Digest of Today's Posts (31 May 2007)

The Last Day Of May

Steve Dillard of Catholics Against Rudy Appears on Chris Matthews' "Hardball"

May - The Month of Mary (Part 21: Feast of the Visitation)

(Digest of Yesterday's Posts (30 May 2007))

The Last Day Of May [UPDATED]

G. Thomas Fitzpatrick at Recta Ratio has a nice post on the Blessed Virgin Mary and the last day of May.

Also, in honor of the last day of Our Lady's month, I am posting several photos of the Anderson family Mary Garden taken over the past month:

Steve Dillard of Catholics Against Rudy Appears on Chris Matthews' "Hardball"

The Curt Jester has the details, as well as a link to the video of the program.


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
A Singular Issue - Why Abortion Should Doom Giuliani's Campaign

Single-Issue Extremist

Anti-Rudy Catholics Plan Their Assault

May - The Month of Mary (Part 21: Feast of the Visitation)

From the Medieval Saints Yahoo Group:

Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Also Feast of Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces
Liturgical Color: White and/or Gold
Themes and Motives: (Originally established in the hope that Christ and His Mother would visit the Church and put an end to the Western Schism which rent the seamless garment of Christ); Fulfilment of the Old Testament and beginning of the New Testament; A feast of the Incarnation, Mary as the Ark of the Covenant, bearing within her the Emmanuel
Commemorates the day Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, whom, as the angel had told her, God had blessed with a son in her old age (Luke i. 39—56).
Instituted: The earliest evidence of the existence of the feast is its adoption by the Franciscan Chapter in 1263, upon the advice of St. Bonaventure; It was extended to the entire Church by Urban VI, 6 April, 1389
Commemorated May 31


The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
http://www.satucket.com/lectionary/Visitation.htm

After the angel Gabriel had announced to Mary that she was to become the mother of Our Lord, Mary went from Galilee to Judea to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth, soon to be the mother of John the Baptist. This visit is recorded in Luke 1:39-56. Elizabeth greeted Mary with the words, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb." Mary burst forth with the song of praise which we call the Magnificat, beginning, "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord." We are told that even John the Baptist, still unborn, leaped for joy in his mother's womb. Thus we are shown, side by side, the two women, one seemingly too old to have a child, but destined to bear the last prophet of the Old Covenant, of the age that was passing away; and the other woman, seemingly not ready to have a child, but destined to bear the One Who was Himself the beginning of the New Covenant, the age that would not pass away.

----------------------------

The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15480a.htm

Assuming that the Annunciation and the Incarnation took place about the vernal equinox, Mary left Nazareth at the end of March and went over the mountains to Hebron, south of Jerusalem, to wait upon her cousin Elizabeth, because her presence and much more the presence of the Divine Child in her womb, according to the will of God, was to be the source of very great graces to the Blessed John, Christ's Forerunner. The event is related in Luke 1:39-57. Feeling the presence of his Divine Saviour, John, upon the arrival of Mary, leaped in the womb of his mother; he was then cleansed from original sin and filled with the grace of God. Our Lady now for the first time exercised the office which belonged to the Mother of God made man, that He might by her mediation sanctify and glorify us. St. Joseph probably accompanied Mary, returned to Nazareth, and when, after three months, he came again to Hebron to take his wife home, the apparition of the angel, mentioned in Matthew 1:19-25, may have taken place to end the tormenting doubts of Joseph regarding Mary's maternity.

--------------------------

The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
http://www.catholicdoors.com/homilies/2003/030531.htm

The narration of the Gospel Reading [Lk. 1:39-56] that we have just heard reminds us of the Feast that is being celebrated today, the "Visitation of Mary." Immediately after the archangel Gabriel had appeared to the Mother of God to announce that she would give birth to the Divine Child, the Blessed Virgin Mary left to wait upon her cousin Elizabeth who was pregnant with Christ's forerunner.

As Elizabeth reported, the unborn child, John the Baptist, leaped with joy in his mother's womb when he found himself in the presence of Our Lady. Three months later, Mary returned to Nazareth, most likely accompanied by St. Joseph. By this time, Joseph must have had peace of mind regarding the pregnancy of Mary because of his vision of the angel in a dream. [Mt. 1:19-25]

Now one would think that traditionally, this feast has been celebrated since the early days of the Church. But this is not the case. While there are records to show that the feast was adopted by the Franciscan Chapter in 1263 upon the advice of St. Bonaventure, this feast was not extended to the entire Church until 1389.

On November 9, 1389, it was decreed by Pope Boniface IX that the Feast of the Visitation should be extended to the entire Catholic Church in the hope that Jesus and His Mother would visit the Church and put an end to the Great Schism that was taking place.

This Schism was known as the "Western Schism." The New Catholic Dictionary, Van Rees Press, NY, Copyright 1929, report the "Western Schism as follows:

"The cause of the so-called Western Schism was the temporary residence of the popes at Avignon, France, which began in 1309 under Clement V. This exile from the Eternal City met with opposition, especially in Italy where the people clamoured for the return of the sovereign pontiff. Finally in 1376 Gregory XI reestablished his see in Rome, and on his death, 1378, the future residence of the vicars of Christ was the main issue in the subsequent conclave. The cardinals meeting in the Holy City duly elected Urban VI, an Italian. General dissatisfaction, especially on the part of the French members of the Sacred College, and disagreement concerning the validity of the choice led to a second conclave at Fondi (20 Sept.) and the election of another pope, a Frenchman, as Clement VII, who immediately took up his residence in Avignon. As both claimed to be legitimate successors, the Western Church quickly divided into two camps, each supporting one or the other."

"There was really no schism, for the majority of the people desired unity under one head and intended no revolt against papal authority. Everywhere the faithful faced the anxious problem: where is the true pope? Even saints and theologians were divided on the question. Unfortunately, led by politics and human desires, the papal claimants launched excommunications against each other, and deposed secular rulers who in turn forbade their subjects to submit to them. This misunderstanding lasted forty years (1378- 1417). An attempt to mend the breach at the Council of Pisa (1409) produced a third claimant and the schism was not terminated until the Council of Constance (1414-18), which deposed the Pisan, John XXIII, received the abdication of the Roman, Gregory XII, dismissed the Avignon Benedict XIII, and finally elected an undisputed pope, Martin V (11 Nov., 1417)."

--------------------------

The Magnificat:
http://www.wf-f.org/Magnifi.html
http://www.catholicculture.org/lit/prayers/view.cfm?id=1037

--------------------------

More on the Visitation at:
http://www.dailycatholic.org/issue/99May/may28lit.htm
http://www.louisville-catholic.net/s_glass/SM021.html
http://www.catholictradition.org/visitation.htm
http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0531.htm#visi

Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
May - The Month of Mary (Part 20)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 19)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 18)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 17)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 16)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 15)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 14)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 13)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 12)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 11)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 10 - Mother's Day)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 9)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 8)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 7)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 6)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 5)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 4)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 3)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 2)

May - The Month of Mary

"Tainted Nature's Solitary Boast"

Digest of Today's Posts (30 May 2007)

A Singular Issue - Why Abortion Should Doom Giuliani's Campaign

Single-Issue Extremist

"Progressive" Christians Say Media Coverage Skewed to Religious Right

Kentucky Parishes Cautioned on Partisan Political Activity

National Catholic Men's Conference - Greenville, SC

May - The Month of Mary (Part 20)

(Digest of Yesterday's Posts (29 May 2007))

A Singular Issue - Why Abortion Should Doom Giuliani’s Campaign

(Hat tip: Darwin Catholic)

National Review's Ramesh Ponnuru on Rudy and Abortion:

In April, a reporter overheard Rudy Giuliani explaining his theory of the campaign: “that the other candidates would divide up the ‘right-wing’ voters, as he called them, leaving him to consolidate the moderates and the economic and military conservatives who aren’t fixated on social issues.” It was a perfectly reasonable analysis. People for whom prohibiting abortion is a top priority are not going to favor the presidential campaign of a man who wants to keep abortion legal and, indeed, to subsidize it. It would be irrational if they did favor it, and it would be irrational for Giuliani to court them.

Since Giuliani’s campaign began, however, vast quantities of political commentary have been devoted to obscuring these simple truths. Generally this commentary has come from writers who do not themselves care about protecting unborn life but feel qualified to lecture people who do about how they should advance their agenda. While the emphases of the commentators vary, their basic argument is that presidents cannot do much to affect abortion policy except to appoint judges, and that Giuliani is just as conservative as the other candidates on that question.

***
In a way, Giuliani’s nomination would cause more trouble for the pro-life cause than his election would. The pro-life cause can survive without a pro-life president: It emerged from the Clinton years stronger than it had been at their beginning. But it will find it harder to survive without a pro-life party. And that would be the meaning of his nomination, even if most Republican congressmen and governors remained pro-life, and even if the party platform, left unread and unheeded, continued to offer solidarity to the unborn. America has been a presidential nation, politically, for almost a century now. The parties are, in the public mind, their leaders; and those leaders are their presidential nominees.

The most specific polls on abortion policy ask respondents whether they think abortion should be banned altogether, banned with exceptions when the pregnancy threatens the mother’s life or resulted from rape, or allowed. Such polls consistently find that the people who want to ban abortion altogether and the people who want to ban it with rare exceptions add up to a majority of Americans. If Giuliani wins the Republican nomination, that majority will have no representation at the level of presidential politics. We will instead have a contest between a candidate who believes that taxpayers should fund abortion through the federal government and one who believes they should do it through state governments.

In 1973, the Supreme Court tried to declare an end to the state-by-state debate on abortion by setting abortion policy nationally. The New York Times, the next day, reported on the decision as a “historic resolution” of the abortion controversy. Before that day, supporters of legal abortion had claimed that their policy was necessary for women’s equality, or population control, or the promotion of liberty. On that day, however, they acquired the most powerful arrow in their quiver: the assertion that abortion policy was a settled matter, an assertion that had the strong support of the country’s journalistic, financial, and legal elites. The principal reason that the question has not been closed is that over the last 30 years the Republican party has stood — shakily at times, it is true, but always officially — against this elite consensus.

The abortion lobby would not be alone in declaring the Republican party to have capitulated to this consensus with Giuliani’s nomination. So would neutral observers; and even some pro-lifers would give up the fight.

***
The pro-life position has carried real costs for the Republican party, in terms of lost votes. But those costs have been more than offset by the gains the party has made. For more than two decades, exit polls have shown that people who vote on the basis of abortion are far more likely to be pro-lifers than pro-choicers. (Using that measure, the issue netted George W. Bush 2.4 million votes in 2000.) Without the realignment of American politics based on social issues — a realignment caused by abortion more than any other issue — the Republicans would never have attained the near-parity they have today.

Now would be a strange moment in our politics for Republicans to abandon the pro-life cause, or even to weaken their commitment to it. The party is in serious trouble these days, for all kinds of reasons — but its pro-life position is not one of them. The public has been moving in a pro-life direction. In this season of Republican discontent, for the first time ever, a few polls show more Americans identifying themselves as pro-life than pro-choice...

[More]

Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this issue:
Single-Issue Extremist

Single-Issue Extremist

An excellent letter to the editor from Leticia Velasquez appears in the June 3-9 issue of the National Catholic Register:

According to Time magazine, Giuliani has “decided that the reign of social conservatives is coming to an end. ‘He understands that there are a lot of Republicans out there who are sick of everyone kowtowing to the single-issue extremists,’ said one veteran Republican observer in Washington. ‘He’s breaking from the pack.’”

This might mean the end of the pro-life plank in the Republican Party platform, leaving pro-lifers no one to vote for in national elections.

I am proud to be a Catholic single-issue pro-life voter today.

I would be one of those single-issue extremists if I were in Germany in the time of the Nazis, when priests, Jews, Gypsies, Polish people, homosexuals and the handicapped were deemed, “life unworthy of life,” and sent to the gas chambers.

I would be a single issue extremist if I lived during the mid-1800s when the Supreme Court handed down the Dred Scott Decision stating that blacks were property and enslaved them.

It’s called respect for human life, Rudy. It’s called Catholicism.

Leticia Velasquez

(emphasis in original)

"Progressive" Christians Say Media Coverage Skewed to Religious Right

From Cybercast News Service:

(CNSNews.com) - A group of religious leaders and liberal media critics on Tuesday criticized what they view as a media bias in favor of conservative evangelicals and against "progressive" Christianity. Full Story

My Comments:
Yeah, right. The MSM is SOOOOOOO biased in its downright gushing coverage of religious conservatives.


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
Fidelis Dismisses Religious Left Media "Report"

Kentucky Parishes Cautioned on Partisan Political Activity

Rich Leonardi links to this story about Kentucky's Catholic bishops reaffirming policies that prohibit supporting or opposing candidates for political office:

With Kentucky’s gubernatorial election campaign in high gear, the state’s Roman Catholic bishops have reminded churches and Catholic organizations of the prohibition against involvement in partisan political activity.

This prohibition also applies to individuals representing the church in their “official capacities,” the bishops of the state’s four dioceses said in a recent letter sent to Catholic parishes, diocesan school superintendents and Catholic Charities directors in Kentucky.

The letter, signed by the four bishops, is a reaffirmation of the state bishops’ 2006 policies on political activity issued by the Catholic Conference of Kentucky.

These policies are being emphasized now, the bishops said, because of the 2007 Kentucky gubernatorial elections and the 2008 presidential race, which has already begun.

Also, the bishops noted, “the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is actively pursuing those who violate the law.”

***
The bishops’ 2006 policies and their recent letter mention specific types of political activity to be avoided by churches. They range from publication of certain voting guides to links on church Web sites to political Web sites.

Only voting guide material published by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops or the Catholic Conference of Kentucky “may be distributed in parishes,” the policies say. “Other materials, even if they are published by a Catholic organization and seem nonpartisan, shall not be distributed.”

The state bishops said this has been the policy since 1995. “The issues covered in outside voter education material typically do not illustrate the wide range of issues of importance to the church but rather reflect the issue advocacy of the preparing organization, often clearly partisan,” the 2006 policies say.

[More]

Rich opines:

I really hope this reminder wasn't prompted by the success in 2004 of Catholic Answers' "Voter's Guide for Serious Catholics", a guide criticized primarily for using the term "not negotiable" to describe the Church's position on core teachings like the right to life and the defense of marriage. Otherwise, they're going to have a hard time reconciling their decision with the "issue advocacy" of another preparing organization:

83. Here it is important to consider what the Synod Fathers described as eucharistic consistency, a quality which our lives are objectively called to embody. Worship pleasing to God can never be a purely private matter, without consequences for our relationships with others: it demands a public witness to our faith. Evidently, this is true for all the baptized, yet it is especially incumbent upon those who, by virtue of their social or political position, must make decisions regarding fundamental values, such as respect for human life, its defence from conception to natural death, the family built upon marriage between a man and a woman, the freedom to educate one's children and the promotion of the common good in all its forms (230). These values are not negotiable. Consequently, Catholic politicians and legislators, conscious of their grave responsibility before society, must feel particularly bound, on the basis of a properly formed conscience, to introduce and support laws inspired by values grounded in human nature (231). There is an objective connection here with the Eucharist (cf. 1 Cor 11:27-29). Bishops are bound to reaffirm constantly these values as part of their responsibility to the flock entrusted to them (232).

(emphasis added by Rich)

Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
Dueling Catholic Voter Guides

More on Catholic Voter Guides

Columnist: "Christian Right Driving Wedge Into US"

More From Amy Welborn on the "Dueling Catholic Voter Guides"

"Catholics in the Public Square" by Bishop Olmsted

Catholics Find Voting Guides a Test of Allegiance

Toledo Blade: "Catholic Voting Guide Gives Church Perspective"

Weigel: "An Electoral Battle of the Booklets?"

What's Missing?

"Not An Approved Catholic Voter Guide"

National Catholic Men's Conference - Greenville, SC

Fr. Longenecker calls our attention to the National Catholic Men's Conference, sponsored by St. Joseph's Covenant Keepers, in Greenville, SC on June 9:

Steve Wood used to be a Prebyterian pastor. He's now a Catholic and runs Family Life Center, has the Faith and Family show on EWTN, started St Joseph's Covenant Keepers--an apostolate that supports men in their vocation as husbands and fathers.

Steve and his family are also members of St Mary's, Greenville. He's running a men's conference on Saturday, 9 June at Prince of Peace--one of the other big parishes here in Greenville. He's got a great line up of speakers including Senator Sam Brownback, Rick Strom and Jesse Romero. Y 'all come! You can get more information and register online here.

Visiting Greenville that weekend gives you the chance to attend St Mary's on Sunday. I'll just be back from El Salvador and will be saying the 9:00 Mass and celebrating the Maronite Divine Liturgy at 11:00. It would be great to meet some readers and fellow Catholic bloggers.

May - The Month of Mary (Part 20)

Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
May - The Month of Mary (Part 19)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 18)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 17)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 16)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 15)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 14)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 13)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 12)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 11)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 10 - Mother's Day)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 9)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 8)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 7)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 6)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 5)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 4)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 3)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 2)

May - The Month of Mary

"Tainted Nature's Solitary Boast"

Digest of Today's Posts (29 May 2007)

Fidelis Dismisses Religious Left Media "Report"

U.S. Flags on Veterans' Graves Replaced With Swastikas

Catholic Priest Calls for "Snuffing" of Gun Shop Owner and Politicos Who Support 2nd Amendment

St. Louis Prelate Aims to Bring Flock in Line - Archbishop Burke Takes Firm Stance on Social Issues

Americana Redux (or, "I Love My Country and Honor Her War Dead, So I Must be a Bad Catholic")

May - The Month of Mary (Part 19)

(Digest of Weekend's Posts (28 May 2007))

Fidelis Dismisses Religious Left Media "Report"

Fidelis press release says "Left Wing Politics Disguised as Religion Not Taken Seriously":

WASHINGTON — Fidelis dismissed a new report released today at a press conference by the groups Media Matters for America and Faith in Public Life entitled: “Left Behind: The Skewed Representation of Religion in the Major News Media” calling it “a transparent attempt to gain relevancy with religious Americans.”

Fidelis President Joseph Cella, who attended the press conference, stated: “The report exposes a fatal flaw within their radical movement: left wing politics disguised as religion is simply not taken seriously by Americans and therefore by most credible journalists. These left wing groups simply have lost touch with religious America, and are now working overtime to become relevant again.”

The groups hosted a press conference Tuesday at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. featuring Rev. Brian McClaren of the “emerging church,” Rev. Dr. Jim Forbes, host of “The Time is Now” on Air America, Rabbi David Sapperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, Rev. Dr. Bob Edgar, National Council on Churches, Alexia Kelly, Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good and Dr. Iva E. Carruthers of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference.

“The members on today’s panel constitute the ‘Who’s Who’ of the Religious Left, and have lost touch even with the mainstream beliefs and practices of religious Americans, particularly on matters concerning the sanctity of all human life and traditional marriage,” Cella said.

Cella cited the following examples:

McClaren refers to God as a “chick” and questions God’s sovereignty over and knowledge of the future.

Forbes authored an article entitled The Moral Urgency of Electing John Kerry.

Sapperstein is a board member of People for the American Way, a close ally of Planned Parenthood, and filed a legal brief with the Supreme Court in opposition to the federal ban on partial birth abortion.

Edgar is a former pro-abortion Democratic Congressman from Pennsylvania.

Alexia Kelly, is the former Director of Religious Outreach for the Democratic National Committee, spearheaded the website www.kerrysharesourvalues.org, and was “Religion Advisor” to John Kerry’s presidential campaign in 2004.

”Socially conservative religious populations in America today are flourishing, while liberal religious movements are fracturing. This fact makes it extremely difficult to put a religious face on a left wing political agenda,” Cella said.

Cella added: “Until they come to grips with the reality of religious faith in America, these Left wing religious groups will remain marginalized.”

Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
The Seven-Step Program for American Left-Wing Catholics

"Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice"

Catholics in Alliance Respond With Letter to Editor

Edwards Blogger Flap Discomforts Religious Left

Mark Shea: "Whores for Edwards Swings into Action"

Continue to Raise Our Voices on Issue of Voting

In January's Catholic Chronicle - "Vote Your Values" Revisited

Vote Your Values

"Not An Approved Catholic Voter Guide"

What's Missing?

Toledo Blade: "Catholic Voting Guide Gives Church Perspective"

Dueling Catholic Voter Guides

U.S. Flags on Veterans' Graves Replaced With Swastikas

Nothing a good pistol-whipping couldn't take care of:

ORCAS ISLAND, Wash. (AP) - Vandals burned dozens of small American flags that decorated veterans' graves for Memorial Day and replaced many of them with hand-drawn swastikas, authorities said Monday.

Forty-six flag standards were found empty and another 33 flags were in charred tatters Sunday in the cemetery, authorities said. Swastikas drawn on paper appeared where 14 of the flags had been.

Members of the American Legion on this island off Washington's northwest coast replaced the burned flags with new ones Sunday afternoon.

The vandals struck again on Memorial Day after a guard left at dawn, the San Juan County sheriff's office said. This time, the vandals left 33 of the hand-drawn swastikas.

"This is not an act of free speech. This is a crime," Sheriff Bill Cumming said in a statement released Monday afternoon.

[More]

My Comments:
What's all the fuss? The people who did this thing were merely doing their part to "resist American holidays as a way of resisting the American mythology" and "look for opportunites to subvert the holidays of the empire in which we find ourselves".


UPDATE (31 May 2007)
I doubt very seriously that this was an "antisemitic hate crime". This was an effort by the vandals to compare those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces to fascists.

Catholic Priest Calls for "Snuffing" of Gun Shop Owner and Politicos Who Support 2nd Amendment [UPDATED]

From Cybercast News Service:

(CNSNews.com) - An Illinois gun-rights group says it plans to complain to the Catholic Church after a Chicago priest at the weekend appeared to call for the murder of a suburban gun shop owner.

On Saturday, as part of an Operation PUSH protest at Chuck's Gun Shop & Range, the Rev. Michael Pfleger, pastor of St. Sabina's Church, urged the crowd to "drag" shop owner John Riggio from his shop "like a rat" and "snuff" him, the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA) said.

ISRA has posted online what is says is a recording of Pfleger's remarks.

In the audio clip, the priest is heard being introduced to the crowd by the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Immediately therafter, Pfleger launches into a tirade.

"I want the NRA [National Rifle Association] to understand - you have a lot of money, but money can't buy moral authority and it can't buy justice or freedom, and we will fight you, NRA," he says.

"We will fight you on every angle [sic], no matter how much money you've got, we will embarrass you, and we will embarrass every legislator that takes money from you. We will call them out by name, by district. We will expose you, legislators."

Pfleger then turns his attention to Riggio. "He's the owner of Chuck's. John Riggio. R-i-g-g-i-o. We're going to find you and snuff you out … you know you're going to hide like a rat. You're going to hide but like a rat we're going to catch you and pull you out. We are not going to allow you to continue to hide when we're here …"

"We're going to keep coming back, and like Reverend Jackson says, it takes civil disobedience, if it takes whatever it takes … we're going to snuff out John Riggio, we're going to snuff out legislators that are voting … and we are coming for you because we are not going to sit idly. Keep on fighting, people. Keep on fighting, keep on fighting."

St. Sabina describes itself as a "Bible-teaching" African-American Catholic Church.

The day before the anti-gun protest, the church hosted former Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who was making a rare public appearance. Pfleger was quoted as describing the controversial Muslim activist as "a gift from God to a sick, sick world."

ISRA Executive Director Richard Pearson called it "shocking" to hear a priest advocate the murder of a gun shop owner "who has never committed a crime in his life."

"Pfleger's comments were disgusting and dangerous," Pearson said. "And, I seem to remember that the Fifth Commandment frowns on murdering one's neighbor," he added.

"This week, I'll be penning a letter to the Archbishop, expressing my concerns over Rev. Pfleger's comments," continued Pearson. "I would hope that the Archbishop would reply with words of comfort for Mr. Riggio, his family, state legislators, and all others who were injured by Rev. Pfleger's thoughtless, inflammatory remarks."

In a message on the church's website, Pfleger says he believes that "we are called by God to build this church in a world filled with division, alienation and racism in order that we may be a witness to the world that it is possible and that the love of God is stronger than the hate of Satan."

My Comments:
Such peaceful and tolerant folks these anti-gunner leftists. And a Catholic priest, to boot. I'm guessing that Fr. Pfleger is soon going to be looking for a new line of work.


UPDATE
Still waiting for a MSM outlet to cover this story. I won't hold my breath.

Let me ask a rhetorical question: Do you think we'd ever hear the end of this from ABCBSCNNBC, not to mention The Washington Post and The New York Times, if a Catholic priest had advocated "snuffing" an abortionist instead of a gun shop owner?


UPDATE #2
The story above now includes the audio of Fr. Pfleger's remarks.


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
Virginia Tells NYC and Bloomberg to Pound Sand

Toledo Blade Editorialist Wants Forcible Dis-Arming of America's Citizenry

To Our European and Australian "Friends" ...

Roanoke Times Columnist Compares Law-Abiding Gun Owners to Sex Offenders, Publishes Their Names and Addresses

St. Louis Prelate Aims to Bring Flock in Line - Archbishop Burke Takes Firm Stance on Social Issues

The Washington Post profiles St. Louis' Archbishop Burke:

ST. LOUIS -- When it comes to expressing his views of church values, Roman Catholic Archbishop Raymond Burke has a habit of making headlines, not always to the satisfaction of his flock.

Burke memorably declared that he would deny Communion to Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) because the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee supports abortion rights. He fought unsuccessfully to keep singer Sheryl Crow, who supports embryonic stem cell research, from headlining an April fundraiser for the Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center, then resigned from the hospital foundation's board in protest.

Just this month, his office pushed St. Joseph's Academy, a Catholic high school, to renege on its invitation to Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) to deliver this year's commencement address because of her abortion-rights position, even though McCaskill's daughter was in the graduating class. McCaskill was uninvited.

At a time when significant segments of the Catholic population are breaking with the church on such issues as embryonic stem cell research and abortion, Burke is adhering to Vatican orthodoxy endorsed by Pope Benedict XVI -- and he expects the same of all Catholics in his archdiocese.

He tells his critics that he has "no agenda but the church."

[More]

UPDATE (30 May 2007)
Mollie at GetReligion dissects the Post piece:

It’s a very curious read. Anyone wanting to know more about Burke or his theological approach to his office will be disappointed. Anyone wanting to know more about how some religious leaders balance concerns about public opinion and fidelity to doctrine will be disappointed. Anyone wanting a substantive debate about whether the church has the right to be, well, churchy in the public square will be disappointed. Anybody wanting a balanced look at how Roman Catholics in St. Louis feel about Burke will be disappointed. Fact is, I can’t think of a single group of people who would have any positive thoughts about this piece, other than folks who oppose church teaching on social issues.

[More]

(Hat tip: Amy Welborn)


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
This Week's Rosie Award Winner: "Comedian" Billy Crystal

Catholic Archbishop Mocked in His Own Diocese at a Catholic Charities-Sponsored Fundraiser on Church Property

The Final Word on Pro-Abort Pols and Communion?

Americana Redux (or, "I Love My Country and Honor Her War Dead, So I Must be a Bad Catholic")

Memorial Day scenes from the American Midwest:

(See the links below for an explanation of the title of this post.)

















Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
For the Greater Glory: "I am Catholic & I Love America and So Should You

Americana

May - The Month of Mary (Part 19)

Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
May - The Month of Mary (Part 18)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 17)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 16)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 15)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 14)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 13)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 12)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 11)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 10 - Mother's Day)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 9)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 8)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 7)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 6)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 5)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 4)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 3)

May - The Month of Mary (Part 2)

May - The Month of Mary

"Tainted Nature's Solitary Boast"

Digest of Weekend's Posts (28 May 2007)

Monday, 28 May

"In Flanders Fields"

Memorial Day (In Memoria)

Sunday, 27 May

For the Greater Glory: "I am Catholic & I Love America and So Should You"

Pro-Life American Idol Winner

Saturday, 26 May

Majority of Those Americans Polled Disagree With Denying Catholic Pols Communion Over Abortion

May - The Month of Mary (Part 18)

(Digest of Friday's Posts (25 May 2007))

"In Flanders Fields"

In Flanders Fields
Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army

IN FLANDERS FIELDS the poppies blowBetween the crosses row on row,That mark our place; and in the skyThe larks, still bravely singing, flyScarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead.Short days agoWe lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lieIn Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:To you from failing hands we throwThe torch; be yours to hold it high.If ye break faith with us who dieWe shall not sleep, though poppies growIn Flanders fields.

Memorial Day (In Memoria)

(Originally posted Memorial Day 2006)

In memory of those who gave the "last full measure":




"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

~ Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
For the Greater Glory: "I am Catholic & I Love America and So Should You

Americana

In Memoria

For the Greater Glory: "I am Catholic & I Love America and So Should You"

Some Memorial Day food for thought from Michael Denton. Worth a read.


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
"God and Country" and the National Day of Prayer

Pro-Life American Idol Winner

"A Pro-Life American Idol: Idol Winner Jordin Sparks Known for Pro-life Advocacy" (LifeSiteNews.com)

Majority of Those Americans Polled Disagree With Denying Catholic Pols Communion Over Abortion

From LifeNews.com:

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A new national poll of adults shows that a majority of people disagree that Catholic politicians who support abortion should be denied communion at church. The poll comes after comments from Pope Benedict XVI saying they should and that pro-abortion politicians automatically excommunicated themselves.

Reacting to those comments, Rasmussen Reports conducted a telephone poll with 1,000 American adults on May 16 and 17.

They asked respondents, "The Pope believes that Catholic politicians who support abortion rights should be denied communion. Do you agree or disagree?"

According to the survey, 53 percent said they disagreed, 23 percent agreed and 24 percent said they were unsure or refused to answer the question.

[More]

My Comments:
"... Rasmussen Reports conducted a telephone poll with 1,000 American adults on May 16 and 17 ..."

Last time I checked, the Roman Catholic Church wasn't a democracy, especially not an American one that includes non-Catholics having a say.