May 09, 2007

Pope Answers “John Kerry Question”

Or maybe that should be the “Juan Kerry Question”.

Pope Benedict on Wednesday warned Catholic politicians they risked excommunication from the Church and should not receive communion if they support abortion.

It was the first time that the Pope, speaking to reporters aboard the plane taking him on a trip to Brazil, dealt in depth with a controversial topic that has come up in many countries, including the United States, Mexico, and Italy.

The Pope was asked whether he supported Mexican Church leaders threatening to excommunicate leftist parliamentarians who last month voted to legalize abortion in Mexico City.

"Yes, this excommunication was not an arbitrary one but is allowed by Canon (church) law which says that the killing of an innocent child is incompatible with receiving communion, which is receiving the body of Christ," he said.

"They (Mexican Church leaders) did nothing new, surprising or arbitrary. They simply announced publicly what is contained in the law of the Church... which expresses our appreciation for life and that human individuality, human personality is present from the first moment (of life)".

Under Church law, someone who knowingly does or backs something which the Church considers a grave sin, such as abortion, inflicts what is known as "automatic excommunication" on themselves.

You can be for and facilitate abortions, or you can be Catholic. You cannot be both. I applaud Pope Benedict XVI for having the courage to say so – and I hope that America’s bishops will have the integrity to follow his lead.

Posted by: Greg at 01:02 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 I'm trying to ask a serious question here, but I'm afraid it may come off as a smart-ass or rhetorical one.  Here goes:

Why is it against Catholic doctrine to support the legality of something the Church teaches is immoral.  Adultery is a sin, but nobody criticizes Catholic politicians for not trying to pass laws criminalizing it.  Taking the Lord's name in vain is against the 10 Commandments, but nobody is arguing that Catholic politicians should be excommunicated for supporting the First Amendment.  Eating meat on Fridays during Lent is wrong, but nobody claims that Catholic politicians should be barred from Communion if they fail to campaign for laws barring meat sales on Fridays in Lent.  Contraception raises similar questions - same with capital punishment.

In all these other instances, it's okay for Catholic politicians to personally oppose behavior without seeking to invoke the power of the state to prevent others from exercising their free will.  I'll agree that abortion may be a more serious sin than taking the Lord's name in vain, but what about capital punishment?

Why is it so absurd that a Catholic politician can allow the legality of a choice that s/he thinks is wrong?

Posted by: Dan at Wed May 9 14:25:18 2007 (IU21y)

2 1) Capital punishment is not unambiguously barred by the Church, nor does it carry the penalty of excommunication. 2) One might well be able to argue that refusing to ban legal abortion where it is already legal does not constitute as grave an offense as voting to make it legal (as is the Mexican case). However, voting to fund abortion would definitely qualify as an offense meriting excommunication.

Posted by: Rhymes With Right at Wed May 9 21:14:28 2007 (7qGzY)

3 Oh, and being quite serious, how would you answer the last question if we were talking about murder (which the Church holds abortion to be), rape, or child molestation instead of abortion?

Posted by: Rhymes With Right at Wed May 9 21:17:46 2007 (7qGzY)

4 Thanks for the responses, RWR. Until doing some reading designed to support my disagreement with your response, I had not realized that procuring an abortion or being a conspiring or necessary accomplice does, in fact, result in automatic excommunication. So, I sincerely and humbly thank you for sharing your deeper knowledge. I agree that changes things. Rape, pre-meditated murder, incest, adultery, terrorism, unprovoked nuclear war - none of that is as harshly judged by the Roman Catholic Church as abortion. Interesting. As for your second question, that's a good question. Theologically, I think I'm on solid ground to argue that if a Catholic politician wants to advocate repeal of murder laws (and they have, at least in the context of allowing capital punishment), or (to avoid digressing into a side discussion on the morality or immorality of government sponsored homicide) or laws banning rape, that should not necessarily offend church doctrine anymore than repealing laws banning meat sales on Lenten Fridays. Now, the public policy results are much less supportable, and said Catholic politician would be rightfully shunned by the voters, but, theologically speaking, shouldn't Catholic politicians either have the burden of legislating all of their faith, or none?

Posted by: Dan at Wed May 9 23:48:58 2007 (IU21y)

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