Venerable prelates of the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S. continue to encounter rebellion among younger priests. The latest to run up against a clerical revolt is Archbishop Robert E. Lucey, 77, of San Antonio. He faced the embarrassment of having 51 priests in his see publicly announcing that they had asked the Vatican to retire him or ask for his resignation.
The unusual request was dispatched to Pope Paul seven weeks ago, and was made public by the senders because—perhaps understandably—it had not been answered by Rome. In their eight-page, 2,000-word letter, the priests charged that there was a "communications...