It’s actually a pretty sweet deal being a liberal Democrat Catholic. You can pretty much say anything you like regarding your faith and you’re off the hook. If he’s pro-abortion, he’s not a dissenter, he’s following the primacy of his conscience.
At least that’s how a group of US House Democrat Catholics see it in their new Statement of Principles. They spend a lot of time talking about the Church’s social teachings, which they find it easy to agree with, and only say about abortion that it’s a bad thing, but they’re not going to do anything to stop it. On the rest of the issues they commonly dissent from the Church’s teaching—euthanasia, embryonic research, same-sex legal unions—not a peep.
So now there’s a convenient list of Catholic politicians in apparent violation of Canon 915: “Those who are excommunicated or interdicted after the impostion or declaration of the penalty and others who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin are not to be admitted to Holy Communion.” The ball is now in the court of their respective bishops. They’re practically daring the bishops to say something. What will the bishops do? Do you even have to ask?
Technorati Tags: bishops, Catholic, dissent, doctrine, politics
