Bishop Tobin Keeps the Heat Up

& it looks like Catholics in Name Only will not be getting a pass from him any time soon.

1st there was an interview he gave on Tuesday during an interview with talk-show host Buddy Cianci on WPRO-AM. "If he cannot abide by the teaching of this church, not just this one but others and ... what it means to be a Catholic ... maybe he should find another fine Christian denomination where he can be more comfortable." However, Bishop Tobin would prefer a different outcome. He said that the best outcome would be for Kennedy to understand why this human life issue is so "very, very important to us, as it should be to him." In other words, he is still holding out his hand to Kennedy & offering him the opportunity to repent of his pro-abortion stand & be reconciled to God & the Catholic Church.

Then on Wednesday Bishop Tobin appeared on The O'Reilly Factor. There he challenged not only Kennedy, but every politician in elective office to make a choice, if you cannot uphold Catholic teaching while holding office, then quit. The choice is theirs.

"Every Catholic has certain obligations, it means something to say you are a Catholic. No one is forced to be a Catholic. If you choose freely to be a Catholic it means you do certain things, and you believe certain things, and I think all I'm trying to say to Congressman Kennedy and others who might be involved, say: if you're a Catholic, live up to your faith. Understand what the Church teaches, accept those teachings, and live that faith."

He went on to say "The most important commitment we can make is our faith, because that defines our relationship with God. Nothing is more important than that. And if your job, your profession, your vocation gets in the way of that, you have to quit your job and save your soul."

Another thing I liked about this interview was how Bishop Tobin refused to fall into the trap of equating abortion with the death penalty. He makes it clear that there are circumstances where the death penalty is OK. I am sure this didn't sit too well with those who are already unhappy with the Bishop for going after Kennedy as he should.

Here is that interview:

Sources: Tobin: Kennedy may be 'more comfortable' as ex-Catholic

Bishop Tobin on O'Reilly: Catholic Politicians Must "Quit Your Job and Save Your Soul" Rather than Support Abortion