The Cardinal’s classy call
Posted: August 11, 2012
If you believe someone’s trampling on your religious freedom — and breaking what you thought was essentially a promise not to — there’s only one thing to do: Invite that person to dinner.
That, anyway, is what Timothy Cardinal Dolan did when he asked President Obama to attend the annual Al Smith Foundation gala this fall, despite their spat over ObamaCare’s contraceptive mandate.
GOP hopeful Mitt Romney also got an invite, and this week the archdiocese confirmed that both men will attend.
Having the two parties’ presidential nominees at the dinner — a major fund-raiser for Catholic charities — is a quadrennial tradition; exceptions are rare. (In 2004, ex-Gov. Hugh Carey and ex-President George H.W. Bush subbed for nominees John Kerry and George W. Bush.)
So it would have been hard for Dolan to snub the president and not invite him, despite their differences. Then again, those differences aren’t easy to gloss over.
As head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Dolan became one of the strongest and most eloquent critics of ObamaCare’s contraception-coverage mandate.
He believes forcing religious institutions — Catholic schools, hospitals, social-service charities — to offer workers free birth-control services, or face fines, encroaches on religious freedom.
And after talking to the president privately, he thought Obama would respect his position in revising the contraceptive rule.
Silly him. Instead, the Department of Health and Human Services went ahead and certified the mandate anyway.
Dolan, understandably, wasn’t happy.
The government, he said, was trying to force the church to do something “unconscionable.” The mandate was “an unwarranted, unprecedented, radical intrusion’’ into the church’s mission.
He urged greater political activism by Catholics: “It is a freedom-of-religion battle,’’ he said. “It is not about contraception.’’
Since then, more than 40 dioceses, hospitals, schools and church agencies have signed on to lawsuits against HHS, arguing that the mandate is unconstitutional.
Which is why it’s no surprise that some Catholics criticized Dolan for inviting Obama to the dinner.
But for Dolan, no doubt, such a snub would have been unthinkable — even if tradition had allowed it.
The cardinal, after all, is above such pettiness. An affable, good-natured and honorable leader, he’s not inclined to snubs and ill manners. (And the church’s charitable work — made possible in part by funds from the dinner — would take precedent, in any event.)
Good for Dolan for doing the right thing.
Which may be more than can be said for the president.
GOP hopeful Mitt Romney also got an invite, and this week the archdiocese confirmed that both men will attend.
Having the two parties’ presidential nominees at the dinner — a major fund-raiser for Catholic charities — is a quadrennial tradition; exceptions are rare. (In 2004, ex-Gov. Hugh Carey and ex-President George H.W. Bush subbed for nominees John Kerry and George W. Bush.)
Helayne Seidman
Cardinal Dolan
As head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Dolan became one of the strongest and most eloquent critics of ObamaCare’s contraception-coverage mandate.
He believes forcing religious institutions — Catholic schools, hospitals, social-service charities — to offer workers free birth-control services, or face fines, encroaches on religious freedom.
And after talking to the president privately, he thought Obama would respect his position in revising the contraceptive rule.
Silly him. Instead, the Department of Health and Human Services went ahead and certified the mandate anyway.
Dolan, understandably, wasn’t happy.
The government, he said, was trying to force the church to do something “unconscionable.” The mandate was “an unwarranted, unprecedented, radical intrusion’’ into the church’s mission.
He urged greater political activism by Catholics: “It is a freedom-of-religion battle,’’ he said. “It is not about contraception.’’
Since then, more than 40 dioceses, hospitals, schools and church agencies have signed on to lawsuits against HHS, arguing that the mandate is unconstitutional.
Which is why it’s no surprise that some Catholics criticized Dolan for inviting Obama to the dinner.
But for Dolan, no doubt, such a snub would have been unthinkable — even if tradition had allowed it.
The cardinal, after all, is above such pettiness. An affable, good-natured and honorable leader, he’s not inclined to snubs and ill manners. (And the church’s charitable work — made possible in part by funds from the dinner — would take precedent, in any event.)
Good for Dolan for doing the right thing.
Which may be more than can be said for the president.
>>>>I have yet to weigh in on the controversy regarding this whole Obama visit to the Al Smith Dinner. Catholics who are outraged at this future event are predictable. And those who think it is ok are fairly predictable too. All the more reason we Catholics better get on the same page and remind ourselves that God is still in control and will make good even out of this awkward evil. I don't think we get very far in advancing the faith by always rushing to the public media venues and challenge Church leadership. I'm not saying that as laity, the Church should not reel in a priest, deacon or even a bishop or two. But there is a right way to do so(you can look it up in the Bible). And I'm glad that Jesus did not have to walk the earth during these politcally charged days in America because we would have never let him have dinner with sinners, tax-collectors and the poorest of the poor. I do understand that modern media will exploit this future event and try to tilt the discussion to look how happy the President looks amongst all that Catholic hierarchy. Well, that's a bridge for us to cross, as Catholics, TOGETHER, and my expectation is the President gets no pass on his all out war on religious liberty, and the right of Catholics, and others as well, to be about the business of God's work on earth. In the meantime, examine yourself and why you get such delight at always throwing rocks at the Church, her leadership and her mission.
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