And the dioceses should have their tax exempt status removed for the bishops uncalled for intervention in American politics.
In a pastoral letter Sept. 12 to parishes, the Most Rev. Joseph F. Naumann, archbishop of Kansas City in Kansas and the Most Rev. Robert W. Finn, bishop of Kansas City-St. Joseph, directed believers:
"Could a Catholic in good conscience vote for a candidate who supports legalized abortion when there is a choice of another candidate who does not support abortion or any other intrinsically evil policy?
"Could a voter’s preference for the candidate’s positions on the pursuit of peace, economic policies benefiting the poor, support for universal health care, a more just immigration policy, etc. overcome a candidate’s support for legalized abortion?
"In such a case, the Catholic voter must ask and answer the question: What could possibly be a proportionate reason for the more than 45 million children killed by abortion in the past 35 years?
"Personally, we cannot conceive of such a proportionate reason."
The inference is direct. Your spiritual leaders cannot conceive of a reason that you would vote for a candidate who supports choice compared to one who does not. Other moral implications for the people of Matthew 25 -- the poor, the sick, the stranger, the imprisoned are not comparable in their opinion.
And the candidate they cannot conceive of a Catholic voting for is Sen. Obama.
To read the entire letter, go to: http://www.diocese-kcsj.org/_docs/JointPastoral-Moral-Cons-09-08.pdf
In a related matter, Religion News Service reports that a church-state watchdog group has asked the IRS to review the tax exempt status of the Diocese of Patterson, N.J., after the bishop there compared Sen. Obama to King Herod in a column written for the diocese's newspaper.
What Catholic would want to vote for King Herod for president? The inference is clear. Don't vote for Sen. Obama.
To read more, go to: http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2008-10-22-irs-catholic-obama_N.htm
These bishops should be ashamed of themselves. They acutally are more businessmen than shepherds. Donald Trump should be them in Christmas plays. The case for the people of Matthew 25 and the cause of life is just as strong as the matter of choice. And people who support choice do not necessarily support abortion. They just believe in the sanctity of a patient's relationship with her doctor.
Here in Nashville, I have found the bishop quite silent on issues affecting the people of Matthew 25, including those hurt by inhumane Medicaid cuts and pregnant immigrant women tortured by law enforcement authorities during labor because they did not have enough legal documents.
The inconsistency of these supposed shepherds is damning. God is not stupid.
In criticizing Obama, they should also take conservatives such as McCain to task for deserting innocent children after they are born. These same bishops allow the demand for lower taxes and fewer government programs to go unchallenged when it comes time for believers to vote.
These men have violated this nation's sacred separation of church and state. Their wrong should be highlighted to the public, the IRS should investigate and an apology demanded for telling Catholics how to vote Nov. 4.
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