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Abortion-politician-Communion scandal shows real lack of pastoral concern...

The politics surrounding the matter of reception of Holy Communion by Catholics in public life who support legal abortion has confused the issue in the minds of most Americans. It's not the politics of the politicians, so much as the perceived politics of the Bishops and the Pope that is the source of the confusion.

The popular perception sees caring liberal bishops welcoming Catholic politicians regardless of their abortion orientation to receive Communion while heartless conservative bishops use confrontation at the altar rail as an opportunity to embarrass and harass political leaders who cross them on their hobbyhorse of opposing a woman's 'right to choose'.

Taking a look at the issue through a Canadian lens may help put the matter in better focus.  For many years the only Canadian bishop to address the issue was Calgary Bishop Fred Henry in the province of Alberta. The Calgary prelate was the first bishop in recent years to say publicly that Catholic politicians who supported abortion and same-sex marriage would be refused Communion. Bishop Henry is however the farthest thing from a right-wing conservative imaginable.  In fact, he is best known as "Red Fred" for his untiring and very vocal support for trade unions.

Another Canadian bishop has recently spoken out on the issue as well - Archbishop Terrence Prendergast -  who was recently installed as Archbishop in the Canadian capital city of Ottawa. 

I interviewed Archbishop Prendergast on the issue recently and he revealed what seems to be a hidden truth in the abortion and communion debate.  He explained that denial of Holy Communion to pro-abortion politicians is an act of love for the Catholic politician him or herself - an act meant to call the politician back to the truth.  Prendergast said: "The Church's concern is for anyone who persists in grave sin, hoping that medicinal measures may draw them away from the wrong path to the truth of our faith." He said that "medicinal" remedies such as "denial of communion" are employed to "draw them back to the way of Christ, Our Lord, the Way, the Truth and the Life."

Catholics believe that Holy Communion is the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

From the earliest days of the Church, receiving Holy Communion unworthily has been forbidden; forbidden out of concern for those who would make such unworthy communions.  St. Paul in the eleventh chapter of First Corinthians wrote: "Therefore whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and of the blood of the Lord. But let a man prove himself: and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of the chalice. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord." (1 Cor. 11:27-29)

From this perspective, Bishops who treat Catholic politicians who support abortion as if they were in full communion with the Church are neglecting their pastoral concern and charity for their wayward spiritual children.

For the Vatican, there is no question about the need to deny Holy Communion to Catholic politicians who vote in favour of abortion.  The issue was closed with a letter from Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.

The then-Vatican Cardinal intervened into a debate among the US Bishops on the issue in 2004.  Simply put, Cardinal Ratzinger said in his letter titled "Worthiness to receive Holy Communion", that a Catholic politician who would vote for "permissive abortion and euthanasia laws" after being duly instructed and warned, "must" be denied Communion.  Ratzinger's letter explained that if such a politician "with obstinate persistence, still presents himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, the minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it."

Since then, Pope Benedict XVI has confirmed this position speaking as Pope.  Answering a reporter on an in-flight press conference last May, Pope Benedict addressed a question on the Mexican bishops excommunicating politicians who support legalizing abortion.  "Yes, this excommunication was not an arbitrary one but is allowed by Canon law which says that the killing of an innocent child is incompatible with receiving communion, which is receiving the body of Christ," said the Pope.

In the comment, the Pope was referring to the Church's Canon law 915 which states: "Those upon whom the penalty of excommunication or interdict has been imposed or declared, and others who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin, are not to be admitted to Holy Communion."

Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis, a pre-eminent Scholar of Canon Law remarked on the need for Bishops to uphold this canon since without doing so they undermine belief in the truth of the evil of abortion. "No matter how often a bishop or priest repeats the teaching of the Church regarding procured abortion, if he stands by and does nothing to discipline a Catholic who publicly supports legislation permitting the gravest of injustices and, at the same time, presents himself to receive Holy Communion, then his teaching rings hollow," he said. "To remain silent is to permit serious confusion regarding a fundamental truth of the moral law."

It is not only the Pope who has been reiterating the truth that Catholic politicians who support abortion 'must' be denied Communion.  The highest authority on the subject in the Vatican, next to the Pope, is the head (or Prefect) of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments - Nigerian-born Cardinal Francis Arinze.

Already in 2004, Cardinal Arinze said a pro-abortion politician "is not fit" to receive Communion. "If they should not receive, then they should not be given," he added. 

Since then, Cardinal Arinze, who is still in his position as Prefect of the Congregation, has been asked about the issue so frequently he has begun to joke about it.  The latest such incident was videotaped and is available on Youtube. 

The November 2007 video shows Cardinal Arinze eliciting much laughter and applause when he made the analogy, "To the person who says, 'Personally I'm against abortion, but if people what to do it, I'll leave them free', you could say, 'You are a member of the senate or the congress, personally I'm not in favour of shooting the whole lot of you, but if somebody else wants to shoot all of you in the Senate, or all of you in Congress, it's just pro-choice for that person, but personally, I'm not in favour.'

"That is what he is saying. He's saying he's personally not in favour of killing these millions of children in the womb, but if others want to do it, that's pro-choice. That's what he is saying."

Arinze said that he is regularly asked if a person who votes for abortion can receive Holy Communion. He replies, "Do you really need a cardinal from the Vatican to answer that?  Get the children for first Communion and say to them, 'Somebody votes for the killing of unborn babies, and says, I voted for that, I will vote for that every time.' And these babies are killed not one or two, but in millions, and that person says, 'I'm a practicing Catholic', should that person receive Communion next Sunday? The children will answer that at the drop of a hat. You don't need a cardinal to answer that."

********

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann has directed Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius to refrain from presenting herself for Holy Communion until she takes "the necessary steps for amendment of her life which would include a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion."

The Archbishop made the directive public by writing about his actions in his archdiocesan newspaper The Leaven.  "Having made every effort to inform and to persuade Governor Sebelius and after consultation with Bishop Ron Gilmore (Dodge City), Bishop Paul Coakley (Salina) and Bishop Michael Jackels (Wichita), I wrote the governor last August requesting that she refrain from presenting herself for reception of the Eucharist until she had acknowledged the error of her past positions, made a worthy sacramental confession and taken the necessary steps for amendment of her life which would include a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion," he wrote.

He explains his reason for making the directive public as Sebelius went against his directive not to receive Communion.   "Recently, it came to my attention that the governor had received holy Communion at one of our parishes," he wrote. "I have written to her again, asking her to respect my previous request and not require from me any additional pastoral actions."

Sebelius is known as an aggressive supporter of radical abortion rights and has vetoed a number of pieces of common-sense legislation over the years that would have reigned in an out-of-control abortion industry in Kansas.  As a result, abortion mills remain uninspected in spite of documented substandard conditions, and abortion laws meant to protect women and viable babies remain unenforced.

Sebelius has close ties to abortionist George R. Tiller, who has funneled huge amounts of campaign contributions to Sebelius in the past. Tiller currently faces 19 criminal charges, a grand jury investigation, and two open investigations with the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts for criminal conduct and violations of the standard of care. Nevertheless, Sebelius remains supportive of Tiller and his notorious abortion business.

"We believe evidence exists that shows that Sebelius has strong personal and political ties to Tiller, and has used her political influence to cover up for crimes committed by Tiller and his associates in order to maintain the flow of abortion money into Kansas politics, thus furthering her own political career," commented Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

"It is because of her policies that three abortionists come to Kansas to commit the latest of late-term abortions from states that prohibit them. It is also because of her policies that women come to Kansas from all over the world for the latest of late-term abortions that are banned elsewhere. These people come to kill viable babies because they know as long as Sebelius is governor that Kansas laws prohibiting post-viability abortions will not be enforced."

"Sebelius stands in open rebellion to the teachings and requests of her Church," said Newman. "We join Archbishop Naumann in calling on Sebelius to repent from her support of abortion, and to amend her life to undo some of the human devastation and tragedy for which her public policies and private cover ups are responsible."

Archbishop Naumann concluded his column stating, "I have not made lightly this request of Governor Sebelius, but only after much prayer and reflection. The spiritually lethal message, communicated by our governor, as well as many other high profile Catholics in public life, has been in effect: 'The church's teaching on abortion is optional!' I reissue my request of the faithful of the archdiocese to pray for Governor Sebelius. I hope that my request of the governor, not to present herself for holy Communion, will provoke her to reconsider the serious spiritual and moral consequences of her past and present actions. At the same time, I pray this pastoral action on my part will help alert other Catholics to the moral gravity of participating in and/or cooperating with the performance of abortions."

********

New York Cardinal Egan slams Giuliani for receiving Communion at Papal Mass - demands meeting...

LifeSiteNews.com reported on April 28, 2008:

The decision by several prominent pro-abortion politicians to publicly receive Holy Communion at papal Masses during the recent visit of Pope Benedict XVI, despite clear Church teaching that says that their reception of Communion would constitute a grave sacrilege, may have backfired.  While at first it seemed like it would be business as usual, today Cardinal Edward Egan of New York issued a statement condemning the reception of Holy Communion by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

The Archdiocese informed LifeSiteNews.com that the issue is being brought forward publicly at this time "because it has become a public issue and a public question."

"The Catholic Church clearly teaches that abortion is a grave offense against the will of God," said Egan.  "Throughout my years as Archbishop of New York, I have repeated this teaching in sermons, articles, addresses, and interviews without hesitation or compromise of any kind."

He continued, "Thus it was that I had an understanding with Mr. Rudolph Giuliani, when I became Archbishop of New York and he was serving as Mayor of New York, that he was not to receive the Eucharist because of his well-known support of abortion."

"I deeply regret that Mr. Giuliani received the Eucharist during the Papal visit here in New York," said Egan, "and I will be seeking a meeting with him to insist that he abide by our understanding."

Responding to the matter in the press, Giuliani said that his faith "is a deeply personal matter and should remain confidential."

Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, responded, "The Catholic faith is not simply about one's private and confidential relationship with God. It's public, as evidenced by the fact that Mr. Giuliani received Communion in public. Mr. Giuliani's support of legal abortion is also public. That's why Cardinal Egan's remarks are entirely appropriate, as is his expectation that Mr. Giuliani abide by those remarks."

The Pope, just prior to his elevation to the pontificate, issued a document to the US Bishops which outlined that in keeping with Church teaching, pro-abortion politicians who present themselves for communion even after being warned not to "must" be denied communion.

LifeSiteNews.com asked Joseph Zwilling, Director Office of Communications at the Archdiocese of New York, if there had been any communication on the matter between the Pope or Vatican and the Archdiocese.  Zwilling replied, "No."

********

Exclusive interview: Ottawa Archbishop explains why pro-abortion politicians are denied Communion...

LifeSiteNews.com reported on March 14, 2008:

Archbishop Burke says ministers are "held, under pain of mortal sin, to deny the sacraments to the unworthy"

Archbishop Burke preaches tough Communion rule:
Turn away abortion-rights backers under pain of mortal sin...

The Columbus Dispatch reported on October 1, 2007:

St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke, a veteran of clashes between Catholic bishops and politicians, has attempted for years to enlist fellow bishops to deny Holy Communion to wayward politicians.

Now, the conservative cleric is invoking the church's highest punishment -- mortal sin -- to persuade the lay and ordained Catholics who distribute Communion at Mass to safeguard the sacrament.

Drawing on the works of the late Italian Jesuit scholar Felice Cappello, Burke says those ministers are "held, under pain of mortal sin, to deny the sacraments to the unworthy."

That argument could place Communion ministers on the frontlines of the "wafer wars" as the 2008 presidential race heats up, and as bishops debate a document on "faithful citizenship."

"It is clear that church discipline places an obligation on the minister of Holy Communion to refuse Holy Communion to persons known, by the public, to be in mortal sin," Burke writes in a new journal article.

Burke lays out his case like a legal brief in Periodica de re Canonica, a journal widely read in seminaries and published by Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University, an elite school for Catholic clergy.

"No matter how often a bishop or priest repeats the teaching of the church regarding procured abortion, if he stands by and does nothing to discipline a Catholic who publicly supports legislation permitting the gravest of injustices, and, at the same time, presents himself to receive Holy Communion, then his teachings ring hollow," Burke writes.

A former top official in the Signatura, the Vatican's high court, and a noted expert in canon law, Burke previously has kicked off public debates over policing the Communion rail. While bishop of La Crosse, Wis., he ordered clergy to refuse to offer the sacrament to certain pro-abortion-rights politicians.

In 2004, Burke and a handful of other bishops said they would refuse Communion to presidential hopeful Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. Burke also said Catholics who voted for pro-abortion-rights politicians, such as Kerry, should refrain from taking the sacrament until they confessed their "mortal sin."

In his new article, the archbishop explicitly criticizes his fellow bishops, the majority of whom voted in 2004 to leave the Communion decision up to individual bishops.

Burke retorts: "The question regarding the objective state of Catholic politicians who knowingly and willingly hold opinions contrary to natural moral law would hardly seem to change from place to place."

The Rev. Richard John Neuhaus, editor of the influential conservative Catholic journal First Things, called Burke's article "a scholarly tour de force."

"The (archbishop's) concern is not a political concern," Neuhaus said. "The article is about, how does the church preserve the sanctity of the Holy Eucharist?"

But the article is ambiguous in some areas, said the Rev. Thomas Reese, a senior fellow at Georgetown University's Woodstock Theological Center in Washington.

If Burke is calling on Communion ministers to disobey their bishops and deny Communion to Catholic politicians, it would be "revolutionary" and "encourage anarchy," Reese said.

"Most bishops do not want ministers of Communion playing policeman at the Communion rail," he added. "This is a significant change in focus. Suddenly, you're going to have a few thousand decisionmakers in parishes across the country."

A spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of St. Louis said Burke was unavailable to comment on this article.

 

"The discipline and rules set down by My Son and those He chose to write the Book of life and love must be adhered to. We direct, in the name of the Trinity, that you bishops and cardinals of the world must use your full powers as hierarchy to excommunicate and defrock all who seek to dethrone My Son and destroy the Faith!" - Our Lady of the Roses, August 21, 1974

"The Eternal City of Rome must now take action by those in rule, the cardinals and the bishops, to restore this city to the light. Those who seek to build a church of man must be removed by the power of excommunication given to those who rule as representatives in My houses, churches upon your earth.
     "As it was in the time of Noe, as it was in the days of Sodom and Gomorrha, so shall it be upon your earth. Man shall be permitted to fall fast into the abyss. Why? Because he has hardened his heart and closed his ears to the truth. He has given himself to all manners of pleasures of the flesh. Sin has become a way of life in your country and in the countries throughout your earth.
     "The children of God, the candles upon earth, My child, shall suffer much persecution from the agents of darkness.
     "Man runs amiss, My child. He scatters the sheep. He seeks peace where there is no peace. He is going farther into darkness.
     "You shall not gather your flocks, My pastors, by compromising your Faith! You shall not gather the flocks for the Eternal Father in Heaven by giving yourselves to the world, by adopting humanism and modernism as your guide.
     "It is a simple lesson of faith that you must give to the children and to all in your care. As pastor you shall stand before Me and shall you say to Me that your teaching has been pure in My sight? Amen I say unto you, I shall cast you from Me and send you into the abyss. As you sow, so shall you reap." - Jesus, December 31, 1975
 

Directives from Heaven... https://www.tldm.org/directives/directives.htm

D146 - Honor the Eucharist, Part 1  PDF
D147 - Honor the Eucharist, Part 2  PDF
D186 - Excommunication   PDF
 

Articles...

Archbishop Burke: Bishops must discipline pro-abortion Catholic politicians
https://www.tldm.org/News11/ArchbishopBurkeDisciplineProAbortCatholicPoliticians.htm

Pope Benedict supports excommunication for pro-abortion politicians: "Incompatible with receiving Communion"
https://www.tldm.org/News10/PopeExcommunicateDenyCommunionToProAbortCatholicPoliticians.htm

Pope Benedict XVI says that refusing Holy Communion to pro-abortion politicians is a "doctrine of the Church"
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Ratzinger3.htm

Honduran Cardinal: "A politician who publicly supports abortion, he excommunicates himself"
https://www.tldm.org/News10/HonduranCardinalCommunionMustBeDenied.htm

Pope Benedict warns pro-abortion politicians against receiving Communion unworthily
https://www.tldm.org/News10/PopeUnworthyCommunion.htm

Catholics must be free of grave sin to receive Holy Communion
https://www.tldm.org/News6/ReceptionofCommunion.htm

Archbishop Burke: more profoundly sorrowful would be a bishop who failed "to safeguard the worthy reception of  Communion"
https://www.tldm.org/news6/Burke2.htm

Sacrilegious Communion and the U.S. bishops
https://www.tldm.org/News6/sacrilege.htm

Austrian Bishop Lugner says mall owner excommunicated for providing space for abortion clinic
https://www.tldm.org/News10/AbortionBishop%20Lugner.htm

Bishop Henry says he would refuse Prime Minister Holy Communion, would consider excommunication
https://www.tldm.org/News7/AbortionBishopHenry.htm

Links...

Bishops and bald eagles, Judie Brown, March 2, 2007
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/brown/070302

Cardinal Ratzinger said, "The minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it." He did not say 'could,' or 'may,' but that he "must,"  Barbara Kralis, July 6, 2004
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/kralis/040706

Prohibition is worthless without enforcement, Barbara Kralis, June 24, 2004
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/kralis/040624

Is not murder just as evil as lust in the eyes of God? Barbara Kralis, June 8, 2004
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/kralis/040607

Ten questions regarding the denial of the Eucharist, Barbara Kralis, May 24, 2004
http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/kralis/040524

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