Me? Judge him? Nonsense. God will judge him. I'm only CONCERNED for him - and am thus doing him a favor since he has an incorrect understanding of an important aspect of his Faith.
OCU *is* a Roman Catholic. There's no denying that. Once a Catholic, always a Catholic. However, his words here have made it clear that he isn't aware of the Catholic Church's view regarding those who help elect politicians like Barack Obama who actively support the legalization of and funding for abortion clinics, and who thus help women "murder" their own unborn children. His lack of understanding leaves him in considerable jeopardy for when he IS judged.
Non-Catholics may not understand the problem OCU has. Catholics differ from Protestants in that they are *NOT* free to interpret the Bible for themselves.
Did you ever wonder why there are so many denominations of Christianity? It's because Protestants have concluded that it is okay to interpret the Bible to the best of their abilities. Once THAT door has been opened, thousands of interpretations surface, many conflicting with one another, and (quite literally) thousands of denominations are the result.
Catholics do *NOT* decide for themselves what the Bible means. And they do *NOT* decide for themselves that something the Church views as an intrisic evil, may be treated as no more consequential than public smoking. In fact, while the Church won't tell its members how to vote, it will and does council them that they need to vote primarily on the basis of avoiding intrinsic evils (abortion, embryonic stem cell research, euthanasia, eugenics and cloning are some). Other issues which may differentiate one candidate from another must be viewed as of SECONDARY importance.
Catholics may not knowingly ignore this advice, and those who do can be excommunicated.
Fortunately, Catholicism provides a wonderful "out" for transgressors, the sacrament of reconciliation, by which someone like OCU can confess, do penance and receive God's forgiveness. (Contrition must be heartfelt, however.) Thus, I am actually bringing the matter to his attention in order to help, not judge. I'm shocked that you'd view it any other way.
BTW, note that I also advised OCU to discuss the matter with his own priests. If he doesn't do so now that he definitely is aware that his votes may be contrary to the teachings of the Church, his plight deepens.
Anyway, we all judge each other all the time. You're judging me right now, weco. However, such judgements pale alongside the judgements of experts in our own chosen religions, and I've just shown OCU something he SHOULD consider about his voting record and its implications upon his immortal soul.
I'm still trying to grasp the fact that this "good Catholic" recently compared abortion to public smoking. Hah! Absolutely unbelievable.
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