Sean Hannity faces-off with Priest who calls him heretic

[James_2_24]

I believe we should send some words of encouragement to Father as well.

CDL

I definitely agree with you here. We need to give Fr. Euteneuer all our support. He is representing the Church and he has done a great service for Christ and His Church

 

[Al_Masetti]

Why was Father Marx booted out of Human Life International and (eventually) replaced by Father Euteneuer?

 

[dulcissima]

Hi, dulcissima, I guess you’re right. I didn’t know that Hannity & Colmes invited Father to the show. I have read the transcript of the interview, but I’m not able to download the video.

I see your point, but I’m still kind of uncomfortable with this. Hannity may have wanted to discuss this publicly, but I’m not sure it was in the best interest of the Church to handle it publicly. And, even though he’s a public figure, Hannity’s still a Catholic in error, & I’m not sure this was the place to start. I was under the impression that when bishops or priests want to confront a politician or public figure who is being heretical, they counsel them in private & take certain steps before doing things like denying the Eucharist publicly. Please don’t get me wrong, I think action needs to be taken about heretics & scandal. But even if Hannity wanted a public fight, I’m not sure it’s the best way to go…

I really have no idea what private conversations took place between the two men. Fr. Euteneuer is not the one who even brought up denying Sean Hannity communion. Mr. Hannity brought that issue up himself. I do see what you are saying, but personally I am relieved when someone will set the record straight when someone who calls himself a Catholic takes it on himself to publicly denounces Church teaching.

 

[James_2_24]

Another thing Sean should think about is this:

He told Father: “would you rather they have birth control or have abortions?” and

“You specifically took my position on birth control. One of the differences perhaps between you and myself is that I recognize that not everybody else in the world is Catholic and for someone who is deeply, profoundly a believer in life and doesn’t want to see abortion. Understanding that are self control issues for all in society, understanding that people don’t share the Catholic faith. I support that people outside the Church… I would rather… would you not rather they use birth control than abortion, sir?”

We know that Mr. Hannity is also against abortions but his illogic above can be used to support abortions as well. One can say: “I understand that not everyone agrees with me on abortion… I rather they be safe and legal for those who disagree with my stance on abortion?? wouldn’t you?”

Mr. Hannity has lost his credibility in my eyes. He will do anything to win an argument rather than humbly accept that his arguments are false.

 

[Tietjen]

I really have no idea what private conversations took place between the two men. Fr. Euteneuer is not the one who even brought up denying Sean Hannity communion. Mr. Hannity brought that issue up himself. I do see what you are saying, but personally I am relieved when someone will set the record straight when someone who calls himself a Catholic takes it on himself to publicly denounces Church teaching.

Amen.

 

[mmm1]

I do agree with everything that everyone is saying. I only mentioned priests denying Communion as an example of priests usually giving private counseling 1st. I can’t get the transcript anymore, but it seemed like Hannity definitely challenged Father about denying him Communion. He was so out of line & heretical, but I do maintain that this should have been addressed privately 1st.

That being said, I understand the incredible frustration with pro-choice Catholics & other heretics.

 

[Mary3]

Here’s the transcript as posted on Domus Dei

Hannity: Wait, would you deny me communion?
Fr. Euteneuer: I would.
Hannity: Wow, wow.

 

[VinceSumoski]

Fr. Euteneuer wrote an article that Catholic men and women in the media need to be truly Catholic or at least stop being hypocrites. He singled out Sean Hannity; and indeed entitled the article ‘Sean Hannity’s Gospel.’ hli.org/sl_2007-03-09.html
Hannity and Colmes invited Father on for an interview, Alan introduced Father thusly:
(Copied from domusdei.org/2007/03/10/sean-hannity-the-heretic/#comment-260 )

Colmes: Last Friday, Sean, my friend and partner here took a moment on his radio show to apologize — not for yelling at me the night before — which is what he should have done, but for eating meat during lent. But its not quite the apology that the president of the Human Life International Reverend Thomas Euteneuer wanted. He says that if Sean is seeking penance it should be for his stance on birth control rather than inadvertently eating meat. joining us now is the president of human life international Rev. Thomas Euteneuer. Reverend thanks for being with us tell me what happened and what your issue is with Mr. Hannity here.

Fr. Euteneuer: Well, the point of the matter is I thought that Sean was doing a little bit of entertainment with the “eating meat on Friday” issue and the real weightier, or should I say the meatier matters of our Faith, he’s wrong on. So he shouldn’t be presenting these kinds of things as entertainment and then neglecting the core truths of our Faith and being in public dissent… (inaudible) …that’s intolerable.

Colmes: Let me ask you this, well known people like Sean who are Catholic and in the public eye… Should they be using their platform, necessarily, to preach the tenets of Catholicism when they are in the media. Is that something that one is obliged to do?

Fr. Euteneuer: No. One is not obliged to do that at all. One is simply obliged not to be a heretic in public. That’s the point. If he doesn’t agree with his Church on that matter he should not be pronouncing on the matter as if he was the authority on that matter. He’s not.

Hannity: Reverend. Let me, let me just say… You call me a hypocrite. You question the depth of my faith. Do you know anything about me and my religious beliefs? And my background religion? do you know anything about me?

It went downhill from there; Sean had painted himself into a corner and became desperate. I was ashamed of Sean. I fired off two emails to his site.
Our Lord works all things to the good.
This is a unique opportunity for the Church’s teaching, Humanae Vitae, to be explained by a great Priest on nationwide secular television. All we have to do is pressure Sean into letting Father back on the show, and allowing him to explain why contraception is wrong.
I emailed the following ‘cover letter’ email with the two emails to everyone on my list, in order to get the ball rolling.

----- Original Message -----
Hi,

The Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer (President of Human Life International) was on the Sean Hannity show Friday night where Sean took him to task for Father’s article about Sean’s ‘catholic’ public witness.
hli.org/sl_2007-03-09.html
Sean was horrible!
I like Sean, have read his books, listen to him on the drive home and on Fox, but I’m disappointed that he lets his audience know he’s catholic. He, like O’reilly, has little knowledge of the faith, and therefore shouldn’t talk about it publicly.
However, we need him in the public arena to help combat the forces of evil.
He’s no Ann Coulter (please read her books! You don’t really believe what the press says about her do you?); but he helps expose the untruths of our Orwellian times.

Father Enteneuer is in my strong but humble opinion one of the precious few ‘Apostles of the End Times.’ Believe me, as an eighteen year member of the Militia Immaculatae, I have been on yearly retreats with some of the best!
Check out hli.org and read what he has to say, sheer brilliance.

Sean attacked him, tried to smear him with the so called priest scandal, tried to justify his (Sean’s) position on contraception, constantly talked over him, and tried numerous times to trap him or trip him up.
Paraphrasing: Father, are you against contraception as a means of stopping abortion?

Father was a consummate Catholic Priest, patiently explaining where Sean was in error, succinctly explaining the Catholic Faith, attacking the sin, not the sinner.
It ended with Sean asking if Father would deny him the Eucharist, and Father correctly (in obedience to Rome) said that he would deny him. May Almighty God Bless Father Euteneuer.
Please write to Sean hannity.com/index/contact-form , and ask him to bring Father back on the show and allow Father the time to explain WHY contraception is wrong.
I have pasted below my emails to Sean.

Ad Jesum per Mariam,

Vincent Sumoski

Sean,

You’re a great American.

Please invite Fr. Euteneuer back on your program and allow him to explain to you and the listening audience WHY contraception is wrong.
I’m afraid that you will disappear from the scene unless a mea culpa is forthcoming.

Sincerely,
etc…

 

[VinceSumoski]

The other email:

Sean,

You’re a Great American.

Bill Clinton did not precipitate the moral decline of America; although he caused it’s acceleration, it can actually be traced back to 1930.
At that time approximately 90% of Americans considered themselves Christian. It was the year of the infamous seventh Lambeth conference of the Anglican religion where the following four items were decided:

1. Rejected war as a means of settling international disputes.
2. Declared induced abortion “abhorrent.”
3. Opposed racial segregation in churches
4. Approved the use of birth control in limited circumstances.

Prior to this time ALL Christian religions condemned contraception for any reason, a mere 20 years or so before our birthdays (1949 for me). In 1968 the head of the Catholic Religion declared that contraception was outlawed in an encyclical entitled Humanae Vitae. This caused dissent in the American Catholic church, most notably by Cardinals Bernardine, Maloney, and Law which directly resulted in a steady decline of Catholic moral values ( including the scandal).

Saturday, July 25, 1998, marked the 30th anniversary of Humanae Vitae, called by Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput, “certainly the most misunderstood papal intervention of this century.”

The pontiff in 1968 did not merely say, “contraception is bad; don’t do it.” He predicted that the widespread acceptance and use of contraception would have dire effects on future society. Now, 30 years later, those predictions have come true.

He warned that the widespread use of contraception would lead to “conjugal infidelity and the general lowering of morality.”

Current divorce rates are higher than they have ever been with one of every two marriages ending in divorce.

He also warned that man would lose respect for woman and “no longer [care] for her physical and psychological equilibrium,” to the point that he would consider her “as a mere instrument of selfish enjoyment.”

Sex is no longer a powerful sign of love between a husband and wife. It is the subject of talk shows, soap operas and sit-coms. Furthermore, there is a general feeling in American society that sex is a right to be practiced, rather than a sanctifying union between a woman and man joined in marriage.

The Holy Father also warned that widespread use of contraception would place a “dangerous weapon … in the hands of those public authorities who take no heed of moral exigencies.”

As Chaput pointed out, mandatory contraception policies are often included in any discussion regarding foreign aid. China stands as the most graphic example of this prediction of Pope Paul’s. The country has a mandatory one-child limit, enforced by contraception and abortion.

Pope Paul warned that contraception would mislead human beings into thinking they had unlimited domain over their own bodies, relentlessly turning the human person into the object of his or her own intrusive power.

It is expected that contraception is used during sexual intercourse, and people get frustrated and feel betrayed when contraception does not work. Rather than relying on abstinence and recognizing the natural workings of the body, individuals often rely on contraception. This gives them a false sense of power over their bodies.

Sean, you’re going to lose over half your supporters unless you act fast and publicly. I’ve read your books and we think alike, however you are not ‘up to speed’ on the facts of the Catholic Church.
Go to hli.org, you will find little if anything that you disagree with. You’re flat wrong about contraception, look around. If I were a Priest, as much as I love you, I’d also deny you Holy Communion; as this is a teaching of the Church, even though dissenting clergy in America disobey their Pope.
You are in the public eye, and you are misrepresenting our Catholic faith, until you educate yourself, I beg you; please don’t speak about it publicly.

I’d hate to see you disappear from the scene, we need you!

Sincerely,

Vincent Sumoski…

P.S. Most of the above facts were borrowed from the following:
brookings.edu/press/review/winter2002/easterbrook.htm
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lambeth_Conferences
catholic-forum.com/churches/luxver/donumsanctum/hv30years.htm

 

[maryj]

This is the e-mail address for the president of Human Life International, I suggest we all send support to the Father.
lhunt@hli.org

 

[Jersey_Jeepster]

Mr. Hannity has lost his credibility in my eyes. He will do anything to win an argument rather than humbly accept that his arguments are false.

I have noticed this about Hannity. I agree with his political view, in terms of how he likes to expose the left-wing media, but his position on Catholicism has always been wrong.

He constantly states that he is against abortion, except in cases of rape and the health of the mother. Am I wrong in thinking that this position is contrary to Catholic doctrine? Abortion is wrong in all cases, according to the Church.

Sean Hannity is just another cafeteria Catholic who truly believes that he is in union with the Church by having his own brand of the faith.

 

[Jerome42]

Has anyone heard about this recent encounter? I do not know much of Rev. Euteneuer but I do know that he followed up on an article that wrote by appearing on the Hannity and Colmes TV program. I was sorry to see him scold Mr. Hannity, who is one of the few decent people in cable TV. I certainly hope that Father Euteneuer has attacked the many liberals in government with the same vigor. I’m referring to people like Pelosi, Kennedy, Leahy, Durbin, et al.

Here’s the link: hli.org/sl_2007-03-09.html

 

[Catholig]

Has anyone heard about this recent encounter? I do not know much of Rev. Euteneuer but I do know that he followed up on an article that wrote by appearing on the Hannity and Colmes TV program. I was sorry to see him scold Mr. Hannity, who is one of the few decent people in cable TV. I certainly hope that Father Euteneuer has attacked the many liberals in government with the same vigor. I’m referring to people like Pelosi, Kennedy, Leahy, Durbin, et al.

Here’s the link: hli.org/sl_2007-03-09.html

Yes, we already have a thread on it. All I’ll say is that Mr. Hannity was in error, and refused to admit it. He publicly supports birth control - which is scandal. I’m not sure how to make that sound more compassionate. I wrote him about Humanae Vitae, Confession, and the Spiritual Works of Mercy (in response to his “Judge not lest ye be judged”). I’ll pray for him, but really he is as much in error as Pelosi.

Catholig

 

[Jerome42]

Yes, we already have a thread on it. All I’ll say is that Mr. Hannity was in error, and refused to admit it. He publicly supports birth control - which is scandal. I’m not sure how to make that sound more compassionate. I wrote him about Humanae Vitae, Confession, and the Spiritual Works of Mercy (in response to his “Judge not lest ye be judged”). I’ll pray for him, but really he is as much in error as Pelosi.

Catholig

I am sorry to say that I started this duplicate thread without doing the proper research. I fully agree that Mr. Hannity was in error and that Father Euteneuer was correct in his criticism. We should all pray for Mr. Hannity because we cannot afford to lose those decent in the news media.

I hope this is the last of this thread. Sorry.

P.S. Father Euteneuer is an articulate spokesman for our Catholic Faith. We need so many more people like him. God bless him.

 

[kangnamdragon]

I was a big Sean fan until this. Is there anyone in the media who is a conservative Catholic?

 

[AlegreFe]

I believe we should send some words of encouragement to Father as well.

Absolutely!

 

[Tietjen]

I was a big Sean fan until this. Is there anyone in the media who is a conservative Catholic?

Sigh… I would like to say Bill O’rielly but if I recall correctly he has several positions which oppose Catholicism as well. It would seem that all too many people (media and otherwise) claim Catholicism with a touch of “selfism.” In other words, “I’ll support and believe what the church has to say, until I don’t.” How very sad.

 

[Joe_Kelley]

Has anyone heard about this recent encounter? I do not know much of Rev. Euteneuer but I do know that he followed up on an article that wrote by appearing on the Hannity and Colmes TV program. I was sorry to see him scold Mr. Hannity, who is one of the few decent people in cable TV. I certainly hope that Father Euteneuer has attacked the many liberals in government with the same vigor. I’m referring to people like Pelosi, Kennedy, Leahy, Durbin, et al.

Here’s the link: hli.org/sl_2007-03-09.html

In the Seder meal the Jews note that Laban is a worse threat than Pharaoh. Those who should be your friends can do you more damage than those who are openly your enemy.

 

[AlegreFe]

Not trying to derail this thread too much, but NFP is birth control (whether it is being use to space births or to aid in conceiving). Abstinence is also birth control.

NFP is not contraception. And it is contraception, not birth control, that is per se sinful.

IMO it helps no one when inaccuracies are used and continued.

I think when we think of “birth control” we mean “contraception.” So I guess we shouldn’t assume that everyone else can mean the same thing. I guess only a Catholic would “get it” when it comes to the different terms used.

So CONTRACEPTION is totally against Catholic teaching. Since life starts at conception and contraception is against conception then it cannot be good, it is evil.

 

[AlegreFe]

This is correct. What NFP is not is artificial birth control. Also, it can only be used for grave reasons as stated by Church teaching.

The Church says that artificial birth control can be used if there is a grave reason? What reason could that be? If there is a grave matter at hand then NFP or abstinence altogether should be practiced. At least that is what I thought. Please enlighten me if I’m wrong. I guess I have some more reading to do?