October 24, 2008(emphasis added)
In his interview with the News Journal published on October 19, 2008, Senator Biden presents a seriously erroneous picture of Catholic teaching on abortion. He says, “I know that my church has wrestled with this for 2,000 years,” and he goes on to claim repeatedly that the Church has a nuanced view of the subject that leaves a great deal of room for uncertainty and debate.
This is simply incorrect. The teaching of the Church is clear and not open to debate. Abortion is a grave sin because it is the wrongful taking of an innocent human life. And the Church has always opposed abortion. The Church received the tradition opposing abortion from Judaism. In the Greco-Roman world the early Christians were identifiable by their rejection of the common practices of abortion and infanticide. The “Didache,” probably the earliest Christian writing apart from the New Testament, explicitly condemns abortion without exceptions. It tells us that there is a “way of life” and a “way of death” and that abortion is a part of the way of death. This has been the consistent teaching of the Church ever since. It was also the position of Protestant reformers without exception. It was the teaching of Pope John XXIII as well as Pope John Paul II. It is the teaching of Pope Benedict XVI and the bishops of the universal Church, including myself as shepherd of this diocese.
Some ancient and medieval theologians did see a difference between early abortions and ones that occurred later in term because under the limited medical knowledge of the time they did not know then what we scientifically know now—that a fetus is a living human being from the time of conception. Nevertheless, they universally condemned all abortions.
And of course we now know that a fetus is a living human being from the very start. Thus abortions take innocent human lives no matter when they occur. Since there is no “gradation” in the Church’s teaching on abortion, there is no way that the medically obsolete division of pregnancy into three trimesters by Roe v. Wade can have any bearing on the rightness or wrongness of abortion. Taking an innocent life in the womb is equally wrong at any stage of pregnancy.
The Declaration of Independence lists as God-given rights life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Life is listed first and it is the principal function of the state to protect the lives of its citizens. This understanding of the state’s primary obligation to protect human life is also fundamental to the Catholic social doctrine to which the Senator points. Without life all other rights are meaningless.
This Sunday all the parishes in the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington will pray the Litany of St. Thomas More, martyr and patron saint of statesmen, politicians and lawyers. In that litany we will ask St. Thomas More to intercede so that all statesmen and politicians may be courageous and effective in their defense and promotion of the sanctity of human life. We hope that Senator Biden will carefully listen to the Church’s 2000 years of testimony on abortion and that he will join in the defense and promotion of the sanctity of life.
Most Rev. W. Francis Malooly
Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington
Monday, October 27, 2008
Bishop Malooly Responds to Senator Biden's Comments
Most Rev. W. Francis Malooly, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, responds to statements made by Sen. Joseph Biden published in the October 19, 2008 edition of the News Journal:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
19 comments:
Uncle Joe Bin Biden is a joke as a "Catholic", just making doctrine up as he goes along...
On top of not being a John Paul II Catholic?????????
Probably one of the greatest popes & Saint in our glorious history!!!
Sadly, as long as his Bishop doesn't do anything stronger, I suspect Biden will continue to thumb his nose at the Church.
Meanwhile, I think Biden is a John XXIII guy, Antipope John XXIII from about 500 years ago, not Pope John XXIII from 50 yrs ago.
Relevant to your post, please read at The Curt Jester:
By Guillermo Bustamante on October 24, 2008 8:59 PM
Mr. Miller:
This video encapsulates why Pro-Lifers are being defeated. How so?
Quite simple: by one elementary political rule, Machiavelli’s “Divide and triumph”.
Exactly (like in a Harvard’s case study) it illustrates how, this ONE MAIN non-negotiable: the historic-biggest genocide known to human kind, one that leaves Hitler’s Holocaust, and Stalin’s Gulags as mere apprentices, is put beside of multiple… Bingo! (Says the devil) others non negotiable!
For starters you have ten non negotiable Commandments, and hundreds of derivates.
So, the devil, laughing aloud yells: McCain supports ESCR!!! And there you go: the whole debate gyrates around his being an adulterer, his wife supporting rape-incest innocent’s abortions, or if you are a GOP puppet.
Genocide's lawmakers dance in the fog.
Jesus warned: Woe to you Pharisees who chase mosquitoes and let pass a camel!
Yes, swallowed by the divisions game, the Catholic media (without a foggiest idea) end up contending for the AUSCHITZ DEBATE CLUB title, like Vox-Nova (obsessed by Palin being less prepared than Carter or Bush Jr.), or Inside Catholic’s censor Saint-Paul fixated on the ultimate mosquito, Palin scarf!, or his wife on Flannery, Hudson on the metaphysics of Catholics in the same footing than Evangelicals, and so on.
In a previous post here I pointed:
The general tenor of the USCCB's, has been mealy-mouthed. They consistently oppose abortion, but with the same tone and force they also oppose, for example, "poverty in America," global warming, capital punishment, the war in Iraq -- thus burying a moral absolute under a series of Democrat-friendly moral imponderables, and wantonly confusing an unambiguous doctrinal issue with a smorgasbord of secular judgment calls.
Cordially
By Guillermo Bustamante on October 25, 2008 9:02 PM
Many millions of Catholics out and in USA are flabbergasted & appalled meditating:
If we Christians Pro-Life were a SERIOUS (key title) majority, abortion would be history, and we wouldn’t be accepting scraps from the Republican Party table.
So, to further the analysis of our divisions (direct cause of the defeat), we have to enlist the guide from the Blessed Mother (today 25th in Medjugorje):
“Stop the devil's plan over this world, which is further from God every day, and which puts itself in the place of God and is destroying everything that is beautiful and good in the souls of each of you”.
Nothing better than a case study to analyze this:
Case: Auschwitz Debate Club (Vox-Nova). Policraticus -after months of hurting himself with Palin- wakes up, watching a video –posted there- which unlike the video criticized here, is not divided in 5 (of hundreds) non negotiable, but is focused ONLY in the Obaminator avowed increase of genocide.
(The ONLY way to win a war is not to fight everywhere at the same time, but SERIOUSLY concentrate one battle at a time in the front line).
Then what happened? His just married wife “destroying everything that is beautiful and good in…” their honeymoon, declares he will sleep in the couch, because she doesn’t like him voting for Godzilla.
Mind you: in this saga of Alien-Obaminator versus Godzilla both are monstrous, but only one of them vows to increase the yearly million babies offered at the altar of Moloch.
Relevant to Biden:
By Guillermo Bustamante on October 27, 2008 2:34 PM
The words WOMBS FOR RENT will be used by historians to focus the open market of embryos, and how, the biggest genocide in history was performed with “Catholic Pro-Choice (murder)” lawmakers and organizations (as Catholics United, or in Alliance) being voted… heralding!!!!!! the Catholic name ,with consent of the USCCB.
Tremendous is their responsibility.
Yes, ONLY the USCCB is responsible to let the name Catholic used so, without excommunicating them.
Historians of Hitler's regime, remember the Holocaust principally, not the gay orgies of high ranking Nazis, or the genetic experiments of Dr. Mengele.
And all ask, how could this happen? In hiding.
Not hidden but openly in USA: the slaughtered die in an amiable, knowledgeable ambiance of much heralded “pro-choice” civility.
Oh yeah! 98 voted to save survivors. How relieving.
Still time for the Scranton bishop to excommunicate Biden!!!
By Guillermo Bustamante on October 27, 2008 8:03 PM
More to the point, historians -and history won’t forget- the ringing, much taunted & heralded “CAAAAAAAATHOLIC Sen. Biden”, here, there, there, so many times repeated by the Obaminator.
How can, those in the USCCB, sleep at night?
I'm glad Malooly wasted no time in speaking out. I didn't hear much of what he did/said when he was Western Vicar of the Baltimore archdiocese.
And the USCCB is run by a bunch of white-guilted bureaucrats, so I don't even take them seriously anymore.
By Guillermo Bustamante on October 29, 2008 8:01 PM
POEM: THE SHADOWS OF THIS THREE MONUMENTS WILL GROW ON THE SEA’S HORIZON, AS THE SUN SETS BEHIND THE COASTAL MOUNTAINS…
The light may diminish now, but will grow again tomorrow and will dawn historians record (as with the slaves’ treatment or Holocaust victims), on the inescapable responsibility of the USCCB in:
1) USA abortion lawmakers (dozens of them!) being allowed by the USCCB to use the name Catholic to murder. Oh yes, many bishops did talk the talk BUT NOT walk the walk of excommunicating them, so –IN FACT- misleading MILLIONS of Catholics.
2) The MEGA-SCANDAL of them sacrilegiously receiving the Eucharist in the Papal Mass at DC, and the USCCB refusing to take responsibility in this horrendous –and massive- desecration of the Holy Body of Christ.
3) The Obaminator’ campaign being permitted by the USCCB to… dress their WOLFS UNDER SHEEP SKINS with these loopholes in “"Faithful Citizenship":
A) Stating that Catholics are allowed to vote for a supporter of abortion rights so long as they do not intend to support that position.
B) That there are offsetting "morally grave reasons".
Enough to provide the Obaminator's “Catholic” supporters, the escape clauses needed to convince that they could vote for a pro-abortion candidate in "good conscience", and dismiss the pro-life concern as "single-issue" or "divisive" and "partisan."
IN SHORT
THERE IS NO WAY HISTORY WILL ERASE THE BLOOD IN THEIR HANDS: JUST MEASURE what situation we would have now, if the USCCB enforced Rome’s Law on those culprits YEARS AGO.
By Guillermo Bustamante on October 30, 2008 8:45 PM
Among the over 110 bishops who have spoken out in this election in defense of Church teaching are 69 ordinaries (bishops who head dioceses).
That's over one-third of the 197 dioceses and archdioceses in the United States.
WOW… oh… WOW... is all I can say! One third of the Bishops here in the United States have spoken out! Maybe when we hit the 50 million abortions mark... maybe when most of the Catholic hospitals have shut down... maybe when every state has to euthanize it's sick and elderly and every state has to recognize same sex marriage...
Maybe then, we can climb from one third up to "forty" percent. These may be the most courageous and brave group of "teachers" ever assembled in the history of the world.
If it weren't so very sickening and disgraceful we could have a good laugh about it. What a joke! What a tragedy! Don't you just know how sick Our Lord is over all of this?
When will they have the spine of “talk the talk and WALK THE WALK” to... bomb the murderers nest (USA Congress), via PUBLIC excommunication (Rome’s Law) of lawmakers direct-formal cooperators of abortion?
It seems the US constituency prefers to support candidates from a particular party based on the artifice of a singular popularly inflammatory idea. As I recall, the last election it was the use of the death penalty, and the clergy lined themselves along the artifice of a peculiar social stance which they defined favoring one party over the other because of this 'line'.
So, why didn't we just let this bishop (and, all the other bishops that have carried on with regard to 'abortion') go on about their business of ensuring the US Catholic Church 'business' goes on, not necessarily caring for the flock nor particularly caring for the activity and welfare of humans. It has been a most un-christianlike apparition rising out of the fright-mongering realms of infidelity. Since the vicar obviously knows his obstetrics in discussing the obsolete definition of trimesters and human growth and development, he probably knows that the the planets circle around the earth and the oceans drop off the sides of it to a giant recirculator which is probably why the tides still keep returning,
It's very convenient for humans that their 'life' (= soul) is instilled into a being at conception, so that those without souls can be never questioned about being killed for food, however it cannot reconcile the fact that 1 out of 5 'conceptions' are not induced.
Why doesn't there seem more concern with proper stewardship of all G-d's blessings, and ensuring a child born into this society has the best pre-natal care and opportunity to bring their godliness to society?
Now that the polls predict a landslide for the Infanticide Candidate, is urgent for the USCCB to focus their DUTY to enlighten those Catholics tempted to think sacrilege is banal, or, lose their charity to the clergy, by the lack of obedience of them to the Rock-Successor of Peter.
And is not only Canon 915 to be obeyed despite displeasing the politicians in power. You can be courteous AND righteous, as Mother Teresa of Calcutta with Clinton-Gore.
USCCB must correct too, the spineless attitude of avoiding PUBLIC excommunication, to those already automatically excommunicated by our Catholic Law:
Formal-material cooperators of countless abortion chambers (are going on, full steam).
Please keep in mind these words from the prefect of the Apostolic Signature, Archbishop Raymond Burke:
“Catholics, especially politicians who publicly defend abortion, should not receive Communion…. (being a) scandal, consisting of leading people to think that the public act that this person is doing, which until now everyone believed was a serious sin, is really not that serious - if the Church allows him or her to receive Communion.”
Regards
Guillermo Bustamante
The impending rule of FOCA, with a much heralded “Catholic” VP, invites us to refocus:
1) How history (not me or you), will judge the USCCB being complicit of an OPEN genocidal regime? For sure will be much harsher than with Pious XII, in his radio Milan’s address against the HIDDEN Holocaust, when many bishops, clergy & lay Catholics (including Bishop von Galen's "Three Sermons in Defiance of the Nazis") did with breathtaking courage in face of the likelihood of arrest and possible execution by a certified mad dictator?
2) How will be judged the MEGA-SCANDAL of lawmakers allowed to name themselves Catholic, and sacrilegiously receiving the Eucharist in the Papal Mass at DC, WITH the USCCB refusing to take responsibility in this horrendous –and massive- desecration of the Holy Body of Christ?
3) Won’t we lay Catholics, be held responsible for not sending a cry (collecting signatures) to Benedict XVI, for relocating MANY scandalous bishops to meditate in Vatican jobs? Content saying what a shame… to that scandal?
4) A scandal compounded for not DEMANDING the excommunication of those culprits. WHY DEMAND? Because such is the SPIRIT of the Law in light of this grotesque fact: a surgical attendant in an abortion is automatically excommunicated and… the brain-leader-law designer- of the cold blooded murder is not.
Find another cause. Men's opinions, especially unmarried men, are not relevant to the subject of pregnancy termination. 32 baby announcements in our local paper, 2 babies out of 32 have married parents. Sexual promiscuity, sexualized television shows, etc. Let's demonize Palin-like cults ending the world.
Please read at The Curt Jester:
By Guillermo Bustamante on November 3, 2008 7:37 PM
Mr. Miller:
Today that you focus the non-elected Legislative-formerly Judicial, I congratulate you for moving people to ask the intercession of St. Martin of Porres (today’s feast), most fittingly, because he represents the two ethnic bloods mix (Hispanic + Black), who are TARGETED by the racist PP ads + abortion chambers-mills locations for the current genocide in USA.
The point currently is: we must enlist the help of our angels & saints, to counter the arguing that the USCCB has to walk a “fine line, not to tell (sic) voters”, to avoid voting for the Infanticide Candidate.
Wrong.
Here, precisely, is proper to tell not to vote for whom blatantly are crushing the Constitutional rights of defenseless human beings (FOCA), as the U.S. Supreme Court.
And compare indeed! The greater with the lesser evils:
1) The Infanticide Candidate’s abortion VOTING RECORD and commitment to FOCA.
2) The McCain pro-life VOTING RECORD and public platform.
This election brings us to base: How Will History Judge Catholics?
Will start with the USCCB history, and will follow distinguishing responsibilities.
This means the angelic sword of flames, dismissing the lay lukewarm. The magnitude of the genocide is so flabbergasting that there is no way to disguise or down play this historic responsibility.
Regards
Men's opinions, especially unmarried men, are not relevant to the subject of pregnancy termination.
This is an example of the fallacy known as argumentum ad hominem. You have completely ignored the content of the argument. Instead you have directed your comments at the person giving the argument. But the status of the argument does not depend in the status of the person giving the argument. Rather, it depends on the truth of the arguments premises and the validity of its logic. Thus your comment has no real bearing on the discussion whatsoever.
Will be interesting to see the breakdown of the religios vote. Polls before the election showed the majority of Catholics voting for Obama and Biden. Also by a wide margin the majority of white Catholics favored Obama/Biden while the majority of white Protestants favored McCain/Palin. This and many other blogs purporting to represent Catholics are obviosly way out of touch with the way the majority of Catholics think. Obama's speech tonight was much more in line withe social teaching of the Catholic church. Time for the bishops too to lose their arrogance and start listening to their flock and stop taking the church into the spiritual mugging territory that is the hallmark of the Christian Right.
Time for the bishops too to lose their arrogance and start listening to their flock and stop taking the church into the spiritual mugging territory that is the hallmark of the Christian Right.
Get that? Truth by majority rule. Actually, Brendan, we've been listening to the equivocators gas on about reducing abortions. Now we are going to hold people's feet to the fire and see if they meant that. My guess, and may I be wrong, is that this was smokescreen the whole time.
Time of reckoning responsibilities, omission indeed which history will review: Countless rationalizations and moral equivocations from convoluted Cafeteria Catholics & pathetic Auschwitz Debate Clubbers, who twist themselves in knots trying to hide THIS sun with one finger:
The grotesque evil of refusing to ban abortions, or increasing with FOCA the 1.5 million butchered, that is: the yearly million plus babies offered at the altar of Moloch.
Decades of USCCB lack of Catechesis, and Catholic Universities showing an utter failure to enlighten the factual genocide… What will happen?
This and many other blogs purporting to represent Catholics are obviosly way out of touch with the way the majority of Catholics think.
I know you may find this surprising, but I, for one, do not care about being "in touch" with how many of my so-called co-religionists think. I care about being "in touch" with what the Church thinks. It is She who is "the pillar and ground of the truth" (I Timothy 3:16).
"If the world is against truth, then I am against the world." ~St. Athanasius.
If Brendan really believed in his statement:
"I care about being 'in touch' with what the Church thinks"
Then he would have voted against baby murderers such as Barack Hussein Obama and Joe Biden.
If Brendan really believed in his statement:
"I care about being 'in touch' with what the Church thinks"
Then he would have voted against baby murderers such as Barack Hussein Obama and Joe Biden.
Is it possible you are confusing "brendon", for "brendan"? It is two different people as far as I can tell.
Post a Comment