[Polycarp]

We may not need a string of highly publicized excommunications, but the Catholic people certainly deserve a more adequate explanation of what appears to be episcopal indifference to prominent Catholics who, in explicit and persistent defiance of the Church's teaching, promote and abet the "abominable crime" (Vatican II) of abortion. Canon law states, "A person who procures a completed abortion incurs excommunication latae sententiae [automatically] by the very commission of the offense." Why is a frightened young woman who procures an abortion excommunicated while a politician who encourages her by telling her it is her right to do so, and works to secure her liberty to do so, welcomed at the altar? Why are prominent Catholics who persistently and publicly promote what the Church calls the culture of death apparently immune from public discipline? The Catholic people have waited a very long time for convincing answers to these questions.

Until such answers are forthcoming, it would seem that Senators Kennedy and Kerry are right. "If the bishops can't or won't do anything about that, don't come to me. It's their problem, not mine." Call it taunting, or call it throwing down the gauntlet, but Kennedy and Kerry have rendered an important service by clarifying that it is up to the bishops to make their problem the problem also of Kennedy, Kerry, and a host of others who count on bishops not having the nerve to be bishops. That, at least, is how many faithful Catholics see the matter. If they're wrong, maybe the bishops, or at least some bishops, will explain why they're wrong. Publicly.

Excellent essay!

Ping. (As usual, if you would like to be added to or removed from my "conservative Catholics" ping list, just send me a FReepmail. Please realize that some of my "ping" posts are long.)

[sitetest]

Dear Polycarp,

You are a gentleman. I was too lazy to type this one in. I was going to wait until next month when it came out on the First Things website.

Thanks for saving me the effort.

And bttt.


sitetest


PS: Everyone should subscribe to First Things. It's cheap, it's easy, and they just increased the font size of the type, so I can delay getting reading glasses for at least another year or two.

[ninenot]

Note also the "paleo-con" Bethell gets a little slap from the "neo-con" Fr. Neuhaus along the way.

I think I'll cc this to Dolan here in Milwaukee. This is a VERY target-rich environment.

[RichardMoore]

Kennedy and Kerry have already excommunicated themselves by admitting that they publicly difer with Church teaching on abortion. The fact that they try to hide behind the cowardice of their Bishops means nothing except that it is a scandal added to scandal added to scandal. They know that what they are doing is politically expedient,.They have made their bargain with the prince of this world.

[dangus]

>>"Why is a frightened young woman who procures an abortion excommunicated? "

Um... name one.

Last I knew, only one person related to the abortion trade, a clinic owner from Corpus Cristi, has ever been *personally* excommunicated. Personal excommunication (sorry, forget the latin term) is exceptionally rare in the Church.

[A-teamMom]

Ted Kennedy, Jesse Jackson, Dick Gebhardt, Bill Clinton, Al Gore and more used to be pro-life. In the case of Kennedy, I am looking at a quote from 1971 where he states that life, even at its earliest stages has the right to be recognized and born. (My thanks to nickcarraway on a 6/7/03 post).

What "changes" the minds of these slimy politicians is money... buckets of it from the abortion industry and its lobbyists. Society and the media have sold nearly two generations of Americans lies about human fetuses and even those who know better seem to turn away in indifference.

Will the Church take a tougher stand and show morally incoherent Catholic politicians the door instead of the Eucharist? Unlikely at this point, IMO. It's up to the faithful to rise up and be counted. If you support abortion or pro-abortion politicians, you have no business coming to Christ's table. Why should there even be a need for the group Priests for Life? That should tell us what a mess the hierarchy is in today.

[A-teamMom]

Thanks for the ping. We do need answers.