Secret Anti-Kerry Orders from Vatican

I have written before about a letter sent by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (formerly the Inquisition) to the American bishops indicating that the denial of communion to pro-choice politicians wasn’t necessarily the wisest course of action. A new, secret letter has been released that takes a much stronger stand.

The Telegraph reports:

[I]t states that pro-abortion Catholic politicians should be warned by priests that they are not eligible for Communion. If the politician then "shows an obstinate persistence in grave sin", writes Cardinal Ratzinger, he or she should be turned away at the altar rail. ... The tone and content of Cardinal Ratzinger's memo, which was leaked to an Italian magazine last week, leave little room for misunderstanding. Some passages appear to have been drafted specifically with Sen Kerry in mind.

"Regarding the grave sin of abortion or euthanasia," writes the Cardinal, "when a person's formal co-operation becomes manifest (understood, in the case of a Catholic politician, as his consistently campaigning and voting for permissive abortion and euthanasia laws), his pastor should meet with him, informing him that he is not to present himself for Holy Communion until he brings to an end the objective situation of sin, and warning him that he will otherwise be denied the Eucharist."

According to some, the pope is rooting for George W. Bush to win the election fight against John Kerry:

"I have been in Rome with the Pope and the president," said Deal Hudson, one of the most prominent Catholic laymen in the US and the editor of the religious Crisis magazine. "I also represented the president in the 25th anniversary celebrations of John-Paul's papacy. The Pope and his inner circle prefer pro-life Bush to pro-choice Kerry."

People were outraged when it was revealed that Bush specifically asked the pope for his help in getting the American bishops’ support for the Republican cause... but perhaps the pope has responded positively through the office of Ratzinger?

It remains to be seen how the American public, especially American Catholics, react to the Vatican’s attempts to manipulate the American elections.

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