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news.com.
Kerry seeks blessing
abortion stand
WASHINGTON Readers
of the Catholic Standard, offi¬
cial publication of the
Archdiocese of Washington,
D.C., raised their eyebrows two
weeks ago. They learned of a
45-minute 15 of
Sen. John Kerry with the Archbishop of
Washington, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.
Why did Sen. Kerry seek a meeting with a
prelate who was not his bishop and whom he
never had met?
The answer was grounded in high-level
political intrigue. McCarrick heads the task
force on Catholic participation in public life
established by the U.S. bishops. Its most publi¬
cized task is to inquire whether politicians who
defy Catholic teaching should receive the
sacraments. About to become
the first Catholic since John
F. Kennedy to be nominated
for president, Kerry was lob¬
bying McCarrick against
being denied Holy
Communion as an unwaver¬
ing pro-choice abortion
advocate.
Whether his lobbying
not
been more pleased by his interview published
in last Thursday’s Catholic Standard. While
asserting abortion "may be primary," he added
that "people who are with us on one issue" may
be "against us on many other issues."
McCarrick concluded: "All these things will
have to be weighed very carefully."
Intentionally or not, he was following the lead
of liberal, pro-choice Democrats and providing
cover for Kerry with traditional Catholics.
Cardinal McCarrick is so respected and
well-liked that not only priests but also promi¬
nent laymen do not want to criticize him.
Without mentioning McCarrick by name, pub¬
lisher Deal Hudson of the conservative
Catholic magazine Crisis told me: "Anytime
our leaders allow the life issue to be made one
of many issues provides cover for Kerry's effort
to attract Catholic votes."
McCarrick's interview is far more important
than Cardinal Francis Arinze's recent Vatican
declaration that priests must deny Communion
to pro-choice politicians. The decision is not in
the hands of Rome but of local bishops. I asked
one highly placed source to measure Arinze's
impact on leaders of 195 American dioceses.
"Little or none," he said. "The weak will ignore
it. The brave and courageous will be encour
aged, but they already know they are right."
Even before last week's interview,
Robert li
Novak
COLUMNIST
one. That fits the claim made by Catholic
Democrats in recent days that Cardinal Arinze's
position raises questions about sanctions for
advocating capital punishment or even war in
Iraq.
Actually, the Catholic Catechism asserts
that "the Church has acknowledged as well
founded the right and duty of legitimate public
authority to punish malefactors by means of
penalties commensurate with the gravity of the
crime, not excluding, in cases of extreme gravi¬
Kerry Why did seek Sen.
a
meeting with a
prelate... had met? he
never
lators who have promoted and approved abor¬
tion laws." This encyclical, uncompromising
on abortion, defends the death penalty "in
cases of absolute necessity." Indeed, abortion
is not only a "primary" issue as described by
McCarrick, but there is no other issue
described in Catholic doctrine as threatening a
loss of sacraments.
The problem may be the Cardinal's state¬
ment April 11 on Fox News Sunday a few days
before Kerry came to visit him: "I'm happy that
1 have friends on both sides of the aisle." He
obviously meant not an abortion aisle but the
political aisle, a concept that imposes on a
prince of the Church the burden of exercising
even-handed judiciousness between Republican
and Democrats.
The pro-choice politicians seem to be win¬
ning the first round, but one priest familiar
with how the Church operates told me that
more and more American bishops, influenced
by John Paul II, will deny communions and
"finally 'out' liberal Catholics for what they
are at heart, Protestants." This priest sees the
day when "pro-abortion politicians will stop
calling themselves Catholic or repent of their
sms. That surely will not happen before the
2004 election.
Robert Novak is a nationally syndicated
columnist and a television commentator.
Be thankful for what we have here
Enjoy life as it comes! As
obvious as this statement
appears to be, it's probably
one of the hardest lessons in
life to learn. The key is that
everything is relative.
I recently bought a new
car. For me, it's like new
shoes. The problem is not
with the purchase. It's in giv
ing up the old, worn-but-com
fortable footwear. My wife,
Beverly, decided that my 10
year old car — a dependable
old friend — had a few too
many "ailments" and it was
time for a trade-in.
I resisted valiantly, but
then decided that her observa
tions could apply to more
than the just the vehicle
better the car than me.
Now we have a situation
that is not uncommon in mod
ern-day marriages. One of us
is an adventurous navigator,
in the spirit of Leif Ericsson
and Amerigo Vespucci. The
other thinks traveling by car
is synonymous with asking
for directions and that maps
are vile, unintelligible ere
ations designed solely to pro
voke marital discord. The
issue becomes acute when I'm
driving a complex route and
can't do both tasks simultane
ously. Despite the fact that I
love my wife dearly, I can't
begin to recall the number of
less-than-dear comments that
have been exchanged over the
years in such situations (I'm
sure she can — every word),
Her ultimate solution — a car
with a built-in navigation sys
tern.
Consequently, we now
have a car that represents the
latest in technological innova
tion that the frivolous mind of
man can produce. Almost
everything is voice activated.
In theory, I can tell it where I
want to go, and, in addition to
providing a map and direc
tions, a charming voice will
guide me every turn of the
way. I can ask for the nearest
Chinese restaurant, and it will
not only find it for me, it will
give me the telephone number
McCarrick had opposed with¬
holding Communion as a "sanc¬
tion against offending
Catholics. He fortified that
position last week by asserting
that abortion is only one issue
even if it's the most
ty. the death penalty." As far as
war in Iraq is concerned, it appar¬
ently meets the Catechism's defi¬
nition of "just war."
In contrast, Vatican Council II
declared abortion to be an
"unspeakable crime." Pope John
Paul IPs Evangelium Vitae
(Gospel of Life) encyclical in
1995 asserted that responsibility
Mel r, I
Co pen
. QjestGqluiMrtst V
so that I can then direct it to
make a call. The only thing it
won't do is select the items
from the take-out menu,
Wherever I am I can say "go
home" and it will show me
the way. In a few years it
probably won't even be neces
sary to drive — the vehicle
will just take you there. With
the right command, the sys
tern will tune my radio, con
trol the temperature and do a
dozen other things that I
haven't yet discovered.
You notice that 1 said "in
theory." There seems to be a
gap between theory and prac
tice. For one thing, the car
hasn't trained me yet. It has
its own vocabulary that I have
yet to learn. I tell it to find
Northpoint Mall and it
changes the radio station. I
miss a turn and it says "hey
stupid, can't you follow sim
pie directions." (Not really, it
just tells me, in an exasperat
ed voice, to make the next U
turn). I ask it to cool the car
and the windshield wipers
start flapping. As I've been
barking commands, passing
through neighborhoods, I hate
to think how many garage
doors are opening and clos
ing.
But a major objective has
been achieved — at least for
Beverly. We no longer argue
about directions. I'm too
busy arguing with the car.
And the car always wins,
One of these days I'll get
around to reading the manual,
A few weeks ago we had
the opportunity to visit
Callaway Gardens. The azal
eas were just past their
prime, but still breathtaking,
We wandered through the
gardens looking at the mar
velous miracle that spring
brings every year, as new life
flows through plants, flowers
Choose The Better Deal I
ikk
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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS - Wedne*day, May 5,2004
bloom and nature displays
her magnificence. Callaway
is a wonderful place — truly
a monument to beauty and
serenity. As one walks the
shaded paths, it's interesting
to reflect on the side of
humanity that leads people to
endow such places for others
to enjoy and which attract
people from all over to
appreciate what has been
created.
You may be wondering
what connection there is
between automotive technol¬
ogy and Callaway Gardens.
There isn't any — except that
in both situations I was think¬
ing about things happening in
other parts of the world. The
challenges in dealing with
terrorism and societal change
in Iraq or Afghanistan or
poverty and AIDS in Africa,
stood in stark contrast to
things that occupied my
attention at those moments
— voice activated, satellite
linked automotive systems
and the beauty of nature. It is
easy to forget how fortunate
we are that we can focus on
issues far removed from
"basic survival." So many
others in this world do not
have that luxury.
Everything is relative.
Last week I had the privilege
to serve on a panel that was
selecting regional finalists for
the White House Fellows
programs. The candidates
were young people with
incredible records of achieve¬
ment in their chosen profes¬
sions and extending beyond,
into areas of public service.
This particular group was
unusual in the number of
candidates who had been
born abroad and who came to
the U.S. at an age when they
were old enough to remem¬
ber what life was like before.
With this background, they
were also able to relate more
effectively to their parents'
views and thoughts about the
United States. Their appreci¬
ation for what they now have
was deeply moving. I
PAGE 11A
thought how wonderful it
would be if every American
who was born in this country
could obtain the same per¬
spective. We take too many
things for granted.
Some time ago, a dear
friend learned that he has a
serious medical problem. A
man of incredible energy and
accomplishment, the illness
and its impact have been
extremely demoralizing to
say the least. Over many
months now, he's had surger¬
ies and frequent tests and
consultations with physi¬
cians. Recently he called and
for the first time in a long
while, his voice sounded
bright and optimistic, like it
had been before. His news:
with treatment and appropri¬
ate attention to his living pat¬
terns, his doctors indicated
that he could look forward to
five years. In other circum¬
stances, this might have been
devastating news. For him
(and us) it was wonderful.
Previous estimates had been
in terms of months. Again,
everything is relative.
Clearly there is a message
here. Life is too short. To
enjoy it to its fullest, one
needs to look at the positive
side. But it is important to
keep things in perspective
and realize how much we
have. The fact that I can be
frustrated with my voice
operated car systems is a
blessing. I know that!
Billions of people in the
world would give almost any¬
thing if issues such as these
could be high on their priori¬
ty list.
Dr. Melvyn Copen of
Cumming is an educator and
businessman who has worked
and lived in many foreign
countries and provides con¬
sulting services for business
es and organizations
throughout the world. His
column appears every other
Wednesday. Please share
your comments with him via
email at melcopen@hot
mail. com..