(Charleston, SC) Diocese: Priest wrong about Obama voters

[Eugene]

Source: Boston Globe

Catholicism,Politics
Diocese: Priest wrong about Obama voters
Posted by Michael Paulson November 15, 2008 10:39 AM

The diocese of Charleston, SC is publicly rebuking the Rev.
Jay Scott Newman for suggesting that Catholics who voted
for Barack Obama should refrain from presenting themselves
for Communion unless they go to confession first. The
comments caused an enormous firestorm, and Newman then
suggested that he had been misinterpreted, but his diocese,
in a highly unusual step, is now saying that Newman
misrepresented the church's position, and that Obama voters
do not need to go to confession before seeking Communion.
The diocese has no bishop at the moment, so the statement
was issued by the diocesan administrator, Monsignor Martin
T. Laughlin, who said, "Father Newman’s statements do not
adequately reflect the Catholic Church’s teachings. Any
comments or statements to the contrary are repudiated."
Here is the statement in its entirety:

   "Statement of Monsignor Martin T. Laughlin, Administrator
   of the Diocese of Charleston

   This past week, the Catholic Church’s clear, moral
   teaching on the evil of abortion has been pulled into
   the partisan political arena. The recent comments of
   Father Jay Scott Newman, pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic
   Church in Greenville, S.C., have diverted the focus
   from the Church’s clear position against abortion.
   As Administrator of the Diocese of Charleston, let me
   state with clarity that Father Newman’s statements do
   not adequately reflect the Catholic Church’s teachings.
   Any comments or statements to the contrary are
   repudiated.

   The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, 'Man has
   the right to act in conscience and in freedom so as
   personally to make moral decisions.' ...

-snip-

Read more: http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles_of_faith/2008/11/diocese_priest.html

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Related thread: S.C. Priest: No Communion for Obama supporters

[tblue]

1. Beautiful. I hope more Catholic leaders take this stand.

[Hawkeye-X]

2. So reassign him to some piss-ant parish where he'll get bored

and eventually quit being a priest.

Hawkeye-X

[mitchtv]

7. sounds like he's already there

the Msgr wants to continue with the tax free status, I bet

[nini]

3. you should post this in GD

.

[Skip Intro]

6. seconded.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

4. Churches need to start doing this with right wing extremists

Maybe if they do this, they will one day be real churches like they're supposed to be.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

10. The trouble is that most right-wing extremists are free-lance fundies

and therefore without supervision or else belong to denominations that are mostly or entirely right-wing.

[Skip Intro]

5. Wow. As I am frequently ashamed of my state, I am sometimes surprised by my city.

We came within 4 pts of kicking out a repuke fixture here in the US house (Linda Ketner vs Henry Brown - she won Charleston county, but lost the other counties in the district).

Thanks, Monsignor Martin T. Laughlin.

You guys don't give up on SC.

[rosesaylavee]

8. K & R

That Monsignor has guts to do that. Happy to send this off to the Greatest Page.

[DesertRat]

9. k&r