Politics from the pulpit?

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workinprogress8

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A priest at my local church always puts his own political views into his homily. I really think that this is wrong and it really frustrates me. Any suggestion on how to tell the priest how I feel? Or should I even tell the priest? Thanks.
 
I see no problem unless the teaching contradicts the Church’s position on a given issue.
 
work(name removed by moderator)rogress8:
A priest at my local church always puts his own political views into his homily. I really think that this is wrong and it really frustrates me. Any suggestion on how to tell the priest how I feel? Or should I even tell the priest? Thanks.
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According to the GIRM, the homily "… should be an exposition of some aspect of the readings from Sacred Scripture or of another text from the Ordinary or from the Proper of the Mass of the day and should take into account both the mystery being celebrated and the particular needs of the listeners. "

If the priest doesn’t follow the GIRM, then I imagine it is a problem.
 
work(name removed by moderator)rogress8:
A priest at my local church always puts his own political views into his homily. I really think that this is wrong and it really frustrates me. Any suggestion on how to tell the priest how I feel? Or should I even tell the priest? Thanks.
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According to my priest this is absolutely a NO NO. Father said if he did that our Bishop would remove him.

There are legal issues as well. The Church can loose it’s not for profit status if the Church goes around playing in politics…possibly another reasons the Bishops have been so cautious about this Kerry situation.

I would go talk to your priest about how you feel…if he refuses to acknowledge or listen…then go to the Bishop.

SV
 
St Veronica:
There are legal issues as well. The Church can loose it’s not for profit status if the Church goes around playing in politics…possibly another reasons the Bishops have been so cautious about this Kerry situation.

SV
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A Church’s tax exempt status is only in danger when a pastor declares support for a particular canidate or tell his congregation that Church specific endorsements of a particular canidate or against a particular canidate are not allowed.

A priest is fully within his legal rights to preach on issues and it would also be his obligation to clearly instruct his flock what Church’s position is.

Kerry is a non issue. A government entity, such as the courts, may not tell a Church what it’s beliefs are and to what extent a person who violates those positions may participate.
 
it really bothers me that the Catholic Church has to walk on eggshells about Kerry and abortion or else lose its tax exempt status, while liberal democrats have shamelessly campaigned during church services in usually African American churches and no liberals whine about this and no one threatens to take those churches’ tax status away. such hypocrisy!
 
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Brendan:
A Church’s tax exempt status is only in danger when a pastor declares support for a particular canidate or tell his congregation that Church specific endorsements of a particular canidate or against a particular canidate are not allowed.

A priest is fully within his legal rights to preach on issues and it would also be his obligation to clearly instruct his flock what Church’s position is.

Kerry is a non issue. A government entity, such as the courts, may not tell a Church what it’s beliefs are and to what extent a person who violates those positions may participate.
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There’s a fine line here. It’s one thing to talk to your parishoners about the evils of abortion etc…but it’s another to preach politics from the pulpit.

SV
 
work(name removed by moderator)rogress8:
A priest at my local church always puts his own political views into his homily.
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What do you mean by this? Can you provide some examples.

Not everything that some people think as political views are really such.

For example, if you priest speaks out against homosexual marriage, abortion, and/or contraception. These are teachings of the Catholic Church and have a place in the homily but some people view these things as political speach.

The only political speach that will put a Churches tax exempt status is that of endorsing of candidates.
 
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ByzCath:
What do you mean by this? Can you provide some examples.
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He talks about how we just went to war because of oil. He also says that we just wanted to get there before Germany and France. Instead of going to war we should have settled it more creatively. He never mentioins Bush specifically, but often talks negatively about the “current administration.”
 
work(name removed by moderator)rogress8:
He talks about how we just went to war because of oil. He also says that we just wanted to get there before Germany and France. Instead of going to war we should have settled it more creatively. He never mentioins Bush specifically, but often talks negatively about the “current administration.”
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Sad 😦 , if it regularly occurs talk to the bishop. He is supposed to be bringing out the church’s teaching while elaborating on the readings; not advocating his own political viewpoints including non-fact-supported media-originated gossip.
 
On the other hand, it may be this priest’s position on the Iraq war is that it was an unjust one, in which case he could be well within his rights to speak against it. The Holy Father in Rome himself has chastised Bush over the war in Iraq; I think we tend to forget this from time to time.
 
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ByzCath:
What do you mean by this? Can you provide some examples.

Not everything that some people think as political views are really such.

For example, if you priest speaks out against homosexual marriage, abortion, and/or contraception. These are teachings of the Catholic Church and have a place in the homily but some people view these things as political speach.

The only political speach that will put a Churches tax exempt status is that of endorsing of candidates.
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I don’t know the whole story behind this, because it happened when I was visiting a parish in another state and I was only there one Sunday. - I heard a priest in his homily said that anyone who belongs to the democratic party is going to hell unless they repent and register as republican or independent.
 
we used to have an assistant pastor (lost him only anbout 2 months ago) Fr. Gillette, he was very blunt (best (non-cannonized) confessor ever), and his homilies were always very charged and opinionated. It is amusing how many polical issues he spoke of, never mentioing the political entities by name, he would insinuate and suggest. great homilies, very political, but very informative.

especially his homily on corpus christi, about how the sinful should not recieve communion. and the conditions that make you that way. like obstinate public sin and/or public defiance of the church (nudge nudge, wink wink)
 
Jason Hurd:
On the other hand, it may be this priest’s position on the Iraq war is that it was an unjust one, in which case he could be well within his rights to speak against it. The Holy Father in Rome himself has chastised Bush over the war in Iraq; I think we tend to forget this from time to time.
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Yes, Bush was critized atleast “publicly” over the war. But honestly, I know the President has been to the Vatican atleast once since the start of the war. Do you think the Holy Father would have Bush at the Vatican if he didn’t see some good in the war? I think there was a lot said in private (off camera) that you or I will never know.
 
All I know is what I read in the papers, and apparently the official Vatican position is that the Iraq war was unnecessary and wrong.
 
Well, since I am a preacher, let me offer some thoughts here. Politics in homilies is an area where great care need be taken. We are called to preach the Gospel, and that will sometimes require that we address political issues (consider Jesus and His treatment of the Pharisees and Saducees). I will speak out against homosexuality, abortion, unjust working conditions, and any other “political” topic that may come up. I will not, however, endorse or condemn any person (that would violate the rules that permit churches to be tax-exempt). However, it quickly becomes clear which candidates support or oppose Church teachings.

At the same time, Bishop John Michael Botean (the Eparch of the Romanians in the United States and one of the youngest bishops in the Church) addressed the issue of the Iraq war in no uncertain terms:
Therefore I, by the grace of God and the favor of the Apostolic See Bishop of the Eparchy of St. George in Canton, must declare to you, my people, for the sake of your salvation as well as my own, that any direct participation and support of this war against the people of Iraq is objectively grave evil, a matter of mortal sin. Beyond a reasonable doubt this war is morally incompatible with the Person and Way of Jesus Christ. With moral certainty I say to you it does not meet even the minimal standards of the Catholic just war theory.
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This was read in every Romanian Catholic church in the country, and in a lot of other Eastern and Roman Catholic churches.

When I was ordained my bishop gave me the book of Gospels and told me to “Believe what you read, teach what you believe and practice what you teach.” This is what all preachers are called to do – to preach the Church, to preach Christ crucified.

Deacon Ed
 
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EddieArent:
Yes, Bush was critized atleast “publicly” over the war. But honestly, I know the President has been to the Vatican atleast once since the start of the war. Do you think the Holy Father would have Bush at the Vatican if he didn’t see some good in the war? I think there was a lot said in private (off camera) that you or I will never know.
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I think the pope would have received Bush at the Vatican even if he thought there was not a single good thing about the entire war period (pre-, during, and post-). The pope doesn’t only speak to those he agrees with. He speaks to everyone in the hopes that they will change. If you examine the history of his travels and audiences, you’ll find many a dictator/despot/etc.
 
I remember when the Bishop released that statement and have always thought that he went beyond his abilities to declare participation in the war a mortal sin, seeing as how evaluation the conditions of just war entails a prudential judgment, and this was not a clear-cut decision. Maybe if the president had declared that we were going to war in order to increase revenues, and that soldiers were obligated to rape and pillage at all times; but that was not this war. Luckily, the archbishop of the armed services countered the Romanian bishop’s statement, freeing Romanian Catholic soldiers to serve in good faith and obedience to their ordinary (i.e., bishop of the armed services).
 
Andreas Hofer:
Maybe if the president had declared that we were going to war in order to increase revenues, and that soldiers were obligated to rape and pillage at all times; but that was not this war.
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Now honestly, what president in his right mind is going to announce something like that? Of course he’s going to give us the same old rhetoric about protecting freedom and fighting terrorism; that’s the only way to get people to fight in the first place. I stand by the Holy Father’s condemnation of the war and the reasons for its having been started.
 
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