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« A levee breaking in a spring flood of "same sex marriage" | Main | Rev. Stanley L. Jaki, O.S.B., requiescat in pace »

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Comments

El Zorro

Thanks for your "spot-on" analysis, Carl. Unfortunately, the half-baked arguments of Blair and those with similar views are persuasive to many young people. Your work helps those who read your blog to think about this issues critically, and to see that orthodoxy is intellectually defensible. I say this partly because I have found Blair on other occasions to be one of the more eloquent political figures of our time. Such eloquence, obviously, may be put at the service of good or evil, but in either case it is more potent than the empty slogans of less thoughtful politicians.

Ed Peters

I only skimmed it (not caring terribly much about Tony Blair) but, did he actualy SAY much of anything, as opposed to filling the air with words?

Kevin

Since I am myself only now in the process of entering into full communion with the Church, I can sympathize with Tony Blair's lack of understanding in some areas and struggle with honest questions. If there is a downside to the Church's theology being so deep and multidimensional, it is that it takes time to get a good handle on things.

On the other hand, since Blair is admittedly still a newbie, it is a tad presumptuous to take upon himself the role of judge or critic of the Church's teachings. And as to his appeal to the attitudes of the Catholic laity, it must be observed that truth is never determined by majority vote.

Gail F

You can't really blame Tony Blair. A great many Catholics in this country see no problem with a stance like that, and I assume the numbers are even greater in the UK. I am sure he is only being honest when he says that "most congregations are more liberal-minded" than the pope. Why should he listen to people who say the opposite of what he wants to believe when so many "Catholic" people, including many priests, are saying what he wants to believe?

The silver lining in the Notre Dame fiasco here is that so many bishops are now confronting this reality. More than half of the self-identified Cahtolics in the US voted for Obama. The Pew study out last week showed that the majority of US Catholics see nothing wrong with divorce, homosexuality, and other moral issues clearly against the teachings of the Catholic Church. The numbers among actual church-goers are much lower, but still not as low as those from church-going NON-Catholics.

While I am personally disheartened by stances taken by Blair, Pelosi, Kerry, Daeschle, et al, I don't think anyone should be surprised. They are natural when the culture is pulling that way, when political success is granted to people who hold those stances, and when opposing those stances is seen as "kooky" and untenable. I am heartened that bishops are finally starting to take notice of the state that years of looking the other way has creatad. Yes, many people complain that it's too little, too late, but in the history of the Catholic Church a couple of decades are only a blip.

Ed Peters

Great comments. ps: Kevin is already obviously a Clear Thinker.

B. Johnson

Tony Blair can pull the cellophane off of his Bible and read the following passages.

Romans 1:25-27 tells us that same-sex sexual relationships are a consequence of idolatry. In other words, such relationships are a consequence of disobeying the 1ST COMMANDMENT, a major aspect of the GREATEST COMMANDMENT, to love God with all your being.

Homosexuals need to keep in mind, however, that the good news of the gospel is not about how God despises homosexuality. In fact, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 shows that certain members of that church had been slaves to same-sex sexual relationships but had been cleansed in Jesus' name. So these former homosexuals had evidently repented and accepted God's grace to straighten their lives out.

Thomas

Cormac Murphy-O'Connor wasn't replaced soon enough. HE is the one who received Blair into the Church and PERSONALLY instructed him. His Disgrace, er, His Grace should be ashamed of himself. He personally facilitated this scandal on a very public stage.

And sorry, but I'm not buying the "Catholic Theology is so deep it's not his fault he couldn't grasp it so soon" argument. I think even the most degenerate atheist knows that the Church says sodomy is bad. I'm also pretty sure you don't need to be Catholic to understand that sodomy is bad.

Thomas Mellon

A few comments about Blair.
He calls for tolerance when the government that he lead was the most intolerant to internal dissent that has existed in Westminster.His henchman Campbell "took out" anyone who was not on message.

Why was he welcomed with open arms by the American right when it was obvious from day one from his open pronouncements that he had an anti Catholic agenda.

He is still a politician as his biggest ambition at the moment is to become first President of a United Europe, and the cynics might say that his conversion was solely to assist in this objective.

Finally, i believe that Blair operated a politics of revenge.I mean that if in the course of his government you opposed his ideas then his science of politics meant that it was legitimate that you pay a price for this disloyalty.He did this to individuals and institiutions. One example of this was the downgrading of the UK embassy to the Vatican State to a consulate.This was political revenge for not supporting Iraq and also a first step to diminish the Vatican State in the eyes of the UN,in particuar its influence on boiethics and population committees.It is no accident that his appointment as Consul, was the man he seconded to Amnesty International and whilst there succeeded in diverting Amnesty from its core mission by making it support abortion and equating the tragedy of domestic violence with prisoners of conscience.

Finally.He is credited with making Labour electable.The fact is the Conservatives were so hated that a monkey would have been elected for at least 2 terms if it had been put up against the conservatives.

See Blair for what he is.Its not only Britain but America that has a lot to answer for in this respect

Charlie B

Having directed RCIA (in the past) for several years in a parish, its hard enough to require adequate time for a catechumen to truly a) convert, and then b) adequately grasp the core truths of our faith. When already baptized adults inquire, it is easy to presume conversion, and believe that a school calendar based program will do the trick in 8 months.
Of course, people can and do change their minds, but our whole sacramental preparation system 1) rescues parents from their duty, and 2) ends up offering cheap grace to adults.
So the Blair problem is just another example of how we've not just missed the doctrinal impact, but also the conversion-based dynamic that reveals itself in the humility to listen to the Church as teacher.

Brian Schuettler

He is still a politician as his biggest ambition at the moment is to become first President of a United Europe, and the cynics might say that his conversion was solely to assist in this objective.

Thomas, conversion to Catholicism or any overt identification with Catholicism would hardly enhance Blair's chances of becoming the first anything in Europe these days. Either totally ignoring the existence of the Church or, preferably, publicly spitting on her would more likely do the trick.

The dogs have the day...for now.

Ann Couper-Johnston

I have been a Catholic for decades, but there are still parts of the teaching of the Church I don't (yet) wholeheartedly embrace. I have no problem with the moral teaching of the Church: for me it is the social teaching which leaves me behind (I suspect that's a direct reverse of Tony Blair's positon).

The difference is that I would NOT be prepared to argue against the teaching of the Church, or to say she should alter it, in a public forum (no matter of what kind). Whatever my own views, my duty as a Catholic is to represent accurately those of the Church, most especially when speaking to those outside the Church.

The Catholic representatives on our local ecumenical body unfortunately are such keen ecumenists that they have no such inhibitions. When one non-Catholic member made an (erroneous) observation that the Taize community was allowed to practice intercommunion, they both remarked that it should be the practice everwhere. They exhibit a similar attitude to Tony Blair in their disregard of the teaching of the Church (I suspect on other matters too and probably including the one under discussion here). I did not think it appropriate to challenge their views as it would only have led to an even more unfortunate end - that of two claims to be Catholic in dispute with one another in public.

If I were asked what should be the matter most urgently needing attention from the Archbishop of Westminster designate, I would say without hesitation: CATHOLIC ADULT EDUCATION. It is vital, precisely because of the widespread prevelance both of secular views and misrepresentation of the Church, that Catholics are able reason through and defend the faith from fundamental principles - the teachings of the Church which have most recently been in the news (the Pope on condoms and this matter)both lead back to the teaching on sexuality and ultimately on what the origin and purpose of our existence is: we are not made for hedonistic pleasure, but for the joy of heaven.

And would someone please explain to me how the homosexual lobby can claim that it is only doing what is 'natural' (which use of the word 'natural' itself I question, but for the moment let's take the broader and more common definition)and yet when it comes to the natural consequences of the homosexual act, the lack of children, they are unwilling to accept what is the natural and insist on the right to adopt?

I am hoping to resume the study of theology which I took up, knowing that I needed to know the Faith more comprehensively than I did (as a convert from Protestantism I was familiar with what was in dispute at the Reformation). The Faith is a whole and you cannot take one part in isolation: what I have learned has been of great help to me spiritually as well as intellectually.

Mark Freer

Can we hope that the "Catholic" Blair might be excommunicated?

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