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Abortion
Political : Abortion

Archbishop Prendergast: no communion for public dissenters
By Editor and Staff
Issue: April 2008

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Ottawa – Archbishop Terrence Prendergast has taken a stand against Catholic politicians and others in his archdiocese who publicly and obstinately reject grave Catholic moral teaching. This position is laid out in Canon 915:

Can. 915
Those upon whom the penalty of excommunication or interdict has been imposed or declared, and others who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin, are not to be admitted to holy communion.

The Archbishop explained that the customary requirement is that first he personally ascertains from the people involved what their stand is on such issues as abortion, euthanasia, homosexual activity, embryonic stem-cell research, and other moral teachings. This he promised to do.

The Archbishop made his position known at a Theology on Tap question-and-answer session. Recently, he reinforced this by explaining that the Christian faith is not a private matter (“Archbishop will refuse communion to pro-choice politicians,” Jennifer Green, National Post, March 8, 2008).


Comment:

Catholic MPs of the Ottawa region who publicly reject Catholic teaching include David McGuinty (Ottawa South). He, and his brother Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty (MPP), also support abortion and same-sex unions. On March 5 David McGuinty voted against the Unborn Victims Act which passed Second Reading in the House of Commons.

Two other Catholics, Paul Dewar (NDP, Ottawa Centre) and Mauril Belanger (Liberal, Ottawa-Vanier), voted the same way as McGuinty on March 5, and, like him, support abortion and same-sex unions. (For Catholic MPs in Canada see listing of MP’s in C.I.’s edition of Feb. 2007, pp 22-28; it is also on the Internet at catholicinsight.com. (Search for Marriage Vote).

Please pray for the Archbishop that his courage will match his conviction.s

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    Updated: Apr 7th, 2008 - 12:10:55 

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