Concerned about open divisiveness, Bishop Donald Wuerl of Pittsburgh has proposed that his fellow U.S. Catholic bishops consult one another before speaking out on divisive national issues -- particularly whether prominent Catholic politicians who support legal abortion should be denied communion.

Though couched in polite, theological language, Wuerl's proposal is an attempt to muffle loose cannons in the hierarchy. The proposal appeared in the Pittsburgh Catholic and was carried nationally through Catholic News Service.

"The issue of a national politician's reception of Holy Communion and public stance on moral issues is a concern that affects not just the local church wherein the politician lives, but also considerably affects the church throughout the nation, as was evidenced in last year's election and the controversy surrounding Sen. John Kerry," Wuerl wrote.

About a dozen of the 195 diocesan bishops said that Kerry, the Democratic presidential candidate, was not welcome to receive communion in their dioceses. Another minority, including Wuerl, said that Kerry should not ask for communion, but should not be refused if he asked. Most were silent on the issue.

The actions of a few bishops created problems for all the others, who were immediately asked by news media what they would do with Kerry, Wuerl said.

Catholics "would either side with the bishop who [barred Kerry] and ask why didn't the bishop someplace else do this, or they'd tell the bishop somewhere else, 'We're glad you didn't do that.' It inadvertently brought a spirit of division," he said yesterday.

The Rev. Thomas Reese, a Jesuit political scientist who studies the U.S. hierarchy, said when a bishop disagrees with another bishop's decision to deny communion, "the last thing he wants to do in the middle of a political campaign is to look like he's endorsing John Kerry, who is pro-choice. So the natural response is to run and hide," Reese said.

The bishops who opposed communion for Kerry "caused real difficulties for the other bishops because it made it appear that was the position of all the bishops, when it was not."

The problem, as Wuerl sees it, is that there is no system to prevent public differences.

According to church teaching, a national bishops' conference cannot set pastoral policy for individual bishops unless there is unanimous agreement or the Vatican makes the conference decision into church law. Wuerl cited authoritative church documents saying that the conferences are intended to foster a "collegial spirit" among bishops. He wrote that for individual bishops to take controversial stands on national matters without first consulting their fellow bishops violates the spirit of unity that bishops' conferences are required to promote.

Wuerl proposed two ways of fostering unity. His favored alernative is a gentleman's agreement that no bishop will speak out on a divisive national issue without first consulting the others. But he also outlined a mandatory review process, which the bishops could impose on themselves either by a unanimous vote or with Vatican approval.

Adopting a formal review process would be difficult, he said.

"The option I would prefer is that we simply all agree that if we are going to move in this direction, that we will bring it to discussion," he said.

Wuerl said he wrote the paper to reflect on the "perplexing issue" of how to balance an individual bishop's authority with his responsibility to act in unity with other bishops. He said he had no plans to make it into a formal proposal for the bishops' conference in November.

He is a delegate to the Vatican's Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist in October, which will include discussion of how to deal with Catholic legislators who support legal abortion but want to receive communion. Wuerl said he will use his floor speech for another issue, but will probably address politicians and the Eucharist in small working-group sessions. However, at the Vatican's invitation, next month in Rome he will address new bishops from around the world on church administration. The need to consult before speaking on national issues will be part of his advice, he said.