Community | November 22, 2009 | 37 comments

Rep. Kennedy barred from communion

source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/23/us/23kennedy.html?hp

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WASHINGTON — Widening a growing rift, Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, a Rhode Island Democrat, said on Sunday that the Roman Catholic bishop of Providence had instructed him to refrain from receiving communion because of the congressman’s stance on abortion.

Rep. Kennedy said that Bishop Thomas J. Tobin “instructed me not to take communion and said that he has instructed the diocesan priests not to give me communion,” according to The Providence Journal, which first reported the article.

“In light of the Church’s clear teaching, and your consistent actions,” the letter said, “I believe it is inappropriate for you to be receiving Holy Communion and I now ask respectfully that you refrain from doing so.” The Bishop added that he was surprised that Rep. Kennedy had chosen to reopen the public discussion of the faith just two weeks after he told reporters he would no longer discuss these matters publicly.

The allegation by Rep. Kennedy, a Democrat in his eighth term, is the most recent escalation in a bitter and unusually personal dispute between the men that began after the lawmaker criticized the nation’s Catholic bishops for threatening to oppose an overhaul of the health care system unless it tightened restrictions on publicly financed abortion.

In an interview with Cybercast News Service on Oct. 21, Mr. Kennedy said he could not understand “how the Catholic Church could be against the biggest social justice issue of our time,” a reference to expanding health insurance, adding that its stance was fanning “flames of dissent and discord.”

In response, Bishop Tobin rebuked Mr. Kennedy, accusing him of “false advertising” for describing himself as a Catholic.

”If you freely choose to be a Catholic, it means you believe certain things, you do certain things,” Bishop Tobin said at the time. “If you cannot do all that in conscience, then you should perhaps feel free to go somewhere else.”

Mr. Kennedy has opposed the strengthening of anti-abortion language in the House health care bill. But ultimately he supported the final version of the bill, which included tough language on the use of federal money for abortions.

On Sunday, Bishop Tobin, said that he had “no desire to continue the discussion of Congressman Kennedy’s spiritual life in public.”

“At the same time,” he added, “I will absolutely respond publicly and strongly whenever he attacks the Catholic Church, misrepresents the teachings of the Church, or issues inaccurate statements about my pastoral ministry.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/23/us/23kennedy.html?hp
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37 comments // Rep. Kennedy barred from communion

  • ryan8566
    • 0
      ryan8566  

    • what about Guiliani, roman catholic, 3rd marriage, pro-choice?
      what about Gingrich, roman catholic (convert), 3rd marriage, pro-choice?
      Patrick Kennedy and John Kerry rec'd communion at the Senator's funeral directly in front of Cardinal O'Malley.

    • 2 years ago
  • JuliusBC
    • 0
      JuliusBC  

    • And after someone takes communion then what? I have yet to see anyone change for the better or worse after they take communion or any kind of Sacrament. Take it, don't take it, you are still the same. You are left to being what ever you were before you took it or not.

      Religion and all of its adornments, funny hats, clothing or religious symbols, sacred signs or activities, or holy synagogues doesn't make you heaven worthy. What you do or don't do is what earns your rewards. Everything else is essentially a concoction manufactured by some fleshy being somewhere through out time. Go to church, don't go to church, go to this church or to that church, IT REALLY DOESN'T MATTER! They all are the summations of some religious person or persons beliefs to the next.

      Don't misunderstand me, I believe in God as much as anyone on this planet. I just don't buy into any religion as having all or most of the answers. In fact so many seem so off base of what Christ actually taught by his own examples. There are some that seem to be closer than others but they all seem to fall short of being completely God-like...

    • 2 years ago
  • Admirable
  • ChristopherX
  • SleepDirt
  • unclecharlie
    • 0
      unclecharlie  
    • SleepDirt:

      (sigh). Infallibility only applies to matters of faith and moral teaching. If he declares the Steelers will win against the Chiefs, that is not an infallible statement- that is mere opinion. Let's say you were a German boy, 12-15 years of age while Hitler was running your country. You were enrolled in the Hitler Youth- you did not volunteer for it- it was mandatory. He never attended a single meeting, nor did he believe any of the crap they spewed forth. His family moved around a bit because they were harassed by the Nazis for his father's opposition to Nazi belief. He had a cousin with Down's Syndrome who was killed by the Nazis. Ignorance is bliss, it seems. The truth is much less interesting than the myths, eh?

    • 2 years ago
  • keithponder
  • samthesixth
    • 0
      samthesixth  

    • The bishop has that right. American Catholics have strayed so far from Vatican doctrine, it is a wonder there is anyone allowed to take communion in America.

    • 2 years ago
  • JuliusBC
    • 0
      JuliusBC  
    • samthesixth:

      And after they take it then what? I have yet to see anyone change for the better or worse after they take communion or any kind of Sacrament. Take it, don't take it, you are still the same. You are left to being what ever you were before you took it or not.

      Religion and all of its adornments, funny hats, clothing or religious symbols, sacred signs or activities, or holy synagogues doesn't make you heaven worthy. What you do or don't do is what earns your rewards. Everything else is essentially a concoction manufactured by some fleshy being somewhere through out time. Go to church, don't go to church, go to this church or to that church, IT REALLY DOESN'T MATTER! They all are the summations of some religious person or persons beliefs to the next.

      Don't misunderstand me, I believe in God as much as anyone on this planet. I just don't buy into any religion as having all or most of the answers. In fact so many seem so off base of what Christ actually taught by his own examples. There are some that seem to be closer than others but they all seem to fall short of being completely God-like...

    • 2 years ago
  • unclecharlie
    • 0
      unclecharlie  
    • Image

    • Naturally, this post brought out every left wing whack job, closet racist, and anti-catholic bigot. Simple, really. Kennedy is being...well, a Kennedy. He wants health care to pay for abortions- i.e., politically correct racism. "We should hire 3 or 4 colored ministers, preferably with social service backgrounds and with engaging personalities. The most sucessful approach to the Negro is through a religious appeal. We don't want the word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population, and the minister is the man that can stop that idea if it occurs to any of their more rebellious members." (Planned Parenthood's founder Margaret Sanger's letter to Clarence Gamble, Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College.) I guess all the WASP bigots and racists that make up a majority of Current contributors are in an uproar because the Church chooses to defend unborn Black and Hispanic babies. Kennedy has shown his unwillingness to defend the unborn child in the womb. Therefore, he is rightfully denied communion. All the comments slamming the Church for its stand are said by people who really have no clue about the Church- its origins, its history, its teachings, its quest for social justice. (every heard of the Catholic Worker? Dorothy Day? Bishop Oscar Romero? The Maryknoll Martyrs of El Salvador?) Educate yourself- get out of your comfort zone. "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." (Martin Luther King, Jr.) Ignorance truly is bliss, eh? www.feministsforlife.org

    • 2 years ago
  • rwahrens
    • 0
      rwahrens  
    • unclecharlie:

      Dude,

      Kennedy is a "representative". According to the American democratic model, he "represents" his constituents.

      He does NOT represent the RCC. He is NOT obliged to "defend" Catholic values. His job is the represent the values of his CONSTITUENTS.

      His actions as a member of the US House of Representatives are intended to benefit ALL his constituents, not just those that are Catholic. Therefor, he MUST parse the values of his constituents and defend those that he represents.

      This is SO much an attempt by the RCC to impose *their* values and religious teachings on the American political system, and as such are reprehensible, unAmerican and should not be allowed to stand. Blackmail against the member of a religious community has never been acceptable, and to do it to influence that person's activities as a public official is doubly wrong.

      Kennedy's religious affiliation has nothing to do with his official duties - remember the Constitutional prohibition against a religious test for public office?

      If he was running a private or non-governmental organization that lobbied for abortion rights, the RCC would have every right to do this - as it would be his personal actions and not as a public official. But as he is a public official, this is simply not acceptable.

    • 2 years ago
  • bike10
  • ChristopherX
  • JuliusBC
    • 0
      JuliusBC  

    • Paraphrased ---> A bitter, personal dispute began after Kennedy criticized the nation’s Catholic bishops for threatening to oppose an overhaul of the health care system unless the overhaul tightens restrictions on publicly financed abortion.

      I am thinking a compromise is definitely warranted here! If the overhaul tightens restrictions on publicly financed abortion then it will also need to include tightened restrictions on psychological counseling and rectum repair for young alter boys.

      What are these Catholic bishops thinking? Oh I see, communion for sodomy and not for abortion. If the aborted fetus is a male, it would truly be a travesty. Now it makes perfect sense. Don't destroy a life prematurely; wait until it has been given a chance. Then destroy it.

      "Disclaimer," this is not a blanket statement for all Catholic bishops or priests but certainly for those that apply.

      Abortions are a part of our society and in many cases it is warranted. There are so many things that are publicly financed. There is one that comes to mind that seems to be accepted as justifiable collateral damage. The one I am thinking of is all of the innocent children, mothers and fathers that have been slaughtered in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

      Rice cake anyone?!...

    • 2 years ago
  • LowShred
    • 0
      LowShred  

    • I just love how they take someone who's job it is to look out for the good of people, and then take it out personally on him. He may not be against abortion but that doesn't mean he's going to convince his wife or children to get one. For some people, abortion works. There are millions of non-christians in this country and who are the Catholic Church to make sure that everyone follows their beliefs?

    • 2 years ago
  • desertcat
  • JosephJinx
    • 0
      JosephJinx  

    • This is disgusting!

      How DARE that bishop deny Kennedy his communion! If Kennedy is truly a Catholic, the implications of this seem to be nothing short of political bullying through appealing to the politician's faith.

      It simply doesn't make sense to me. Just because Kennedy wants to protect the rights of those in America to decide whether or not to have an abortion doesn't mean that he condones it, nor does it mean that he would allow one to happen in his family! Religion is a personal matter, and it seems it should stay that way; I hope we get to see the day where announcing one's faith as part of being a politician is no longer part of the political spectrum, whether it becomes obsolete, improper, or what have you.

    • 2 years ago
  • asherp
  • My_America
    • 0
      My_America  
    • Image

    • http://www.catholic.com/library/Who_Can_Receive_Communion.asp

      Who Can Receive Communion?

      The Holy Eucharist is the most important of the seven sacraments because, in this and in no other sacrament, we receive the very body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ. Innumerable, precious graces come to us through the reception of Holy Communion.

      Communion is an intimate encounter with Christ, in which we sacramentally receive Christ into our bodies, that we may be more completely assimilated into his. "The Eucharist builds the Church," as Pope John Paul II said (Redemptor Hominis 20). It deepens unity with the Church, more fully assimilating us into Christ (1 Cor. 12:13; CCC 1396).

      The Eucharist also strengthens the individual because in it Jesus himself, the Word made flesh, forgives our venial sins and gives us the strength to resist mortal sin. It is also the very channel of eternal life: Jesus himself.

      In John’s gospel, Jesus summarized the reasons for receiving Communion when he said:

      "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever" (John 6:53–58).

      Because of the gravity of Jesus’ teaching on receiving the Eucharist, the Church encourages Catholics to receive frequent Communion, even daily Communion if possible, and mandates reception of the Eucharist at least once a year during the Easter season. Before going to Communion, however, there are several things one needs to know.


      Catholics and Communion

      The Church sets out specific guidelines regarding how we should prepare ourselves to receive the Lord’s body and blood in Communion. To receive Communion worthily, you must be in a state of grace, have made a good confession since your last mortal sin, believe in transubstantiation, observe the Eucharistic fast, and, finally, not be under an ecclesiastical censure such as excommunication.

      First, you must be in a state of grace. "Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup" (1 Cor. 11:27–28). This is an absolute requirement which can never be dispensed. To receive the Eucharist without sanctifying grace in your soul profanes the Eucharist in the most grievous manner.

      A mortal sin is any sin whose matter is grave and which has been committed willfully and with knowledge of its seriousness. Grave matter includes, but is not limited to, murder, receiving or participating in an abortion, homosexual acts, having sexual intercourse outside of marriage or in an invalid marriage, and deliberately engaging in impure thoughts (Matt. 5:28–29). Scripture contains lists of mortal sins (for example, 1 Cor. 6:9–10 and Gal. 5:19–21). For further information on what constitutes a mortal sin, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

      Out of habit and out of fear of what those around them will think if they do not receive Communion, some Catholics, in a state of mortal sin, choose to go forward and offend God rather than stay in the pew while others receive the Eucharist. The Church’s ancient teaching on this particular matter is expressed in the Didache, an early Christian document written around A.D. 70, which states: "Whosoever is holy [i.e., in a state of sanctifying grace], let him approach. Whosoever is not, let him repent" (Didache 10).

      Second, you must have been to confession since your las

    • 2 years ago
  • rwahrens
    • 0
      rwahrens  
    • My_America:

      A very good summary of how the RCC keeps the flock under control, combined with this very public and very recent example of that control mechanism at work.

      The only thing missing here is the threat, used several times in feudal Europe, to excommunicate an entire political entity due to the actions of the leader of that entity.

      See King John of England in 1207. He was excommunicated and the pope also put an interdict on the kingdom as a result. That prevented any Sacraments from being performed anywhere in England. In 1213, he resubmitted the kingdom to the church. A powerful tool, indeed!

      In the 21st century, we should NOT allow this kind of blackmail to be used against public officials.

    • 2 years ago
  • Kyle_Crenshaw
  • cmgrigg
  • csmonut
  • TheOuroborus
  • Pete_Schuring
  • tome_erau
  • fountaingoats
  • My_America
    • 0
      My_America  
    • tome_erau:

      Interesting statement "I don't think the Church should be allowed......." can you please tell me whose job it is to tell a church (any church) what it is or isn't allowed to do?

    • 2 years ago
  • unclecharlie
    • 0
      unclecharlie  
    • tome_erau:

      Hardly. Obvious you've never read the encyclical "The Theology of the Body." The Church has never had problems with sex and sexuality, so long as it doesn't stand in opposition to God's plan for humanity. Educate yourself. Pick up a copy of "The Catechism of the Catholic Church" to see for yourself what the Church teaches. If you choose to remain ignorant and uneducated, that's up to you.

    • 2 years ago
  • JuliusBC
    • 0
      JuliusBC  
    • tome_erau:

      Unclecharlie, was that "The Theology of The Boy's Body," or was it "The Theology of The Body"? How do they decide if it doesn't stand in opposition to God's plan for humanity. The Church has never had problems with sex and sexuality, seems to hold up to some degree as long as it involves little boys.

      I guess this is why they have turned the other cheek to such activities for so long. (They have kept it hidden for so long) I guess on some level this mimics Christ by turning the other cheek. I thing they missed the part where in Christ said: "It would be better to hang a mill stone about your neck and be dropped into the depths of the sea, than to offend one of my little ones.

      Maybe I am wrong, maybe the little boys liked it. So in turn they were not offended. Thus, no offense has been committed which exempts them from this scripture found in the Holy Bible...

    • 2 years ago
  • neocongo
  • krush_productions
  • unclecharlie
    • 0
      unclecharlie  
    • krush_productions:

      Are you really that stupid, or are you just being sarcastic? You betray your ignorance and stupidity because you don't even know what constitutes a eucharistic host. Where do they do that? I've eaten some rather shitty rice wafers I got at the grocery store.

    • 2 years ago
  • Chique
    • 0
      Chique  

    • What can you say - religion is a man-made word used to define man's interpretation of whatever belief system they hold. As is the case here, it too often leads to self-righteous judgment of anyone who doesn't share their views.

      “In religion and politics people's beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second-hand, and without examination, from authorities who have not themselves examined the questions at issue but have taken them at second-hand from other” - Mark Twain

    • 2 years ago
  • current89
  • retro_Syl
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