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Bishop D’Arcy speaks at Notre Dame (shuns commencement for pro-life rally)
CNA ^ | May 17, 2009

Posted on 05/17/2009 3:01:44 PM PDT by NYer

South Bend, Ind., May 17, 2009 / 04:18 pm (CNA).- Although he had initially planned to stay away from campus today as President Barack Obama was honored at Notre Dame, Bishop John D’Arcy of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana changed his mind and spoke at a campus pro-life rally.

According to the Fort Wayne News Sentinel, the bishop spoke in front of 2,500 people protesting the university’s award to pro-abortion President Barack Obama.

Initially Bishop D’Arcy had planned to boycott the graduation festivities, however he decided to appear on campus due to the school’s pro-life undergraduates.

"It is certainly the place for the bishop to be here," D'Arcy said. "John D'Arcy's not important, but the office of bishop if very important and it must always be like Pope John Paul II to stand up for life all the time, everywhere without exception."

Last night the bishop began an all-night vigil for students and other pro-lifers on campus.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Philosophy; US: Indiana
KEYWORDS: 2009commencements; bho44; catholic; darcy; ndu; notredame; obama
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To: NYer

Well, President Obama DID speak at Notre Dame, and they DID confer upon him an honorary doctorate. And a lot of good, sincere and rightfully angry Catholics spoke out.

But what of “The Church?” Certainly, 77 US Bishops criticized or condemned Notre Dame. Yet, in the face of a clear violation of the authoritative declarations and policies of the Bishops Conference, the leadership of Notre Dame, a Catholic University under the direct authority of the Church, defied them. They defied the policy, authority and will of the Roman Catholic Bishops overseeing them.

So, now, Catholics let it go? Let by-gones be by-gones? Forget it? Look forward to next years Football Season, and return to their devotion at the feet of “Touchdown Jesus?”

With the exception of a relative few exceptional Catholic laymen and “lower rung” clergy, it appears the Church is ready to wash their hands of the controversy. And if that’s the case, then the Roman Church in America is institutionally double-minded and insincere.

I know, as a Protestant, who am I to criticize the Catholic Church? But if this is the gross violation that so many have claimed, and yet the offenders went ahead with it anyway, despite warnings, pleas, and protests, then the “authorities” in the Church should not let it die — they should STILL take punitive action.

For 500 years, Popes, Councils, and various other tribunals had no compunction about condemning heretics, sanctioning those who erred, and recalling those who were insubordinate. Why, on this matter, would they stop now?

If Catholics actually believe in the authority of the Church as they claim, if the sanctity of life is one of the paramount values the Church still holds to, and if Catholic heirarchy desires to retain any shred or vestige of their credibility, it seems to this lowly Baptist that they should act now in a manner consistent with their convictions. At the very least, the removal of Notre dames leadership, and/or the withholding of Church funds from the school, would be more than appropriate to begin with...

Am I wrong, my friends?


21 posted on 05/17/2009 4:41:13 PM PDT by patriot preacher (To be a good American Citizen and a Christian IS NOT a contradiction. (www.mygration.blogspot.com))
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To: NYer

Well great!
What a black eye for the fake Catholics. The bishop was lucky not to get arrested though.


22 posted on 05/17/2009 4:46:47 PM PDT by IrishCatholic (No local Communist or Socialist Party Chapter? Join the Democrats, it's the same thing!)
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To: Houghton M.

Sorry. I want to hear OUR POPE stand up in front of millions like he does at other times and SPEAK FOR HIMSELF.


23 posted on 05/17/2009 5:22:18 PM PDT by cubreporter (Rush Limbaugh - Truth, honesty and the American Way. Go Rush!!!)
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To: Desdemona

And I don’t think Burke speaks for the pope. The pope can speak quite well enough for himself.

Yes indeed he can and has many times before. Throngs and throngs and pomp and circumstance. Well, I believe speaking out about babies being murdered DOES INDEED warrant an individual speech from the Pope directly addressing the issue.


24 posted on 05/17/2009 5:24:39 PM PDT by cubreporter (Rush Limbaugh - Truth, honesty and the American Way. Go Rush!!!)
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To: patriot preacher

Won’t happen because our Catholic church is not the same one. It is all backwards and different and not unified. Thank you for speaking up though. As a Catholic I appreciate your non-Catholic thoughts on the matter.


25 posted on 05/17/2009 5:26:29 PM PDT by cubreporter (Rush Limbaugh - Truth, honesty and the American Way. Go Rush!!!)
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To: patriot preacher
Hey, Catholics have been fighting amongst ourselves for about 2,000 years on these matters. Part of the problem is human obstinance in accepting the teaching rather than rationalizing why the Church is or is not wrong. There's been times when there's been a single bishop in the right against the rest of the Church (see St. Athanasius in the 3rd century) and the Church survived. We'll make it through this - and stronger once the pruning occurs.

Not that this is any excuse, but this is a really bad time to tear bishops, including the bishop of Rome (the pope) away from their official duties as bishops. It's ordination season and as Apostolic Succession passes through the bishop to the new priests and deacons, they're a little busy. Priesthood ordination should be either this weekend or next weekend - and it's a big ordeal to put together.

One thing that seems to not be sinking in in some circles is that the Church, including Notre Dame, is more of a confederation than a top-down institution. A Catholic identity can be pulled, but that's up to the bishop - and should be a last resort AFTER pastoral efforts to correct the situation have failed.

26 posted on 05/17/2009 6:21:16 PM PDT by Desdemona (Tolerance of grave evil is NOT a Christian virtue. http://www.thekingsmen.us/)
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To: Desdemona

“It was done because Burke can’t handle a major metropolitan city.”

If that were the case they would have just put him out to pasture somewhere instead of giving him such an important position. If anything time has shown Archbishop Burke to have been totally correct on the Saint Stan’s thing. Oddly you don’t hear too much form Charles Jaco and the Post about that these days.


27 posted on 05/17/2009 8:39:45 PM PDT by MoTiger
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To: MoTiger
Oddly you don’t hear too much form Charles Jaco and the Post about that these days.

You don't hear much from the Post-Disgrace because the religion reporters in the know are over at the Beacon.

Burke is a great Canon lawyer and belongs in the courts, not as head of a see. His administrative instincts beyond the seminary just were not good. There's a lot of things people don't know, like what he wanted to do to the Cathedral - and how much it was going to cost. The Sacred Heart shrine is beautiful and there was nothing on that side, but do we really need the canopy back over the cathedra? And the registers between the pillars in the nave that he wanted to remove - heat and AC? And why do you put a brand new priest with zero interest in liturgy in the position of Archdiocesan Master of Ceremonies? Every archdiocesan Mass and event in the last year has been a complete mess. It's all behind the scenes, but I've been at every one and there is no excuse.

The entire Church is better off with Burke where he is. That's where he belongs.

28 posted on 05/18/2009 5:22:54 AM PDT by Desdemona (Tolerance of grave evil is NOT a Christian virtue. http://www.thekingsmen.us/)
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To: patriot preacher

I really appreciate your tone and solidarity with the real Catholics on this issue. I am married to a Baptist man and am continually amazed about how much we agree on most everything in regards to moral issues. I just wish that I could prevail upon him to know how special it is to be able to meet the Lord in the flesh in the here and now in the Eucharist. It’s a scary but exhilarating event, every time. But, he sees everytime he goes to Mass with me folks who don’t act like they think it’s true.

I guess my point is that you are going to see people all the time who merely go through the motions, serving two masters, which our dear Lord says is not possible, not if you really love Him. He said it. Like usual, people hear that but don’t believe it, because if they did, our faith would rule the hearts and actions of man and we woulnd’t be so grieved about what our brothers and sisters are doing to trample on the blood of Jesus and profaning his holy virgin mother at Notre Dame.

No they are not really hearing anything that doesn’t fit in with their worldliness and they rationalize their sins out of existence from their own minds. I have to keep asking myself everyday what walls do I need to tear down today between me and my Lord?

God bless you sir, thanks for standing with us.


29 posted on 05/18/2009 7:01:09 AM PDT by SaintDismas
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To: NYer

A TRUE MAN OF GOD!!! Thank you and God bless you, Bishop D’Arcy!!!!


30 posted on 05/18/2009 7:58:49 AM PDT by bdeaner (The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Cor. 10:16))
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To: mware
Poor Raymond Arroyo was doing duty at CNN, discussing ND with a so called priest.

I love Raymond Arroyo -- especially his sarcasm and sharp wit when he's talking about idiots like Jenkins.
31 posted on 05/18/2009 8:00:11 AM PDT by bdeaner (The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Cor. 10:16))
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To: cubreporter
Why then have we not heard from the Pope????

The Pope usually does not speak specifically to local politics, but rather in larger, general principles that are universal. He appeals to the local Bishops to handle their own. I am certain he is encouraging and suppporting the backlash of the American bishops against the Notre Shame incident. If you listen to his closest spokespersons in the media, they all speak with harshest terms about the Obama invitation.
32 posted on 05/18/2009 8:03:57 AM PDT by bdeaner (The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Cor. 10:16))
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To: NYer

Good for Bishop D’Arcy that he showed up WHERE he did, and did NOT show up where he should not have.

Sad, though, that - as insiders will know already - he tried to get Ambassador Glendon to accept the Laetare Award.

Judge Noonan who, piously but naively (in the face of the great evil to which Obama has devoted his considerable power), proclaimed “Truth Will Out,” comes from Boston, where Bishop D’Arcy was Auxiliary for a number of years.

Not too difficult to figure out how he was persuaded to sub for Glendon.

What would it have been like if, as in the “summons to court” scene from BECKET (the movie with Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole), Bishop D’Arcy had arrived, cope and mitre, with the protestors and marched through that gate reciting the Rosary, and then - as the old rite said of the mitre, “adorned with the horns of both Testaments to appear fiercesome to the enemies of Truth” - had said to the police: “STAND ASIDE OR ANSWER FOR IT WITH YOUR IMMORTAL SOULS!”

*sigh* now THAT would have been a WITNESS with . . . . uh . . . spine. Yeah, spine.

Enough with the polite persuasive “engagement” with these monsters. We need a peaceful but DRAMATIC confrontation.

Of course, when only 76 of the mitred weenies dare speak up . . . what do you expect?


33 posted on 05/18/2009 10:04:40 AM PDT by TaxachusettsMan
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To: bdeaner

The Pope usually does not speak specifically to local politics, but rather in larger, general principles that are universal.

How much LARGER can it get than babies being murdered????? Nope, don’t buy your reasoning. This is not POLITICS...it is MURDER.


34 posted on 05/18/2009 10:18:52 AM PDT by cubreporter
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To: cubreporter
The Vatican has spoken out against abortion consistently and with great force. There is no ambiguity on the Church's position.

The Vatican did speak out against the Obama invitation, which was represented by the highest U.S. Archbishop Burke, who called Notre Dame's invitation "the gravest scandal." Those are harsh words for Notre Dame straight from the Vatican. Burke has called Obama an "agent of death".
35 posted on 05/18/2009 10:30:20 AM PDT by bdeaner (The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Cor. 10:16))
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To: bdeaner

Well, we could keep this up all day and it will go nowhere. I want to hear those same words from the mouth of the Pope. Not from someone else. That’s what the politicians do too. Don’t care to discuss this further as we are worlds apart. Have a nice day.


36 posted on 05/19/2009 7:22:10 AM PDT by cubreporter
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To: cubreporter
Why then have we not heard from the Pope????

Because Bishop D'Arcy is actually doing his job, with the support of more than 70 of his brother Bishops in these United States.

37 posted on 05/19/2009 7:26:44 AM PDT by ArrogantBustard (Western Civilization is Aborting, Buggering, and Contracepting itself out of existence.)
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To: mware

It looks like “evolve” is the new buzz-word for the secularists. Look at the last word in this excerpt from yesterday’s Telegraph:

France’s First Lady said that the Church’s teachings had left her feeling “profoundly secular”.

She departed from her post’s traditional religious neutrality to accuse the Pope of “damaging” countries like Africa with his stance on birth control.

The Italian-born former supermodel risked angering believers in France and beyond by declaring that the Pontiff’s proclamations showed that the Church needed to “evolve”.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/5345389/Carla-Bruni-criticises-Pope-Benedict-XVI.html


38 posted on 05/19/2009 7:31:21 AM PDT by Poe White Trash
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