Bishops back away from showdown with Catholic politicians

St. Louis Post-Dispatch L.L.C ^ | 06.17.06 | Tim Townsend

[Coleus]

LOS ANGELES

It is one of the most sensitive questions American Catholic bishops have wrestled with the past few years: When Catholic public officials do not follow church teachings, should they be denied Holy Communion?   So it was no surprise when the question was posed to Washington's cardinal, Theodore E. McCarrick, after he addressed his brother bishops last week on the topic of Catholic politicians.    Many bishops have talked to Catholic lawmakers whose views clash with the church, said Archbishop Elden F. Curtiss, of Omaha, Neb. "After we've made the effort, what do we do if the conclusion is not positive?"

The answer: It's a bishop's judgment call.

Still, it was clear where McCarrick and his Task Force on Catholic Bishops and Catholic Politicians stood. Bishops, they believe, should not try to force the hands of politicians by withholding Communion.  "We are in this together," said McCarrick, reading to the national gathering of bishops from his final report. "This is a time for respect for our common duties and different pastoral judgments as bishops, but most of all for building our unity as a body of bishops, recognizing how our individual actions affect other bishops and our entire community of faith."

- snip-

Interpreting Vatican document

McCarrick's task force was set up to study how a 2003 Vatican document, called "Doctrinal Note on Some Questions Regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life," would be put into practice in the U.S.  Specifically, the task force was to address how bishops should handle American Catholic lawmakers who legislate contrary to church teaching.

[Tax-chick]

it would be a very good symbolic gesture to make a point to bury each and every Don Bacciagaluppe while showily and publicly refusing a Catholic funeral and burial in sacred ground to the likes of Ted the Swimmer, John F'n Traitor, Nancygirl, and every public pro-abort "Catholic"

What a good idea!

[sittnick]

Our own Illinois Governor Blagojovich and Senator Dickie Durbin would be my first two nominees.

Blago is Greek Orthodox, not Catholic. (I believe his name is Serb, not Polish. For political reasons he doesn't go out of his way to emphasize that.) Of course, he could be subject to a "clerical error." Or maybe we could request extradition.

[victim soul]

It is a sad day when the Catholic Church in America is politically correct and no longer in the business of saving politicians' souls.

[TotusTuus]

Sub-head in the article.

Interpreting Vatican document

Gag me with a spoon. Better yet, put me in charge of the committee. I promise there will be no camels.

In any event, I couldn't help but notice that this was an obvious hit piece by the St. Louie Dipsh--'s against the great Archbishop Burke who is enthroned at their See.

Nice to see their not -so-subtle attempts to use his brother bishops against him throughout the article.

[bornacatholic]

What if the Catholic politician was not only a pederast in his private life but also, very publicly, a member of the North American Man/Boy Love Association?

McCarrick and his brother Bishops are craven Catholics failing to do their duties to Teach, Rule, and Sanctify.

[sitetest]

Dear T.L.Sink,

Abortion is a matter of fundamental rights and basic justice. No one may legitimately support abortion "rights," as it is little more than a category of murder.

It is enough of a horror that large numbers of Catholics support murder on demand. However, those politicians who delude themselves that they are Catholic and who publicly support murder on demand give example to the folks in the pews, and give a form of legitimacy to pew-sitters who unthinkingly support murder on demand.

I have had Church-going Catholics tell me that abortion mustn't be THAT big an issue because, after all, they don't do anything to the likes of Chappaquiddick Ted and others. And old Chappaquiddick Ted has cynically stated that the whole abortion/Catholic thing isn't his problem, because, after all, the bishops don't really hold him to account.

Chappaquiddick Ted, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Pataki, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Schwarzenegger, and the whole lot of these pseudo-Catholic vermin should be excommunicated for the support of mass murder. They help take millions of Catholics down to hell with them.

Should they ever wish to repent and have their excommunications removed, they should, as part of their public penance, be forced to permanently retire from public life, and spend the rest of their days lecturing fellow Catholics on the fact that those who accept murder on demand are unlikely to ever behold the Beatific Vision.


sitetest

[Frank Sheed]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1682805/posts?page=6#6

[Convert from ECUSA]

"Excommunicate the SOB and every other quisling who has the gall to call him/herself Catholic while publicly cooperating with, funding, protecting the death by dismemberment of 50 million+ innocent babies and counting in our country alone and carefully seeing to it that the slaughter continues. Any bishop who resists excommunicating his leftwing babykilling political pals or their lavender fruitcake allies should be removed and cloistered by the Vatican. Actually, they should be burned at the stake but we don't get to do that anymore (as yet) and we ought not let the perfect be the enemy of the good."

You nailed it with a great big hammer! Right on1

[BlackElk]

Mistakes are sometimes made. If we can obtain the right to burn them at the stake, we can say that we only found out that Blago was Serbian Orthodox when it was too late and offer an apology to the leaders of that Church for usurping their obligations.