Cardinal Dolan will offer prayer at Democratic convention, too
CWN – August 28, 2012
New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan has accepted an invitation from Democratic officials to deliver the closing prayer at the Party’s national convention in September.
Cardinal Dolan had already been scheduled to lead the closing prayers at the Republican Party convention in Tampa, Florida, this week.
When some liberal Catholics criticized the New York prelate for accepting the Republicans’ invitation, his office disclosed that he had offered to lead prayers for the Democratic event as well. After some apparent hesitation, the Democratic Party accepted his offer.
A spokesman for Cardinal Dolan emphasized that both political parties had been told that “the cardinal was coming solely as a pastor, only to pray, not to endorse any party, platform, or candidate.”
Additional sources for this story: See angelqueen.org/wp-admin/post-new.php
I was thinking of making a one-sided comment about His Eminence’s benediction at the closing of the Democratic convention (such as “Would he give a benediction at the opening of a facility highly favored by that party?”); then I saw this even-handed comment at another blog’s posting of the same event:
Cardinal Dolan and the Problem of Partisanship
By Dr. Jeff Mirus | August 28, 2012
www.catholicculture.org/commentary/otc.cfm?id=999
The news that Cardinal Dolan will offer the closing prayers at the Democratic national convention followed by a few days the announcement that he would lead the closing prayers at the Republican convention. Naturally, some on each side have condemned the Cardinal’s involvement in the other side’s convention. We might dismiss these condemnations as mere partisanship. But should we?
Clearly, the official line of the Archdiocese of New York is that Cardinal Dolan’s offer to pray at both conventions was an attempt to transcend partisanship: “[T]he cardinal was coming solely as a pastor, only to pray, not to endorse any party, platform, or candidate.” As when he invited both Romney and Obama to the Al Smith Dinner, praising the event for its long history of civility in rising above political partisanship, Cardinal Dolan obviously regards the two conventions as opportunities for fruitful public interaction with the Church. But the problem here, as I see it, is an inability to distinguish between a serious moral position and mere “partisanship”.
Partisanship is a pejorative term—a dirty word. It is what we are guilty of when we praise or blame based on which group we belong to, without reference to the merits of the case. Often this is inconsequential, as when we boo a referee who makes a “wrong” call at a sporting event (i.e., a call that favors the wrong color uniform). This is mostly in good fun. But many times partisanship is a real evil, because when we act in a partisan way we treat the virtues and vices of our friends and our enemies differently.
It is not partisanship to prefer the platform of one party over another, and it is usually sufficient to avoid the charge of partisanship to be both fair and courteous in our dealings with the different parties involved in any given question. Indeed, fairness and courtesy are always virtues to be prized. They comprise a great deal of what we mean by “civility”. But we have to be careful, even in our fairness and courtesy, to avoid appearing to be complacent about evil.
Where disagreements are merely prudential, over the best way to achieve some common goal, the occasional suspension of the battle between opposing sides can be salutary. It provides a reminder of what we have in common, and an admission that we cannot be completely sure that our own strategy really is the best. In a healthy culture, most disagreements will be of this kind; that is, they will be about things on which good men and women really can disagree. But in a culture that is desperately ill, one party or another may actually come to embrace one or more intrinsic evils—evils that we can on no account morally countenance, evils to which we must not give even the appearance of indifference, let alone support.
The problem of addressing the decision to pray at the Democratic convention in terms of partisanship—as in rising above mere partisanship—is that this both trivializes the moral issues at stake and gives the impression of calling on God to bless the efforts of the Party (or the candidates) as they currently stand. Yet the support of President Obama and the Democratic Party for such things as abortion and gay marriage (among others) is intrinsically and very seriously immoral. Therefore, a new set of rules applies, rules which require every Catholic (and certainly the Church in her official capacity) to insist on the seriousness of this immorality, to refuse to countenance it, and to avoid giving the least impression that it is unimportant or deserving of the blessing of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Now Cardinal Dolan may well surprise us. He could, for example, use his closing prayer to ask God to change the hearts and the principles of both the Democratic Party and its candidates, enumerating clearly those areas in which their immorality must be clearly condemned. In that case, perhaps, the Party would not be able to use the closing prayer as another news story and photo op to prove that it remains in favor with the Catholic Church. (And, of course, if Romney, Ryan and the Republicans can be found guilty of advocating any intrinsic evils, the closing prayer at their convention could be used in the same way.)
If Cardinal Dolan were to do this at the Democratic Convention, it would be a strong moral stand, but it would not be partisan. Paradoxically, if he does not do this, his presence can only be used in a way that is partisan. This is what always happens when we fail to take moral differences seriously. In the name of being non-partisan, we simply end up being more partisan. We bestow our favor on a party without regard to the reality it represents. And when a Cardinal does this in prayer, He invokes God’s favor without regard to the sin He is asking God to bless.
All religions and political parties are equally wonderful dontcha know.
Cardinal Dolan in Charlotte: a looming disaster for Democrats
By Phil Lawler | August 29, 2012
www.catholicculture.org/commentary/otn.cfm?id=932
Say what you will about the prudence of Cardinal Dolan’s decision to offer a prayer at the Democratic convention. What about the tactical judgment of the Democratic Party leaders who will welcome him?
Jeff Mirus has questioned whether Cardinal Dolan should have made the offer to deliver closing prayers for the Democratic event. As usual, I find myself in agreement with Jeff. But there’s another side to the question: Should the Democrats have accepted his offer?
If I were a partisan Democrat, I would say No: the Democrats should not have invited Cardinal Dolan to Charlotte. Since I am not a partisan Democrat—quite the contrary—I’m delighted that they did. The cardinal’s appearance will hurt, not help, President Obama’s chances for re-election.
Sharon Otterman of the New York Times observes that Cardinal Dolan’s visit to Charlotte will “lead to one of the most intriguing tableaus of this convention season.” She explains:
Cardinal Dolan, an opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage who is among the Catholic bishops suing the Obama administration over its contraception health care mandates, will bless a gathering of thousands of delegates who passionately disagree with him.
The Democrats are apparently planning a convention that will appeal to the primal instincts of anti-Catholic bigots. Speakers from Planned Parenthood and NARRAL will whip up the crowd, warning that any hint of restriction on legal abortion would constitute a “war on women.” Homosexual activists will acclaim the President for advancing their drive toward legal recognition of same-sex marriage. Administration officials will remind the world that Obama introduced mandatory contraceptive coverage despite tough opposition. And then, after hours of shrill rhetoric, with the crowd in a frenzy of partisan fervor, the convention organizers will introduce the leading American representative of the institution that is most closely associated with opposition to legal abortion, to same-sex marriage, and to mandatory contraceptive coverage: the Catholic Church.
One of the most important purposes of a political convention is to fire up the troops: to rouse passions, to rally the party’s faithful as they prepare for battle with their political enemies. This year the main enemy will be Mitt Romney, of course. But looking toward the future, over a longer time horizon, many liberal activists see the Catholic Church as the enemy. So how will they feel, and how will they behave, when an agent of that “enemy” appears on the convention floor?
Yes, the cardinal’s appearance will present an interesting tableau, to say the least. Whether Cardinal Dolan acknowledges it or not, he will be addressing a largely hostile crowd. (There will be hundreds of Roman Catholics on the convention floor, no doubt, but not the sort of Catholics who bow to episcopal authority.) Writing in the Los Angeles Times, Michael McGough conveys the “us vs. them” mentality that will dominate the meeting in Charlotte in his headline: “Prayer for the godless party: Dems call Cardinal Dolan’s bluff.”
How will partisan Democratic activists respond to the cardinal’s presence. I see two likely possibilities.
1.Hard-core ideologues might make their contempt manifest. Cardinal Dolan could face demonstrations, interruptions, heckling, a chorus of boos.
2.Or cooler heads could prevail, Democratic leaders could impose discipline, the cardinal could hear nothing but respectful applause.
In all likelihood the actual event will see a bit of both reactions. The cardinal will be greeted politely. But there will be some grumbling when Cardinal Dolan prays—as surely he will—for a respectful attitude toward human life and a determination to support marriage and family. And even if the angriest demonstrators are kept outside the convention hall, TV viewers might notice that the rhetoric of those who oppose the cardinal’s appearance will sound very similar to the rhetoric of Democratic speakers who appeared earlier on the convention schedule.
One way or another—because he is treated rudely, as an enemy; or because he is treated politely, as a foreign dignitary—Cardinal Dolan’s appearance in Charlotte will help Catholic voters to notice that they are no longer “at home” in the Democratic Party. Like the cardinal they may be accepted as guests, but as long as the Democratic Party embraces the culture of Death, Catholic Democrats will be operating on alien territory.
Cardinal Dolan offered to attend the convention if his presence was wanted. The truth is that he is not wanted. But the Democratic Party has chosen to pretend, and that is a serious tactical error.