'Cause Old White Male Celibates Know Best

[filkertom]

I literally just heard this on Air America Radio, and Googled it up at Wired:

Cardinal: No Communion For Pro-Abortion Politicians

In remarks that could influence the U.S. presidential race, a top Vatican cardinal said on Friday that a Catholic politician who unambiguously supports abortion should be denied communion at Mass.

Anyone else ever going to invoke the doctrine of Free Will again?

Comments

[umbran.livejournal.com]

Free will isn't much the issue here...

As I understand it (and someone please correct me if I am wrong), in order to take communion in a Catholic church, the individual is supposed to be shriven - confessed and free of sin. But, in order for that to be the case, you've got to sincerely confess your sins.

If the Church thinks supporting abortion is a sin, and a legislator comes out of the confessional still supporting it, then obviously the politician wasn't sincere, and is thus unshriven, and cannot take communion.

[djonn]

If the Church thinks supporting abortion is a sin, and a legislator comes out of the confessional still supporting it, then obviously the politician wasn't sincere, and is thus unshriven, and cannot take communion.

This assumes that the priest taking the confession is also taking an unquestioning by-the-book Vatican line with the people entering his confessional. Which is also a large assumption in today's RC church.

Sheesh, doesn't anyone else read Andrew Greeley these days?