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I thought it might be helpful to show the chronology of the bishops' role in the budget debate in order to help you form an opinion about their conduct. We can come to different conclusions about their motivation, but the results of their actions are matters of fact. BOTTOM LINE: I am not aware of any Republican legislator or conservative commentator who has tried to use the bishops' statements as evidence that the bishops support the Republican position, and I'm sure they would have if the wording of those statements seemed to support their position. Yet, the Democrats have used...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, California, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, expressed his "support for and solidarity" with the Wisconsin bishops' statement on the rights of workers. In a February 23 letter to Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki of Milwaukee, Bishop Blaire wrote, "You and our brother bishops in Wisconsin are offering a timely reminder of what the Church teaches on the rights and duties of workers, including the right to form and belong to unions and other associations, and the obligation to address...

Monday, January 31, 2011 New USCCB Document Highlights Biblical Quotations in the Mass The Catholic Mass draws heavily from Scripture--in every prayer you hear quotations and allusions to biblical texts. In fact, last year I did a series presentations now available through Saint Joseph Communications here (shameless plug!) exploring the biblical backdrop for the prayers of the Mass.   Now the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has put out a footnoted version of the prayers of the new translation of the liturgy, alerting you to the Biblical background of each of the prayers.  Some examples: The response: "The Lord be...

In a tip of the cheese hat to /Antonio Gramsci, the gathered Catholic Bishops continue to undermine their homeland, their Church and the families they are sworn to protect. Some people perhaps thought that there would be a major change, how wrong you were. Now Bishop Hubbard of the scandal ridden and heretical Albany Diocese is "peacemaking" in the Bernardinian style. How Bishop Hubbard has a job, much less how he's able to dictate to the United States how it should defend itself simply boggles the mind. So, not only is he running interference for homosexuals, posing as priests so...

Shocking as this is, folks... admittedly, it's not exactly a surprise. Late last week, a sense of movement toward Tim Dolan -- and not exactly for the Vice-Presidency -- became palpable... and as he walked onto the Floor this morning, one well-known prelate from the "traditional" side -- who, even last night, said he remained undecided -- said he was picking for the man from Gotham for the Chiefdom itself. Asked how prevalent the sentiment was, he said, "I don't know if it'll carry the day, but I know I'm not unique in it." Thirty minutes later, the room...

There is widespread and extensive coverage of Dolan's election across the US of A today. Not surprisingly, media confusion, mixed reporting and bias are evident in headlines and content. Rather than post multiple threads from various sources, I have lined up some of the more interesting articles below. It might be interesting over the next week, to do a similar thread with coverage from the diocesan newspapers. 1. Religion Dispatches Magazine - Sarah Posner, reporting The coalition members of Equality Blessed are Call To Action, DignityUSA, Fortunate Families, and New Ways Ministry. Francis DeBernardo, Executive Director of New Ways Ministry,...

Timothy Dolan has been an up-and-comer in the Vatican’s eyes for years — picked to run Milwaukee in the wake of a massive sex scandal and then elevated to the most visible American diocese as New York’s archbishop. Today, his quick rise continued when he jumped the line and beat the favorite to be elected president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. It’s no coincidence, perhaps, that Dolan won the slot as he is in the midst of closing so many city churches and schools. What Dolan does best, it seems, is deliver politically devastating news with a boyish,...

BALTIMORE — In a surprise move, the bishops that lead the Roman Catholic Church in the United States, elected Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York to be their president on Tuesday, rejecting the conference’s more liberal vice president. It was the first time in history that the bishops had not voted to elevate the vice president to the president’s post, affirming a conservative turn among the bishops. The vote, which was close, cements Archbishop Dolan’s prominent profile in the leadership in the American church. He is already the prelate of the nation’s most visible diocese, is comfortable in the...

Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York Baltimore, Md., Nov 16, 2010 / 02:17 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A well-known Church analyst says the election of Archbishop Timothy Dolan as president of the U.S. bishops' conference is a confirmation that the bishops want a strong, outspoken leader to guide the Church in an increasingly polarized and secular culture. Few experts would have predicted that Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York would be chosen as president of the U.S. bishops' conference. He won the election in a close run-off with Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson, the previous vice president of the conference....

In a surprising and historic turn of events, the Bishops of the United States, gathered in Baltimore, Maryland for their annual meeting, broke with the "custom" of the past, of electing the seated Vice president to succeed Francis cardinal George whose term has expired. Most pundits and ecclesial commentators strongly predicted Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson would be elected to succed Cardinal George on Tuesday, November 16, 2010. In response to what they considered a foregone conclusion, a portion of the Catholic blogosphere was preparing to respond with anything but glowing acclamation. Then, a surprise of the Holy Spirit occurred,...

For the first time in the history of the US bishops, a vice-president standing for the presidency has been denied the top post, losing a stunning election to the archbishop of New York. By a 128-111 vote, Archbishop Timothy Dolan bested Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson on the third ballot at this morning's elections in Baltimore. Overturning a half-century of tradition for the bench, the result represents a seismic shift for the leadership of the nation's largest religious body, and a mandate for a continuance of the outspoken, high-profile leadership shown by Cardinal Francis George over his game-changing term at...

  

Update: See follow up National Catholic Register article, Bishop Kicanas Responds  See also I'm thinking of a word that begins with H by By Diogenes Commentary by Thomas Peters, AmericanPapist.comNovember 12, 2010 (CatholicVote.org) - On the whole, it has been a good couple of years for the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).Leading up to the election of President Obama, many bishops, on their own authority, issued letters to Catholics in their diocese, helping them to form a Catholic conscience when voting.After President Obama was invited to deliver the commencement address at Notre Dame, almost 120 bishops issued statements critical...

I don't think much of the bureaucracy known as the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. In fact, some days I think it should simply be disbanded. True reform, in my view, is not likely any time soon, if ever. But I'm a realist. I know the USCCB will continue to exist. I know the corruption will continue. I know the pain will continue. It just...is. That being the case, I hope Bishop Gerald Kicanas will not be the next president of the USCCB. Why? Catholic journalist Tim Drake has a good overview of the situation on his blog. The...

Priest says it is insulting for grantees to be asked whether they advocate for abortion or same-sex “marriage” CHICAGO, Illinois, November 11, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Facing pressure from the old guard at the local and national level, the Chicago branch of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development has begun dismantling the “real reform” that earned it so much praise from pro-life groups in the summer.“Despite the attempts made by some well-intentioned individuals in the Archdiocese of Chicago's CCHD, the powers-that-be at the USCCB and some local bishops and priests have plans to return to the national CCHD's guidelines with this...

Bishop Gerald Kicanas and Cardinal Francis George. Washington D.C., Nov 9, 2010 / 07:04 am (CNA/EWTN News).- At their annual fall assembly, the U.S. bishops will elect a new president, vote on a new ecumenical agreement on baptism and discuss the reform of its social justice-funding arm, which has come under fire for possibly funding pro-abortion and pro-gay groups.The annual Fall General Assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will be held Nov. 15-18, at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel.The bishops’ current president, Cardinal Francis George of Chicago, will be stepping down having completed his three-year term. The...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Reform CCHD Now (RCN) coalition (www.reformcchdnow.com) has released a report detailing multiple problems with the Coalition of Imokalee Workers (CIW), the first grantee featured in a document intended to outline the review and renewal of the controversial Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD). “The very idea that the CCHD would praise CIW in a document that apologizes for funding pro-abortion, pro-homosexual organizations in the past and promises to make a stronger effort to avoid doing so in the future undermines their credibility,” said Michael Hichborn, lead researcher for RCN member American Life League. “If CCHD can’t...

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- When the U.S. bishops gather in Baltimore for their 2010 fall general assembly, there will be no blockbuster topics on their public agenda, unlike in past years when clergy sex abuse or the issue of Catholic politicians who support abortion took much of their attention. Instead, the Nov. 15-18 meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will be devoted primarily to internal matters -- the election of new conference leaders, discussion of how their own statements should be produced, budgetary and structural questions and information about how they can better integrate new media into diocesan structures....

"They discussed the pastoral responses of the churches to proselytizing efforts—the seeking of converts from members of other Christian communities—of certain Evangelical and Pentecostal groups both in the United States and in the countries where these churches originated." Be blessed. Bro Joe

Tuesday August 31, 2010 Missouri Diocese: Axe All Community Organizing Groups from CCHD By Kathleen GilbertKANSAS CITY, Missouri, August 31, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - As the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) prepares to receive a report on the controversial funding practices of their anti-poverty arm, one diocese has proposed a plan to cut off the group's shadier associations. The diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph also suggested in a Monday post on its Catholic Key blog that its plan to reform the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), which it has implemented on a local level, could be used as...