Bishop Welsh Bemoans 'Double Standard' for Catholics
The founding bishop of the Arlington Diocese lamented what he calls the "double standard" in this country regarding the Catholic Church and its political responsibility.
During a recent interview with the HERALD, Bishop Thomas J. Welsh was asked whether he thinks the Church is stepping too softly in the political arena and whether Catholics are doing enough to shape the debate?
"First of all, it’s galling to see the double standard," he said. "We (Catholics) are watched with hawk eyes if we dare step over the line. Other people can be in the pulpits of Protestant churches up and down the landscape. No one ever seems to object."
Bishop Welsh recalled one local lawsuit involving Congressman Henry Hyde, which attempted to remove the Church’s tax exempt status. The ramifications are still being felt today.
"Part of the suit was the argument that one pro-life man, Henry Hyde, a parishioner of the diocese, did a Scripture reading," the bishop said. "They were trying to establish that Henry Hyde, a politician, was being influenced by the Church in an overt fashion.
"The suit was defeated finally, but it cost the Church hundreds of thousands of dollars," he said.
"It’s a double standard that we suffer from. If we were allowed an even playing field, then we could speak like Jesse Jackson speaks. We would have a better chance."
The bishop said the time might come when the Church has to say it will give up its tax-exempt status. "Our message isn’t getting out," he said. "Our people, for whatever reason, aren’t accepting it.
"We have to form our Catholic citizens to vote and to vote intelligently. They have an obligation in conscience to be involved in the process of civil society.
"We are in the Commonwealth of Virginia," he added. "We are part of the wealth. We have an obligation to use our commonality to safeguard the wealth. The number one wealth is the life of our citizens."
By nature, the bishop said, he is always tempted to go further. "But with the responsibility of being a bishop, I can’t speak as a private citizen anymore. I would like to. I should be able to."
What disturbs him most, besides the uneven playing field, is that the Catholic Church is held to a higher rule than other churches and congregations.
"What disturbs me, then, is the politician, man or woman, who wants to have it both ways," he said. "They say, ‘I’m a Catholic,’ then espouse all sorts of things that the Catholic Church says are wrong."
The voting pattern of Catholics during the recent presidential election is another area of concern for the bishop and the Church.
"Why is there an increasing gap between Church teaching and the action of people who say they are Catholic?" Bishop Welsh asked. "I don’t know what the answer is, but obviously it is a serious question.
"It seems more and more of our people think it is acceptable to say, ‘I’m a Catholic,’ and yet think that allows them to disagree, not only intellectually, but in conduct with Church teaching," he said.
"I find it most alarming because in this election there was a clear-cut choice. We had the experience of the last eight years of the political consequences of a pro-abortion government — all the things that they can do at the local, national and international levels.
"There’s some theological problem at the basis of this," he said. "I think many people are trying to compartmentalize their existence. They need to go to Church. They need Baptism, Confirmation and First Communion. They need marriage in the Church. And yet the other six days of the week, they say, ‘keep the Church out of the bedroom, keep the Church out of my day-to-day life.’ They think the Church doesn’t understand."
The bishop said there is a tremendous problem in education and motivation.
"Ideas have consequences," he said. "If your idea of faith is that you can pick a few Commandments and say, ‘I can keep them and not the rest.’ What are the consequences of that?
"If you say the Church is wrong about one serious issue like the pro-life stance, then you’re undermining the whole nature of the Church. The Lord didn’t say, ‘I’m with you all the time, except on some major issues.’"
Bishop Welsh said nothing is more important than the issue of life and family. "The Church is supposed to be guiding people on a day-to-day basis on how to get to heaven," he said. "We are saying this (abortion) is intrinsically evil. There’s no time for anybody at any place to have an abortion and say, ‘this is right.’ It’s always, always wrong.
"It’s very fundamental, he added. "Some of these people are going to leave the Church or they’re going to have to have a conversion process to get back to the idea that the tenets of the faith have consequences."
Copyright ©2001 Arlington Catholic Herald. All rights reserved.
This item 3434 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org
