Well, I walked out of church this morning over the Cindy Sheehan situation (VANITY)

Muself | 8/14/05 | Myself

[Chi-townChief]

I'll apologize in advance for this vanity post but I need to get this off my chest:

At our 10:30 a.m. mass this morning, our pastor was the celebrant. Today's Gospel was the story of Christ's meeting with the Canaanite woman and the eventual healing of her daughter. Our pastor then followed with his homily where he first related the plight of the Canaanite woman with a woman he knew who called him requesting prayers for an illness in her family which we could relate to since my wife and I are both contending with (minor, we hope) health issues.

The nest thing we know, the pastor is relating this to the "lady camped out in Texas asking for healing AND ACCOUNTABILITY" (the emphasis is my own). We sat there and listened through the sermon as he returned to the Sheehan story a few more times asking us to imagine an Iraqi woman who lost children in the same position.

Thankfully, it was pretty short and we stood for the Creed but then, immediately before the intercessions, the pastor returned to the topic.

This was too much for us so we turned and left, commenting to those around that we don't come to church to hear politics. I handed the usher my offering as we exited.

This is the first time something like this has happened in this church we have attended for the past twenty years or so and I feel pretty horrible about the whole thing.

[TruthShallSetYouFree]

A more appropriate homily regarding Cindy Sheehan would be the one about turning water (and everything else) into WHINE.

[don-o]

Give it a chance - see if it wants to play in the big league.

[mabelkitty]

Sounds like talking points for the Left that infiltrated our institutions.

[don-o]

Come on Tony. Dazzle us with your brilliance.

[AmishDude]

I remember when there were Palestinians were in the Church of the Nativity and there was talk that the Israeli army would storm in. This would violate the concept of sanctuary enshrined in hundreds of years of (European Christian) tradition.

Well the pastor mentioned this in his sermon. It was only a sentence and most of the congregation wouldn't have caught it. But I knew that the Palestinians (a) had guns [a no-no with respect to sanctuary] and (b) shot the locks off the doors.

Now, it didn't help that the spokesman for the order (in contradiction to some reports from the Vatican) said that they were offered sanctuary and there were other confusing signs. I think this was based on the Vatican's sympathy to the Palis.

Nonetheless, I just chalked it up to ignorance.

[don-o]

Tony? Tony?

[ScreamingFist]

Isn't it ironic that so many of the voting base suport/almost demand that religion plays a role in forming political policy, but will walk out if politics are mentioned during religion. (at least politics that might not portray the president as Christian) I find that interesting. Flame away, Tony

My privilege newbie. Politics supporting traitors have no place, anywhere in the US. Now go worship your stalin poster.....

[LibSnubber]

Okay, okay, I'll back off - but won't hold my breath waiting for the troll to say something intelligent! :)

[Ax]

Several weeks ago at St.Thomas More Parish in Boynton Beach, FL, the priest started his sermon at the 1600 Saturday Mass. Usually this guy's sermons are admonitions not to leave early. This day he started off on Judge Roberts' nomination and the left's attacks on him. I whispered to my wife, "I think I like the way this sermons is headed," and the priest didn't let me down. He really lambasted the left, starting with Durbin. I wish I'd been able to record that sermon.

[Mad Dawg]

Okay, I'll bite:
Do "politics" and morality have nothing to do with one another? Should the Church not have an opinion on moral issues?

The issue here, to me, is not that the pastor had and articulated a political opinion. It's that he was wrong.

Of course, during today's mass at the time of intercessory prayers I wondered aloud why we don't pray for victory in our nation's just wars and for the conversion of terrorists. I think it is the duty of the Church and of its members to advise and rebuke the state. Just be right when you do it.

[don-o]

but won't hold my breath waiting for the troll to say something intelligent! :)

Nor do I;

[The Ghost of FReepers Past]

I walked out of church this morning also. My reasonw as because the pastor started talking about the Ken Blanchard seminar he attended this week. Is there any escaping the New Age influence inside the Christian church?

[dbwz]

How sad. You've just learned that religion and politics are inextricably entwined, no matter what the US Constitution says about separation of church and state.

Any institution that has the undivided attention and devotion of so many people will always be a target for political elements.

[Danae]

Isn't that the kind of crap they do in Islam?????

Good for you for walking out. Politics have no place in the church. If the Liberal freaks so want God out of the mainstream, then don't use his platform to preach your shortsighted politics.

[LibSnubber]

Seems like Tony's already spent his wad and has headed back under his rock. Too bad. C'mon back, Tony! Prove to us you're not a typical leftist coward. I dare ya!

[PMCarey]

I'm going to disagree with the group here and say that what you did was wrong. Based on your other post, you were at a Catholic Church and thus you turned your back not just on the pastor but also on the Holy Eucharist. Priests come and go and if you get a good one who speak sense from the pulpit, you are truly blessed; but Catholics don't - or shouldn't - go to Mass for the sermon alone.

You may want to rethink your membership in that community, but to leave in the middle of mass because of something said at the pulpit is disrepectful to everyone. If the pastor had spoken something heretical I would agree with you, but a homily containing something misguided and stupid is nothing new.

[U S Army EOD]

You did the right thing.

[mercy]

See, this is the big difference between you RCs and us Protestants. In a lot of Protestant churches .... half the congregation would have got up and walked out and then gone off and started a new church. ( / silliness )

[Glenmerle]

He has turned out to be a good bishop, he's just a leftie in his political sentiments.

Livius, in my own life I find it hard to make this distinction. How can a leftie be good? Seriously. Think of the opinions they hold, think of how their minds work, think of who they vote for. They are who they are and think the thoughts they do for a reason, and it's not because they're good. In fact, they often loathe what is good and spend a lifetime opposing it.

[xsmommy]

ping.