dUSt Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Dear Catholic Believers (aka Phatmassers), Since the foundation of the American Republic and the adoption of the Bill of Rights, I do not think there has ever been a time more threatening to our religious liberty than the present. Neither the president of the United States nor the current majority of the Federal Senate have been willing to even consider the Catholic community’s grave objections to those HHS mandates that would require all Catholic institutions, exempting only our church buildings, to fund abortion, sterilization, and artificial contraception. This assault upon our religious freedom is simply without precedent in the American political and legal system. Contrary to the guarantees embedded in the First Amendment, the HHS mandates attempt to now narrowly define and thereby drastically limit our traditional religious works. They grossly and intentionally intrude upon the deeply held moral convictions that have always guided our Catholic schools, hospitals, and other apostolic ministries. Nearly two thousand years ago, after our Savior had been bound, beaten, scourged, mocked, and crowned with thorns, a pagan Roman Procurator displayed Jesus to a hostile crowd by sarcastically declaring: “Behold your King.†The mob roared back: “We have no king but Caesar.†Today, Catholic politicians, bureaucrats, and their electoral supporters who callously enable the destruction of innocent human life in the womb also thereby reject Jesus as their Lord. They are objectively guilty of grave sin. For those who hope for salvation, no political loyalty can ever take precedence over loyalty to the Lord Jesus Christ and to his Gospel of Life. God is not mocked, and as the Bible clearly teaches, after this passing instant of life on earth, God’s great mercy in time will give way to God’s perfect judgment in eternity. I therefore call upon every practicing Catholic in this Diocese to vote. Be faithful to Christ and to your Catholic Faith. May God guide and protect His Holy Church, and may God bless America. Most Reverend Daniel R. Jenky, CSC Catholic Bishop of Peoria Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dUSt Posted November 5, 2012 Author Share Posted November 5, 2012 My brothers and sisters in Christ (aka Phatmassers), With Election Day now a week away, I take this final opportunity to urge you all to vote in these very important national elections. As I have communicated to you in columns, letters, homilies and statements over the past months, we as Catholics are confronted with grave challenges to our beliefs as baptized and confirmed members of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Indeed, we know that we face serious threats to our very ability to practice and live our faith in our communities as full citizens. We are first Catholics, not Democrats or Republicans, and recognizing our Catholic identity and the immutable truths of our faith, we must make the best decision we can according to our consciences, properly informed by the Church’s official teaching. I know this can be difficult at times to discern, and I have sought in several ways to assist you, respectfully yet authoritatively, to make choices that do justice to the teachings of Our Lord and your status as His disciples in a darkened world. We must be strong, confident voices for truth and goodness in the public square, and this imperative includes the choices we make in electing our leaders. The Church has made clear repeatedly our responsibility to take part in the political life of our nation: “In the Catholic Tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation. This obligation is rooted in our baptismal commitment to follow Jesus Christ and to bear Christian witness in all we do†(Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, para. 13). And while, as I have noted often, there are many issues that command our attention as Catholics, some challenges are so grave as to demand our focus, our serious reflection and our responsible decisions. In the papal encyclical Evangelium Vitae, written by Blessed John Paul II in 1995, the Holy Father affirmed the clear, age old teaching of the Church on abortion and underscored its high importance in the decisions Catholics make in the public square: 58. Among all the crimes which can be committed against life, procured abortion has characteristics making it particularly serious and deplorable. The Second Vatican Council defines abortion, together with infanticide, as an “unspeakable crime.†. . . 61. . . . Christian Tradition…is clear and unanimous, from the beginning up to our own day, in describing abortion as a particularly grave moral disorder. . . . 62. . . . Therefore, by the authority which Christ conferred upon Peter and his Successors, in communion with the Bishops…I declare that direct abortion, that is, abortion willed as an end or as a means, always constitutes a grave moral disorder, since it is the deliberate killing of an innocent human being. This doctrine is based upon the natural law and upon the written Word of God, is transmitted by the Church’s Tradition and taught by the ordinary and universal Magisterium. Abortion is no abstract topic or public policy issue without consequence in the present elections. The party platforms and political advertisements we see and hear each today confirm that the lives of the unborn, the weakest and most innocent amongst us, are still squarely in the public debate, and our votes do have consequences with respect to this “unspeakable crime,†both here at home and in nations abroad. If we do not defend life at its beginning at conception, then there is no life for us to develop and protect thereafter. It is the first right. Finally, as I have attempted to make clear all year, the ability of the Church to live fully its mission as Christ’s Church is directly infringed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ mandate requiring Church institutions to provide insurance coverage for contraceptives, sterilizations and abortion-inducing drugs. To date, there has been no change, solution or accommodation to the policy announced in January, thereby forcing Church institutions, and indeed all Catholic business owners, to provide reproductive services that violate our conscience. The Church’s charitable, educational and healthcare ministries are and continue to be clearly threatened by this draconian requirement that assaults our First Amendment rights as free citizens. However an individual votes this November, that decision will have a specific impact on religious liberty, which is the first freedom. As Catholics, we must recognize that the defense of religious liberty is necessary if we, as individuals and as a Church, are to preserve our ability to practice in our daily lives and in the public square all that we profess at Mass each Sunday. In the days ahead, please take a moment to visit our diocesan religious liberty webpage – www.arlingtondiocese.org/religiousliberty – where you can find all of my previous communications and other resources to help you. And, most importantly, I urge you to pray and have recourse to Our Lord and His Blessed Mother, especially under her title of “Mary, Help of Christians.†Faithfully in the Heart of Christ, Most Reverend Paul S. Loverde Bishop of Arlington Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dUSt Posted November 5, 2012 Author Share Posted November 5, 2012 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ (aka Phatmassers), It is almost time to vote and to make our choices for president and other political offices both local and national. You have often heard it said that this is a turning point in our country’s history and I could not agree more. The Church is not a political organism, but as you hopefully have learned in the US Bishops Faithful Citizenship material, the Church has the responsibility to speak out regarding moral issues, especially on those issues that impact the “common good†and the “dignity of the human person.†I would like to review some of the principles to keep in mind as you approach the voting booth to complete your ballot. The first is the set of non-negotiables. These are areas that are “intrinsically evil†and cannot be supported by anyone who is a believer in God or the common good or the dignity of the human person. They are: 1. abortion 2. euthanasia 3. embryonic stem cell research 4. human cloning 5. homosexual “marriage†These are intrinsically evil. “A well-formed Christian conscience does not permit one to vote for a political program that contradicts fundamental contents of faith and morals.†Intrinsically evil actions are those which have an evil object. In other words, an act is evil by its very nature and to choose an action of this type puts one in grave moral danger. But what does this have to do with the election? Some candidates and one party have even chosen some of these as their party’s or their personal political platform. To vote for someone in favor of these positions means that you could be morally “complicit†with these choices which are intrinsically evil. This could put your own soul in jeopardy. The other position to keep in mind is the protection of religious liberty. The recent aggressive moves by the government to impose the HHS mandate, especially the move to redefine religion so that religion is confined more and more to the four walls of the Church, is a dangerous precedent. This will certainly hurt the many health care services to the poor given by our Catholic hospitals. Our Catholic hospitals in the Diocese give millions of dollars per year in donated services to the poor. In the new plan, only Catholic people can be treated by Catholic institutions. It has never been our mission to be exclusive of those who are not of our faith. This mandate also places Catholic business owners in a very precarious position in that they, too, will have to pay for those medical “services†which violate Catholic teaching. This has never been the American way and now these moves and others by the present government, will significantly alter and marginalize the role of religious institutions in our society. These positions are indicators of a broader societal disposition to remove God from the public square and from any relation to society whatever. It is precisely religion and the free exercise thereof which has made this country great in the past. Many people in our Diocese are presently without work. Our Catholic Charities is serving more and more people who are unemployed or under employed and can barely keep up with the demands. Work is so critical to the family and to the sense of human dignity. An economy which does the most for the common good is an economy that works and provides people gainful employment for the country’s citizens. A government that works pays its bills and models for citizens what it means to be responsible and contributive. Let us pray for the electorate and let’s take action, that we may vote for good and moral leaders for this great country which will only remain great, if she continues to be and to do the good. Sincerely yours in Christ, The Most Reverend David L. Ricken Bishop of Green Bay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dUSt Posted November 6, 2012 Author Share Posted November 6, 2012 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ (aka Phatmassers), The Church affirms that all Catholics are called to prayerful and responsible participation in the political process. This means that Catholics who are eligible to vote should do so with a properly formed conscience and in accordance with Catholic moral teaching. For future voters, our youth, they should be encouraged to pray and study the Church’s position on key issues. Leading up to the election, each parish was given resources intended to highlight the Church’s Teaching on fundamental moral issues, which were to be made available to you. I have written letters to the faithful through the Florida Catholic on four crucial election issues, all of which should be utmost in the mind of the voter. Acknowledging that not all issues are of equal importance, the four identified are: protection of human life; promotion of traditional marriage and the family; the reaffirming of our religious liberty; and the defense of the poor and needy. For those wanting to read these letters, they are available on the Diocesan website. As your Bishop, it is my responsibility to teach what Holy Mother Church proclaims on moral issues; this is also true in the context of this upcoming election. Your vote not only has obvious political implications, but it is most profoundly a moral action. After all, the ultimate motive of voting is to give witness to the truth of God’s Law and to infuse our nation with Christian values. Faithfulness to the Teachings of Christ and His Church should always take precedence over mere personal or political affiliations. As we approach this election, pray for our country and for all elected leaders, that they will be open to the grace, wisdom, compassion, and justice of Our Lord. Pray also that Catholics will discern with a properly formed conscience, the moral decisions which God calls us to make. At the end of our lives, we will be asked to give an account of our actions. Let us not fall short on this critical occasion. I take this opportunity to extend to you my continued prayers and consideration. Sincerely Yours in Christ, + Frank J. Dewane Bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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