Expect a Catholic exodus

National Post ^ | 08/07/03 | Hugo Gurdon

[Dataman]

Actually, there was another stepchild of Darwinism that had specific Communist and Stalinist affinities, and that was Lysenkoism,

What you say is correct, although it makes the darwinists on FR grind their teeth.

[Dataman]

On CBS right now there is evidence that the cover up of church scandals came from rome.

Why are you going from thread to thread with this line? Looking for an early morning brawl to start your day off?

[txzman]

" No one with a brain can be a Catholic and a Democrat at the same time."

Actually that should read "No one who professes to follow the Word of Christ can also claim to be a Democrat".

[Consort]

Catholics, who for historical reasons have largely voted Democrat,...

That is a source of guilt that Catholics thrive on, for some reason.

[MassExodus]

Expect a Catholic "exodus"

No ... This is not where my screen name came from, but it applies here as well.

[Misterioso]

On CBS right now there is evidence that the cover up of church scandals came from Rome.

That's the news I thought the headline of this article was referring to, predicting an "exodus" from the Church. It's hard to believe that many members of the Catholic laity haven't known about predatory priests for years and went along with the hush-up. It's only now, when lawyers can get fat judgements against the Church, that the cases are being revealed.

[George W. Bush]

I wonder if the author is right. I don't really believe that RCs are going to abandon the Dims in great numbers. Somehow, I don't see it happening. I expect an even greater rise of cafeteriaism among RCs instead. Especially on the the east coast or among union members in what remains of the industrial Midwest.

[non-anonymous]

...it's becoming increasingly difficult for anyone who's a deist.

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying. If you're referencing the Founding Fathers, then I think I catch your drift, but if you are categorizing Catholicism as deism, then that's incorrect.

[lentulusgracchus]

I was going out further and saying anyone this side of outright agnosticism would have trouble with the Dems.

Scientism, materialism, atheism, etc., are all on the other side of the divide.

[NYer]

I suspect that the Dems are going too far now, even for the foggiest minded Catholic (unless his name is Kennedy).

The problem with most voters, be they catholic, christian, jewish, atheist, etc. is that too often, their votes are cast based on "sound bites". My aging parents are a good example of how they 'receive' news. While my father will question what he is being fed by the major networks, he forgets to watch Fox News for a more balanced view. My mother, on the other hand, buys into "the language of cute Katie Couric." She (my mother) stunned me recently by unleashing a vitriolic attack on the president, basing her assessment of his performance on 'direct feed' from the likes of The Today Show. Like my father, she is programmed into watching and LISTENING to one-sided, liberal journalists.

There are a good number of conservative voting Catholics, just as there are conservative Jews and christians from various denominations. They will complain vociferously about the decline of propriety in the US, and shake their fists at politicians who have 'let them down'. But, on election day, once inside the voting booth, it seems their arms are 'hard-wired' to the Democrat line.

[madprof98]

Democrats gathered pro-abortion Catholics, including a priest, on Capitol Hill last week and assailed what they claim is an intolerant smear.

I didn't see the report on this. Anyone know if it was posted on FreeRepublic?

[swilhelm73]

I remember a recent poll that found that one in four women had the positions on abrotion between the two parties confused, and something like only haf new the current state of abortion legality in this country - ie no restrictions whatsoever.

Further, it is not unusual to find people who claim to be pro-choice whose positions are in fact prolife (if weakly s); ie someone might support abortion for rape and incest and serious physical health dangers but not want a total abortion ban and therefore call themselves pro-
choice...even though they aren't.

Now obviously the Democrats and their media try to obscure the issue on a regular basis, a prime example is the campaign against Judge Owens. They label her an extremist just waiting to overturn Roe because she found a Texas minor abortion notification law constitutitional - a position supported by something like 80% of the country as a whole and a good chunk of people who are pro-abortion.

The problem here is that the Reps have never really tried to make much of an issue of abortion, which allows the Dems and their media to continue dissembling and distorting.

I've said it before but if the Reps run pro-life, center/left candidate in NE as opposed to their current pro-abortion left candidates they will win, and further it will increase the number of observant Christians the party gets nationwide. Remember that the abortion party currently gets a majority of the Catholic vote and a sizable minority of even the Evangelical vote.

[BlackElk]

I was the first Republican in my labor-union Democrat family when I was about 17. The older members of the family followed thereafter because of the moral issues. they will never be comfortable with the union-bashing or the tax cuts for the wealthiest above all else, but they do recognize that we must place first things first. Catholics are no longer the Demonratic Party at prayer.

Guns are important too and so are taxes on the American of ordinary income. We don't send our kids to public schools but we despise what public schools do to other people's kids and through them to our society.

Catholics who attend Church at least weekly are much more likely to vote Republican as revealed by poll after poll. Our pastors are more and more likely to urge us to vote against the Demonrats. Sure, there is a residual rump caucus of aging activist "Peace and Justice" Kumbayas but the good news on them is each day's obituary page.

I believe that you have the instinct that Catholics are not going to move suddenly rightward at the voting booth and you are probably right about that but we are moving and we tend to be a verrrrrrrry stubborn lot. Once we move, we stay moved for a verrrrrry long time unless and until new reasons make for a slow change in momentum. Also, there is more and more momentum towards the GOP.

We are very good allies to have because of that stubbornness. It would help if Rome would appoint bishops more inclined to our pre-Vatican II separatism not because it is not good to have alliances with non-Catholics but because we Catholics must charge our Catholic batteries to maximize the strength and consensus that we can and must bring to the alliance with others. Be patient with us. We're worth waiting for. When we move against the anti-Catholic Catholics like Kerry, Durbin, Leahy, Mikulski, et al., there will be no turning back. Keep an eye on Archbishop Chaput of Denver. He would make a superb cardinal. He is a warrior Capuchin.

As to cafeteria Catholics, they are no more Catholic than those who despise and reject Scripture can claim to be Protestant. Ancestry is not determinative.

Union members are not robots for labor leaders. It is not right to exclude them simply because they look out for their own economic interests any more than we should reject the industrialist for improving his profit. The capital of the labor union member is his or her labor and he or she has the same right to maximize profit as anyone else. Until the Depression, a lot of labor union members, including many leaders, were openly and proudly Republican. It is also true that, as Reagan used to say, we did not abandon the Democrats. They abandoned us. So be it! p> God bless you and yours.

[BlackElk]

Note that it is your mother who is the Democrat and you who are not. This is a generational thing.

[George W. Bush]

I believe that you have the instinct that Catholics are not going to move suddenly rightward at the voting booth and you are probably right about that but we are moving and we tend to be a verrrrrrrry stubborn lot. Once we move, we stay moved for a verrrrrry long time unless and until new reasons make for a slow change in momentum. Also, there is more and more momentum towards the GOP.

Our archbishop wrote to all in his parish publicly and told them it was anti-Church and anti-life to vote Democrat. 'My' bishop told anyone who joined a pro-abortion or pro-gay group to consider themselves excommunicated. We were one of the three all-Red Bush states in 2000.

RCs registered as Dims have declined in the last few decades according to my voter lists. Now they are far more likely to be Republicans with only a few holdouts, mostly because Mama and Papa were FDR Democrats and they can't bear to change. But, as you observe, that generation is passing.

If your bishops are serious, it can have a powerful impact, especially a moral challenge that is strong enough to get them to switch parties because the Dims are so blatantly anti-Christian. Even our single U.S. senator who is a Dim is generally recognized as one of the most conservative Dims (though not enough for me). Maybe along the lines of Lieberman. But then, anyone is conservative compared to the rest of the Dims.

[jackbill]

Perhaps you haven't heard that the CBS piece was a blatant distortion, a pack of damned lies.

Check out:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/959954/posts

[f.Christian]

To: Nakatu X

nx ...

If you've been raised around that kind of mindset, then, yes, you will think that evolution is the greatest crisis in America today--and I really don't blame some of the more passionaite YECs for thinking that. Not at all.

ph ...


A thoughtful post. One of my concerns is that evolution has the potential to become a huge national issue for Republicans, somewhat like the other "social issues" that already poison the political arena, like abortion, school prayer, affirmative action, etc. Personally, I hate it when politicians at the national level have to get involved with these issues. Especially when it comes to the confirmation of judges. And I think it's ghastly that single-issue voters are motivated only by one of those issues, and not the larger issues of national defense, etc. I would judge it to be a catastrophe if Republicans ever ended up officially taking an anti-evolution position. The social issues should all be resolved at the state level (that's why we have a federal republic), and most of them shouldn't be decided politically at all.


1,353 posted on 08/07/2003 3:04 PM PDT by PatrickHenry (Zero tolerance for provocateurs, trolls, spammers, and disruptors!)


fC ...

' poison the political arena ' ? ? ?

[f.Christian]

No way (( liberal atheist test - pledge for office )) ...

separation of ideology - religion - whacks --- YES ...

not God !

Something we all should consider is the founding fathers did not escape tyranny to perpetuate another tyranny - MONPOLY ... we were founded upon God AND religious liberty and defending it is our obligation --- EVO liberals have made God and right and wrong - freedom - speech a thought crime and themselves ACLU whacks evolution NAZIS - our overlords - us slaves !

Watch those senate confirmation hearings and if you publicly state your beliefs and sincerity you are vetted - crucified ... there is supposed to be no religious - ideological special interest test or PLEDGE for office and now the supreme court has established a liberal CARTEL - clergy - priesthood - DYNASTY ... abortion - pornography - evolution ONLY ? - gun control - racial - sexual preferences especially !

The founders of our country made it very difficult to depart from and change the rule of law - rights and the constitution and it seems mighty strange we are living under executive orders and supreme court fiats ... that are establishing a lot of anti constitutional repression and tyranny !

If law becomes a compulsory force only ... even if it isn't grevious --- no one will comply out of force and it will incite freedom - REBELLION and the life time of an atheistic nazi police state is very low esp in America !

[Mannaggia l'America]

Most of the DemocRat Catholics I know (including some in my family) have similar profiles - older, blue collar, and immigrants or children of immigrants. They either grew up worshiping St. Franklin of Roosevelt or their unions have been pummeling them with "Democrats good, Republicans for the rich" for so long that they can't change.

They've been trained to hate Republicans for so long, that they just instinctively vote 'rat. I know guys that are pro-gun, pro-life, and overall conservative people and they still voted for Clinton and Gore, and will probably vote for whatever the 'rats put up in 2004.

Every few years, I see the father of a friend of mine at a picnic or some function - he's in his 60's - and every time I see him he is still complaining about Ronald Reagan!

[narses]

Ping.