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Vatican Denies ‘Very Catholic’ Biden a Mass with Pope Francis
From taxpayer-funded abortion to suing the Little Sisters of the Poor, the dogma lives loudly in our very Catholic president. So, Tuesday morning, he’s popping into the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis. Never wanting to miss a photo-op, Team Biden asked that the president attend mass with the Pontifex Maximus. Maybe Joe could make intercessory prayers to St. Margaret Sanger and Pachamama.
The Vatican, however, wasn’t too keen on the idea. The US Conference of Catholic Bishops meets Wednesday to create a committee to write a document about “Eucharistic coherence.” That’s already a tense enough issue without a pro-abortion politician receiving communion with Pope Francis. They informed Biden that a mass wasn’t going to happen.
The issue has jumped to the fore with Biden’s election because one is not supposed to participate in the Eucharist when in a state of sin. I mean, it’s right there in the Book:
“Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.” — 1 Corinthians 11:27-30 (KJV)
The issue is fraught, pitting religion and politics against each other. US bishops disagree on how to proceed.
“If you find that you are unwilling or unable to abandon your advocacy for abortion, you should not come forward to receive Holy Communion. To publicly affirm the Catholic faith while at the same time rejecting one of its most fundamental teachings is simply dishonest.” — Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco
“I do not see how depriving the president or other political leaders of the Eucharist on their public policy stance can be interpreted in our society as anything other than a weaponization of the Eucharist … to pummel them into submission.” — Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego
Maybe Catholic Ricochetti can weigh in. Was the Pope right not to celebrate Mass with President Biden? And what do you think the US bishops will decide?
Published in Politics, Religion & Philosophy
I find it odd the Pope does not allow Biden this favor to beat the faithful over the head with. Seems a bit off the norm for them.
I’ve gone to church services where the folded arms and hands sign meant you didn’t drink alcohol . . .
He knew my soul in the same way that he knew my body before it was formed.
This Lutheran applauds the Pope’s decision. I hope it speaks to the priests who have served the Eucharist to Pelosi and a host of others who claim to be Roman Catholic. I wish I could say I wasn’t a little surprised. It should have been obvious. Of course, it should have been obvious to Biden, too. As @aaronmiller said, if he went through catechism as a youth, then he has no excuse. But I digress.
Lutherans do not accept the categorization of sins. But that hardly matters here. Sin is sin, and cuts us off from God. He does not stop loving us, and therefore when we sin, it hurts Him greatly. It is we who reject Him, not He who rejects us. But there’s a huge difference between, say, in an alcoholic falling off the wagon in a moment of weakness, and any person who participates, supports or encourages sin in any way. Luke 17:2 – It is better for him if a millstone is hung around his neck and he is thrown into the sea, than that he may cause one of these little ones to sin. NASB 1995
I’m concerned when the charge is made that the Church taking a stand on a moral issue is then called out for “politicizing” something that is only political in the minds of people who don’t understand morals, or the role of the Church. If morals are merely political views, then the Church is merely another political party, and a radical one at that. Do we see where this is going?
Just so.
When ‘the personal’ is political, everything is political. Which brings us a
lotlong way towards, “Everything within the state, nothing outside the state, nothing against the state.”Certainly a religious leader has no business judging a head of state. Of a different country. Who ever heard of such a thing?
Of course it’s about judging a person, not a head of state.
Not sure. I can see non-Catholics and quasi-Catholics saying that it’s not the Pope’s business to judge people in a general sense, but there is a ‘don’t mess with our guy’ to this as well.
Unless there’s evidence that the thou-shalt-not-support-abortion position is being applied ONLY to Biden and not to “everyday” catholics then it’s not about judging a head of state. If anything, people like Biden get an exemption that they shouldn’t receive.
It wouldn’t bug me if it was being only applied to Biden (and ‘Catholic’ members of the House and the Senate). Everyone else is along for the ride.
The only significant difference is that Biden’s position – and that of Pelosi et al – is publicly known.