Posted on 05/07/2005 6:44:15 AM PDT by madprof98
A Diocese of Palm Beach employee's efforts to have Juvenile Court Judge Ronald Alvarez barred from receiving Holy Communion after issuing a ruling on a 13-year-old's abortion was an attempt to intimidate him, the judge said Friday.
The judge is troubled that jurists may be pressured by those who believe religion trumps state law. He said he has heard from many colleagues, who worry that religious groups are challenging judges' independence.
"The moment we kowtow to a religious party, we're essentially for sale," Alvarez said.
[snip]
Don Kazimir, director of the diocese's Respect Life Office, called Alvarez's office Wednesday, telling the judge's assistant that he was doing so on behalf of the diocese. Kazimir's call came two days after Alvarez ruled in the highly scrutinized case of a teenager who became pregnant after running away from a state-supervised group home.
[snip]
"The atmosphere today is totally different than it was three years ago," Alvarez said. "I don't remember any protesters in front of the courthouse when I made my ruling [on the Women's Right to Know Act]."
[snip]
Alvarez grew up a Catholic, was married in the church and raised his children as Catholics, though he said he no longer practices. He became "unsettled" with church leadership when dozens of cases of priests molesting children came to light. He last received Holy Communion about a year ago. Alvarez said he still believes in God and takes offense that someone professing to be a devout Catholic is passing judgment.
"My Jesus is a nice guy and not someone to pick up the phone and ... punish me," the judge said.
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
The moment we kowtow to a religious party, we're essentially for sale," Alvarez said.
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Wrong you POS. You've already been bought and paid for by the NAGS and the democratic "abortion on demand" crowd!
Let him believe in his Jesus, because when he dies, he will have to answer the REAL Jesus.
That's the bottom line and as it should be.
Kowtow is being drammatic. What a DQ.
Benedict is correct. The church needs to weed out nonbelievers. It is astounding that ostensibly intelligent people do not understand that a person can meet all of society's obligations and still fail to meet the test of church membership. Would the judge oppose a church that opposes war? Would he have a problem with the church standing against gambling, especially state sponsored lotteries? How is it, then, that he is offended when the church opposes abortion? The church is not infringing on his role as a judge. It is infringing on his membership in a church that he refuses to respect. It is telling him that he may not sin in the eyes of the church even if it is legal to do so. Sometimes the laws of the church are more stringent than the laws of society.
The Judge's Jesus is, like him, a codependent puddle of moral indifference.
Anyone know this judges' email?
By Alvarez's own telling, he long ago ceased to be a practicing Catholic. He has no more basis for complaint against the Catholic Church than he would against a country club that barred him from its course for not paying his membership dues.
Thats a little much. Put down the pitchfork.
I gotta think the Church would like to draw in as many agnostics as possible. I also think that Love is something Jesus didn't take for granted. Show some.
In any case, a Church is like any other club in which they are free to make thier own rules and taking communion is not a State sanctioned right.
The right to life is in the Constitution, too, buddy. You've already been "bought and sold" to the loudest bidder. Get over yourself. You're just an activist.
----"The moment we kowtow to a religious party, we're essentially for sale," Alvarez said.
My Jesus is a nice guy who wouldnt pick up a phone and punish me.
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Let me see.
If you believe in your church, you don't ever think it's kowtowing when you follow there teachings.
As for the second point, I remind you of this:
A man named Ananias, however, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property.
2
He retained for himself, with his wife's knowledge, some of the purchase price, took the remainder, and put it at the feet of the apostles.
3
But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart so that you lied to the holy Spirit and retained part of the price of the land?
4
While it remained unsold, did it not remain yours? And when it was sold, was it not still under your control? Why did you contrive this deed? You have lied not to human beings, but to God."
5
When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last, and great fear came upon all who heard of it.
Acts 5:1-5
Giving communion is an internal religious matter and a church has every right to distribute communion or not to whoever she wishes. It is improper for a judge to tell a church what to do. That is a violation of the separation of church and state.
MY Jesus is the Son of God.
He must use the same Jesus the priestly abomination in the Episcopal church uses. The one with the horns.
Preachers, ministers, and priests have got to start teaching more about Satan and the Antichrist in their churches. A brief description is all that's needed to get their attention.
Ah.
He became "unsettled" with church leadership when dozens of cases of priests molesting children came to light.
Might be a valid reason not to tithe (or rather, redirect your tithe so that the bishop doesn't get his hands on it), but not a valid reason to cut one's self off from communion with Christ.
I wonder if he would feeel equally sanguine in his adjudications if the Florida state legislature passed, say, a constitutional amendment authorizing the beating of Jews.
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