KSDK - Catholics attending Mass at St. Louis' Cathedral Basilica Sunday were greeted by demonstrators.
They were protesting a recent decision by St. Louis' new Archbishop to use church funds to support a political campaign against gay marriage in the state of Maine.
"This is a church that does stand up for the marginalized or depressed! Who would not say Mother Theresa's order did not stand up for the poor? Amen?," shouted one demonstrator calling for church leaders to, "remember who the church is called to be".
Starting at 7:30am Sunday, what grew into a crowd of both Catholic and non-Catholic gay marriage supporters, all demonstrated against Archbishop Robert Carlson's recent decision to use ten thousand donated church dollars to fund an anti-gay marriage political campaign out of state.
Many felt the money could have been better used by Catholic Charities.
"Ctholic schools are facing budget cuts, we just feel that that money could have helped so many more people here in St. Louis," said rally organizer Ed Reggi.
At the height of Sunday's demonstration - during the middle of the Basilica's noon Mass a crowd of well over a hundred-fifty people stood outside.
"Seems to me an interference of religion in the political sphere and I think if the church wants to do that I think it should be taxed like other political action groups, " says Stephen Houldsworth, who thinks the church should lose its tax-exempt status.
Although some in the crowd came carrying anti-Catholic signs, organizers said this was not a rally against the church itself.
Meanwhile there was a mix of reaction from Catholic churchgoers.
Basilica Parishoner Eleanor Janson told us, "I thought it was a very good way of spending that money. Yes. I was all for it."
Another Catholic churchgoer, Dorothy White said, "Money should be spent in the city. We have poor here. We have people who are sleeping in boxes. We have much better things to spend our money on, I don't appreciate sending the money to Maine."
And another Catholic Cathedral Member, Ben Janson, said, "Well its in defense of marriage between men and women and its highly appropriate."
Meanwhile St. Louis' Archbishop was out of town Sunday, but did issue the following statement:
STATEMENT REGARDING PROTEST OUTSIDE CATHEDRAL BASILICA
From Archbishop Robert J. Carlson, Archbishop of St. Louis"In June of this year, Archbishop Richard Malone of Portland, Maine sent a letter to all U.S. bishops asking for financial support for issues the church considers moral issues. I approved a donation for $10,000 which was charged to the special needs fund. This fund has traditionally been the Archbishop's for discretionary spending, not for formal operations, and is funded by private gifts. These funds were already available when I arrived in St. Louis. Archbishops of St. Louis have made donations in the past to help other dioceses around the world for various causes ranging from disaster relief to pro-life issues.
The ballot measure asked voters if they wanted to reject the new law that allows same sex marriages and allows religious groups to refuse to perform these marriages. The voters in Maine supported this measure despite the fact that, according to the state of Maine, groups who believe in same sex marriage raised more than $5.2 million to defeat the amendment, while those who believe in the sanctity of marriage raised about $3.3 million.
The Catholic Church always tries to follow the teachings of Jesus in welcoming all people. The Church does not believe in discrimination. The Church was in the forefront of the Civil Rights movement in this country which sought to end racial discrimination. In the Archdiocese of St. Louis, we are currently the largest private funder of Doorways (www.doorwaysmo.org) an organization the late Archbishop John May help found in the 1980's. Doorways provides affordable, secure housing and related supportive services to people living with HIV/AIDS. Another example of our support is the Courage/Encourage ministry, which is a worldwide ministry that has a chapter in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, and is made known to Catholics every week in the Archdiocesan publication, the St. Louis Review. This ministry works with homosexuals and their families.
Supporting homosexuals does not mean we can change Christ's teaching on the nature of marriage. As recorded in the Bible, Jesus says a marriage is between a man and a woman. As Catholics, we believe marriage is a Sacrament, given to us by Christ and witnessed by a priest. We do not have the ability to change the Sacrament of marriage.
That being said, we do have the obligation as Catholics to carry out Christ's teachings, whether in the privacy of our own home or in the public square. Separation of church and state means that the government cannot favor a particular faith. It does not mean that faith-filled people lose their right to speak out publicly and engage in the political process. In fact, the Catholic Church was in the forefront of the civil rights movement, and that was a political issue as well.Following Christ's teaching on marriage does not mean we neglect the poor. In fact, no other private institution in the world does as much for the sick and the poor as the Catholic Church. In the state of Missouri, Catholic Charities is the largest private provider for social services. In the Archdiocese of St. Louis, we spend millions of dollars helping the homeless through Catholic Charities (St. Patrick Center and Catholic Charities Housing Resource Center) and Father Dempsey's Charities.
It's not an either/or choice when it comes to Christ's teachings. As Catholics, we are called to teach and live them all."
Farewell!
3 years ago
I think its important to note we were successful today with our rally in front of the Cathedral. We had parishioners (when the cameras were turned off) come over to our group and tell us, "I do not agree with Archbishop Carlson. That money should of been spent right here in our own backyard. Not in Maine."
ReplyDeleteIt seems the Catholic Church leadership is making some poor choices not only with the financing of the Maine ballot measure but also in regards to the Washington DC Catholic Charities pending shut down and the recent news about the Catholic priests child abuse cover up in Ireland. The Catholic Church seems to be happy claiming morality out of one side of their mouth yet something entirely different out of the other side. You cannot have it both ways.
I remember one of those signs today said, "What Would Jesus Do with $10K?" There are no biblical accounts of Jesus funneling money for political efforts, not ONE. Jesus Christ used every scrap of money and time to help the sick, poor and dying - period. What the Catholic Church leadership is doing today looks no different to what the Taliban is doing in the Middle East -- trying to create a Theocracy. America rejects any Catholic attempts to circumvent our Constitutional rights to remain free of religious tyranny.
That is a Catholic Sunday school lesson the Archbishop seems to have missed.
Sadly our catechism has been all too forgotten and our philosophies all distorted by "contemporary thinking" that seemingly obvious and objective moral values and spiritual truths must now be defended through monetary donations from one diocese to another.
ReplyDeleteThere can be no argument that Mother Church is not the greatest defender of life, the poor and the marginalized. There is no greater source of care for the sick, elderly, poor and uneducated youth of our society than the Catholic Church. Certainly there are plenty of generous souls in America and the world but truly the Catholic Church has been a leader in corporal works of mercy bestowed upon those in need. As she pours out her heart in mercy the Church with love bears witness to universal truths as proclaimed by Christ while He was our brother on this earth! This mercy is carried out through the physical work of many but also the Church must necessarily spend its own money for the purpose of caring for the needs of the world.
That the Church in St. Louis (and other dioceses) must lend financial support to the good peoples of Maine to help prevent yet another attack on the sanctity of marriage between one woman and one man is so sad but COMPLETELY NECESSARY given the culture we are battling.
This is NOT political jockeying by Bishops but instead it is an effort by the Holy Church to help those marginalized poor again! The ironic thing is that the "poor and marginalized victims" in this case are those in the majority!
The victims in Maine (and elsewhere) are those who are under vicious attack from radical gay rights groups! It is through their patient and skillful maneuvering of political agendas throughout the past decades which is using the political system (hidden under the guise of political correctness) to pressure the Church to stand up for itself and explain its position on moral truths.
I do not know of a Catholic who would not welcome and love a soul who is burdened with troubles of homosexuality. I only have witnessed outreach, love and compassion to such souls. God our Father is love. His infinite love prompts hope which animates charity in His children. It is filled with such charity that a soul teaches his brothers and sisters the universal and objective truths as proclaimed by Christ.
What our dear brother Bishops are trying to do now, and God bless them for they are like ones "crying out in the wilderness", is to educate and proclaim these truths which are under attack in our culture. Unfortunately and through the diversion, distraction and pursuits of these cultural activists (and the secular media), yet another distortion of reality is trying itself in the mainstream. To say the "Church is being political" is flat out wrong and an unjustified claim!
It is the poor church defending itself and asserting its teachings to the faithful which is misconstrued as acting with political motives. The motivation of the Church is to shepherd its flock to love and act with a properly formed conscious mind and heart. The motivation of our Bishops is to inform the world of the love of Christ and to act as a representative of that love. The Church did not stand up first and say lets fight! It is the Church in defense of itself which is speaking up.
It is too bad the only audience willing to listen to our good Bishops are the quiet souls of prayer who understand that life is not about "radical and arbitrary individual realities" but instead about thoughtful and loving witness to the objective gospel truth.