Abortion and rites: Tough choices for Catholic leaders and politicians

The Union Leader ^ | April 17, 2004 | CHARLOTTE ALLEN

[presidio9]

Since you are so interested, why don't you go look "Excommunication" in the Catholic Encyclopedia, and then come back here and tell us what the official "rule" is and the guidelines for enforcement.

[presidio9]

Kerry did get his first marriage annulled, but he was not married to Theresa by a priest.

[Ohioan from Florida]

Is the picture on the right in your post of Kerry at the communion rail? Wasn't that Palm Sunday? Wasn't he attending a Baptist church that day? Why would he present himself for communion in a Baptist church? Is he uneducated in matters of the Catholic faith? Does he no longer believe in the Real Presence of our Lord in the Eucharist? It would appear that the answer to these questions is yes, but somebody else please help me out!

Yesterday at Mass I was feeling the conviction to pray for Kerry. I hope he changes his ways soon, for his sake!

[Gerish]

Kerry did get his first marriage annulled, but he was not married to Theresa by a priest.

Yes, I believe that it why he is for "civil unions." (sarcasm!!!)

[Aliska]

I believe the picture you are referring to on Palm Sunday was an AME church in Boston.

[Iron Matron]

The contemporary Catholic bishops, who are in their majority Irish American, are still more loyal to the Dem Party than to the Church.

(Of course, what mystifies me even more is why blacks should be under the sway of a party that hated them that much, but I guess that's a whole 'nother question.)

---

So the majority of irishmen have chosen man over God. WHat a shame. The Catholic Bishops it seems, are no longer doing Gods work in this world - they have changed sides.

I think it's pretty easy to understand the black viewpoint when it comes to the democrat party. The democrats, by providing hand-outs and excuses for black america, have one the heart of the "welfare" black. Is it my imagination or are the larger % of educated blacks Republican?

[Ohioan from Florida]

Thanks. It still is puzzling why he would present himself for communion at ANY Protestant church. He should know better, and probably does...but he obviously doesn't care about that any more than consistently voting for abortion rights under any circumstance. This man has no conscience if he can do this. I hope to God we don't have another president who has no conscience. This country is going downhill fast if we end up with another. God will be ashamed of us.

[presidio9]

Kerry's spokesman said he was trying to avoid insulting anybody. I forgot to post the picture of him actually committing what the Catholic religion says is a mortal sin. But then, that doesn't matter, because for Kerry, Catholicism means whatever he says it does. Isn't that just super?

[Aliska]

Some people seem to be like that. If it were me, I couldn't sleep at night, knowing I had willfully disregarded the clear teachings of my faith in such a public, blatant manner.

I suppose one could argue that it would appear ungracious to refuse the hospitality of another church by declining to receive their "sacraments".

It doesn't appear that he has real faith in anything other than himself. Maybe he doesn't have much faith in himself but depends on money to get him where he wants to go. Yet people like him would be the first to jump on others like he did Bush from the pulpit of the Baptist Church in St. Louis. In his view, rules apply only to the ignorant masses.

The Catholic Church will suffer if it continues to allow this sham.

And the country needs to jump on politicians who speak from pulpits of churches; it just is not right. He is the one touting separation of church and state. He is welcome in any assembly as an ordinary worshipper/assembler/dissembler, but climbing into a pulpit is just plain wrong.

[Aliska]

Kerry's spokesman said he was trying to avoid insulting anybody.

And by so doing he insulted a lot of his fellow catholics.

There are other ways situations such as this could have been handled. Those people he is photographed with would not be welcome to receive communion in the catholic church. There is a blurb in the missalette explaining why. I wonder if they realize that?

[Ohioan from Florida]

If the they you're referring to means the people in the photograph, they probably don't, but that shouldn't be held against them. If they haven't received instruction in the Catholic faith, they probably wouldn't know. Kerry, however, should, especially because I've heard over and over again, that besides being in Vietnam, he was an altar boy in his youth. Didn't he learn anything from that Catholic upbringing of his? Are his parents still alive, or any siblings? I wonder what they think of this behavior.

[jmaroneps37]

Catholics: lurch says he is "one of us". If you don't agree go to catholicsagainstkerry.com and help us stop this fake phoney fraud.

[Shethink13]

(A Davis spokesman responded that the bishop was "telling the faithful how to practice their faith" and that the governor would continue to take Communion.)

Hey, stupid - that's his job! What a maroon!

[Aliska]

but that shouldn't be held against them.

No, of course not. I find it somewhat ironic though.

Whatever upbringing he had in the catholic faith appears to be little more than using it for political and social advantage.

[Aquinasfan]

Ironically, Kerry and Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts's other Catholic Democratic senator and also a supporter of abortion rights, received the sacrament at the archbishop's installation Mass last July.

I wouldn't use the word, "ironic."

The bishops' cowardice is disgusting.

[Aquinasfan]

For we non-catholics - what does the church say on; capital punishment, homosexuality, and other sometimes controversial issue? Do all catholic politicians always/should follow the church's teaching on all matters?

The dividing line is drawn over intrinsic evils like abortion, homosexual marriage, etc. Issues like capital punishment are a matter for prudential judgement and statesmanship, since capital punishment isn't intrinsically evil.

Interestingly, the directive is based on the natural law (which is written on the human heart) and not on any specifically Catholic teaching.

[Lost Highway]

Kerry distinguishes between what he calls his personal opposition to abortion and his legislative support of unrestricted abortion.

It's called trying to have it both ways and it's not new. It's cowardice.