AmP interviewed in DC Catholic Living Examiner

I enjoyed the questions posed by Denise Hunnell.

Maybe you will enjoy my answers. :-)

My interview in Catholic World Report...

... is online now:

Thomas Peters is the owner of the popular Catholic insider blog American Papist, which recently received its two millionth visitor. Peters has attracted a large audience by regularly giving readers smart, quick news and analysis of all things Catholic: from papal appointments to scandals to new ministries. Peters talked with CWR about blogging, Notre Dame, Barack Obama, and the “Papist Picture of the Day.”

[Read my interview with Jeremy Lott.]

And poke around the revamped CWR website while you're at it.

Boston Globe mentions AmP

In the February 12th edition:

"A variety of conservative Catholic bloggers are suddenly thrilled with an institution they often deride. "Hope for Boston College," was the headline used by Kelly Clark, who blogs under the name "The Lady in the Pew." And Thomas Peters, who blogs as "the American Papist," wrote "Catholic stuff in a Catholic school?! What a radical concept . . . Now wait for the protest." - Michael Paulson, "Catholic symbols stir diverse feelings at BC" (Paulson explores the topic further on his blog, Articles of Faith.)

There has been a protest, in fact. Has anyone heard more?

update: "Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston is praising Boston College's president, the Rev. William P. Leahy, for the installation of crucifixes and Christian icons in all of the Jesuit university's classrooms." [More.]

Audio: My interview on Kresta in the Afternoon

Yesterday I was interviewed by Al Kresta on Ave Maria Radio on the topic of the Maciel Scandal.

You can listen to the MP3 here (jump to the middle of the show) and subscribe to Kresta's podcast here.

Thanks to producer Nick Thomm for setting up the interview. Do stop by his blog for a needful reason.

Of Al Kresta's many books, Why Do Catholics Genuflect? is my favorite, though I've also been meaning to read Moments of Grace: Inspiring Stories from Well-Known Catholics when I get a chance.

On the Al Krest radio show at 5:30 EST

You can listen live here on Ave Maria Radio's website. I'll be discussing the Maciel scandal.

CNA picks up my report on Legion head Mass

And does a good job of summarizing my observations. Read it if you don't want to slog through my full version.

Opposing Views on voting for pro-abortion politicians

{update: this debate is now live and the post below has been updated to reflect it...}

I've been invited to contribute to the Opposing Views website by their editorial staff.

OV strives to "encourage intelligent, thoughtful discussion where all viewpoints are respected", and has been featured in the New York Times and republished on FoxNews.com.

I've posed the question: "Can Catholics Vote For Pro-Choice Politicians?"

I take the "No" position, and mention the (rare) exceptions where Catholics might vote for a pro-choice politician in this argument. I've also written:

• What have the Bishops Said Recently?
• My Reason for Answering "No" is *Not* Partisan
• A Brief Comparison of Platforms Through Catholic Eyes

Joining me in the "No" position are authors from The Catholic Thing, and Deal Hudson.

Taking the "Yes" position are Chris Korzen of Catholics United, Jon O'Brien of Catholics for a Free Choice, and Catholic Democrats. Pro-Life Pro-Obama evidently declined the invitation.

I would urge you to consider joining the debate. You can post your own comments, vote in their poll and let other users know which side you agree with. I hope that when third parties see the discussion, they at least come away knowing that many Catholics are faithful to the teaching and witness of the Church on this important question.

AmP quoted first in NCR article on Catholic blogging

This article ("No blog is an island -- A guide to the Catholic blogosphere") was published on the 19th, but I didn't notice it until now. I don't really keep track of the National Catholic Reporter, except for John Allen.

Let me say at the outset that I bear no ill will towards its author, Patrick Gallagher, with whom I enjoyed a fruitful correspondence as he wrote the article. I do, however, have some substantial disagreements with his assessment of the Catholic blogosphere, and I have made no secret about my opinion of NCR's editorial bias in general.

One of my first disagreements: Catholic blogs certainly have more than a "modest" impact. Bishops read them. You read them. The service that Catholic blogs provide indirectly, if not directly, serves the life of the Church and our common service to the truth as internet witnesses and active participants in the battlefield of ideas.

One of my biggest disagreements with the article:

"A majority of Catholic blogs are “traditional” or “orthodox,” resisting changes in the church since the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) and seeking a restoration of pre-Vatican II liturgy, architecture and common devotions."

Especially considering the next lines refer to me and this blog, I can't help presume I'm being described above:

Frequently, these blogs are also politically conservative. Thomas Peters of “The American Papist,” a blog celebrating the pope and reporting on and analyzing Vatican happenings, speaks for many of these bloggers when he says, “I blog because I believe that the truth is fundamentally on our side.”

There's plenty to respond to here, so I'll take it point-by-point, in order:

• "traditional" and "orthodox" do not mean rejecting Vatican II, it means (at minimum) rejecting the false implementation of Vatican II which were contrary to its letter and spirit. It means embracing V2.
• "traditional" and "orthodox" Catholics may seek a "restoration of pre-Vatican II liturgy, architecture and common devotions" because in many cases they were falsely tossed aside in the first place and as a result the authentic continuity that was always intended to remain was severed. And you know who else seems to favor a restoration of these forgotten treasures? Pope Benedict XVI.
• While it is true that the majority of positions and candidates I find myself admiring, and which I believe represent in general a more prudent application of Catholic social teaching than the alternatives, could be descibed as "conservative," I dislike this straitjacket term and generally find that it ends up confusing more than enlightening my readers. But this isn't a major sticking point.
• My full response when asked "Why do you blog" was this: "I blog because I believe that truth is fundamentally on our side. Whether one is providing information or debating contrary views, blogging is a wonderful way of testifying to the truths of the faith. It also puts you in touch with a wider audience of Catholics, Christians and non-Christians. Online "communities" have been made possible by the Internet, and this new territory urgently needs missionaries. If I can serve it that capacity, so much the better." I think that sounds a bit more full and less "triumphalist." But oh well, I don't retreat from the claims made in my first statement in the least, because it's not "my" truth, it's the deposit of faith.

I'll leave-off commenting on the rest of the article. Overall I wasn't displeased with the treatment, but I'd hope that readers poke around themselves to create their own informed opinions about Catholic blogging.

And to all the new folks visiting - you're most welcome here.

Madison Theology on Tap Appearance

Last Thursday, as I mentioned, I was invited to give the Theology on Tap talk for the Cathedral Parish of Madison, Wisconsin on the topic of "Faith in the Ballot Box: Catholic Conscience in the Civic Arena."

It was a wonderful chance to systematically think through and then present the huge range of material AmP has covered in recent months on the relationship between our Catholic faith and our involvement in American politics.

I drew most immediately upon Abp. Chaput's new book on the topic, as well as the most recent voting guide of the U.S. Bishops (Faithful Citizenship - PDF), as well as their excellent 1998 version, Living the Gospel of Life. Obviously these documents themselves rest on Sacred Scripture, the Catechism, Documents of Vatican II, Encyclicals, etc.

The Cathedral Parish is a tech-savvy setup, so you can already access an audio of the talk and the subsequent Q&A session through this link. It's amazing how fast an hour-and-a-half flies by when you get going. I also posted the photos that were taken to this AmP Flickr photo set.

A special surprise came with the appearance of local bishop Robert Morlino to hear my presentation. As AmP readers may remember, Bishop Morlino set aside his prepared homily on the Sunday that Joe Biden spoke his foolishness in order to set the record straight.

Since Bishop Morlino made his clarification, he's been facing a bit of local backlash from the liberal element in Madison, but appears to be weathering the storm just fine.

I'm happy to say that it appears he enjoyed the talk, and as long as I don't receive an excommunication in the mail shortly, I can presume safely that I didn't manage to confuse the issues too badly. ;-)

Special thanks go to Monica Freng, who invited me and was a wonderful hostess, as was her husband Ryan (er, "host"). Please keep them in your prayers as they have their first little one on the way. My gratitude also to Msgr. Kevin Holmes, pastor of the combined "Isthmus Catholic area", for his hospitality throughout my stay.

Mr. Brock Heinz and his wife were also extremely generous to me over the weekend. I would urge all WI-area readers to check out the excellent Men of Christ conference and their various hosted events. You can already sign up for the 2009 conference, for instance.

Thanks, finally, to all the AmP readers who made an appearance at the talk, participated actively in the before-during-and-after debate, and even stood me for a pint or two as the evening wore on!

It's always such an excitement for me to meet readers in person. Blogging can be a very impersonal affair at times and it means so much to me whenever I get the chance to meet folks in person with whom I've been corresponding!

Welcome, Huffington Post readers

I was quoted extensively today for an article by Diane Tucker in the Huffington Post, "Palin Winning Over Twenty-Something Catholics." She looks at the results of a recent AmP Poll, and excerpts recent comments made about Palin's selection by you folks, my faithful papist readers. So go take a gander and comment if you wish.

AmP serves as hub for Pelosi-Gate

Thanks to the prominent blogs and news websites that have cited AmP's ongoing coverage of Pelosi-Gate:

• Newsbusters: CNN Punts on Pelosi’s Gaffe About Catholic Teaching on Abortion
• LifeSiteNews: Pelosi Spokeswoman About-face: Catholic Church "Clear" on Life Teaching After All - But Catholics Need Not Listen
• Alliance Defense Fund Alert: Pelosi Stands By Abortion Comments
• Conservative Grapevine: Website of the Day
• The Anchoress: Pelosi to Bishops: drill your brains?
• WDTPRS: BLOGGERS UNITE! Keep shaping the conversation on pro-abortion Catholic politicians
• Ace of Spades: Granny Rictus McBotoxImplants, Catholic Theologian: Edict Against Abortion Began "50 Years Ago or Something Like That"
• Hot Air: Pelosi lies about Catholicism and abortion
• ... and many, many more Catholic, pro-life blogs!

And my thanks to the army of papist tipsters who have helped me keep up with this fast-moving story!

"American Papists" are "The Nation's Pulse" right now

... at least, according to Lisa Fabrizio, writing for the American Spectator today.

Of course, around here, we've never stopped being American Papists!

But it's always nice to read that one is part of the national pulse. Let's keep it that way.

Catholic San Francisco newspaper picks up AmP phraseology

Writer Rick DelVecchio, when talking about the reaction to Pelosi's comments, evidently liked mine:

Thomas Peters' American Papist blog: "Mind-blowingly incompetent."

I stand by my statement.

AmP mentioned in Aussie newspaper

To whit, Christopher Pearson of The Australian:

... On Monday [Barack Obama] added insult to injury by repeatedly accusing the National Right to Life movement of lying about his voting record. It had referred to his stand as an Illinois state senator on the Born Alive Infant Protection Act - banning the infanticide of babies that survived abortion procedures - which he opposed. For all his confident assurances to the contrary, within 24 hours the Obama campaign was obliged to concede that he had misrepresented his previous position.

Again the blogosphere was up in arms, posing the question: how could he have expected to get away with false claims about matters of public record? As one much-read blogger and lay theologian, Thomas Peters, put it: "Only laziness or intentional story-burying in the media can kill this embarrassing (and revealing) story."

Reader Aaron tells me:

Christopher Pearson is a mainstream Australian journalist and also a Catholic. He is well-known for his views and often writes about liturgy even in The Australian Newspaper. Today was on Obama and abortion and you got a mention. Your quote was also the highlighted quote in the article.

The author is quoting this blog post of mine: "Video: Obama lies by calling pro-lifers ... liars" (Aug 18)

Cool, that makes three recent citations.

AmP interviewed by OSV article on Catholic blogging

"Bloggers driving media coverage of U.S. papal visit" by Mary DeTurris Poust:

The media frenzy surrounding Pope Benedict’s visit to the United States is being driven in part by a newcomer on the media block: bloggers. For the first time in history, a U.S. papal visit is being covered around the clock by bloggers of all stripes – Catholic and secular, independent and staff, spiritually focused and news focused – and they are doing what they do best, bringing online readers information almost as fast as it happens.

It’s a new way of covering the pope, and, according to those on the front lines, it is changing the landscape of media coverage in general, bringing to light errors in the press that might otherwise go uncorrected and creating communities of people who not only read the news but participate in it through comments and e-mails.

“Blogs add a personal dimension that mainstream coverage lacks (ostensibly for purposes of objectivity). They also present near-instant reaction to events and response to errors in mainstream reporting,” said Thomas Peters of American Papist, a popular Catholic blog which, as the name suggests, covers all things pope-related.

“They sometimes let you see the event ‘from the inside,’ by posting their own pictures, experiences, word-of-mouth and the thousand of little things that have trouble filtering through traditional media intact,” Peters told OSV in an e-mail interview as he geared up to cover the papal visit.

Oh yeah, and the rest is really good as well: Amy Welborn, Jeff Miller & Rocco Palmo - she did her homework! Although I'm sorry to see she missed Christopher Blosser, the man behind not only Benedict in America, but also the Cardinal Ratzinger & Pope Benedict XVI fan clubs!

Hey, I own one of the Ratzinger Fanclub shirts. :-)

NBC Nightly News interview: the extended cut

Here is the extended cut of the interview I taped last week:



World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia is actually this summer, not next summer.

On the fly right now, just wanted to make the video available for those interested.

update: keep the interview requests coming, my email is "thomas [at] americanpapist.com".

Video: AmP interviewed for Today Show, MSNBC.com

Here's the MSNBC.com feature video, "Holy rolling for the pope", I'm at the end:

The producer emailed me this morning and said there will also be a piece later today that is an extended cut of the interview they did with me last week. Several folks have also said they saw me on the Today Show.

This is why I refrain from announcing TV appearances ahead of time in general - airtimes are unpredictable.

That said, this shouldn't be the end of them in the near future... thanks for all the kind comments already.

And if you're wondering about the papal skateboard contest winner [image], Tim Drake's favorite won.

Rats.

Was I on the Today Show today?

It might be an awkward question to ask, but some folks have told me I was. I'd like to know for sure.

AmP quoted in the Deleware News Journal today

In an article titled "Prayers, questions await pontiff."

I'm pretty sure the first quote attributed to me isn't my own. "Sinful brazeness" isn't my type of phrase.

At least, not for interviews. ;-)

AmP contributes to InsideCatholic Pew Forum Survey symposium

InsideCatholic:

"Last week the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life released a study on the changing religious habits of Americans. Among many things, the researchers found that the Catholic Church has experienced the greatest net loss in membership.

We asked 34 prominent Catholics from various backgrounds to answer the question, "Why Are So Many Leaving the Catholic Church?"

Their responses follow (or read them all here in printer-friendly form).

Most Reverend Thomas Wenski
Most Rev. Robert Vasa, D.D.
Most Rev. Jose H. Gomez, S.T.D
Most Rev. Salvatore Cordileone
Robert Novak
Sam Brownback
Ray Flynn
Mother M. Assumpta Long, O.P.
Rev. James V. Schall, S.J.
Rev. Joseph Fessio, S.J.
Russell Shaw
Mary Jo Anderson
Rev. Frank Pavone
Robert Lockwood
Eve Tushnet
Tom Hoopes
David CarlinArthur Brooks
Todd M. Aglialoro
Ronald J. Rychlak
Mark P. Shea
Jeffrey Tucker
Rev. Dwight Longenecker
Elizabeth Scalia
Monsignor Steven D. Otellini
Rev. Phillip W. De Vous
Rich Leonardi
Thomas Peters [AmericanPapist]
Steve Skojec
Marjorie Campbell
John Jakubczyk
Laurance Alvarado
Zoe Romanowsky
Margaret Cabaniss

I'll look forward to reading (and commenting upon) the other submissions to the symposium later today.

Cheers to IC for orchestrating this response to the serious challenges the Pew Forum Survey presents.

AmP on "The Messiah Ticket"

Catholic Exchange has published an op-ed piece of mine entitled "The Messiah Ticket".

To anticipate, some folks might argue that Tuesday's primary and caucus results in Ohio and Texas should qualify my claims. I don't think so. I think this phenomenon I am describing certainly accounts significantly for what has gotten Obama this far in the race, and that this same movement will eventually give him the nomination.

Time will tell.

AmP mentioned in Knoxville diocesan newspaper

Here Ye, Here Ye:

"When we send this issue to press I’ll catch up with coverage of the march and associated events online. One excellent news source is the blog American Papist, run by the 20-something Thomas Peters, who has a master’s degree in theology and works in D.C. Thomas’s enthusiasm for life is obvious, and throughout the day he’ll be posting text, photos, and video from the march."

Thanks to the writer for the kind mention. I normally hear about these local citations long after they have passed into digital obscurity, so please, don't hesitate to drop me a line if my coverage is cited.

The Diocese of Knoxville today provided Southern Missouri with it's next (promising) Bishop.

AmP quoted in National Catholic Register today

Today's headline piece in the National Catholic Register, "Ron Paul Draws Passionate Support", by Charlie Spiering features two quotations from yours truly:

Paul stands alone among the Republican presidential candidates as one who voted against the Iraq war, stating that it was unconstitutional, since it never received a congressional declaration of war. If elected president, Paul promises to withdraw troops from Iraq.

Thomas Peters, who runs the blog American Papist, contributes to a blog called Catholics for Ron Paul. He noted that since the Vatican hasn’t spoken magisterially about the Iraq war, Catholics can continue to debate the issue. “He [Paul] has philosophical and rational reasons for why he thinks that American involvement isn’t the best choice,” said Peters. “He examines the question using principles of just war theory, specifically speaking about the Christian tradition of a just war,” he added.

Paul mentioned the Vatican’s comments regarding the Iraq War when paying tribute to John Paul II’s legacy. “The Pope’s commitment to human dignity, grounded in the teachings of Christ, led him to become one of the most eloquent spokesmen for the consistent ethic of life, exemplified by his struggles against abortion, war, euthanasia and the death penalty,” he said on the floor of the House of Representatives on April 6, 2005, four days after the Pope’s death.

Although initially a supporter of the death penalty, Paul changed his position after studying the issue throughout his political career.

Some religious voters remain skeptical about a vote for Paul, as his strict interpretation for the Constitution pits him against federal legislation to ban prostitution, drugs and homosexual “marriage.”

Peters said, “Ron Paul voted against the marriage amendment, but only because he thought it was non-constitutional, not because he doesn’t think marriage isn’t a union of a man and a woman.”

Ron Paul addressed the March for Life yesterday, but sadly I missed it. There were several Ron Paul supporters at the March, some of them carrying "Ron Paul for Life" banners.

Norma McCorvey (Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade) endorsed Dr. Paul for President yesterday.

AmP quoted in Catholic News Service

A little bird told me that an excerpt from my recent article criticizing the favorable review of The Golden Compass published by the U.S. Bishop's office for Film and Broadcasting has been quoted in a Catholic News Service piece by Mark Pattison entitled "Critics debate merits of 'The Golden Compass' movie".

I'll post a link once it is made available online. If it isn't uploaded, I'll excerpt a selection.