THE POSITION OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF NEW YORK REGARDING GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO
“Jesus
Christ lived in the midst of his enemies. At the end all his disciples deserted
him. On the Cross he was utterly alone, surrounded by evildoers and mockers. For
this cause he had come, to bring peace to the enemies of God. So the Christian,
too, belongs not in the seclusion of a cloistered life but in the thick of foes.
There is his commission, his work. 'The kingdom is to be in the midst of your
enemies. And he who will not suffer this does not want to be of the Kingdom of
Christ; he wants to be among friends, to sit among roses and lilies, not with
the bad people but the devout people. O you blasphemers and betrayers of Christ!
If Christ had done what you are doing who would ever have been spared'
(Luther).”
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community
Below is a copy of a
letter I sent to Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York a few weeks ago
regarding the position Gov Cuomo of New York has taken and continues to take on
same sex marriage and abortion. The letter included various relevant articles.
Today, June 19, 2013 I
received the Cardinal's response. I am quite disappointed in the response. I
certainly respect his position within the Roman Catholic Church but find it very
difficult to agree with his response. It would seem to me that the role of the
Church should be to stand for righteousness regardless of the
consequences.
Please pray for both
Cardinal Dolan and Gov Cuomo that their hearts would be open to the Holy Spirit.
The Cardinal's response
follows my letter.
Nuf
Sed,
PBob
Rev. Robert J Paquet, PhD
PO Box 285
Callicoon Center, NY
12724
Email: bowtie1215@hvc.rr.com
His Eminence
Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
Archbishop of New York
Archdiocese of New York
1011 1st Avenue
Office of the Cardinal
New York, NY 10022
Note: The following letter has been posted on FaceBook not to embarrass you but to encourage others to voice their thoughts. My prayer is that you would seek the Holy Spirit for TRUTH.
Your Eminence,
I find it very difficult to write this as I sense that you are a man of God. I am a retired Pastor and a believer in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I realize we are living in a very difficult time where many pressures are put upon us to be “tolerant” and to be “politically correct”. However, I cannot understand how the Catholic Church can continue to condone the political agenda of one of its more prominent constituents – Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Have you ever thought that there are many people in this world who think that if the government approves something that somehow that makes it right? Even more horrible is the thought that just because a man is in a prominent position he is somehow exempt from the Commandments of God and the Church.
I respectfully request that the Catholic Church uphold its own beliefs and excommunicate Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
I have tried to find out if any discipline has been taken by the church and it would seem that the answer is NO!
Again, I want to emphasize my respect for you, your position and for the Roman Catholic Church. However, I must, in good conscience, advise you that the decisions you and the Catholic Church make can and will have eternal effect on individuals that look to people like yourself for guidance as they work out their Salvation with fear and trembling.
Please forgive my preaching but – I have a sermon called “Three Great Truths” which asks the congregation to consider the following absolutes – which is not considered politically correct today – NO ABSOLUTES….
1. The longer we live the older we get.
2. If we live long enough we do not get out of this alive (Rapture may be the exception)
3. The death rate among all humans including, Pastors, Cardinals and Politicians is 100%.
WHAT IF THE BIBLE IS TRUE?
In The Service of Jesus Christ,
Respectfully Yours
Pastor Robert J Paquet
NOTE THE ARTICLES I SENT WITH MY LETTER TO CARDINAL DOLAN FOLLOW HIS RESPONSE BELOW.
OFFICE OF THE CARDINAL
1011 FIRST AVENUE
NEW YORK, NY 10022
June 14, 2013
Year of Faith
The Reverend RobertJ. Paquet, Ph.D.
Post Office Box 285
Callicoon Center, NY 12724
Dear Father Paquet:
Thank you most sincerely for your recent letter, together with enclosures. Your thoughtfulness is deeply appreciated.
You should know that I treasure your letter inasmuch as I am rarely
criticized for working too closely with pro-choice elected officials.
Permit me to suggest, Father Paquet, that there is a vast difference between working with elected officials, even those who are Catholic and take positions contrary to the Church, so that we can, hopefully, accomplish what we can for the good of the Church and, on the other hand, supporting them. I don’t believe that any Archbishop of New York, yours truly included, has ever compromised Church teaching to be in good favor with Catholic elected officials who take positions contrary to their faith.
With prayerful best wishes, I am,
Fraternally in Christ,
Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
(Emphasis mine - PBob)
Below are excerpts from various article I found on
the internet that are relevant to this request.
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/card.-dolan-would-not-suggest-pro-abort-gov.-cuomo-not-a-catholic-in-good-s/
Card. Dolan ‘would not suggest’ pro-abort Gov. Cuomo not a Catholic ‘in good standing’: archdiocese
·
Fri May 17, 2013
11:42 EST
· NEW YORK, May 16,
2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – After New York Cardinal
Timothy Dolan appeared to suggest during
a radio interview this week that he may not view pro-abortion Governor Andrew
Cuomo as a Catholic “in good standing,” the archdiocese has issued a statement
saying that this is not the case, and that Dolan's remark was
misunderstood.
“Cardinal
Dolan would not, and did not, suggest the governor might not be a Catholic in
good standing going forward,” archdiocesan spokesman Joseph Zwilling said in a
statement originally sent to the New
York Times, and forwarded to
LifeSiteNews.
Cardinal
Timothy Dolan and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo
Dolan made
the remark during a discussion about Gov. Cuomo’s intention to propose a law to
make abortion less regulated and more accessible. Cuomo announced the initiative
during his State of the State
address in
January, in which he pledged to “protect a woman’s freedom of choice” by
enacting a “Reproductive Health Act."
The
governor added, repeating three times, “Because it is her body, it is her
choice. Because it's her body, it's her choice. Because it's her body, it's her
choice.”
During
this week’s radio interview, the
host of the show, Fred Dicker, asked Cardinal Dolan how Cuomo “could be a leader
on an issue that the Church fundamentally feels so strongly about," namely
abortion, and “still be considered a Catholic in good
standing?”
“Well, I
don’t mind telling you that’s one of the things the governor and I talk about,”
Cardinal Dolan responded. “And look, he and I have very grave differences. And
this is one of them.”
Daily News
Andrew Cuomo’s Brave New 'Roe' (30680)
New York State’s Catholic governor pushes on-demand abortion legislation that, if enforced, could put Catholic hospitals and many state-funded ministries out of business.
06.04.13 -
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Excommunicate-Governor-Andrew-Cuomo/134391726641305?sk=info
About
On the pressing need to cut
off the festering sore named Andrew Cuomo from the Body of Christ, and
excommunicate him from all communion with the faithful of the Catholic
Church
Description
We are Catholics who are fed
up with the toleration of self proclaimed "Catholic" politicians who openly and
defiantly support policies inimical to the Gospel of Christ and the moral
teachings of the Catholic Church. In addition to the deleterious effects of the
policies they support, their continuing toleration as Catholics in good standing
causes scandal among the faithful, who wonder how a public figure can brazenly support policies the Faith
condemns as evil, without any effective punishment from the bishops. It is only
the cowardice and corruption of the bishops that have prevented such notorious
sinners from receiving the sentence they deserve. We demand courage and moral
leadership from the authorities of our Church. We demand that such people be
excommunicated and cast into outer darkness until such time as they see fit to
repent of the evil they have embraced.
This page is specifically devoted to agitating for the excommunication of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. In addition to being a fanatical supporter of the murder of unborn children, Cuomo is a divorced man living in sin with a concubine named Sandra Lee. A staunch ally of organized homosexuality, Cuomo was instrumental in passing the recent legalization of homosexual "marriage" in New York State. Yet the shepherds of our flock have responded to such provocation with nothing but impotent blog posts and letters to the editor. The bishops' inaction creates confusion and gives the impression to Catholics and non-Catholics alike that infanticide, divorce, fornication and sodomy are perfectly consistent with being a Catholic. We demand that this disgrace to the Church be excommunicated for the good of the Church and the benefit of his own soul.
This page is specifically devoted to agitating for the excommunication of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. In addition to being a fanatical supporter of the murder of unborn children, Cuomo is a divorced man living in sin with a concubine named Sandra Lee. A staunch ally of organized homosexuality, Cuomo was instrumental in passing the recent legalization of homosexual "marriage" in New York State. Yet the shepherds of our flock have responded to such provocation with nothing but impotent blog posts and letters to the editor. The bishops' inaction creates confusion and gives the impression to Catholics and non-Catholics alike that infanticide, divorce, fornication and sodomy are perfectly consistent with being a Catholic. We demand that this disgrace to the Church be excommunicated for the good of the Church and the benefit of his own soul.
·
·
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/vatican-canon-law-adviser-ny-governor-andrew-cuomo-should-be-denied-communionRSS
Vatican Canon Law Adviser: NY Governor Andrew Cuomo Should Be Denied Communion
February 21, 2011 - 12:18
PM
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6 5
New York Gov. Andrew
Cuomo and partner Sandra Lee after attending Mass at the Cathedral of the
Immaculate Conception in Albany, NY, on Jan. 2, 2011. (AP
Photo)
(CNSNews.com) – In receiving
communion at a Mass offered by the Roman Catholic bishop of Albany, NY, that
state’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, who supports abortion, gay marriage, and lives
with his girlfriend, committed an “objectively sacrilegious” act that “produces
grave scandal,” according to Dr. Edward Peters, a top expert in Catholic Church
law and a consultant to the highest court at the
Vatican.
Peters specifically cited Cuomo's cohabiting with
Food Network hostess Sandra Lee as "publicly acting in violation of a
fundamental moral expectation of the Church," and that "as long as he persists
in such conduct, he should refrain from taking Holy Communion" and "if he
approaches for Holy Communion, he should be denied the august sacrament in
accord with Canon 915."
Canon
915, from the Church's Code of Canon Law, says that
persons “who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin, are not to be admitted
to holy communion.”
In addition, based on the news reports of the Mass
and the sermon given by Bp. Howard Hubbard, the bishop’s remarks constituted “a
failure in pastoral care,” said Peters, largely for what the prelate “did not
say, than for what he did say.”
“Bp. Hubbard, faced with a prominent Catholic
leader of whom, it may be fairly said, there are ‘great expectations,’ did not
challenge the governor to begin his reform of the state with a reform of his
person,” said Peters.
CNSNews.com spoke by e-mail with Dr.
Peters, who was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI last
year as a referendarius (consultant) to the Apostolic Signatura, the
Church’s highest administrative tribunal, itself subject only to the Pope and
under the direction of Cardinal Raymond Burke, the archbishop emeritus of St.
Louis, Mo.
