Roy Bourgeois

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Roy Bourgeois
Born 1938 (1938)
Lutcher, Louisiana
Nationality U.S.
Education University of Southwestern Louisiana
Occupation Catholic priest
Known for SOA Watch
Religion Roman Catholic
Website
School of the Americas Watch

Roy Bourgeois is an American activist. He was ordained a priest in the Maryknoll order of the Roman Catholic Church and is founder of the human rights group SOA Watch or the School of the Americas Watch.[1]

Father Bourgeois was excommunicated latae sententiae for his participation in a women's ordination ceremony in August 2008.[2][3]

Contents

[edit] Early life

Bourgeois was born in Lutcher, Louisiana in 1938. He attended the University of Southwestern Louisiana and graduated with a bachelor of science degree in geology.

After graduation, Bourgeois entered the United States Navy and served as an officer for four years. He spent two years at sea, one year at a station in Europe, and one year in Vietnam. He received the Purple Heart during a tour of duty in Vietnam.

After military service, he entered the seminary of the Catholic missionary order of Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers (Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America). He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1972 and sent to Bolivia.

[edit] Activism

1972-1975 Fr. Bourgeois spent five years in Bolivia aiding the poor before being arrested and deported for attempting to overthrow Bolivian dictator General Hugo Banzer.

1980 Fr. Bourgeois became an outspoken critic of US foreign policy in Latin America after four American churchwomen, Sister Maura Clarke, Jean Donovan, Sister Ita Ford, and Sister Dorothy Kazel, were raped and killed by a death squad consisting of soldiers from the Salvadoran National Guard, some of whom had been trained at the School of the Americas.

1990 Fr. Bourgeois founded the School of the Americas Watch or (SOA Watch), an organization that seeks to close the School of the Americas, renamed Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC) in 2001, through nonviolent protest.

1998 Fr. Bourgeois testified before a Spanish judge seeking the extradition of Chile's ex-dictator General Augusto Pinochet.

2008 In August 2008, Fr. Bourgeois participated in and delivered the homily at the ordination ceremony of Janice Sevre-Duszynska, a member of Womenpriests, at a Unitarian Universalist church in Lexington, Kentucky.[4] Fr. Bourgeois received a 30 days' notice as of October 21, 2008 regarding possible excommunication for this action. He was excommunicated latae sententiae.[4]

2011 On March 18, 2011, Fr. Bourgeois was given a letter from the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers notifying him that he had 15 days to recant his support for women's ordination or he would face expulsion from the order.[5] 157 Catholic priests have signed a letter that supports his priesthood and his right to conscience. It was delivered on 22 July to the Superior General Fr. Edward Dougherty.

Fr. Roy Bourgeois has spent over four years in federal prison for peacefully crossing into Ft. Benning. He and over 240 peace activists have been tried and jailed for peacefully demonstrating at the gates of the WHINSEC, or School of the Assassins as it's referred to by the activists.[6]

[edit] Awards

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ "SOA Watch: Biography of Roy Bourgeois", SOA Watch Website.
  2. ^ Cooper, Linda and James Hodge, "Bourgeois Has Long Drawn Inspiration from Women," National Catholic Reporter, December 3, 2008.
  3. ^ Priest confirms excommunication; will keep urging women’s ordination
  4. ^ a b Coday, Dennis. "Sixth Catholic woman priest ordained this year", "National Catholic Reporter", 2008-08-09. Retrieved on 2008-08-11.
  5. ^ McElwee, Joshua. "Maryknoll gives Bourgeois notice of removal from order", "National Catholic Reporter", 2011-03-29. Retrieved on 2011-03-30.
  6. ^ /ref>http://ncronline.org/blogs/grace-margins/roy-bourgeois-priesthood-can-never-truly-end?page=1

[edit] Further reading

  • Hodge, James; Linda Cooper (2004). Disturbing the Peace: The Story of Father Roy Bourgeois and the Movement to Close the School of Americas. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books. ISBN 1-57075-434-9. 

[edit] External links
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Roy_Bourgeois&oldid=475845472"
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