Posted on 07/06/2004 12:31:01 PM PDT by areafiftyone
In a private memorandum, top Vatican prelate Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger told American bishops that Communion must be denied to Catholic politicians who support legal abortion.
While never mentioning Sen. John Kerry by name, the memo implicitly aims at the pro-choice Catholic Massachusetts senator and presidential candidate.
But the ban is broad and includes all other pro-abortion Catholic politicians who are defying the church's ban on abortion.
According the the Culture of Life Foundation, which obtained a copy of the confidential document, the Cardinal began by stressing the serious nature of receiving Communion and the need for each person to make “a conscious decision” regarding their worthiness based on “the Church’s objective criteria.”
But the Cardinal adds that it is not only the responsibility of the pro-abortion politicians such as Kerry to make a judgment about their worthiness to receive Communion.
It is also up to those distributing Communion to deny the sacrament to those in conflict with the Church's prohibition of abortion and the duty of office holders to oppose the procedure.
“Apart from an individual’s judgment about his worthiness to present himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, the minister of Holy Communion may find himself in the situation where he must refuse to distribute Holy Communion to someone, such as in cases of a declared excommunication, a declared interdict, or an obstinate persistence in manifest grave sin.”
If a politician such as Kerry “still presents himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, the minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it, ” Cardinal Ratzinger wrote.
He added that such as denial does not mean that the minister of Communion is judging the politician’s soul but is a reflection that he is in a state of obstinate persistence in manifest grave sin.
“Nor is the minister of Holy Communion passing judgment on the person’s
subjective guilt, but rather is reacting to the person’s public unworthiness to receive Holy Communion due to an objective situation of sin.”
The document also address the issues of the death penalty and war, contrasting these issues and with abortion.
“Not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion and euthanasia ... There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia,” Ratzinger wrote.
The memo was one of the subjects of an interim report by a task force of seven bishops established to address the Communion question.
The topic was also addressed by the American Bishops during their mid-June meeting in Dallas.
At that meeting the Bishops approved a document titled “Catholics in Political Life” which while it had harsh words for pro-abortion leaders, did not make specific recommendations on whether or not they should be denied Communion instead leaving the decision to individual Bishops.
Implicit in what the the Cardinal was saying, however, is that the bishops are required to state unambiguously that pro-abortion politicians must be denied Holy Communion, thus removing the decision from the bishops' discretion.
Absent an established religion, issues of justice need be decided discretely from issues of piety.
If it was confidential should these people have stolen and published it?
Not very Christian IMHO.
"Do I now have to worry that any Catholic politican might not take his cues from the people who elected him, but rather will do what his Church tells him to do so he is not denied a ritual that may be very important to him? "
Yes.
I figured as much. I suppose I will simply be less inclined to vote for catholics.
"The Church should rightly be more concerned with sin than politics."
No, this is far more important than actually addressing the child-abuse/homosexuality scandals and making some much-needed changes. [/sarcasm]
What does that have to do with the question at hand?
Giuliani, Pataki, and Schwarzenegger are not running for President. They didn't plan photo-ops receiving Communion either. Certain people in the Church DID come down on Arlen Spector(r), and on Rick Santorum(r) for supporting him. Before he died, Cardinal O'Connor locked horns with Giuliani all the time. It just happens that one party has support of this intrinsic evil as part of their platform, while the other party has resistance to it as part of theirs. But even so, the Church doesn't deal with the "party". The policy is to deal with the individual views of each politician...
The notion that every imbecile over the age of 18 would have a say in who runs this country was alien to the Founding Fathers.
YES. definitely. The House impeached Clinton, against the will of the people. The government forced desegregation, against the will of the people. I am not accusing the individual American. Persons are smart. But people can be really, really stupid.
"If receiving Communion was that important to John Kerry, he wouldn't have divorced his first wife, married the second without benefit of annulment, "
Wow - good point! How many politicians, (D) or (R), are guilty of this Catholic transgression? Or are only Dems possible of sin in the Catholic Church?
"And you were worried about what again?"
Ummm..if George Bush was Catholic, would you be in 100% support of Bush ignoring the will of the American public to wage the necessary War on Terror because the Vatican told him that their doctrine is that it's wrong?
According to your example, the Church should be listened to above the will of the people. Fortunately, the Founding Fathers thought otherwise.
It is kind of taboo to speak openly of Papal succussion but here is an article I found from here: http://www.time.com/time/daily/special/papacy/succession.html
Who Will Be the Next Pope?
While few Vatican officials dare speak of a successor to the ailing John Paul II, several potential candidates have emerged. Having appointed all but 16 of the 123 members of the College of Cardinals, John Paul II has almost guaranteed that his successor will share his conservative philosophy. Some Vatican observers, however, predict the election of a candidate with more progressive views in order to mend the schism between liberal and orthodox Catholics.
Nationality may be another important consideration in the papal succession. The Polish John Paul II broke the Italians' near-500-year lock on the papacy, and growing Catholic populations in the Third World may focus attention beyond not only Italy but even Europe.
The consensus among speculators is that there is no likely American candidate, and an older cardinal -- who would serve a shorter term than John Paul's -- appears to be a probable choice. Here's a look at some of the possible candidates, from the leading contenders to the long shots:
Camillo Ruini
Age: 68
Ruini is vicar general of the Rome diocese and president of the Italian Episcopal Conference. Appointed cardinal in 1991, he is a conservative who may still be able to appease liberal factions.
Jan Schotte
Age: 70
Having kept close contact with many cardinals from around the world in his role as secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, this Belgian has diplomatic ties that improve his chances for the papacy.
Lucas Moreira Neves
Age: 73
A Brazilian strongly in favor of celibacy in the priesthood, and a firm opponent of birth control, Neves is touted as the pope's preferred successor. He was recently brought from Brazil to head the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops. Neves is well versed in the Curia, the Vatican bureaucracy, but is rumored to have health problems.
Dionigi Tettamanzi
Age: 65
The archbishop of Genoa is highly favored in Italy. Elevated to cardinal in 1998, Tettamanzi is another relatively new member of the Sacred College. He is regarded as a moderate who may be able to mediate between liberals and conservatives.
Francis Arinze
Age: 66
The Nigerian cardinal, a leading church figure in Africa, is a close friend of the pope's and has performed a crucial role in improving the Vatican's dialogue with Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu groups. His conservative theological orientation fits in well with the current Vatican climate.
Pio Laghi
Age: 76
Born in Forli, Italy, Laghi is prefect of the Congregation for Education in Rome. He is an experienced diplomat and was an apostolic delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine. Laghi is noted for his gentleness and compassion, though his lack of experience as a pastor may hurt his odds.
Christoph Schoenborn
Age: 54
The archbishop of Vienna and a highly respected theologian, Schoenborn was appointed to the College of Cardinals in 1998. Born in Czechoslovakia, he moved with his family to Austria while he was still young. Schoenborn was charged by the pope with the task of preparing the church's new catechism, but his chances may be hampered by his relative youth.
Bernardin Gantin
Age: 77
A close friend of the pope's, Gantin is another Vatican insider. He is prefect for the Congregation of Bishops and dean of the College of Cardinals. He was born in Benin, Africa, and, like Arinze, may find his chances diminished by his non-European origin.
Joseph Ratzinger
Age: 72
The vice-dean of the College of Cardinals is German-born and was once archbishop of Munich. Known as "the Panzer Cardinal," the conservative Ratzinger is powerful in the Vatican but may be too close to the pope for the cardinals' taste.
Carlo Maria Martini
Age: 72
Archbishop of Milan since 1979, Martini is more liberal than John Paul II on issues such as contraception and the role of women in the church. His odds for the papacy are lengthened by his membership in the elitist Jesuit order, which has been viewed with longstanding mistrust by the greater church.
Roger Etchegaray
Age: 76
A Vatican insider, Etchegaray serves as president of the Vatican Council for Justice and Peace. He is from Bayonne, France, and served as archbishop of Marseilles for 15 years.
Jean-Marie Lustiger
Age: 72
Archbishop of Paris, Lustiger was born of a Polish Jewish family in France. After his parents were deported during the Nazi occupation, he lived with a Christian family in Orléans and converted to Catholicism at the age of 13. He has been criticized by Israeli rabbis and may be a long shot if the cardinals decide his nomination would anger the Jewish community.
-- Elizabeth Frantz
No of coures not. The reason the focus is on Democrats is because their nominee for President makes a big deal of the fact that he is 1. Catholic and 2. Pro"choice". A story about the pro"choice", "catholic" state senator from wherever is a lot less interesting, and a lot less pressing on the conscience of Universal Church
If George Bush were Catholic, he'd be completely free to receive communion if his examined conscience permitted it.
This question of Kerry is about a man who wants to claim he's Catholic, which our 1st ammendment protects. However, the Catholic Church is also free to state that he's not one of us.
"Giuliani, Pataki, and Schwarzenegger are not running for President. "
So? How does that lessen their public support for abortion?
Note: I hate sKerry the FlipFlopper. I in no way support him. But precedent is being set here that may have negative effects years from now regarding issues other than abortion.
I mean, replace "Abortion" with "War on Terror" and you'd have to deny our President (if he was Catholic) Communion, according to the Vatican. If there's ever a "Vatican III" and they religiously outlaw war, will you support their denial of Communion to a politician who feels it's important to defend their country?
One would assume that a Catholic politican believes what the Church teaches when one votes for them.
If they don't, they aren't really Catholic, are they?
Who cares what the people think? We elect people to vote their conscience, not opinion polls. If everything was a popularity contest, we should just implement Ross Perot's Direct Democracy proposal and save the money we are spending on Congressmen's salaries and benefits and offices.
If he wants to be answerable to both and have a clean conscience ? Perhaps he should change parties.
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