Open thread: The Health Care Debate

[Greetings from Torun, Poland where I am presenting at the College of Social and Media Culture's Second International Congress. Given what they do here, they have a very nice internet connection here so I can carry on with my blogging!]

So what's happening in the health care debate right now?

Sen. Harry Reid has released his 2,074 page health care bill into the Senate for debate (full text here).

Unlike the Stupak-amended Speaker Pelosi health care bill, Reid's Senate bill contains massive abortion funding. 

To be specific, it will levy a new "abortion premium" fee on Americans who participate in the government-run plan (yes, Reid has included the infamous "public option" in his version of the bill). 

This abortion premium structure was drafted by Rep. Lois Capps - a huge abortion advocate. It should come as no surprise that she has written an abortion tax into the bill.

Americans United for Life has detailed how Reid's bill funds abortions with American tax money, as well as problems it raises for conscience protection and end-of-life issues.

Bottom line: the US bishops have said Catholics must "vigorously oppose" any health care bill that contains abortion funding. The Reid bill contains abortion funding, therefore Catholics must tell their elected representatives that they vigorously oppose it. Here's one place to do that.

update:

In a speech on the Senate floor, Senator Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) emphasizes that every pro-life senator should cast a no vote on allowing the Senate to consider the Democrats health care reform bill, which would require at least one government-sponsored insurance plan to cover abortion and would allow taxpayer dollars to subsidize such plans. All it would take, Senator Johanns points out, to defeat public funding of abortion is for one pro-life Senate Democrat to stand up for his or her principles and vote no on considering the bill.

I'd like to see readers contribute the names of which Democrat Senators they think would be most likely to join pro-life Republicans in voting against this pro-abortion bill.

AmP presenting at international conference in Poland later this week

Tomorrow I will be boarding a plane for Poland, where I will be participating in the second international congress of the College of Social and Media Culture in Torun.

The theme of this congress is "Catholic Media in the World and in Poland: Chances and Threats."

I will be presenting on the topic "New Media in the US: Building a Culture of Life Online."

There will be presentations from Catholics engaged in media in Canada, Spain, Nigeria, England, Italy, Chile, Poland and Australia.

The other two presenters from the United States are Prof. Peter Redpath of Saint John's University in New York City, and Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ, the founder of Ignatius Press.

After the congress concludes, I will be spending some time in Ireland visiting friends who are studying there. I travelled around Ireland several years ago and cannot wait to return.

During my time away I should have sporadic access to the internet - and it is always a good idea while I am on the road to check my twitter feed for updates.

Upon my return, a long-planned and exciting announcement will be made - so stay tuned!

Papist Picture of the Day - 11/13/09

• New arch/bishops for Milwaukee and Fort Wayne-South Bend!
  
• Late-breaking: new bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend soon? 
  
• Unwritten story: New VA & NJ governors are strong Catholics
  
• Anti-Catholic: New mega-movie "2012" is directed by one
  
• Epic fail: LA Times claims fake catholic group's statement was issued by USCCB
  
• Silly: Forbes ranks Pope Benedict 11th most powerful person
  
• Video: Automatic holy water dispenser to avoid swine flu transmission
  
• Honor Roll: Bishops who supported traditional marriage in Maine
• Cool: Benedict XVI surfs the web and uses email!
• Wuerl's Gambit: Claims that Church's social services threatened by DC gay marriage
• Commentary: Is abortion funding a distraction, or not? 
  

No one dared challenge the pope to liturgical-musical chairs.

[Photo: AP Photo]

New arch/bishops for Milwaukee and Fort Wayne-South Bend!

With Vatican rumors, you win some, and you lose some.

I was right that a new bishop would be announced for Fort Wayne-South Bend today, and Rocco was right that a new one would be announced for Milwaukee as well.

I was wrong that Bishop D'Arcy's replacement would be Bishop Thomas Paprocki, an auxiliary bishop in Chicago. The Holy Spirit has other plans for him. 

I was right back in October to "put my money on" Bishop Jerome Listecki of La Crosse, WI to fill the vacancy in Milwaukee left by Archbishop Dolan's appointment to New York City. 

But of course, it's not about me - this is about rejoicing with the Catholics of Milwaukee and Fort Wayne-South Bend that they both now have wonderful and worthy successors of the apostles appointed to serve them.

From the USCCB announcement:

Pope Benedict XVI has named Bishop Jerome E. Listecki of La Crosse, Wisconsin, 60, as Archbishop of Milwaukee, and Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 51, as Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana.

Archbishop-designate Listecki was born in Chicago, March 12, 1949. He attended Quigley South High School, Loyola University, and St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, Mundelein, Illinois. He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Chicago in 1975, and named an Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago in 2000, and Bishop of La Crosse in 2004. He holds a Doctorate in Canon Law from the University of St. Thomas Aquinas and a Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Gregorian University, both in Rome.

The Archdiocese of Milwaukee has 4,758 square miles. It has a population of 2,303,859 people, with 643,775, or 26 per cent, of them Catholic.

[More information on the Milwaukee and La Crosse arch/diocesan websites.]

Bishop Rhoades was born November 26, 1957, in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania. He studied for the priesthood at St. Charles Seminary, Overbrook, Pennsylvania, and the Gregorian University and was ordained to the priesthood in 1983. He became rector of St. Mary’s Seminary, Emmitsburg, Maryland in 1997, and was named Bishop of Harrisburg in 2004. He holds Licentiates in Canon Law and Sacred Theology from the Gregorian University.

The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend has a population of 1,262,788 people, with 157,703, or 12 per cent, of them Catholic. [More information on the diocesan website.]

Whispers also has coverage.

Late-breaking: new bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend soon?

At the risk of crying "bishop!" one too many times, I'm being told this afternoon that Bishop John D'Arcy of the diocese of Fort Wayne - South Bend, Indiana has summoned the priests of his diocese for a "once in a generation" announcement tomorrow.

At a local Mass in the diocese celebrated today, the celebrant mentioned the rising rumors that the new appointment would be announced soon. 

Bishop D'Arcy himself admitted in a statement posted to the diocesan website this Wedesday that his successor "cannot be too far away." He spoke in a way that could suggest he already knows who that individual will be. 

Finally, Vatican-rumor blog Whispers in the Loggia noted a flurry of recent activity undertaken by Bishop D'Arcy, which would also imply that he is wrapping up the last of his unfinished business.

Saturday morning announcements of new bishops are not unheard of. Tomorrow will tell.

For the record, my bet is Bishop Thomas Paprocki, as it was over a month ago.

update: a local newspaper seems to confirm my claims, and Whispers thinks Milwaukee is due too.

Unwritten story: New VA & NJ governors are strong Catholics

On January 19th 2009 the new governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie, will be sworn-in to office at 11:30 AM.

But earlier that day, at 9:00 AM, he will attend a Mass celebrated by Archbishop John Myers at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart.

Chris Christie, you see, is a practicing pro-life, pro-family Catholic. I wrote in my posts leading up to the November elections as much. 

He opposes gay marriage and wants to allow the people of his state to vote on it, while on the other side, the Democrat Legislature is trying to legalize gay marriage during the upcoming lameduck session.

Christie is also pro-life, and didn't hide that fact during the race. Like many pro-life politicians, he is forced to take an incremental approach (such as parental notification, a 24-hour waiting period and a ban on partial-birth abortions), but at least he is sincerely trying.

Jon Corzine, Christie's opponent in the race, attached him for his pro-life, pro-family positions.

The other new governor to be sworn in early next year is Bob McDonnell, equally pro-life and pro-family (from what I've heard). McDonnell was ruthlessly and relentlessly attacked for his pro-life, pro-family positions, as was his attorney general candidate friend, Ken Cuccinelli (who also won, despite the Washington Post calling him a "bigot" the weekend before the election).

Remembering off the top of my head, the Washington Post alone published something like 40 or 50 individual stories about McDonnell's thesis in school, where, among other things, McDonnell expressed conservative and/or "Catholic" perspectives on the role of women in the work place, the effects of abortion and contraception on society, etc. 

I'm a bit fuzzy on all the details - and readers are welcome (as always) to correct them in the comment box - but the basic point is this: two Catholic candidates won elections this year to state-wide office without compromising their pro-life, pro-family principles. 

The world didn't end, and once they are in office, they won't conduct witch hunts against those who disagree with them on these issues - but they will use their office to promote these central values, which transcend any one religion or political party. Catholics aren't pro-life and pro-family, after all, only because the Church tells them to be so, but rather, they are encouraged to hold true to these commonsense principles because of the witness and encouragement of their Catholic faith.

You read a lot, and heard a lot about how dangerous were Christie and McDonnell's "Catholic" beliefs during the election, but you won't hear much about these "dangers" now, because in the meantime, the people of Virginia and New Jersey chose them for elected office.

I think this reality scares some pro-abortion, anti-marriage individuals. But it should encourage us.

Anti-Catholic: New mega-movie "2012" is directed by one

Like Matthew Archbold at Catholic Minority Report, "I'm a movie guy." So yes, I was mildly interested in the new movie coming out this weekend "2012". 

Mr. Archbold, however, has noticed something, er, a bit odd about the subject matter for many of the scenes in the movie's trailer - how many Catholic icons/people do you see get destroyed?

Matthew caught at least six, and that got him searching on Google:

Roland Emmerich, the director, is, according to numerous sources, openly gay and an activist liberal. But hey, it's Hollywood, who isn't?

I wondered if this guy has some sort of distaste for things Catholic. And darn it but what do I find? I warn you this is kinda weird.

In a closet in his house, Mr. Emmerich has a statue of Pope John Paul II laughing while reading his own obituary. That's right. Pope John Paul II. In a closet. Laughing while reading his own obituary. You don't believe me, right? Well, look and see.

Matthew uncovered more truly bazaar stuff about Emmerich, which I'll leave up to you to find out. But it's pretty clear: this twisted individual has decided to bankroll his Church-destroying fantasies on a big Hollywood budget. Let's not help him defray his costs.

Besides, it's scoring in the low 30's on movie meta-review website Rotten Tomatoes, so it's not like you're missing out on the movie of the year or anything.

Epic fail: LA Times claims fake catholic group's statement was issued by USCCB

Memo to the Los Angeles Times: fire Kim Geiger, and fire her editor while you are at it.

The Catholic News Agency has identified this article published five days ago by the Los Angeles Times which falsely attributes two quotes authored by the fake "catholic" group Catholics United to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. 

As of this writing, the error is still uncorrected on their website. Did the entire staff decide to take a vacation? 

This mistake is either laziness or manipulation on the part of the author, and to such a serious degree as to warrant a correction and an apology, and soon.

The error is also disturbing because it plays into the propensity of some news outlets to create/allow confusion over what is the true position of the US bishops on this sensitive and critical issue of health care reform. 

On the day of the health care debate last weekend I pointed out that the website Politico, which is very popular among DC political operatives and hill staffers, had misleading blog posts and a misleading cover story/headline for the majority of the day, claiming that the US bishops had "signed off" on PelosiCare. 

The danger here was that hill staffers would relay the misleading information they read on Politico to their bosses who would then go to vote on the floor thinking that the US bishops had signed off on health care reform in the format it was being voted on at that time, when in actual fact the bishops still opposed it.

In any case, an error of this magnitude should simply be corrected, and immediately.

The LATimes author can be contacted at kgeiger@latimes.com. {update - her email address has apparently been disabled or her inbox is full. - you can still email their complaints department readers.rep@latimes.com}

[Get Religion has also blogged on this boondoggle.]

Oh, and for the record, Chris Korzen and all his buddies at Catholics United, Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good, and Catholics for Choice are a bunch of self-serving, duplicitous parasites and I'll be happy to debate their campaign of distortions and misinformation any time someone wants to sponsor it. I say this with all charity because it's the truth. They are paid to confuse and deceive Catholics and they should be ashamed for it.

Here's a taste of what Chris and his allies are up to - and it's not serving the Church.

Silly: Forbes ranks Pope Benedict 11th most powerful person

Ranked directly ahead of Italian Prime Minister (and full-time buffoon) Silvio Berlusconi and right behind richest-man-in-the-world Bill Gates, Forbes profiles Pope Benedict:

"Spiritual leader is highest earthly authority for 1 billion souls, or about one-sixth of planet's population; runs Catholic Church, world's oldest, largest multinational. A staunch traditionalist, unbending on reproductive matters, yet conservatism comforting to many."

Actually, the pope is the highest human spiritual authority for Catholics on this earth (not counting Jesus, duh).

Well, if the pope had a hard time impressing Stalin (who famously asked, "how many divisions does the pope have?"), it's no surprise that Forbes can't even place the pope in the top 10.

Video: Automatic holy water dispenser to avoid swine flu transmission

I think this is completely overblown:

Really?? Holy water fonts are high transmission zones?!

Honor Roll: Bishops who supported traditional marriage in Maine

I've written before about the hard-fought battle won for traditional marriage in Maine earlier this month, with significant Catholic assistance.

Tim Drake at NCRegister has the numbers of the top dioceses which supported the Maine efforts financially {and I have added the names of the cardinal or arch/bishop in each diocese}:

Maine released its campaign finance filings, showing contributors to the Diocese of Portland’s successful effort to prevent the legalization of same-sex “marriage.”

According to the campaign finance records, nearly five dozen dioceses and bishops made financial contributions to the effort. Among the largest donations were $50,000 donations from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the Diocese of Phoenix. 

Here is the list of the Top 12 Dioceses That Contributed to Support Marriage:

Phoenix         $50,000 - Bishop Thomas Olmsted

Philadelphia     $50,000 - Justin Cardinal Rigali

St. Louis         $10,000 - Archbishop Robert Carlson

Kansas City, Kan.  $10,000 - Archbishop Joseph Naumann

Newark         $10,000 - Archbishop John Myers

Providence       $10,000 - Bishop Thomas Tobin

Youngstown     $10,000 - Bishop George Murry

Fall River         $5,000 - Bishop George Coleman

Rockford         $5,000 - Bishop Thomas Doran

Crookston       $5,000 - Bishop Michael Hoeppner

Pittsburgh         $5,000 - Bishop David Zubik

Arlington         $5,000 - Bishop Paul Loverde

To see the entire list of campaign contributors, visit here.

Quite frankly, these are bishops who put their financial resources and personal reputations on the line to defend traditional marriage in this country. Traditional marriage is not a popular issue to defend these days. Just look at the attacks that have been aimed at the Mormons since Proposition 8 passed in California.

If you live in one of these dioceses (or another diocese that donated, but a lesser sum), please consider contacting your bishop and briefly expressing your gratitude to him.

I can guarantee these bishops will get angry letters (or worse) from individuals on the opposite side of this issue. 

The St. Louis Catholic blog, for example, has already detailed the case of the local Saint Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper attacking Archbishop Robert Carlson for supporting the efforts of his brother bishop in Maine to protect marriage. (The Archdiocese has issued a short statement in response here.)

Also, please continue to show your support for the local bishop in Maine, Bishop Richard Malone. 

I'm sure he is getting the brunt of their anger.

Cool: Benedict XVI surfs the web and uses email!

Or should I say, totally cool:

The president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, shared this week that the Holy Father has an appreciation for new developments in technology and is comfortable surfing the internet and using email.

During an interview with the program “Studio Aperto” on the Italia 1 TV network, Archbishop Celli added, while the Pope doesn't have a personal email address, he “sends his own personal emails. He does! He has great appreciation for new technology.”

The archbishop explained that while the Pope “cannot respond to the millions of messages that arrive in his inbox,” he is committed to “offering his prayers for all who write to him.”

“The internet is an excellent means of communication,” he continued. “We are seeking to be present where the people are, especially the youth.” (CNA)

I wonder if the Pope reads AmP?!

To my knowledge, we still don't have a picture of Pope Benedict using a computer.

John Paul II preferred Dell laptops (with some papal customization, of course):

Totally 1337.

Wuerl's Gambit: Claims that Church's social services threatened by DC gay marriage

There is a showdown taking place in Washington DC between the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and the liberal DC City Council over new efforts to redefine marriage in the District.

I have blogged before about Archbishop Wuerl's decision to actively engage the resources of the local Church on this issue.

The Washington Post has coverage today on the latest salvo fired by representatives of the Archdiocese, claiming that if the gay marriage bill is approved, the Catholic Church may be forced to cease providing its numerous social services in the area.

[As an aside - we should be wary of the objectivity of the WaPo's coverage. This is the same publication, after all, that only a couple weeks ago called Catholic attorney general candidate Ken Cuccinelli a "bigot" and an "embarrassment" for his personal views about homosexual acts. Well, Ken still won the election, and the WaPo has yet to apologize.]

Anyway, I'd rather trust what the Archdiocese of DC has said itself about the issue in its press release, which points out that in this situation, it is the DC council that is acting as the aggressor - the council have made changes to the language of the bill which render it even more harmful to the free practice of religious entities in the District:

"... [as the bill is currently written,] religious organizations and individuals are at risk of legal action for refusing to promote and support same-sex marriages in a host of settings where it would compromise their religious beliefs. This includes employee benefits, adoption services and even the use of a church hall for non-wedding events for same-sex married couples. Religious organizations such as Catholic Charities could be denied licenses or certification by the government, denied the right to offer adoption and foster care services, or no longer be able to partner with the city to provide social services for the needy."

“It is our concern that the committee’s narrowing of the religious exemption language will cause the government to discontinue our long partnership with them and open up the agency to litigation and the use of resources to defend our religious beliefs rather than serve the poor,” said Edward Orzechowski, president/CEO of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington. Catholic Charities serves 68,000 people in the city each year. The city’s 40 Catholic parishes operate another 93 social service programs to provide crucial services."

The same press release invites folks to visit www.MarriageMattersDC.org for more information.

This threat isn't small potatoes. Though I do not have the time at present to hunt down all the related links and news stories, regular AmP readers will recall that the Catholic Church's social services have been shut down over issues related to gay marriage and adoption legislation (notably in Boston and San Francisco) before. It's a disturbing trend.

I'm also trying to track down parallel stories of religious organizations being forced to shut down their charitable organizations due to harassment for "discrimination" against homosexuals. This sort of thing has happened before but typically it does not receive much mainstream media attention. If you know of cases please send them to me.

update: Get Religion's analysis of the reporting by WaPo is once again a very useful contribution.

update 2: I also recommend reading Chuck Donovan over at Heritage for more context.

Commentary: Is abortion funding a distraction, or not?

Back when abortion funding was in the health care reform bill (protestations from the White House to the contrary notwithstanding), President Obama told Katie Couric that the abortion issue was a "distraction" from his larger project to promote health care reform. 

Rep. Patrick Kennedy later attacked the US Catholic bishops for using the "red herring" of abortion funding to oppose the overarching "pro-life" goals of health care reform (mark my words: it's going to be one of the biggest mistakes of his political career).

The message of both the White House and Democrat leadership was clear: to get hung up on the abortion issue, they claimed, was to needlessly fritter away precious time at the grave human expense of those without medical insurance. Pro-life Democrats and their Republican allies were holding health care reform "hostage" over abortion, it was said.

Then, two things happened. First, Rep. Bart Stupak's eleventh-hour abortion-neutrality amendment passed with the support of 64 Democrats. A couple days later, forty Democrats reportedly wrote to Speaker Pelosi threatening to vote "no" on a final bill unless the Stupak amendment is stripped in conference. They are, essentially, threatening to hold health care reform "hostage" over abortion.

Reporters, pundits and talking heads, meanwhile, are all buzzing about this new battle over abortion funding. It's the talk of the town. Legislation which advances the abortion agenda is evidently a non-starter, but arguments over the legitimacy of attempts to preserve the status quo - now that's something to talk about.

(Random aside: Chris Matthews in particular spent a lengthy segment on his program Hardball discussing the abortion funding problem with Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards. I had to raise my eyebrows when Matthews, discussing the abortion disagreement, asked Richards: "Can you cut this in half?" Her response was chilling to all King Solomon fans: "Sure.")

But what does all this new buzz about abortion funding have in common?

No one is saying this debate about abortion funding is a "distraction" or "red herring."

I, for one, welcome this newly-discovered common ground.

[cross-posted at the American Principles Project blog.]

Papist Picture of the Day - 11/11/09

• AmP Speaker of the Month: Janet Smith
  
• Offbeat: Vatican sponsors conference on extraterrestrial life - Alien reunification imminent?
• Commentary: A tale of two nun organizations
  

"Hey! D'ya mind, God? It's kind of hard to co-consecrate in a downpour!"

[Photo: AP Photo]

AmP Speaker of the Month: Janet Smith

This is my contribution to Fallible Blogma's Support a Catholic Speaker initiative.

Dr. Janet E. Smith is the world's leading lay authority on the Church's teaching about contraception and related moral issues.

In addition to her full-time teaching responsibilities at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Dr. Smith is a tireless world traveler on behalf of promoting the fullness of the Church's teaching on issues of sexuality, virtue ethics, and bioethics.

Over a million copies of her talk, "Contraception: Why Not" have been distributed. The apostolate One More Soul offers a free copy of her talk on CD here. You can also read the text of one of her talks here.

I have been privileged to have taken classes she has taught, and have been honored to have worked for her. She has a warm, engaging personality that compliments a dazzling intellect and a deep passion for rigorous debate in pursuit of the truth.

To contact Dr. Smith about having her speak for your parish, conference or event, email "endowedchairsasst@shms.edu". 

Her schedule tends to be very busy so please give her as much advanced notice as possible.

Offbeat: Vatican sponsors conference on extraterrestrial life - Alien reunification imminent?

A series of study sessions this week on the topic of astrobiology sponsored by the Vatican Observatory and the Pontifical Academy of Sciences is drawing all sorts of silly speculation and headlines in the mainstream press - everything from "Does Jesus save aliens?" to "ET calls the pope?"

The Catholic News Service story provides a fairly sober analysis of what was actually discussed in the meetings. 

And for those seriously interested in the theological implications of extraterrestrial life, the senior apologist at Catholic Answers Live, Jimmy Akin, has actually spent a good deal of time thinking about the subject. Maybe drop him an email.

Commentary: A tale of two nun organizations

I haven't been watching the Vatican visitation of women religions in the United States very closely.

I do, however, have a fixation on numbers and statistics, so this email forwarded to me caught my eye this morning.

You see, in the mainstream media, it is often claimed that the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) represents 95% of women religious  in the United States. 

This is disconcerting, because the LCWR doesn't exactly always agree with Rome.

This email from a sister at the other organization which represents women religious in the U.S. (The Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious - CMSWR), paints a slightly different picture:

The LCWR represents approximately 80% of women religious in the USA. CMSWR represents 20% (about 10,000 women religious). We represent 80% of new vocations; LCWR 20% of new vocations.

I don't trade stocks on the market, but even I know a smart buy when I see one. Talk about expanding market share.

Papist Picture of the Day - 11/10/09

• Fireworks: Bishop Tobin escalates episcopal correction of Rep. Kennedy 
  
• Outrageous: Rep. Lynn Woolsey says IRS should scrutinize bishops
• Update: Everything you never wanted to know about the health care debate
• Amazing: Newborn babies cry with their mother's accent
• Action: Halt same-sex marriage in New York
• Video: Fr. Benedict Groeschel's 50th Anniversary
• Video: Planned Parenthood describes watching abortion ultrasound    
  

... and then, your holiness, I heard this voice say ZUUL!!!

[Photo: Reuters]

Fireworks: Bishop Tobin escalates episcopal correction of Rep. Kennedy

Congressman Kennedy picked the wrong Bishop to mess with.

The back-and-forth between Congressman Patrick Kennedy and Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence, RI has been interesting to watch, especially because Kennedy has attempted to defend himself with every old, tired argument in the liberal playbook.

Bishop Tobin's most recent round, however, published in the Rhode Island Catholic newspaper, is a grand slam.

Because I'm a spoiler, I'm going to quote the last part of Bishop Tobin's public letter to Kennedy - but you should take the time and read the whole thing:

"Your rejection of the Church’s teaching on abortion falls into a different category – it’s a deliberate and obstinate act of the will; a conscious decision that you’ve re-affirmed on many occasions. Sorry, you can’t chalk it up to an “imperfect humanity.” Your position is unacceptable to the Church and scandalous to many of our members. It absolutely diminishes your communion with the Church.

Congressman Kennedy, I write these words not to embarrass you or to judge the state of your conscience or soul. That’s ultimately between you and God. But your description of your relationship with the Church is now a matter of public record, and it needs to be challenged. I invite you, as your bishop and brother in Christ, to enter into a sincere process of discernment, conversion and repentance. It’s not too late for you to repair your relationship with the Church, redeem your public image, and emerge as an authentic “profile in courage,” especially by defending the sanctity of human life for all people, including unborn children. And if I can ever be of assistance as you travel the road of faith, I would be honored and happy to do so."

Next step: official censure or excommunication. Rep. Kennedy has now been publicly rebuked and invited to convert and offer repentance.

Mr. Kennedy, stop while you're behind. Repent, and be reconciled. You're out of other options.

Unfortunately, at this point, Mr. Kennedy has broken off his planned meeting with Bishop Tobin. Whatever Kennedy may be thinking, that's not the right way to set things right.

Outrageous: Rep. Lynn Woolsey says IRS should scrutinize bishops

My new least favorite person - Rep. Lynn Woolsey writes in Politico:

"I expect political hardball on any legislation as important as the health care bill. I just didn’t expect it from the United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

Who elected them to Congress?

The role the bishops played in the pushing the Stupak amendment, which unfairly restricts access for low-income women to insurance coverage for abortions, was more than mere advocacy.

They seemed to dictate the finer points of the amendment, and managed to bully members of Congress to vote for added restrictions on a perfectly legal surgical procedure.

And this political effort was subsidized by taxpayers, since the Council enjoys tax-exempt status.

When I visit churches in my district, we are very careful to keep everything “non-political” to protect their tax-exempt status.

The IRS is less restrictive about church involvement in efforts to influence legislation than it is about involvement in campaigns and elections.

Given the political behavior of USCCB in this case, maybe it shouldn’t be."

Rory Cooper at the Heritage Foundation has a very good response to Woolsey.

I wonder how Catholics who are represented by Woolsey feel about her attacking their Church?

update - John Pitney with a lesson from history:

Of course, Representative Woolsey is not the first Democrat to object to legislative advocacy by the clergy. Here is another:

"It is an attempt to establish a theocracy to take charge of our politics and our legislation. It is an attempt to make the legislative power of this country subordinate to the church. It is not only to unite Church and State, but it is to put the State in subordination to the dictates of the church."

That was Senator Stephen A. Douglas (D., Ill.), on March 14, 1854. He was talking about an anti-slavery petition.

Update: Everything you never wanted to know about the health care debate

For those of you who just want to know what is going on in this new chapter of the health care debate, I'll summarize the two important points before filling-in the back story below:

1. The health care bill that was passed last Saturday wasn't as bad as it could have been, thanks in no small part to the vigorous efforts of Catholic bishops and faithful
2. ... but, this process has a long, long way to go. And we have to remain vigilant that the small concessions we have gained are not given up in the legislative rumble and tumble to come.

Now, all the confusing details....

Planned Parenthood, incensed that moderate Democrats joined Republicans in support the abortion-neutral Stupak amendment, are attempting to use their "strongest weapon - the White House." The Family Research Council is correct that the passage of the Stupak amendment was "a stunning rebuke of [the Planned Parenthood] agenda in an arena they traditionally dominate." It's no surprise they are trying to go over the heads in Congress now.

Pro-aborts love point out "fractures" in the pro-life community, but they are definitely engaging in some serious squabbling at this point. If anyone had any doubts about Rosa DeLauro's pro-abortion ideology, it's completely in the open now. Don't trust her "pro-life compromise" bills. The only thing she wants to compromise is the pro-life movement. 

And to encourage unity on our side, let's be clear - passing the Stupak amendment did not play into the hands of pro-abortion Democrats trying to pass their health care bill, as John McCormack explains.

President Obama, for his part, was asked yesterday about these recent developments, and his response was mostly worthless. On the one hand he said this is "a health care bill, not an abortion bill," but he also hinted that he thought changes needed to be made to the bill's current language - so who knows. 

Timothy Gibbs, his spokesman, certainly isn't any help in establishing the President's position on this issue. Once again, his attempts to gratify both pro-abortion and pro-life forces has resulted in his angering and frustrating both sides. But right now our side is faring slightly better.

Meanwhile, the most immediate danger is that the abortion-neutral Stupak amendment will be stripped in conference. In a letter to Nancy Pelosi, 41 Democrats demanded that she strip the abortion-neutral language before it passed out of the House. One democrat is "confident" and "working very hard" to ensure that the final bill is pro-abortion. Jack Smith at the Catholic Key argues that Pelosi does not have enough votes to pass the final bill.

As for the Senate - the next battlefield over health care, faces many of the abortion problems that plagued the House version of the bill. Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska appears to be willing to take over the mantle of Bart Stupak and introduce an abortion-neutral amendment into the Senate version of health care.

Cardinal George of the US Bishops conference has promised to remain "vigilant and involved throughout this entire process." You can count on my watching it closely.

For those interested in the technical side of things, the National Right to Life Committee has good resources online, updated with frequency and detail. 

Amazing: Newborn babies cry with their mother's accent

I love picking up stories that reveal the humanity of unborn babies. 

I've blogged before about the scientific studies which reveal that babies begin forming memories in the womb.

Now a new study shows that babies, even before they are born, are learning how to talk just like their mothers sound. 

Look at the extract of the scientific findings:

"In the first days of their lives, French infants already cry in a different way to German babies...

In this study, the scientists compared recordings of 30 French and 30 German infants aged between two and five days old. While the French newborns more frequently produced rising crying tones, German babies cried with falling intonation.

The reason for this is presumably the differing intonation patterns in the two languages, which are already perceived in the uterus and are later reproduced."

Or to put it in simple English: before they are even born, babies start learning from their mommies.

Amazing.

Action: Halt same-sex marriage in New York

update - it appears that gay marriage proponents decided not to introduce their measure in the senate meeting today. Great work, papists! Thank you for defending traditional marriage in the state of New York!

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As I wrote late last week, Governor Patterson may try to bring gay marriage to a vote TODAY.

Edward Mechmann (who blogs for the archdiocese of New York) gives AmP readers some tips:

Please visit the NYS Catholic Conference Catholic Advocacy Network or the National Organization for Marriage to send emails to the NYS legislature.  

Thanks for taking a few moments to contact your state reps!

Video: Fr. Benedict Groeschel's 50th Anniversary

AmP Reader Joseph explains: 

"If you love the poor your life will be filled with sunlight and at the hour of your death, you will not be afraid" Father Benedict Groeschel CFR

Many times the main stream media reports on the minority of priests, who have fallen from grace. Above is a youtube clip documenting the priesthood of Father Benedict Groeschel CFR from New York City.

Father Benedict was responsible for leading a new order of Franciscans in the New York Metropolitan area to care for the poor and destitute. Take a look at it and see what one good priest can do and how his ministry can effect so many over a 50 year period."