There was mention on the PBS program Religion and Ethics that in the annual “Respect Life Month” letter from the USCCB-ishop’s very private men’s club (wink, nod) that Capital Punishment is not mentioned in this year’s letter. In fact, it was not mentioned in last year’s letter.
Reading the letter that will no doubt happen in Catholic Churches tomorrow in lieu of a real homily takes me back the beginning days the American Culture War over imposing RC Sharia like contraception law in the late sixties and seventies where such letters put congregations to sleep or in my case caused an exit strategy – not coming back to that sort of mental abuse ever again.
The Letter (I read it) is of course all about Abortion and the dangers too of all Contraception leading to disease etc. (Rube Goldberg science?)
Anyway, I thought the RC Church was against capital punishment. But reading between the lines and of course the fine print, the church has no “consistent life ethic”, an ideal that states the abortion is a sin along with executing criminals by the state. That term was coined by the late Cardinal Bernardin of Chicago who also said this: "When human life is considered 'cheap' or easily expendable in one area, eventually nothing is held as sacred and all lives are in jeopardy."
Unfortunately good men in the RC church like Cardinal Bernardin are far and few between. The Chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on Pro-Life Activities and author of the annual mimeographed "Respect Life Month" Letter is none other than the Archbishop of Galveston-Houston, Cardinal "Big Danny" DiNardo.
Houston/Harris county aka Death-Penalty Capital of the World - the place where popular forensic crime shows like CSI and their police methods are considered purely as theory and science fiction – yeah, this is Texas.
And we all know who the Governor of Texas is. Rick (APPLAUSE – execute all "them" minorities) Perry.
Doesn’t sound like consistent life ethic as is sounds like Cafeteria Dogma as Father Bill Breslin practices in Boulder Colorado, signed off by his then Bishop “Chief Outtatown” (as he is being called by some now in Philly – it is a private Philly "Kenzo" joke thing, too detailed to explain here.) Chaput.
Of course it is Texas. The governor jogs with a revolver and shoots coyotes. I have looked at Cardinal DiNardo’s photos in full stage regalia and I don’t doubt there is a concealed sawed off shotgun (with permit?) as part of his church dress.
Whatever. The message of love and from the USCCB messenger is as dead as the church these bishops are looting on their way to their church’s future digs in Asia and Africa. Again whatever.
I think in terms of fine theological matters, the RC church’s teaching on the value of life from the womb to the tomb are merely two more minor but different side orders of tripe on the cafeteria dogma menu – quoad vitam vs vitae sactorum – Respect Life (dish) vs. All Life Is Sacred (dish).
Apstraho si eis non possumus eis facinus ! (If you abort them, we can not exploit them (or execute them)!)
Have a nice day.
Respect Life = (because) = All Life Is Sacred (not just some)!!!
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ – Matthew 25:45
