To commemorate the Vatican's announcement, I have re-posted a video that I had shared here sometime ago that tells a great story about Archbishop Sheen and his passion for the faith.
Venerable Fulton Sheen, please pray for us and for our nation!
Showing posts with label Bishops. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bishops. Show all posts
Venerable Fulton J. Sheen
Venerable Fulton Sheen, please pray for us and for our nation!
The Line in the Sand
If this healthcare overhaul was struck down, the HHS Mandate lawsuit would have also ended since the mandate itself would no longer be in effect. However, the question of religious freedom would have gone unanswered. The current administration has set a dangerous precedent by infringing on religious freedoms to further its political and ideological agenda. The lawsuits against the mandate will now continue and hopefully end with the Supreme Court definitively ending this abuse of power and disregard of religious freedoms by the President.
How can we be so hopeful that the Supreme Court will make the right decision in regards to religious freedoms? As reported by Michelle Baumann of Catholic News Agency: (emphasis mine)
[Hannah Smith, Senior Counsel, The Beckett Fund] pointed to the majority opinion, penned by Chief Justice John Roberts, which states, “Even if the taxing power enables Congress to impose a tax on not obtaining health insurance, any tax must still comply with other requirements in the Constitution.”The line in the sand has been drawn. The current administration is now even more emboldened with this Supreme Court victory. This can become a defining moment in history for us as Catholics. By coming together and supporting our Bishops in this battle, we can truly show the world what it means to be "One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic".
The opinion of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan, was even more explicit, she said.
Ginsberg wrote, “A mandate to purchase a particular product would be unconstitutional if, for example, the edict impermissibly abridged the freedom of speech, interfered with the free exercise of religion, or infringed on a liberty interest protected by the Due Process Clause.”
The direct mention of religious freedom as a reason to find such a mandate unconstitutional is a hopeful sign in the battle over the contraception requirement, Smith said.
She explained that these two statements are “essential” in suggesting that the court may strike down the contraception mandate if asked to rule on it, a positive indication for defenders of religious freedom.
Even though the Fortnight for Freedom is over, the battle continues. There are several things that we can all do to help our Bishops in this fight. First, we must pray and fast for religious freedom. Secondly, speak out publicly in favor of the Church and against this HHS mandate. By this I mean call and write to your elected officials and write to your local newspapers. You can also write about it on your blogs and social media sites. We need to get the truth out to counter the lies in the media. This isn't just some "Catholic thing" about contraception or abortion. This is about protecting the religious freedoms of every citizen in this country. In this battle, we are all Catholics. Finally, take the time to educate yourself on Obamacare, the HHS Mandate and how this impacts our freedoms. This will help you better understand the issues when you vote and allow you to better defend the position of the Catholic Church on this matter.
The line in the sand has been drawn. The question is now do we stand and fight or do we stick our head in the sand and ignore it?
The Most Anti-Catholic Administration in History
The title of this post is pretty blunt, but as time goes on, it is becoming increasingly obvious. The latest headlines just further prove my point:
This comes on the heels of the Hosanna-Tabor decision by the Supreme Court where, against the wishes of the Obama administration, the court upheld the ministerial exemption to anti-discrimination laws. This allows church the freedom to decide who they hire to teach their faith. The Obama administration appeared that they were ready to use anti-discrimination laws as a backdoor to influence who churches hire as ministers and priests.
The disgusting behavior of the Obama Administration in both these cases should outrage all Christians and especially Catholics. Never in the history of our country has our religious freedoms been attacked as they are today. It is unbridled arrogance and thirst for power on the part of our elected officials that allow them to slowly erode our religious liberties to benefit their own personal agendas. It doesn't seem so far fetched to imagine a United States where religion is under the thumb of the state much like we see in communist countries today. This is the path were we are headed if we don't take a stand today. This attack on our faith has become so obvious that our Bishops and the Pope have been increasingly vocal in their concerns:
Pope: America is “increasingly hostile to Christianity”
If you think I may be exaggerating in my statements above, read what our Holy Father said recently concerning these attacks:
- Obama administration refuses to change contraception mandate
- HHS Rejects Compromise, Embraces Abortion Lobby
- Conscience, Denied
- Health plans ordered to cover birth control without co-pays
- Obama admin: birth control mandate is final; bishops vow to fight
This comes on the heels of the Hosanna-Tabor decision by the Supreme Court where, against the wishes of the Obama administration, the court upheld the ministerial exemption to anti-discrimination laws. This allows church the freedom to decide who they hire to teach their faith. The Obama administration appeared that they were ready to use anti-discrimination laws as a backdoor to influence who churches hire as ministers and priests.
The disgusting behavior of the Obama Administration in both these cases should outrage all Christians and especially Catholics. Never in the history of our country has our religious freedoms been attacked as they are today. It is unbridled arrogance and thirst for power on the part of our elected officials that allow them to slowly erode our religious liberties to benefit their own personal agendas. It doesn't seem so far fetched to imagine a United States where religion is under the thumb of the state much like we see in communist countries today. This is the path were we are headed if we don't take a stand today. This attack on our faith has become so obvious that our Bishops and the Pope have been increasingly vocal in their concerns:
Pope: America is “increasingly hostile to Christianity”
If you think I may be exaggerating in my statements above, read what our Holy Father said recently concerning these attacks:
The Pope was emphatic in insisting that the threat posed by current trends threatens not only Christianity but “humanity itself.” He said: “To the extent that some current cultural trends contain elements that would curtail the proclamation of these truths, whether constricting it within the limits of a merely scientific rationality, or suppressing it in the name of political power or majority rule, they represent a threat not just to Christian faith, but also to humanity itself and to the deepest truth about our being and ultimate vocation, our relationship to God.”
Spiritual Warfare and Catholicism Under Attack.
I want to share with you a presentation I gave recently to the Christian Men's Breakfast Meeting Group at the Cathedral of Sts Peter and Paul in Providence RI:
Good morning. I want to begin our discussion about the attacks on our faith with some examples from my own experiences. As some of you know, I have written quite a few letters over the last few years to state, and federal leaders and to the news media on topics such as gay marriage, abortion, and in defense of our Bishop. What you may not be aware of is the disturbing reactions and backlash I have gotten from these letters. Many times people have written back to the Providence Journal and left comments on their website viciously attacking our faith and me personally. I have been called a hater, bigoted, sexist, racist, a closet homosexual, and a dangerous fanatic. I have also been accused several times of brainwashing and psychologically abusing my children because I dare to teach them the truths of our faith such as homosexual behavior is disordered and abortion is murder. Even my wife has been harassed. Several months ago, during the time that the civil unions bill was being rammed through the state house, my wife was driving home from work when another driver started yelling and cursing at her. Why? Because she dared to have a bumper sticker on her car that displayed our support for traditional marriage.
I could go on, but all this pales in comparison to the way other Catholics, our Church and even Bishop Tobin have been attacked for preaching the truth. It goes far beyond just a disagreement or a difference of opinions. There is a feeling of darkness and evil behind the open hostility shown toward Catholics and even Christians in secular world and especially in the media. Just a couple of weeks ago, a Catholic writer in Massachusetts who writes for the Diocese of Worcester’s newspaper, wrote an article on her own website about how she was not comfortable taking her young children to a local park because of the open display of affection she had seen there between two gay men. Being a devout Catholic mother, she only wanted to protect her children from inappropriate behavior. She ignited a firestorm of hatred from athiests and gay advocates because of this article. She and her family were viciously attacked on-line when gay advocates found her article and spread it to other gay friendly websites. They somehow found her street address and phone number and actually posted it online and encouraged people to contact her at home and harass her. It got to the point where she actually received a death treat and finally contacted the police. The police investigated the matter but as you would guess, they never classified it as a hate crime. As in the norm in our society, hate crimes don’t matter when they are against Catholics because it seems this is an acceptable form of bigotry.
"We Need to Be Catholics First" - Archbishop Chaput
I want to share with you powerful homily recently given by Archbishop Charles Chaput during the Mass for his installation as the new head of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. I have respected and admired Archbishop Chaput for many years because of the courage he has shown in standing for the truth and defending the Church.
His homily further exemplified his courage and conviction as he addressed the beginning of his difficult task to rebuild an archdiocese that has been plagued with scandals. Below is my favorite quote from this inspirational homily:
We need to be Catholics first. Everything we do should flow from that. That is a message that we as Catholic men should always focus on, especially in a world were faith is under attack and belief in God is marginalized and even seen as offensive to some. It gives me a sense of hope to see our Church blessed with more leaders like Archbishop Chaput.
Please pray for God blessings on Archbishop Chaput as he faces the difficult challenges that lie ahead.
His homily further exemplified his courage and conviction as he addressed the beginning of his difficult task to rebuild an archdiocese that has been plagued with scandals. Below is my favorite quote from this inspirational homily:
But the Church is not defined by her failures. And you and I are not defined by critics or by those who dislike us. What we do in the coming months and years to respond to these challenges – that will define who we really are. And in engaging that work, we need to be Catholics first. Jesus Christ is the center of our lives, and the Church is our mother and teacher. Everything we do should flow from that.(Click here to read the full homily.)
We need to be Catholics first. Everything we do should flow from that. That is a message that we as Catholic men should always focus on, especially in a world were faith is under attack and belief in God is marginalized and even seen as offensive to some. It gives me a sense of hope to see our Church blessed with more leaders like Archbishop Chaput.
Please pray for God blessings on Archbishop Chaput as he faces the difficult challenges that lie ahead.
Bishop Tobin: "The Sky is Falling! Really?"
The Sky is Falling! Really?Bishop Tobin concluded his column with this great thought about the past, present and future of the Church and its mission:
For reasons that will become obvious, I’ve been thinking a lot recently about the parable of the farmer walking down a rural road who came across a tiny sparrow, lying along side the road on his back, with his little feet up in the air.“What are you doing?” said the farmer to the sparrow. “I heard that the sky is falling and I want to do my best to hold it up,” responded the little bird. “That’s ridiculous,” declared the farmer. “First of all, the sky isn’t falling . . . And secondly, even if it is, your tiny feet won’t help very much.” “Well,” said the sparrow with determination, “One does what one can.”
I feel a bit like the sparrow these days, bombarded as I am with the daily reports about the decline and fall of the Catholic Church. “The sky is falling,” reports seem to confirm.
“Catholic weddings drop 71 percent in R.I.” announces one local headline, with the story not bothering at all to document a similar decline in weddings in other denominations and across the nation.
A letter from an individual in New York, sent to all the bishops of the United States, proclaims that “No intelligent Catholic can deny that there is a serious crisis in faith and morals in the Church. The lack of faith being shown here is frightening.” To document his argument, the letter writer points to the planned gathering of religious leaders in Assisi in October, “where false gods will be invoked,” and the fact that some priests fail to genuflect during the consecration at the Mass.
A letter from a friend in Pittsburgh laments the development of a Church that is peopled by, “a large contingent of secretive, sometimes power-hungry, reactionary cardinals and bishops; and a lower clergy increasingly enamored with its own exalted position who with many in the hierarchy are regressing to a former triumphal, controlling, irrelevant, pietistic, fundamentalist state.”
A famous theologian wrote this assessment about the Church: “People look upon the Church and say, ‘She is about to die. Soon her very name will disappear. There will be no more Christians; they have had their day.’”
Now it’s instructive to note that this rather dour prediction came not from the scribes of the “National Catholic Reporter” or the “New York Times.” This description of a dying Church was referenced by St. Augustine, 1600 years ago – a rather compelling reminder, I think, that the Church in every age has known its struggles and failures.
Does the Catholic Church of today have challenges, problems and failures? You bet. But I love this Church, I’m enormously proud of this Church, and despite my own limitations, imperfections and sins I’m going to work very hard to support its mission and ministry for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. Why? Well simply because “one does what one can.”Click here for the rest of the column.
Thank you Bishop Tobin for being a true shepherd to the people of our Diocese. May God bless you and guide you in your ministry.
Bishop Tobin also recently did an interview with The Catholic World Report titled "Rediscovering Courage and Conviction where he discusses the problems of our culture and also the importance of truly living our faith in our daily lives. Below is a brief excerpt where he discusses authentic faith:
If our faith is authentic, it is effective and makes a difference in our daily lives. We can’t compartmentalize our lives, going to church for an hour on Sunday and then acting like pagans for the rest of the week. If our faith is authentic, then it touches every part of our lives: our work, our family lives, our community involvement, and the activities with which we entertain ourselves.
That has been one of the great failures of many of us in the Church—we do not incorporate our faith into our daily lives. Jesus said Christians are the salt of the earth and light of the world [Mt 5:13, 14]. As the Second Vatican Council taught, our faith is supposed to transform us, and then we move out into the secular world and transform it into the Kingdom of God.It is an outstanding interview and well worth the time to read it. After reading this interview and his column above, you will understand why shepherds like Bishop Tobin are a blessing to our Church.
The Catholic Church and Homophobia
Since same sex marriage and bullying against gays have been in headlines lately, many people are quick to blame Christians and the Catholic Church especially for spreading intolerance and hate. In many heated discussions I have had with gay marriage advocates, their accusations of bigotry and homophobia are due to the fact that they have no moral, legal, or scientific basis for their argument to redefine marriage. However it is frustrating to constantly hear these lies from not only same sex marriage advocates like the very anti-Christian Human Rights Campaign, but also from those in the mainstream media.
Take a look at the video below from the National Organization of Marriage 2010 Summer for Marriage Tour and ask yourself who is displaying hate and intolerance. I am a supporter of the NOM and while I was not able to attend the rallies, I had several friends who did. I am very proud of the way they behaved in a dignified and respectful manner even while very hostile gay marriage advocates were screaming in their faces. But yet, Christians and the NOM are constantly painted as extremists, homophobes, and bigots by this anti-Christian culture.
Bishop Thomas Tobin of the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island, recently released an article which I think all Christians should read and commit to memory. He clearly explains in a very pastoral manner why the Catholic Church is against homosexual behavior. Here are a few excerpts from the Bishop's article:
Bishop Tobin's article: Because We Love, We Preach the Truth
Take a look at the video below from the National Organization of Marriage 2010 Summer for Marriage Tour and ask yourself who is displaying hate and intolerance. I am a supporter of the NOM and while I was not able to attend the rallies, I had several friends who did. I am very proud of the way they behaved in a dignified and respectful manner even while very hostile gay marriage advocates were screaming in their faces. But yet, Christians and the NOM are constantly painted as extremists, homophobes, and bigots by this anti-Christian culture.
Bishop Thomas Tobin of the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island, recently released an article which I think all Christians should read and commit to memory. He clearly explains in a very pastoral manner why the Catholic Church is against homosexual behavior. Here are a few excerpts from the Bishop's article:
In addition, however, we preach the truth of the Gospel with such insistence precisely because we love other people, including those involved in these morally challenging situations. That means, then, that the preaching of the truth must always be infused with love, a gentle and compassionate love.
What parent, because they love their children, does not teach them about right and wrong, challenge their harmful behavior, and encourage them to live a better, more Christ-like life?
As I wrote to my correspondent, the fact that the Church has love and respect for homosexual persons does not mean that we can ignore the immorality of homosexual acts or the homosexual culture. Nor does our respect for homosexual persons mean that we should sit back silently while a highly-organized political movement seeks to hijack the institution of holy matrimony and change its definition as a union of man and woman – a definition that comes from God and has existed from the beginning of mankind.
You see, we speak about the immorality of homosexual acts and culture, not because we disdain persons of that orientation, but rather because we love and respect them; because we want them to embrace a better and more life-giving path; and because we want them to do what is good and holy in the sight of God. And what parent or grandparent would ever do less?Please take the time to read the Bishop's entire article and spread it to others. It's important that in this fight to save traditional marriage, we also do our best to communicate the Church's message of love to those who oppose us. Thank you Bishop Tobin for this outstanding article.
Bishop Tobin's article: Because We Love, We Preach the Truth
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen and Defending the Faith
Please watch this video below and you will understand why the late Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, Servant of God is one of my heroes. I can only imagine how different our Church and our faith if more people displayed the same passion and courage in defending Catholicism as Archbishop Sheen. Please keep in your prayers his cause for canonization.
On a related note please pray for and support Archbishop John Neinstedt who has been attacked in the media lately for defending traditional marriage and refusing to give communion to gay protesters at a mass recently. It is a blessing to have bishops like this following in the footsteps of Archbishop Sheen in defending our Church from those who wish to replace the truth with false teachings.Let's not forget that it is not just the responsibility of bishops and priest to defend our faith. It is the duty of all of us lay Catholics as well. Pray that God will grant us the courage and grace to defend our faith in the appropriate way whenever we are faced with that challenge.
Thank you Micahel Voris and RealCatholicTV.com for the awesome story in this video.
On a related note please pray for and support Archbishop John Neinstedt who has been attacked in the media lately for defending traditional marriage and refusing to give communion to gay protesters at a mass recently. It is a blessing to have bishops like this following in the footsteps of Archbishop Sheen in defending our Church from those who wish to replace the truth with false teachings.Let's not forget that it is not just the responsibility of bishops and priest to defend our faith. It is the duty of all of us lay Catholics as well. Pray that God will grant us the courage and grace to defend our faith in the appropriate way whenever we are faced with that challenge.
Thank you Micahel Voris and RealCatholicTV.com for the awesome story in this video.
Christian Persecution and a Catholicism of Resistance
A Catholicism of Resistance: Archbishop Charles Chaput's Prophetic Voice
In the article above, Deacon Keith Fournier highlights Archbishop Chaput's speech. I strongly recommend that you read the entire article, as it is well worth the time. The Archbishop's words are powerful as he boldly describes the growing threats to Christianity, in particular, a "state-encouraged atheism". He also suggests what we as Catholics can do to truly live our faith and oppose this "secularization" and "de-Christianization" in our society. At the end of the article, there is a link where you can read his entire address. It is a lengthy read, but very eye-opening and worth the time. I pasted below two excerpts from Archbishop Chaput's speech that I thought were brillant and extremely accurate.
We face an aggressively secular political vision and a consumerist economic model that result - in practice, if not in explicit intent -- in a new kind of state-encouraged atheism. To put it another way: The Enlightenment-derived worldview that gave rise to the great murder ideologies of the last century remains very much alive. Its language is softer, its intentions seem kinder, and its face is friendlier. But its underlying impulse hasn't changed -- i.e., the dream of building a society apart from God; a world where men and women might live wholly sufficient unto themselves, satisfying their needs and desires through their own ingenuity. This vision presumes a frankly "post-Christian" world ruled by rationality, technology and good social engineering. Religion has a place in this worldview, but only as an individual lifestyle accessory. People are free to worship and believe whatever they want, so long as they keep their beliefs to themselves and do not presume to intrude their religious idiosyncrasies on the workings of government, the economy, or culture.
We live in a time when the Church is called to be a believing community of resistance. We need to call things by their true names. We need to fight the evils we see. And most importantly, we must not delude ourselves into thinking that by going along with the voices of secularism and de-Christianization we can somehow mitigate or change things. Only the Truth can set men free. We need to be apostles of Jesus Christ and the Truth he incarnates.
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