Providence Bishop Thomas Tobin has publicly asked Rep. Patrick Kennedy to stop taking communion with the Catholic Church due to his support for abortion, confirming that he asked Kennedy to refrain from communion in a private discussion in 2007. The confrontation became public after Kennedy revealed the 2007 conversation. The move could embolden other bishops in barring public officials from the sacrament, particularly in light of the health bill’s protection of abortion services.
Kennedy touched off the public spat in an interview with the Providence Journal when he revealed Tobin’s ban due “the positions that I’ve taken as a public official.” Tobin was clearly upset about the disclosure, stating that it was “pastoral and confidential.” He stated “I am disappointed that the congressman would make public my request of nearly three years ago that sought to provide solely for his spiritual well-being.” While Tobin may feel that he has caused to ban Kennedy, I find it a bit curious that he would first ban a man for his public positions and then be angry that Kennedy publicly discussed the ban with his voters. If the cause for the ban was Kennedy’s public work, he was more than within his rights to raise it with his voters and fellow Catholics.
The bishop is promising more public exchanges if Kennedy continues to speak out: “I have no desire to continue the discussion of Congressman Kennedy’s spiritual life in public. At the same time, I will absolutely respond publicly and strongly whenever he attacks the Catholic Church, misrepresents the teachings of the church or issues inaccurate statements about my pastoral ministry.”
Other leading Catholic leaders have faced similar moves by local priests over their votes in Congress, here and here.
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The reason the retard religious zealots don’t like abortion is that it prevents the birth of another kid for them to screw.
They don’t want to jeopardize the source of their sexual pleasure.
Evolution isn’t done, the religious retards are still here.
Vince,
I disembarked from the RCC Titanic long before it hit the iceberg.
You said: “They are driving away members by the millions.”
I think the far-right conservative wingnuts are doing the same thing to the Republican party.
Simone and the like are the big winners in this debate. They are driving away members by the millions.
The RCC has lost 30 million members in the US in the last 50 years, according to a Pew survey last year.
Thirty million.
Thirty million, in a population of about 300 million.
That is one of the biggest single religious cohorts in the country.
One of every ten Americans.
Ten percent of the Turley blog followers.
And the RC in the US blithely goes about rearranging the deck chairs as the band plays on.
It is worth noting that Cardinal Bernard Law, notorious for his role in covering up child sexual abuse in Boston, takes communion every day in the Vatican without word one from the good churchman Tobin. Wonder how Tobin squares that at vespers.
Vince,
Do not forget that the Catholic’s were paid a handsome fee for each African slave transferred. Hell part of what caused the Texicans to split from the Mexicans was the tithes that were being extracted for the Catholic Church.
Do not forget that the Bishop is about as Political as any Congress person. The successful Bishops become Cardinals who are entrusted with running the financial affairs in the Vatican. Oh, by the way, who controls the European Commodity Market? Thought so. The fees extracted there is more than most American brokers would ever pay.
The charge was that the politician is a bad Catholic who cannot receive. That was the charge.
They are all politicians. The bishop is a politician trying to forward his cause, playing the communion card. Ridiculous. He is also a lousy politician.
They used to condemn Catholics to hell for charging interest. Then the morality all changed one day. How about all those guys burning in Hell for eating meat on Friday? Slavery was perfectly moral for Catholics until the 19th Century. No one was ever denied communion for owning, torturing or raping a slave, or splitting up a slave family. Chief Justice Taney, a racist who said blacks had no rights, was a devout Catholic. The Pope supported the slaveowners in the Civil War. Now, however, it is sinful to own a slave. Go figure it out and get back to us.
Simone cannot understand separation of church and state, since she wants her church to impose its beliefs on the state. That is not separation. That is establishment of religion.
And just where was that “support of abortion” anyway. There is nothing wrong with opposing abortion, but taking the position that a church’s views should not be imposed on those who disagree.
Would Catholics like to see their access to gambling and drinking made illegal by religionists who consider those activities immoral? No.
Their shoes are squeezing their feet. Hypocrisy.