Maybe Not As Much Backbone as I Thought

On 10 May 2008 I wrote about about how Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, KA & his fellow Kansas Bishops had asked pro-abortion Catholic Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius to refrain from receiving Communion. Sounds good so far. Sadly, that is as far as he is going.

In a recent article in the Topeka Capital Journal they share his Q&A article from the diocesan paper, The Leaven. In it he said the following:

Q. Is a priest or another minister of Communion ever required to deny someone Communion?
A. Canon 915 of the church’s law states: “Those upon whom the penalty of excommunication or interdict has been imposed or declared, and others who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin, are not to be admitted to holy communion.” In my request to Gov. Sebelius, I have made clear that it is her responsibility not to present herself for reception of holy Communion. I am hopeful that she will comply with this request.
Pastorally, it is certainly preferable not to burden ministers of the Eucharist with the responsibility to refuse Communion to someone. Ministers of Communion do have an obligation to protect the sacrament from misuse or abuse. I have, at this moment, not asked the ministers of the Eucharist not to give holy Communion to the governor.

I'm sorry, but something just doesn't make sense here. In the 1st paragraph he makes it clear she is in violation of Canon 915 & should not receive Communion. Then he goes on to say that if she opts to disobey & still try to receive the Eucharist, he won't do what he should & enforce Canon 915.

The message that comes across to me is this: We want to make a statement about abortion. We want to appear we are standing up to defend the Church's teaching. But that's all it is, appearances.

Imagine this: Governor Sebelius says that my job is to enforce the laws, yet if you commit illegal late term abortions I'll look the other way. No wait, we don't have to imagine. She has done just that. & more, she has helped to keep the notorious late term abortionist Dr. George Tiller from facing charges for his alledged violations of that very law.

Most of that article is an excellent defense of the Church's teaching on abortion. Yet, by the 1 statement Archbishop Naumann undermines it all.

On her American Life League blog Judie Brown had the following to say: "Yet the archbishop explains that he is not asking his priests, deacons or extraordinary Eucharistic ministers to deny Holy Communion to the governor. He is not doing what he says the Canon Law requires of him and of those assigned to distribute the sacrament.

Why not? What kind of message is he sending to Catholics in Kansas?

He does not tell us. It is clear, however, that he is shifting responsibility away from those who should be protecting the body and blood of Christ from sacrilege. Who is responsible? Well, according to what he has said, we assume he trusts the governor!

To my mind this is the most ridiculous thing I have ever read or heard in quite some time. And believe me, I mean no disrespect to the archbishop, but in contradicting his own quote of Church law he is spreading confusion among the faithful, and I cannot understand why he would do such a thing.

Perhaps the saddest part of all this is that had he chosen to enforce Church law in this case, he might well have provided Governor Sebelius with an opportunity to reflect in the seriousness of her actions, and maybe she would have wanted so desperately to receive Christ that she would have sought His forgiveness for her egregious acts of support for the deadly act of abortion. We will never know!

It is clear that Archbishop Naumann has created a scandal himself by misrepresenting the intent of Canon 915. He is sending a message to those entrusted to his care that abortion is really not such a grave sin after all. Otherwise he would have made it perfectly clear that he not only will be refusing the governor Holy Eucharist but making certain that his flock understands why this must be done.

How tragic! How very sad! How shameful!

I have to agree with my dear friend Barbara Kralis, a well-known Catholic columnist who has been writing on Canon 915 for the better part of five years now. Barbara e-mailed me earlier today about this sad state of affairs in Kansas and said: Woe to Naumann!" (THE ARCHBISHOP’S CLARIFIER DISAPPOINTS )

Tragic is right. I don't mean to be disrespectful of the "office of bishop". But, I have to say Bishop Naumann's actions remind me of Pontius Pilate's washing of his hands of responsibility at Jesus' trial.

Judie ends he post by saying: "Please join me in a prayer for him." I want to echo that. We need to keep praying for our priests & bishops. & this makes the need to do so all the more urgent that we turn up our efforts to do so.