The U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops voted on Friday to draft a "teaching document" about communion that will probably rebuke Joe Biden for defending abortion rights, and could call for denying him communion in the Catholic church.
Everybody's got an opinion. While the vote to proceed was overwhelming, at 168-55, the push for the measure came from the Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez, who is more conservative than most bishops. But then, Gomez was running the show -- that is, the U.S. bishops' three-day General Assembly in June. The document itself is supposed to be ready for a vote next time they meet, in November.
Thing is, church law isn't supposed to apply nation by nation, so the recommendation wouldn't be binding unless it's signed by the Pope. That's not likely: Pope Francis told the bishops this very week that it's a bad idea to use communion as a political weapon.
In short, the bishops could sing the entire text on Broadway and tap dance to it and it still wouldn't affect President Biden personally. The two bishops that Biden knows best in Washington have both said that he will continue to receive communion in their churches, no problem. One, Bishop Wilton Gregory, was one of almost 70 bishops who wrote to ask Gomez to put off the communion issue till the bishops could meet in person.
Biden's take on abortion, by the way, is that women have the right to choose. He also says church teachings should not be imposed on the entire country. That's the same way Jimmy Carter saw it. As long as they're not both one-term presidents, we're happy.
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/559167-bishops-vote-to-proceed-with-drafting-document-on-denying-communion?fbclid=IwAR3Uft-9zGNOhdsdMXMv1FersqtJCU8Wfwc-Rc1irY1mnHpJHWQVKKPDvi0&rl=1
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bishops-possible-rebuke-joe-biden-communion-abortion-rights/?fbclid=IwAR2aHdUKGlfTAU0mbrGsWnK3L1KPxz5iNhmUj629_TnsqpoaHURJXgmXma4
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