The Seattle Times: Priest, Bishop Split on Obama |
Site last published: 01/06/10
The Seattle Times: Priest, Bishop Split on Obama
November 30,2008
The Rev. Joseph Illo, pastor of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Modesto, Calif., has told parishioners in a homily and follow-up letter that if they voted for Barack Obama, they should consider going to confession because of the president-elect's abortion-rights position.
"If you are one of the 54 percent of Catholics who voted for a pro-abortion candidate, you were clear on his position and you knew the gravity of the question, I urge you to go to confession before receiving Communion. Don't risk losing your state of grace by receiving sacrilegiously," Illo wrote in a letter dated Nov. 21.
The letter was sent to more than 15,000 members of the parish. It is one of 34 parishes in the Stockton Diocese, which has more than 200,000 members in Stanislaus, San Joaquin and four other counties in California.
The Most Rev. Stephen Blaire, bishop of the Stockton Diocese, disagreed with Illo. He said Catholics should not feel compelled to disclose how they voted to their priest.
Blaire said Catholics who carefully weighed many issues and settled on a candidate, such as Obama, who also was pro-abortion rights, were not in need of confession.
He said confession would be necessary "only if someone voted for a pro-abortion or pro-choice candidate if that's the reason you voted for them."
"Our position on pro-life is very important, but there are other issues," Blaire said. "No one candidate reflects everything that we stand for."
"If you are one of the 54 percent of Catholics who voted for a pro-abortion candidate, you were clear on his position and you knew the gravity of the question, I urge you to go to confession before receiving Communion. Don't risk losing your state of grace by receiving sacrilegiously," Illo wrote in a letter dated Nov. 21.
The letter was sent to more than 15,000 members of the parish. It is one of 34 parishes in the Stockton Diocese, which has more than 200,000 members in Stanislaus, San Joaquin and four other counties in California.
The Most Rev. Stephen Blaire, bishop of the Stockton Diocese, disagreed with Illo. He said Catholics should not feel compelled to disclose how they voted to their priest.
Blaire said Catholics who carefully weighed many issues and settled on a candidate, such as Obama, who also was pro-abortion rights, were not in need of confession.
He said confession would be necessary "only if someone voted for a pro-abortion or pro-choice candidate if that's the reason you voted for them."
"Our position on pro-life is very important, but there are other issues," Blaire said. "No one candidate reflects everything that we stand for."