<table cellspacing='0' cellpadding='0' border='0' ><tr><td style='font: inherit;'><P>I feel uneasy about making judgements on the state of one's soul at the moment someone comes up to receive Holy Communion.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>It is not only appropriate, it is necessary, for the pastor or the bishop of a prominent politician to privately visit with that person on the necessity to adhere to Catholic beliefs in both their personal and professional lives.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>At the end of a private visit, if the politician says something like, "Well, I understand everything you've said, but I fell I still have to vote for pro-abortion poliices in the Legislature/Congress," then the pastor/bishop should say:</P>
<P> </P>
<P>"You are an elected official and I cannot tell you how to exercise those secular responsiblities. But I can tell you that as long as you continue pro-abortion policies, then you are NOT to receive Communion. Please do NOT attempt to receive Holy Communion. You are obligated to attend Mass every Sunday, but you CANNOT Communion. If I find that you are disregarding this firm instruction, I will be forced to instruct all ministers in this parish/diocese to refuse to give you Communion. This is likely to cause you embarrasement, but that is not my intent. My intention is for you ro avoid receiving Communion while you are pursing polices that are opposed to Catholic doctrines. Accordingly, please do NOT receive Communion."</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Now, it is theoretically possible (but I am not aware this has actually taken place) for a politician to say, "I do not believe laws are the best way to stop abortion. But every month, I participate in prayers and sidewalk counselling outside of an abortion center. And every month, I donate large amounts of money to pro-life counselling centers. When I say I am personally pro-life, I mean it. I just don't think the way you stop abortion is by trying to proscribe it by law."</P>
<P> </P>
<P>If that were to happen (and to the best of my knowledge, it has not), then a priest/bishop should NOT prohibit that person from receiving Communion. But who knows?</P>
<P> </P>
<P>By contrast, I strongly suspect that the reason Kennedy and Kerry have not been read the riot act by their bishops is that they both donate VERY BIG BUCKS to the Catholic Church in Boston. Essentially, they have bought the silence of their bishops. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>Now, I don't know for a fact that this is true, but I do suspect it.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Otherwise, someone should have asked these bishops WHY they they have not stopped these politicians from received the Eucharist and from calling themselves Catholics. If they've given an answer, I have not seen it. <BR></P>
<DIV><STRONG><FONT color=#0000ff size=3>Art</FONT></STRONG></DIV><BR>--- On <B>Sun, 5/11/08, Marty Rothwell <I><martyr225@cox.net></I></B> wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid">From: Marty Rothwell <martyr225@cox.net><BR>Subject: RE: [Apologetics] The Archbishop and the Governor<BR>To: "'Dianne Dawson'" <rcdianne@yahoo.com>, "'Apologetics Group'" <apologetics@gathman.org>, "'David Mullaney'" <MayDay1@aol.com>, "'Mitch Michaelis'" <mmichaelis@sc.rr.com>, "'Nettie Taylor'" <jimmie@usit.net>, "'Gloria Light'" <gloriatherese@bellsouth.net>, "'Holly Gatling'" <sccl@sclife.org><BR>Date: Sunday, May 11, 2008, 1:36 PM<BR><BR>
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<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">I’m glad we have one bishop with some backbone. Now having said what he said to her, wouldn’t any priest under his diocese be obligated not to giver her the Eucharist if he saw her in line?</SPAN></FONT></P>
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<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=2><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">From:</SPAN></FONT></B><FONT face=Tahoma size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma"> apologetics-admin@gathman.org [mailto:apologetics-admin@gathman.org] <B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">On Behalf Of </SPAN></B>Dianne Dawson<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Sent:</SPAN></B> Sunday, May 11, 2008 11:11 AM<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">To:</SPAN></B> Apologetics Group; David Mullaney; Mitch Michaelis; Nettie Taylor; Gloria Light; Holly Gatling<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Subject:</SPAN></B> [Apologetics] The Archbishop and the Governor</SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
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<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 12pt"><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The article below comes from one of my favorites blogs. - Dianne<BR><BR>http://amywelborn.wordpress.com/2008/05/09/the-archbishop-and-the-governor/</SPAN></FONT></P>
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<H2><B><FONT face=Arial size=5><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 18pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The Archbishop and the Governor</SPAN></FONT></B></H2>
<P class=post-info><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">May 9, 2008 by <A title="Posts by Amy" href="http://amywelborn.wordpress.com/author/amywelborn/" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Amy</A> </SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<P><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><A href="http://www.theleaven.com/V29N37ColumnistNaumann.htm" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Archbishop Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas, to Governor Sebelius, a Catholic:</A></SPAN></FONT></P>
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<P><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Since becoming archbishop, I have met with Governor Sebelius several times over many months to discuss with her the grave spiritual and moral consequences of her public actions by which she has cooperated in the procurement of abortions performed in Kansas . My concern has been, as a pastor, both for the spiritual well-being of the governor but also for those who have been misled (scandalized) by her very public support for legalized abortion.<BR>It has been my hope that through this dialogue the governor would come to understand her obligation: 1) to take the difficult political step, but necessary moral step, of repudiating her past actions in support of legalized abortion; and 2) in the future would use her exceptional leadership abilities to develop public policies extending the maximum legal protection possible to the unborn children of Kansas.<BR>Having made every effort
to inform and to persuade Governor Sebelius and after consultation with Bishop Ron Gilmore (Dodge City), Bishop Paul Coakley (Salina) and Bishop Michael Jackels (Wichita), I wrote the governor last August requesting that she refrain from presenting herself for reception of the Eucharist until she had acknowledged the error of her past positions, made a worthy sacramental confession and taken the necessary steps for amendment of her life which would include a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion.<BR>Recently, it came to my attention that the governor had received holy Communion at one of our parishes. I have written to her again, asking her to respect my previous request and not require from me any additional pastoral actions.<BR>The governor has spoken to me on more than one occasion about her obligation to uphold state and federal laws and court decisions. I have asked her to show a
similar sense of obligation to honor divine law and the laws, teaching and legitimate authority within the church.<BR>I have not made lightly this request of Governor Sebelius, but only after much prayer and reflection. The spiritually lethal message, communicated by our governor, as well as many other high profile Catholics in public life, has been in effect: “The church’s teaching on abortion is optional!” \<BR>I reissue my request of the faithful of the archdiocese to pray for Governor Sebelius. 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.</SPAN></FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE>
<P><STRONG><B><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">By the way</SPAN></FONT></B></STRONG><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">…<A href="http://kansascitycatholic.wordpress.com/2008/04/02/lifefront-rosary-with-archbishop-naumann-at-planned-parenthood-may-10/" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Archbishop Naumann was scheduled to be praying the rosary this morning with a group in front of a Planned Parenthood in Overland Park.</A> I’m sure there will be reports of how that went later today.</SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><A href="http://www.canonlaw.info/2008/05/staunching-wound-of-bleeding-kansas.html" target=_blank rel=nofollow> Canonist Ed Peters comments.</A></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><A href="http://65.39.207.99/~archkck/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=27" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Kansas City (KS) Abp. Joseph Naumann</A> has met with Gov. Sebelius many times to dissuade her from machinating against the preborn; failing to move her, and after consulting his suffragans, he wrote to her in August 2007 “requesting that she refrain from presenting herself for reception of the Eucharist until she had acknowledged the error of her past positions, made a worthy sacramental confession and taken the necessary steps for amendment of her life which would include a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion.”</SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Abp. Naumann’s statement is model of pastoral sollicitude and political savoir faire. I think it required reading for any one who wishes to discuss this topic seriously, along with, say, <A href="http://www.therealpresence.org/eucharst/holycom/denial.htm" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Abp. Raymond Burke’s “Canon 915: The discipline regarding denial of holy Communion to those obstinately perservering in manifest grave sin”, Periodica 96 (2007) 3-58,</A> and my own “<A href="http://www.canonlaw.info/a_denialofeucharist.htm" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Denial of the Eucharist to pro-abortion Catholic politicans: a canonical case study”, Homiletic & Pastoral Review (Oct. 1990) 28-32, 48-49.</A></SPAN></FONT></P>
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