Joe Biden, 'Practicing Catholic'

American Thinker ^ | October 14, 2012 | Jeannie DeAngelis

[jazusamo]

Amid all the smirking, chortling, and "give me a break, kid" sniggering that ill-mannered Joe Biden exhibited at the 2012 vice presidential debate, when he piously explained his stance on abortion, he exposed in totality the hypocrisy of liberal thinking.

Toward the end of the debate, Biden's friend and one time houseguest, moderator Martha Raddatz, posed the following question to the candidates: "We have two Catholic candidates ... [a]nd I would like to ask you both to tell me what role your religion has played in your own personal views on abortion[.]"

After Paul Ryan expressed how personal faith impacts his pro-life views, Joe Biden sobered up for a second and said, "My religion defines who I am, and I've been a practicing Catholic my whole life."

Like many liberals, whether it's a game of constitutional Twister or flexible religious creed, Joe fashions his faith to accommodate his personal beliefs. Therefore, the vice president and the enthusiastically pro-abortion Barack Obama both feel comfortable calling themselves Christian.

Mr. Biden identifies with Roman Catholicism but doesn't let that identity get in the way of his support of policy that directly contradicts church teaching on the sanctity of life. Joe may believe he's been "practicing" Catholicism his whole life, but he'd better keep those training wheels on his theological bicycle.

Echoing fellow Catholic Nancy Pelosi, Joe told Martha that except when it comes to the legally sanctioned death of innocent human beings, Catholicism has "particularly informed [his] social doctrine."

According to Joe, "[t]he Catholic social doctrine talks about taking care of those who-who can't take care of themselves, people who need help," which Biden agrees with except when he's approving of brutally dismantling helpless innocents "who can't take care of themselves."

[PhilSC]

The Catholic church seems to be more serious about this than they have been in the past. Saw this yesterday -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9vQt6IXXaM

[DuncanWaring]

Like all liberals, Ol’ Joe likes to help the poor and downtrodden - with other people’s money.

[Mach9]

Exactly. Do they really believe what they’re saying? “I don’t personally believe in incest (stealing, murdering, raping, lying under oath, cheating on tests or on spouses, littering, take your pick), but I’d NEVER impose my superior moral views and preferences on others.” Do they have any concept whatever of a lawful society, of civil behavior, of universally/timelessly held ethics?

But they screw the pooch with this particular nonsequitor: “We want to keep abortion safe and rare.” Safe for whom? It’s ALWAYS been safe for the mother. Ask Hippocrates. Why “rare” if it’s an okay, legal, ethically acceptble option?

Good grief. The whole reason for running for office is to influence society, to convince others of the efficacy of YOUR VISION. But that doesn’t happen with democrats. Their vision comes from whatever polls well. Unfortunately, abortion’s not polling too well.

[jazusamo]

Test Of Fire

Thanks for posting the link, I saw it yesterday also and it’s powerful. Anyone who hasn’t viewed it should do so!

[onedoug]

Bishop Biden has spoken. Thus it is.

Which quisling gave him the Sacrament today?

[maxwellsmart_agent]

He is not a catholic. Catholics keep the precepts of the Church. They do not make up their own rules. He can say he is, but he is not in any way Catholic.

[Jewbacca]

I am more Roman Catholic than Joe Biden.

[MasterGunner01]

I was advised that Joe Biden’s diocese excommunicated him. I don't know if this is true.

[Alex Murphy]

I blame the Catholic Church. They ALLOW liberals to call themselves “Catholic” without following a word of their teachings.

But the Catholic Church does nothing. They do not excommunicate them. They allow them to attend mass and take part in the sacraments. They allow them to be married in their church. They allow their children’s baptisms in their church. They allow their funerals in their church.

I'd have a hard time arguing with that.

[Pining_4_TX]

Agreed. The RC church (and it’s not the only one, I’m afraid) tends to be lax on church discipline, especially if one is rich and/or famous.

If someone believes a fetus is just a bunch of cells, then I can understand their view that abortion is OK. I don’t agree, but at least it’s an argument that hos some validity for that person. However, the only reason to be pro-life is if one believes that the fetus is a human being, so to say one believes abortion is wrong personally but will not oppose it in public life is saying, “Yes, it’s murder, but I think it ought to be up to the individual.” To me, that is ghoulish.

[Pining_4_TX]

I don’t recall Jesus ever promoting any government program to help the poor. He called on Christians to take care of themselves, their families, and the poor.

[Mrs. Don-o]

I asked his on another thread, but nobody seemed to know the answer:

DOES Biden go to Mass? DOES he receive Communion?

Years ago, he was warned by Bishop Chaput (when he was in Denver) and by Bishop Martino (when he was in Scranton) not to presume to receive Communion. So is he a member of any parish now? Where? Delaware? DC? So who's his bishop now? And does he receive Communion?

Anybody know?

[Mrs. Don-o]

Biden rather stupidly said he wouldn't "force his beliefs" on others. Let's look at that--— considering the word "beliefs" first.

Although Biden said that life beginning at conception was a *de fide* article of the Catholic faith, he was wrong about that. The initatiation of each person’s human life is something that is scientifically demonstrable: it is simply a fact of cellular biology that each life— yours, mine, and everybody else’s — began at conception or (even more accurately) fertilization. That was Day One. One doesn’t go to “the faith” to determine this: one goes to embryology.

So the determination of life is not a “de fide” belief nor opinion. One cannot compel belief, but a fact, with its sufficient evidence, can compel acknowledgement.

The question then becomes, could a law that restricts the killing of the conceived child pass legal scrutiny? What level would be appropriate? Rational purpose, intermediate scrutiny, or strict scrutiny?

It is reasonable to say that the killing of the young of our species is a matter which has both ethical and practical consequences making it a fit matter for public policy. Certainly if the killing of eagles, condors and snail darters is a matter of civic concern, the killing of tens of millions of our own species has even more significance.

The protection of our own species serves a rational secular purpose. It does not require any “supernatural” or “faith” perspective, and it passes muster as a fit subject for public policy.

All law involves "force," in the sense that it is "enforceable." It is not a matter of forcing belief; it is enforcing life-protective measures. How to do that may be a matter of debate: but doing it effectively, by some means or another, is the rock-bottom purpose of secular law.

[upchuck]

Joe Biden:

Just another Catholic

Hip-O-Crit

[nascarnation]

This:

http://www.examiner.com/article/a-tale-of-two-catholics

Says:

Biden and his current wife, Jill Jacobs Biden, attend Mass at St. Patrick’s Church or St. Joseph on the Brandywine Church, both parishes in the Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Ah! Diocese of Wilmington! Thank you!

[nascarnation]

True story:

I was standing on the sidewalk on the west side of the WH one day this April when security suddenly shut down everything.

After about a 10 minute wait, Joe Biden rolls out the driveway in an armored Suburban with two other escort cars.

A guy in a 1000 dollar suit leans over to me and says;
“If Joe didn’t have a chauffeur, I doubt he could find his way back to his house for lunch”

[Red Badger]

Is he an alcolyte?......

[jazusamo]

Is he an alcolyte?......

Ha! From some of the stunts he's pulled I'd bet he's an alco something. :-)

[AustinBill]

Many of us who are Catholic don't understand the workings of the Church, either.

The Roman Catholic Church is not a corporation in which the Pope is CEO, the Cardinals are Senior VPs, etc. Each bishop is essentially the autonomous head of a church which, by virtue of being in communion with the Holy See is considered part of the Universal Church. This is why the ordination of a bishop is such a serious matter for the church since once he is validly consecrated a bishop has an extraordinary independence and latitude and there's essentially nothing Rome can do in practice to "reign in" a rogue bishop short of reassigning him to another diocese where he may do less harm.

The church historically has always taken the long view and from the perspective of the hierarchy it's always been better to "wait out" a bad bishop and let nature take its course then to risk schism by attempting something too heavy-handed. For most of church history when life moved at (by modern standards) a glacial pace this was a very practical and workable policy. But today the pace of life has quickened and this policy is less viable than before. It's one of the reasons this Pope and his predecessor have spent so much time on "re-evangelizing" the faithful.