What Does It Take for a Politician to be Excommunicated?

Way back in olden times, talking back to the Pope could get a monarch excommunicated and his entire country placed under interdict. The Church has softened up since then. But they still do whip out excommunication on the ruling class from time to time.

For example, in the early 1960s, the archbishop of New Orleans ordered the parochial schools in his archdiocese to be desegregated. This did not sit well with several prominent Democratic politicians in the Big Easy, and they raised a big stink. Ultimately, they tried to pass mandatory segregation laws that would have applied to the parochial schools, in effect the state meddling with the Church’s business.

So Archbishop Rummel excommunicated the leaders, well after warning them of their errors.

At a public rally the day after Rummel’s announcement, Perez told an audience that no matter what the archbishop said, Catholic schools in Plaquemines would not integrate. He urged them to pull their children from parochial schools, and withhold contributions to the archdiocese.

After several more public, heated exchanges with Perez, Rummel again sent letters to dissenting Catholic segregationists, in which he said they “promoted flagrant disobedience,” and that unless they backed down, they would be excommunicated. Many again relented, but Perez and two others did not. Rummel waited two weeks, and when he didn’t hear from the final three, he publicly excommunicated them for their “flagrant disregard” for his “fatherly council.”

I am bringing this up due to the latest blather from the ex-Speaker of the House, and purported Catholic, Nancy Pelosi:

Pelosi Declares She’ll Join Her Fellow Catholics In Their Near-Unanimous Support of Obama’s Insurance Mandate . . .
Wait, what?

Did you say you were standing with Catholics in support of Obama’s decision to mandate Catholic charities provide free abortifacients for its employees?

“First of all, I am going to stick with my fellow Catholics in supporting the administration on this. I think it was a very courageous decision that they made, and I support it.”

I guess you did say that.

Now, I guess I can understand the bishops not denying communion to politicians who keep laws restricting abortions from being passed. A sin of omission, I suppose, but open to interpretation.

But when one supports an action of the state getting involved in the Church’s business—if you’re actively supporting Catholic charities being forced to pay for artificial contraception and abortion—I think we’ve gone from a sin of omission to a sin of commission.

At the very least, communion needs to be withheld from such people. By participating in communion, after all, one is supposedly actually in communion with the Church. And, as we are not Protestants, this is not decided by popular vote. The Pope is the final say—that’s what it means to be Catholic, after all.

Once you decide it’s what is popular amongst the laity that counts, or, if you were honest, what you find convenient to yourself—then you’re a Protestant. Go join the dwindling ranks of the Episcopalians, why don’t you? Then you can have all the contraception, divorce, abortions, extramarital sex, and gay marriages you wish.

If nothing else, it is not charitable to allow people who are in blatant non-communion with the Church to receive the Eucharist—we’re talking mortal sin territory, after all. Sure, give them a shot across the bow in the form of a pastoral letter, especially since the bishops have allowed this nonsense to persist for so long.

I am not all that sympathetic to the plight of the liberal, pro-life Catholics on this matter, which includes several bishops. If they are at all surprised at the hostility being shown to the Church—remember that verse about sowing and reaping? You have hitched your wagons to politicians who have been pro-abortion for decades. You’re really surprised that they are forcing you to abide by what they’re forcing everyone else to? You’re surprised that you’re getting thrown under the bus, too? You’re that naive?

Enjoy your social justice.

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