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 U.S.
Representatives Challenge Papacy and Hint at Old Heresies
by Luiz Sérgio Solimeo
On May 10, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro
(D-Conn.) and 17 other Catholic U.S. Representatives issued
a communiqué expressing their concern over
the “Pope’s statement warning Catholic
elected officials that they risk excommunication and would
not receive communion for their pro-choice views.”1
It is quite possible that these Democratic
congressmen reviewed the declaration hastily and signed
on to it without realizing its full gravity.
Nevertheless, the statement raises concerns,
for it suggests a state of revolt toward the Papacy and
insinuates State supremacy over the Catholic Church. In
so doing, the document suggests something of the errors
of Gallicanism2 and
Jansenism,3 which centuries
ago took France under Philip the Fair,4
and Austria under Joseph II,5
to the brink of schism.
As the great papal historian Ludwig von
Pastor explains, Joseph II maintained that “[t]he
Church was no longer to enjoy universal respect,
as a value superior to all others; it was to be reduced
to the rank of an assistant and handmaid of the almighty
State and its welfare.”6
A sprinkling of Joseph II’s theory
on Church subservience seems to be at play in the communiqué
of the 18 Congressmen. The Church must give sway—they
seem to say—to their liberal political views and understanding
of the U.S. Constitution. I quote from the document :
The fact is that religious sanction in
the political arena directly conflicts with our fundamental
beliefs about the role and responsibility of democratic
representatives in a pluralistic America—it also
clashes with freedoms guaranteed in our Constitution.
Such notions offend the very nature of the American experiment
and do a great disservice to the centuries of good work
the Church has done.
These Congressmen appear to transpose their
congressional immunity in certain civil affairs to all matters
spiritual. They even go beyond this, since, for them, the
Church has no business imposing “religious sanction
in the political arena.”
They seem to reject the great lessons
of History such as that given by St. Ambrose of Milan who
banned the all-powerful Theodosius from entering his cathedral
(a sanction), because of the Roman Emperor’s responsibility
in the massacre of innocent people in Thessalonica (political
arena).
Moreover, they seem to reject Scripture
and apostolic teaching, such as Saint Paul’s solemn
admonition to Timothy to preach the Gospel, even in face
of adversity:
I charge thee, before God and Jesus Christ,
who shall judge the living and the dead, by his coming,
and his kingdom: Preach the word: be instant in
season and out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in
all patience and doctrine. For there shall be
a time, when they will not endure sound doctrine; but,
according to their own desires, they will heap to themselves
teachers, having itching ears: And will indeed turn away
their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto
fables. (2 Tim. 4:1-5).
What these Catholic Congressmen seem to
want is a Church that will not criticize, much less sanction
or punish, any political authority even when it acts against
the dictates of natural moral law.
The subservient Church these Congressmen
seem to want is a ‘national Church,’ in the
sense of a Church that does not oppose their implementation
of the “American experiment.” Theirs would be
a kind of “Constitutional Church,” not unlike
that established in 1790 by the French National Assembly
during the French Revolution under the influence of Gallicanism
and Jansenism.7
It would be interesting to ask the 18
signing Congressmen to clarify their position and answer
the following questionnaire:
As baptized Catholics invested with political
authority, as U.S.
Representatives—
- Do you believe that the political order is above the
moral order and that, therefore, a congressman does not
need to observe the precepts of natural and revealed morals
in his public life?
- Do you believe that a Catholic, in his capacity as
a member of Congress, is not subject to the dogmas, morals,
and discipline of the Catholic Church?
- Do you believe that the Vicar of Christ does not have
the right to make a statement on matters of faith or morals
or to take disciplinary measures toward Catholics anywhere
in the world?
- Do you deny the universal character of the Catholic
Church and would you reduce the Church to the status of
a “National Church,” subject to the temporal
power?
Yes, History might be repeating itself.
We might witness once more the sight of bad Catholics who
hide behind the power of the State, the ‘secular arm,’
in their attempt to impose their erroneous religious beliefs
and morals on the Catholic Church.
* * *
The May 14 statement was signed by
the following Democratic Congressmen: Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut
Joe Baca of California Joe Courtney of Connecticut Anna Eshoo
of California Maurice Hinchey of New York Patrick Kennedy
of Rhode Island James Langevin of Rhode Island John Larson
of Connecticut Carolyn McCarthy of New York Betty McCollum
of Minnesota Jim Moran of Virginia Bill Pascrell of New Jersey
Tim Ryan of Ohio Linda Sanchez of California José Serrano
of New York Hilda Solis of California Mike Thompson of California
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