The Obama-fied (made to look like Whitehouse.gov) Vatican Web Site has been updated with links feeds and other features to make it an actual Vatican portal.
Restoring Catholic Integrity: Archbishop Naumann on the Sebelius controversy and other challenges
Many might be aware of the Evangelical Baptist Michael Spencer who blogs at the internetmonk.com and recently wrote a column “The Coming Evangelical Collapse.” This Easter his wife is coming into the Catholic Church which he has mentioned before. This week he writes:
I’ll never again nod when someone says Catholics aren’t evangelistic. I’ve had at least 25 appeals for conversion in my mailbox this week. Is there a bounty on my head at the Vatican?
Well Michael there is no bounty up on you and no “soul-winning” count to append to. But I will let our sponsor speak for himself.
* Poster is from my post Recruiting posters for the Church Militant
* Information provided to me via a reader.
Via The Catholic Key an interview with ith Archbishop Raymond Burke from Catholic Action for Faith and Family.
What is your opinion of her appointment to this influential position?
Her appointment saddens me on several scores. First of all, it is sad for our nation to have a person who favors the right to kill the unborn in the womb placed in charge of the federal office with responsibility for health and human services. No matter how good Governor Sebelius’ record regarding other human life concerns may be, if she is not committed to the safeguarding of human life from its very inception, she should not be entrusted with the questions of health and human services for our nation.
As a Roman Catholic, her appointment is the source of the greatest embarrassment because she has publicly and repeatedly betrayed her Catholic faith, in the most fundamental tenet in the most fundamental tenet of the moral law, that is, the law to safeguard and foster human life from the moment of its inception to the moment of natural death. What is more, she has obstinately remained in her moral error after being admonished by, at least, three of her Bishops, including her present Bishop, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City in Kansas. Her position on the question of procured abortion is the source of the greatest scandal to Catholics and to all who uphold the natural moral law.
And on Archbishop Naumann’s approach to Sebelius:
Under these circumstances was he justified in asking her to refrain from receiving Holy Communion and do you believe this was a pastoral approach?
Not only was Archbishop Naumann justified, he was fulfilling one of his most solemn duties as a pastor, namely, the care of the Most Blessed Sacrament and of the worthy reception of Holy Communion. As I mentioned above, his action, in my judgment, could not have been more pastorally correct. He has spoken the truth with love. More than that cannot be asked of any shepherd of the flock.
In other pro-murder Catholic politician news:
This morning, I had the great honor of joining President Obama as he lifted the executive ban on federal funding for stem cell research.
Today’s ceremony at the White House was more than eight years in the making. With one stroke of his pen, President Obama has given hope and potentially health to millions of Americans.
The President’s courageous action today has also restored science to its rightful place in our national debates and will ensure that America remains a world leader in innovation, discovery, and growth.
As one of our dedicated grassroots supporters, today’s victory is your victory.
Great honor for this “devout” Catholic.
There was one aspect of the Pope’s beautiful letter to the bishops that really caught my attention.
I have been told that consulting the information available on the internet would have made it possible to perceive the problem early on. I have learned the lesson that in the future in the Holy See we will have to pay greater attention to that source of news.
Now I know what my dream job would be. I want to be the Papal Googler working in the Vatican. I can craft search terms with the best of them and would really love this position. This would be especially handy for episcopal nominations. Though of course there would be a heck of a lot of chaff to sort through – but when your the Papal Googler that is part of your job.
Clinton spoke about embryos not being fertilized and said that if embryos were ever on their way to be fertilized, they shouldn’t be used for experimentation. He said this one way or another about 3 or 4 times and then ended by saying it unequivocally.
I couldn’t believe my ears! Surely, I thought, Dr. Gupta – a medical doctor, isn’t he? – is going to nicely point out that an embryo is an embryo because it has been fertilized, that it is a genetically complete fully fertilized egg. Gupta said nothing.
Can it be that Bill Clinton and Dr. Gupta don’t really know what an embryo is?
I hope someone in the pro-life movement will use the clip of Clinton saying fertilized embryos should not be used for experimentation!
The video does back this up that he said such a stupid thing and Dr. Gupta who was going to be Surgeon General didn’t correct him.
Via the the always great Bishop Thomas Olmsted.
Our president’s rationale is that science should trump ideology. In other words, that ideology should not have the upper hand in making decisions about who pays for research; science should. We Americans, he says, should trust scientists more than we trust ideologues. But who is our president calling ideologues? Those whom he is calling “ideologues” include the following:
Pope Benedict XVI and all faithful Catholics around the world;
People of faith from all major religions who believe that human life, especially at its most innocent and vulnerable stage, needs to be protected, not killed for the sake of older human beings; and
All people of good will who oppose the killing of one group of human beings in order to benefit another group.
“Science should trump ideology” is a code phrase that means science should trump the Fifth Commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” It is contending that science should trump the right to life of a certain class of human beings, those who are at the embryonic stage of life. Science, according to our president, does not need to be at the service of the human person or subject to morality. How is this position not influenced by an ideology, which is the very thing our president claims he is seeking to avoid? Is this good for America? Is this what we Americans want our taxes to be used for?
The good bishop then goes on to describe the Catholic response
First, we must beg forgiveness for this horrendous sin of our nation. Like the Prophet Daniel, we need to say in all humility and shame (9:4fc), “Lord, great and awesome God, you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws… Justice, O Lord, is on your side; we are shamefaced even to this day.”
Second, we Catholics must join with others of good will and make our voices heard across our land, at the White House, on Capitol Hill, in our state Legislatures and in the media. We must not stand by idly while our neighbor’s life is at stake. The dignity of a human person does not depend upon his or her age, developmental stage, or ability to function. Every human being has inherent dignity because God has created us with an eternal soul. No one has the right to extinguish this gift of life but God alone.
Third, we need to point out why such destructive research is especially pointless at this time when ethical means are available, such as the following:
Great advances are being made in reprogramming adult cells into embryonic-like stem cells (the journal Science hailed this as the scientific breakthrough of the year);
Adult and umbilical cord blood stem cells are increasingly being used to reverse serious illnesses and even help rebuild damaged organs.
Fourth, we must pray and fast for an end to this horrendous decision and an end to all attacks on innocent human life. Jesus told us that some evils can only be driven out by prayer and fasting. In this season of Lent, this gives us added reason to do penance in union with our prayers for the protection of all human life.
Fifth, we must not lose hope. False rhetoric such as “science must triumph over ideology” will not stand the test of time. Such counterfeit reasoning and slick cover-up of the truth will not have the last word. Jesus came that we might have life and have it abundantly (Cf. Jn 10:10). In Him, who died to take away sin and rose to restore our life, we place our hope. This hope will never disappoint.
Dale Price mentions some related information:
Missed in all the conflagration over Obama funding destruction of embryonic human life (Think of it as a stimulus package for biotech corporations!™) is this malevolent tidbit:
He also ended funding for pluripotent stem cell research not involving human embryos. You know, the stuff that’s making embryo-shredding obsolete.
Yeah, you’re all about the science. Well, OK, crap science unshackled by ethics, but you can’t make a failed revolution without scrambling a few kulaks.
We’ve been working for more than two long years, and with your help, victory is near! We’re finally on the verge of restoring access to affordable birth control for millions of women. Even in the face of some opposition, Congress has stood up for women’s health by including access to affordable birth control in the appropriations bill that has just passed the Senate. The next and final stop is President Obama’s desk!
In this difficult economy, access to basic health care, including birth control, is more important than ever. Via Jill Stanek
Because children should only be seen in economic terms.
Just great. Now via taxes I get to fund abortions overseas, embryonic stem-call research, and even more contraception.
Catholic Church Conversation once again has whacked out photos from the diocese that makes Cardinal Mahony look traditional by comparison.
The figure in the center is quite freaky. What denominations does this one represent? Or did the invisible man find religion?
The figure is a good representation of watered-down Christianity. From a distance it almost looks solid, but the close you get the more you can see right through it.
I was thinking some more about what the President said yesterday.
This Order is an important step in advancing the cause of science in America. But let’s be clear: promoting science isn’t just about providing resources – it is also about protecting free and open inquiry. It is about letting scientists like those here today do their jobs, free from manipulation or coercion, and listening to what they tell us, even when it’s inconvenient – especially when it’s inconvenient. It is about ensuring that scientific data is never distorted or concealed to serve a political agenda – and that we make scientific decisions based on facts, not ideology.
The truth though is that politics certainly has a role concerning science and it comes down to as to whether politics is used to advance an ethic or whether it is used to ignore it. There is nothing inherently wrong with the political process being involved in science.
I do find it rather ironic for Democrats to complain about the mixture of politics and science. They had no problem putting Plan B on fast-track approval (a process that was suppose to be used for life and death treatments). Plan B approval was all about politics in shortening the FDA approval time and to spend less time in clinical trials.
The President’s own decision here is political and not scientifically based. Providing taxpayer funding is purely political. If the science of embryonic stem-call research was so promising, so-called Big Pharma would be funding it out the wazoo. They pretty much have not worried about ethical concerns in the past with the source of cells for immunizations. There is a reason some scientists have been pushing for government funding – because they couldn’t get it elsewhere. Government funding is great for scientists since they don’t actually have to produce anything and can go on for years like that. Look at all the global warming research grants from government. Private funding would dry up pretty quickly on non-results.
I also find it ironic the cries about politics interfering in science. They have no problem attacking the pharmaceutical industry for greed. Last I checked greed was a vice and opposed to a moral value and they are interfering with science by telling companies what they can and can not develop or at what price they must sell it at. Companies base their R&D projects based on prophets so by reducing profits they reduce R&D – but somehow this is not an attack on science. Though what it really amounts to is that really everybody agrees that politics has a place in regards to science and research and when there are restrictions it should be based on morality.
I guess if embryonic stem-call research can find a way to use tumors to cure rather than kill people their research won’t be a total waste. Because so far that is what it is best at. Though of course I only jest here because their research involves the direct death of a human person.
“Obama moves to separate politics and science.” Oh, really? Have there been raging debates in Congress over what constitutes an inclined plane? Have I missed the talk-radio shoutfests in which the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle is hotly attacked or defended? Is someone insisting that Schrodinger be the subject of a PETA protest for his cruelty to hypothetical cats?
Today Red Cardigan also wrote along these lines and as always she is well worth reading.
I have said a lot of negative things about the Obama Administration, so how about something positive? Well the whitehouse.gov design is rather nice. In fact one of my readers came up with “what would the Vatican web site look like with the same style? Pretty cool looking.