Christ's Promise to send a Paraclete

John-Henry Westen has a story today on LifeSite about Cardinal O'Malley.

Boston's Cardinal O'Malley Seems Ignorant of the Fact that Rome Has Said Pro-Abortion Politicians 'Must' be Denied Communion

On presenting themselves, the Cardinal responded that the church's teaching is in the Catechism, but added that the bishops have more teaching to do on the matter. However, with regard to "giving it to them," Cardinal O'Malley said: "But until there's a decision of the church to formally excommunicate people, I don't think we're going to be denying Communion to the people." He added: "However, whatever the church's decision is, we will certainly enforce."

While there may be debate among US Bishops over whether or not to deny Communion to pro-abortion politicians, for the Vatican there is no such debate. The issue was closed several years ago with a letter from Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.

The then-head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith intervened into a debate among the US Bishops on the issue in 2004. Cardinal Ratzinger said in his letter, titled "Worthiness to receive Holy Communion," that a Catholic politician who would vote for "permissive abortion and euthanasia laws" after being duly instructed and warned, "must" be denied Communion. Ratzinger's letter explained that if such a politician "with obstinate persistence, still presents himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, the minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it."

There is no other explanation: These men believe they have the authority to refuse Rome because the Holy Paraclete Christ promised to send is actually inside of their brains, not the Vicar of Christ and the Roman Catholic Church.

From Lifenews Joe Biden's Bishop has the most popular contortion of reason used to defy the Paraclete:

Malooly, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, is participating in the meeting the nation's bishops are holding this week in Baltimore.

He told the Associated Press that he won't ask Biden to withdraw from receiving communion even though several of his fellow bishops have done so. He said he would rather change Biden's opinion on abortion.

"I won't politicize the Eucharist," Malooly said. "I don't want to alienate people. I want to change their hearts and minds."

Malooly said he spoke with Biden in September on the day before his installation as the new bishop and the two agreed to discuss the issue of abortion and Catholic pro-life teachings at a later date.

For his part, Malooly has tried to persuade Biden to change his views and issued a letter in October correcting the senator after Biden misstated Catholic views on abortion during an interview.

Biden claimed Catholics can support abortion and he understated the far-reaching effects of the Roe v. Wade decision.

"But throughout the church's history, we've argued between whether or not it is wrong in every circumstance and the degree of wrong. Catholics have this notion, it's almost a gradation," Biden claimed.

Malooly wrote in a letter to the editor that Biden "presents a seriously erroneous picture of Catholic teaching on abortion."

"This is simply incorrect," he says of Biden's interpretation. "The teaching of the Church is clear and not open to debate. Abortion is a grave sin because it is the wrongful taking of an innocent human life."

"The Church received the tradition opposing abortion from Judaism. In the Greco-Roman world, early Christians were identifiable by their rejection of the common practices of abortion and infanticide," Malooly goes on to say.

"The Didache, probably the earliest Christian writing apart from the New Testament, explicitly condemns abortion without exceptions," he continues. "This has been the consistent teaching of the Church ever since."

First and foremost, if you are not ready to accept the consequences that your children will be mad at you for disciplining them when they consistently place themselves and others into danger , you are a reckless custodian of God's children.

Biden knows he is misrepresenting the teachings of the Church. Bishop Mooley spoke with Biden in September, sent him a public letter in October and Biden is still defiantly receiving the Blessed Sacrament. And, scandalizing his constituents as the witness to follow.

Permitting your children to repeatedly drive drunk instead of taking the keys and denying them the car would be a lesser misfeasance.


The statement issued by Cardinal George today on behalf of the Episcopal Conference is a good one.

This statement is written at the request and direction of all the Bishops, who also want to thank all those in politics who work with good will to protect the lives of the most vulnerable among us. Those in public life do so, sometimes, at the cost of great sacrifice to themselves and their families; and we are grateful. We express again our great desire to work with all those who cherish the common good of our nation. The common good is not the sum total of individual desires and interests; it is achieved in the working out of a common life based upon good reason and good will for all.

Well done.