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Posted on 09/04/2009 12:31:55 PM PDT by kingattax
(CNSNews.com) - Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Boston, wrote on Thursday that he confronted President Barack Obama on the question of abortion in the health care reform plan now before Congress when he spoke to Obama in a Boston church at Sen. Ted Kennedy’s funeral.
O’Malley made the revelation in a long blog posting on his archdiocesan Web site responding to Catholics who were distressed that he had taken part in a very public funeral Mass celebrating the life of Sen. Kennedy.
Kennedy supported legalized abortion (including legalized partial-birth abortion), federal funding for research that kills human embryos and same-sex marriage—positions that were in open defiance of the explicit teachings of the church.
“President Obama and three former presidents attended Senator Kennedy’s funeral,” wrote O’Malley. “I had the opportunity to speak briefly with President Obama, to welcome him to the Basilica and to share with him that the bishops of the Catholic Church are anxious to support a plan for universal health care, but we will not support a plan that will include a provision for abortion or could open the way to abortions in the future. The President was gracious in the short time we spoke, he listened intently to what I was saying.”
On August 11, Cardinal Justin Rigali, the archbishop of Philadelphia and chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Pro-Life Activities, wrote a letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives stating that the House health care bill supported abortion and was unacceptable to Catholics.
“Because some federal funds are authorized and appropriated by this legislation without passing through the Labor/HHS appropriations bill, they are not covered by the Hyde amendment and other federal provisions that have long prevented federal funding of abortion and of health benefits packages that include abortion,” Rigali wrote.
“The committee rejected an amendment to extend this longstanding policy to the use of federal subsidies for health care premiums under this Act,” Rigali continued. “Instead the committee created a legal fiction, a paper separation between federal funding and abortion: Federal funds will subsidize the public plan, as well as private health plans that include abortion on demand; but anyone who purchases these plans is required to pay a premium out of his or her own pocket (specified in the Act to be at least $1.00 a month) to cover all abortions beyond those eligible for federal funds under the current Hyde amendment. Thus some will claim that federal taxpayer funds do not support abortion under the Act. But this is an illusion. Funds paid into these plans are fungible, and federal taxpayer funds will subsidize the operating budget and provider networks that expand access to abortions. Furthermore, those constrained by economic necessity or other factors to purchase the ‘public plan’ will be forced by the federal government to pay directly and specifically for abortion coverage.”
While not mentioning Cardinal Rigali and the Catholic bishops, President Obama has said that those who say the health care bill funds abortion are lying.
In explaining his participation in Kennedy’s funeral mass, Cardinal O’Malley said it was “a great disappointment” to him that the senator supported the legalized killing of unborn children.
“Needless to say, the Senator’s wake and Catholic funeral were controversial because of the fact that he did not publically support Catholic teaching and advocacy on behalf of the unborn,” said O’Malley. “Given the profound effect of Catholic social teaching on so many of the programs and policies espoused by Senator Kennedy and the millions who benefitted from them, there is a tragic sense of lost opportunity in his lack of support for the unborn. To me and many Catholics it was a great disappointment because, had he placed the issue of life at the centerpiece of the Social Gospel where it belongs, he could have multiplied the immensely valuable work he accomplished.”
In an August 19 talk on BlogTalkRadio, President Obama said people who say that the health care bill involves government funding of abortion are liars.
“You’ve heard that this is all going to mean government funding of abortion. Not true,” he said. “This is all--these are all fabrications that have been put out there in order to discourage people from meeting what I consider to be a core ethical and moral obligation. And that is that we look out for one another. That I am my brother’s keeper and my sister’s keeper. And in the wealthiest nation on earth right now, we are neglecting to live up to that call.”
In his August 22 weekly address, President Obama again attacked the truthfulness of those who point out that the health care reform bill would funnel federal tax dollars to abortions.
“So today, I want to spend a few minutes debunking some of the more outrageous myths circulating on the internet, on cable TV, and repeated at some town halls across this country,” said Obama. “… Some are also saying that coverage for abortions would be mandated under reform. Also false. When it comes to the current ban on using tax dollars for abortions, nothing will change under reform.”
Cardinal O’Malley did not indicate that President Obama made any response to him in the church at Sen. Kennedy’s funeral when he brought up the issue of abortion in the health care bill. He only said the president was “gracious” and “listened intently.”
Obama also delivered a eulogy for Sen. Kennedy at the funeral, which was held at the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Boston.
“Ted Kennedy's life work was not to champion the causes of those with wealth or power or special connections. It was to give a voice to those who were not heard,” Obama said in that eulogy.
As a state senator in Illinois, Obama was the leading opponent of legislation that called for treating a child that survived an induced labor abortion as a “person” under Illinois law. As a presidential candidate, he vowed to Planned Parenthood that he would sign the Freedom of Choice Act, which would enshrine abortion on demand in a federal statute. As president, he has approved federal funding for research that requires the killing of human embryos
The 33 who have made statement in "prudential opposition", found at Ed Peters' "American Papist" blog, include:
Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia, PA and Bishop William Murphy of Rockville Centre, NY
Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver, CO
Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, NY
Bishop Walker Nickless of Sioux City, IA
Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo, ND
Bishop Richard Pates of Des Moines, IA
Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, KS and Bishop Robert Finn of Kansas City-St. Joseph, MO
Archbishop John Nienstedt of St. Paul-Minneapolis, MN
Bishop Paul Loverde of Arlington, VA
Bishop Robert Guglielmone of Charleston, SC
Bishop Richard Lennon of Cleveland, OH
Bishop Peter Jugis of Charlotte, NC and Bishop Michael Burbidge of Raleigh, NC
Bishop Jerome Listecki of La Crosse, WI
Bishop Blase Cupich of Rapid City, SD
Bishop Donald Trautman of Erie, PA
Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh, PA
Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, CT
Bishop Thomas Doran of Rockford, IL
Bishop Arthur Serratelli of Paterson, NJ
Part II from Bishop Serratelli here
Bishop Anthony Taylor of Little Rock, AR
Bishop Robert Morlino of Madison, WI
Bishop Paul Coakley of Salina, KS
Archbishop Jose Gomez of San Antonio, TX and Bishop Oscar Cantu of San Antonio, TX
Archbishop George Lucas of Omaha, NE
Bishop Alex Sample of Marquette, MI
Bishop Victor Galeone of St. Augustine, FL
Bishop David Choby of Nashville, TN
Bishop Gerald Barnes of San Bernardino, CA
Bishop Peter Sartain of Joliet, IL
I want to see Cardinal George of Chicago,
who’s the head of the National Council of
Catholic Bishops, come out strong against
this.
He also needs to officially castigate Fr.
Pfleger for his heretical words and deeds.
Apparently, Drinan was one of the “enlightened.” He personally opposed abortion, (gee, how righteous and Catholic of him) but said the moral issue was separate from the legal.
___________________________________
I will paste wiki’s portion below: Robert Drinan
Drinan’s consistent support of abortion rights drew significant opposition from Church leaders throughout his political career, who had also repeatedly requested that he not hold political office in the first place.
Drinan attempted to reconcile his position with official Church doctrine by stating that while he was personally opposed to abortion, considering it “virtual infanticide,”its legality was a separate issue from its morality.
This argument failed to satisfy his critics. According to the Wall Street Journal, Drinan played a key role in the pro-choice platform becoming a common stance with politicians in the Kennedy family.
In 1980, Pope John Paul II unequivocally demanded that all priests withdraw from electoral politics. Drinan complied and did not seek reelection. “’It is just unthinkable,’ he said of the idea of renouncing the priesthood to stay in office. ‘I am proud and honored to be a priest and a Jesuit. As a person of faith I must believe that there is work for me to do which somehow will be more important than the work I am required to leave.’”
Following his death, members of Congress honored Drinan’s memory with a moment of silence on the House floor on January 29, 2007.
Such disingenuous garbage ... he obviously
became more the politician, wandering far
from his priestly vows .. and I do remember
the sickening honor and vaulted status he
achieved by his fellow babykillers.
Wonder where he is now ?
Cardinal O’Malley is a pretty straight shooter. I wouldn’t be surprised if he got up in Obama’s face - politely.
I also wouldn’t be surprised if Obama “laughed his ass off...when (O’Malley’s) back was turned.”
Whoever paid for your education is due a refund.
His Eminence Francis Cardinal George, OMI
Archdiocese of Chicago
P.O. Box 1979
Chicago, IL 60690-1979
phone: 312-751- 8200
email: mfox@archchicago.org
Another one of your intelligent and to-the-point posts.
You never fail us, and I thank God for that. :-)
Thanks for the kind words.
Excellent.
Note: when you agree to play chess with the devil, he will win every time.
Ha, yeah. Instead of having the opposite effect.
Good thing Kennedy was buried at Arlington National because if he didn’t confess to the sin of murder and ask for forgiveness, would that have caused a problem being buried in a Catholic cemetery?
“We, Cardinals and Arch-Bishops, have been trying to destroy the church for 2000 years. We haven’t succeeded, and you won’t either.”
Good one! All the human frailty in the world can’t bring down the Catholic Church. Christ prayed to the Father that it would last to the end of time.
You are very wise, DRey. This Catholic thanks you.
O’Malley like so many of our illustrious and courageous bishops misses the point. It is IRRELEVANT to Kenndedy’s funeral whether or not he was repentent before his death and confessed his sins. That is a PRIVATE affair. What disqualifies him from a PUBLIC funeral is the fact that Kennedy was a prominent (in some people’s eyes) PUBLIC figure and because he was a PUBLIC figure, his being a so-called Catholic and advancing PUBLIC support for abortion (a heinous sin in the Catholic Church) caused a PUBLIC scandal and a scandal within the Church itself. It was these PUBLIC positions on abortion that REQUIRED Kennedy to make a PUBLIC declaration of disavowing his PUBLIC position before he would warrant a PUBLIC funeral. Please, someone get this message to O’Malley before he plans the funerals for Biden and Pelosi.
Mrs. Don-o, by their fruits you will know them. Looking at those two funerals, I would say Eunice was the real Catholic. Her funeral was dignified, traditional, and humble. She went to her maker in quiet Catholic humility, despite her “birthright.”
Teddy got all his glory here on Earth. He squeezed every ounce of favor and special treatment he could out of being a Kennedy. That funeral squeezed the last drop of celebrity and pomp out of his existence. It was a showy farce presided over by a faux Catholic. There aren’t really even supposed to be eulogies at a Catholic funeral. You do that at the Rosary vigil the night before. Having Obama speak was the unmistakable sign that this whole funeral, and that whole life, was an empty spiritual exercise.
I don’t know how God will judge Teddy or if he went to Hell, but I know he didn’t have a good grasp on what it means to be Catholic.
Boston’s Roman Catholic Cardinal Says He Confronted Obama about Abortion in Health Care Plan....
Iowa Bishop: Don’t Be Railroaded into the Current...Health Care Proposals
in a message issued by the Diocese of Sioux City (The Church on Universal Healthcare)
Nazi Health Care A Catholic Bishop Speaks Out Against "End of Life Care" (Germany, 1941)
Bishop Nickless: "No Health Care Reform is Better than the Wrong Health Care Reform"
Cardinal Rigali, Abp. Chaput Intensify Warnings Against Obamacare's Abortion Expansion
Please, what nonsense.
Go look at the Cardinal’s blog.
In the adoring entries you’ll find the answer to the question: I wonder what the old Holy Name Society and Ladies’ Guild members would do if they ever figured out how computers worked?
He usually writes about the architecture of a church in West Roxbury or how nice the chicken salad was at some convent jubilee.
For years, NEVER a confrontation with either Kennedy or Kerry or, while he lived, the despicable Drinan.
And I saw the “confrontation” with Obama before the funeral.
It didn’t exactly look like Leo the Great facing Atilla the Hun.
As a priest once said to me, “Obeying these guys is one thing, but respecting them ....?”
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