Crusade to Kerry: It's a Sacrament, Senator! Not an Opportunity for a Photo Shoot

releases.usnewswire.com ^

[chance33_98]

Crusade to Kerry: It's a Sacrament, Senator! Not an Opportunity for a Photo Shoot

3/24/2004 1:47:00 PM

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To: National Desk

Contact: Joseph R. Giganti of the American Life League, 703-928-9695 or jgiganti@all.org; Web: http://www.all.org

WASHINGTON, March 24 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The following statement is in response to an American Spectator report that a pro-abortion Catholic, Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), received Holy Communion while attending Mass during his Idaho ski trip this past Sunday. The article describes Kerry's blatant disregard for the sanctity of the sacrifice of the Mass by arriving very late, dressed in a ski suit and making a great deal of noise. Most distressing is the comment the Spectator attributes to an unnamed member of Kerry's staff explaining the reason this entire event took place: "It was just a media-op...We set it up with some reporters that we knew were going to be there."

Joseph M. Starrs, director of American Life League's Crusade for the Defense of Our Catholic Church, stated the following:

That Sen. John Kerry is willing to use the holy sacrifice of the Mass as a "media op" shows his utter contempt for the faith he claims to embrace. This is disgusting. The senator and his staff should publicly apologize to Our Lady of the Snows parish, its pastor and congregation, and to all faithful Catholics for this charade. Christ said, "Come to me, all you who are weary." He didn't say, "Come to me, all you who would use my church in a cheap attempt to shamelessly promote your ambitions."

Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston has made clear that those in his archdiocese who support abortion on demand, such as Kerry, should voluntarily stop receiving this sacrament. Obviously, this is not enough for Kerry, so we renew our request to Archbishop O'Malley that he consider further action. We also would ask that he consider the example of Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis, who used Church law (Cannon 915) to officially bar certain pro- abortion Catholics from receiving Communion.

Sen. Kerry has been on the road and on the airwaves quite a bit lately. We will be checking his schedule every day so we can mobilize our grassroots supporters to engage him at every turn, and to inform the local bishops whenever possible: "Warning! This pro-abortion senator is coming to your diocese, and may attempt to desecrate the Holy Eucharist while reporters take his picture."

I would certainly hope that it is made abundantly clear to Sen. Kerry, in every diocese in the country, that you simply cannot be Catholic and pro-abortion.

---

American Life League is the nation's largest pro-life educational organization with more than 375,000 supporting families. P.O. Box 1350, Stafford, VA 22555; http://www.all.org

[Lucky2]

I am a failed Catholic but I remember well that in my day a divorced person could not receive Holy Communion. Has this changed or is this another rule kerry has stepped over and spit on. kerry can rot in hell.

[EggsAckley]

I've been to that church many times for Christmas Mass, and I must say that the apparel is for the most part very casual. Kerry being in a ski suit is not really scandalous in Sun Valley. He would have stuck out worse had he been in a business suit.

The rest is inexcusable, however.

[Your Nightmare]

I believe Kerry got an annulment.

[MamaLucci]

OMG....what's with the plastic daisy hanging from his zipper??!!

[lilylangtree]

Something to lighten your mood! Just rec'd today via email.

There were two Catholic boys, Timothy Murphy and Secola Antonio, whose lives paralleled each other in amazing ways. In the same year Timothy was born in Ireland, Secola was born in Italy.

Faithfully they attended parochial school from kindergarten through senior year in high school. They took their vows to enter priesthood early in college and, upon graduation, became priests. Their careers had come to amaze the world, but it was generally acknowledged that Secola was just a cut above Timothy in all respects.

Their rise through the ranks of bishop, archbishop and finally cardinal was meteoric to say the least,and the Catholic world knew that when the present Pope died, it would either be one of the two who would become the next pope.

In time the pope did die and the College of Cardinals went to work. In less time than anyone had expected, smoke rose from the chimney and the world waited to see whom they had chosen.

The world, Catholic, Protestant and secular were surprised to learn that Timothy Murphy had been elected pope! Secola Antonio was beyond surprise. He was devastated, because even with all of Timothy's gifts, Secola knew he was the better qualified. With gall that shocked the Cardinals, Secola asked for a private session with them in which he candidly asked, "Why Timothy?"

After a long silence, an old cardinal took pity on the bewildered man and rose to reply.

"We knew you were the better of the two, but we just could not bear the thought of the leader of the Roman Catholic Church being called "Pope Secola."

:)

[Inspectorette]

A divorced Catholic who remarries is forbidden from receiving the sacraments. Kerry conveniently took care of this by getting (on Teresa's orders) an annulment of his first marriage.

[jtminton]

How do you get a marriage annulled if you have kids? I thought that once you consecrated the marriage, annullment wasn't possible?

[Fast Ed97]

Archbishop Sean O'Malley of Boston has made clear that those in his archdiocese who support abortion on demand, such as Kerry, should voluntarily stop receiving this sacrament.

If Kerry wants to take the Eucharist unworthily (itself a grave sin) and have Mass become a media promo- He will eventually suffer the consequences of his actions.

[Texagirl4W]

I know of one case where this happened. The husband could prove that he was in another country when his last child was conceived. In fact, the whole town knew his wife committed adultery. That is the only grounds for a catholic to have a marriage annulled, with or without children.

[7.62 x 51mm]

"OMG....what's with the plastic daisy hanging from his zipper??!!"

Trolling for the queer vote?

[evets]

I think that we get the message...

[skimbell]

Catholics aren't too uptight about divorce. They look at it as an unfortunate situation but if you can't live in that situation you are able to divorce and remain in the church-take sacrements etc. If however you do divorce you may not remary. The church only gives you one shot at marriage. Kerry is not eligible to partake of the sacraments because he has remarried and has therefore in effect renounced his Catholicism.

[MIchaelTArchangel]

I am a failed Catholic but I remember well that in my day a divorced person could not receive Holy Communion. Has this changed...(?)

Actually, a divorced Catholic has always been able to receive the Holy Eucharist as being divorced or living apart from one's spouse has never been, in an of itself, a mortal sin. Divorced Catholics who "remarried" have always been denied access to the Holy Eucharist because they are living in a mortally sinful relationship.

Notice that I wrote "...have always been denied..." rather than "...have always been asked to refrain from receiving..." Priests and bishops have a moral responsibility to take an active role in denying those living openly in scandalous sin from receiving the Holy Eucharist. Apparently a few decades or so ago, priests and bishops abdicated their responsibilities.

P.S. I don't know what you mean by a "failed Catholic". Do you mean you are a "lapsed Catholic"? Take heart and stop thinking of yourself as a "failed" anything.

[wordsofearnest]

Kerry going to Mass reminds of a post on another thread. Church is like a baseball game, many attend few know what's going on.

[Sweet Land]

How do you get a marriage annulled if you have kids? I thought that once you consecrated the marriage, annullment wasn't possible?

I think the word you're looking for is "consummated." Anyway, there are grounds for annulment that have nothing to do with childlessness; see http://lcdiocese.org/Annulments/grounds.htm.

[jtminton]

I think the word you're looking for is "consummated."

Depends on how good you are at it. . .

:)

(p.s. thanks for the correction)

[rock58seg]

They bought an anullment over his first wife's objections.

[vanmorrison]

The Catholic Church has allowed itself to be debased by the Democrats for a long, long time. It is taken as a given that the Catholic community in this country is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Democrat party. As a Catholic in good standing, I have always hated this aspect of the American Catholic Church. The Church hierarchy has been complicit in the election of pro-abortion, pro-homosexuality, pro-euthanasia, pro-cloning, pro-communist Democrats. The modern Church clerical class has allowed the Democrats to obscenely expropriate Holy Mother Church as political cover that they've used in nefarious ways. I continue to see Democrat politicans having photo-ops with Bishops and Cardinals, Democrat politicians taking holy communion from priests, and Democrat politicians being given Sunday service platforms, regardless of their affiliation with atheistic, communistic, and libertine political groups and their advocacy of and participation in harmful social policies and practices. It is particularly irksome that so many of the most repugnant political figures of our time are Catholic (Daschle, Kennedy, Kerry, Pelosi, Leahy, Biden, Davis, Granholm, et.al.) This is truly a travesty!

And then consider the grief that Mel Gibson is forced to endure, from within and without the Church, when he proffers one of the most dramatic gifts of faith to the world we've ever witnessed. A gift that would not have happened without inspiration from his traditional beliefs, based on his pre-Vatican II, pro-Tridentine mass, pre-modern orientation and sensibilities. This is a tragedy!

[philetus]

Kerry's own staff is helping sink him.LOL