AmP coming to Colorado in October!

At the invitation of the Archdiocese of Denver Youth and Young Adult Ministry, I'll be presenting a Theology on Tap talk for them on the topic "Catholic Principles of Health Care Reform" on October 9th. I'll also be appearing in Fort Collins on October 8th.

Here is the flyer:

Other speakers in the Fall Series include Fr. Thomas Loya, Mark Shea, and Dr. Christian Brugger.

So mark your calendars and bring your Catechisms! See you in CO!

Papist Quote of the Day: Abp. Chaput

"Health-care reform is vital. That's why America's bishops have supported it so vigorously for decades. They still do. But fast-tracking a flawed, complex effort this fall, in the face of so many growing and serious concerns, is bad policy. It's not only imprudent; it's also dangerous.

... If Congress and the White House want to genuinely serve the health-care needs of the American public, they need to slow down, listen to people's concerns more honestly -- and learn what the "common good" really means." (source)

Oh, and Abp. Chaput also has something to say to the editors of the UK Tablet who claimed "The US Bishops must back Obama." His first response to them? "[This article] proves once again that people don't need to actually live in the United States to have unhelpful and badly informed opinions about our domestic issues."

More proof that American Papists ought to carefully read everything Abp. Chaput writes.

Please pray for Archbishop Chaput

Via a friend of the Archbishop's, I am told he is to undergo spine surgery soon. Nothing too serious, I understand, but prayers should be offered up for the health and safety of this leading light in the Church in America.

Abp. Chaput credited for CO death penalty repeal vote

Archbishop Chaput ... not a one-trick pony (despite what some people try to claim):

The Colorado House yesterday voted 33-32 to repeal the state's death penalty. The measure now goes to the Senate. An interesting bit of drama occurred on the floor during the vote and only the Durango Herald has picked up on it:

Debate lasted only a few minutes Tuesday, apparently because most of the 65 representatives had made up their minds. All except Ed Vigil.

The freshman Democrat from Fort Garland sat still as the House's electronic board tallied the vote - a 32-32 tie.

Vigil, a former district attorney's investigator, thinks the death penalty is a useful tool. In a 2007 case, Jose Luis Rubi-Nava confessed to killing his girlfriend in Douglas County by dragging her behind his car. The threat of the death penalty secured Rubi-Nava's plea, Vigil said.

"As soon as the death penalty became part of the equation, he pled guilty and got a life sentence," he said.

But Vigil also was thinking about moral appeals he had heard, including from Archbishop Charles Chaput, the senior Roman Catholic clergyman in Colorado.

Vigil bit his lip and ran a hand back through his hair. Other House members stood up and looked his way as a silent minute dragged by. At last, he reached across the desk and pushed the green button for "yes."

The death penalty repeal passed 33-32.

Ph/t: The Catholic Key.

Update: Tomasic takes another swing at Abp. Chaput, strikes out

In response to my post of last Friday, "John Tomasic tries to cast Abp. Chaput in a bad light," the author made a contribution to the comment thread:

You all misread. The original post-writer Tomasic (me) has nothing at all against anyone in the country freely speaking their mind, including Abp Chaput. I object not to speech but to showboating and the politics of Chaput and his pro-life pepsquad, who play into the hands of right-wing political power-seekers, who in their law-making care little for Catholic teaching -- that is, for alleviating the suffering of the sick and the poor and, as you say, especially the helpless. I encourage the Abp to continue to speak out and I encourage others to hold him to account when he does.

In fact, on that matter, I was wondering if Chaput would weigh in on the men held helpless in the U.S. prisons of the War on Terror, the men subjected to the insane abuses, including hundreds of waterboardings, outlined in the CIA torture memos released last week. Predictably, five days after release of the memos, there is nothing from Chaput and there is nothing on this Papist blog about the way the memos reveal the extent to which the culture of life held up by the Church had been violated intentionally and repeatedly by the Bush administration and its thug lawyers and operatives.

Where is Chaput calling for a letter-writing campaign for justice and protest in defense of the rights of the unconvicted prisoners of the CIA? It was the ACLU that sued for release of the memos and encouraged letter writing. Where was the outspoken Bishop? Where was the American papist?

Rather than chase after his red herring argument, I've attempted to refocus the debate:

Let's get to the heart of this disagreement right away. In 3 easy steps:

1) Abp. Chaput believes that abortion is the murder of an innocent, helpless human being. Science agrees - but we don't need to get into that now. For our purposes, Abp. Chaput genuinely believes abortion is murder.
2) There are millions of abortions each year. That means Abp. Chaput believes there are millions of human beings being murdered in the United States every year.
3) Because of 1 & 2, Abp. Chaput believes abortion is the No. 1 moral issue of our age. Because he does not have an infinite amount of time, as much as he sincerely cares about these other issues, he focuses on abortion in a special way when he speaks publicly.

Now do you understand Abp. Chaput's vocal condemning of abortion in this country? Even if you disagree with the science, even if you don't share his faith, can you at least see how Abp. Chaput is *not* "showboating" or "playing into the hands of right-wing political power-seekers" when he tries to prevent the further murder of millions of unborn human beings? He really believes this stuff.

If you can't see how Abp. Chaput's public speech is at least consistent with his internal beliefs, then there's nothing I can really talk to you about. You just don't get it, you don't get him, and you don't get what American Catholics are about in this debate.

As I said in my original post, you don't even try to grapple with what Abp. Chaput is saying. It's said that before one can critique an opponent's position, one must understand it. You haven't demonstrated even understanding what Abp. Chaput is saying. Well, he's been pretty clear about that, if you had bothered to listen.

Maybe my rejoinder lacked charity, but hopefully it contained some needed truth.

After all, it remains a common critique in the public square that whenever a bishop speaks out about the evil of abortion, it is said they are picking and choosing their issues. However, this criticism will always apply no matter what - there will always be some issue a bishop is unable to address, because he only has so many words and so much time. If, for instance, Abp. Chaput were to take up the issue of torture, the criticism could then be made that he has not spoken about the sex-slave trade.

Well, it's true Abp. Chaput has not weighed-in on every single moral issue confronting America today. But what he has spoken about forcefully, abortion, is very important - even the most important issue of our day and age. So let's debate that issue on its own merits.

Tomasic still hasn't tried to do that.

Exclusive: Abp. Chaput calls on Catholics to write ND

I just heard that Archbishop Chaput, who is at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit for their St. Paul conference, has encouraged people to write charitably to the President of ND to protest the Obama invite.

You can join 10,000 people who have already done so here. My coverage of this developing story here.

[retweeet.]

Papist Quote of the Day

From Archbishop Charles Chaput:

"We can’t talk piously about programs to reduce the abortion body count without also working vigorously to change the laws that make the killing possible. If we’re Catholic, then we believe in the sanctity of developing human life. And if we don’t really believe in the humanity of the unborn child from the moment life begins, then we should stop lying to ourselves and others, and even to God, by claiming we’re something we’re not." (Reported by CNA) [Full text of the Archbishop here.]

Video: Abp. Chaput discusses Pelosi on Neil Cavuto

update: let's try this embedded:



Thanks to AmP reader Matthew for the tech tips.

Description: "Denver Archbishop Chaput on the pope telling Speaker Pelosi she shouldn't support abortion as a Catholic."

Show: Your World with Neil Cavuto.

Source: Watch the interview here.

More clear teaching from Archbishop Chaput!

Watch my AMP NEWS interview with Archbishop Chaput last November: [Part 1] [Part 2].

Also, I never tire of promoting Archbishop Chaput's fantastic book Render Unto Caesar.

AMP NEWS Video - Episode One Featuring Archbishop Chaput Interview!

This week I sat down for an interview with Archbishop Charles Chaput of the Archdiocese of Denver to discuss his NYT bestseller Render Unto Caesar as well as Catholic voting in this election as part of my new collaborative project AMP NEWS.

Regular AmP readers will know that Archbishop Chaput has been one of the most (if not the most) vocal bishop defenders of the unborn in the American public scene of late, despite some criticism. God bless him for it.

Archbishop Chaput, I am thrilled to say, gave me frank answers to the tough questions that are facing American Catholics this election, and it is my hope my that many people will have a chance to see this interview before they vote on Tuesday.

Embedded below are the four segments of AMP NEWS Episode One. You may also watch the entire episode as a whole right here on YouTube. We hope to continue providing quality Catholic news, interviews, and offbeat programming to you in the future!

Episode 1 - "Headlines"

Episode 1 - "Papist Chat with Archbishop Chaput {Part 1 of 2}"


Episode 1 - "Papist Chat with Archbishop Chaput {Part 2 of 2}"


Episode 1 - "The Papist Takedown"

This link creates a playlist of the entire episode: http://tinyurl.com/ampnews

Now that you have seen the show, please forward these videos to your friends and family who are preparing to vote on Tuesday, and send AMP NEWS to folks who are seeking an informed, Catholic perspective on the important stories facing Catholics in America today. Please also subscribe to our AMP NEWS YouTube Channel if you want to be updated instantly when new episodes are uploaded.

Special thanks go to the Catholic Information Center in Washington DC (and do check out their upcoming events) for giving AMP NEWS the opportunity of interviewing Archbishop Chaput, to AMP NEWS producer Alex Buder, to William Newton for creative input, and our profound gratitude to His Excellency, Archbishop Charles Chaput O.F.M Cap, for his faithful service on behalf of Christ and His Church.

update, some pull quotes from the interview with Archbishop Chaput:

• On Barack Obama: "Senator Obama is the most active pro-abortion politician to run for the Presidency since Roe v. Wade. He has committed himself to do things the Church would resist."
• On vocal bishops: "The bishops are aware ... a quieter approach to these things has not been effective ... we have to be stronger in what we say. We've just had it."
• On Faithful Citizenship: "[It is] not very clear. We either ought to get rid of it, or say things much clearer."
• On claiming Obama is a pro-life candidate: "It would be foolish to say that someone who ... runs on a party platform that has no regret at all about abortion ... to call that position pro-life is really strange."
• On IRS investigations: "It's simply bullying. It shouldn't stop us from talking about the important issues of our time."
• On the separation of Church and State: "We do believe in it. We don't like the state to tell us what to do. We don't believe in the separation of faith and politics."

And here is a running tally of the blogs/websites that have picked up on AMP NEWS so far:

• National Catholic Register Daily
• Commonweal
• HuffingtonPost
• LifeNews
• CatholicVote.com
• LifeSiteNews
• Catholic Culture
• New Advent
• BeliefNet's Pontifications
• Catholic Key
• Ignatius Insight Scoop
• Inside Catholic
• The Curt Jester
• Catholic iPod
• The Blog of the Courtier
• Te Deum Laudamus
• Aggie Catholics
• Catholic Mountain
• Duc in Madison
• The Arbiter of Common Sense
• A Shepherd's Voice
• Lily Maiden
• Zappe.us
• Servant For Truth

If I left your name off the list please send me an email!

Abp. Chaput names, criticizes Obama and Kmiec openly in address

Even though I'm running out the door, this story deserves coverage now:

Archbishop criticizes Obama, Catholic allies (AP)

Denver Roman Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput labeled Barack Obama the "most committed" abortion-rights candidate from a major party in 35 years while accusing a Catholic Obama ally and other Democratic-friendly Catholic groups of doing a "disservice to the church."

Chaput, one of the nation's most politically outspoken Catholic prelates, delivered the remarks Friday night at a dinner of a Catholic women's group.

His comments were among the sharpest in a debate over abortion and Catholic political responsibility in a campaign in which Catholics represent a key swing vote.

Coverage here from CNA and Zenit has the full text of the Archbishop's address.

update, excerpt from Abp. Chaput on the "Catholic" argument for Obama:

To suggest -- as some Catholics do -- that Senator Obama is this year’s “real” pro-life candidate requires a peculiar kind of self-hypnosis, or moral confusion, or worse. To portray the 2008 Democratic Party presidential ticket as the preferred “pro-life” option is to subvert what the word “pro-life” means.

... I think [Kmiecs'] activism for Senator Obama, and the work of Democratic-friendly groups like Catholics United and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good, have done a disservice to the Church, confused the natural priorities of Catholic social teaching, undermined the progress pro-lifers have made, and provided an excuse for some Catholics to abandon the abortion issue instead of fighting within their parties and at the ballot box to protect the unborn.

... The one genuinely new quality to Catholic arguments for Senator Obama is their packaging. Just as the abortion lobby fostered “Catholics for a Free Choice” to challenge Catholic teaching on abortion more than two decades ago, so supporters of Senator Obama have done something similar in seeking to neutralize the witness of bishops and the pro-life movement by offering a “Catholic” alternative to the Church’s priority on sanctity of life issues. I think it’s an intelligent strategy. I also think it’s wrong and often dishonest.

Video: Chaput discusses Catholics & Politics at length

Archbishop Chaput sat down for a five-part interview with Peter Robinson for NRO's "Uncommon knowledge." Watch it here.

Here are summaries of the individual segments and links if one interests you particularly:

• Part 5: Archbishop Chaput says Catholic Democrats have an obligation to change their party’s platform on abortion, just as Catholic Republicans are responsible for keeping their party pro-life. Moreover, he says the Catholic position on abortion need not be just a Catholic position, but an American position.
• Part 4: Archbishop Chaput has written that “The logic behind abortion makes all human rights politically contingent.” For example, Chaput explains that if our leaders can decide when life begins, they also can make determinations about when life should end. Overall, Chaput describes what is a coarsening of the value of life in the Western world.
• Part 3: Archbishop Chaput describes the relationship between Jesus and Caesar, or between Catholics and the state: First, Jesus acknowledged his responsibilities to Caesar. Second, Jesus demoted Caesar, making clear that “God is God and Caesar is not.” Third, Jesus remained silent about what belongs to Caesar and what belongs to God, allowing for individual determinations on the duties of citizens.
• Part 2: Archbishop Chaput describes Vatican II as the “primary grace of God to the Catholic Church in the 20th century.” And yet, since Vatican II, the Catholic Church in America has suffered greatly. In particular, the numbers of Catholic seminarians, priests, and nuns have plummeted. Chaput explains why this is, and is not, a dilemma.
• Part 1: Archbishop Charles Chaput corrects House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has said the Catholic Church’s teachings on abortion aren’t clear. On the contrary, Chaput says the Church has long held that abortion is always and in all circumstances wrong. He also says Sen. Joe Biden’s position on abortion — that people should not impose their beliefs on the subject on others — is highly flawed.

Aside from taking on some current topics, it appears the Archbishop has closely followed the structure and primary points illustrated in his recent NYT-bestsellar, Render Unto Caesar.

Tip: Submit your live chat questions to Abp. Chaput today!

Got a tip for ya:

"Archbishop Chaput will be answering questions live on [his new book] Render Unto Caesar today from 5-6 p.m. EST in an online bookclub discussion"

You may already submit a discussion question here.

I already submitted a question. =)

And of course, if you haven't bought his book yet, I consider it required pre-voting reading.

Abp. Chaput asks politicians, "what about comprehensive immigration reform?"

CNA reports:

What happened immigration reform as an issue in the 2008 presidential election? That’s exactly what Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver is asking in his weekly column in the Denver Catholic Register, as he calls for an end to raids by customs agents and pushes for comprehensive reform.

“Here’s the surest sign of an election year: Certain hot potato issues—the kind that nobody in either major party really wants to deal with in a tight race—mysteriously disappear,” writes the archbishop.

Do note that this is the same Archbishop who was the first to respond to Speaker Pelosi and Senator Biden. So much for those who have claimed hi mto be a "single-issue" or "partisan" defender of human dignity.

Breaking: Chaput responds to Biden

Today on the Archdiocese of Denver website, the following news item:

Denver bishops release letter to faithful, stress importance of accurate moral reasoning by public servants

Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap. and Auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley have released a new letter to the Catholics of northern Colorado, titled “Public Servants and Moral Reasoning.” In the letter, they reaffirm the importance of informed moral reasoning when discerning public action, especially in regard to Catholics who serve their country on the national stage. Click here to read the full letter (PDF file)

The last two paragraphs sum-up Archbishop Chaput's position:

In his Meet the Press interview, Sen. Biden used a morally exhausted argument that American Catholics have been hearing for 40 years: i.e., that Catholics can't "impose" their religiously based views on the rest of the country. But resistance to abortion is a matter of human rights, not religious opinion. And the senator knows very well as a lawmaker that all law involves the imposition of some people's convictions on everyone else. That is the nature of the law. American Catholics have allowed themselves to be bullied into accepting the destruction of more than a million developing unborn children a year. Other people have imposed their "pro-choice" beliefs on American society without any remorse for decades.

If we claim to be Catholic, then American Catholics, including public officials who describe themselves as Catholic, need to act accordingly. We need to put an end to Roe and the industry of permissive abortion it enables. Otherwise all of us - from senators and members of Congress, to Catholic laypeople in the pews - fail not only as believers and disciples, but also as citizens.

Bishops who have responded to Biden so far: 3.

update: Fr. Z notes...

"Hugh Hewitt today read Archbp. Chaput’s entire response to Sen. Joe Biden. He concluded that if you are a devout Catholic, you cannot vote for Sen. Biden, because you would be cooperating in evil. No mincing words from him. He just laid it out in stark terms."

There, that wasn't too hard, was it?

"Archbishop Chaput’s book makes NYT Best Seller List"

And he beats Joe Biden's book:

Just three weeks into the publication of “Render Unto Caesar,” Archbishop Charles Chaput’s new book has made the New York Times Best Seller list. The archbishop’s book is currently one place ahead of “Promises to Keep,” written by Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Joe Biden. (CNA)

I see that having Render Unto Caesar as my AmP book of the month is making a difference! :)

Thank Archbishop Chaput for His Courage!

Fidelis has created an easy-to-sign public thank you letter:

From the press release:

Fidelis is urging Catholics and all people of good will to publicly thank Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput for his unwavering defense of Catholic teaching on the dignity of all human life, likening him to former Archbishop Joseph Rummel, who led the Archdiocese of New Orleans from 1935 to 1964 during a period of deep division over the civil rights of African Americans.

Fidelis President Brian Burch commented: “Like Archbishop Rummel, who stood up against the prevailing culture of his time to defend the intrinsic dignity of every human person, Archbishop Chaput has been a true prophetic witness in reminding public officials of their responsibility to defend all human life. Denver’s Archbishop has been a model of courage for which every citizen in America should be grateful.”

Archbishop Chaput's recently-published title, Render Unto Caesar, is the AmP book of the month.

Read previous AmP posts mentioning Archbishop Chaput right here.

Video: Abp. Chaput appears on Fox News

update ... video:

Thanks to the readers who sent me links to the YouTube video.

Fr. Z has the audio, and summarizes:

Neil Cavuto of Fox News just interview[ed] the Archbishop of Denver, His Excellency Most Reverend Charles Chaput. He spoke about Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s serious errors about the beginning of human life made last Sunday on Meet The Press. He also clarified why pro-abortion Catholics are in serious error and should not receive Holy Communion.

Abp. Chaput continues to steal spotlight from DNC

The Washington Times reports:

In retrospect, maybe the Democrats should have included Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput in their convention activities after all.

The party was accused of deliberately snubbing the outspoken archbishop by failing to invite him to lead prayers or participate on its religion panels. Archbishop Chaput is the leader of Denver´s estimated 385,000 Catholics, the area´s largest religious denomination.

But Archbishop Chaput may have gotten the last laugh. Democrats are doing a slow burn over the archbishop´s headline-grabbing criticism of party bigwigs and his decision to schedule major events this week during the convention´s prime-time speeches.

Gosh, the DNC organizers must be so annoyed.

Here's what Abp. Chaput has been up to ...

• The DNC schedules Clinton and Biden to speak on Wednesday night?

On the same night: "Archbishop Chaput drew hundreds to a signing of his newest book, “Render Unto Caesar: Serving the Nation by Living Our Catholic Beliefs in Political Life,” at a bookstore about 15 miles from the Pepsi Center."

• How about three nights ago, the debut night of the DNC rally?

"Archbishop Chaput led a pro-life rally and prayer march outside a Planned Parenthood office in north Denver that started at 7:30 MST, about the same time as Michelle Obama, wife of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, was speaking to the convention."

Now that's guts, and brains.