“I’m sorry, I’m a pro-life Catholic but I disagree with this selective meddling into politics.”
As a fellow Catholic, I wholeheartedly agree.
“Meddling in politics”??????? The Church has just one function and that is to guide us back to God’s arms at the End of Days. Reminding Catholics that supporting abortion is supporting murder and therefore a grave sin is the job of the bishop. “Meddling in politics” ? I guess I’m not urbane enough to use such a phrase.
This isn’t “politics” but a matter of protecting the innocent from being killed. All he is saying is that supporting the killing of the innocent is incompatible with Catholic teaching, and therefore Catholics who support it should not go to Communion. The reason they will probably be reprimanded publicly and perhaps publicly denied Communion at some point is that they are proclaiming their sin publicly and using their position of power to encourage others to follow suit. Hence, the Church must deal with them publicly.
Incidentally, the Church in Italy has been under assault by gays over its opposing an attempt to sneak through a bill with the ultimate objective of legalizing “gay marriage.” The bishops and the Pope feel that this is an attempt to undermine the social structures that protect and support what the Church regards as the legitimate family structure. Catholic legislators were strongly encouraged to vote against it (I would assume the withholding of Communion was discussed), and so far, they have done so, althoug the gays are still pushing the issue. Again, this is not political, but is an attempt to protect the family from the development of social structures that will weaken or even ultimately punish it. And the Church is fully within its rights in telling its members that supporting such a thing is not consonant with Catholic doctrine, and that publicly advocating it will result in public punishment. These politicians, there and in the US, are perfectly free not to be Catholics if they don’t agree with the Church’s moral teachings; but they are not free to disagree with those teachings and claim they are still good Catholics. And that’s all the bishops are saying.
““I’m sorry, I’m a pro-life Catholic but I disagree with this selective meddling into politics.”
As a fellow Catholic, I wholeheartedly agree.”
I don’t think he’s meddling at all. He is making a statement about the faith. He hasn’t said don’t come to Mass. He has said do not take Communion.
There is a difference between being nominally Catholic and actually living the faith.
As a Bishop, he is exhorting the people to live the faith. He’s perfectly within his right to do so. The politicians can make the choice of being Catholic or not.