Bishop McElroy warns against ‘weaponization of Eucharist’ by denying Joe Biden Communion over abortion
"I do not see how depriving the president or other political leaders of Eucharist based on their public policy stance can be interpreted in our society as anything other than the weaponization of Eucharist and an effort not to convince people by argument and by dialogue and by reason, but, rather, to pummel them into submission on the issue," Bishop McElroy said.
"It would be very destructive. It would also cast the [U.S. bishops] conference more significantly into the role of being partisan, as being associated with one party rather than the other."
It seems to me that weaponizing the Eucharist is just the logical corollary to weaponizing the abortion issue by making it the "pre-eminent issue" which is another way of saying it is the only issue that matters. Bishop McElroy was unable to get the bishops to back off that position before the election when he attempted to include language from Pope Francis which would have included other issues.
However another participant in this symposium made a better point.
"Denying Communion -- there is a reason why throughout history the church hasn't done this. Why it isn't done around the world. Why almost no Catholic dioceses do this. It seems to me to be logically inappropriate, a disaster and counterproductive," Carr said.
He illustrated a situation: "You try to keep your kids close to the church your whole life, you try to get them to Mass and Communion and (they) say, 'If President Biden can't go to Communion because he's pro-choice, I can't go to Communion. ... I'm not going to church.' This is not where we want to draw this line."
Yes do we really want people who practice contraception or believe that women should be ordained priests decide that they can't go to communion and therefore there is little reason for them to go to church. Of course many conservative Catholics may think that such people shouldn't go to communion and should find a church that agrees with them. I think those Catholics are essentially sectarian and schismatic, that is they want a church of only people like themselves, the "saints" rather than the church of sinners that Christ came to save.
Jack, sorry, I must have posted my vaccine post simultaneously with yours. I'll be back to comment in a little while.
ReplyDeleteHow are these matters handled in other countries? For instance Canada's laws governing abortions are similar to ours on the federal level, with varying degrees in the provinces. What do their bishops say? Or European countries, some of which have quite liberal laws. I assume there are pro-choice politicians there.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Bishop McElroy that weaponizing the Eucharist is destructive. I recognize that some would consider it a necessary bit of discipline and am aware of the theology behind it. I just don't agree with it.
A thought experiment, what would have happened if Biden has said at the time of the primaries that he intended to leave the Hyde Amendment and the Mexico City policy in place, and that he would push for more restrictive laws? I'm pretty sure he wouldn't have been the Democratic candidate, maybe Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren would have been. Two possible outcomes of that; we'd be in the same place we are now, or we'd be stuck with Trump again (the more likely outcome).
Re denying communion to Canadian politicians: https://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/politicians-and-the-church-the-ndps-charlie-angus-knows-how-justin-trudeau-feels
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DeleteYikes, it sounds like the Canadian bishops are more hard-core than ours. Maybe they're trying to channel Gregory VII at Canossa: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_to_Canossa
DeleteTried to make that a link, but lately link forming in comments hasn't been working.
In Jean's link above, it is informative that the pressure from the bishops didn't succeed in changing the politicians' position. All it did was cause problems for their families, and alienate some other Catholics.
DeleteTo be clear, I believe that people should choose not to have abortions, and that their families and society need to support them in choosing life. And if they are not able or willing to be parents, that they should choose adoption. But making abortion a political and ecclesial football doesn't help them do these things.
DeleteIf they push it, they may well accelerate the course to irrelevancy and find themselves in the position that Quebec is in.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2021/01/26/catholic-church-quebec-parish-reorganization-239826
When I was in college at the time of Vatican II, the whole focus was on the issues of Nuclear War and Civil Rights. The Cuban Missile crises occurred when I was a freshman. It was followed by John XXIII encyclical Pacem in Terris. Vatican II’s emphasis upon the laity as the people of God diverted the idealism of many of us who had thought about the priesthood and religious life into the Peace Corps, Civil Rights, and then opposition to the Vietnam War.
ReplyDeleteThere was a small group on campus, led by a priest, who were interested in the abortion issue. But with nuclear catastrophe possible, the escalating war in Vietnam, and a baby boom on the way in our high schools, abortion appeared more like the issue of divorce (something that a good Catholic didn’t do) but not something for others to be concerned about. The pre-eminent issues were the Cold War, poverty, and civil rights. There was a progressive Catholic consensus on these issues led by people like Hesburgh, Merton and Day; the hierarchy kind of followed with eventual Bishops statements on the Economy and Nuclear Warfare that earned the ire of Catholic Conservatives like Bill Buckley. The Bishops even tried to write a statement on Women in the Church which was nixed by Rome.
With the advent of JP2 the scene was set for the a conservative reaction in American Church to put doctrine, discipline and abortion as the pre-eminent issues ahead of the emphasis on renewed liturgy, peace and social justice that had dominated the immediate post Vatican II era. The progressive bishops that had been appointed by Paul VI were replaced by conservative bishops who had pledge to not allow married priests and women priests. The conservative wind out of Rome was accompanied by growth of businessmen and conservative laymen influence both here and in Rome.
So there is a de facto schism in the American Church, essentially started by JP2’s appointment of conservative bishops and now accelerated by Francis appointment of liberal bishops and his endorsement of the liberal icons of MLK, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. So the American Bishops and American Catholics face a very difficult task into putting together a united front.
This is fun. Fr. David Fulton from Someplace in Nebraska, who doesn't sound like he knows enough to pour piss out of a boot, talks about exorcising the demon Baphomet from Congress: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vFZOPdaL2E&feature=emb_logo
ReplyDeleteJean, oh yeah. This guy has three small parishes, one of which is about 40 miles down the road from us. I call him "the archbishop's migraine". Read all about him, here:
Deletehttps://omaha.com/news/state-and-regional/nebraska-priest-who-said-he-performed-exorcism-at-u-s-capitol-apologizes-explains-actions/article_d1ac92a0-64ac-11eb-b76e-33d6fc697f99.html
He was actually stationed in our town, in the early 2000's. I didn't know him (he was at another parish) but my husband met him a few times. Apparently he wasn't quite so weird back then, it was shortly after he was ordained. Just looking at his assignments, he has had six in 18 years, which is a lot. He has seemingly caused a lot of problems where he is now, having gone sort of " radical traditionalist". People have wondered why the archbishop doesn't send someone else. The answer to that is that there isn't anyone else. They are spread so thin now that the only way to get someone else is to consolidate more parishes. Which will probably happen.
The guy presents a problem for Christians. What do you do with someone who doesn't fit in, but is very sincere, and isn't a sex offender or other crimes, the main thing thing he is is a pain in the ass? If past is prologue, what I predict his next assignment will be, will be "pulpit supply". We can put up with anybody if it's only for a weekend or two.
"very sincere and isn't a sex offender ..."
DeleteWell, we certainly have lowered the bar for clergy. Don't forget the all-important fact that he is an unmarried man.
Well, the RCC has been shooting itself in the foot ever since JPII. So they can’t be very picky about who they accept to the priesthood.
ReplyDeleteThe standards for the clergy have declined across denominations. The prestige of the occupation has fallen, and the people who are recruited come with far poorer backgrounds, e.g. in terms of being in their cradle denomination, from families are who practicing, fine educations, etc. And a lot of them enter ministry to solve their own personal problems.
ReplyDeleteThe RCC is not the only denomination that has a clergy shortage. In most denominations the clergy shortage occurs because clergy do not want to take undesirable locations, e.g. inner city and rural parishes. In the USA we have a lot of religious order priests who could take parishes but don't see that as their vocation.
A married clergy would not necessarily help our priest shortage because a lot of those men would not like to raise families in rural areas or the inner city.
On the other hand if we ordained women religious, it is likely that many of them would serve in those undesirable locations. In fact a lot of them are probably serving in such locations now.
"And a lot of them enter ministry to solve their own personal problems." I think that is sometimes true. It may have been true of the priest we were talking about above.
DeleteIt is worth noting that previously to his coming to the parish down the road from us, there had been a much-loved older priest who had been the pastor there for many years, and who died. Since he was up in years and had some physical challenges, lay people and deacons had done much of the work in the parish. So I'm sure that it must have struck the wrong note to have someone come in and basically say, "It's my way or the highway." It shouldn't have been surprising when many people chose the highway; either to the next town, or just "out".
At the same time we recognize that standards may have fallen, we have to remember that some saints, such as Solanus Casey, didn't meet the standards accepted at the time. God works in mysterious ways..
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