Sunday, 4 May 2008
Vatican keeps parish records from Mormons
From Daily Herald news services
Vatican keeps parish records from Mormons
EDs: APNewsNow.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Vatican has ordered Catholic dioceses worldwide to withhold member registries from Mormons who perform posthumous baptisms.
The order was issued by a clergy mainstay, the Vatican Congregation for Clergy. Officials said the step was taken to prevent members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from baptizing by proxy their Catholic ancestors.
The order was first reported by Catholic News Service. There was no immediate response from the Mormon church's world headquarters in Salt Lake City.
Msgr. J. Terrence Fitzgerald said the Catholic diocese in Utah already has a policy to restrict baptismal records only to those entitled to see the records.
One Mormon genealogist, Russell Bangerter, told the Deseret News of Salt Lake City that the order cracks down on the free flow of information.
Bangerter said the Mormon church has an open-door policy at its own Family History Library.
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Information from: Deseret News,
http://www.deseretnews.com **************************************************
Interesting. And the Catholic Church has the right to keep their parish records confidential.
However...IMPO of course...I believe that people do have the right to perform these ordinances for their own ancestors...if that is what they wish.