Kansas: archbishop bars governor from Communion Kansas, May. 9, 2008 (CWNews.com) - Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City has announced that Governor Kathleen Sebelius should not receive Communion because of her support for legal abortion.
In a column appearing on May 9 in the archdiocesan newspaper, The Leaven, the archbishop said that Governor Sebelius has sent a "spiritually lethal message" by implying that she could remain a Catholic in good standing while supporting abortion on demand.
The archbishop's column cited in particular the governor's veto of the Comprehensive Abortion Reform Act, which would have required abortionists to inform women about the effects of the procedure and alternatives to abortion.
The governor's stand in favor of abortion is particularly painful, Archbishop Naumann wrote, because Sebelius is a Catholic. He reported that he had met with her "several times over many months to discuss with her the grave spiritual and moral consequences of her public actions." Because the governor has now rejected his pleas and her public stand constitutes a scandal to the faithful, the archbishop said that he has now directed her to refrain from receiving Communion. Archbishop Naumann reported that he has asked Governor Sebelius to accept this directive, so that she will "not require from me any additional pastoral actions."
The governor will be welcomed back to Communion, the archbishop wrote, if she acknowledges her error, goes to Confession, and makes "a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion." I hope that my request of the governor, not to present herself for holy Communion, will provoke her to reconsider the serious spiritual and moral consequences of her past and present actions. At the same time, I pray this pastoral action on my part will help alert other Catholics to the moral gravity of participating in and/or cooperating with the performance of abortions.
The Archbishop's full statement is here.
10 comments:
Great news! I look forward to the day when our Archbishop Neiderauer does the same for Pelosi...
Will we ever hear these words in San Francisco?
Thanks Fr. Malloy for keeping hope in our hearts on Pentecost Sunday.
Warm regards,
Alan
Three cheers for the Archbishop !
Thanks for posting this, Fr. Malloy.
Grace & Peace to you on Pentecost !
We must thank God everyday for faithful and orthodox Bishops. And pray that they continue to have the strength and courage to be faithful. What a powerhouse in the area with AB's Burke and Naumann and Bishop Finn. All Shepherds must teach the truths of our faith. Otherwise they lead the children astray. Lastly, I am sick and tired of the scandal to the Church caused by these politicians.
WAY TO GO ARCHBISHOP!'
I ONLY PRAY AB NIEDERAUER WILL HAVE A CONVERSION AND BE A TRUE SHEPHERD FOR US HERE IN THE ARCHDICOESE.....
A GOOD 'HOUSE CLEANING' IS IN ORDER!!!!
Catholics have the freedom to express the truth as they see it, but preaching the truth is not the same as coercing the truth.
Is it prudent for Catholic leaders and teachers to choose one issue above all others and approve without discrimination any person or law that labels itself pro and condemn any person or law that can be labeled anti?
Why not just simplify things and say, "Democrats are bad and Republicans are good? Catholics may not in good conscience vote for a Democrat or hold office as a Democrat!"
This seems to be far from the way Benedict XVI would teach and act. Benedict presents the Truth in a way that reveals its beauty and reason and proportion;
Catholics have the freedom to express the truth as they see it, but preaching the truth is not the same as coercing the truth.
Is it prudent for Catholic leaders and teachers to choose one issue above all others and approve without discrimination any person or law that labels itself pro and condemn any person or law that can be labeled anti?
Why not just simplify things and say, "Democrats are bad and Republicans are good? Catholics may not in good conscience vote for a Democrat or hold office as a Democrat!"
This seems to be far from the way Benedict XVI would teach and act. Benedict presents the Truth in a way that reveals its beauty and proportion and, as a good shepherd, he invites us to follow.
Personally I am against abortion because it is killing. I am also against killing in war and in capital punishment. Catholic teaching is very clear about these issues but it is not coercive.
If American Catholics really followed Catholic teaching they would have stood with the Pope and the U.S. Bishops rather than following President Bush into an unjust war.
and, as a good shepherd, he invites us to follow.
Personally I am against abortion because it is killing. I am also against killing in war and in capital punishment. Catholic teaching is very clear about these issues but it is not coercive.
If American Catholics really followed Catholic teaching they would have stood with the Pope and the U.S. Bishops rather than following President Bush into an unjust war.
Friends. Please disregard or cancel my previous comment. It got garbled - typographically, that is ..I hope not logically! Apologies.
Catholics have the freedom to express the truth as they see it, but preaching the truth is not the same as coercing the truth.
Is it prudent for Catholic leaders and teachers to choose one issue above all others and approve without discrimination any person or law that labels itself pro and condemn any person or law that can be labeled anti?
Why not just simplify things and say, "Democrats are bad and Republicans are good? Catholics may not in good conscience vote for a Democrat or hold office as a Democrat!"
This seems to be far from the way Benedict XVI would teach and act. Benedict presents the Truth in a way that reveals its beauty and reason and proportion; he invites (not coerces) us to follow.
Personally I am against abortion because it is killing. I am also against killing in war and in capital punishment. Catholic teaching is very clear about these issues but it is not coercive.
If American Catholics really followed Catholic teaching they would have stood with the Pope and the U.S. Bishops rather than following President Bush into an unjust war.
In the spirit of the seamless fabric of life, we hope that none of your flock, chaplains, soldiers, sailors or marlines is participating in an unjust war, lest you be a cafeteria style bishop.
>>Catholics have the freedom to express the truth as they see it, but preaching the truth is not the same as coercing the truth.
We all have free will; that's certainly true. However, there is only one Truth. There was only one Messiah. Think of it like the force of gravity: we don't get to pick and choose how fast we fall.
>>Is it prudent for Catholic leaders and teachers to choose one issue above all others and approve without discrimination any person or law that labels itself pro and condemn any person or law that can be labeled anti?
It's not prudent to choose one issue above all others; then again, it doesn't happen in the Church. As you pointed out in a later statement, the Church did voice an opinion about the Iraq war, which is a different topic. In fact, the Church teaches continuously about a myriad of important topics.
>>Why not just simplify things and say, "Democrats are bad and Republicans are good? Catholics may not in good conscience vote for a Democrat or hold office as a Democrat!"
A touch of humor! It doesn't really help support the argument you made, but it's always nice to have a break between posts. Thanks.
>>This seems to be far from the way Benedict XVI would teach and act. Benedict presents the Truth in a way that reveals its beauty and reason and proportion; he invites (not coerces) us to follow.
I am no spiritual cartographer (see, I do humor too), but I think there's zero distance between the Bishop and Pope Benedict in terms of this issue. If you're saying that the Pope and the Bishop are in agreement, but that the Pope has a better way to deliver a message that some might find unpleasant, that's one issue; however, in terms of what they believe, there's not a hair's breadth between them.
Keep in mind too that the Bishop was in dialog with the Governor, but when it became apparent that her belief or beliefs conflicted with Church teaching, the Bishop--any Bishop, including the Pope--had no option but to take public action.
>>Personally I am against abortion because it is killing. I am also against killing in war and in capital punishment. Catholic teaching is very clear about these issues but it is not coercive.
Teaching can't in and of itself be coercive; if it were, I would have done better at school. It's hard to understand the point you're trying to make here.
>>If American Catholics really followed Catholic teaching they would have stood with the Pope and the U.S. Bishops rather than following President Bush into an unjust war.
We're onto a separate issue here. We Catholics everywhere fall short of what we're called to do and be in many spheres of life.
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