Politics | 05/08/2009 1:40 pm

Archbishop Takes on Obama and His 'Culture of Death'

Notre Dame should not offer ‘anti-life’ Obama a platform, says archbishop.

By The Staff at wowOwow.com

Archbishop Raymond Burke, who once headed the Vatican’s Supreme Court, unleashed his fury on Notre Dame and President Obama in a speech this morning.

Notre Dame has come under heavy fire for having the president speak at their commencement ceremony, and Burke said, in no uncertain terms, that Catholic institutions should not open their podium to “those who teach and act publicly against the moral law."

Burke went on to say that Obama’s policies will usher in a "culture of death" and the "granting of an honorary doctorate at Notre Dame University to our president, who is so aggressively advancing an anti-life and anti-family agenda, is rightly the source of the greatest scandal," reports St. Louis Today.

So, we take it Burke won’t be in the front row for Obama’s appearance.

231 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

He was probably kept out of discussions. He does have his rights to speak. If Notre Dame was not listening, then they asked for open discussion.

By Mimi Jones on 05/11/2009 12:20 pm

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You and I share the same name. My name is Susan Frazier Crawford. I was going to change my user name to my real name as I have on several other sites, but now that I know you are using the same name as me I will continue to post on this site only as Fiona two so as not sonfuse readers or moderators.

By fiona two on 05/09/2009 6:11 pm

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I would be more than delighted to share the same name with you. I hope you like your name as much as I do.

By Suzanne Frazier on 05/11/2009 2:44 pm

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I am saddened by the President’s disregard for human life - but not in the way that the Catholics are ranting about. This President has continued the illegal and immoral wars in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and gawd knows where else and has in fact ESCALATED the Afghanistan war. The body count goes and no one pays attention.

We are one sick, sick society.

By RoseMerry Hoffman on 05/10/2009 12:17 pm

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RoseMerry, first of all this thread is not about Pakistan or Iran… neither of which we are at war with. This President is not responsible for Iraq or Afghanistan either. He has not escalated either. Think back to the origin of those invasions.

All Catholics do not think like this archbishop who wants his name in print. All Catholics are not opposed to President Obama speaking at Notre Dame. Neither is the staff or student body . This is the work of a very few who want to undermine the President … and in in the name of religion. They also want some camera face time. It has hypocrisy written all over it.

By Maggie W on 05/10/2009 4:00 pm

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Actually, Maggie W, this is not just a "few people" who object to the most pro-abort president in history speaking at and receiving an honorary degree from a Catholic university. So far, 66 Bishops have spoken out against the invitation and over 350,000 individuals have signed a petition in opposition to Obama being there.

Furthermore, Rasmussen reports:

….By a 60% to 25% margin, U.S. Catholics say the university should not award an honorary degree to the president. Sixty-six percent (66%) of Evangelical Christians share that view along with 52% of other Protestants…

…In 2004, the bishops issued a statement saying, "The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

Bishop Thomas George of Montana put it succinctly, IMO, in his letter to ND’s Father Jenkins: "The honorary doctorate should be reserved for persons whose lives and accomplishments reflect those exemplary qualities and values we wish to cultivate in the lives of our students," wrote Bishop Thomas. "Sadly, [Alleged] President Barack Obama’s consistent assault upon the civil rights of the unborn reflects the very antithesis of our Catholic social and moral teaching on the sacredness of life from conception until natural death."

"By allowing the University to confer this degree, you have failed to exercise your prophetic voice and teach the American people that the only change we can count on is ‘founded on truth, built upon justice, and animated by love’ - love for the least, the last, and the lowliest in our midst."

Oh, and the "render unto Cesar" comment made by another poster does not apply to the ND situation as this is, after all, a Catholic University which invited Obama to speak there. "Render unto Cesar" applies to situations where, for example, we are forced to pay taxes in support of governmental programs and policies we morally oppose. I’m sure you can guess what some of those might be …

By Patricia H. on 05/11/2009 9:53 am

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The Archbishop was successful.

By Suzanne Frazier on 05/11/2009 2:46 pm

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I find it difficult to understand how one issue can make a President evil or not evil. If we’re talking about life and death what about Iraq, or Rwanda, or New Orleans or what about all those states that so blithely enforce the death penalty when there is proof that our justice system is not perfect in determining guilt. What about the evils done when this country was "discovered" - the native Indian populations that were nearly wiped out? What about all of the really evil things done in this world in the name of religion - certainly not in the name of God?

By Susan Hurst on 05/10/2009 3:02 pm

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The Archbishop may rid himself of his robes and run for President. Otherwise, he may follow the teachings of Jesus who said, "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s."

Namaste.

By Lily Rose on 05/10/2009 5:50 pm