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In a recent column titled “What does it take to shock a priest?”, the author, a Catholic priest, lamenting what he perceives to be an anti-immigrant bias, asks:
“How could so many of us forget where we came from and deny people outright the very blessings we ourselves have enjoyed? How could a human issue have so easily turned into a political issue that divides rather than unites? This is very hard to understand.”
Given that the priest is a well-known intellectual, I find it “very hard to understand” that he finds it “very hard to understand.”
It’s quite simple. It’s a political issue because the Democrat Party supports allowing illegal immigrants to pour through U.S. borders to create a permanent underclass which will always vote Democrat and keep Democrats in power for generations to come, and the Republicans know this and want to stop it.
But beyond the politics of immigration, I also find it “very hard to understand” how this is the issue which most “shocks” this priest when he ministers in a mostly Catholic community (Guam), wherein:
- The indigenous, mostly Catholic, population, for decades, has been aborting its unborn at three times the rate of all other ethnicities combined.
- The mostly Catholic population has twice elected to the office of governor, Guam’s most militant advocate of snuffing out life in the womb (and even babies who survive failed abortions).
- A bill lies before the mostly Catholic Legislature (Sen. Fisher’s Bill 162-37) which is the most aggressive pro-abortion legislation ever introduced, not just in Guam, but in the entire nation.
- Many of this priest’s fellow clerics were found to have molested and raped the island’s children over half a century at a per capita rate which made clergy sex abuse in the Archdiocese of Agana the largest and filthiest in the world.
But apparently, none of these horrors “shock” this priest as much as our not being nice to illegal immigrants.
Beyond local matters, I recently set out in a previous column some “shocking” facts about U.S. Catholics generally:
- That the majority of U.S. Catholics support abortion, same-sex marriage, and contraception - all anathema to Catholic doctrine.
- That 83% of donations from major Catholic charity organizations go to pro-abortion Democrat-affiliated political action committees.
- That nearly one-third of U.S. Catholics do not believe the central tenant of Catholicism: the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.
But, at least for this priest, apparently none of the above shocks like the “shock” of our alleged unwelcome towards illegal immigrants.
For the record, though, this unwelcoming nonsense is absurd. According to recent UN Population Division data from mid-2020, and as reported by the Migration Policy Institute:
“Worldwide, the United States is home to more international migrants than any other country, and more than the next four countries—Germany, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the United Kingdom—combined, “ and “while the U.S. population represents about 5 percent of the total world population, close to 20 percent of all global migrants reside in the United States.”
By the way, given the damage done to our island by this priest’s fellow clerics, damage which led to the bankruptcy of the archdiocese, not to mention the damage to hundreds and probably thousands of children, not just to their bodies but to their minds and souls, it would be a nice gesture if this priest would write a column titled “I’m sorry.”
I don’t think we’ll get it.
Tim Rohr has resided in Guam since 1987. He has raised a family of 11 children, owned several businesses, and is active in local issues via his blog, JungleWatch.info, letters to local publications, and occasional public appearances. He may be contacted at timrohr.guam@gmail.com
If a Catholic priest hears confession and this priest doesn’t believe in hell, the catholic/biblical concept of sin, and the devil; Is the absolution given for therapeutical reasons? Asking for a friend.
ReplyDeleteMy understanding is that in order for a sacrament to valid, the minister has to use proper form and intend what the Church intends. While it would be better if the priest actually believed in what the Church teaches, his beliefs are not necessary for the sacrament to be valid since it is Christ who administers the sacrament through the minister. However, these days we have all kinds of problems with the ministers (the priest in this case) messing with the "form and matter," adding and deleting words, etc. With the NCW, we also have the additional problem of the probability of the minister not intending what the Church intends when ministering the sacrament. In any event, I am quite sure that Jesus honors your intentions regardless. I'll look it up and maybe do a column with references later. Thanks for your question.
DeleteSame goes for 99% diehard support for a U.S. foreign policy of murder outside the womb. Do not claim pro-life and cheer on innocent deaths in illegal wars.
ReplyDeleteOh. You mean like what Joe Biden has gotten us into in Israel and Ukraine? Did you vote for him…Father?
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