Can a permanent deacon share his poltical views on facebook?

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Tarpeian_Rock said:
Not to seem like I’m parsing this to death, but an honest question: could one consider there to be a distinction between “endorsing” (as in, “I suggest you vote for person X”), versus simply stating “I support person X.” I’m old enough to remember that in 1960, there was open and blatant “endorsement” of JFK by every Catholic clergyman in sight, but then again, those were simpler times (though we didn’t realize it then). To say that “clergy are not permitted to endorse any candidate” in the second sense I suggested would seem to imply that clergy in your diocese understand that by virtue of their status they have surrendered their right to free speech in the setting of the political arena. So if in,say, a state election, one candidate is pro-abortion and the other pro-life, a cleric couldn’t say (obviously NOT from the pulpit) that " I support the pro-life candidate?"
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I hear you. We live in a society where every one braces for a fight.
When I taught in the Catholic School, I covered the Pro-Life topic in a class.
One of the kids went home and told his parents that I said Catholics couldn’t vote for Obama and had to vote for McCain. Wha???
Nobody ever mentioned political parties, nor candidates on in any way, shape or form, nor made any vague references to politics. But this kid knew it was a hot button issue for his father who didn’t want him in Catholic school to begin with.
Fortunately, (God is good) I shared the classroom with another teacher, who was present during the class and grading papers for her own class. She told the Principal that it was a total fabrication. However, I still had to meet with the irate dad. I looked the kid in the eye, and said “Derek, did I really say the things you said I did?” He lowered his head and started to cry. I thought it was because he had remorse. Turns out he was terrified of his father, who proceeded to holler “BOY! BOY! YOU’D BETTER TELL ME THE TRUTH BOY!” and muttered something about wasting my time, and we saw this man beat the tar out of this kid on the sidewalk. The child ran…frantically looking for an unlocked door, and we called Children’s Protective Services. 😦

So the moral of the story is…people are insane over these things. Best to not talk about it at all in the churches or schools. Period.

Speak the truth about morality and our obligations as Christians and Catholics, but stay away from politics.
I’m free to discuss whatever I want on an anonymous forum and in the privacy of my own home with my own relatives and circle of friends.
I don’t feel put out.
 
I believe that public school teachers should be held to the same standards. When my nephew was about ten, he came home from school repeating lies about George Bush that his teachers had told him.“George Bush hates little Iraqi boys that’s why he started a war over there”. “He wants to kill them.”

I was appalled.
 
2 things:
  1. Yes, he can post personal opinions on his fb page… now if it is on the Church’s that might get slightly more hairy but his own? Duh yeah he is a human allowed to live a life. The scandal would be posting opinions the are against church teaching, but which candidate is not a matter of church teaching.
  2. Memes are memes and some people can’t accept that. Heck I have shared memes contradictory to my actual political endorsement bc it was a good meme.
Plus even candidates I do not like might say something I dk. I mean I would have never voted for Bernie but I posted a few things he was quoted on bc his point on that one subject was good.

I would think people in general need to chillax and work on the loving their neighbor thing o.O
 
I would think in these polarized times it is imprudent for anyone to post their political views on Facebook. It could go so far as to affect employment, not to mention trigger a nasty element of society. Personally, I give Facebook a very wide berth. I hate it, and I’ve deactivated my profile.

A secret ballot is a fundamental tenet of democracy, and that’s the the safest place to reveal one’s political leanings these days. Too many crackpots out there for me to post my politics publicly on Facebook.
 
jaimeleglise said:
I believe that public school teachers should be held to the same standards. When my nephew was about ten, he came home from school repeating lies about George Bush that his teachers had told him.“George Bush hates little Iraqi boys that’s why he started a war over there”. “He wants to kill them.”

I was appalled.
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With all due respect…
Read post 22 from pianist claire. Kids mis-state and misinterpret things all the time. I don’t believe for a minute that a teacher said those things to a 10 year old. I’m an educator both secular and private and I can tell you I’ve been misquoted many times.
 
LOL, Jeff…but I just can’t help myself…but, calling Trump an idiot could be considered uncharitable…not so much to Trump, but to the many people around the world who truly are idiots…I’m sure they would find the comparison to Trump insulting!😃
 
PrayPsalm51 said:
With all due respect…
Read post 22 from pianist claire. Kids mis-state and misinterpret things all the time. I don’t believe for a minute that a teacher said those things to a 10 year old. I’m an educator both secular and private and I can tell you I’ve been misquoted many times.
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I truly believe that the teacher said it.
 
I know I’m late to this party. I just wanted to point out it is only the Catholic Church which has its tax-exempt status threatened wrt partisan politics (and especially: *conservative *parties) – It is never the Rev’s Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Jeremiah Wright, nor the many protestant ecclesial communities nor synagogues which give over their pulpits to liberal parties from time to time.

Reddite ergo quae sunt Caesaris, Caesari
:twocents:
tee
 
Thank you everyone & Deacon Jeff for helping me think through this. 👍

I still feel sorry for our deacon. I truly don’t believe he meant any offense to anyone. I cannot get over how easily offended people are these days! On facebook and off. And they just come out swinging with quite personal attacks. Not many gracious people anymore who can just agree to disagree with people, or keep scrolling when they disagree without commenting.

And yes, look at the gigantic new Scientology facility that was just built. They unofficially endorse the Hollywood liberals and I never see their tax exempt status threatened. 🤷
 
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