Wuerl's stand on lawmakers who back abortion angers some conservative Catholics

Post Gazette ^ | January 22, 2007 | Ann Rodgers

[NYer]

In the political hot seat of Washington, D.C., Archbishop Donald Wuerl has stuck to the stand he took as bishop of Pittsburgh, refusing to withhold communion from Catholic legislators who support legal abortion.

A response he made recently to questions about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have infuriated the far-right edge of the Catholic blogosphere, and drawn ire from some of the most conservative Catholic leaders of the anti-abortion movement.

Today, his approach to that cause will be on display as he hosts a youth rally in the capital's Verizon Center, in conjunction with the annual March for Life.

A week ago in San Diego he took questions from a conservative Catholic journalist about Ms. Pelosi.

"Do you intend to discipline her at all for being persistent and obstinate about her support for abortion and same-sex marriage?" asked Allyson Smith of the Web site California Catholic Daily.

"I will not be using the faculty in the manner you have described," he replied, referring to his authority.

"Will you make a statement to your priests and deacons to warn them not to allow her to receive if she presents herself for Communion?" Ms. Smith continued.

The archbishop responded: "You're talking about a whole different style of pastoral ministry. No."

LifeSiteNews.com ran outraged responses from Catholic leaders on the conservative wing of the anti-abortion movement.

[murphE]

And Archbishop Chaput has publicly denounced the governor's position and explained how it is not compatible with the Catholic Faith.

"...Chaput wouldn't have stopped the Mass in any case: "He is aware of what people are saying, and the governor's sometimes very ambiguous position on abortion, but at the same time he has not judged that the situation required his action."

[jwalsh07]

Wuerl and men like him will destroy the Church if allowed to do so.

[Frank Sheed]

There is a famous story that concerns Napoleon as he entered Rome. He called a key Cardinal to his chambers and informed him that he, the Emperor, intended to destroy the Roman Catholic Church. The Cardinal is said to have responded, "Emperor, be my guest. We Catholics have attempted to do the very same for the past 1780 years but without success!"

Jesus has assured us that the gates of Hell will not prevail against His Mystical Body. These current events of "mendacity" speak more as to the actors in this drama then to Holy Mother Church.

As Christ once asked, "When I return, will anyone be left?" That is a question each of us must answer every second of every day in our lives. We all must find the "narrow path" for the road to perdition is broad.

[dangus]

Wuehrl was VERY visibly absent from the rally of Catholic bishops for life, which took place four hours and only 1/2 mile from where the mass was.

[old and tired]

Wuehrl was VERY visibly absent from the rally of Catholic bishops for life, which took place four hours and only 1/2 mile from where the mass was.

Because the bishops are towards the end of the rally, the bishop of Washington sometimes appears earlier or not at all since he traditionally leads the March.

However, he is always introduced, whether he is present or not. After McCarrick cowered away from the stage last year so as not to be introduced to the embarrassing smattering of boos and general crickets in the crowd, Rigali thought better of announcing Wuerl who is McCarrick's successor in both body and spirit.

[sitetest]

"There is a famous story that concerns Napoleon as he entered Rome. He called a key Cardinal to his chambers and informed him that he, the Emperor, intended to destroy the Roman Catholic Church. The Cardinal is said to have responded, 'Emperor, be my guest. We Catholics have attempted to do the very same for the past 1780 years but without success!'"

ROTFLMAO!!!

Post of the week!

[Frank Sheed]

Thanks! ;-o)

The story is from "Triumph: The Power and the Glory of the Catholic Church: A 2,000-Year History" by H. W. Crocker III, a book which covers 20 centuries from the time of Christ to the crisis of the priesthood today. It is a marvelous book and this is one of the anecdotes I can remember. Highly recommended!

[sitetest]

Dear Frank Sheed,

I actually read the book. I'll have to re-read to remember more nuggets like this.


sitetest

[fortunecookie]

And for those of us who've attended Mass in the diocese, it's easy to see the Pittsburgh diocese has a well-stocked buffet in their cafeteria, a little something for everyone. A giant melange of the new and the old, the licit and devout and barely licit or flagrantly wrong (I'm thinking of the children's Mass I attended with my son a few years ago...). My own (Erie) diocese has less tolerance for their cafeteria, i.e. some of the devout and 'old-fashioned' things have been vilified or tossed aside, occasionally re-instituted for brief times to settle some disagreement.

[wiley]

It's ok for a Catholic to be pro-abortion as long as he/she is a Democrat.

I wish I were being sarcastic.