THE BISHOPS AND THE POLS

CATHOLIC bishops who have criticized or denied communion to recalci trant Catholic politicians have been under assault, of late, by left-wing ideologues.

Claiming he is a "believing and practicing Catholic," Sen. John Kerry has declared: "I don't tell church officials what to do, and church officials shouldn't tell American politicians what to do in the context of our public life." Kerry's colleague, Sen. Ted Kennedy, even questioned the pope's integrity when it comes to his rules for distributing communion.

Weary of self-righteous indignation from politicians who claim to be loyal sons of the church while opposing its tenets, I have prepared a refresher course on the basics:

Aren't liberals correct to say bishops step over the line and violate separation of church and state when they speak out on controversial public issues like abortion?

In fact, the liberals are being hypocrites. In the 1960s, the left lauded the bishop of New Orleans for excommunicating racist Catholics opposing the civil rights movement. When the bishops criticized President Ronald Reagan's nuclear and fiscal policies in "The Challenge of Peace" (1983) and "Economic Justice for All" (1986), liberals applauded. The left trots out "separation of church and state" only when it disagrees with Catholic pronouncements.

Why does the Catholic hierarchy insist on speaking out on controversial public issues?

Bishops, as shepherds, have a duty to their flocks to offer guidance on the church's moral teachings. They also have an obligation to correct any person — especially Catholic politicians — who misleads or sows confusion on church doctrine. Clergy of all faiths explain to their co-religionists how their religions apply in the temporal world. Catholics are no different.

Kerry should heed the 1,774 words of that great British legislator, Edmund Burke: "Your representative owes you, not his industry only but his judgment; and he betrays, instead of serving you, if he sacrifices it to your opinion."

George J. Marlin's next book is "The American Catholic Voter: Two Hundred Years of Political Impact."is due out in September. -RD>

Doesn’t the Catholic Church also take a firm stand against capitol punishment? I think that a lot of individuals who post here would be upset if the Catholic Church took the same stance against politicians (like our current president) who have actually signed execution orders, let alone support capitol punishment.

I think that, as a Christian, it’s always ironic that many people support ‘state execution’ when our Savior was crucified by ‘state execution’.

On the other hand, I believe that many would be outraged by a non-Christian religious entity attempting to influence a national election by making broad statements during an election year in a transparent attempt to influence the outcome. Why did the Catholic Church decide to focus on abortion and public figures at this time, when will they focus on capitol punishment, will they try to influence other issues if they succeed? Do we really need the influence of the Catholic Church on this issue? Is President Bush that weak that we should encourage this kind of interference from Rome?

I still believe that G.W.B. would be better off without this kind of controversy. Especially since many polls show that devout Catholics may be at odds with the Catholic Church’s stance on abortion and many other issues. This could backfire. Kerry could come off as more of a ‘mainstream’ Catholic’ than someone who is hypocritical about his religion.

On the death penalty and the war, the church does not hold a univocal view. While the pope and the U.S. bishops oppose to the death penalty, they have never decried the church's stand on capital punishment. In fact, in their 1980 pastoral letter, they insisted that "the state has the right to take the life of a person guilty of a serious crime." Catholics are free to oppose using the death penalty in particular situations, but Catholics are not free to condemn it in the name of the church as always morally wrong.

If you read the whole article, I think you might had read that in the case of abortion, it was the only situation in which a totally innocent life is taken.

As far as getting involved this year, the Bishops haven't been doing their jobs, and they have been permitting these Catholic pols get away with their hypocrisy far too long. All sorts of other clergy have been getting involved in politics for quite a while. Why not now for Catholic Clergy? It reminds me of the notion that it's always OK to bash Catholics.

Doesn’t the Catholic Church also take a firm stand against capitol punishment?

No, it is NOT the same as their opposition to abortion. According to the Catechism, Abortion is intrinsically evil, but capital punishment is not.

I think that a lot of individuals who post here would be upset if the Catholic Church took the same stance [i.e., as in abortion] against politicians (like our current president) who have actually signed execution orders, let alone support capitol punishment.

Of course they would, because that would be heresy.

What really annoys and frustrates me about media portraying this whole issue as "Catholic Church tries to run American politics" is that the situation is being viewed bass ackwards. The Church is trying to guide its flock, not control votes.

What the Church is saying is that *IF* a person willfully and purposely causes another person to have an occasion to commit mortal sin (i.e. a politician, in this case, vote for laws permitting or encouraging the killing of unborn children, in this case), he himself is also guilty of mortal sin.

If one is guilty of having committed a mortal sin, one brings condemnation on himself if he then receives the Sacred Body and Blood of Our Lord, unless and until he has repented of the sin, confessed the sin sacramentally (i.e. to a priest, and received absolution), done penance for it, and vowed to make every effort to avoid committing it again.

Therefor, a politician who consistently votes to make abortion legal and easily obtainable, is perpetuating the same sin, and causing countless innocent deaths by his actions, further accelerating his fall from grace.

In the case of a public figure, the sin is exacerbated by the fact that more people are aware of the sins committed, and, as we can see from the decline of moral standards in this country since BJ's unfortunate affair, the non-thinking segment of the public begins to feel that it's ok to do the same ("Hey, he's doing it, why can't I?"). In effect, it makes the sin more acceptable, and then even more people are led into occasions of sin. See? Its a spiral.

The reason this has become an issue this year is because this year, we have a "Catholic" (though he may have been baptised, I don't consider him a real Catholic.) running for the highest office in the land, and he willfully and fecklessly votes against maintaining any kind of respect for life, especially family life. He voted against the Defense of Marriage Act, which tells you how much he values the union of husband and wife, and publicly and proudly proclaims his pro-abortion views. He then shows up (sometimes) at Mass and, with cameras rolling, receives Holy Communion. THAT is why it is an issue: because he made it one. He practically taunts the Church.

What makes me angry is that he then clambers onto his high horse and talks about the Church trying to tell him how to run his public life. The Church is merely saying that if you conduct your life (and let's face it - if you have deeply held beliefs (I don't think he does), they dictate your behavior in ALL aspects of your life) in a way that is contrary to your faith, don't expect to be welcomed with open arms as a participant in that faith's sacraments. Its not a difficult concept.

OK, I'll get off my soapbox now! Sorry, its just that, being a "real" Catholic, this guy's cavalier attitude towards our faith, and especially his lack of respect for the Blessed Sacrament, really ticks me off.

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