Cardinal Francis Stafford Speaks

He was a young priest walking the streets of Baltimore strongly advocating for civil rights. He himself claims to have been motivated by the American Theologian John Courtney Murray who's great work on religious liberty was codified into Church teaching at the Second Vatican Council. He now finds Hans Urs von Balthasar and others as theologians more to his taste. Fortunately, the Document on Religious Liberty from the council still stands and Cardinal Francis Stafford cannot discard it.

It is difficult to ponder the Cardinal's words to a recent gathering in Washington. They are stark, condemnatory, and sound not a single conciliatory note. Reading the entire text of what he said as printed in the National Catholic Reporter is truly distressing. What has happened to this good priest from the Archdiocese of Baltimore? It is easy to say that he has been in Rome too long. He has forgotten what it means to work among the people. Maybe he needs to return to Baltimore, walk the streets, and find out what is going on in people's lives. What are the issues ordinary people, Catholics and non-catholics face? To what extent do the Cardinal's remarks have any connection to the real world that people live in?

What Cardinal Stafford learns from Balthasar and others is that the Curch needs to be counter-cultural. O.K. What does that mean? Does it mean that the Church needs to attack everything that seems to be part of modern culture, even though some of it may be good? Like Johannine dualism do we see the world as darkness and the Church as light? Stafford goes on to attack Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence of the country he used to be part of. Roe vs. Wade, he tells us, has produced a downward spiral in this country so that it can no longer be called the land of freedom. There is no mention of life issues such as war, poverty, caring for the oppressed, etc. etc. For Stafford the seeds of this evil spiral go back to our founding fathers and their acceptance of slavery even in the constitution. It is so easy to find fault with the government in this country. We are a nation becoming, and we have stumbled many times. But even the example that Stafford gives demonstrates movement toward progress in this country from the Civil Rights movement he participated in, to the election of an African American president which he deplores. Unfortunately there is not a commensurate look at the horrendous mistakes we find in the 2000 year history of the Church which continue to the present day in the clergy abuse scandal and its coverup.

Stafford has taken one aspect of the Church and has distorted the Church by diminishing many other equally important facets of Church tradition. God created the world and said that it was good as Genesis tells us. The Psalms proclaim the goodness of our God, as not only the forests and birds of the air, but trumpets, lyres, and human voices are raised in praise of the Lord. This is God's world, and we must examine the culture, not to condemn it, but to find what is good in it, find what is sacred in it, and work to enhance it and make it even better.

Yet the Cardinal's rhetoric about our new President-elect includes some really shocking statements. We are told that our country has become a dirty house in a gutted world. Obama's message is a very toxic anti-humanism. We are entering an era of the Garden of Gethsemanie as we weep over the violence concealed behind his (Obama's) rhetoric. Stafford sees the new administration as all about coercing individual consciences. I'm curious as to how it is that banning all abortions does not coerce individual consciences. Stafford seems unable to see the larger world in which people live. The fact that he has woven webs of intricate theological mumbo jumble (read some of the rhetoric in his piece) does not mean that everyone else subscribes to his statements. Of course for him, those who don't agree are acting in bad faith and therefore are without rights.

The Freedom of Choice Act seems to be what has the good Cardinal so upset. Of course there is no such law at the moment, but is one the congress will be dealing with in the future. It apparently is coercion when professionals are expected to provide information or services that are legally available. This is a delicate situation, and certainly the Freedom of Choice Act is worthy of legitimate debate. If American Church leaders have concerns about some possible provisions of such an act they should sit down with policy makers and express their concerns. No doubt solutions can be found. These solutions will not satisfy everyone, because that's the way a democracy works. All people and their rights must be protected, not just Catholics. That is the role of government. Maybe Stafford cares only about protecting the rights of the institutional church. It must be remembered, however, that Cardinals coming over here from Rome cannot dictate American policy and law.

Finally, the Cardinal accuses Obama of violence. What about the violence of his words that might encourage others to do harm to our young president? To suggest that Obama is akin to the anti-Christ, or as he says it, Obama is apocalyptic because he goes "contrary to natural and divine laws regarding human life", is not a way to bring peace. We have already been told that there have been more threats against President-elect Obama than any other President-elect in history. Thanks for stirring up the pot. Isn't it interesting that Pope Benedict XVI congratulated Obama after the election and spoke to him on cooperating on issues such as poverty, war, and other areas of agreement. The U.S. Catholic Bishops also delivered a much more conciliatory statement. Cardinal Stafford could find nothing positive to say about the new administration. I don't think any American of whatever political stripe could read the full text of Cardinal Stafford's words and not be filled with disgust. Cardinal Stafford may be entering an era of agony in the garden, but American Catholics do not agree. The majority voted for Obama, and they are filled with hope and good will that despite the challenges he faces, the new president may be able to lead us into a better world. As we approach the Christmas season it might be well for the Cardinal to remember our Savior who brought hope to the world by becoming part of it, becoming like us in every way except sin. He chose to lift humanity up, not tear it down.