Posted on 05/25/2004 9:09:30 AM PDT by KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle
The new leader of the Catholic Diocese of Worcester stunned gay rights supporters by writing in a church newsletter that Catholics, especially public officials, pushing to legalize same-sex marriage are ``in cooperation with evil.''
``Oh, my God. Wow,'' gasped Marianne Duddy-Burke of Boston Dignity, a group of gay Catholics. ``It's an appalling statement on so many levels. It disregards a civil servant's duty to the entire community.''
Responding to Worcester City Clerk David Rushford's public statements that allowing gays and lesbians to marry is in line with church teachings on inclusivity, Worcester Bishop Robert McManus penned a ``pastoral note of clarification'' published Friday.
After recognizing gays and lesbians as ``brothers and sisters in the human family,'' the note ends with a bombshell: ``Moreover, it must be pointed out that Catholics, especially public officials, who willingly and with approval facilitate the legal sanctioning of same-sex unions are involving themselves in cooperation with evil.''
``That's pretty strong language,'' Rushford said on hearing the paragraph yesterday. ``I just would hope that people from all walks of life and our society would agree that the civil rights of individuals are not debatable.''
Diocesan spokesman Ray Delisle cautioned that McManus was writing in the precise ``language of moral theology.''
Josh Friedes, advocacy director of the Freedom to Marry Coalition, said, ``Not only is he villainizing gay and lesbian couples and Catholics who support civil rights,'' Friedes said, ``he is also attacking reform Jews and Protestant faith traditions that consider the unions of same-sex couples worth blessing.''
Christianity is "inclusive" in the sense that anyone's sins can be forgiven through the atonement of Christ. But you have to repent, and "Go, and sin no more."
Firstly, since when is a Bishop a "civil servant"? He's not employed by the government.
Secondly, disregarding that inaccuracy, what "duty" would require him to support lies over Biblical truth?
Maybe the bishops have started reading what old traditional Catholic Saints had to say......
"The walls of hell are lined with the skulls of bishops."
Saint John of the Cross
Um.. yep. And lest you think this is his own personal opinion on the matter:
From "CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING PROPOSALS TO GIVE LEGAL RECOGNITION TO UNIONS BETWEEN HOMOSEXUAL PERSONS"Those who would move from tolerance to the legitimization of specific rights for cohabiting homosexual persons need to be reminded that the approval or legalization of evil is something far different from the toleration of evil.
In those situations where homosexual unions have been legally recognized or have been given the legal status and rights belonging to marriage, clear and emphatic opposition is a duty. One must refrain from any kind of formal cooperation in the enactment or application of such gravely unjust laws and, as far as possible, from material cooperation on the level of their application.
Hence the dividing lines begin...Southern Baptists have been saying these things for years...but Falwell et al (I guess) didn't know what they were talking about. They were all racist homophobes and money grubbing evangelical Catholic bashers. They supported Israel and dissed Disney World and were poked at and made fun of
It is more interesting how the tenor of the caterwauling has changed when Godly Catholics begin to take back their churches.
Watch your backs, Godly Catholics, the same things they do to evangelical,moral protestants, they will do to you...they will even attempt to set you against moral protestants who believe the same as you do regarding life and morality.
We must stand together to defeat evil...God will work out the denominational differences in the day of resurrection!
Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity.
A "bombshell"?!
Our society is in serious trouble.
The Spirit is moving. As for the Republicans...
From privacy to civil rights to you're a bigot if you don't agree. The Bishop is right.
Ron, perhaps you are correct in who she is referencing in her statement. The Bishop is giving a reminder, not an excommunication, and as such performing his pastoral duty.
The matter is hardly politically settled in that state and a civil servant may justly await more settled times. Once settled, the civil servant may resign or uphold his sworn oath, little else. Only a legislator may resort to notions of Natural Law, God's Law, historical ethics and morals and the like in performing his duty to write and vote for Laws of the State. Others must set aside their own sensibilities and proprieties, if they can do so, and perform their sworn office. If they can't do that, they should resign. Their is no "duty" to "represent" by general interpretation for such offices.
Only legislatures are meant to be deliberative. Others should act on settled law, to do otherwise is to depart from the Rule of Law.
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
--I Corinthians 6:8-11, 18-20
"Gay marriage" was only dreamed up a few years ago. Granted, these statements should have been issued a few years ago.
I may even go back to the Catholic church! (Well, not really.)
Not to split hairs or anything, but the statement should read, "the approval or legalization of intrinsic evil is something far different from the toleration of evils that are not intrinsic (like gambling)." Otherwise, all evils would have to be criminalized.
This is the bishop who not only ordained me to the Diaconate, but was instrumental in making sure I got into the program to begin with. The liberal powers to be (my former pastor) would have seen to it that I didn't get ordained because of my orthodox beliefs. Bishop McManus is a personal friend and a very humble servant.
Praise be to God, Bishop McManus is toeing the line in his new Diocese. I pray he will continue to shepherd his people as I know he can. Pray for his courage and perseverance.
Deacon Francis
PS: For anyone interested, you can visit our website to see the pages dedicated to his Episcopal Ordination.
Why, I can't believe any true servant of the people would come out and say something so hurtful and mean about his fellow brothers and sisters </sarcasm>
Wait a minute, this bishop is a servant of God, who by the way says all this gay stuf will buy you a seat in hell.
You can please some of the people all of the time.
You can please all of the people some of the time.
But when it comes to queers there just ain't no pleasing them.
I had three orthodox friends in their late 30's who attempted to enter the priesthood about five years ago. One was kicked out of St. John's in Brighton in less than a year. Another left the FSSP seminary because he alleged that homosexual behavior was being tolerated. I don't know what happened to the third.
I'm glad you made it in. I'm glad to have an orthodox bishop. I hope he cleans up Holy Cross next.
Only time will tell.
We just ordained to the Dominican Order the sixth priest from our parish in that many years. I am personal friends with all these young clergymen. Everyone of them orthodox and faithful to the Magisterium. I can tell you that there are problems, someplaces big problems, with homosexuality at St. John's, at the Mount, and even out in Rome at the Angelicum and Gregorium. We had one of the vocations leave the seminary because of the hassle they gave him over his view of homosexuals in the seminary there. They didn't like his orthodoxy at all. Our seminaries still need lots of house cleaning.
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