I salute this man and his bold response to the criminals in our government. My only question is whether the Cardinal can truly raise 78 million faithful in the Catholic faith. Far too many who think they are Catholic and flatly deny doctrine and practice. Those folks won’t stand.
-——and flatly deny doctrine and practice——
That denial is evolution of the American Church. The question boils down to can the leadership actually control the congregants. Will they continue to remain in the congregation but actually act as they please or in some manner revert to the old ways.
My guess is they will follow the leadership in theory but act as they please in practice
“My only question is whether the Cardinal can truly raise 78 million faithful in the Catholic faith.”
It would be nice if he could, but he can't. However, he doesn't need to.
A modest majority of self-identified Catholics voted for the anti-Christ in 2008. The typical number stated is 54%. If the hierarchy of the Church is able to highlight the anti-Christ’s campaign against the Catholic Church to motivate a 10% shift, a rather more modest result, the anti-Christ would only get 44% of the self-identified Catholic vote. Folks don't generally win the presidency without a majority, or at least a rough tie, in the Catholic vote.
Since 1956, Catholics have given a majority to the popular election loser of the presidential race twice, in 1968 and in 1988. In 1988, the margin was 52%-48% for Dukakis. Al Gore took 50% to 47% in 2000, but he was considered to have won the popular vote.
The cardinal's task is relatively modest - influence half the swing vote of the Catholic electorate to vote Republican in 2012.
sitetest
Nope, he can't raise 78 million, but even if he only gets a few million more Catholics to vote against obama it will change the out come.
In 2008 obama won the overall Catholic vote 54-46 but lost the real Catholic vote {those Catholic's that regularly attend Mass} 55-45.
Obama really won the Latino vote by 64% but many Latinos attend Mass and if 15-20% of them switch, {and they live in swing states}, obama is out, {even if he gets every black vote including those that are dead or in prison}.
Obama should never have lied to Cardinal Dolan back in December.
He picked a fight with the wrong Cardinal, he would have been better off trying to steal home against Cardinal Catcher Molina.
No, he can't. Too many people today are "catholic" in name only, too many people claim to be Catholic, but pick and choose which rules they will follow (nobody in line for confession on Saturday, but EVERYBODY is in line for Communion on Sunday...), and too many are like Pelosi and Biden and their ilk. But even 10% of 78 million is a respectable number. I like the beehive analogy, too.