Oh, yeah, a couple more perennial teachings of the Catholic Church: THE TRUE PRESENCE OF JESUS CHRIST IN THE EUCHARIST!!!!!! THE AUTHORITY OF PRIESTS TO FORGIVE…OR RETAIN SINS!!!!! THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK!!!!! THE SACRAMENTAL NATURE OF MARRIAGE!!!!! NO WOMEN PRIESTS!!!!!! Why is it that I have a sneaking suspicion that you don’t believe in many of these doctrines???? Once again, Archbishop Burke has done his job faithfully as God expects him to do. Hey, folks, there are plenty of liberal churches you can join if you don’t want to obey the teachings of the Catholic Church–by the way, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church…the ONLY Church instituted by Christ…the Church against which the gates of Hell will never prevail! Archbishop Burke is a true and loyal son of the Church!!

I did a happy-jig when I heard Burke was leaving this morning. I actually refused to take communion at a funeral service he recently presided over, because it was so crowded I couldn’t get into another line to receive it from another priest. So, I kept my seat instead.

I believe in the sacrements and in Christ’s teachings. I see A LOT of carp spewed from the pulpit, and this man in particular, that has next-to-nothing to do with Christ’s message, and even more from the so-called Christians that are now bemoaning the end of his administration. These are the very people that, had they lived in the times of Christ, would have been throwing stones (as they do virtually now) and turning their backs on the lepers. Hopefully, our next archbishop will actually act in manner befitting the term Servant of Christ. This man set a horribly poor example, for Catholics and non-Catholics alike, with his money-grabbing and divisivness, guised under the term Canon Law.

My first thought was, like the ancient Romans used to say, Promote Him and Thus Remove Him (sic). Ta-Ta, Burke.

Congratulations to the Archbishop for the incredible opportunity he has been offered in Rome. He truly deserves the opportunity. The mess that was left in his lap by previous bishops had to be solved and he responded with the truth. Sometimes it is difficult to tell people what they need to hear as they would much rather get what they want. God Bless and good luck to the Archbishop Burke in Rome.

Oh and Lindy, whether or not women should be ordained, that has nothing to do with anything Christ said. That came more than 100 years later. Mary Magdelene and Mary, Mother of God, were two who served in very much the same way as the original Apostles did in spreading the teachings of Christ. In fact, Mary Magdelene was responsible in large measure for it reaching the areas we now think of as Europe and she did so in a wholly pastoral fashion. If you are going to defend the Church, you really should study its history and know something about what you speak. It was a very, very different Church when it wasn’t so far removed from the teachings of Christ. There was no differentiation between men and women in the early Church. It was hundreds of years later, for example, that the man-made institution vilified Mary Magedelene as a prostitute reformed and then turned around AGAIN later on and rescinded that “doctrine.” Study the Church’s history, its teachings throughout the ages. It hasn’t stagnated and remained unchanged by any stretch of the imagination. Faith is faith, but ignorance is a result of the sin of laziness (sloth).

Maybe it’s just me, but has anyone else noticed that the more rabid of the Burke supporters ALL WRITE LIKE THIS!!!! As if they can shout down any disagreement by using all caps and excessive exclamation points? In fact, I’ve noticed that in other threads–how many people WRITE IN CAPS LIKE THIS!!! And barely put together coherent sentences.

Argue your point, agree or disagree strongly, but please, don’t write like you’re on drugs. Take a deep breath, think about the point you really want to make, and then make it thoughtfully and intelligently. You’ll do yourself, and your viewpoint, a favor.

Sorry for Rome, but hooray for St. Louis. Now AB Burke can throw his considerable weight around and be his own punitive self. We need a Shephard not a Despot. He did more to drive Catholics away…..that fiasco with St. Stan’s and refusing Communion to John Kerry, thus telling all the Catholics in STL to “drink the Kool-Aid” and vote for that murderer, Bush! Shame on him. Oh well, what do you expect from a man who has SMS (Short Man’s Syndrome). Good riddance.

Suzanne, wow, what a story. It seems indicative of this man’s talent for meting out overly harsh, even merciless punishments and public chastisement.

How sad that some should see him as the face of Christ. …Christ, who while on the cross, quietly begged God the father to forgive the very men who had bound, tortured and executed him while they cast lots for his few belongings. Christ, who welcomed children to him; who said we should be like them as we enter into his kingdom – not “having all the answers,” but instead, an open heart. Christ, who instead of shunning people like tax collectors (people who were disliked by all and were unwelcome to church elders, the Pharisees), broke bread with them, even while the Pharisees wrinkled up their noses in disapproval. Jesus didn’t keep those regarded as sinful from his table or presence; he ate WITH them in a spirit of fellowship and redemption.

If Jesus came to punish, berate and disenfranchise people from their faiths for not following a rigid set of rules, then, indeed, perhaps Burke is the face of Christ. I, like many others, pray for the kind of archbishop who (instead of being like the Pharisees and traditionally censuring those of whom they would disapprove), dares to truly follow Jesus and welcomes all – even those whom the church authorities would revile – to share in Jesus’ presence, grace, and love.

Archbishop Burke has damaged the Church
by being unnecessarily confrontational in his manner
and has politicized his office by in effect supporting Republicans.
I hope his successor is different but am not holding my breath.

Cathy H.: Do you know what the Eucharist is? Do you believe that it is the true Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ? Did St. Paul say: “Anyone who eats and drinks of the Sacrament, not examining his conscience, not discerning the Body of Christ, eats and drinks CONDEMNATION unto himself”?(sorry, Shelly, I need caps for the emphasis). If you do not believe in Purgatory and you receive Holy Communion, you have committed the mortal sin of sacrilege, because you have denied a teaching of the Catholic Church,of which you profess to be a faithful member. If you not only believe in abortion, but have a 100% VOTING RECORD (sorry, Shelly, I need the emphasis again)advocating the brutal, gruesome murder of innocent, unarmed babies whose only crime is existing–then you ARE NOT PERMITTED (sorry, Shelly, I need the emphasis)to receive Jesus Christ in Holy Communion!! What do you think “Amen” means when the priest says, “The Body of Christ”? It means, “I believe and affirm all that Holy Church proposes, because God has revealed it, Who can neither deceive nor be deceived.” St. Thomas Aquinas says that if a Catholic rejects ONE teaching of the Church, he rejects them all.

Sorry, Cathy M–on my screen, your name looks like Cathy H.