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| Bishop to Patches Kennedy: No Communion for You! |
| 2009-11-22 |
| Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas Tobin has banned Rep. Patrick Kennedy from receiving Communion, the central sacrament of the church, in Rhode Island because of the congressman's support for abortion rights, Kennedy said in a newspaper interview published Sunday. I'm sure this will really cramp his style on Easter and Christmas. The rest of the year? Probably not so much. The decision by the outspoken prelate, reported on The Providence Journal's Web site, significantly escalates a bitter dispute between Tobin, an ultra orthodox bishop, and Kennedy, a son of the nation's most famous Roman Catholic family. "The bishop instructed me not to take Communion and said that he has instructed the diocesan priests not to give me Communion," Kennedy told the paper in an interview conducted Friday. Kennedy said the bishop had explained the penalty by telling him "that I am not a good practicing Catholic because of the positions that I've taken as a public official," particularly on abortion. That seems clear enough. Respect for life is a central tenet of the Church. If you vote for abortion you're going to have trouble staying within the Church. It's not like it's a new policy. He declined to say when or how Tobin told him not to take the sacrament. And he declined to say whether he has obeyed the bishop's injunction. The paper said the bishop's spokesman declined to address the question of whether he had told Kennedy not to receive Communion. But the bishop's office cast doubt on Kennedy's related assertion about instructions to state priests. "Bishop Tobin has never addressed matters relative to public officials receiving Holy Communion with pastors of the diocese," spokesman Michael K. Guilfoyle told the paper in an e-mailed statement. Perhaps Patrick found a message in a bottle ... Kennedy did not return messages left on his cell phone by The Associated Press, and his staff refused to make the congressman available for comment. Tobin's spokesman told the AP that the bishop would not comment on the issue. Church law permits Tobin to ban Kennedy from receiving Communion within the Diocese of Providence, which covers Rhode Island, but he cannot stop Kennedy from receiving Communion elsewhere. It was unclear whether bishops overseeing Washington and Massachusetts, where Kennedy's family has a seaside compound, would issue similar bans. Kennedy could appeal the decision to officials in the Vatican, but the hierarchy of the Catholic church is unlikely to overturn a bishop, said Michael Sean Winters, a church observer and author of "Left At the Altar: How Democrats Lost The Catholics And How Catholics Can Save The Democrats." "It's really bad theology," said Winters, who opposes abortion. "You're turning the altar rail into a battle field, a political battlefield no less, and it does a disservice to the Eucharist." A little background on this disinterested observer....former top speechwriter for Wesley Clark, thinks that average Catholic voters need to go back to the Democrat party in spite of their stand on abortion because of "peace and justice" issues... The whole point of communion is that it's shared with believers. If you don't believe you don't share. The dispute between the two men began in October when Kennedy in an interview on CNSNews.com criticized the nation's Catholic bishops for threatening to oppose a massive expansion of the nation's health care system unless it included tighter restrictions on federally funded abortion. Kennedy voted against an amendment to a Democratic health care plan sought by the bishops. But he voted in favor of a health care plan that included the amendment he opposed. Tobin, the spiritual leader of the nation's most heavily Roman Catholic state, demanded an apology from Kennedy after learning of his remarks and requested a meeting. "While I greatly respect the Catholic Church and its leaders, like many Rhode Islanders, the fact that I disagree with the hierarchy of the church on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic," Kennedy wrote in a letter to Tobin, agreeing to a sitdown. "I embrace my faith which acknowledges the existence of an imperfect humanity." Patrick me boyo, there's a name for westerners who can't abide by the teachings of the holy and catholic church. They're called, 'protestants'. Go find a church that will take you. Their meeting fell apart. While Tobin called it a mutual decision, Kennedy accused Tobin of failing to abide by an agreement to stop discussing the congressman's faith publicly. Why would the good Bishop agree to do that? It's his job. Tobin followed up with a biting public letter published in a diocesan newspaper. "Sorry, you can't chalk it up to an 'imperfect humanity.' Your position is unacceptable to the Church and scandalous to many of our members. It absolutely diminishes your Communion with the Church," Tobin wrote. In subsequent interviews, Tobin said Kennedy should not receive Communion like other Catholic politicians who support abortion rights. Still, the bishop stopped short of ordering Kennedy not to receive the sacrament. |
| Posted by:Cornsilk Blondie |
| #5 Ole Patches actually had a decent Pub opponent once or twice in the House race. Wonder if the Pubs could get someone in for the 2010 race? At some point even a Kennedy is vulnerable ... |
| Posted by: Steve White 2009-11-22 14:58 |
| #4 I hear the C of E is looking for members. Maybe the Pope could put in a word with the Arch Druid. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2009-11-22 14:54 |
| #3 Patches is a substance-abusing idiot. The good Bishop kept the discussion to himself and Patches, but dumbass has to take it public in a newspaper interview. Raised the stakes with no cards in his hand. |
| Posted by: Frank G 2009-11-22 11:55 |
| #2 Young Patrick's stance is sort of Thomas More in reverse. He stays in the Church so as to keep his political power inst of chucking power and remaining loyal to the Church. |
| Posted by: lex 2009-11-22 11:42 |
| #1 About time the Bishops started enforcing the tenets of the Magisterium. The whole Kennedy clan should've been called on this decades ago. |
| Posted by: Mike 2009-11-22 11:35 |