Eminent Domain Stuff
New London Update (2/24/06)
Bad NLDC!
Coverage of the Rally at New London's City Hall (w/ pics)
Thursday, May 20, 2004
What Is The Catholic Church Supposed To Be?
It seems that a lot of pro-abortion Catholic Congresspeople don’t want there to be any problems with their public stances. These types tend to claim Separation of Church and State (a nonexistent concept) or that they have Freedom of Conscious to hold whatever opinion they want and still be in good standing with the Church.
So this raises the question: What is the Catholic Church supposed to be?
Is it: A) A fun little group whose only membership requirement is that a person claims to be Catholic, B) An entity that supplies moral direction as a mere suggestion, or is it C) An organized religion that fully expects its adherents to follow the teachings of Christ and its own interpretation thereof?
If you answered A or B, please readjust your thinking cap because it’s obviously falling off. The Catholic Church is all accepting. She will welcome any (and I mean any) person into the fold. There are only two fundamental requirements…you must be sorry for the bad things you have done in the past and be willing to try to do better in the future.
Since we, as human beings, cannot see into another’s soul, we have to go by what they say and do. If someone says they’re sorry and acts like it, then we believe them. If, on the other hand, that same person unabashedly supports something that is antithetical to the Church’s belief structure then the Church is under no obligation aside from trying to show that person the Light of Truth.
Say what you will. There is no requirement that you agree. There is also no requirement that a priest give you Communion if there is proof that you are in a state of sin. Since the act of abortion is one of the most fundamentally wrong acts by Church standards how can anyone expect that a supporter of that horrifying act be eligible to receive the Body and Blood of Christ?
To say this is a political issue is to completely miss the point. The fact is this is 100% a moral issue, and it is not one on which the Church can possibly compromise.
I have to believe that these Congresspeople are smart enough to have realized the truth of what I have just said (although not necessarily). Given that at least some of them have, then those individuals are guilty of attempting to pervert the Teachings of the Church for the their own political gain. So, who’s going to destroy the Church for the sake of politics, again? I must have missed it the first time around.
On a related topic…John Kerry apparently can’t decide which side to waffle to on this issue.
Update
Just to prove that I'm not completely crazy, check this out (hat tip Catholic(?) Kerry Watch). Archbishop John J. Myers of Newark wrote the following regarding pro-abortion 'Catholic' elected officials:
But with abortion (and for example slavery, racism, euthanasia and trafficking in human persons) there can be no legitimate diversity of opinion. The direct killing of the innocent is always a grave injustice. One should not permit unjust killing any more than one should permit slave-holding, racist actions, or other grave injustices. From the perspective of justice, to say "I am personally opposed to abortion but…" is like saying "I personally am against slavery, but I can not impose my personal beliefs on my neighbor." Obviously, recognizing the grave injustice of slavery requires one to ensure that no one suffers such degradation. Similarly recognizing that abortion is unjust killing requires one-in love and justice-to work to overcome the injustice.
This backs up my own thoughts and makes me a lot more comfortable with them, as a Catholic (also, as I have mentioned previously, Fr. Rob has commented on this extensively).
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It seems that a lot of pro-abortion Catholic Congresspeople don’t want there to be any problems with their public stances. These types tend to claim Separation of Church and State (a nonexistent concept) or that they have Freedom of Conscious to hold whatever opinion they want and still be in good standing with the Church.
So this raises the question: What is the Catholic Church supposed to be?
Is it: A) A fun little group whose only membership requirement is that a person claims to be Catholic, B) An entity that supplies moral direction as a mere suggestion, or is it C) An organized religion that fully expects its adherents to follow the teachings of Christ and its own interpretation thereof?
If you answered A or B, please readjust your thinking cap because it’s obviously falling off. The Catholic Church is all accepting. She will welcome any (and I mean any) person into the fold. There are only two fundamental requirements…you must be sorry for the bad things you have done in the past and be willing to try to do better in the future.
Since we, as human beings, cannot see into another’s soul, we have to go by what they say and do. If someone says they’re sorry and acts like it, then we believe them. If, on the other hand, that same person unabashedly supports something that is antithetical to the Church’s belief structure then the Church is under no obligation aside from trying to show that person the Light of Truth.
Say what you will. There is no requirement that you agree. There is also no requirement that a priest give you Communion if there is proof that you are in a state of sin. Since the act of abortion is one of the most fundamentally wrong acts by Church standards how can anyone expect that a supporter of that horrifying act be eligible to receive the Body and Blood of Christ?
To say this is a political issue is to completely miss the point. The fact is this is 100% a moral issue, and it is not one on which the Church can possibly compromise.
I have to believe that these Congresspeople are smart enough to have realized the truth of what I have just said (although not necessarily). Given that at least some of them have, then those individuals are guilty of attempting to pervert the Teachings of the Church for the their own political gain. So, who’s going to destroy the Church for the sake of politics, again? I must have missed it the first time around.
On a related topic…John Kerry apparently can’t decide which side to waffle to on this issue.
Update
Just to prove that I'm not completely crazy, check this out (hat tip Catholic(?) Kerry Watch). Archbishop John J. Myers of Newark wrote the following regarding pro-abortion 'Catholic' elected officials:
But with abortion (and for example slavery, racism, euthanasia and trafficking in human persons) there can be no legitimate diversity of opinion. The direct killing of the innocent is always a grave injustice. One should not permit unjust killing any more than one should permit slave-holding, racist actions, or other grave injustices. From the perspective of justice, to say "I am personally opposed to abortion but…" is like saying "I personally am against slavery, but I can not impose my personal beliefs on my neighbor." Obviously, recognizing the grave injustice of slavery requires one to ensure that no one suffers such degradation. Similarly recognizing that abortion is unjust killing requires one-in love and justice-to work to overcome the injustice.
This backs up my own thoughts and makes me a lot more comfortable with them, as a Catholic (also, as I have mentioned previously, Fr. Rob has commented on this extensively).
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