Donohue’s frivolous response to respectful dialogue

Catholic League President Bill Donohue rushed to John Boehner’s defense today in response to the letter from Catholic scholars to the Speaker concerning his support for policies that harm the poor. Unfortunately, Donohue’s response is as weak as Boehner’s record. While the letter to Boehner – which was thoroughly respectful — described in extensive detail numerous ways in which his policies harm the poor, Donohue’s defense of the Speaker’s record cited his support for D.C. school vouchers…and nothing else. But in a skillful use of the causation/correlation fallacy, Donohue laid the plight of the poor at President Obama’s feet:

After most Catholics revolted against the Democrats last fall for their disastrous economic record, Schneck wrote that the vote “dealt a blow” to the Church’s concerns for the poor. His conclusion is curious: under the Obama administration, no segment of the population has been punished more than the poor (the poverty rate climbed to 14.3 percent in 2009, the highest since 1994).

Perhaps Donohue is unaware that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which President Obama championed and then-Minority Leader Boehner opposed, created 1-2 million jobs in the fourth quarter of 2009. True to form, Donohue focused more on going after Catholic University professor Steve Schneck than sticking up for the Speaker. Donohue’s statement even spent more words attacking Kathleen Sebelius’s record than defending Boehner’s. Seriously, I counted. This is vintage Donohue: when you can’t rebut the message, go after the messenger, and be sure to bring up late-term abortion. His signature brand of illogical, divisive hyper-aggression stands in stark contrast to the civil, reasoned words of the Catholic scholars and leaders he attacks.

add a comment »

Boehner at Catholic University: The Catholic Right Responds

Kathryn Jean Lopez and Fr. Robert Sirico have both responded to yesterday’s letter from Catholic scholars to Speaker Boehner with predictable opposition.

Presumably their criticisms aren’t rooted in objections to Catholics voicing their opinions about commencement speakers. Both Lopez and Sirico made very vocal their disagreement with Notre Dame President Jenkins’s decision to host President Obama two years ago, which Sirico called “dangerous for Notre Dame, for the Church, for this country, and frankly Father [Jenkins], for your own soul.”

No, their true objections boil down to a simple problem: they think the House Republican budget Boehner helped pass is entirely defensible.

Lopez:

Of course, the needs of the poor are not always best served by an overreaching, hydra of a bureaucracy. Certainly not at a time when that hydra is unsustainable. Many of John Boehner’s and Republican attempts to reign in government spending and encourage job growth might be considered morally responsible.

Sirico:

The specifics of the 2012 Budget proposed by the Speaker and his colleagues are, the letter’s authors contend, the result of either ignorance or “dissent.” I think they are neither; they simply reflect a different, and in many people’s estimation, more accurate and economically-informed [sic] way, of proposing how we achieve worthy goals. Indeed, it could be said that what these Catholic academicians are proposing is not a “preferential option for the poor,” but rather a preferential option for the State. They make the unfortunately common error of assuming that concern for the economically weak and marginalized must somehow translate into (yet another) government program.

Sirico is half-right. Catholic Social Teaching has long maintained a healthy balance between markets and government, emphasizing that neither is an end in itself or a panacea. Catholics can disagree in good faith about the proper mechanism for protecting the weak and vulnerable. The problem with the House budget, however, is that it offers no mechanism at all.

Boehner’s endorsement of a plan that funds tax cuts for the rich that do not trickle down by dismantling Medicare, gutting food support for vulnerable women and children, and eliminating life-saving global aid without offering viable alternative solutions to the problems these programs address can’t be hidden under the dodge of “prudential judgment.”

(For a more in depth look at how Catholics should approach this budget, see John’s post from last month)

I’m not the only one who disagrees with Lopez and Sirico on this issue. Leading Catholic bishops have already weighed in on this one, coming down in support of the government taking an active role in protecting the most vulnerable.

add a comment »

Is John Boehner Really Pro-Life? Catholic Scholars Give Speaker a Catechism Lesson

As Michael Sean Winters points out over at Distinctly Catholic, one of the most important things about the pointed letter Catholic University faculty and theologians across the country sent John Boehner is how it challenges the Catholic Speaker of the House on what’s often described as the “life issues.” The full spectrum of Catholic social teaching about the sanctity of life does not end with abortion. As the letter details, the House budget that Boehner helped pass is anything but pro-life when evaluated by its impact on pregnant women, the elderly and those who live in poverty. Laurie Goodstein of the New York Times takes particular note of how the Catholic scholars broaden the pro-life frame in her story today.

The letter writers go on to criticize Mr. Boehner’s support for a budget that cut support for Medicare, Medicaid and the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program, while granting tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations. They call such policies “anti-life,” a particularly biting reference because the phrase is usually applied to politicians and others who support the right to abortion.

Conservative Catholic activists, bloggers and intellectuals have frequently defined the terms of debate over Catholic values in public life. The Catholic right aggressively mobilizes to pressure Catholic politicians, universities, and even bishops (see the vitriol Cardinal O’Malley faced in Boston during the funeral of Sen. Edward Kennedy) it views as “unorthodox.” This earns headlines and scores political points, but in the process it creates a distorted narrative about Catholic issues in the press. This is why it’s heartening to see scholars and theologians at the finest Catholic universities in the country pushing back in a respectful, high-profile manner that articulates authentic values at the heart of our Catholic tradition and offers a more nuanced picture of Catholicism in the media. Bill Donohue take note!

Speaker Boehner’s reaction to the letter is disappointing. His spokesman responded to reporters by saying Rep. Boehner will “be delivering a personal, non-political message.” When President Obama, who isn’t Catholic, gave the commencement address at the University of Notre Dame he faced considerable pressure from Catholic bishops, but he had enough respect for the Catholic intellectual tradition to discuss how his views both diverged from and reflected Catholic teaching on a range of issues. Mr. Boehner, a practicing Catholic and a graduate of a Jesuit university, should be held to the same standard. This provocative and timely letter should offer the Speaker good food for thought. Mr. Boehner still has a few days to keep working on his speech.

add a comment »

Catholic Scholars Teach Boehner Church Doctrine on the Poor

John Boehner will give the commencement address at The Catholic University of America on Saturday. The university obviously has the right to invite whomever they wish to speak, but it’s noteworthy that they chose a Catholic Speaker of the House who very recently passed a federal budget plan that contradicts Catholic Social Teaching in numerous ways.

Catholic leaders are using this as a teachable moment for Boehner. This week a delegation of Catholic University faculty are delivering to Boehner’s office a letter signed by more than 70 Catholic scholars, clergy and leaders – including 30 Catholic University faculty – about how the Republican budget plan recently passed by the House violates Catholic doctrine about treatment of the most vulnerable members of society. They’re also giving the Speaker a helpful resource to inform his policy positions – a copy of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, a Vatican publication that highlights centuries of Church teaching on social justice issues.

It’s important to note that, in contrast to the Catholic right’s effort to intimidate Notre Dame into withdrawing its commencement invitation to President Obama, this letter does NOT call on the university to disinvite Boehner or ask Boehner to cancel.

“Speaker Boehner’s budget eviscerates vital programs that protect the poor, the elderly, the homeless and at-risk pregnant women and children. This is not pro-life,” said Stephen Schneck, Director of the Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies at The Catholic University of America. “As he visits our university to be honored as commencement speaker, we pray that the Speaker reflects on our Church’s ancient moral teachings and signs on with our bishops to endorse the Circle of Protection.”

Full text of the letter and the list of signatories is below the fold.

Dear Mr. Speaker,

We congratulate you on the occasion of your commencement address to The Catholic University of America. It is good for Catholic universities to host and engage the thoughts of powerful public figures, even Catholics such as yourself who fail to recognize (whether out of a lack of awareness or dissent) important aspects of Catholic teaching. We write in the hope that this visit will reawaken your familiarity with the teachings of your Church on matters of faith and morals as they relate to governance.

Mr. Speaker, your voting record is at variance from one of the Church’s most ancient moral teachings. From the apostles to the present, the Magisterium of the Church has insisted that those in power are morally obliged to preference the needs of the poor. Your record in support of legislation to address the desperate needs of the poor is among the worst in Congress. This fundamental concern should have great urgency for Catholic policy makers. Yet, even now, you work in opposition to it.

The 2012 budget you shepherded to passage in the House of Representatives guts long-established protections for the most vulnerable members of society. It is particularly cruel to pregnant women and children, gutting Maternal and Child Health grants and slashing $500 million from the highly successful Women Infants and Children nutrition program. When they graduate from WIC at age 5, these children will face a 20% cut in food stamps. The House budget radically cuts Medicaid and effectively ends Medicare. It invokes the deficit to justify visiting such hardship upon the vulnerable, while it carves out $3 trillion in new tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy. In a letter speaking on behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop Stephen Blaire and Bishop Howard Hubbard detailed the anti-life implications of this budget in regard to its impact on poor and vulnerable American citizens.

A just framework for future budgets cannot rely on disproportionate cuts in essential services to poor persons. It requires shared sacrifice by all, including raising adequate revenues, eliminating unnecessary military and other spending, and addressing the long-term costs of health insurance and retirement programs fairly.

We also fear the human and social costs of substantial cuts to programs that serve families working to escape poverty, especially food and nutrition, child development and education, and affordable housing.

Representing the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishops Hubbard and Blaire have now endorsed with other American Christian leaders a call to legislators for a “Circle of Protection” around programs for the poor that you, Mr. Speaker, have imperiled. The statement of these Christian leaders recognizes the need for fiscal responsibility, “but not at the expense of hungry and poor people.” Indeed, it continues, “These choices are economic, political–and moral. As Christians, we believe the moral measure of the debate is how the most poor and vulnerable people fare. We look at every budget proposal from the bottom up–how it treats those Jesus called ‘the least of these’ (Matthew 25:45).”

Mr. Speaker, we urge you to use the occasion of this year’s commencement at The Catholic University of America to give fullest consideration to the teachings of your Church. We call upon you to join with your bishops and sign on to the “Circle of Protection.” It is your moral duty as a legislator to put the needs of the poor and most vulnerable foremost in your considerations. To assist you in this regard, we enclose a copy of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church. Published by the Vatican, this is the “catechism” for the Church’s ancient and growing teaching on a just society and Catholic obligations in public life.

Catholic social doctrine is not merely a set of goals to be achieved by whatever means one chooses. It is also a way of proceeding, a set of principles that are derived from the truth of the human person. In Pope Benedict’s words: “Without truth, charity degenerates into sentimentality. Love becomes an empty shell, to be filled in an arbitrary way… the word “love” is abused and distorted, to the point where it comes to mean the opposite.”

We commend to you the Compendium’s discussion of the principles of the common good, the preferential option for the poor, and the interrelationship of subsidiarity and solidarity. Paragraph 355 on tax revenues, solidarity, and support for the vulnerable is particularly relevant to the moment.

Be assured of our prayers for you on this occasion and for your faithful living out of your vocation in public life.

Sincerely,

Stephen F. Schneck

Director, Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies

The Catholic University of America

Ken Pennington

Kelly-Quinn Professor of Ecclesiastical and Legal History

The Catholic University of America

School of Canon Law

The Columbus School of Law

The Catholic University of America

Karen M. Korol

Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Studies

School of Theology and Religious Studies

Catholic University of America

Rett R. Ludwikowski, Ph.D.

Comparative and International Law Institute

Columbus School of Law

The Catholic University of America

Patricia C. McMullen, Ph.D., JD, CRNP

Dean

School of Nursing

The Catholic University of America

Kenneth P. Miller, Ph.D, RN, CFNP, FAAN

Associate Dean for Administration

School of Nursing

The Catholic University of America

Timothy J. Meagher

Associate Professor

Department of History

The Catholic University of America

Sr. Ann Patrick Conrad, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

Sr. Vincentia Joseph, Ph.D.

Professor Emerita

National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

Maryann Cusimano Love, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Department of Politics

The Catholic University of America

Stephen McKenna, Ph.D.

Associate Professor & Chair

Department of Media Studies

The Catholic University of America

Linda Plitt Donaldson, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

Margaret Martin Berry

Columbus School of Law

The Catholic University of America

Leslie W. Tentler, Ph.D.

Ordinary Professor

Department of History

The Catholic University of America

Rev. Anthony J. Pogorelc, Ph.D.

Fellow

Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies

The Catholic University of America

William V. D’Antonio, Ph.D.

Fellow

Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies

The Catholic University of America

William Barbieri, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

School of Theology and Religious Studies

The Catholic University of America

Enrique Pumar, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Department of Sociology

The Catholic University of America

Joseph J. Shields

Associate Professor

The National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

Ellen M. Scully

Assistant Clinical Professor

Columbus Community Legal Services

Columbus School of Law

The Catholic University of America

Marie J. Raber, MSW, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Associate Dean and MSW Program Chair

National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

Michaela L. Zajicek-Farber, MSW, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

William D. Dinges, Ph.D.

Ordinary Professor

School of Theology and Religious Studies

The Catholic University of America

William P. Loewe, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology

The Catholic University of America

Karlynn BrintzenhofeSzoc, Ph.D., MSW, OSW-C

Associate Professor

Director, Data Management & Outcomes Assessment

National Catholic School of Social Service

The Catholic University of America

James A. McCann, Ph.D.

Professor of Political Science

Purdue University

Visiting Fellow, Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies

The Catholic University of America

Chris Grech

Associate Professor

School of Architecture and Planning

The Catholic University of America

Ernest M. Zampelli, Ph.D.

Ordinary Professor

Department of Business and Economics

The Catholic University of America

David A Lipton

Director, Securities Law Program

School of Law

The Catholic University of America

Murry Sidlin

Professor, School of Music

The Catholic University of America

John Sniegocki

Associate Professor of Christian Ethics

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH

Kristin Suna-Koro, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Department of Theology

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH

Jean Lim

Visiting Professor, Theology

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH

Arthur T. Dewey

Professor of Theology

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH

Edward P. Hahnenberg, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Theology

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH

Vincent J. Miller

Gudorf Chair in Catholic Theology and Culture

Department of Religious Studies

University of Dayton

Una M. Cadegan

Associate Professor, Department of History

University of Dayton

Francis Xavier Doyle

Former Associate General Secretary

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

Arturo Chavez, Ph.D.

President and CEO

Mexican American Catholic College

Gary Macy

John Nobili, S.J. Professor of Theology

Santa Clara University

Gerald J. Beyer

Associate Professor of Christian Social Ethics

Department of Theology and Religious Studies

Saint Joseph’s University

Dr. Eugene J. Halus, Jr.

Associate Professor of Politics

Department of History and Politics

Immaculata University

Kristin Heyer

Associate Professor

Religious Studies

Santa Clara University

Bryan N. Massingale

Associate Professor of Theological Ethics

Marquette University

Dolores L. Christie

CTSA/John Carroll University

Alex Mikulich, Ph.D.

Research Fellow

Jesuit Social Research Institute

Loyola University

New Orleans, LA

Daniel K. Finn

Professor of Theology and Clemens Professor of Economics

St. John’s University

Collegeville, MN

Terrence W. Tilley

Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Professor of Catholic Theology

Chair, Theology Department

President, Society for Philosophy of Religion

Fordham University, Bronx, NY

Thomas J. Reese, S.J.

Senior Fellow

Woodstock Theological Center

Georgetown University

Bruce T. Morrill, S.J.

Professor, Theology Department

Boston College

Nancy Dallavalle

Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Religious Studies

Fairfield University

Lisa Sowle Cahill

Monan Professor of Theology

Boston College

Bradford Hinze

Professor of Theology

Fordham University

Mary Ann Hinsdale

Associate Professor of Theology

Boston College

Paul Lakeland

Aloysius P. Kelley, S.J. Professor of Catholic Studies

Director, Center for Catholic Studies

Jeannine Hill Fletcher

Associate Professor of Theology

Faculty Director, Dorothy Day Center for Service and Justice

Fordham University

Paulette Skiba

Professor of Religious Studies

Clarke University

Dennis M. Doyle

Professor

Department of Religious Studies

University of Dayton

Maura Donahue, Ph.D.

Director, Program for Christian Leadership

University of Dayton

Richard R. Gaillardetz

Murray/Bacik Professor of Catholic Studies

University of Toledo

Christopher Pramuk

Assistant Professor of Theology

Xavier University

Marie Dennis

Director

Maryknoll Office for Global Concern

Mary Ann Brenden MSW, LICSW

Associate Professor of Social Work

St. Catherine University/University of St. Thomas School of Social Work

Mark Ensalaco, Ph.D.

Director, Human Rights Studies program

University of Dayton

Dr. Marie J. Giblin

Associate Professor

Theology Department

Xavier University

Frank Farrell, Ph.D.

Chair- Liberal Arts Division

Senior Associate Professor, Religion

Manor College

Rev. Joseph Nangle, OFM

Our Lady Queen of Peace

Arlington, VA

Todd Whitmore

Associate Professor of Christian Ethics

Department of Theology

University of Notre Dame

Christine Firer Hinze, Ph.D., B.A, M.A, CUA

Professor of Theology

Director, Francis & Ann Curran Center for American Catholic Studies

Fordham University

Ed Kelly

Adjunct Professor

University Writing Program

University of Notre Dame

Maria McKenna, Ph.D.

Director of Undergraduate Studies

Department of Africana Studies

University of Notre Dame

Sr. Mary Hughes, OP

President

Leadership Conference of Women Religious

Ron Pagnucco

Chairman

Department of Peace Studies

College of St. Benedict/St. John’s University

Michael A. Zampelli, SJ

Paul Locatelli, SJ Professor

Department of Theater and Dance

Rector, Santa Clara Jesuit Community

Santa Clara University

John A. Coleman, SJ

Casassa Professor of Social Values, Emeritus

Loyola Marymount University

Jim Hug, S.J.

President

Center of Concern

Lew Daly

Director, Fellows Program

Demos

Author of God’s Economy: Faith-Based Initiatives and the Caring State

John A. Barba

will receive Ph.D. in Historical and Systematic Theology at Catholic University graduation on Saturday

add a comment »

Catholic Bishops Stand up to Immoral Budget Cuts

Last week John highlighted an America magazine editorial imploring the Catholic bishops to speak out more publicly against the draconian cuts in the Ryan budget plan adopted by House Republicans.

As Catholic News Service reports, two bishops are doing just that, joining other religious leaders in the Circle of Protection campaign to highlight the moral danger of cutting programs that support the most vulnerable at home and abroad.

“The poor don’t have powerful political voices speaking on their behalf so we are speaking on their behalf. We want to be a strong moral voice that speaks for the common good and those who are most poor,” said Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, Calif., chairman of the bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development.

“A just (budget) framework cannot rely on disproportionate cuts in service. They require shared sacrifices by everyone,” he said during one of three nationwide media teleconferences introducing the campaign.

Bishop Jaime Soto of Sacramento, Calif., echoed his California colleague in a separate teleconference for Spanish-language media.

It’s great to see Bishops Blaire and Soto joining such an important, public campaign. I hope more of their colleagues will follow their lead.

add a comment »