Washington D.C., May 14, 2021 / 14:00 pm America/Denver (CNA).
The Bishop of Phoenix said on Thursday that he is protecting the Eucharist, not “politicizing” it, by teaching that Catholic politicians cannot support abortion and receive Communion.
In an interview by EWTN Pro-Life Weekly that aired on Thursday, Bishop Thomas Olmsted of Phoenix was asked to respond to claims that speaking out about pro-abortion Catholic politicians was “politicizing” the Eucharist.
“That’s not my intention at all. The Eucharist is the great treasure of the Church. And if it’s not being respected – if people don’t appreciate what this great treasure is – we need to help them understand that,” Bishop Olmsted told EWTN Pro-Life Weekly.
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The second Catholic US president has attended church services at least 16 times since taking office.
His support for abortion rights is renewing debate on whether he should receive Communion.
A bishop organization is weighing drafting a document on Eucharistic consistency and public life.
President Joe Biden usually slips into the back pews of the mid-19th-century Catholic church during the priest s entrance procession. He genuflects, hugs his grandchildren when they re there, receives Communion, and typically leaves before other parishioners.
David Crary
In this Sunday, April 12 2020 photo, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone celebrates Easter Mass, which was live streamed, at St. Mary s Cathedral in San Francisco. Cordileone hopes his fellow bishops, at their upcoming national meeting in June, will agree to send a strong message of disapproval to Catholic politicians who advocate for abortion rights. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) May 09, 2021 - 5:53 PM
They share Roman Catholicism as a faith and California as their home base. Yet thereâs a deep gulf between Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco and Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego in the high-stakes debate over whether politicians who support abortion rights should be denied Communion.
2 Catholic bishops in California at odds over Biden receiving Communion
San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone celebrates Easter Mass in 2020.
(Associated Press )
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They share Roman Catholicism as a faith and California as their home base. Yet there’s a deep gulf between Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco and Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego in the high-stakes debate over whether politicians who support abortion rights should be denied Communion.
Cordileone, who has long established himself as a forceful antiabortion campaigner, recently has made clear his view that such political figures whose ranks include President Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi should not receive Communion because of their stance on the issue. The archbishop issued a pastoral letter on the topic May 1 and reinforced the message in an hourlong interview Friday with the Catholic television network EWTN.
‘Moral principles’ or weaponizing the Eucharist? Two Catholic bishops disagree over Biden receiving Communion
Updated May 09, 2021;
Posted May 09, 2021
In this Sunday, April 12 2020 photo, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone celebrates Easter Mass, which was live streamed, at St. Mary s Cathedral in San Francisco. Cordileone hopes his fellow bishops, at their upcoming national meeting in June, will agree to send a strong message of disapproval to Catholic politicians who advocate for abortion rights. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)AP
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They share Roman Catholicism as a faith and California as their home base. Yet there’s a deep gulf between Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco and Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego in the high-stakes debate over whether politicians who support abortion rights should be denied Communion.