My Pope, Our Pope, the Sinner

2013-09-21, Vatican Radio

As a lay observer, I decided to use bullet points to share my interpretation of Pope Francis' recent remarks in the interviews documented by America Magazine. The mainstream media has a practice of quoting everything the Holy Father says with the accuracy of a telephone game. Here is what I gleaned from the interview:

Pope Francis:

• sees himself as a sinner who was chosen by God.
• chose not to live in the papal apartment because he prefers community life.
• takes his prayerful time when making a decision.
• is irritated when people say that Ignatian spiritual exercises are Ignatian because they are done in silence. They can be done with or without silence. 
• is close to the mystical movement.
• had a bit of a bumpy start as a young Jesuit provincial who ran the Society with an authoritative hand.
• views ministers within the Church who behave badly as spiritually barren.
• believes that the young Church (view themselves as self-sufficient) and old Church (may try to impose cultural models upon the young) must build a future together.
• sees the Church as a field hospital after battle - needing to heal and nurture the faithful.
• believes that a confessor must be neither too rigid, nor too lax.
• wants the Bishops to leave no one behind, including those who have left the Church or are indifferent.
• wants all sinners to be treated with mercy.
• does not speak much about artificial contraception, homosexuality, or abortion because the Church teaching is clear on those subjects - and that they are not at the heart of Christ's message.
• believes that the Church has a lot of doctrines and for him to focus on only a few incessantly would be wrong.
• wants the salvific message to be proclaimed first, followed by catechesis.
• sees the vowed religious as prophets, leaven. 
• thinks that the volume of complaints sent to the curia in regard to unorthodox practices at a local level are misdirected (I wonder how many are from the Diocese of Rochester). He wants those issues to be reported to the local levels.
• thinks that the current methods of  the Synod of Bishops may not be a good model and wants to look more at how things were done prior to the Great Schism in 1054.
• wants us to walk united with differences as this is the way of Jesus.
• knows that women are different than men, though they are equally important. Functionality and dignity are two very distinct things, and the Church must be clear in the treatment of women in regard to the latter.
• thinks that the moto proprio of Benedict XVI allowing wider usage of the Tridentine Mass was a good thing, but that we must be careful not to malign the novus ordo.
• warns that finding God takes patience, and a contemplative attitude
• believes that if someone says that they met God with total certainty and without a smidgen of doubt, it is not good. If someone believes to have all the answers, God is not with them.
• said that if a Christian is a legalist, he will find nothing. 
• believes that those who look for 'exaggerated doctrinal security' have an inward view of things.
• prefers to say that we must have hope rather than be optimistic. God is hope, and optimism is for humans.
• thinks that we must get out of a 'laboratory' and into the field. In the field, we can see the bigger picture of what is needed to help others. 
• views the Church as having been at times brilliant, and at other times in history, unable to think.
• suffers from a wandering mind in prayer, and sometimes even falls asleep while at adoration (I'm in good company!).

I was a little surprised by a couple of items, but on the whole the interview appears to be rather uneventful. As usual, the mainstream media has created a stir where nothing I would consider 'breaking news' was said. Full disclosure: I had not read any other blog entries, news stories (Catholic or secular) or watched any commentary about the Pope's remarks prior to making this post. After seeing the headlines flood my newsfeed on various social sites, I decided to go directly to the source. I am the first to admit that on +Ponderings+ my focus is often on the very topics (both Abortion and Obama are the most tagged posts) that our Holy Father would view as being more political than spiritual. While thinking about this tendency, I have decided that it is because I hope to have others awakened from a crooked path. I was once lost and want to create a visible waypoint for someone else. Like an ex-smoker preaching about health to a smoker. And with this thought in my heart and on my mind, I close. 

Edited to add: Here is what Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Buffalo had to say about the matter:



Edited again to add: Read what Fr. Z has to say about the liberal (Catholic and non) comments on the Holy Father HERE.

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This was our 400th +Catholic Ponderings+ post!

HHS Mandate Updates March 7, 2012

The fight to retain our religious liberty continues to mount. In the media, Catholics are referred to as outdated, anti-choicers, oppressors, and totally barbaric in our treatment of women. This is the Garden of Eden all over again. The serpent taunting Eve, insisting that she needs to be enlightened and will be much better for eating the forbidden fruit. It is difficult to sift fact from the enormous amount of fiction circulated by the secularists. I wanted to give you some updated information and will continue to post new information as it is available. The more we educate ourselves on the situation, the better we will be prepared to act.

Cardinal Dolan

Timothy Cardinal Dolan released a new letter to all U.S. Bishops on March 2, 2012 and it may be found HERE.

Some highlights of the four-page memo:

• We will once again dedicate ample time at our Administrative Committee meeting next week, and at the June Plenary Assembly, to this critical subject. We will continue to listen, discuss, deliberate and act.
• We have made it clear in no uncertain terms to the government that we are not at peace with its invasive attempt to curtail the religious freedom we cherish as Catholics and Americans. We did not ask for this fight, but we will not run from it.
• We are grateful to know so many of our fellow Americans, especially our friends in the ecumenical and interreligious dialogue, stand together in this important moment in our country. They know that this is not just about sterilization, abortifacients, and chemical contraception. It’s about religious freedom, the sacred right of any Church to define its own teaching and ministry.
• In the coming weeks the Conference will continue to provide you, among other things, with catechetical resources on the significance of religious freedom to the Church and the Church’s teaching on it from a doctrinal and moral perspective. We are developing liturgical aids to encourage prayer in our efforts and plans on how we can continue to voice our public and strong opposition to this infringement on our freedom.
• The White House already notified Congress that the dreaded mandates are now published in the Federal Registry “without change.” The Secretary of HHS is widely quoted as saying, “Religious insurance companies don’t really design the plans they sell based on their own religious tenets.” That doesn’t bode well for their getting a truly acceptable “accommodation.”
• At a recent meeting between staff of the bishops’ conference and the White House staff, our staff members asked directly whether the broader concerns of religious freedom—that is, revisiting the straight-jacketing mandates, or broadening the maligned exemption—are all off the table. They were informed that they are. [...] Instead, they advised the bishops’ conference that we should listen to the “enlightened” voices of accommodation, such as the recent, hardly surprising yet terribly unfortunate editorial in America. The White House seems to think we bishops simply do not know or understand Catholic teaching and so, taking a cue from its own definition of religious freedom, now has nominated its own handpicked official Catholic teachers.
•  ...our bishops’ conference, many individual religious entities, and other people of good will are working with some top-notch law firms who feel so strongly about this that they will represent us pro-bono. In the upcoming days, you will hear much more about this encouraging and welcome development.

Ms. Fluke testifies about her right to birth control.
Washington Post

Unless you've been living in a cave (and who could blame you?), you have heard and/or seen the testimony before Nancy Pelosi and her committee teary-eyed individuals, touched beyond compare. Ms. Fluke shared the horrendous burden of paying for her own birth control pills. 

As with all radicals targeting the Church today, Ms. Fluke's story proved to be much more interesting upon further investigation. As reported by Stephen Gutowski:

However, as I discovered today, birth control is not all that Ms. Fluke believes private health insurance must cover. She also, apparently, believes that it is discrimination deserving of legal action if "gender reassignment" surgeries are not covered by employer provided health insurance. She makes these views clear in an article she co-edited with Karen Hu in the Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law.  

It seems that Ms. Fluke is a radical prop embraced by the sex-obsessed left, and not the financially barren birth control deprived law student the media and radical left wing sold her to be. Read the entire article by Mr. Gutowski HERE.

Fr. Frank Pavone, Priests for Life

Many have been filed lawsuits against the mandate, including Priests for Life. They have asked others to add their names to a Citizens Amicus Brief in Support of Priests for Life vs. Sebelius. You may do so HERE.

President Obama and Kathleen Sebelius, HHS Secretary

You may contact Ms. Sebelius and tell her to Stop the HHS Power Grab by going to Catholicvote.org HERE.

Did you know that there is going to be a nationwide rally in defense of religious freedom? Please click HERE to learn more. In Buffalo, it will take place at Senator Schumer's office (contact info. HERE) and in the Diocese of Rochester, it has been reported that one will take place in Canandaigua (further info. will be found in comments on the Cleansing Fire post HERE). 

Did you sign the petition yet? Go HERE to learn more and add your name.

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Edited to add: I came across an article written by law professor Robert K. Vischer in First Things. He argues that the current trend to fight against sharia law in some of our states is a fight against religious freedom. The article is very interesting and one I find important to consider as Catholics and other groups are engaged in a fight to retain our own religious liberty.

March 12, 2012: This just in from Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life:

The eight lawsuits so far, arranged by the date they were filed, are as follows:

November 10, 2011 Belmont Abbey College v. Sebelius 
December 21, 2011 Colorado Christian University v. Sebelius 
February 9, 2012 Eternal Word Television Network v. Sebelius 
February 15, 2012 Priests for Life v. Sebelius 
February 20, 2012 Louisiana College v. Sebelius 
February 21, 2012 Ave Maria University v. Sebelius 
February 21, 2012 Geneva College v. Sebelius 
February 23, 2012 Bruning v. Sebelius (This is the one whose plaintiffs include the states of Nebraska, Texas, Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, and South Carolina.)

dear Planned Parenthood, Bring it On!

http://i--have--a--say.blogspot.com/



This next video is NOT to be viewed by children. It is an offensive expose of material propagated by PP:



By the numbers as reported by Planned Parenthood themselves:

• 11% of PP's 'healthcare clients' receive abortion services (they shout from the rooftops that 3% of their services are abortions. They justify this because they pad their numbers by including services to the community that are not healthcare services. If they offer a presentation for 1,000 people, they count them as being served. Only when they provide their 'healthcare' service numbers do we see the truth. Nearly 1 out of 10 healthcare visits end in abortion.)
• Number of clients receiving 'healthcare' at PP clinics: 2,900,000
• Amount of federal tax money given to PP last year: $487,000,000
• Number of adoption referrals in 2010: 841
• Number of mammograms performed by PP annually: 0

"Guilty? Yes. No matter what the motive, love of ease, or a desire to save from suffering the unborn innocent, the woman is awfully guilty who commits the deed. It will burden her conscience in life, it will burden her soul in death; But oh, thrice guilty is he who drove her to the desperation which impelled her to the crime!"--Susan B. Anthony on abortion. The Revolution, 1869. 

Take Action to Defend Religious Liberty

Find other ways to take action by clicking HERE.

Don't buy what the mainstream media is selling. This is not about birth control or "those crazy Catholics."





UPDATE: "Senate votes, 51-48, to table the Blunt Amendment, which would have allowed employers and insurers to opt out of parts of the Obama health care law -- in particular, birth control -- on moral or religious grounds."


Click HERE to read the USCCB News Release


How did Catholic Senators vote? Read about it at the National Catholic Register.

Buffalo Area Catholics Confront Rep. Kathy Hochul

A line has been drawn in the sand, and President Obama and his supporters have made their contempt for religious freedom known by proceeding with the HHS Mandate. Sadly, many such supporters are among the nearly 70 million American Catholics. The outstanding turnout of over 100 Catholics from the Diocese of Buffalo at a town hall meeting with Rep. Kathy Hochul (D) was due to the concerted efforts of  WLOF Catholic radio, the Catholic Men's group MOJC, and Fr. Leon Biernat. With only two days notice, they were able to move Catholics to attend this meeting which took place last Friday morning. It must also be mentioned that WGRZ News in Buffalo is very supportive of the local Catholic community and did an excellent job providing coverage.

Click HERE to view all footage provided by WGRZ.

Call to Action: Respect for Rights of Conscience Act

UPDATE 2/2/12 and URGENT:  Have you signed the petition on the White House website yet?  CLICK HERE to SIGN.


Under the fine leadership of Cardinal designate Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York and President of the USSCB, an unquestionably quick call to action has been heralded against the recent attack against the rights of every Catholic in the United States.   

Dated January 20, 2012:

WASHINGTON—The Catholic bishops of the United States called “literally unconscionable” a decision by the Obama Administration to continue to demand that sterilization, abortifacients and contraception be included in virtually all health plans. Today's announcement means that this mandate and its very narrow exemption will not change at all; instead there will only be a delay in enforcement against some employers.

“In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences,” said Cardinal-designate Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The cardinal-designate continued, “To force American citizens to choose between violating their consciences and forgoing their healthcare is literally unconscionable.It is as much an attack on access to health care as on religious freedom. Historically this represents a challenge and a compromise of our religious liberty."

The HHS rule requires that sterilization and contraception – including controversial abortifacients – be included among “preventive services” coverage in almost every healthcare plan available to Americans. “The government should not force Americans to act as if pregnancy is a disease to be prevented at all costs,” added Cardinal-designate Dolan.At issue, the U.S. bishops and other religious leaders insist, is the survival of a cornerstone constitutionally protected freedom that ensures respect for the conscience of Catholics and all other Americans.

“This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights,” said Franciscan Sister Jane Marie Klein, chairperson of the board at Franciscan Alliance, Inc., a system of 13 Catholic hospitals. “I have hundreds of employees who will be upset and confused by this edict. I cannot understand it at all.”

Daughter of Charity Sister Carol Keehan, president and chief executive officer of the Catholic Health Association of the United States, voiced disappointment with the decision. Catholic hospitals serve one out of six people who seek hospital care annually.“This was a missed opportunity to be clear on appropriate conscience protection,” Sister Keehan said.

Cardinal-designate Dolan urged that the HHS mandate be overturned.“The Obama administration has now drawn an unprecedented line in the sand,” he said. “The Catholic bishops are committed to working with our fellow Americans to reform the law and change this unjust regulation. We will continue to study all the implications of this troubling decision.”

To take action, go HERE.

Read other +Ponderings from the past about the Obama administration and Ms. Sibelius HERE. 

*See also USCCB January 23, 2012 News Release HERE

North Dakota Bishops Warn Against Donating to Certain Charities

On Ash Wednesday, the Bishops of North Dakota issued a guide on charitable giving.  You may find that document HERE in its entirety.



They noted that all Catholics and Catholic entities including churches, schools and other organizations have an obligation to support only those missions which clearly support Catholic teaching.  Listed are some less obvious and perhaps a surprise or two for you in the 'do not support' list:


American Association of University Women: AAUWʼs stated mission is to advance “equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy, and research” and often provides local scholarships with money raised through book fairs.  AAUW, however, strongly supports abortion rights and same-sex “marriage,” and opposes parental choice in education.

Amnesty International: In 2007, Amnesty International abandoned its neutral stance on abortion and adopted a pro-abortion position.

Crop Walk/Church World Service: CROP Walk, an annual hunger awareness and fundraising effort that benefits many local food pantries, is sponsored by Church World Service (CWS), an agency of the National Council of Churches. Catholic Relief Services withdrew its name from the list of funding recipients since some of the partners of CWS support the provision of contraceptives in their overseas missions and programs and CRS could not guarantee that donations, particularly Catholic donors who have earmarked their contribution to those efforts consistent with Church teaching, would not be utilized for objectionable services.

March of Dimes: The March of Dimesʼ focus is the prevention of birth defects, premature birth, and infant
mortality. March of Dimes, however, also supports embryonic stem cell research, preimplantation diagnosis for untreatable conditions, and mandatory contraceptive coverage for insurance plans.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure: This anti-breast cancer organization is known for its “Race for the Cure”
fundraising activities (not to be confused with “Relay for Life.”)  Money raised at these events has gone to
Planned Parenthood and the organization refuses to acknowledge the link between abortion and breast cancer.

UNICEF: The Holy See suspended an annual symbolic contribution in 1996 due to the “shift in UNICEF activities” that were once solely focused on child welfare but now includes contraceptive and abortion services.


May God bless †Most Rev. Paul A. Zipfel  and  †Most Rev. Samuel J. Aquila

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Hat tip to Thomas Peters from Catholic Vote for sharing the story.  

Fr. Jenkins: Feed Hungry, Educate, Provide Abortions and Push Condoms?

Lifesitenews broke the story and I did some digging of my own. It has come to my attention that Fr. Jenkins, President of Notre Dame University, is on the board of directors of Millennium Promise. The group has eight goals as listed on their website which anyone would/should be supportive of:

	GOAL 1 Eradicate Extreme Hunger and Poverty
	GOAL 2 Achieve Universal Primary Education
	GOAL 3 Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
	GOAL 4 Reduce Child Mortality
	GOAL 5 Improve Maternal Health
	GOAL 6 Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases
	GOAL 7 Ensure Environmental Sustainability
	GOAL 8 Develop a Global Partnership for Development

That Goal #6 is a stickler for Fr. Jenkins, or at least his vocation. How do they fight HIV/AIDS? They distribute condoms, birth control pills and other types of artificial birth control as part of their 'core intervention'. I suppose Goals #3 and 5 are in direct conflict with Goal #4 - you see dear reader, they also pay for and provide abortions.

In a recent conference aboard the papal plane enroute to Africa, the Holy Father said this about AIDS and the distribution of condoms, emphasis mine:

“I would say that this problem of AIDS cannot be overcome with advertising slogans. If the soul is lacking, if Africans do not help one another, the scourge cannot be resolved by distributing condoms; quite the contrary, we risk worsening the problem. The solution can only come through a twofold commitment: firstly, the humanization of sexuality, in other words a spiritual and human renewal bringing a new way of behaving towards one another; and secondly, true friendship, above all with those who are suffering, a readiness - even through personal sacrifice - to be present with those who suffer. And these are the factors that help and bring visible progress.

“Therefore, I would say that our double effort is to renew the human person internally, to give spiritual and human strength to a way of behaving that is just towards our own body and the other person’s body; and this capacity of suffering with those who suffer, to remain present in trying situations.

“I believe that this is the first response [to AIDS] and that this is what the Church does, and thus, she offers a great and important contribution. And we are grateful to those that do this.”

Need I mention what the Church teaches about abortion?

Why is it that good actions by these radical heretics always contain the undergarments of evil? Yes, he wants to feed the hungry, care for the needs of the poor, provide education, improve living conditions - all things any Christian would agree must be done. But then to mingle love with the intrinsically evil is akin to someone using a swimming pool as a toilet but assuring everyone that the water is fine. Their message: if the child is able to survive an abortifacent birth control pill, condoms and abortion - they'll educate them and give them food. Wake up, people!

Where is the Culture of death leading us?

Hopefully the following video will be a wake-up call for those who bought into the overpopulation lie.

France: 1.8 children per French family; 8.1 children per Muslim immigrant family in France. In 35 years, France will be an Islamic Republic

Netherlands: 50% of all newborns are Muslim and in 15 years, half of the population will be Muslim.

Russia: 1 out of 5 Russians are now Muslim.

Belgium: 50% of all newborns are Muslim

Germany: The government stated the following: "The fall in the population can no longer be stopped. The downward spiral is no longer reversible... It will be a Muslim state by 2050.

Watch the video for other staggering statistics.


Thanks to the Aussie Coffee Shop for bringing the video to my attention.

Hillary Clinton 'Honored' with Margaret Sanger Award

Planned Parenthood, America's baby killing enterprise funded with your tax dollars, recently awarded Hillary Clinton the Margaret Sanger Award. Ms. Sanger was the proud founder of Planned Parenthood and appears to have much in common with the new Administration. Mrs. Clinton stated in her acceptance speech that, "A society that denies and demeans women’s rights and roles is a society that is more likely to engage in behavior that is negative, anti-democratic and leads to violence and extremism." I would like to point out that tearing a fetus to shreds is both violent and extreme.

In other Planned Parenthood news, they have recently been found to cover up the rapes of underaged girls seeking their assistance as seen in this undercover video and many others:

"The most merciful thing that a large family does to one of its infant members is to kill it." --Margaret Sanger, Women and the New Race
(Eugenics Publ. Co., 1920, 1923)

I'd like to share some more quotes from Margaret Sanger thanks to the compilation of Diane S. Dew:

• A woman's physical satisfaction was more important than any marriage vow, Sanger believed. Birth Control in America, p. 11
• "The marriage bed is the most degenerating influence in the social order," Sanger said. (p. 23)
• "This book aims to answer the needs expressed in thousands on thousands of letters to me in the solution of marriage problems... Knowledge of sex truths frankly and plainly presented cannot possibly injure healthy, normal, young minds. Concealment, suppression, futile attempts to veil the unveilable - these work injury, as they seldom succeed and only render those who indulge in them ridiculous. For myself, I have full confidence in the cleanliness, the open-mindedness, the promise of the younger generation." Margaret Sanger, (Bretano's, New York, 1927)
• "More children from the fit, less from the unfit -- that is the chief aim of birth control." Birth Control Review, May 1919, p. 12
• The purpose in promoting birth control was "to create a race of thoroughbreds," she wrote in the Birth Control Review, Nov. 1921 (p. 2)

For more on Ms. Sanger, see this article on the EWTN website.

Notre Dame 'honors' Mr. Obama with a J.D. and now Planned Parenthood 'honors' Mrs. Clinton.
So many honors to hand out to those who support killing off millions of children both in the U.S. and abroad. I'm not sure how they find the time in their busy schedules.

Catholic college bars student distribution of free birth control - The Boston Globe

Catholic college bars student distribution of free birth control - The Boston Globe

Frustrated that her college does not distribute birth control, Stonehill College senior Katie Freitas decided she would do it herself.

After collecting hundreds of free condoms from two family-planning agencies, she and about 20 classmates placed boxes of the contraceptives in student dormitories across the Easton campus last month.

But when administrators at the Catholic school learned of the effort, they quickly intervened and collected the condoms, citing the college's ban against distributing birth control on campus.

"We're a private Catholic college," Martin McGovern, Stonehill's spokesman, said yesterday. "We make no secret of our religious affiliation, and our belief system is fairly straightforward. We don't expect everyone on campus to agree with our beliefs, but we would ask people, and students in particular, to respect them."

McGovern said the college's policy follows church teachings, which op pose use of artificial contraception. Most Catholic colleges do not distribute birth control on campus.

"This is not a shocking revelation," that the college does not permit condom distribution, he said.

Freitas, who said she is not Catholic, said she decided to make condoms available because she was concerned about the consequences of students having unprotected sex.

"Abstinence can be part of sex-ed, and should be," she said. "But college students are going to have sex, and they should be encouraged to have safe sex. In certain moments, students aren't going to stop to run to CVS, so I think they should be available on campus."

The dispute at Stonehill echoes debates on access to birth control on other Catholic campuses in the region.

For example, students at Boston College recently passed a referendum urging the college to offer affordable testing for sexually transmitted infections and access to contraception.

Freitas, of Danbury, Conn., said that before distributing the condoms, she tried to start a campus group called the Sexual Health and Awareness Group to educate students about safe-sex practices.

But college administrators, she said, urged her to work with an existing student health group, Active Concerned Educated Students.

Freitas said she was frustrated the condoms were removed, so she decided to make her grievance public. Freitas notified the Brockton Enterprise, which wrote about the matter yesterday.

"I expected some resistance, but I think this is a debate that should be out in the open," she said.

Freitas said she will continue to hang a bag of condoms on her dormitory door, although McGovern warned otherwise.

"She has taken a position that differs from college policy," he said. "I would hope she would remove them."

© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.

Posted using ShareThis

I'd like to have a conversation with this young woman. Perhaps she'll stumble across this blog entry while 'Googling' herself and she will contact me. ;)

Heresy Barometer Explodes in UK

Quotes from Bishop Kieran Conry, United Kingdom, on matters of the Catholic faith:

"You can't talk to young people about salvation. What's salvation? What does salvation mean? My eternal soul? You can only talk to young people in young people's language, really. And if you're going to talk to them about salvation, the first thing they will understand is saving the planet. You're talking about being saved and they will say: 'What about saving the planet?' "

.

"But to young people, boiling a kettle, wasting water, saving the planet, that's language they will understand. Then you can move on from there: 'Right, do you understand what saving means? Do you understand what good and bad is here?' And they'll say 'yes' and you can say: 'Right now, if you look at your own life...' And again I think for a lot of the claims there is simply no evidence."

.

"They need to be told God loves them. They don't need to be told: 'You're heading for hell.' No. I would disagree profoundly with that view, profoundly, profoundly."

.

On Humanae Vitae and contraception:

"Well, first of all, I would disagree that it's a key teaching. The key teachings of the Church are in the Creed. It's not a life issue." To do with the transmission of life, then? "It's to do with what family and married life means, being open to procreation. So it's not a life issue because then you tie it in with abortion. The two are completely different issues."

"In the great scheme of things I don't think it's high up the list. It became a very public issue which affected a significant number of people, not the majority of Catholics. The majority of Catholics are not in that position, where birth control is an issue. Look around on Sunday morning and see 'is birth control an issue for most people here?' No, it's not."

"Why do people never go back to the Beatitudes, 'blessed are the poor in spirit'? You know, are you poor in spirit? No. Does that bother you? No. Do you practise birth control? Does that bother you? Yes. We've got a very distorted view of what we think Christian morality is."

When asked if the teaching on use of birth control is wrong, he responded:

"It could be. It's not an infallible teaching. Clearly the basic Creed formula, what the Church teaches about the sacraments is infallible but there's only been one strictly infallible statement."