Fr. James Martin, S.J.
Posted on 05/19/2010 2:55:25 PM PDT by NYer
.- The culture editor of the Jesuit weekly magazine America, Fr. James Martin, S.J., argued yesterday in a post on the publication's blog that Pope Benedict's equation of abortion and same-sex marriage "is bizarre" and "seemed oddly discordant."
In his post published on Monday, May 17, under the headline “Hingham, Same-Sex Marriage, and Life Issues," Fr. Martin, a frequent contributor to the Huffington Post, praised the Archdiocese's of Boston move to undermine the decision of Rev. James Rafferty, who last week denied enrollment to the child of a lesbian couple at St. Paul's Catholic elementary school in Hingham, Mass.
"The Archdiocese of Boston is handling this matter quite differently—that is, more wisely—than Denver did," wrote Martin, in reference to the decision made by the Archbishop of Denver, Charles Chaput, to stand behind a similar decision made last month by a pastor in Boulder, Colo.
The statement of Dr. Mary Grassa O’Neill, Boston's superintendent of Catholic schools, explaining that "the Archdiocese does not prohibit children of same sex parents from attending Catholic schools," was issued, according to Martin, "with the approval of Cardinal Sean O’Malley, I am told by a good source."
Cardinal O'Malley was in Portugal accompanying Pope Benedict on his visit to Fatima, when Grassa O’Neill released the statement.
America's culture editor also expresses his disappointment with the fact that Fr. Rafferty was not forced to reverse his decision. "That's odd, to say the least. Why couldn't they have simply asked the pastor to accept the child into the parish school?"
“(O)verall, though, the archdiocese has taken a wise and pastoral approach," Martin said, saying that it "stands in contrast to the increasingly heated language coming from church leaders on the topic of same-sex marriage."
"Pope Benedict XVI's comments last week in Fatima, Portugal, in which he stated that abortion and same-sex marriage, were 'some of today's most insidious and dangerous threats' to the common good seemed oddly discordant. The equation of abortion, something that clearly is about a threat to life, with same-sex marriage, which no matter how you look at it, does not mean that anyone is going to die, is bizarre," Martin opined.
"A good friend of mine, who is gay, recently resigned from a position at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, where he said, with great dismay, that 'abortionsamesexmarriage' had become one polysyllabic word among some of his bosses."
Questioning the Pope's comment, Fr. Martin asked, "Why aren't 'abortion and war' the most 'insidious and dangerous' threats to the common good?"
"The great danger is that this increasingly popular equation will seem to many as having less to do with moral equivalency and more to do with a simple dislike, or even a hatred, of gays and lesbians.
"And that goes against not simply Catholic teaching, but against the Gospel,” Martin concluded.
Editor's Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly reported that Fr. Martin said the Pope's statement goes against the Gospel.
Who ordained this priest? They both need to be tossed.
Excommunication is definitely in order, to RESTORE order.
Don’t fret. Some jebbies, particularly the younguns, are just educated far beyond their capacities. They’ll never speak for the Church.
The equation of abortion, something that clearly is about a threat to life, with same-sex marriage, which no matter how you look at it, does not mean that anyone is going to die, is bizarre," Martin opined.Hint: The connection's got something to do with being fruitful and multiplying, Fr. Martin ...
Just how good of a friend are you talking about here, Father?
"The great danger is ... a hatred, of gays and lesbians.
No, it's the hatred of the sin, you over-educated fool. But you would prefer to ignore it, or outright coddle it rather than preach against the evils of homosexuality.
The Jesuit order is lost.
The bad ones tend to rise to the top of this religious order.
Need to toss this priest or "assign him to the Vatican" doing a 20,000 page research on same-sex marriage for the pope -- with both pros and cons.
Also "add a vow" of silence with this work. If he does not want this offer "to work for the church", then maybe he could be released from his priestly vows and the Jesuit society...
Fr. Martin, a frequent contributor to the Huffington PostShould I really keep reading?
Someone is disordered alright but it is not the Pope.
The Jesuits should be suppressed. They are the source of so much scandal and dissent; many of them ceased to truly be Catholic a long time ago.
It's all good.
Oh good! I'm glad to hear that the progressives, and their 'fellow travelers' in the Conference of Bishops are leaving. A lot of the problem of the USCCB for the last 30 years has been their staff. It is they who wrote many of the position papers we've had to suffer through during that time.
No proof, of course, but homosexuals often have a certain...look to them.
Cheers!
Cheers!
Why did the USCCB have a homosexual on its payroll? Shouldn’t the people who work for the Church be of sound moral character? Shouldn’t they uphold the Church’s moral teachings? It is obvious that at the very least, this former employee does not agree with the Church’s teachings on morality. He had no business whatsoever working for the USCCB and it was truly shortsighted and scandalous that the bishops ever would have hired someone like him.
And just in case anyone is wondering whether or not I think that the Church should “discriminate” against homosexuals, I think it should.
Someone gay has his panties in a wad.
Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:
Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of general interest.
And yet another disgusting example of the “fifth column” inside the church. Perhaps an Apostolic Visitation similar to the three that were completed into religious orders is necessary????
"DANG-ER.......DANG-ER Will Robinson...........there is a Jesuit poofter in the vicinity..........DANG-ER........DANG-ERRRRRRRRR...........
I’ve come to the conclusion that the Jesuits need to be disbanded.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.