February 09, 2010
 
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| Speaking Well of the Dead |
| by Rev. George W. Rutler |
| 9/05/09 |
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On July 29, 1997, a representative philosophe of our abortion culture, retired Supreme Court Justice William Brennan, was lavishly eulogized in St. Matthew's Cathedral in Washington, D.C., where the Requiem Mass for President Kennedy had been sung in 1963. Richard Cardinal Cushing was relatively constrained back then, because liturgical depredations had not yet switched into high gear. It was not thus when President Clinton, who vetoed the ban on partial-birth abortions, was permitted to announce to all corners of the cathedral for consumption in all corners of the world: "Brennan's America is America at its best." That is, internecine America is at its best with 39 million fewer children than would have been born were it not for Brennan's eisegesis of the Constitution. Attorney General Janet Reno later said in a speech to the American Bar Association that the honors paid to Brennan in St. Matthew's Cathedral inspired her to go on.
As Dr. Johnson conceded, in lapidary inscriptions no man is upon oath. To avoid testing this protocol in the sanctuary where only truth is to be spoken, eulogies were discouraged in more honest days when even romanticized charlatans and avuncular Caligulas could be buried, but with the crepe of contrition. Since Americans became persuaded that God is a Butterfly, funerals have started to resemble Jeanette Macdonald's airy obsequies at Forest Lawn Cemetery in 1965, with canaries warbling fantasias in gilded cages. Nature had revenge when the canaries were released and dropped dead on the heads of mourners, victims of hot air and manifest incontinence. No such favor was granted on July 29 in St. Matthew's Cathedral when a priest asked from the pulpit: "How does a young man, son of immigrants, rise to such a position of judicial pre-eminence, with almost the entire government present to honor him on the day of his burial?" It would have been lovely if St. Thomas More had dropped from Heaven right then. A brief glimpse of the saint's head would have been a sufficient reply.
Once in a press conference in which he distanced himself from the angels on significant points of behavior, Senator Edward Kennedy said that St. Thomas More had been "intolerant." The saint indeed had been intolerant, but of falseness. The logician in him would have found grotesque the Orwellian doublethink of the priest-eulogist who said that one way to honor Brennan's memory would be to help "a young pregnant girl." The jurist in him would have raised an eyebrow when the priest declared: "The Brennan mind met the Brennan heart, and in their perfect match was the secret greatness of our friend." A meeting of mind and heart is anatomically difficult when there is a spine; and when More insisted on this point, his King obliged with an ax. In the majority opinion on Roe v. Wade, Brennan concurring, mind and heart congealed to produce the words: "If the human race is to survive, pregnancy will always be with us." The twentieth century has taught that such banality can be the diction of cruelty incarnadine.
Senator Kennedy often seems innocent of historical information, as he was in an interview with an Italian reporter in 1982 when he placed the Battle of Lepanto in the Second World War. This has made him a much sought-after eulogist. Except for his recidivistic neglect of verbs, the rhetorical senator can excel Bossuet on the death of the Prince de Condé. At a requiem for Mr. Stephen Smith, he pictured his father and brothers playing golf on a cloud with his spontaneously beatified brother-in-law. The press quoted this recreational account of the Beatific Vision with murmurs of approval.
It is not that Senator Kennedy should have said anything tactless over the corpse, or that he should have mentioned some more vigorous sport instead; he simply should not have been saying anything at all from the pulpit. If Horace Walpole thought Dante was a "Methodist parson in Bedlam," anyone who believes in the Four Last Things might take Senator Kennedy in the pulpit for a therapist in Camelot. The misguided may excuse this because "funerals are really for the family," but that is not so: consolation of the bereaved is a derivative benefit of the first purpose of the funeral rites, which is the offering of prayer and eucharistic sacrifice for the dead. When that purpose is not understood, the rites themselves may succumb to parallel intuitions of stoicism and sentimentalism. Mix the two into an incongruous brew, and the reaction is nervous banter around the coffin, and self-conscious whimsy.
Senator Kennedy is not to be blamed more than some clergymen who blow kisses to reality from a distance. Some years ago, when a prominent athlete died after a raucous life, a prelate from a cathedral pulpit described Christ the Umpire calling "Safe!" as the man slid into home plate. The shaky metaphysic was not what St. Paul meant by running the race. Gone, long gone, is the quality of unction that moved a holy friar in Paris centuries ago to preach exquisitely over a one man slum of a bishop who had died in a lady's arms: "Perhaps Monseigneur's only mistakes were his manner of living and his manner of dying." Any public figure who is subject of the prayers of such a friar must have a happier frame of mind on the other side of the grave than one whose presumption is frivolously vested as grace.
The Church's rubrics require that anything edifying in the deceased's life be mentioned only as commentary on the Gospel. Our "Culture of Death," as John Paul II called it, is idiosyncratic in its refusal to be cogent about the Gospel mystery of death itself. In its rejection of moral reality, this lurid cultural paradigm mocks the imperatives of the mystery by applauding the guilty as cold-bloodedly as it destroys the innocent. Where the idol worshipped by a culture is one's public image, even candor must be sacrificed to it; and when only the self is celebrated, celebrity canonizes itself. All the Holy Sonnets are replaced by one unholy bravado: "Death be proud."
The noble pagans flattered and flowered their dead because they could not absolve them. De mortuis nihil nisi bonum is not a Christian dictum; speaking nothing but good of the dead translates the Spartan decency of Chilon who lived six centuries before the incarnation of the Redeemer. Chilon was a wise magistrate himself, and as merciful as a Spartan could be, but his mercy was not that of Christ the Judge, for Chilon had no power to summon the dead: "Come forth!" The noble pagan tried to make the best of a bad thing, urging a social convention born of pessimism. The mercy of God changes pessimism to hope, and hope is the engine of honesty. In obedience to the Divine Mercy, speaking well of the dead may sometimes require not speaking good of the dead. However many different ways there are to say it, everyone has the same eulogy: "There is none good but one, that is, God: but if you will enter into life, keep the commandments."
For some, those words are a bit too terse. In a more florid tribute to Brennan, but snobbishly for a populist, Father Robert Drinan of the Georgetown University Law Center wrote: "When we think of Irish Catholics in public life we usually call to mind mayors, local officials and, yes, ward bosses. Brennan shattered all those images. He was an intellectual, a visionary, a prophet.... His memory will be forever held in benediction." Although Drinan made no allusion to Mount Sinai, he did compare Brennan favorably with the author of the Code of Hammurabi.
Even in our coarse times, a remnant etiquette should prevail in moments of emotional strain. A veil is drawn over those who grieve, and if Edward Kennedy and Robert Drinan can support each other in mourning the death of William Brennan, they should be allowed to do so. But when they publish their grief, they invite remark. They may even conjure commentary from gaunt ghosts long dead who can tutor lesser cynics in calculation. For all his odd little ways with God, preternaturally cynical Napoleon held trimmers of the Gospel in contempt even as he made use of them. As Talleyrand, ex-bishop of Autun, approached him arm in arm with Joseph Fouché, the ex-Oratorian brother and agent of the Terror, Napoleon muttered: "Vice on the arm of crime." From time to time, there actually appear on the public scene individuals who can fit that description by hugging themselves.
Descent to the phosphorescent obsequiousness of Mr. Justice Brennan's funeral was greased by the efficient compact John F. Kennedy made in his run for the presidency, telling the Protestant clergymen in Houston that he would never be under the thumb of a pope. He should have stuck to the advice of Pius VII on the lengths of accommodation: "We are prepared to go to the gates of Hell, but no further." After Kennedy nudged public Catholicism from the snows of Canossa to the sands of Palm Beach, eulogists claimed that his gnostic kind of religiosity was Catholicism come of age, but it was Catholicism ashamed of its age: God's good servant, but the King's first.
In Camelot this was hailed as prudence, though it was little more than cunning. St. Thomas Aquinas knew it as astutia: morally neutral in its original meaning, but vicious as an excuse for imprudence. It exploited a tribalism that was willing to wink at the roguish ways of any one of the boys who moved on up from the ranks of mayors and ward bosses to become accepted by the chattering classes as "an intellectual, a visionary, a prophet."
One of its kitchiest ikons was a painting commissioned by Monsignor Aloysius Dineen of New York, showing Pope John XXIII and President Kennedy together feeding doves. The painting has been removed from the church where it first hung, but it still prompts to panegyrics those who think that Kennedy made it possible for a Catholic to become president, when he only made it possible for a Catholic who behaves like a modern Episcopalian to become president. One positive item salvaged by John Kennedy from his Anglo-Saxon formation was a line repeated every year by the headmaster of the Choate School, the Rev. George St. John: "Ask not what your school can do for you, ask what you can do for your school." He absorbed the words until he felt free to modify them, as he also did with the Ten Commandments. His extended family may now be in the process of doing the same even to the Code of Hammurabi.
Before there was a White House, Jesus Christ spoke of whited sepulchers. I do not know if this would fall under the category of what former-Congressman Joseph Kennedy allegedly referred to as "Catholic gobbledygook," but Christ did say it, and he said it because he disdained hypocrisy. According to our friend Dr. Johnson, who was more intuitively Catholic than many putative Catholics: "No man is a hypocrite in his pleasures." If churchmen insist on eulogizing, they might get right to the point by describing what sort of pleasures occupied the dead in their lifetimes. The thought could restrain them from jumping into celebrity graves. It certainly would temper any propensity for Shakespeare's "Sweet words, low-crooked curtsies, and base spaniel fawning."
Surreal Catholicism has spawned a neurotic parade of celebrities who think incense is a form of aromatheraphy, and a harrowing pantheon of politicians who consult L'Osservatore Romano less than George magazine. What panegyrics will be gassed over them within the House of God? We have cause for concern, given the precedent of the Maeterlinck "there is no death" sort of poetry read over the body of Mrs. Jacqueline Onassis by her house mate.
In the moral order, one may not pass final judgment on another. Savanarola called that to the attention of a bishop who was damning him to all eternity. One is also required to make temporal judgments according to one's state in life. That is why there are judges. That is why there are social institutions, beginning with the family. That, above all, is why there is a Church endowed with supernal keys and censures. Madness consists in the inability to make right judgments, and it is the very definition of depravity beyond madness to fail to perceive the need for right judgments at all. Our present problem is not the arrogance of damning souls to hell. The plague is of courtiers who subpoena charity to defend sloth and, having so dazzled the jury, proceed to judge publicly that their little lords are in heaven.
The Brennan funeral followed one in Miami for Mr. Gianni Versace, the rich Italian tailor whose work, according to a breathless release from the Catholic News Service, was "noted for its sensual lines and eye-catching combinations of texture and shade." His priest-eulogist baroquely envisioned the murdered man decorating the wings of angels, and recalled a promise that if he became pope he would have Versace design the cardinals' robes. Well then, the eulogy might have ornamented sacred rhetoric by adapting Evelyn Waugh's assessment of Anthony Eden: "He is not a gentleman. He dresses too well." Instead, the preacher burst into song: some lines from a popular Broadway show tune, a toe-tapper to be sure, but not quite up to the "Dies Irae." Then the neurasthenia went international: another requiem for Versace in the cathedral of Milan featured Elton John and Sting tearfully crooning on the spot where Ambrosian chant was invented.
Later that summer, as Byrd and Handel and Elgar rolled in their graves and the Great Organ of Westminster Abbey was hushed, Mr. John, now raised to the rank of universal banshee, wailed on a piano for the Princess of Wales who was "the real Queen" according to television reporters who could not tell a Plantagenet from an eggplant. Using as theme music Mr. John's song originally written for Marilyn Monroe, solemn newscasters morphed Diana with Mother Teresa whom CNN sidelined as "another notable and good woman." It was like the time Ulysses S. Grant told the second Duke of Wellington that he understood his father had also been a military man. Great Wellington, as a man upon oath all his life, would have been a singular eulogist. When a London mob, demonstrating adoration for George IV's hapless and estranged Caroline of Brunswick, threatened to not let him pass until he cheered her, the Iron Duke answered from his high horse: "Well, gentlemen, since you will have it so -- 'God save her!' -- and may all your wives be like her."
There may be those who agree with the above, but confide that it would be better all around if it were not said. In the second volume of the Historical Sketches, introducing Chrysostom, John Henry Newman cautiously refers to "the endemic perennial fidget which possesses us about giving scandal; facts are omitted in great histories, or glosses are put upon memorable acts, because they are thought not edifying, whereas of all scandals such omissions, such glosses, are the greatest."
How odd it is that a society that has made a fashion of apologizing for every auto da fé in Spain and every slave auction in Savannah will not apologize for sycophancy and cynicism. Many, apparently, do not have time to go to confession because they are too busy begging public forgiveness for the slaughter of Hypatia. Gratuitous apologizing for the crimes of other ages and people is dangerous humbug, said C. S. Lewis; it weighs in well with the press, but less so on the scales of justice, for it can be detraction masked as contrition. At the same time, Never Never Land finds indecipherable what C. S. Lewis meant by authentic penance and accountability.
If eulogies are not sensibly stopped, I do hope they will be more precise than what was said at Justice Brennan's cathedral rites: "Wisdom tells us that the souls of the just are in the hands of God." I am all for wisdom. So much so, that I question whether we are to assume that a man is just by having been declared a Justice by his government. I am so much for wisdom that I fear the souls of the unjust might be in the fists of God. I am even so much for wisdom that I hope a merciful God will not squeeze his fists too tightly. And I am so completely for wisdom that I remember how the finger of God once wrote a eulogy on the wall of Belshazzar's feast. From the perspective of those who thought Belshazzar charming, the graffiti was in bad taste. But the party was over, and the sweet singing canaries were dead on the floor.
The Rev. George W. Rutler is the pastor of the Church of our Saviour in New York City. His latest book, A Crisis of Saints: The Call to Heroic Faith in an Unheroic World, 2nd edition, is available from the Crossroad Publishing Company. This article originally appeared in the November 1997 issue of Crisis Magazine. Readers have left 58 comments. Cardinal O’Malley, like so many of our other illustrious and courageous bishops, misses the point in his defense of providing Kennedy with all the smells, bells, and trappings of a State funeral. It is IRRELEVANT to Kennedy's funeral whether or not he was repentent before his death, confessed his sins and hence entitled to a Catholic funeral. That is a PRIVATE affair. What disqualifies him, and all other pro-abort Catholic politicians, from a PUBLIC Catholic funeral is the fact that Kennedy was a prominent (in some people’s eyes) PUBLIC Catholic figure and because he was a PUBLIC Catholic figure, his advancing PUBLIC support for abortion (a heinous sin in Catholic moral teaching) caused a PUBLIC scandal and a scandal within the Catholic Church itself. It was these PUBLIC positions on abortion that REQUIRED Kennedy to make a PUBLIC declaration disavowing his PUBLIC position before he would warrant a PUBLIC Catholic funeral. Please, someone get this message to all the bishops before they plan the funerals for the likes of Biden, Pelosi, Daschle, Harkin and the other prominant Catholics who have taken very PUBLIC positions on this great moral evil of our time. And please, even if the funeral is scaled down, omit Obama as the eulogist; it's just not fitting at a large Catholic PUBLIC funeral. Written by Anonymous That is THE best commentary I have ever read on the nonsense that passes for Catholicism these days. Lord, that Priest can write. Written by I am not Spartacus I have been very troubled at the ambiguity of some of the clegy of our poor, maligned Catholic Church. These hypocritical, fawning funerals of apparently fallen catholics and tolerance of those who patently disapprove of our dogmas and adherence to the Magesteriam should NOT be given a platform in the CHURCH!!!!! What on earth are these clergy thinking?? Have they no spine? I pray for the day that those in concert with the church stand up and shout instead of slinking and "tolerating" the shots that are heard around the world against our Church. What other religion has to tolerate such slander? Written by Vin Father, thank you. If we had one hundred priests with a spine like yours, we'd be ten thousand times better off. And that was one of my favorites: "A meeting of mind and heart is anatomically difficult when there is a spine" Saint Thomas Moore, PRAY FOR US! Written by Tatiana Another thing happened at the funeral Mass for Sen. Ted Kennedy. Cardinal O’Malley spoke to President Obama. I have read his statement and the statements of other bishops on ObamaCare. Are they concerned about the WHOLE ObamaCare package? According to a Boston Globe article on 9-3-09(Cardinal urges civility over abortion issue), Cardinal O'Malley told the President that the Catholic bishops are “anxious to support a plan for universal health care, but we will not support a plan that will include a provision for abortion...” Has anyone talked to the bishops about the many dangers in supporting the destruction of our the health care system if they could only get Obama to not include abortion in it. I agree with not including abortion, but ObamaCare will be a disaster for most everyone and it will lead to euthanasia because there will have to be major cuts in services especially to the sick and the aged. Are the bishops concerned about how the government will pay for the massive re-engineering of our healthcare? They should be very concerned about how it will be detrimental to the vast majority sitting in their pews and who currently have health coverage. Are the bishops concerned about the huge cost projections for ObamaCare? They should be concerned about the huge debts and interest payments being forced upon us and our children. It’s wrong! It’s immoral and unethical! It's stealing money from us and future generations. The bishops should insist that the government must fund the unfunded Social Security - Medicare - Medicaid Programs first. They should tell the government to not take on any new huge liabilities. Are the bishops concerned about centralizing the power over our health coverages in the hands of politicians and the federal government? They should be telling the government to not expand its power with a massive increasing bureaucracy. The whole ObamaCare train needs to SLOW DOWN. There are many smaller things that can be implemented over time to provide basic healthcare to every citizen. Please, someone get this message to all the bishops before they openly support the destruction of our healthcare system and the demoralization of many healthcare professionals who are already threatening to leave healthcare altogether. Written by Anonymous William F. Buckley himself would place a distant second to Father Rutler when it comes to composition. Written by GJB I enjoyed this article and agree whole heartedly. God bless you to keep on presenting the truth for everyone to read. Written by Ted Cardinal O'Malley did us all a favor by writing so extensively about the Kennedy funeral. By doing so, he left no room for doubt: He is a starstruck, politically naive sycophant. He gushed over a dozen irrelevant matters, primarily the presence of famous and/or powerful people. He revealed himself as befuddled about "Catholic Social Teaching"--unreflectively, reflexively, identifying it with leftist, collectivist nostrums. While mouthing concern for "a grieving family" (whose grief could hardly be expected to be salved in the absence of opera singers, Presidents, and television cameras), he turns harsh words (and not for the first time) on pro-lifers. He is, in that respect, a very typical American bishop, a type I call "anti-pro-life." "Why can't those obnoxious people realize that we have a special day each year, January 22nd, set aside for being concerned about abortion." Donald Monan, SJ, was a suitable principal celebrant at the beatification of Edward Kennedy. Three-and-a-half weeks after the shooting death of Shannon Lowney, alumna of Boston College and abortion clinic worker, the college's then-President, Donald Monan, presided at a memorial Mass at which the tears and eulogies overflowed for this paragon of the ideals of B.C. and Surreal Catholicism--to use Fr. Rutler's mot juste. The Catholic Church in America is sick unto death. Read Cardinal Sean's blog to examine the disease at close range. http://tinyurl.com/teddys-funeral Written by Fr. Joseph Excellent, Fr. Rutler! Would that all bishops would read this and take it to heart, where all eulogies should stay! Priests' homilies at Masses for the dead should relate to how the person lived out his Baptismal promises and how he preached the Gospel message by his life. Others can be given an opportunity to say how that person touched their lives, at a different venue, not at a funeral Mass. Actually, I truly believe that we can and should keep all eulogies of those who have fallen asleep, as St. Paul called it, in our hearts. It reminds us to pray for their souls and doesn't canonize people, especially the media readily do. According to the media, Ted Kennedy, Michael Jackson, and other such "celebrities" are right now in heaven with the angels. They are quite sure about that! Again, excellent article and truly a wonderful read! Written by prayerwarrior4Jesus Fr. Rutler's article is classy ... as one expects from his pen. Anonymous' comment isn't classy ... he detours into a diatribe that it was wrong for the Cardinal of Boston to speak to the President of the United States. Some so called "patriotic Americans" are shameful with their civil manners... I was taught to be respectful to even those with whom we may have serious disagreement. And, then, Anonymous goes into political blather, discussing his patriotic opinion while ranting with all that he espouses is wrong with REFORM OF OUR HEALTH CARE SYSTEM ... some patriots use any platform to inflict their opinion on others, all in the name of saving our God given Nation! Such, self-righteous, blathering tells me there is much more wrong in our Church than a Cardinal speaking with the President of the U.S.;i.e., Anomymous is so self righteous he probably bashed Pope Benedict XVI for his reception of the President at the Vatican. Civility, courtesy, and love of fellow and sister persons, trumps a ranting plebiscite who discard civility and manners when confronted with those who hold opinion not in alignment with their own. Ranting and screaming is verbal terrorism! Written by Faithful Our Church is falling apart. I hope and pray, and hold on to the words that the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church. We must be pretty close. The Shepard's are not leading and the flock is scattered. Written by Please pray for the Church http://tinyurl.com/mr42np Cardinal O'Malley has a problem with Catholics who have expressed righteous anger over Senator Kennedy's scandalous funeral. He calls us judgmental and angry. This post is a must read. Written by michael cole That Blog post url seems problematic. But the post is the latest at La Salette Journey. Written by Susan Thank You so much Rev. for putting this whole situation with Ted Kennedy's and other prominent politican's funerals into the proper perspective. For some of us, our loyalty to our faith is the most important thing in our lives. To get so many mixed messages from different Bishops, priests and other clergy can lead to confusion. I was always taught to pray for priests and the clergy and not criticize. This is not always an easy task. When Cardinal O'Malley pretty much lambasted all that disagreed with this very proud and public funeral, it has no doubt left some of us confused and dismayed. I do not want to criticize this bishop, but I do want to understand the Truth. I think you helped me with that today. Thank you once again, and may God bless you. Written by Laurie Can't say it better than I am not Spartacus. I agree with his comment 100%. And thanks Fr. Joseph and Mr. Cole for the links. Written by Pammie Not even a Bishop is beyond fraternal correction. Written by Derek Fr. Rutler brings us back to reality without damning the departed. Eulogies are appropriate at a Wake;also, at a reception afterwards. Kennedy was a national figure and that required a public burial, but unlike the homily that was read, the Mass is above all an INTERCESSION FOR THE DEPARTED as the MAIN point of it. Control over the petitions also got out of hand. There should have been one for the aborted or for pro-life and another for family based on Marriage, given Kennedy's public support for same-sex "unions". But I have to add, that K. REALLY took seriously his role to help the common man. Denied the wisdom of Catholic education by his father, he really only had the effects of his mother's piety to influence him (and it DID in moments of tragedy and failure) he thought that a woman had the legal right to call the shot on the innocent guest in her womb, a collosal blindness, yet with mitigating factors. Likewise, his womanizing which he finally stopped with his second marriage. He treated people well, did much personal charity for the common man,and was by nature large-hearted. This does not canonize him, but it gives confidence he was saved. Purgatory is what should have been emphasized in the Liturgy.Liturgically the most beautiful part was the exquisite rendition by the mezzo-soprano with a most resonant tone of voice that the cello fitted perfectly that by its unhurried length arrested the attention even of Hilary, and Obama was visibly attentive. Written by pete God is the judge of each of us! Senator Kennedy had the right to a Catholic burial. Did not Jesus say, "He who is without sin cast the first stone?" Long before the funeral Kennedy was judged by his God. His funeral did not have the trappings of his brothers, no bishops, few priests and a Cardinal to represent the Boston archdiocese. I profoundly disagreed with Ted's pro abortion stance and hoped at the end he could realize how wrong he was in this area. May he rest in peace! Written by Cam "One of its kitchiest ikons was a painting commissioned by Monsignor Aloysius Dineen of New York, showing Pope John XXIII and President Kennedy together feeding doves. The painting has been removed from the church where it first hung..." Any takers that the fingerprints left on the painting during the removal exactly match the good reverend's? Heh. Written by NYa THE KENNEDY DRAMA For days I have been reading and watching the Kennedy drama being played in every medium. I have digested some emotional statements on both sides. I have seen “former” Catholics intruding in a controversy that involves only Catholics. I have drawn the following conclusions. The senator wrote a letter to the pope and had it hand delivered by the president of the United States. Who but Ted Kennedy would have the effrontery to do this? Is this the mark of a penitent sinner? If the senator were repentant he had merely to phone his parish priest. The pope has no greater or less power to grant absolution in the sacrament than the local priest. I don’t know who crafted the spectacle that passed for the senator’s requiem or who compiled the guest list but it surely was majestic. However, a drama that featured the President of the United States and a supporting cast of former presidents, sports heroes, Hollywood personalities and the like does not square with the solemnity that should characterize the requiem mass in which those close to the deceased unite in prayer and devotion. Whatever the fate of the senator may have been, his memorial was ostentatious and in bad taste. Written by Francis J. Donovan "John Henry Newman cautiously refers to "the endemic perennial fidget which possesses us about giving scandal; facts are omitted in great histories, or glosses are put upon memorable acts, because they are thought not edifying, whereas of all scandals such omissions, such glosses, are the greatest." I would've pasted this in the Boston Cardinal's blog if they hadn't closed the Comments...perhaps to Fr Rosica instead... Written by g Where was I when God was handing out omniscience to Reverend Rutler and the commentators here? Thank God! I was with Cam (#18) in the Mercy & Humility & Forgiveness line. I am so grateful that God is my Judge and NOT my fellow Catholics. Written by Bryan Interesting article, Father. I attended Brennan's funeral and think I was one of very few in the congregation actually praying for the man. Most of the pews were filled with the rich and powerful. The homilist was a former associate pastor of mine who gushed about "how much [he] learned" from the judge during the eleven years he was his pastor. He described holding Brennan's first great grandchild at the wake the night before. I spoke to him outside after the funeral and said, "Father, when you were holding that little baby did you think about all the babies that Justice Brennan was responsible for killing? You had him for 11 years and he never repented." The same can be said of Kennedy. There was no public repentance for his very public defense of sins that cry to heaven for justice. What was Arlington priest, Gerry Creedon, who told CNN he had an on-going relationship with him for THIRTY years doing to bring about conversion of heart? That both these men went to their deaths with no indication of repentance is frightening. Where are priests who are so in love with Christ and so zealous for souls that they bring even grave public sinners to deep contrition and a desire to atone for their scandal by publicly repudiating their positions and begging forgiveness. I hope and pray that Brennan and Kennedy truly repented, but they both were concerned at the end about having grand funerals. Brennan wanted to be buried from St. Matthews, not his humble parish church (which is quite beautiful) in Arlington. Kennedy helped plan the unseemly political spectacle that masqueraded as a liturgical event. Both men lusted after worldly honors and human respect even to the end. Where were the teachers who should have, like St. Jean Vianney, inspired them with fear and trembling to make restitution? How many others will be scandalized and misled that murdering the innocent is no big deal. I wonder what the Lord will say to his priests on Judgment Day.  Written by Mary Ann Kreitzer How ironic that Bryan accuses Fr. Rutler and others who believe the Kennedy funeral represents a scandal of being judgmental and judgmentally adds, "Thank God I was in the Mercy & Humility & Forgiveness line." Bryan is judging us as having no mercy or humility. What else is this but a judgment? Bryan does not understand that although we are not free to judge a person's interior dispositions or whether or not they are saved, we are free to judge words, ideas and actions. The only inappropriate judging I have seen is from Bryan. He sarcastically accuses us of not having mercy or humility and of pretending to be "omniscient" simply because we take canon 1184 of the Code of Canon Law seriously. Bryan....here's wisdom: physician heal thyself! Written by Stewart From Zenit: "Because of its public nature the Church's public intercession for a departed soul is more limited. A funeral Mass can be celebrated for most Catholics, but there are some specific cases in which canon law requires the denial of a funeral Mass. Canons 1184-1185 say: "Canon 1184 §1. Unless they gave some signs of repentance before death, the following must be deprived of ecclesiastical funerals: 1/ notorious apostates, heretics, and schismatics; 2/ those who chose the cremation of their bodies for reasons contrary to Christian faith; 3/ other manifest sinners who cannot be granted ecclesiastical funerals without public scandal of the faithful." I don't recall Senator Kennedy giving a sign of repentance. On the contrary, as Jill Stanek noted for LifeSiteNews, the Senator's letter to the Holy Father was basically an attempt to justify himself and that she felt pity after reading it. Bryan? Written by Stewart Father Rutler is the heir of Ronnie Knox and Belloc. This is THE classic piece on the disaster that is the eulogy in a Catholic Mass. The Kennedy scandal is worse than Notre Dame. Written by Father Gussie Fink-Nottle Thank you, Fr. Rutler, for so eloquently speaking the truth. Written by Therese that Kennedy, were he capable of pulling off such a saintly feat as raising himself from the dead, would not have been able to receive Holy Communion at his own funeral Mass. I didn't waste any of my valuable time to watch, but did Obama approach the communion rail for the Eucharist? Oh, I forgot we did away with communion rails about the time we began to sing "Kumbaya." Written by Deacon Ed Thank you Fr. Rutler for such an eloquent piece. It is an outrage that the Catholic Church does not hold to its rules nor does it speak out strongly enough when it comes to those in power and with celebrity. Rather, in the case of Senator Kennedy, it throws him a farewell party under the guise of a funeral Mass. Many of our bishops and priests have forgotten their duty to correct and chastise. Chesterton said that tolerance is the religion for those who believe in nothing. Let's face it: when we don't speak up, we are actually practicing tolerance and that smacks God right in the face, does it not? At the end of the day, we can have hope in only One and that is our Lord. Those who believe do not put their trust in men, but in Christ Jesus. Thank you for speakin the truth, Fr. Rutler. Written by Laura Lover Excellent............ Written by Charlene An excellent article: but perhaps the question would not arise if Public Sinners on something as major as Abortion were denied the sacraments, while they were alive. There would then be no expectation of such a funeral when they died. St. Paul reprimanded the Corinthians for not expelling a public sinner, whose sin was far less than mass murder of the innocent. It worked, and he repented. I agree with those who said that rudeness to the President has no place in this. The argument is with Catholic Leaders. Written by John Balmer Father Rutler, you're the best! Thank you so much for this article. The historical allusions in it would probably fly over Cardinal O'Malley's and Bishop Morlino's heads, but that's their problem. I am reminded of what the self-described ex-Catholic author Mary McCarthy said regarding the Kennedys: "The Kennedys are not Catholics. They are not even Christians." She added that it takes one to know others. Not endorsing what she said. Just quoting. Written by Marie Thank you Father for this eloquent and very profound article - Yes,I pray for Ted Kennedy, The Lion of the Senate and The Cowardly Lion of Poucha Pond - 9 months in the womb or 9 hours in the water... Both expendable for Ted's political career. Both were never publicly repented of. Yet he was canonized in a Marian Basilica. St. John Vianney, pray for our hierarchy. Jesus have Mercy on Ted and on the whole world. Written by Monica Cam and Bryan, This is what I get so frustrated with. No one on this site has said Ted Kennedy did not deserve a Catholic funeral. A private mass/funeral would of been sufficient in this case, provided that he really did repent. We will never know that and that is what we can not judge. This public and almost pompous spectacle, with not one but two cardinals involved, that elevated this man almost to sainthood has brought scandal on the church. There are Protestants who feel let down by the hypocrisy of their churches (Luthern and Espiscopal), does this help them to come home to the Catholic Church? I have siblings that have left the Catholic Church, this scandal gives them ammuition to justify their leaving of the Catholic Church. For those who are in a state of mortal sin, do they believe their sins are that grave when the church has glossed over this man's life that was filled with public sins against the teachings of the church? As one writer said earlier, the fact there was no priest or bishop or Cardinal that tried earlier to lead Mr. Kennedy to not sin anymore is what really is the problem. I pray and hope that Senator Kennedy is in purgatory. I will continue to pray for his soul. I hope you understand most here are not trying to judge Mr. Kennedy. We are trying to follow our Catholic faith. Written by Laurie Father Rutler rocks!!! Need I say more? No,I didn't think so... Written by Maria Father Rutler's ruminations about the scandal of the Kennedy funeral and its importance to American Catholics is extremely timely. What we saw at the Boston Church where a renegade Catholic was eulogized and sanctified by an aging cynical American episcopate was nothing short of scandalous. O'Malley presides over a dying diocese which was destroyed by the Kennedy method of Catholicism. It is sad to say that the American episcopate has betrayed the Catholic faithful again. They should restore the "dies irae" and the requiem mass for the dead; that would probably have frightened the gathered political hacks and their clergy. It is a sad fact that the center of American Catholicism where the scripture and the love of the Eucharist is daily on display is Steubenville Ohio. In this place an ex protestant pastor and his wife are breathing life into the moribund Americanized Catholic Church. They are doing a thousand more times to spread the good news of the gospel than O'Malley and the university priests of Boston. The average Catholic is having a harder and harder time looking to his bishop for spiritual guidance since most of them are trying to placate the modern culture of the American State. Faithful Catholics can and will find inspiration by reading the spiritual output of the St. Paul Center at Franciscan University Steubenville Ohio; Scott Hahn's books are tremendous resources. Written by John O'Neill Dear Father Rutler, Some of the commentators many not understand church law it would appear: There is no absolute right to a public Catholic funeral. Notorious Catholic sinners may be entitled to private funerals. 'Catholic' politicians who promote abortion are in blatant disobedience to Canon Law & they know it. The USCCB knows it, too. Your clearly written article says it all. The accusation of being judgemental is a strawman argument employed by those who don't agree with or don't understand church law. Your honesty is why, to my saddness, that you (& good priests like you) almost never become bishops. Benedicite. Written by Priest's Mom From Zenit: — StewartCanons 1184-1185 say: "Canon 1184 §1. Unless they gave some signs of repentance ACCEPTABLE TO "STEWART THE OMNISCIENT JUDGE"..." I don't recall Senator Kennedy giving a sign of repentance ACCEPTABLE TO "STEWART THE OMNISCIENT JUDGE". Stewart? Written by Bryan The reason we have to publicly pay homage to the supporters of baby-murderers is that we, as Catholics, continue to vote for politicians who worhship at the altar of the abortionists. How many voted for Obama? How many continued to vote for Kennedy year after year? Any Catholic, any American, who votes for a candidate who supports abortion is an accomplice in the murder of these children. Our nation, our western culture, is now defined by the millions of dead babies we have allowed to be murdered. I fear the retribution that is bound to come and I continue to pray for murdered children. Written by Richard Your dishonesty is showing again Bryan. Senator Kennedy's letter to the Holy Father was anything contrite. There was NO repentance for his pro-abortion stance - only an attempt to justify his stance. Fr. Euteneuer was right. He was a heretical Catholic. And scandal is scandal. Back to the blackboard Bryan. Written by Stewart Your dishonesty is showing again Bryan. Senator Kennedy's letter to the Holy Father was anything contrite. There was NO repentance for his pro-abortion stance - only an attempt to justify his stance. — StewartFr. Euteneuer was right. He was a heretical Catholic. And scandal is scandal. Back to the blackboard Bryan. [Stewart, this is fun! I'm enjoying standing on your apparently last nerve. "Lyin Bryan"...so mature of you, too!] So, I take it you were present during Kennedy's last confession. Maybe at his bedside to hear his very last words? Maybe lurking inside his brain experiencing his last thoughts about his relationship with God? I don't know the state of Kennedy's soul when he died. Neither do you. No mere mortal does. There is only one omniscient Judge. Written by Bryan A reminder to all: Stick to the issues and leave personal shots outside. Feel free to disagree, but do so like adults. Thanks. Written by Administrator In about two years the See of Fresno will be vacated by mandatory retirement. How we need a sheperd like Fr. Rutler to lead a diocese like Fresno, Ca, where we suffer greatly. Written by Central Valley Sorry to say (since I am Irish) that there is some sort of DNA defect in the Irish. Aside from the drinking issues, Irish-Americans show their insecurity whenever they are around people they regard as superior to them in anyway. They have a sick need to be liked at any cost - even the cost of their Catholic Faith. Rose Kennedy had strong Catholic faith but her sons did not. Yes, there are still some orthodox Irish Catholics but you don't know of them because they neither seek or obtain positions of fame. Written by holly hayes I agree that we have no place being judges of anyone. But by not considering the possibility that Sen. Kennedy was possibly in need (maybe <i>dire need</i> of our prayers and was in the hands of the Lord's Mercy, haven't we also judged? It seems that it would be better to have insisted greatly that prayers should be offered for Senator Kennedy and his eternal life? And offer those prayers for the needs of others if he was not in need? Written by Ken H. MASTERPIECE FATHER!!! AND GLORY TO GOD FOR YOUR EXPRESSIVE TALENT! I needed a dictionary, but I persevered and it was worth it. Written by Laurie The groundhog is an animal with prophetic attributes, not so much for what he does, but what he stands for. If he sees his shadow, then we will have a continuation of winter darkness and chill, living without the warm promise of spring. Just like the speaker or writer that comes out to see how broad and long his or her shadow is cast over the earth. If the groundhog does not cast a shadow, he or she is not at all concerned about how his or her shadow is cast over the world. Such is an harbinger of an early spring. Spring is the promise of new life, of resurrection and of truth, of seeing things for their innate worth. So Father Rutler, like the groundhog that is not concerned with its own shadow, you are not a man of pride, seeking popularity or property. That leaves us to recieve your wise and exceptionally well chosen words, as the harbinger of a new dawn of truth; as a harbinger of a resurrection from the timid, self concerned, silent people who claim to be of God but do not live it; as the hrabinger of new life, where the people are courageous enough to live what we have recieved in the Good News; of a new life where we will all learn to adapt to our surrounding circumstances but not alter any teachng of Christ brought to us at such a great price. May the Good Lord bless and keep you at it! Respectfully, C. J. McGovern, Jr. Written by Clement J. McGovern, Jr., Perman In reading the comments here I didn't realize we have all these Saints writing here, including Fr. Rutler! How fantastic! You ALL have the graces of knowledge and discernment of the state of Souls like St. Padre Pio and St. Faustina! And obviously you were ALL PRESENT at each person mentioned in the article's Particular Judgement! WOW! Instead of canonizing everyone at the Funeral Mass like today's extreme, let's go to the other EXTREME and keep their caskets out of the Church like the old days when Pastors made the decision of in or out! And let's cover the casket in BLACK! It ONLY embarrasses the family! What the heck! How about letting ALL these Saints commenting here form a committee with Fr. Rutler as Chaiman to decide whose casket is in or out of the Chuch at the Funeral Mass! Funny nobody wants to follow the middle road the Vatican takes! Why do that? Because you're just as disobedient as the other extreme! God's Divine Mercy means nothing to these Saints! Written by Terry Father Rutler's incisive article illuminated the depths to which the American episcopate has drifted, as demonstrated by the Kennedy funeral Mass. I expect Cardinal O'Malley will volunteer to be the Postulator for Ted Kennedy's Cause. Written by Bill # 20 Francis Donovan's use of the word EFFRONTERY says it all ! Written by Ginger B Thank you, Father, for putting the Kennedy funeral into proper perspective, all done in spectacular prose-you are quite a writer and a spiritual leader that we need today. Would that others would see the situation of allowing a vehemently pro-abortion senator a lavish Catholic funeral where the eulogies given were patently political and inappropriate.God bless you and your witness is an inspiration and encouragement to all in the Church craving strong leadership. Well done! Written by Anne Wilson Did you notice that Pope Benedict's reply was NOT in the first person? Indeed, his response was as impersonal as was politely possible and there was a reason for that. His holiness is no fool and is completely aware of the misdirection a warm cozy personal letter could cause down the line. God has given us a smart man as His vicar! Written by Thomas I enjoyed reading Father Rutler's article. I agree with many who consider the Kennedy funeral to be a scandal. One note is that the Catholic Church has the fullness of God's truth. The church on earth is made up of sinners and that includes Popes, Cardinals, Bishops, Priests, Deacons, Sisters, Brothers and the laity. I am sorry for my sins amd I get upset when others sin. When I see public scandal, it is very upsetting to me as it was to a lot of the commentators. People have a right and a duty as a spiritual work of mercy to instruct the ignorant and admonish the sinner and that includes Cardinals who scandalize the laity. I think Father Rutler and some of the comments fall into the spiritual works of mercy area. Written by HGP I was doing some spiritual reading during the evening of August 29 when it dawned on me that Kennedy’s funeral Mass took place on the feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist. Was this merely a coincidence, or was Divine Providence telling us something? If only our bishops would stand up like John the Baptist! The Cardinal of Boston really wasted an opportunity to catechize and to avoid scandal. He could have officiated at the funeral Mass at the cathedral; he could have nixed any eulogies; he could have mentioned that only God knows the state of a person’s soul—therefore, a funeral Mass was appropriate; he could have given a clear sermon re the Church’s teaching on abortion and marriage; he could have told the Catholic politicians who continue to support abortion and who were present at the Mass that they would not be given Holy Communion. So what if he would be spiritually beheaded afterwards. Christ told His disciples that the world would hate them. For years I have received a wonderful Catholic periodical from Rome, namely, Christ to the World. On page 454 of volume 53, number 5, there is this quotation in the introduction to an article by Fr. Frederick William Faber on “The Habitual Distraction of Human Respect:” “St. Alphonsus says most bishops go to hell for sins of omission and human respect.” I have been and am reading Robert Bellarmine: Saint and Scholar by Fr. James Brodrick. On page 181 Saint Robert refers to a statement by Saint John Chrysostom in which he stated that only a few bishops would be saved because of the extreme difficulty of giving a good account of the souls committed to their care. Bill Foley Written by Bill Foley Cardinal O'Malley did us all a favor by writing so extensively about the Kennedy funeral. By doing so, he left no room for doubt: He is a starstruck, politically naive sycophant. He gushed over a dozen irrelevant matters, primarily the presence of famous and/or powerful people. He revealed himself as befuddled about "Catholic Social Teaching"--unreflectively, reflexively, identifying it with leftist, collectivist nostrums. — Fr. JosephWhile mouthing concern for "a grieving family" (whose grief could hardly be expected to be salved in the absence of opera singers, Presidents, and television cameras), he turns harsh words (and not for the first time) on pro-lifers. He is, in that respect, a very typical American bishop, a type I call "anti-pro-life." "Why can't those obnoxious people realize that we have a special day each year, January 22nd, set aside for being concerned about abortion." Donald Monan, SJ, was a suitable principal celebrant at the beatification of Edward Kennedy. Three-and-a-half weeks after the shooting death of Shannon Lowney, alumna of Boston College and abortion clinic worker, the college's then-President, Donald Monan, presided at a memorial Mass at which the tears and eulogies overflowed for this paragon of the ideals of B.C. and Surreal Catholicism--to use Fr. Rutler's mot juste. The Catholic Church in America is sick unto death. Read Cardinal Sean's blog to examine the disease at close range. http://tinyurl.com/teddys-funeral Fr Joseph, I am a fan of your bold, courageous commentary in these fora. As someone who lives in this archdiocese, I wonder whether Cardinal O'Malley would prefer that we pesky pro-lifers in the laity would just "shut up and color" as they say in the military (my emloyer). If we lay pro-lifers hadn't exposed the proposed Caritas Health System partnership with pro-abortion Centene Corp under the MassHealh system, would he have backed out of the deal? It seems like his devotion to the poor and the immigrant (while laudable in themselves) comes too often at the price of compromise with pro-abortion policies and politicians like the late Ted Kennedy. Written by Sam I cannot express how relieved I was to read Fr. Rutler's article. Being in Boston the weekend of the funeral, the media coverage was virtually 24/7. Being Catholic, I sincerely prayed for the Senator and for God's mercy upon him, and I hope he can pray for me when I die. But I had such an uneasy feeling all weekend. Kennedy was pro-abortion and he helped elect the most pro-abortion president in recent history. I would not deny anyone the grace of the Sacrifice of the Mass. God alone is our judge, but I would have felt better if the whole world were not watching this event. The Church is very clear in her teachings on life issues, but watching the funeral made me think that being pro-abortion isn't a grave sin - it's just a character flaw. Christ forgives, then says "go and sin no more". This is the message we need the world to hear. Thank you Fr. Rutler. Written by Karen I would love for all those who have commented nagatively here about the Funeral Mass of Ted Kennedy and all the others mentioned in Fr. Rutler's article to send me your Holy Cards! I mean the Holy Card showing that YOU are ALL SAINTS!! Especially the Holy Card of Fr. Rutler! It seems that he and the rest of you have the Gifts of the Holy Spirit of Knowledge of Souls in the Presence of God. And also the Gift of Discernment and Bilocation. How wonderful that you were all present at Ted's last Confession. My mother always warned me "To NEVER speak evil of the DEAD!" But I guess she was just speaking, passing on what she was taught in the Catholic Church! Written by Terry I have long been a fan of Father Rutler's intellect and wordplay, but having read this article in the light of Luke: 26-38, I find it hard to imagine Jesus nodding in agreement. There is a certain less-than-Christian je ne sais quoi lurking in the words, imho. Written by David |
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