Comments on: I support you, Catholic Charities…

By: Blake Alverson

Blake Alverson — Mon, 09 May 2011 15:43:16 +0000

As someone like myself who attends a gay-affirmative Catholic church knows, the Catholic Church is fine with a little hypocrisy. They only crack down on the heretics when the press starts getting involved.

CC knows they are among the best at what they do. Being the best is how they talk the government into giving them money in the first place (I’m sure the argument goes: “we run a tight ship; help us out & we’ll get the job done for cheaper & better than you could on your own buck”). What infuriates me is that rather than quietly comply with the anti-discrimination laws (as they did in the past admitting “it was for the greater good”: http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3136) they now see it as their duty to hold the best interests of children hostage in order to make a political point and to save face in the press. Sickening.

By: Timothy (TRiG)

Timothy (TRiG) — Sat, 07 May 2011 22:52:15 +0000

I love this! You nail the hypocrisy perfectly.

TRiG.

By: Mike

Mike — Sat, 07 May 2011 16:55:43 +0000

This is another example of the Catholic Church trying to scare people if they don’t fall in line and leave their brains at the door. (Excummunication, etc.) In San Francisco, Catholic Charities thrive in a city where it is law if any agency recieves money from the city and taxpayers, that domestic partners recieve benefits, including folks who work at Catholic Charities. At the time, Archbishop LeVada (now Cardinal and Prefect for the Congregation of Faith – the Pope’s old job) found a balanced way to move forward in a modern world to respect civil rights and the laws of land while respecting Catholic values. Many Catholic Universities now allow benefits for same sex partners but are not forced to follow the Church’s teachings on moral law. These are scare tacticts. And really, the state is going to place a child in a home that on a whole is the best place for the child not just on based on one component. If everything was weighted on whether the family was Catholic and yet there was another family that would be a better fit – should the child loose out to a family that wouldn’t be the best placement just based on their religion? What about a liberal Cathoic verses a conservative Catholic? After all,there a wonderful Catholic folks and then there are Catholics that are in name only and not the best folks around. I’m Catholic and my Aunt and Uncle turned a blind eye while my cousin was being molested by their priest. They left their brains at the door and so it’s not all black and white. God bless Catholic Charities and their work but be wary of stupid, simpletarian ideas where people only see life as black and white and are not able to weight and balance all the facts. And wedge politics and demonizing people is not a Christian principle and not all Catholic subscribe to the practice although some of our Bishops partipate in this. After all, some of these same men are the ones who sat aside to watch these abuses take place and their most important concern was the Catholic Church’s image and social teaching. I don’t trust public statements like this that are not based on fact and evidence that this is already working out fine in many communities and state in the country. Why scare people with such drama?

By: Richard Rush

Richard Rush — Sat, 07 May 2011 15:59:00 +0000

Timothy, you nailed it – brilliantly!

By: Reed Boyer

Reed Boyer — Sat, 07 May 2011 15:41:57 +0000

Oh, gosh, YES! A big “Amen” and thank you, Timothy Kincaid.

By: CPT_Doom

CPT_Doom — Sat, 07 May 2011 15:16:49 +0000

And let us not forget that Catholic Charities in Massachusetts – the first to deal with this battle, had actually placed 13 children with gay or lesbian parents in the 7 – 10 years prior to marriage equality. As in many places, Massachusetts’ adoption laws had been equalized long before marriage. In fact, IIRC, adoption rights were one of the reasons for the marriage decision in MA – if the state was encouraging these families, why would they not get the same protection?

Which brings up an interesting question. Gay adoption rights have been equal for years in DC, where I live, but marriage has only been recognized for a year. Catholic Charities here in DC only stopped its adoption services when marriage was recognized. However, they had been legally obligated to treat gay and lesbian parents equally for years in their DC-funded adoption services. What were they doing during all those years – discriminating against gays and lesbians? Then they do owe DC a whopping big check.

I would bet the same is true in Illinois – anti-discrimination laws that apply to gay and lesbian people always precede marriage or civil union legislation. Are we to believe that Catholic Charities in every jurisdiction that allows for gay and lesbian adoption rights is willfully breaking the law?

By: Hunter

Hunter — Sat, 07 May 2011 11:44:09 +0000

An added little tidbit — the impetus for the whining from Catholic Charities is that the DFS in Illinois is auditing adoption agencies to insure that they are in compliance with anti-discrimination laws. It’s not just civil unions, by any means.

By: Hunter

Hunter — Sat, 07 May 2011 11:37:11 +0000

Great post — and a great tie-in to my own post this morning.

Wish I had written this one.

By: Lucrece

Lucrece — Sat, 07 May 2011 07:01:28 +0000

Not that it will make much of a difference. AG in Florida used taxpayer dollars to f*ck gay people over on the adoption case by paying loads of money to a fraudulent witness. Result? No meaningful consequences whatsoever.

Likewise, churches– like athletes and policemen and soldiers and firemen– will continue to have their own set of laws they follow instead of those everyone else must follow.

By: Jim Burroway

Jim Burroway — Sat, 07 May 2011 04:00:27 +0000

Awesome! Simply awesome!