"If you're not pro life you shouldn't be here."

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“If you’re not pro life you shouldn’t be here.” With this statement a visiting Priest at our Church started his homily today. He went on to hold up a pro-life license plate and said that we were committing a sin of omission if we didn’t all go home and purchase these pro life plates from our DMV.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m pro-life, 100%. But this is bordering on crazy.

After the Mass, I shook hands with the Priest and told him that I disagreed with his holding us to a sin of omission. He said, “Believe what you want!” and turned away.

I pray that there was no one on the fence about abortion in attendance today that may have been turned away from the Church by this man’s callus remark. I sent an email to our Parish Priest letting him know about this incident.

I wonder, could this have been a demon sent to drive people away from the Church?
 
I think that priest really got people to thinking. He got you thinking, didn’t he? We have a pro-life bumper sticker along with pro-life magnets on our car. They often get people’s attention. One day my husband had stopped to put gas in the car. A man went over to him and told him that he isn’t Catholic but he completely agrees with the message.
 
Certainly people who are not pro-life should not be recieving communion.

However, people who are confused, doubting or interested in deepening their understanding of Catholocism may be worried or upset by such remarks. I think Pro-Life sentiments can be expressed more accurately and more tactfully - he may be turning people away from the church.
 
It is certainly a sin to be pro-abortion. It is not a sin to choose a different license plate, unless that license plate happens to promote something contrary to the Church’s teachings. That’s a ridiculous assertion.

I happen to dislike all “car art”. I’m not putting any of it on my vehicle. Am I committing thousands of sins because of the potential license plates and bumper stickers I could have?
 
The funny part of that is there were probably dozens there that were pro-choice and felt that they were just as much, good, deeply Catholic as the priest and were determined they weren’t going to leave no matter what the priest had to say.
 
Lutheranteach said:
The funny part of that is there were probably dozens there that were pro-choice and felt that they were just as much, good, deeply Catholic as the priest and were determined they weren’t going to leave no matter what the priest had to say.
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Not funny 🙂 but true. Many are very confused.
 
The priest probably shouldn’t have said it’s a sin to not buy the plate.
But anyone who thinks that they are Catholic and pro-abortion have one wrong. They are either Catholic and Pro-Life or Pro-Abortion and Not Catholic.
 
Hmmm, reminds me of a certain Someone who told His followers that they should pluck their eyes out and cut their hands off rather than sin by them.

Did they (do we?) take Him literally? Of course not (well, not except for poor old Origen, who :eek: castrated himself, but that’s another story …) Who knows, perhaps He really was at least half serious.

It’s a legitimate example of the use of hyperbole, or what in plainer language might be called exaggeration for effect.

Of course there’s always the possibility that the priest was taking a cut from the company that makes those plates or something. But his comment to you afterwards might well have been made in the sense of ‘well, if you’re silly enough to take me THAT literally …’
 
Lutheranteach said:
The funny part of that is there were probably dozens there that were pro-murder and felt that they were just as much, good, deeply Catholic as the priest and were determined they weren’t going to leave no matter what the priest had to say.
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the funny thing is that you cannot be truly Catholic if you are pro-murder.

i took the liberty of editing your comment btw
 
VetA said:
the funny thing is that you cannot be truly Catholic if you are pro-murder.

i took the liberty of editing your comment btw
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I would politely suggest that you aren’t going to change anyone’s mind by telling them they are pro-murder if they classify themselves as pro-choice. It may make you feel better about yourself and you may believe it accurately reflects their position, but it would immediately put them on the defensive and mitigate anything further you had to say. What is your goal? To feel better about yourself, or to change hearts and minds?
 
smithm29 said:
I happen to dislike all “car art”. I’m not putting any of it on my vehicle. Am I committing thousands of sins because of the potential license plates and bumper stickers I could have?
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I’m with you. I have no “car art” of any kind on my vehicle.
 
adv1sor said:
“If you’re not pro life you shouldn’t be here.” With this statement a visiting Priest at our Church started his homily today. He went on to hold up a pro-life license plate and said that we were committing a sin of omission if we didn’t all go home and purchase these pro life plates from our DMV.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m pro-life, 100%. But this is bordering on crazy.

After the Mass, I shook hands with the Priest and told him that I disagreed with his holding us to a sin of omission. He said, “Believe what you want!” and turned away.

I pray that there was no one on the fence about abortion in attendance today that may have been turned away from the Church by this man’s callus remark. I sent an email to our Parish Priest letting him know about this incident.

I wonder, could this have been a demon sent to drive people away from the Church?
Click to expand...
Hmmmmmmm. It may be possible for the priest to hold you to that sin of omission, because -he- said it and if he is your pastor, he has authority over you as part of his parish.

I can also see the potentiality for a person, once made aware of it, to not be doing what is needful in public witness for Christ, so it could be one so too.

It’s very easy to venially sin!
 
He certainly did get me thinking and I wasn’t even there.
  1. He’s arrogant and has no place doing that at Mass
  2. Many cannot afford the cost of vanity plates.
  3. He should have taken the money that was spent on that costly plate and
    a. contributed it to a pro-life organization
    b. a house for pregnant women that are not having an abortion
    c. Food for the Poor
    d. on and on
I can’t believe that a priest would treat people like that after Mass. And BTW, for the person that has the bumper stickers and magnets, just think of all the bumper stickers and magnets he could have placed the entrance of the church for people to take and put on their vehicles. I think you have the right idea. I wish I would have been there. The bishop would be getting a detailed letter of the priests arrogance.
 
Pro-Life plates are LICENSE plates, they don’t mark your car like a bumper sticker.

Just because money can be spent on other things, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be spent on something your pastor tells you to spend it on. The importance of the witness is something especially when society shuts out the witness.

Accusing the priest of arrogance is reading motivations that you are not able to do, not being a mindreader, and so wrong. A priest has authority. Authority isn’t arrogance.

Attacking the priest over it with accusatory letters is bad too. One asks whose side such a person is on?
 
Shin said:
Pro-Life plates are LICENSE plates, they don’t mark your car like a bumper sticker.

Just because money can be spent on other things, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be spent on something your pastor tells you to spend it on. The importance of the witness is something especially when society shuts out the witness.

Accusing the priest of arrogance is reading motivations that you are not able to do, not being a mindreader, and so wrong. A priest has authority. Authority isn’t arrogance.

Attacking the priest over it with accusatory letters is bad too. One asks whose side such a person is on?
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A priest doesn’t have that kind of authority. And he was arrogant. Many may not be able to afford that type of plate.

What’s more important? Saving babies or having a mark on your car. Incidentally, most bumper stickers are made of vinyl. They don’t leave a mark when taken off. I’ve had plenty of pro-life bumper stickers made. I put them on, then easily take them off when they are old.

No priest has a right to tell me or you what to do with our money. If that plate cost $100 then may suggest that people contribute to pro-life organizations. He was just plain old rude to the parishioner that posted this thread lead. Hmmmm…would Jesus have acted so uncharitably? I don’t think so.
 
Shin said:
Pro-Life plates are LICENSE plates, they don’t mark your car like a bumper sticker.

Just because money can be spent on other things, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be spent on something your pastor tells you to spend it on. The importance of the witness is something especially when society shuts out the witness.

Accusing the priest of arrogance is reading motivations that you are not able to do, not being a mindreader, and so wrong. A priest has authority. Authority isn’t arrogance.

Attacking the priest over it with accusatory letters is bad too. One asks whose side such a person is on?
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Pro life license plates are hardly a litmus test to judge one’s pro lifeness. This reminds me of those annoying E-Mails that say, “If you love Jesus you will forward this email”.

It is very reasonable to attribute arrogance to this Priest because of his erroneous litmus test of pro lifeness.

Abortion is a serious battle and we need intelligent people to help fight it. Not idiots who say that one must get a Pro life license plate.
 
It’s not a litmus test.

This is all pretty funny, as if anyone goes to his confessional, for penance he could just bind you to do it, and that would be that – would anyone argue his authority to do it then?

Considering priests used to make you sit outside the church in sackcloth and ashes… sometimes for years…

I think the authority argument has weight and deserves further speculation rather than dismissing out of hand. 🙂

Here so many people want stronger teaching from the pulpit, but the minute the priest tries something, “OH NO!”
 
Christopher68 said:
I would politely suggest that you aren’t going to change anyone’s mind by telling them they are pro-murder if they classify themselves as pro-choice. It may make you feel better about yourself and you may believe it accurately reflects their position, but it would immediately put them on the defensive and mitigate anything further you had to say. What is your goal? To feel better about yourself, or to change hearts and minds?
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My goal is that people know the Truth. Often the Truth hurts.
 
canadianguy1143 said:
Pro life license plates are hardly a litmus test to judge one’s pro lifeness. This reminds me of those annoying E-Mails that say, “If you love Jesus you will forward this email”.

It is very reasonable to attribute arrogance to this Priest because of his erroneous litmus test of pro lifeness.

Abortion is a serious battle and we need intelligent people to help fight it. Not idiots who say that one must get a Pro life license plate.
Click to expand...
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