Posted on 04/10/2004 6:19:35 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Edited on 07/06/2004 6:39:37 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
Democratic Gov. James E. McGreevey is a proud Irish Catholic.
He also supports abortion rights, stem cell research, domestic partnerships and the death penalty, all of which go against Catholic church teachings and edicts.
Diocese of Trenton Bishop John M. Smith isn't pleased.
(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...
3/31/2004 • By Mary Stadnyk
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RED BANK – In a homily expressing strong emotions and using deliberate words, Bishop John M. Smith drew several thunderous rounds of applause as he spoke straight from the heart about “what is going on in our society today” with regard to respect life issues across the board.
At the annual diocesan Respect Life Mass in St. James Church March 27, Bishop Smith expressed annoyance and even anger at the response of public officials who portray themselves as devout Catholics, but do not uphold the teachings of the Catholic Church on respect life issues. It “gives me great annoyance,” he said, then was met with a round of applause as he particularly noted the stand of New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey.
“When he refers to himself as a devout Catholic and supports legislation and programs that are contrary to the teaching of the Holy Father and the bishops, he is not a devout Catholic,” said Bishop Smith. “He cannot compromise what it means to be a Catholic. I speak, as your bishop, for the devout Catholics of the Diocese of Trenton. (Gov.) Jim McGreevey does not.”
Along with McGreevey, there are many state legislators and members of Congress from New Jersey who claim to be Catholics and they are not when they don not uphold the teachings of the Church, the bishop said. “When we vote those people back into office, whom do we have to blame but ourselves?” he asked.
Living in the United States, a country that is “supposed” to have a democracy where the people have the right to vote, the bishop decried the fact that the Internal Revenue Service “is ready to jump downthe throat of the Catholic Church when we bring a politician into a church” but it’s not the case when other religious groups do that.
“I don’t know what to do about it, to be very honest,” he said. “But it’s OK to get angry.”
The bishop said he found it a heartening experience to be present for the diocesan Respect Life Mass and for the procession that followed to a nearby Planned Parenthood facility where participants prayed the five Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary for the intentions of all life issues.
The bishop did note some “good things happening in the life movement, recalling “that beautiful day in Washington, D.C.” on Jan. 22 when thousands of people gathered for the 30th annual March for Life Rally. It was a day, he said “that brought out people like yourselves who are trying to follow Jesus’ value of life” – from the first moment of conception to the moment of natural death.
Noting that the march received hardly any media coverage and that seemed to be “very unfair” to the pro-life effort, the bishop focused on the many thousands of young people gathered for the Youth Rally and Mass in the MCI Center at the invitation of Cardinal Theodore McCarrick and later at the March for Life.
Speaking of adoption, the bishop said while “everyone is pro-adoption in the Catholic community,” the idea many people seem to have is about adopting those “little, cute, pink, healthy” babies who will one day grow up to make their parents proud.
Often, those children placed for adoption don’t fit that image. There are many more children who are of other races, color, some with physical ailments and many with AIDS.
“Who wants to put that burden on themselves as adoptive parents?” the bishop asked rhetorically. “Do we think the lives of those who are not ‘little, cute, pink, healthy babies’ are valuable? Are we willing to sacrifice ourselves to be part of helping those children?”
It’s one thing for Catholics to chastise women who are considering abortions or structures or institutions that support the practice. However, the Roman Catholic Church makes available to women who are suffering from post abortion syndrome spiritual assistance through Project Rachel, a program that helps them to heal, to be reconciled and to be loved.
“Jesus loved the sinner,” Bishop Smith said. “Do they not have the same right to that kind of love?”
While the bishop addressed the gamut of respect life issues in his homily, he emphasized that what continues to be needed “is clarity about the teachings of the Church, patience and perseverance.”
3/31/2004 • By Lois Rogers and Mary Stadnyk
Doreen Gallway knew that it would be an early morning for her and her 13-year-old daughter, Erin, to make the trip from their home in Hamilton to Red Bank for the annual diocesan Respect Life Mass and Prayer Procession March, 27.
But Gallway didn’t mind the drive. As a matter of fact, she was very pleased, considering that it had been Erin’s idea to attend in the first place.
It’s an indication that Erin understands “how precious life is and that it’s a miracle that any baby is born,” said Gallway, a parishioner of St. Gregory the Great Parish, Hamilton Square.
The Gallways were among more than 300 people from all over the diocese who gathered for the annual Respect Life Mass in St. James Church and procession to a Planned Parenthood facility.
The Mass was celebrated by Bishop John M. Smith and concelebrated by a number of priests including: Father Jeffrey E. Lee, director of the diocesan Office of Family Life/Respect Life; Father Michael Manning, M.D., diocesan coordinator of Respect Life Ministries in the Office of Family Life/Respect Life, and Msgr. Philip Lowery, pastor of St. James Parish.
Members of Monmouth University’s Catholic Centre could have spent the day participating with their fellow students in “The Big Event,” a one-day community service spruce up around the town. Instead, they joined in the biggest community service project of the new millennium -- protecting human life in all its forms from conception through natural death.
“We came out today to try to save lives,” said Angela Schiano of Hackettstown, a Monmouth senior and president of the Catholic Centre. “The Big Event is a whole day of community service and it is a big thing on campus encouraging students to give back to the community.”
It would have been fun, she said. “But coming here was so much more important.”
Andrew Bowler, another Monmouth senior agreed. “We are here to show our support for life,” he said. “We are trying to get people to care about pro-life issues. I commute to the university from Somerset but I come down on the weekends when things are important. This is important,” he said.
Mary Jakub, associate director of campus ministry at the Catholic Centre, said she was pleased with the student turnout. “The kids are very supportive of the life movement. They come out for life, which is so important in a place where you can just walk into the infirmary and ask for the morning-after pill.”
Referring to the bishop’s homily, in which he expounded on the gamut of respect life issues – abortion, euthanasia, stem cell research and adoption, Gallway said the bishop was “right on target” about the need for people to make their voices heard.
“It’s time for us to stop being a silent majority,” she said.
For Rachel Hendricks of St. Denis Parish, Manasquan, it was the first time for her to attend the Respect Life Mass and Procession.
Speaking of embryonic stem cell research, Hendricks said all she could say was that it is a “horrible human experiment disguised as a medical miracle.”
“It’s all based on theory,” that has no support, she said. Fetal stem cell research “is a whole new type of abortion.”
Of the Mass and procession, Hendricks found it to be a “fantastic” occasion and was pleased to hear the bishop’s strong message. <
As Catholics, “we can’t shy away” from these issues, she said. “If we don’t speak up, we’ll be partly to blame.”
For instance, his first wife divorced him and got TOTAL custody of the children and permission to take them to British Columbia. He received no custody or visitation rights of any kind. In return, she signed a well-lawyered confidentiality agreement promising never to disclose the reason she left him.
Why'd she leave? He was having an affair, true, but it was the sort of affair frowned upon by Leviticus, if you catch my drift. And the RC Church isn't exactly in favor of such flings either. This is well-sourced and an open secret in Jimmy's hometown of Woodbridge. Now he's got a new bride (who's dumb as a rock and has some trouble with the King's English) and a new child (once more for "Queen" and Country, perhaps?).
"They are basically struggling with this, as we are," said Bishop John Ricard of Pensacola, Fla., chairman of a U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops task force created to consider how American bishops should react to Catholic politicians who don't adhere to the church's teachings.
"I'm not a church spokesman," Kerry said. "I'm a legislator running for president. My oath is to uphold the Constitution of the United States in my public life.
Hmmm, so this is just a photo-op, right? I thought so.
I'm Jewish, and it always offends me to see politicians (of any religion) use something sacred in order to drum up a few votes and get a good photo op.
I agree.
Why not keep it simple Bishop, either issue a formal decree barring Catholic politicians who support abortion rights from receiving Holy Communion or don't.
You are the Bishop.
A Primer on Canon 915 Can. 915 Those upon whom the penalty of excommunication or interdict has been imposed or declared, and others who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin, are not to be admitted to holy communion
CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH
DOCTRINAL NOTE
on some questions regarding
The Participation of Catholics in Political Life
Living the Gospel of Life:
A Challenge to American Catholics
A Statement by the Catholic Bishops of the United States
Faithful Citizenship:
Civic Responsibility for a New Millennium
Sign Petition: To Excommunicate Kerry and other Politicians
The Gospel of Life--Evangelium Vitae
Herod's Heroes, Sign Petition
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