USCCB president issues statement following leaked Clinton campaign emails
October 14, 2016
The president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops called upon Americans to reflect upon the importance of religious freedom in the wake of “reports that some may have sought to interfere in the internal life of the Church for short-term political gain.”
“We … expect public officials to respect the rights of people to live their faith without interference from the state,” said Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville. “When faith communities lose this right, the very idea of what it means to be an American is lost.”
Stating that “as Catholics, we hold onto our beliefs because they come to us from Jesus, not a consensus forged by contemporary norms,” he added, “Politicians, their staffs and volunteers should reflect our best aspirations as citizens. Too much of our current political discourse has demeaned women and marginalized people of faith. This must change.”
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Further information:
- USCCB President Says the Gospel Serves the Common Good, Not Political Agendas (USCCB)
- Clinton campaign sought to stimulate ‘revolution’ within Catholic Church, leaked emails show (CWN, 10/12)
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Posted by: brenda22890 -
Oct. 15, 2016 8:16 PM ET USA
"Demeaning of women" and manipulating the electorate, meddling in constitutional protected rights including the freedom of religion are not equivalent. The USCCB, again, reveals their real political leanings.
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Posted by: bernie4871 -
Oct. 14, 2016 9:06 PM ET USA
Abp. Kurtz is going to have to change his expectation of living without interference. Where has he been, especially for the last 4 years. A news release like this makes him sound utterly naive.
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Posted by: [email protected] -
Oct. 14, 2016 7:09 PM ET USA
How sad that the USCCB is just waking up?
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Posted by: Randal Mandock -
Oct. 14, 2016 8:24 AM ET USA
Short-term political gain? The next crop of progressive Supreme Court judges may plague us for two generations or more. It is true that for the Catholic Church two generations are "short" when compared to nearly 2,000 years of history, but 2% is still 2%, especially when you are living during the 2% most directly impacted. The assumed moral equivalence between locker-room talk, without corresponding act, and the fomenting of revolution to undermine the American Church reveals again the USCCB's
