Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus

Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus
St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, ora pro nobis!

Force Catholic Nuns to Obey Birth Control Mandate

Obama Admin Tells Supreme Court: Force Catholic Nuns to Obey Birth Control Mandate


The Obama administration has filed legal papers appealing a decision by the Supreme Court to protect a group of Catholic nuns from being forced to obey the controversial birth control mandate.
As LifeNews reported this week, in a huge 11th-hour victory for pro-life advocates, the Supreme Court issued an order late Tuesday night stopping the Obama administration from forcing a group of Catholic nuns to obey the HHS mandate that compels them to pay for abortion-causing drugs and birth control.
The group Little Sisters of the Poor received a temporary injunction from the Supreme Court protecting them from the controversial HHS contraceptive mandate.  The injunction means that the Little Sisters will not be forced to sign and deliver forms authorizing and directing others to provide contraceptives, sterilizations and drugs and devices that cause abortions.
“We are delighted that the Supreme Court has issued this order protecting the Little Sisters,” said Mark Rienzi, Senior Counsel for the Becket Fund, a pro-life legal group that represented the organization.  “The government has lots of ways to deliver contraceptives to people–it doesn’t need to force nuns to participate.”
But that’s just what the Obama administration did today.
In an interview after the decision, the White House said forcing the Catholic nuns to pay for those objectionable things that run counter to Catholic Church pro-life teachings strike’s the right “balance.”
It followed up on that comment with papers asking the Supreme Court not to exempt Catholic groups from the HHS mandate. The administration responded just before the Friday morning deadline.
“Applicants have no legal basis to challenge the self-certification requirement or to complain that it involves them in the process of providing contraceptive coverage.,” the Obama administration said in its papers.
The order was issued by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who is the Justice assigned for emergency applications from the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.  Justice Sotomayor also ordered the federal government to file a brief in response to the Little Sisters’ application.
She gave government officials until 10 a.m. EST Friday to respond to her order.
Prior to the order, preliminary injunctions had been awarded in 18 of the 20 similar cases in which relief had been requested.
“Virtually every other party who asked for protection from the mandate has been given it,” said Rienzi.  “It makes no sense for the Little Sisters to be singled out for fines and punishment before they can even finish their suit.”
The Little Sisters are joined in the lawsuit by religious health benefit providers, Christian Brothers Services, Christian Brothers Employee Benefits Trust.  The Plaintiffs are also represented by Locke Lord, a national law firm, and by Kevin Walsh, a law professor at the University of Richmond.
Also this week, in a huge victory for Priests for Life, a pro-life organization, a federal appeals court issued a ruling saying it doesn’t have to pay massive fines to the federal government for not obeying the HHS mandate, which forces religious groups and companies to pay for birth control or abortion-causing drugs for their employees.
To date, there are currently 91 lawsuits challenging the unconstitutional HHS mandate.
The Supreme Court recently agreed to take a case from Christian-run business Hobby Lobby, which is suing the Obama administration over its mandate that it pay for birth control and abortion-causing drugs for its employees. But where do Americans stand on the issue of whether employers should be forced to comply with the mandate?
A new Rasmussen Reports poll shows they apparently agree.
“Half of voters now oppose a government requirement that employers provide health insurance with free contraceptives for their female employees,” Rasmussen reports.

The poll found: “The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 38% of Likely U.S. Voters still believe businesses should be required by law to provide health insurance that covers all government-approved contraceptives for women without co-payments or other charges to the patient.
Fifty-one percent (51%) disagree and say employers should not be required to provide health insurance with this type of coverage. Eleven percent (11%) are not sure.”
Another recent poll found 59 percent of Americans disagree with the mandate.

Vatican hires world's leading pro-homosexual corporations as advisors


Vatican hires world's leading pro-homosexual corporations as advisors

By Randy Engel

Introduction

In their efforts to bring "transparency" and "efficiency" and "financial reform" to the Government of the Vatican City State (the "Governatorato"), Vatican officials have managed to completely ignore the lack of moral credentials of the mega firms they have hired to carry out these tasks including the world's top pro-lesbian, "gay," bisexual, transgender (LGBT) consulting firm of Ernst & Young, now formally known as EY. [1] Nor, apparently, did Ernst & Young officers volunteer this information before signing their formal contract with the Vatican to seal their lucrative consultation deal. Nor, apparently, did the leaders of the Homosexual Collective Internationale feel constrained to publicly denounce this well-advertised, but incredulous business arrangement between the alleged "homophobic" Roman Catholic Church and the London-based corporate giant of Ernst & Young, the world's most "gay friendly" employer. So permit me to do the honors.

EY Global Oversees a Vast Homosexual Network

As explained in EMEIA D & I – Diversity and inclusiveness review FY 13, EY includes "sexual orientation" in its definition of "diversity." Thus EY Global Corporate and its member firms are committed to demonstrating "inspiring leadership in all areas of LGBT-related diversity practice." [2] EY's LGBT networking extends around the world including the Americas, Africa, the United Kingdom and Ireland. According to Victor Nieves, Co-Chair of UK&I EYGLES, one of the many LGBT networks created and funded by EY:
    We are extremely excited to be featured in the Top 10 of the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index for the fourth consecutive year. Our strong presence in the index is great recognition of the work EY and the EYGLES LGBT+ network are doing to create a more inclusive workplace. It also provides us with a tremendous opportunity to develop additional support for our people, share best practice with other organizations and continue to go from strength to strength as a network![3]
The Stonewall Workplace Equality Index is the creature of Stonewall, a British professional campaign and lobbying "charity" dedicated to promoting lesbian, homosexual and bisexual "rights" and advancing the Homosexual Collective Internationale's agenda. [4] One of Stonewall's projects is its "Education for All" campaign designed to combat "homophobia" and "homophobic" bullying in schools, and the publication of pro-homosexual teacher training programs and materials for primary and secondary school use such as Some People are Gay. Get Over It. [5]

EY Executives Advance Pro-Homosexual and Pro-Abortion Agenda

In 2012, EY's former Global Chairman and CEO James Turley, and Global Vice Chair – Public Policy self-identified lesbian Beth A. Brooke, and self-identified lesbian Liz Bingham, Managing Partner for People at EY, delivered keynote addresses to major LGBT conferences including the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce National Business & Leadership Conference in Chicago and the Out & Equal [San Francisco-based organization] Summit in London. Both events were underwritten, in part, by EY. Addressing EY's Global LGBT Workplace Summit held in London in July 2012 , Bingham, who also serves as Ambassador to Stonewall, stated that firms must continue to push for better workplaces for LGBT people, even in countries where it looks like the job has been done. [6] Beth Brooke, one of 100 of the most powerful women in the world, uses her position at EY to advance the Homosexual Collective's multifaceted agenda. Brooke is also a pro-abortion advocate. On November 19, 2009, she Co-Chaired the National Women's Law Center (NWLC) gala dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington D.C. The NWLC is a pro-abortion litigation firm created first and foremost to secure a woman's "reproductive rights" including abortion and tax-funded contraceptive and abortifacient drugs and devices. Ernst & Young is a major financial contributor to the NWLC. [7]

EY CEO Lobbies Against Boy Scouts Homosexual Ban

Although most Renew America readers are not familiar with EY Global executives Bingham and Brooke, they probably are familiar with the name of former EY CEO James Turley. It was Turley, a prominent member of the Boy Scouts of America National Executive Committee (BSA/NEC), joined by AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, who led the lengthy battle to remove the BSA's ban on homosexuals beginning with the ban on homosexual youth membership (Scouts). [8] The new policy takes effect January 1, 2014. In a formal statement on June 12, 2012, released with the Ernst & Young Global logo, Turley stated that Ernst & Young is proud to have such a strong record in LGBT inclusiveness and that he opposed the discriminatory membership policy of the BSA concerning the ban on homosexuals. On August 8, 2012, the EY executive gave his first public LGBT speaking engagement to a packed house at the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Conference held in the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel in Chicago. [9] According to Turley, his stance on the BSA controversy was received well at corporate headquarters. He claimed that, over the years, he has aimed to put women, people of color and LGBT workers in positions of power at EY. [10]

bEYond the "Gay" Rainbow

EY Global has also developed a vast internal professional network for "LGBT people and their allies" called bEYond which supports and promotes EY's LGBT-inclusive culture. With more than 1,700 members in more than 90 EY locations, bEYyond also works with other Professional Networks to better leverage available resources and reach a larger audience. [11] Much of bEYond's pro-homosexual propaganda is directed at youth. For example, there is an EY video titled It Gets Better in which adult sodomite and lesbian employees of EY confirm young "gays" and lesbians in their perverse tendencies and promote the joys of being "out" and being "one's self." [12]Consciously or unconsciously, the adult "role models" in the video, having themselves taken on a deviant addictive identity, now seek out neophyte addicts whom they encourage to "come out," thus justifying his own perverse practices and enlarging their circle of fellow deviants. [13] They are not a good advertisement for EY. In January 2012, EY hosted an Inclusive Leadership in the Military meeting at which openly homosexual members of the military reviewed for EY officers and staff the impact of lifting the ban on homosexuals in the military. The panel of speakers included homosexual activist Lance Corporal James Wharton from North Wales, the first male homosexual to appear on the front cover of Soldier magazine, an official publication of the British Army. [14] According to the online edition of GayStarNews for November 20, 2013, many global corporations including EY may soon refuse to operate in countries with "homophobic laws." [15]

Ernst & Young, LLP Pushes U.S. Homosexual Agenda

In the United States, since 2005, the member firm of Ernst & Young LLP, has also achieved a 100% Corporate Equality Index (CEI) rating from the Washington, D.C. pro-LGBT Human Rights Campaign (HRC).The HRC, a homosexual "civil rights" organization founded in 1980, has received funding from Ernst & Young, LLP. [16] The HRC played an important role in the defeat of the Federal Marriage Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 2004 and 2006; in the passage of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009; and in the repeal of the Department of Defense's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law. [17] In an EY "Building a better working world" New York news release dated November 14, 2012, Karyn Twaronite, the Americas Inclusiveness Officer for the EY organization applauded the HRC for "its history of identifying the gold standard in LGBT inclusiveness and pushing Ernst & Young LLP and many others in a growing list of top organizations to achieve it [CEI] annually." [18] The same news release highlighted other Ernst & Young LLP pro-homosexual activities including the Promotion of the Immigration Equality Action Fund's Business Coalition for the Uniting American Families Act (H.R.519 / S.296) which would allow a U.S. citizen or permanent resident to sponsor their same-sex partner for immigration to the U.S. [19] In March 2013, Ernst & Young LLP joined in a "friend of the court" brief before the U.S. Supreme Court in opposition to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which was enacted on September 21, 1996, and declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2013.

Diversity in Perversity is Good for Business On April 10, 2013, Tomas Nobbe, the Executive Director of the 2014 Gay Games (Cleveland and Akron August 9-16, 2014) hailed Ernst & Young LLP's Platinum sponsorship of the event and the firm's "commitment to inclusiveness." [20] In the same press release, Steve Howe, EY's Americas Managing Partner, announced that "Ernst & Young knows that fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace leads to better results – for our clients and our high-performing teams." [21] Really? How does the inclusion of employees who engage in sexually deviant vices improve EY's business practices? How does EY's global promotion of the anti-culture of the Homosexual Collective with its pattern of illicit drug use, pornography, prostitution, domestic violence, pederast contingent, and Typhoid Mary health repercussions, benefit the family and society? [22]

Vatican Adds Insult to Injury

Adding insult to injury, just a cursory review of the policies of the other three advisory firms recently hired by the Vatican to reform its administrative and financial practices reveals a pro-homosexual pattern similar to that of Ernst and Young. The U.S.-based McKinsey & Company hired by the Vatican to improve its communication offices including Osservatore Romano, and Vatican Radio and Vatican Television has a cookie-cutter LGBT policy almost identical to Ernst and Young. [23] "McKinsey is a place where LGBT people thrive," the McKinsey website openly and proudly proclaims.
    GLAM (Gay, lesbian, bi, and trans at McKinsey) is a vibrant, connected, worldwide network of LGBT colleagues who are committed to each other's success and to attracting more talented LGBT women and men into the McKinsey community.

    McKinsey has sought LGBT talent for years. We are the founding sponsor of all three major U.S. LGBT recruiting conferences – Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA), Out for Undergraduates in Business (OUBC), andIvyQ[24]
Wow! Now ain't that a kick in the head to every faithful Catholic layman and cleric and other people of good will who have been fighting the Homosexual Collective in the U.S. and abroad for decades with little to none support from the Vatican. Then there is the mega Swiss accounting firm of KPMG. This multi-national group was hired by the Vatican to improve its financial practices. KPMG's version of McKinsey's GLAM is PRIDE[25]
    Established in 2003, pride@kpmg is KPMG LLP's network for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) employees and partners and their straight allies. With more than 750 members and 12 chapters, our network

    provides opportunities to participate in career development programs, broaden professional experiences, and build career-enriching relationships, both within and beyond the firm. June, 2013 marks the 10 year anniversary of the network and there is so much to be proud of.

    Recruitment and Retention – Developing and implementing an overall strategy to increase LGBT employee and partner recruitment and retention, and expand the number of LGBT professionals in senior-level positions within the firm. [26]
No further comments are necessary concerning KPMG's commitment to the Homosexual Collective Internationale.

And finally, there is the Washington, D.C.- based Promontory Financial Group hired by the Vatican to conduct detailed reviews of client accounts for the Vatican Bank and the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See. On November 28, 2011, Eugene A. Ludwig, founder and CEO of Promontory Financial Group, issued the following press statement with regard to Massachusetts Congressman Barnett "Barney" Frank's announcement that he was retiring from the U.S. House of Representatives and would not seek re-election for a 17th term in Congress:
    Congressman Frank has been a remarkably effective, focused, and determined member of the House of Representatives. During 16 terms in the House, he has emerged as a pragmatist whose affinity for consumers is complemented by a genuine understanding of the importance of promoting robust businesses and a stable, thriving financial system. His facility in dealing with complicated financial issues is unparalleled, and as a champion of affordable and available housing for all, he has had few equals in Congress. His departure from Congress will be sorely felt. [27]
Given the fact of Congressman Barney Frank's many tawdry public and private homosexual escapades which have been captured on the front pages of every D.C. newspaper and scandal sheet since he "came out" in 1987, it is virtually impossible for CEO Ludwig and/or his functionaries at Promontory Financial Group not to have known about them, especially since Frank was the ranking minority member and former Chairman of the powerful House Financial Services Committee, and the founder in 1998 of the National Stonewall Democrats, a Washington, D.C.- based LGBT Democratic organization. Of Frank's many homosexual misadventures, there was one in particular which has a direct bearing on the veracity of Ludwig's praise of Frank as a consummate financial wizard – Frank's long term affair with economist and "gay" activist Herb Moses and their ménage à trios with the Federal National Mortgage Association commonly known as Fannie Mae[28] Frank and his live-in "husband" hooked up in 1987 with the latter claiming "full spousal benefits." Moses was in need of employment and Frank used his influence to get his "husband" an executive position at Fannie where Moses worked his way up to Assistant Director for Product Initiatives. So while "wife" Frank toiled away in the House rewriting housing and banking deregulation laws that would favorFannie and lobbying for Fannie to soften rules on multi-family home mortgages even though they had a high rate of default, "hubby" Moses was developingFannie's housing and home improvement lending programs including relaxed loan assistance for rural customers. [29] In the meantime, Fannie showed its appreciation to Frank by forking over $40,000 in political contributions. That came in just $6,700 under the Promontory Financial Group contributions of $46,700 to help keep Barney Frank in office. In September 2008, while the mortgage market collapsed causing one of the greatest financial and economic crisis in U.S. history and the government-sponsored monopoly of Fannie Maewas put into "conservatorship" and had to be bailed out by American taxpayers to the tune of $188 billion, Congressman Frank was still singing its praises to Congress. Little wonder Reuters news agency which carried Ludwig's release carried a caveat that stated they were not responsible for the content in this press release.

It Will Be a Blessed New Year Nevertheless

I'll make my concluding remarks very brief. If you have ever wondered how such a small segment of the world's population, and a deviant segment to boot, can possess such vast political and economic powers and influence, then this article should be a real eye-opener. As Turley quite plainly demonstrated, he was not above using EY's corporate leverage and twisting a lot of arms to bring down the Boy Scouts of America's ban on homosexuals. Also, these trillion and billion dollar corporate entities not only financially underwrite the Homosexual Collective Internationale, but they also contribute to the campaigns of Congressional and State politicians running for public office on a pro-GLBT plank.

As for the Vatican's role in yet another moral quagmire under another disastrous post-Conciliar papacy, what can one say?

I have no doubt that the Vatican officials and clerics who hired these morally bankrupt firms to "reform" the Vatican's administration and finances, and who have given God's enemies free access to administrative and financial secret data of all kinds, knew exactly what they were doing when they made the appointments. The fact that not a single Vatican official including the current occupant of the Chair of Saint Peter, has publicly raised the issue of possible moral turpitude practiced and advanced by these mega business firms confirms what all true Catholics know in their heart of hearts – that we are living in the shadow of the Antichrist.

This is why, during this very Holy Season of the year, let each of us, in our own way, give thanks to the Blessed Trinity, Three Persons in One God, for their gift of Life and for their extravagant Love that fills our hearts with gratitude and gives us the courage and fortitude to persevere to the end. There is no cause to fret or despair in the face of the enemies of Christ including those who have found sanctuary in the very heart of the Vatican. After all, has not God already told us in Genesis how the Final Battle will end? And it is with this knowledge, this deeply held belief, that we can look towards a Blessed New Year as an opportunity to do battle here on earth for Christ and His Church so that we may wear a crown of everlasting glory in the Kingdom to come. And now, if you pardon me, I have to go sharpen my pen and my sword.

NOTES:

[1]  EY refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity.


[3]  Ibid., 26. For an interview on how EY advances the homosexual agenda seehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIhbO7Qrc_I.






[9]  See http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/lgbt/Ernst-Young-CEO-talks-LGBT-inclusion/39057.html.

[10]  Ibid.



[13]  For a discussion of sexual addictions see Lawrence Hatterer, The Pleasure Addicts (A.S. Barnes and Co.: London, 1980). Also, Randy Engel, The Rite of Sodomy (Export, PA: NEP, 2006).

[14]  See http://www.lgbthistoryuk.org/wiki/index.php?title=James_Wharton.





[19]  Ibid., 2


[21]  Ibid.

[22]  See Engel, The Rite of Sodomy.


[24]  Ibid.


[26]  Ibid.



[29]  See Charles Rowley's Blog "Barney Frank: goodbye and good riddance," at http://charlesrowley.com/2011/11/30/barney-frank-goodbye-and-good-riddance-2/.


http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/engel/140101


NJ Bishop Sullivan's new mansion draws criticism

The purchase contrasts with Pope Francis' emphasis on fewer luxuries in diocese where the number of parishes shrank by more than 50 in past 5 years, some say.

WOODBURY, N.J. — Catholics in South Jersey were quick to point out Jesus was born in a manger not a mansion after reports the Camden diocese had plunked down half a million dollars for Bishop Dennis Sullivan's new digs here.
The 6,000-square-foot mansion was once the residence of Rowan University President Donald Farish. Sullivan, who took over leadership of the diocese after Bishop Joseph Galante retired in 2012, sought the new home for meetings with church donors and dignitaries.
Before coming to Camden, N.J., Sullivan, 68, worked as vicar general and auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York. He lived and worked in midtown Manhattan, in a particularly posh neighborhood near Rockefeller Center.
Sullivan, whom Pope Benedict appointed Jan. 8, 2013, and who was installed Feb. 12, now lives in an apartment off the St. Pius X Retreat House in Blackwood, N.J.
"This is a joke," said John Miller of Deptford, N.J. "Jesus was born in a stable.
"We have a rectory right there in Camden, the headquarters of the diocese, where the bishop could live. If I'm a benefactor, I want to give money to a humble man, not because he is throwing this lavish affair."
Ron Johnson of Woodbury said the diocese should have used the $500,000 to help restore churches and schools that have closed. From 2008 to 2010, the diocese shrunk its number of parishes by more than 40%, going from 124 to about 70. The diocese, made up of New Jersey's six most southern counties, has about a half million Catholics but fewer than a quarter go to Mass regularly.
"Amazing that the Catholic Church has money for this extravagant home despite the apparent financial crisis that has led to the closing of many Catholic schools (including St. Patrick's in Woodbury) and several churches," he said.
Frank H. Stewart built the mansion in 1908. The three-story gray stone house, whose listing mentioned five bedrooms and six bathrooms has been described as one of the grandest homes in this city of about 10,000 about 7 miles south of Camden. The house on more than an acre of land also has a three-car garage, game room and in-ground pool.
The diocese purchased the home Dec. 23 from Rowan University for $500,000. The public university bought the property, midway between campuses in Glassboro, N.J. and Camden, for Farish in 2000 but put it on the market when he left there in June 2011 and it has been vacant since.
"The diocese purchased the property because the bishop needs a residence and space to hold meetings with potential donors and benefactors," diocesan spokesman Peter Feuerherd said. "It will well pay for itself and more. We realize others may have a different opinion, but that was the rationale behind the purchase."
Rutgers-Camden professor of religion Stuart Charmé noted that Pope Francis has set a tone for the church regarding concern for the poor and service to them. And the pontiff personally has shunned most of the amenities of his office.
"So others in the church need to be particularly careful about any actions that might give the impression church leaders live lives of luxury paid for by the donations of common people," the professor said. "At a time when there is a greater disparity in wealth between those at the top and those at the bottom, it would be disappointing, to say the least, if that phenomenon were also found in religious institutions."
But Kevin Fine took to Facebook to say he thought the transaction was a good deal.
"The Catholic Church sure knows how to do its real estate!" he wrote.
The Cooper Street mansion originally was listed for about $800,000. Feuerherd also noted the diocese will finalize the sale of its Blackwood property for $395,000 in early January.
The diocese will have to furnish the Woodbury mansion, and Feuerherd was unsure if the property would be tax exempt. According to property records, taxes are $31,000 annually.
"I'm guessing the Diocese of Camden is going to plead poverty and get tax-free treatment," Woodbury's Johnson said. "If so, another nail in the coffin of my hometown."

Pope calls for fresh Church approach to children of gay parents

Vatican Insider: 'Marxist' Pope is jeopardizing US donor funding

Wealthy Catholics are alarmed by the Francis approach and this is posing problems for the restoration of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York


PAOLO MASTROLILLINEW YORK
As long as it was the Tea Party or Rush Limbaugh – the eccentric conservative US radio talk show host - making unfavourable comments about the Pope, these could be brushed off. But if what Home Depot’s founder Ken Langone told CNBC television is true, Pope Francis’ position regarding the economy poses a problem that is slightly harder to resolve.          

Some big US sponsors are thinking twice about donating to the Church and this is putting their work they do worldwide in jeopardy. The Pope warnedagainst the excesses of capitalism in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium. The text did not go down well with American conservatives and Limbaugh accused the Pope of using Marxist language. In his interview with Vatican Insider correspondent Andrea Tornielli, Francis responded to these criticisms saying that “the Marxist ideology is wrong. But I have met many Marxists in my life who are good people, so I don’t feel offended.”  

The dispute with Limbaugh and the Tea Party ended there. But now a more serious issue seems to be raising its ugly head. Ken Langone is a devout Catholic and founder of the big American chain store Home Depot. He has always been a committed and consistent donor of the Church and New York’s cardinal Timothy Dolan included him in its list of financiers contributing to the 180 million project to restore St. Patrick’s Cathedral on New York’s 5th Avenue. The cathedral was built in 1878.

Langone told CNBC that one potential seven-figure donor is concerned about statements from the Pope criticizing market economies as "exclusionary," urging the rich to give more to the poor and criticizing a "culture of prosperity" that leads some to become "incapable of feeling compassion for the poor."

Langone said he had raised the problem with Dolan on more than one occasion: “Your Eminence, this is one more hurdle I hope we don't have to deal with … There is no nation on earth that is so forthcoming, so giving” but they need to be approached in the right way: “you get more with honey than with vinegar.”

Home Depot’s founder said Dolan had reassured him that the donor must have misunderstood Francis’ message: “The Pope loves the poor. He also loves rich people. We've gotta correct to make sure this gentleman understands the Holy Father's message properly.' And then I think he's gonna say, 'Oh, OK. If that's the case, count me in for St. Patrick's Cathedral.'” Langone said he would talk to him about it but neither he nor Dolan wished to reveal the name of the potential donor.

If the problem became more than just a simple defection it could cause complications for the Vatican and go beyond the issue of gathering funds for the restoration of St. Patrick’s.  The United States and Germany contribute the most to the Church’s activities across the world. If America’s Catholic philanthropists turn the funding tap off, they would be very hard to replace. This would make it hard for charities like Catholic Charities USA to find funding for projects aimed at helping the poor.

Dolan may of course be right: one person’s doubt does not make it a widespread phenomenon and a better understanding of where Francis is coming from could be the solution to the problem. Strangely enough, the White House hopes to rebuild its relations with the Vatican on these economic and social positions after their disputes over abortion and life-related issues.

DePaul the first Catholic university to offer Queer Studies program – NC Reporter proud









From the Catholic Distorter            No Joke CINO, DePaul the first Catholic university to offer LGBTQ minor

I’m a proud alumnus of DePaul University (class of 2002) and had a profound experience studying in Chicago. There were so many benefits of getting a liberal arts education in an urban environment at a university that prides itself on Vincentian values.
Back in 2006, I went to hear university president Vincentian Fr. Dennis Holtschneider speak in San Francisco. I dragged my now-wife along, and we didn’t really know what we were getting into — maybe we’d swipe a few drinks and cheesy appetizers before heading on to dinner.
The president spoke, and we were blown away, mostly upon hearing that DePaul was the first Catholic university in the country that had an LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) studies program. Here was a priest speaking in public about the need to support a curriculum that honors the historic oppression of this community. We were blown away.
The academic program is set up as a minor and has a broad array of classes from various departments that make up the curriculum and form the interdisciplinary minor. (You can review the coursework here.)
Gary Cestaro, the program’s founding director and a professor in the Department of Modern Languages at DePaul, filled me in on how the program came together. The minor was established in 2005 and had a lot of broad support from the ground up and the top down, growing organically out of DePaul’s culture and commitment to social justice. There was already a history of interest in and advocacy for LGBTQ issues among students, staff and faculty. At the academic level, study of sexual identity was growing everywhere, not just at DePaul, so many members of faculty were writing, publishing and teaching on these identity issues. Many disciplines were offering coursework in that area, and there was a lot of student interest and demand. The program’s beginnings were just like that of any other new program: It started with a curriculum committee, then went to the deans for approval, then went to the president. It made sense to allow students to recognize this as a minor on their transcript.
There had to be some conflict for a program like this at a Catholic university, I said.
“We had universal enthusiastic support from the bottom to the top,” Cestaro said. “This fits in very well with DePaul’s mission and commitment to social justice.” There were some voices that objected, however, including Cardinal Francis George in a weekly bulletin and Catholic Citizens of Illinois, who published this letter.
So what does one actually study when taking courses toward the LGBTQ minor? One part of the curriculum is discussing faith identity, Catholicism, social justice and LGBTQ identity. Students in the introductory course read Ministry to Persons with a Homosexual Inclination: Guidelines for Pastoral Care, a document published by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Catholic positions on the issue are presented as part of the program and discussed. DePaul supports academic inquiry. That’s part of what the university is about.
About 40 students have earned the minor since its inception. One of those students is Zach Stafford, who also majored in women’s and gender studies, earning his degrees in 2012. Stafford now works as a community outreach coordinator in the Center for Gender, Sexuality and HIV Prevention at the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. He is also the co-editor of a new book called Boys: An Anthology, a collection of stories by gay and transgendered men from around the world.
Stafford has obviously found ways to apply his minor from DePaul. He hails from the Bible belt in Tennessee, a place he returns to so he can visit his mother but not a place that has a lot for him. His family moved to a rural area north of Nashville, and he was the only person of color for many years. He did not come out in high school, not so much because he didn’t know but rather because straight people weren’t announcing their sexuality, so he didn’t feel he had to do the same.
He wanted to move to a big city but wasn’t drawn to Los Angeles or New York. His dad had studied at the University of Chicago, so he visited the city a few times growing up. His original choice was to go to Northwestern, but he missed the application deadline. DePaul was his safety school, and he intended to transfer to Northwestern after one year. However, after one year, he was pleasantly surprised at how supportive students, faculty and staff were in the area of sexual identity. He visited Northwestern but didn’t feel the same vibe. So he stuck with DePaul and found a mentor in Cestaro, who took an interest in Stafford’s writing and helped him become a better writer by making him read his pieces aloud. For Stafford, it was influential because it was the first time someone had taken an interest in his writing.
The minor helped Stafford better articulate queer identity to people back home, including his parents. Being an academic program gave it more legitimacy: “I started talking to my parents more about my coursework, including studying queer theory, and getting the LGBTQ minor helped me to talk even more about a historically oppressed community that gave me the language to talk about a community.”
Everything was ripe for DePaul University to become the first Catholic university in the country to offer this sort of academic minor. It’s already having a personal and professional effect on graduates like Stafford.
“Overall, DePaul was very supportive,” he said. “It’s one of the most diverse universities in the country, so that helps.” Even alumni contribute to support the program, according to Sara Miller-Acosta, the associate vice president for development at DePaul. It might take a little bit of imagination, but a minor in LGBTQ studies can co-exist at a university steeped in Catholic tradition.
[Mike Sweitzer-Beckman helped launch youngadultcatholics-blog.com in 2008. He currently does development work for the first ecumenical monastic community in North America, based in his hometown of Middleton, Wis.]

Islam and Christianity. Where Dialogue Stumbles

Jesuit expert on Islam urges 'caution' when reading Evangelii Gaudium: There are points that "require clarification."




Islam and Christianity. Where Dialogue Stumbles

In "Evangelii Gaudium," Pope Francis dictates the rules for the relationship with Muslims. The Jesuit Islamologist Samir Khalil Samir examines them one by one. And he criticizes their limitations. 



by Sandro Magister

ROME, December 30, 2013 – In the Christmas message "urbi et orbi," Pope Francis lifted up this prayer:

"Lord of life, protect all who are persecuted for your name."
And at the Angelus for the feast of Saint Stephen, the first of the martyrs, he again prayed “for the Christians who undergo discrimination because of witness rendered to Christ and to the Gospel.”
Pope Jorge Mario Bergoglio has repeatedly manifested his sorrow for the fate of Christians in Syria, in the Middle East, in Africa, and in other places of the world, wherever they are persecuted and killed, not rarely "in hatred for the faith" and at the hands of Muslims.
To all of this the pope responds by incessantly invoking "dialogue as a contribution to peace."
In the apostolic exhortation "Evangelii Gaudium" of September 24, the most important of the documents he has published so far, Francis dedicated to dialogue with Muslims the following two paragraphs:
252. Our relationship with the followers of Islam has taken on great importance, since they are now significantly present in many traditionally Christian countries, where they can freely worship and become fully a part of society. We must never forget that they “profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, who will judge humanity on the last day”. The sacred writings of Islam have retained some Christian teachings; Jesus and Mary receive profound veneration and it is admirable to see how Muslims both young and old, men and women, make time for daily prayer and faithfully take part in religious services. Many of them also have a deep conviction that their life, in its entirety, is from God and for God. They also acknowledge the need to respond to God with an ethical commitment and with mercy towards those most in need.
253. In order to sustain dialogue with Islam, suitable training is essential for all involved, not only so that they can be solidly and joyfully grounded in their own identity, but so that they can also acknowledge the values of others, appreciate the concerns underlying their demands and shed light on shared beliefs. We Christians should embrace with affection and respect Muslim immigrants to our countries in the same way that we hope and ask to be received and respected in countries of Islamic tradition. I ask and I humbly entreat those countries to grant Christians freedom to worship and to practice their faith, in light of the freedom which followers of Islam enjoy in Western countries! Faced with disconcerting episodes of violent fundamentalism, our respect for true followers of Islam should lead us to avoid hateful generalisations, for authentic Islam and the proper reading of the Koran are opposed to every form of violence.

The commentaries on "Evangelii Gaudium" have paid scarce attention to these two paragraphs.
Few, for example, have noted the unusual vigor with which Pope Francis demands in Muslim countries as well that freedom of worship which the faithful of Islam enjoy in Western countries.
Those who have highlighted this "courage" of the pope - like the Egyptian Jesuit and Islamologist Samir Khalil Samir - have also emphasized, however, that he has limited himself to asking only for freedom of worship, remaining silent about the denial of freedom of conversion from one religion to another that is the real sore spot of the Muslim world.
Fr. Samir teaches in Beirut, Rome, and Paris. He is the author of books and essays on Islam and on its relationship with Christianity and with the West, the latest published this year by EMI with the title: "Those tenacious Arab springs." During the pontificate of Benedict XVI he was one of the experts most closely listened to by the Vatican authorities and by the pope himself.
Last December 19, he published on the important agency "Asia News" of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions an extensive commentary on the passages of "Evangelii Gaudium" dedicated to Islam.

A commentary with two faces. In the first part, Fr. Samir brings to light the "many positive things" said by the pope on this issue.
But in the second part, he surveys their limitations. With rare frankness.
The following is the second part of his commentary.
POINTS OF "EVANGELII GAUDIUM" THAT REQUIRE CLARIFICATION
by Samir Khalil Samir 

1. Muslims "together with us adore the One, merciful God" (No. 252)

I would advise caution here. It is true Muslims worship one and merciful God. However, this sentence suggests that the two conceptions of God are equal. Yet in Christianity God is the Trinity in its essence, plurality united by love: He is a bit more than just clemency and mercy. We have two quite different conceptions of the Divine One. Muslims characterize God as inaccessible. The Christian vision of the Oneness of the Trinity emphasizes that God is Love which is communicated: Father-Son-Spirit, or Lover-Beloved-Love, as St. Augustine suggested.
Moreover, what does the mercy of the God of Islam mean? He has mercy for whom he wants and not on those whom displease him. "Allah might admit to His mercy whom He willed" (Koran 48:25). These expressions are, almost literally, in the Old Testament (Exodus 33:19). But never arrive at saying that "God is love" (1 John 4:16), like St John.
Mercy in the case of Islam is that of the rich man who stoops over the poor and gives him something. But the Christian God is the one who lowers Himself to the level of the poor man in order to raise him up; He does not show his wealth to be respected (or feared) by the poor: he gives Himself in order the poor should live.
2. "The sacred writings of Islam have retained some Christian teachings" (No. 252)
This is true in a sense, but it is somewhat ambiguous. It is true that Muslims retain words or facts from the canonical gospels, such as the story of the Annunciation which is found almost literally in chapters 3 (The Family of Imr?n) and 19 (Mariam).
But more frequently the Koran is inspired by the pious tales of the apocryphal Gospels, and do not draw from them the theological sense they contain, and do not give these facts or words the meaning that they actually have, not out of malice, but because they do not contain the overall vision of the Christian message.
3. The figure of Christ in the Koran and the Gospel (No. 252)
The Koran refers to "Jesus and Mary [who] are the object of profound veneration". To tell the truth, Jesus is not an object of veneration in the Muslim tradition. Instead, Mary is venerated, especially by Muslim women, who willingly go to the places of pilgrimage.
The lack of veneration for Jesus Christ is probably explained by the fact that, in the Koran, Jesus is a great prophet, famous for his miracles on behalf of a poor and sick humanity, but he is not the equal of Muhammad. Only mystics have a certain devotion to him, as the sol-called "Spirit of God".
In fact, all that is said of Jesus in the Koran is the exact opposite of Christian teachings. He is not the Son of God, but a prophet and that's it. He is not even the last of the prophets, because instead the "seal of the prophets" is Muhammad (Koran 33:40). Christian revelation is only seen as a step towards the ultimate revelation brought by Muhammad, i.e. Islam.


4. The Koran is opposed to all the fundamental Christian dogmas
The figure of Christ as the second person of the Trinity is condemned. In the Koran it says explicitly to Christians: " O People of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His word which He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers, and say not 'Three' - Cease! (it is) better for you! - Allah is only One God. Far is it removed from His Transcendent Majesty that "(Koran 4:171). These verses against the Trinity are very clear and need no interpretation.
The Koran denies the divinity of Christ: "O Jesus, Son of Mary, did you say to the people, 'Take me and my mother as deities besides Allah?'” (Koran 5:116). And Jesus denies it!
Finally, the Koran negates Redemption. It even says that Jesus Christ did not die on the Cross, but it was a look-alike: "And they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them" (Koran 4:157). In this way God saved Jesus from the wickedness of the Jews. But then Christ did not save the world!
In short, the Koran and Muslims deny the essential dogmas of Christianity: the Trinity, the Incarnation and Redemption. It should be added that this is their most absolute right! But you can not then say that "The sacred writings of Islam retain part of Christian teachings". You simply must speak of the "Jesus of the Koran" which has nothing to do with the Jesus of the Gospels.
The Koran mentions Jesus because it aims to complete the revelation of Christ to exalt Muhammad. Besides, seeing what Jesus and Mary do in the Koran, we notice that it is no more than apply the prayers and fasting according to the Koran. Mary is certainly the most beautiful figure among all those presented in the Koran: she is the Virgin Mother, whom no man has ever touched. But she can not be the Theotokos; instead she is a good Muslim.
MORE DELICATE POINTS
1. Ethics in Islam and in Christianity (252)?
The last sentence of this point of "Evangelii gaudium" states with regard to Muslims: "They also acknowledge the need to respond to God with an ethical commitment and with mercy towards those most in need". This is true and compassion toward the poor is a requirement of Islam.
There is, in my opinion however, a double difference between the Muslim and Christian ethics.
The first is that the Muslim ethic is not always universal. It is often a question of solidarity within the Islamic community, while according to Christian tradition, solidarity is universal. We note, for example, when natural disaster strikes a given region of the world, countries of Christian tradition help regardless of the religious convictions of those who are in need of help, while rich Muslim countries (those of the Arabian Peninsula, for example) do not.
The second is that Islam links ethics to legality. Those who do not fast during the month of Ramadan are guilty of having committed a crime and go to jail (in many countries). If you observe the fast, from dawn to dusk, you are perfect, even if you eat from sunset until dawn the next day, more and better than usual: "the best things to eat and plenty of it," as some Egyptian Muslim friends told me. The Ramandan fast seems to lose all meaning if it becomes the period in which Muslims eat more, and eat the most delicious things. The next day, given that no-one has sept because they were up all night eating, no-one works. However, from the formal point of view, all have fasted for several hours. It is a legalistic ethics: if you do this, you are right. It is an exterior ethics.
Instead Christian fasting is something that aims to bring us closer to Christ's sacrifice, in solidarity with the poor and does not allow for a period during the day or night when we can make up for the food we have not eaten.
As long as believers observe Islamic law, everything is in order. The believer never seeks to go beyond the law. Justice is required by law, but it is not exceeded. This is also why there is no obligation to forgive in the Koran, whereas, in the Gospel, Jesus asks us to forgive an infinite number of times (seventy times seven; cf. Mt 18, 21-22). In the Koran mercy never reaches the point of being love.
The same goes for polygamy: you can have up to four wives. If I want to have a fifth wife, then all I have to do is repudiate one of those that I have already, maybe the oldest, and take a younger bride. And thus because I only ever have four wives at any one given time, everything is perfectly legal.
There is also the opposite effect, for example for homosexuality. All religions consider it a sin. But for Muslims, it is also a crime that should be punished with death. In Christianity it is a sin but not a crime. The reason is obvious: Islam is a religion, culture, social and political system, it is an integral reality. And it clearly states as much in the Koran. The Gospel instead clearly distinguishes the spiritual and ethical dimension of socio-cultural and political life.
The same applies to purity, as Christ clearly explains to the Pharisees: "What goes into someone's mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them" (Mt 15, 11).
2. "The fundamentalists on both sides" (no. 250 and 253)
Finally, there are two points that I would like to criticize. The first is where the Pope groups together all fundamentalisms. In No. 250 he says: "An attitude of openness in truth and in love must characterize the dialogue with the followers of non-Christian religions, in spite of various obstacles and difficulties, especially forms of fundamentalism on both sides".
The other is the conclusion of the section on relations with Islam that ends with this sentence: "Faced with disconcerting episodes of violent fundamentalism, our respect for true followers of Islam should lead us to avoid hateful generalisations, for authentic Islam and the proper reading of the Koran are opposed to every form of violence"(n. 253).
Personally, I would not put the two fundamentalisms on the same level: Christian fundamentalists do not carry weapons; Islamic fundamentalism is criticized, first of all by Muslims themselves precisely because this armed fundamentalism seeks to replicate the Mohammedan model. In his life, Muhammad waged more than 60 wars, and now if Muhammad is the super model (as the Koran claims 33:21), it is not surprising that some Muslims also use their violence in imitation of the founder of Islam.
3. Violence in the Koran and the life of Muhammad (No. 253)
Finally, the Pope mentions the violence in Islam. In No. 253 he writes: "True Islam and the proper interpretation of the Koran oppose all violence".
This phrase is beautiful and expresses a very benevolent attitude on the Pope's part towards Islam. However, in my humble opinion, it expresses more a wish than a reality. The fact that the majority of Muslims are opposed to violence, may well be true. But to say that " the true Islam is against any violence," does not seem true: there is violence in the Koran. To say then that "for authentic Islam and the proper reading of the Koran are opposed to every form of violence" needs a lot of explaining. It is enough to cite Chapters 2, 9 of the Koran.
What the Pope says about Islam needing a "proper interpretation" is true. Some scholars have chosen this path but not enough to counter the power of the majority. This minority of scholars is trying to reinterpret Koranic texts that speak of violence, showing that they are related to the context of Arabia at the time and were in the context of the political-religious vision of Muhammad.
If Islam wants to remain within this vision still linked to the time of Muhammad, then there will always be violence. But if Islam - and there are quite a few mystics who have done it - wants to find a deep spirituality, then violence is not acceptable.
Islam is at a crossroads: either religion is a way towards politics and towards a politically organized society, or religion is an inspiration to live and love more fully.
Those who criticize Islam with regard to the violence are not making an unjust and odious generalization: as evidenced by the present bloody and ongoing issues in the Muslim world.
Here in the East we understand very well that Islamic terrorism is religiously motivated, with quotes, prayers and fatwas from imams who encourage violence. The fact is that there is no central authority to counter this manipulation in Islam. This means that every imam is considered a mufti, a national authority, who can make judgments inspired by the Koran and even give orders to kill.
CONCLUSION: A " PROPER READING OF THE KORAN"
Finally, the really important point is "a proper reading." In the Muslim world, the most heated debate - indeed most forbidden - is precisely about the interpretation of the holy book. Muslims believe that the Koran descended upon Muhammad, complete, in the form we know. There is the concept of inspiration of the sacred text, which leaves room for interpretation of the human element present in the word of God.
Let's take an example. At the time of Muhammad, with tribes that lived in the desert, the punishment for a thief was the cutting off of hands. What purpose did this serve? To stop the thief from stealing again. So we must ask: how can we preserve this purpose today, that the thief will no longer steal? Can we use other methods instead of cutting off the hand?
Today all religions have this problem: how to re-interpret the sacred texts, which have an eternal value, but goes back centuries or even millennia.
When meeting Muslim friends, I always point out that today we must ask what "purpose" (maqased), the indications in the Koran had. The Muslim jurists and theologians say that you should search for the "purposes of the law of God" (maq?sid al-shar?'a). This expression corresponds to what the Gospel calls "the spirit " of the text, as opposed to the "letter". We must seek the intent of the sacred text of Islam.
Several Muslim scholars talk about the importance of discovering "the purpose" of Koranic texts to adjust the Koranic text to the modern world. And this, it seems to me, is very close to what the Holy Father meant to suggest when he writes of "a proper reading of the Koran."

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