From Dr. Ed Peters:
A political wag once observed that the fastest way to start a ruckus on Capitol Hill is to point out what the Constitution actually says. In the Church, it seems, the fastest way to start a ruckus is to point out what the Code of Canon Law actually says.
Read his entire post, "My brief replies to Albany's brief response", which has to do with his comments made regarding the eligibility of Gov. Andrew Cuomo for holy Communion under Canon 915 of the Code of Canon Law.
The failure to enforce canon law regarding the Eucharist can have the same consequence as failure to defend the doctrine regarding the Eucharist.
Some people come to the conclusion that the Church, which they believe knows more about the Eucharist than they do, does not take it seriously to the point of being motivated to do anything unpleasant (such as publicly rebuking a politician) when it is abused. They leave the Church, perhaps muttering to themselves that they will return when the people in charge start performing the duties required by their vocations.
Posted by: Charles E Flynn | Wednesday, February 23, 2011 at 04:57 PM
I frequently get the feeling that most Catholics think that the Church revolves around personal opinion. I think a general increase in knowledge of the various Church resources (not the best word but it's all that's coming to me at the moment): GIRM, Code of Canon Law, Church Docs etc is long overdue.
Posted by: JP | Thursday, February 24, 2011 at 11:09 AM