June 15, 2004
Call To Action Appalled by the Use of Communion as a Weapon
"The denial of communion by some bishops to Catholic politicians on various single issue grounds goes against Catholic teaching and seems more like partisan politics than inclusive church," said Amy Sheber Howard, Vice President of Call To Action National and spokesperson for Rocky Mountain CTA.
For the last 30 years, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has consistently and emphatically taught that "As bishops we do not wish to instruct persons on how they should vote by endorsing or opposing candidates. We hope that voters will examine candidates on the full range of issues and on their personal integrity, philosophy and performance." The Challenge of Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call To Political Responsibility c. 2004 USCCB
Our country's national pledge, "Liberty and Justice for All" is cited by the bishops as a "worthy goal for our nation in its role as a world leader." It was also the theme of the USCCB's "Call To Action" conference in 1976, from which our organization is derived.
Isolated bishops put in jeopardy the whole Catholic moral tradition on social issues by ignoring their own tradition and by singling out only Democrats for single-issue communion bans.
"CTA is appalled by such single issue targeting as well as by the misuse of the sacrament of Communion as a political weapon," said Lena Woltering, Call To Action National Board Member. "In the Church, Eucharist is a sign of unity, not an instrument of division. For these bishops to use it to divide us on the basis of our disagreements over particular issues is contrary to the meaning of Eucharist. The Catholic community, just as the larger society, must be able to have civilized discussion about important issues on which people of good will can have differing opinions and differing strategies for achieving the common good. In sharing Eucharist we are reminded of our fundamental unity as children of God and therefore of the mandate to treat one another with respect and love no matter how serious our disagreements may be."
"Asking those who distribute Communion to make a judgment as to the state of any individual's conscience is totally inappropriate," said Woltering. Call To Action is encouraged by St. Cloud, Minnesota Bishop John Kinney's statement on this issue: "I refuse to allow the Eucharistic liturgy to become politicized ... I will not allow Holy Communion to be used as a weapon in ongoing political and ideological battles. For this reason, it is not my intention to reject anyone who comes forward in a respectful manner to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. The Church recognizes that it is for each individual to examine his or her own conscience in this regard, and I assume that those who come forward to receive the Body and Blood of Christ have done so and honestly believe they are not in the state of grave sin."
"A small group of bishops have used the threat of the Eucharist as a coercive
tactic to compel adherence to their understanding of church teachings. This
is undermining the Church. By using such methods the bishops alienate local
Catholics who are already
disheartened by the clergy sex abuse scandal," said Howard.
Call To Action will make a major effort to educate the Catholic community during this election year. It will inform Catholics of the multi-issue, nonpartisan nature of Catholic moral teaching on social issues ranging from human life to social justice to world peace and care for the environment. We will not stand idly by when some of our leaders misuse their authority and our moral and sacramental tradition.
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Call To Action is a national organization of 25,000 laity, religious, priests and bishops and 40 local chapters. It advocates for reforms in the Catholic Church such as the ordination of women, optional celibacy for priests, more focus on the church's social justice teaching, and consultation with the laity on church decision making. It was founded in 1977 in response to the U.S. Bishops' Call to Action conference held in Detroit in 1976. Their comprehensive web site is at www.cta-usa.org
Contacts:
Lena Woltering, 618 830-0243 (cell)
Linda Pieczynski, national spokesperson 630 665-8783 (office) 630 399-6924 (cell)