arizona Republic. The retreat facilitator, Catholic author Edwina Gateley courageously refused the bishops threats, the ad said. The retreat was canceled but the talk will go on. It invited people to hear her at the Methodist church. We support Edwina and the voices of Catholic women everywhere.The text was surrounded by some of the 2,000 names of people who Call to Action said signed a petition protesting the dioceses action. The petition was turned in that day to the bishop. We Catholics in Phoenix are deeply disappointed that the bishop would resort to the use of threats to tape and monitor a retreat for nuns, said Mary Jayne Benton, a leader for Arizonas Call to Action, in a press release that day. The statement went further: The nuns retreat was originally promoted as a weeks reflection on the feminine dimensions of God. The tradition of imaging God in female form has a rich history dating back to the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament) and carrying through the Christian scriptures and much of Christian history.Benton reports that about 300 turned out for Gateleys talk that lasted 90 minutes. She knew of no representatives from the bishops office on hand taping or taking notes. Meanwhile, the original retreat was not canceled. The Franciscan Renewal Center subsequently booked Sister Mary Lou Carlson, a Franciscan nun from Resurrection parish in Los Angeles, to lead the retreat, said Pat Julian, the centers director of adult education. There were about 30 nuns attending, the same count as had originally signed up for Gateley. Meanwhile, Jim Dwyer, public information director for the diocese, reasserted Tuesday that we didnt silence her. It was her (Gateleys) decision not to come there. Nobody silenced her. She came here, didnt she?At some point, the media has to start asking logical questions about advocacy groups, Dwyer continued. They are entitled to say whatever they want to say, but truth is: Nobody silenced her. Dwyer said the diocese has heard that sometimes she makes statements that are opposed to Catholic teachings, but we didnt want to take anyone elses word for it. So she was welcomed to come. All we wanted to do was to tape it. Dwyer reiterated that the diocese had been willing to sign wavers to guarantee no violation of copyright provisions between Gateley and the company marketing her CDs. Dwyer said their taping would have cleared the way for Gateley to come in the future to the diocese to speak in Catholic settings. We could decide for ourselves if she comes here again, he said. She is the one who silenced herself from that retreat If they ever want to continue to make false claims that we silenced her, there is not a whole lot we can do about it.Benton said that Gateley was well-received at the CrossRoads gathering. Quite a number of women came up to her after her talk and said that after they heard her, they will be staying in the church. So there isnt a real dynamic push against the church She talks about faithfulness to what God is calling you to do.

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