"Baffling and Reprehensible"

From Phil Lawler at Catholic Culture:

“I find it baffling and reprehensible that any Catholic facility would allow itself to be so egregiously misused and manipulated in a fashion that violates our religious principles,” said Archbishop Wilton Gregory after President Donald Trump visited the St. John Paul II Shrine in Washington. Do you want to know what I find baffling and reprehensible, Archbishop Gregory? I find it baffling and reprehensible:

• … that a Catholic archbishop would issue a patently partisan statement at a time when our nation is already deeply divided.
• … that any responsible leader would issue an inflammatory statement without checking the facts—and learning, in this case, that Trump’s visit to the Shrine was not connected with the demonstrations and riots in our cities, had been planned well in advance, and was intended to focus attention on the international quest for religious freedom—which, the last time I checked, was a cause that did not violate Catholic religious principles.
• … that a Catholic prelate evidently didn’t bother to contact an important Catholic institution, to hear its side of the story, before issuing a public condemnation. The Knights of Columbus, who administer the St. John Paul II Shrine, have been scrupulously loyal to the Catholic hierarchy; they deserve at least this elementary courtesy in return.
• …that a Catholic archbishop ripped into the President at a time when Trump was advancing a cause that is, in fact, unequivocally in accordance with Catholic principles. While at the Shrine, Trump signed an executive order that directs the US government to make religious freedom a high priority in foreign affairs, and provides funding for that campaign. Whatever else Catholics might think about White House initiatives, this one deserved support, not angry denunciation.
• … that a Catholic pastor who has passively accepted the imposition of government restrictions which effectively prevent the public celebration of Mass would make a political matter—not the administration of the sacraments—his top priority.

(Read more.)

This one is especially scathing. From The Remnant:

But where, Church leaders, were you? Hiding in your plush residences away from the unlawful street mayhem. And then, after the President acts in your places, running to the media for your own photo ops to denigrate the President and express false pieties.

Why weren’t you, instead of President Trump, standing in front of your Churches with Bibles held high and proclaiming that this Book provides the answers for justice, not senseless mayhem and destruction?

You, who are afraid to condemn lawless violence in our cities, are so quick to criticize the one man in public office who has the courage to act righteously and who fears no one, especially timid Church leaders. Even in the religious realm, Trump is willing to do the heavy lifting when apathetic Church ministers fail to step up. (Read more.)

From Return to Order:

The Church’s role is to speak out against injustice, violence and attacks on the most vulnerable. It is time to speak out against the agitators who are employing terror tactics to destroy the remnants of order in our society. There should be prayers for the helpless women, old men and children who are ruthlessly attacked in the streets—or even trapped in burning buildings, while rioters blocked the access of fire engines.

Something must be said to console poor owners whose small businesses and lives are ruined. There should be special prayers for the safety of the policemen who nightly risk (and give) their lives to protect their neighbors from harm. Indeed, “greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).
 
The Archbishop should censure the senseless destruction of property and the defacement of monuments. The Church’s places of worship are set on fire and covered with graffiti. Vague calls for “solidarity” with protests, which turn violent, only inflames the situation and supports the class struggle narratives that are so contrary to the Gospels that promote social harmony. (Read more.)

From The American Thinker:

Almost alone, but with burgeoning support, Trump sees what is happening. His “law and order” speech on Monday night was perfect. Law and order always sells because people want to protect their families and property, and live in a world where they don’t have to fear rioters or government.

Trump walking across grass where people rioted the evening before to St. John’s Episcopal Church, a target of Antifa arsonists, was a signal to Americans that we will prevail because he is with us.

Earlier in the day on a conference call, he told the nation’s governors they were “weak,” and that they must “take back the streets.”

We are watching outright rebellion and revolution and we must not let them win. Trump promised he would stop this, with the National Guard and with the rest of our armed forces, if need be. (Read more.)

More HERE

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