Punditry

UK scientists have applied for permission to create embryos by fusing human DNA with cow eggs.

Researchers from Newcastle University and Kings College, London, have asked the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority for a three-year licence.

The hybrid human-bovine embryos would be used for stem cell research and would not be allowed to develop for more than a few days.

But critics say it is unethical and potentially dangerous.

I guess they want to create a missteak or perhaps dairy farms will start delivering the milk of human kindness.

Kathy Shaidle’s headline was Don’t have a man-cow.

The decision was not a difficult one for Frank McMahon, although he said it was one he thought he would never have to make.

As a prerecorded message from Bishop Robert Morlino began playing during Saturday’s Mass at Our Lady Queen of Peace in Madison, McMahon, 70, a lifelong Catholic, quietly but purposefully strode to an exit.

"I could have stayed in there and pretended I was soaking it up, but why be a hypocrite?" said McMahon, as he waited out the 14-minute message from Morlino by gazing at a quilt hanging in the church vestibule.

A handful of other parishioners also walked out, unwilling to hear Morlino’s opposition to three controversial issues – same-sex marriage, the death penalty and embryonic stem-cell research. One read the Bible. One prayed. One dabbed at tears.
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It was an odd and difficult weekend, many Catholics said. While they are no strangers to the complexities of church issues, this was a new development in negotiating the tricky intersection of personal faith, religious doctrine and electoral politics, they said.

Morlino, bishop for 270,000 Catholics in the 11-county Madison diocese, had ordered all parishes to play his strongly worded audio message on Nov. 4 and 5, just days before an election in which all three hot-button topics will be on the state ballot, either directly or indirectly.

It is rather sad that they have not heard a previous message before Bishop Morlino’s tape. As if what the Church teaches has been a secret that was just released. Though maybe that is rather accurate in some parishes. Does walking out before the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass fulfill your Sunday obligation? If not what a great way to make a political point by committing a grave sin.

This is how some of the priests introduced the Bishop’s tape.

" As most of you have heard by now, I have been ordered to play this." Another said he was "required" to play it.

At Holy Mother of Consolation Church in Oregon, the Rev. Bill Connell admitted he wasn’t supposed to say anything about the taped message from Morlino but couldn’t help himself. Looking a bit ragged, Connell confessed he hadn’t slept for two nights, worrying about what parishioners might do or say upon hearing the tape.

Loosing sleep over how parishioners would react to Church teaching? Seems to me he should be losing sleep over the bad catechesis at his parish. The article though at least printed the positive reaction from some people.

Jennifer Milas, 54, a member of St. Ignatius, said she fully supports the bishop and was glad that he ordered the tape to be played.

"I think a lot of people hadn’t talked about their beliefs much," she said. "This really brought it to people’s minds."

Milas said she will be voting in favor of the ban on gay marriage and civil unions Tuesday. As for those who walked out of services or protested in other ways, "I just pray that they’ll have a stronger faith," she said. "I don’t condemn them. I pray for them."

The only thing I would quibble with the good bishop on is his statement on "standing against the death penalty." Mixing things that are intrinsically evil with something requiring prudential judgment only muddle what the Church teaches. For the record I believe that the death penalty should be severely limited, but opposition should be framed in what the Church teaches and not on subject that then-Cardinal Ratzinger said could entail a "legitimate diversity of opinion" among Catholics. Though in this case Bishop Morlino is probably referring to voting in support of a non-binding resolution concerning the death penalty and somebody convicted with first degree murder.

Roman Catholic Blog has pictures from the Halloween Mass at the "Catholic-Christian community" of Corpus Christi in Aliso Viejo, in the Diocese of Orange, California. The pictures includes a devil in the choir(rock group) and a She-Devil as a extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. I guess someone dressed as a She-Devil giving out communion is extraordinary. Someone should have gone dressed as a kneeler, since in that diocese it would be pretty scary.

Catholic Church Conservation has pictures of a group of nuns (thankfully not at Mass) who appear to be willing to wear anything but a habit. Diogenes also comments on one of the pictures of a nun in solidarity with the murder of innocents – chickens that is.

A reader sent me the following article.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Episcopal Church, threatened with losing its place in the world Anglican fellowship in a feud over the Bible and sexuality, is putting its future in the hands of a new leader.

On Saturday, Katharine Jefferts Schori was to be installed in the Washington National Cathedral as presiding bishop, becoming the first female priest to lead a national church in the nearly 500-year-old Anglican Communion.

Jefferts Schori, 52, was bishop of Nevada when she was elected at the Episcopal General Convention in June. She hopes to revitalize Episcopal parishes after years of declining membership and advance the church’s fight against poverty and other social ills at home and abroad.

But internal conflicts are likely to consume much of her time.

The 2.3 million-member denomination, the U.S. wing of Anglicanism, sparked an uproar when it consecrated the first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, three years ago.

Most overseas Anglican archbishops believe same-sex relationships violate Scripture and they want the U.S. denomination to adhere to that teaching or leave the communion.

By contrast, conservatives are a minority in The Episcopal Church, yet their protests here have had some impact. They have chipped away at the authority of the denomination by withholding money and building alliances directly with like-minded Anglicans overseas.

It will fall to Jefferts Schori to try and reconcile The Episcopal Church with its critics — a job complicated by her personal outlook on sexuality.

Jefferts Schori unapologetically supports ordaining gays and allowing blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples, and she voted to approve Robinson’s election in New Hampshire.

…Jefferts Schori decided to pursue full-time ministry after federal funding for her scientific research dried up. She was ordained in 1994.

Wow, now this is an arguments for Federal funding of scientific research if I ever saw one. The term Anglican Communion is getting more ironic by the day, perhaps Anglican Diaspora would be more accurate.

Gerald posts on the "Catholic-Christian community" of Corpus Christi in Aliso Viejo in the Diocese of Orange, California having a Halloween Mass. Where the parishioners are invited to wear costumes. Afterwards they are planning to carve a "Fred-o-lantern." The following is my favorite part of their notice.

Our God is
not threatened by carved vegetables

Sounds like something for a hymn.

Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
Our God is
not threatened by carved vegetables
Our God is an awesome God

Now it might be one thing if they had specified that they come dressed up as saints, but even that reduces the Mass to that of something less than worship. The idea of a Communion line with witches, ghosts, Jasons, and assorted super heroes and monsters is pretty scary though.

Catholic Church Conservation plays "What it is?" My first thought was a fancy tootsie pop. My second thought was that they were setting up the ball sport played in Battlestar Galactica.

Via Diogenes.

Check out this ad from Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good:

Some things ARE as simple as RIGHT and WRONG

Abandoning the poor is WRONG
45 million Americans without health insurance is WRONG
Torture is WRONG
Government corruption is WRONG
War without a plan for peace is WRONG

Notice anything missing?

It’s always sad when people feign an interest in subjects that bore them. Think of the progressive Christians you know: is there a single one of them who doesn’t convey the attitude that religion is an irritating interruption of more important business?

I guess they now have their own five "non-negotiable" principles now. Once again though they are pointing out things that no politician is running a campaign on. Who is running on a I am for government corruption campaign or where they say vote for me and I will abandon the poor. I missed the campaign of somebody advocating war without planning. "I’m John Doe and I approve this message supporting torture " was an ad I missed.

It seems that the words "Common Good" are the progressive’s latest phrase. I see it used now almost everyday. I guess it replaces the "Seamless Garment", but to the same effect. These magical words turn things like the minimum wage to be the same moral weight as abortion. That healthy young people who normally don’t want to pay for heath care is the same problem as scientists killing human embryos for experiments. They are ruining the phrase common good the same way they ruined the phrase social justice.

If you conducted a Turing test where you had to differentiate between the DNC’s talking points and the talking points of most progressives would it be humanly possible to tell the difference?

JOLIETTE, QC, November 1, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Diocese of Joliette has issued a press release after the mainstream media erroneously reported that the Vatican had given permission for a Catholic priest who supports abortion and homosexual ‘marriage’ to run for public office.

Both a Canadian Press story, published in several papers, and a CBC story claimed that the Vatican granted Fr. Raymond Gravel special permission to run for politics. Gravel is representing the Bloc Quebecois, a separatist party which is also known for its support of abortion and homosexual ‘marriage’.

The first line of the press release from the diocese states: "No ‘green light’ was given by the Vatican." It continues, "The Bishop of Joliette did not receive any permission from Roman Authorities regarding the plans of Fr. Raymond Gravel."

Of course I truly doubt that there will be as many news stories correcting storiest saying the priest had Vatican permission as there were to assert this.

The openly gay Gravel, 54, is a former male prostitute who decided to enrol in a Catholic seminary after suffering a beating that left him near death.

He also supports legalized abortion and the ordination of homosexuals (in 2005, he told a Montreal magazine that 50 per cent of priests in Quebec are gay and that priests in general don’t take their vow of celibacy seriously).

He also once received a disciplinary letter from a cardinal named Joseph Ratzinger, better known these days as Pope Benedict XIV.

The outspoken Gravel, who has also run afoul of his church because of his support for gay marriage, wants to run for the Bloc in Repentigny, a staunchly sovereignist riding just off the eastern tip of the Island of Montreal.

The Star was unable to reach Gravel for comment, but he told Radio-Canada that if the Catholic authorities objected to his desire to run, he would continue in his current vocation.

To have believed the original stories in the first place means that you are also probably corresponding with someone in Nigeria concerning a windfall financial transaction. This premise of the story was so ridiculous in the first place and it just shows you how stupid the MSM is. Sure they have editors, but wouldn’t a story like this require that someone check with the Archdiocese first?

Fr. Gravel saying he would continue in his current vocation is Church authorities objected is a not unsurprising lie. At the time he already knew not that there was no way he was ever to get such permission. Or that he lied about the Vatican permission in the first place is the sure sign of a dissenter. On this rock I will build my Church, sorry it was not on this Fr. Gravel I will build my Church. Even though every dissenter considers themselves infallible.

Update: Diogenes comments on the story and asks the obvious questions.

Unlike I guess every other blogger and their dog I have not yet commented on Kerry’s statement.

First off go over to Happy Catholic for some good comic relief on this subject.

I certainly don’t buy any of Kerry’s excuses or his apology after he said he would not apologize. I have experienced this sort of military sneer first hand in my own life. When I joined the Navy in very liberal Portland, Or the reaction by some was that I must have been forced by a judge or that I didn’t have any other job opportunities. My High School electronics teacher who was the quintessential liberal (though so was I at the time) often made comments to me how I was throwing away my life away and that I would be doing nothing but mopping the deck. I also spent six months as a recruiter where my tires were spiked and our office vandalized in Washington state.

I think this attitude is quite prevalent among many liberals. When Richard Belzer appeared on the Bill Mayer show earlier this year they both disparaged the reason people joined the military and Belzer said "They’re 19 and 20-year-old kids who couldn’t get a job," These statements were welcomed approvingly by the audience, but being a Bill Mayer audience that does not say much. Then there was Donna Shalala who said that "the best and the brightest sons" did not go to Vietnam. Though maybe with John Kerry she had a point.

"I sincerely regret that my words were misinterpreted to wrongly imply anything negative about those in uniform, and I personally apologize to any service member, family member, or American who was offended."

So I guess now us military types are to stupid to correctly interpret what he said. I guess some of us must be dumb after all to not get the nuance of his statement. Maybe if I studied the French I would get it. A "retired Army guy" at Michelle Malkin’s site has the same opinion about this part of the apology.

Maybe those serving in Iraq should feel themselves honored instead. After all he didn’t accuse them of cutting off heads and acting like Genghis Khan this time around. He was also slightly nicer than last year when he said "And there is no reason, Bob, that young American soldiers need to be going into the homes of Iraqis in the dead of night, terrorizing kids and children, you know, women,"

Now that I think of it John Kerry is actually making real progress. Going from calling military personnel beheaders acting like a Mongolian warlord, to people who terrorize women and kids, and finally to just people who lack job opportunities is progress indeed.

Another "moral theologian" at Marquette University home of Daniel C. Maguire.

..Father Bryan Massingale, an associate professor of moral theology at Marquette University, wrote a lengthy essay in which he struggled with the idea that "the amendment, read in its entirety, poses a dilemma for many faithful people."

I am too cynical to believe that anytime the word struggled is used with regards to moral theology to think it was much of a fight – especially since you know it is always dissent that wins out. When I hear struggle in these cases I think of Mike Tyson versus Pooh Bear.

"The amendment upholds certain beliefs about the uniqueness of marriage," he wrote in the Sept. 21 issue. "But it does so at a cost, namely, potentially damaging impacts upon the welfare of individuals and their children."

He also dealt with the issue of homosexuality.

"Too often, discussions of this issue treat ‘those’ people – specifically, gays and lesbians – as if they were an alien species," he wrote. "They are not. They are our sons and daughters; our sisters and brothers; our aunts, uncles, and cousins; our friends, neighbors, students and co-workers; our priests, ministers and parishioners. ‘They’ are us!"

Massingale concluded that "voting ‘no’ on the marriage amendment, in my judgment, is the best way to respect all of our Catholic beliefs and values."

A reprint of Massingale’s opinion piece was distributed in bulletins at several local churches.

…Massingale said he believes he retains the archbishop’s respect.

"If he had any concerns about anything I’ve written he would have expressed them to me directly and not done anything through any intermediary," he said. "In fact, he just spoke to me this afternoon (Thursday) and was talking about me speaking at some other engagements here in the archdiocese."

I wouldn’t trust Fr. Massingale in reference to Archbishop’s Dolan. But the following does not look good.

Milwaukee Archdiocese spokeswoman Kathleen Hohl said Massingale is free to speak out on the issues and to share his views at local parishes.

…The Milwaukee Archdiocese Priests Alliance, a grass-roots organization of 140 members, issued a statement this month in which it concurred with Massingale’s analysis, although the organization fell short of calling on voters to reject the amendment.

…In an Oct. 19 letter to the Catholic Herald, Massingale responded to some critics and concluded that "one can believe in what is called ‘traditional’ marriage – and even ‘defend’ it – without supporting this amendment. Indeed, we must not reinforce the institution of marriage through a measure which carries the risk of endangering human well-being."

As Kevin Miller said:

I think that Archbishop Dolan needs to do something major. This is very bad.