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.

Obama on federal funding for abortion: "Let's not get distracted"

Yesterday Katie Couric asked Obama the question that Catholics and other Americans are very worried about:

Katie Couric: Do you favor a government option that would cover abortions?

President Obama: What I think is important, at this stage, is not trying to micromanage what benefits are covered. Because I think we're still trying to get a framework. And my main focus is making sure that people have the options of high quality care at the lowest possible price.

As you know, I'm pro choice. But I think we also have a tradition of, in this town, historically, of not financing abortions as part of government funded health care. Rather than wade into that issue at this point, I think that it's appropriate for us to figure out how to just deliver on the cost savings, and not get distracted by the abortion debate at this station. (CBS)

I explain why I think Obama's response is deeply flawed over at this American Principles blog entry.

Briefly: how are we to take seriously Obama's claim that he wants to reduce the number of abortions in America when his attitude about the single-greatest expansion of abortion access in our nation's history is ... "let's not get distracted"?!

update: and now that I think about it for a few more seconds- if Obama doesn't want abortion to "distract" us, why not simply rule out covering them with taxpayer dollars? That strikes me as a very simple fix.

Papist Quote of the Day

Life-in-DC blog DCist has a weekly column which I enjoy reading, In it, people contribute things they hear people saying in DC. But this one from May 15th is just sad:

There's so many things wrong with this

Mother's Day at Giant supermarket on 7th and O:

Two girls and a guy in their 20s in the checkout line.

Guy: "Should we send [female name] a Happy Mother's Day text?"
Girl 1: "But didn't she have an abortion?"
Guy: "Yep, we should send her one anyway..."

PQOTD: "Following the prevailing winds and currents of the day is childish"

This is an extended Papist-Quote-of-the-Day, because every word is golden. It is a preview of the Pope's upcoming social encyclical given by Pope Benedict himself as he closed the Year of St. Paul this week (bolding mine):

"Paul wants the Christian faith have a 'responsible', an 'adult faith," said the Holy Father. "The word 'adult faith' has in recent decades become a popular slogan. It is often used to refer to the attitude of those who no longer adhere to the Church and her pastors, but choose for themselves what they want to believe and not believe - a kind of do-it-yourself faith."

Benedict XVI continued: "Speaking against the Magisterium of the Church is presented as courageous. In reality, however, it does not take courage for this, since you can always be sure of audience applause."

"Rather it takes courage to adhere to the faith of the Church, even if it contradicts the 'scheme' of the contemporary world," said the Pope. "It is this non-conformism of the faith that Paul calls an 'adult faith.'"

The Holy Father gave two examples of an 'adult faith'. First, "to commit to the inviolability of human life from the very beginning, thus radically opposing the principle of violence, in defense of the most defenseless humans." And second, "to recognize marriage between a man and a woman for life as a law of the Creator, restored again by Christ."

For Paul, said Benedict XVI, "following the prevailing winds and currents of the day is childish." (LSN)

Put that in your relativist pipe and smoke it (because we all know there is only one right end to smoke a pipe).

Quote of the Day - Nixon on Abortion

Just nasty:

“There are times when an abortion is necessary. I know that. When you have a black and a white,” he told an aide, before adding, “Or a rape.”

The background:

On Jan. 23, 1973, when the Supreme Court struck down laws criminalizing abortion in Roe v. Wade, President Richard M. Nixon made no public statement. But privately, newly released tapes reveal, he expressed ambivalence. (NYT)

I'm not sure if "ambivalence" is the first description that comes to my mind.

QOTD: Cardinal Bernardin on using his consistent ethic to support abortion

Cardinal Bernadin, on the front page of the National Catholic Register in 1988, said:

"I don't see how you can subscribe to the consistent ethic and then vote for someone who feels that abortion is a 'basic right' of the individual. I know that some people on the left, if I may use that label, have used the consistent ethic to give the impression that the abortion issue is not all that important anymore, that you should be against abortion in a general way but that there are more important issues, so don't hold anybody's feet to the fire just on abortion. That's a misuse of the consistent ethic, and I deplore it."

As quoted by Elizabeth Lev, daughter of Mary Ann Glendon, reflecting on Obama's choice to quote Cardinal Bernadin in the speech he delivered last month at Notre Dame's commencement. What an ironic choice.

Papist Quote of the Day (and video): Bishop Aquila

Appearing on FOX News:

“Certainly NARAL or Planned Parenthood would never invite Benedict XVI, much less extend an award to him.” - Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo, ND

Bingo.

Video:

Abp. Burke: Catholics "could not have voted for [Obama] with a clear conscience"

Quote of the Day from Kathryn Jean Lopez's interview with Archbishop Raymond Burke. Pay close attention:

LOPEZ: You seemed to make very clear that Catholic voters collaborated with evil when they voted for Obama. If you’re Catholic and did, do you have to confess this now that Mexico City, embryo-destructive funding, among other things, have happened?
ARCHBISHOP BURKE: If a Catholic knowingly and deliberately votes for a person who is in favor of the most grievous violations of the natural moral law, then he has formally cooperated in a grave evil and must confess his serious sin. Since President Obama clearly announced, during the election campaign, his anti-life and anti-family agenda, a Catholic who knew his agenda regarding, for example, procured abortion, embryonic-stem-cell research, and same-sex marriage, could not have voted for him with a clear conscience.

Archbishop Burke minces no words: in his estimation, a Catholic who voted for Obama could not have done so with a clear conscience.

Note also how Archbishop Burke evaluates Obama as not only anti-life, but also anti-family because of his positions on same-sex marriage.

On a related note, Fr. James Schall, SJ unpacks Archbishop Burke's keynote address which he gave last Friday at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast.

Papist Quote of the Day

Kathleen Parker in the Washington Post, defending Mary Ann Glendon against the (predicatble) attacks she has received for refusing Notre Dame's Laetare Medal:

"Nevertheless, [Obama's] abortion stance is in direct conflict with Catholic teaching. And no place symbolizes Catholics in America quite the way Notre Dame does.

Offering this backdrop and extending the school's imprimatur to Obama constitutes a wink and a nod to abortion. Why not throw a pig roast in Mecca? That was Glendon's point. By her symbolic gesture of self-denial, she demonstrates that faith is an act, not a motto.

Obama might consider following Glendon's lead. Although he supports choice, the president also recognizes the moral complexity of those decisions. Out of respect for pro-life Catholics and their beloved institution, he should politely bow out."

For those keeping tabs, the AmP-sponsored Glendon support group has 2,500+ members.

Papist Quote of the Day

The U.S. Bishop's Sr. Mary Ann Walsh, in a twitter update:

"Spent the day workng on the new Roman Missal. It's like digital TV: It's coming, it will affect us all but no one knows exactly when."

Papist Quote of the Day

Bishop Robert Finn:

"We are at war. Harsh as this may sound it is true – but it is not new. This war to which I refer did not begin in just the last several months, although new battles are underway – and they bring an intensity and urgency to our efforts that may rival any time in the past."

Papist Quote of the Day

Bob Royal:

"Just to speak for myself, I’m Catholic first and American second. I don’t understand how any believer of any faith could think differently. If you are lucky, you spend eighty or so years in America. Dead is a long time."

Papist Quote of the Day: Bishop Doran on Notre Dame invitation

As the individual who sent it to me said, "Slams is a gentle word!":

"I would ask that you rescind this unfortunate decision and so avoid dishonoring the practicing Catholics of the United States, including those of this Diocese. Failing that, please have the decency to change the name of the University to something like, "The Fighting Irish College" or "Northwestern Indiana Humanist University." - The Most Reverend Thomas G. Doran, D.D., J.C.D., Bishop of Rockford [source.]

Papist Quote of the Day

Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of Phoenix, AZ:

"What President Obama is doing is forcing all American taxpayers to pay for this homicidal research," he said. - The Catholic Sun

Ph/t: LifeSiteNews.

Becket Fund President calls CT Bill "Doubly unconstitutional"

In response to the story I covered over the weekend about a breathtakingly anti-Catholic CT bill:

"This bill is doubly unconstitutional. It would be unconstitutional underthe First Amendment even if it applied to all churches. but the fact thatit applies to only one church - the Catholic Church - makes itunconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment besides. This is truly amonstrosity."

-- Kevin “Seamus” Hasson, President, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

Papist Quote of the Day

Rabbi David Rosen, on the Vatican-SSPX-holocaust controversy:

“Had all this been expressed at the outset,” he added, “we could have avoided the unnecessary damage and distress.”

Seriously, try holding a press conference next time. In other words: don't give the detractors of the Church a chance to spread lies when the truth is ultimately on our side. I don't care if you have to come in on a Saturday.

I blogged about this controversy in-depth yesterday.

Papist Quote of the Day

"Those who dissent should consider whether it is not really they who are being divisive. I fail to see why I should be portrayed as divisive when I step up in defence of the Church and align myself with the Pope. Something is not right there."

~ Bishop-elect Gerhard Wagner, Auxiliary of Linz Austria

Source: Fr. Z.

Papist Quote of the Day

Bishop Robert Hermann, administrator of the Archdiocse of St. Louis, on recent elections and "lax Catholics":

"Until we are willing to be politically incorrect in order to be biblically correct, we will never convince anyone that our religion is worth living." {More.}

Ph/t: AmP reader John, via The Deacon's Bench.

"Holy See not in favor of death penalty for gays, Vatican spokesman clarifies"

As if the point needed clarification?!

Homosexual rights advocates in Italy harshly criticized the [Holy See's]remarks, labeling them “grotesque” and “anachronistic.”

The Director of Vatican Radio, Father Frederico Lombardi, defended the archbishop’s remarks, saying “no one wants the death penalty or jail or fines for homosexuals.” (CNA)

Oh that's right, if the Church even dares to do anything less than totally support an international right to homosexual marriage .... it gets accused of favoring the death penalty for homosexuals.

Now that sure sounds like a reasonable way to discuss the issue. (/sarcasm.)

Bishop on FOCA: "You can go take a Flying Leap"

Bishop Paul Loverde of Arlington, VA, when asked about FOCA and Catholic hospital closures:

Bishop Paul Loverde of the Roman Catholic diocese of Arlington, Va., said last week that if the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) should become law and a Catholic hospital in his diocese is forced to provide abortions, he would refuse to let the hospital comply, but he would also not close the institution.

Though there are no Catholic hospitals in his diocese, the bishop nevertheless was defiant: "I would say, 'Yeah, I'm not going to close the hospital, you're going to arrest me, go right ahead. You'll have to drag me out, go right ahead. I'm not closing this hospital, we will not perform abortions, and you can go take a flying leap." (CNS)

Ph/t: Margaret Cabaniss of Inside Catholic.

Quote of the Day: "Nimble Catholics"

From a Chicago Tribune piece on pro-Obama Catholics:

"Catholics have, historically, been nimble at finding loopholes in church doctrine, ways to deftly excuse themselves from the guilt of lesser sins skipping church, swearing, eating meat on Fridays. Abortion is a much steeper hill to climb."

This gives me a new phrase: "Nimble Catholics."

Papist Quote of the Day

From the President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, when asked if the Roman Catholic Church would issue an apology to Darwin like the Anglicans have done:

"Maybe we need to abandon the habit of issuing apologies and treating history as if it were a court always in session," Ravasi said. (EarthTimes)

Here, here.

More:

[Ravasi] was speaking to journalists about a conference entitled Biological Evolution: Facts and Theories. A Critical Appraisal 150 years after The Origin of Species due to be held in Rome from March 3 to 7, 2009.

The congress has been organized by the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, United States, and will include scientists, philosophers and theologians from around the world.

Ravasi stressed that, unlike many Protestant Christians, the Roman Catholic Church never condemned Darwin nor was his book, the Origin of the Species, placed on the church's list of banned books.

... "Science can purify religion of superstition, but religion can purify science from false absolutes," Ravasi said, quoting John Paul.

In 1992, Pope John Paul II publicly expressed regret on how the Catholic Church in the 17th century dealt with Italian scientist Galileo Galilei who was forced to retract his observation that the Earth and the other planets revolved around the Sun.

Papist Quote of the Day

I'm going to break a rule of quotation and excerpt the last lines of Ross Douthat's thought experiment:

Hence the weird anger emanating from social liberals at the religious right's failure to tar and feather the Palins and run them out of GOP politics on a rail: they're mad that religious conservatives aren't fitting neatly into the stereotypes that liberals have spent years cultivating.

Read this to see how he got here.

Papist Quote of the Day

Via the Curt Jester:

"Nancy Pelosi's bishop threatening her with a 'conversation.'" - Karen Hall

Papist Quote of the Day

From Joseph Sobran:

"Abortion is the single issue on which it's wrong to be a single issue voter."

Source.

PQOTD: "Getting divorced is easier than cancelling cell phone service"

Sad ... but so true!

"Archbishop Jose Antonio Eguren Anselmi of Piura called on officials last week to promote measures that help the family instead of weaken it, referring to recent passage of a law facilitating divorce, which he said, makes it “easier to get a divorce in Peru than to cancel your cell phone service.” (CNA)

I bet more people stay in their cell phone contract than marriage. But at least a phone contract is supposed to end.

Well, I guess this might be as good a time as any to officially announce that I'm getting ...

... a new cell phone plan. ;-)

I've long been considering a Blackberry, specifically the 8830 "World Edition" (pictured left) with Verizon Wireless.

Anything I should know before I "take the leap" into a two year contract? Could I do better for the money?

Papist Quote of the Day

I didn't even have to read past the first line of this article titled "Pastor Gets into Motorcycle Crash - During Service" before I was cracking a smile:

"A pastor brought out a dirt bike during a church service to demonstrate the concept of unity. Now he's demonstrating the concept of healing."

:-D!

Pope Benedict lauds St. Maximus for his lack of "tolerance"

Well, in effect:

Continuing his series of weekly talks on the early Church, Pope Benedict XVI devoted his public audience on June 25 to a discussion of St. Maximus the Confessor.

... Pope Benedict said that St. Maximus earned the title "Confessor" by the "dauntless courage" with which he proclaimed "the integral truth of Christ, without reduction or compromise."

The adamant stand taken by this heroic Christian teacher should be an example to contemporary Christians, the Pope said, suggesting in particular that the saint knew when to insist on truth and reject error. Christians cannot accept every thought put forward in the modern world, the Pope said. "Tolerance that does not know how to distinguish between good and evil would become chaotic and self-destructive," he said. "Dialogue that does not know what to dialogue about becomes mere empty chatter."

Like St. Maximus, believers should make Christ their fixed point of reference, and "thus we also learn how to position all other values because we discover their true significance," the Holy Father concluded. (CWNews)

Now there's marching orders. Just re-read those sentences I've underlined.

PQOTD: A rainy weekend for the pope and me

This past weekend a friend visited me in DC and we often found ourselves dogged by rain.

Well, it looks like the pope was in the same boat during a recent trip, but found a silver lining:

"Dear young people, unfortunately, the rain followed me in these days," said Pope Benedict XVI Sunday in Genoa, "but let us take it as a sign of blessing, fertility for the land, even as a symbol of the Holy Spirit who comes and renews the earth, the dry earth of our souls."

Okay, I guess I have nothing to complain about either.

Ph/t: Pope2008.

Papist Quote of the Day (iPods)

Newly-installed Bishop Earl Boyea of Lansing:

“Their life is centered on iPods, and it's a problem all over the world,” he said.

Looks like he can sling zingers.

Quotable Benedict: "Music infuses hope into the human soul"

Some excerpts from a speech he made at the Vatican after a concert performed in his honor:

This week the Italians took their turn at showing their affection and respect for the Pope by hosting a classical music concert in honor of his third anniversary and birthday. Benedict XVI thanked the choir and the orchestra for sharing the gift of music with people. Music, he said, has a spiritual value because it can “infuse hope into the human soul.”

.... The concert featured pieces by Luciano Berio, Johannes Brahms and Ludwig van Beethoven and was performed by the Giuseppe Verdi symphony orchestra and choir of Milan.

.... The Pope explained that there is a “spiritual value” to the art of music which, “in a special way, is called to infuse hope into the human soul, marked and sometimes injured by its earthly condition.

“There is a profound and mysterious relationship between music and hope, between song and eternal life", the Holy Father said. "It is no coincidence that Christian tradition shows the spirits of the blessed as they sing in chorus, captivated and enraptured by the beauty of God. But true art, like prayer, is not foreign to everyday reality, rather it calls us to 'irrigate' that reality, to make it sprout that it may bring forth fruits of goodness and peace.

Music, in fact, has a far greater value because it "reminds us furthermore of the value and the universal importance of artistic heritage,” the Pope said. He also mentioned that it is of particular value to the young, who can draw "new inspiration" from such heritage "in order to build a world founded on justice and solidarity, putting the multiform expressions of world culture to good account at the service of mankind".

Benedict XVI mentioned the importance that "educating people to recognize true beauty has for the formation of the young", and he explained how art "contributes to refining their souls and leads towards the construction of a society open to the ideals of the spirit. (CNA)

Underlinining my own. Many of the performers were young adults.

A few pictures from the event:



Credit: REUTERS/Tony Gentile (VATICAN), AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, HO

Cardinal Arinze: "Send 12 Swiss Guards to arrest them all!"

The fine folks at the Cardinal Arinze Podcast have given us a gem of a Cardinal Arinze answer:

Watch the first 45 seconds, then jump to 2:30, then to 3:30....

On a more serious note though - is it really as funny as all that?

The Cardinal Arinze Podcast, of course, has the coolest. logo. ever:

It has a permanent place on the AmP sidebar.

Oddest unnecessary qualification ever?

Behold:

"Even if he won every delegate still available, [Ron] Paul could not capture the party's nomination in September in St. Paul, which is no relation." - LA Times blog

Because, of course, I think we were all tempted to make that mistake. I mean, right?

Papist Quote of the Day

A rather funny exchange occurred at today's public session of the U.S. Bishops meeting during one of the action items and debate. A bishop stood up to suggest an item and it went something like this:

Bishop: I just want to confirm that there is in fact a typo in this draft document that reads "... the bishops wish to end marriage." Shoudn't that read defend marriage?

Moderator: Um, yes, that is correct.

*laughter ensues.*

Moderator: ... You have to understand that at 11 o'clock it can be difficult to read.

Indeed!

Papist Quote of the Day

From Il Papa:

Those who teach the faith “cannot run the risk of appearing like a type of clown who is playing a part; rather he must be like the beloved disciple who rested his head on the Master’s heart and learned therein how to think, speak and act”. Because “at the end of it all a true disciple is he who announces the Gospel in a credible and effective way”, in short “authentic witness”, as was the case with Saint Ambrose. [AsiaNews]

Papist QOTD

Rep. Daylin Leach (D., Montgomery), the sponsor of a new bill that would require every hospital in Pennsylvania to immediately administer Plan B to all victims of rape (underlining mine):

"Some people believe AIDS is punishment for sin ... but we would never allow doctors to withhold treatment from anyone struck with the illness. We are all free to practice our religion, but if we put ourselves in a position to provide emergency medical care, our right to practice religion ends when we start making life-changing, adverse decisions for other people." [source.]

You're welcome to read the entire article, focusing on the similarities/dissimilarities between what it describes and what we've been covering in CT. There's much at stake here, and plenty of misinformation being spread.

Supreme Court Justice claims abortion was real confirmation hearings issue

A drudge exclusive:

In his first television interview, in which he discusses his childhood, his race, his rise to Supreme Court Justice and his job on the nation's highest court, Clarence Thomas says the real issue at his controversial confirmation hearings 16 years ago was abortion. Saying the issue was "the elephant in the room," Thomas also tells Steve Kroft that the hearings he called at the time a "high tech lynching" harmed the country. The interview will be broadcast on 60 MINUTES, Sunday Sept. 30.

... Thomas, whose Supreme Court positions on abortion issues have been conservative, says the confirmation hearings in which he was accused of sexual harassment by a former employee -- allegations he continues to deny -- were really about abortion. "That was the elephant in the room... That was the issue. That is the issue that people are apparently so upset about," he tells Kroft. "[That is the issue] that you determine the composition of your Supreme Court and your entire federal judiciary, it seems now," says Thomas.

AmP quote of the day

Financial Times:

“This is an emergency,” Mr Gore told the opening session of the Clinton Global Initiative. “I think that the key to fighting global poverty is to have the wealthy nations and the developing nations join together to reduce global warming … I think what we need is a global Marshall plan to make the creation of jobs around the reduction of carbon the central principle for how we develop this.”

Some other quotations from the article:

Robert Zoellick, the head of the World Bank, sounded a sceptical note on the developing world’s ability and desire to reduce carbon emissions, however. Poorer countries are worried aid is going to be “hijacked” by the climate change agenda, Mr Zoellick said.

... “There is some sensitivity in the developing world that resources that can be channelled to climate change will come at the expense of other development needs,” Mr Zoellick said. “It needn’t be that way, it shouldn’t be that way… but it is the responsibility of the developed world to reassure the developing world that it doesn’t come at their expense and instead can come in support of their aims of overcoming poverty.”

"Every place I went, people are very worried that developed countries are going to hijack spending,” he added. “We have to explain how it fits their energy and growth needs.”

... The World Bank estimates that 1.6bn people around the world do not have access to electricity. The developing world currently has a funding gap of around half of the $160bn investment needed annually to fulfil growing demand for electricity, the bank says.

Papist-Quote-of-the-Day

From Il Papa:

Benedict XVI smilingly affirmed that Italian debates on taxation are a sign that "some things never change."

The Pope jokingly made this comment Wednesday during his reflection at the general audience focused on St. John Chrysostom. Referring to the saint's homilies written during the so-called statue revolt, a third-century protest over the emperor's taxes, the Holy Father said with a smile, "You can see that some things never change throughout history."

The Pontiff's off-the-cuff remark came two days after Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi announced that he will not cut personal income taxes this year. The prime minister raised taxes last year in an effort to cut the country's budget deficit. [Zenit]

PQOTD: "Miracles are hard to come by in Britain."

Update: I've found confirmation of this report (in a roundabout way) and posted the results here.

Original Post: Today's papist quote of the day originated - allegedly - from Il Papa himself:

"Friction even seemed to emerge as the Pope and Prime Minister appeared in public for the cameras. Mr Blair, joined by his wife Cherie, presented Benedict with a framed set of three antique pictures of Cardinal Newman, who converted in 1845 after more than 20 years in the Church of England clergy and is now a candidate for sainthood.

Mrs Blair said: "I believe you are very familiar with him and he is on the journey to sainthood."

To which the Pope responded: "Yes, yes, although it is taking some time - miracles are hard to come by in Britain."

The source is a UK tabloid. I think a UK tabloid getting a story straight would be a minor miracle in itself.

ph/t: Amy.

Papist Quote of the Day

Archbishop Raymond Burke, on submitting his resignation as chairman of the board for a foundation that invited pro-abortion activist Sheryl Crow to sing at their fundraiser: "It's very painful for me, but I have to answer to God for the responsibility I have as archbishop."

Get the full (AP version of the) story here.