Posted on 08/27/2009 10:22:18 PM PDT by STARWISE
Saturday's grandiose Catholic funeral for Senator Ted Kennedy has the potential to be a scandal that will make Notre Dame's Obama Day a walk in the park.
With all four living former Presidents in attendance and an address from President Barack Obama, the funeral is set to be a royal crowning, right inside a Catholic Church, of a man who betrayed the most fundamental moral teachings of the faith.
What example will this give to Catholics and the rest of the world looking in? It will surely belie the Catholic teachings on the sanctity of life and sexuality.
"Surely," they will say, "if one of the most vociferous proponents of abortion and homosexuality in politics is so feted in the Church, the Church cannot possibly regard abortion as murder."
Would anyone so honor one who so advocated what the church officially considers an "unspeakable crime"?
The Church in the US has suffered a dangerous precedent with the recent Notre Dame award to President Obama. However, President Obama is not Catholic. Therefore, the impact of the scandal was blunted.
Regarding Senator Kennedy, however, the stakes are much higher in terms of scandal and public relations.
Kennedy, began his life as a Catholic in great ceremony. At age seven, he received his First Communion from Pope Pius XII in the Vatican. He was also pro-life early in his political career.
"Wanted or unwanted, I believe that human life, even at its earliest stages, has certain rights which must be recognized - the right to be born, the right to love, the right to grow old," he wrote in 1971.
However, abandoning the practice of faith is regarded as worse than never having known.
The Bible, in the second book of Peter teaches: "For if, flying from the pollutions of the world, through the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they be again entangled in them and overcome: their latter state is become unto them worse than the former. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of justice than, after they have known it, to turn back from that holy commandment which was delivered to them." (2 Peter 2:20-21)
Rev. Patrick Tarrant, pastor of the Church where Kennedy is to be buried has informed the media that he was present at Kennedy's death and thus hopefully the senator made a last confession and was reconciled with the Church.
However, only a public repudiation of his militantly anti-life and anti-family actions would serve to lessen the scandal of the upcoming funeral extravaganza.
I don't discount that that might be coming. After all, Kennedy did have President Obama deliver a letter to the Pope when Obama made his visit to the Vatican in July. Although unlikely, given the Senator's recent, intense support for Obama's health care reforms, perhaps there was a public confession in the letter waiting to be released. We can hope and pray.
If we assume a private confession was made there could be a private funeral Mass for the family, without politicians and media. And of course there would still be a secular memorial event, with all the pomp and ceremony for this star of the secular world.
Such a deliberately subdued Catholic liturgical event for the Senator would, at this time, with the announcement of the Catholic funeral already out, come at the cost of enduring the rage of those who have become used to the Church giving in to their demands. However, the eternal benefit would be to send a clear message to Catholic politicians in particular, and to the public in general, that the Church is actually serious about the sanctity of human life.
It could also be an opportunity for Church leaders to repent of having failed to work hard enough to bring wayward Catholic politicians back to faith, or even of having in many cases led them away from the faith, as some clergy are known to have influenced Kennedy.
It would not be the first time the Church has apologized for not living up to it's pro-life convictions. In 2000, when Pope John Paul II was making his much touted "Universal Prayer" of "Confession Of Sins And Asking For Forgiveness" one of the ignored apologies concerned the unborn.
Then-Archbishop François Xavier Nguyên Van Thuân prayed "let us pray for those who are most defenseless, the unborn killed in their mother's womb or even exploited for experimental purposes by those who abuse the promise of biotechnology and distort the aims of science."
The Pope responded in prayer, "God, our Father, you always bear the cry of the poor. How many times have Christians themselves not recognized you in the hungry, the thirsty and the naked, in the persecuted, the imprisoned, and in those incapable of defending themselves, especially in the first stages of life. For all those who have committed acts of injustice by trusting in wealth and power and showing contempt for the "little ones" who are so dear to you, we ask your forgiveness: have mercy on us and accept our repentance. We ask this through Christ our Lord."
Canada suffered a similar scandal in 2000, with the death of former Catholic Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.
Despite his having legalized abortion, divorce and homosexuality he was given a state funeral in Montreal's Notre-Dame Basilica, presided over by the archbishop of Montreal, Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte. One of the pallbearers was Cuba's communist president Fidel Castro.
Five months after the funeral Calgary Bishop Fred Henry was asked if he were offended by Trudeau’s funeral. He replied: “Yes, I was.... there were some issues or questions there that might make one kind of pause and consider whether or not this was an appropriate funeral to have or not."
If the Catholic Church gives him a Mass, with Sacraments, they are hypocrites just like he is.
Bullseye! That's EXACTLY what I was thinking! (And you expressed that in a much nicer way than I would have been able to.)
I knew this guy’s funeral would be bring out the Catholic bashers....
Sure as shootin’ ..
I am a Catholic and I know all about death bed confessions...
However, this Non-Catholic Kennedy was on his “death bed” for more than 6 months. It’s simply not believable that he had a change of heart in the last 30 seconds.
This harms the Church immeasurably if this precedes. It shows them to be talking out of their ass...
The funeral will be held at The Mission Church of Boston.
http://www.themissionchurchboston.com/
I don’t think this is a regular RTC Chgurch. It may be one of those outside the limits churches attended by leftists who call themselves Catholics like Kerry and Kennedy. Those who support abortion, are divorced and remarried.
How does the Catholic Church explain a Catholic funeral for Teddy?
Certainly will not be a High Requiem Mass presided over by the Archbishop of Boston.
It sure does.
ITA.
But, it happens all the time with people not in the public eye. We all see his sins. We see what he and others like him have been allowed to get away with because of their status. It sends a horrible message, imo, to our young and the rest of us.
However, at the same time, this life is temporary and eternity is forever and who knows what his meeting with Jesus was like or what transpired. He wasn’t a Catholic, or a rather a practicing Catholic and it’s obvious he didn’t follow the dogma let alone the doctrine that is the Catholic Church.
I hate what he’s done to this Country. His eternal life is up to God.
Oh please.
Yes, it was a scandal and horrific but not as widespread as the MSM would have one believe. And if you think for one second this is any more prevalent in the Catholic Church than other churches and other institutions, than you’re clueless.
Oh please, again! The Catholic Church has defended the lives of the unborn more than any other.
One must remember that the Catholic Church, and all Churches, is run by humans and humans err. The teachings are clear. There are Bishops all over the world that don’t follow the teachings, dogma and doctrine, of the Catholic Church. They should be removed, imo. Just as anyone, Priests, nuns, etc. should be reprimanded and/or removed when they don’t follow the teachings.
You’re no longer Catholic so why do you even care what happens in the Catholic Church? Why does anyone care what happens in the Church they don’t follow? As long as it’s not affecting the laws of this land, who gives a damn what other churches/religions think other than their own?
If I go back to my 16 years of Catholic education, including the last four with the Jesuits, I fail to see how the Church can have a public funeral mass without causing a scandal. Kennedy was divorced, lived a scandalous life and openly promoted and defended abortion and homosexuality.
But, then again, I’ve lost all hope that our Bishops have anything to do with Catholic teachings but are merely poor accountants.
I think this is where FRED PHELPS comes in??? /sarc / lol
I hate what that man and most of his family have done to my Country. Whatever happened on his deathbed or during his private confessions is none of my business. I don’t consider him a Catholic and hate that this family got away with so much and with the support of some priests and Bishops.
But he’s a public figure and claims he’s a Catholic so of course the Catholic Church is going to be slammed. Especially by non Catholics who just like to trash and by former Catholics who have their own issues.
There are those of us who hate that the Kennedy family, or cetain members, claim to be Catholic when everything they stand for is directly against Church teachings. Hmmm, maybe one day we’ll all be self righteous about Jews or some Protestant Demonination that some public official belongs to.
Yep.
Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley, who blogged affectionately about Kennedy’s sister, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, after her recent death, has declined requests for interviews about Kennedy. He has issued only a cautious written statement, saying “we mourn the passing of Senator Edward M. Kennedy’’ and describing the senator as “often a champion for the poor, the less fortunate, and those seeking a better life.’’ But O’Malley has been sharply critical of Catholic Democrats who support abortion rights, and has said that for Catholics to vote for such politicians “borders on scandal.’’http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/08/28/kennedys_complex_legacy_as_a_catholic/?page=2
That may not be all that we would wish but it is quite a slap to not have him saying the funeral.
And you know this how?
I agree with you about TK but you have no clue about anyone’s elses death bed confessions.
He’s gonna have a Catholic funeral. No doubt about that. And some in America and other parts of the world will say all these wonderful things about this scum of a human being.
That’s pretty much what some of them are.
If you also go back to your 16 years of Catholic education you should remember that Catholic funeral Masses are performed every day on people who aren’t practicing Catholics. People who didn’t follow church teachings, didn’t live as Catholics, etc. TK and most of the Kennedy family iirc aren’t and haven’t been practicing Catholics. And that’s common knowledge. Yet, they’ve been married in Catholic masses, buried in Catholic masses, and have priests and bishops that think they’re wonderful. Or they get something from it.
JFK wasn’t a practicing Catholic either and he pretty much sucked as President but many seem to forget all about that.
I believe it’s a Roman Catholic Church, though not a parish Church.
http://www.themissionchurchboston.com/basilica/
Only 1 thing with what you said, he got his first marriage annulled so he could marry the second wife within the church..Making his children bastards...
not catholic bashers, just realists based on the churches history for a couple of decades.
QUESTION: Will my children be illegitimate if my marriage is annulled?
Answer: NO! This is a grave misconception. The marital status of the parents does not affect the status of the children. All children are created in God's image and have equal status in the church. Neither civil law nor church law considers the children of an annulled marriage illegitimate. Nor does the annulment imply that the children were not the fruit of a genuine human love. Annulment is simply a decision on the circumstances surrounding a marriage that could prevent that marriage from being a sacramental marriage.
http://www.stdanielclarkston.org/annulmnt.htm
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.