Posted on 06/29/2007 3:35:19 PM PDT by wagglebee
MILWAUKEE, June 29, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – In a letter to the New York Times on Monday, Daniel C. Maguire, a professor of moral theology at Marquette University, stated that bishops should stop harassing Catholic politicians who vote in favor of abortion.
Maguire drew on St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas who both thought that to allow certain moral evils would prevent “greater evils.” He further cited Aquinas, who said that the “wise legislator” imitates God, who “tolerates certain evils lest greater evils ensue.”
The letter continued, “Similarly, today legislators who truly think abortion immoral could vote to keep it legal since greater evils, multiple deaths of women (especially poor women) from botched abortions as seen before Roe v. Wade, would follow.”
He concluded, “Catholic bishops, even though they are pastors and administrators and not professional theologians, should know this and cease harassing Catholic candidates, thus making Catholic candidates less electable.”
Maguire's theology, however, is condemned by the Church. The notion of promoting the "lesser of two evils" is condemned as the error of "proportionalism," while the attempt to draw such a position from the works of Augustine and Aquinas is condemned by orthodox academics as gravely erroneous.
Maguire has had a record of dissent from Catholic Church teaching ever since the sexual revolution in 1960’s. This March the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) condemned Maguire’s views (published in certain pamphlets) on same-sex “marriage”, contraception and abortion as being “contrary to the Church’s faith”. The USCCB further declared, “We deplore as irresponsible his public advocacy of his views as authentic Catholic teaching” (see http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/mar/07032301.htm).
Shortly after this event, Catholic organizations Human Life International and the Cardinal Newman Society called for the dismissal of Maguire from the Catholic University Marquette. Despite these requests, however, he still retains his position as a professor of ethics (see http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/mar/07032713.html).
LifeSiteNews.com contacted the office of Rev. Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of Milwaukee, but was unable to obtain a comment by press time.
For the full text of the statement of the Bishops Committee on Maguire:
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/mar/070323a.html
Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
US Bishops Denounce False Abortion, Marriage Teaching by “Catholic” Theologian
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/mar/07032301.html
Dissident Professors At U.S. Catholic Universities Pave Way To Euthanasia
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/jun/05060203.html
To contact the Department of Theology at Marquette University and respectfully voice concerns:
Department of Theology
P.O. Box 1881
Milwaukee, Wis. USA
53201-1881
Phone: (414) 288-7170
Fax: (414) 288-5548
The letter continued, “Similarly, today legislators who truly think abortion immoral could vote to keep it legal since greater evils, multiple deaths of women (especially poor women) from botched abortions as seen before Roe v. Wade, would follow.”
3500 murders a day IS NOT the "lesser of two evils"!
Pro-Life Ping
Catholic Ping
Bishops are “ordered” not to harass certain US politicians.
Who does this guy think he is, the Pope? Where does he get off, giving commands he has no authority to issue?
Imperfect men making imperfect decisions and drawing imperfect conclusions.
What could be more evil then killing a human being?
Moral edicts from the gang of lefties running Marquette University are meaningless.
So women dying from botched abotions is more evil than putting to death a helpless baby, or really all helpless babies? I don't understand the (il)logic.
Especially when you consider that the drop in abortion deaths was underway BEFORE Roe v. Wade, it was due to antibiotics, not legalized infanticide.
“In a letter to the New York Times on Monday, Daniel C. Maguire, a professor of moral theology at Marquette University, stated that bishops should stop harassing Catholic politicians who vote in favor of abortion.”
Time for the bishop’s to start threatening university professors.
It’s on a slightly different issue, but that’s what the Archbishop of Omaha has done.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1858508/posts
I think it is also academically dishonest, heinous and grievous to use the teachings of St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas to support an immoral position that proportionally is not even close to what they were originally teaching.
Looks like his theological “tenure” should be terminated.
Maguire is a heretic, plain and simple. It’s long past time that Marquette removed this aging hippie from its theology department.
The Cardinal Newman Society has recently been trying to put pressure on the president of Marquette to take action.
Smoking in public. Voting Republican. Opposing abortion. Driving an SUV.
The New York Times gets zillions of letters from crackpots of all stripes. So why did they pick this one to publish? Obviously, because Maguire comes with the label CATHOLIC THEOLOGIAN which allows the NYTimes to do yet another “in your face” to the institution they loathe the most. But why is Maguire allowed to continue advertising himself in this deceptive way? Because the bishops are too wimpy to stop him from it. After all, the only ones who really suffer from this nonsense are those who actually believe what they teach.
"Greater evils" like voting Republican,perhaps?
Stop harassing them? You mean they started and I missed it??!! :(
Yes, the professor seems a bit confused about his order in the RCC chain of command!
Time for Archbishop Dolan to come down hard on this heretic.
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