Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Now Batting on the ND/ Obama Issue: Jersey Archbishop John Myers

NJ.com has a bit on Archbishop Myers of Newark's views of the Obama invite.

It pained me to hear that one of the symbols of Catholic education in our nation, Notre Dame University, had extended an invitation to President Obama to speak at its commencement," Myers said in a statement.

"When we extend such honors to people who do not share our respect and reverence for life in all stages, and give them a prominent stage in our parishes, schools and other institutions, we unfortunately create the perception that we endorse their public positions on these issues. We cannot justify such actions, and the Bishops have stated so clearly and strongly," he said.

This second paragraph is significant. I've seen a lot of what-not about how the majority of Catholics voted for Obama, despite the comments made by so many bishops in the lead-up to the election. Such news pieces, including this invitation, have been spun by some to say that the abortion issue for Catholics is no longer germane. The latest Gallup numbers didn't help. This is why the invitation and honor are a scandal, in the Catholic sense of the term.

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