Door to Door Catholicism

[brianjbyrne]

Br. Rich (SFO=Secular Franciscan order?),

One of the fundamental characteristics of what the USCCB recommends to the lay faithful in their Pastoral Plan for Pro-life Activities in the section describing the fourth entity which is particularly for the lay people to coordinate - the congressional district action committee - must specifically be formally independent of the parish; otherwise it could not do what it is called to do in its political activities. That being the case, all materials are stamped with my own name, website, and a P.O. Box - not that of the parish.

Still it is an organization of lay Catholics in union with the Holy See. To engage in an activity within the boundaries of a parish with a pastor is opposed,would be inconsistent. So the question can be put in this way after it is exlpained in full - “Though I cannot ask for your permission to engage in this activity as I do so independently as an individual and not as a parish activity, I can ask if you would be opposed to my doing so.” Fully expecting the answer to be “No - of course not; I have no problem at all with your distributing pro-life materials produced by the Secretariat for Pro-life Activities of the USCCB door to door in my parish.”

Not asking at least that question would be problematic to me even if not using the name of the parish on materials being distributed, as I’m doing, using my own name.

Pax et bonum

 

[brianjbyrne]

After travelling for training to Houston, Texas, which spanned two weekends missed, I was met with a true inspiration this past Friday from the Fransciscan Friars of the Renewal. Fr. Groeschel gave a talk after Holy Hour at our parish Friday evening and I was back out again Saturday and Sunday morning. Roughly 100 pamphlets were distributed.

On the route I found on someone’s front yard surrounded by a wrought iron gate one of the stone markers for the original boundary of the District of Columbia across the street from the Alexandria National and Penny Hill Cemetaries. Its no longer the boundary as Virginia took back her contribution to the District. Other interesting historical sites on the route I found for the first time was a slave processing house (about 6 blocks from the abortion clinic on the same Duke Street) where approximately 1,000 slaves a year were brought over on ships from Africa to be processed in Alexandria, then sent further south to be sold at auction according to the plaque. I had not imagined, though I knew slavery was legal in Alexandria, that the city had such a central role in the trade, nor I expect do many of her current residents. Its a long way from the docks to the slave house. I imagine those who survived the trip were walked or driven up the hill the 10 or so blocks - probably in public view, perhaps hidden, done at night - I don’t know. How they handled the many that died - I would guess they cleaned up the ship downstream somewhere in the Chesapeake before making the journey far up the Potomac to Alexandria proper - or switched ships; that I would bet for exposing evidence of such naked brutality is impolite - it offends sensabilities.

Also on Duke Street, within a block of the site above, is a home that was used as a Civil War field hospital where, (if memory of that plaque serves) a man from the 29th Ohio was the first black fighting man to die in the city during the war. Some five blocks toward the water, also on Duke Street, is a statue commemorating the site from which Alexandria’s boys left to fight for the Confederacy - right in the middle fo the street at Duke & Washington.

About four blocks away is Christ Church where the Lee family (and sometimes the Washingtons) attended services.

(continued…)

 

[brianjbyrne]

(Continued from above…)

While distributing pamphlets this tme out my mind was on the similarities between America’s past with respect to slavery and her present callous, selfish, and bitter disregard for human life in abortion, IVF, and embryonic stem cell research.

I was also treated to the first person so far who wanted to argue with me. First he questioned who had sent me and whether or not my efforts were of a political or religious nature to which I answered both and that I was at his doorstep of my own volition. He then proceeded to tell me I was wrong and began arguing his position. I explained I wasn’t there to argue with him but he was persistent and offered such absurd (but common, cliche, and so easily anhiliated) perspectives I was drawn to point out the simple errors in his observations, such as when human life begins - that was his first tirade. When I calmly asked if he was really telling me that science is not completely certain of precisely when human life begins he started talking about zygotes and some confusions but I interrupted and said I myself had worked as a lab manager at Harvard in the biolabs in a developmental biology laboratory and I simply asked him again - was he really telling me science is confused about precisely when human life begins. He conceded there is no confusion in science. He then proceeded to change his argument four times until I confronted him after dismissing each of the others and simply stated what he had offered were obviously not what he believed as they were contradictory and seemed only to serve as attempts at stumping me. I pressed him to simply state what he really believed, not some learned argument and ultimately he said he supported abortion to viability. All the while I had been telling him I was not out to argue but distribute pamphlets but he followed me down the block. On him informing me of what he thinks (at the moment) is his actual position on abortion I stopped and told him he should then read the pamphlet as his position is in direct opposition to Roe v. Wade. He was quiet for a moment, then sought to press a different argument at which time I told him I was not interested. He continued to press and follow but he was ignored and went back to his stoop to talk with his neighbors about how rude I was in not accepting his many perspectives or talking with him longer. I head him say “He’s not nice…” and I thought - yes. I’m not nice. I’m not polite to a fault. Thank God for that.

About an hour later I cut my foot on a closing screen door with very sharp edges. At the next house I noticed a Suburban in the reflection on the glass before the door opened. The truck was running and a man was watching me intently. When the door of the house opened the man took a pamphlet and I asked also for a paper towel as my foot began to bleed. I took the paper towel and went around the corner to a low brick wall and washed off my foot. While I did this the man from the Suburban came up behind me and asked if everything was alright. I said thank you and that I was fine and proceeded to the next door. He then asked if I was soliciting. I gave him a pamphlet and said plainly I am distributing pro-life pamphlets door to door. He then insisted I was soliciting and informed me (quite wrongly) that the city of Alexandria prohibits soliciting and I would need to leave. I informed him that what I was doing was a protected First Amendment activity which was clarified again most recently by the Supreme Court in 2002 and no local ordinance, even if there was one, could lawfully prevent me from going door to door with religious or political pamphlets - mine are both. He demanded I leave immediately or he would call the police. I suggested he please do so if it would make him feel at ease and that they would most certainly clear up his misunderstanding. He than said “You’re a freak. That’s all I know is you’re a freak.” And he went on about how he would call the police when he was good and ready and I proceeded to go on door to door. If he called the police they never came…

I also had my first pitbull. A very happy pitbull named Stella rushed out to greet me with kisses at one man’s home. I’m good with animals and saw right away it was a friendly dog, but definitely - if you’re going out pamphleting, expect dogs.

Pax et bonum

 

[RobNY]

Yes. It seems you handled the argumentative man as well as possible.

It’s so hard to keep one’s cool, God bless you for doing so. If, and may God prevent this, one loses one’s cool, then one immediately is unable to connect with the other person, and one automatically loses, period.

It’s better to argue badly, I’m starting to be convinced, than to argue hotly.

As for the soliciting and the first amendment (and court cases): have you outlined the relevant stuff to know here? I think that’s very important, and just in case, would like to know it.

-Rpb