Politics
Tuesday October 19, 2004
Vatican Has Not Denied Automatic Excommunication of John Kerry
Canon lawyer Mark Balestrieri responds to Vatican Statement Denying Contact
TODAY'S HEADLINES
E-MAIL
PRINT
VATICAN, October 19, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - News which broke yesterday about a Vatican consultant's response to a question about canon law application to Catholic politicians who support abortion, has created a media uproar and contradictory statements about the Vatican's involvement in the response.
Washington-based Rev. Basil Cole's response to California canon lawyer Mark Balestrieri indicated that Catholic politicians who advocate abortion are "automatically excommunicated". This pronouncement was understood by Balestrieri to indicate Vatican support for his lawsuit against Kerry. However, with the Presidential contest in question, Vatican authorities, with unusual haste for an institution that is typically very slow to respond to even the gravest matters, today fended off any suggestion of involvement in Balestrieri's lawsuit. Balestrieri has launched a church lawsuit against Kerry seeking to have him disciplined by Church authorities for his outspoken support for abortion
In comments to the Catholic News Service, Father Augustine di Noia, undersecretary of the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said Balestrieri's "claim that the private letter he received from (Dominican Father Basil Cole is a Vatican response is completely without merit." (http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0405749.htm )
Of note however, neither Fr. di Noia, nor Fr. Cole contested Balestrieri's main assertion that Kerry is "automatically excommunicated" due to his public and persistent support for abortion. In fact, in his original response, Fr. Cole notes that all Catholics who "publicly and obstinately support the civil right to abortion" while knowing the Church teaching against it, are "automatically excommunicated."
In a De Fide press release issued today, Balestrieri responds to the latest controversy over his statements. He indicates that he very carefully confirmed all facts before making his public pronouncement and that Fr. Cole clearly indicated to him that "he had been 'delegated' by the Very Rev. Augustine di Noia, O.P. to respond to my queries."
See the complete LifeSiteNews.com Special Report on this story at
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/oct/041019a.html
See Marc Balestrieri’s complete Oct. 19 De Fides press release
“Response to Vatican's Statement Denying Contact”
http://www.defide.com/news.html
Fr. Cole’s complete response to Marc Balestrieri’s query
http://www.defide.com/resp/response.pdf
De Fides website
http://www.defide.com/
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Sen. John Kerry "Excommunicated," According To Vatican Response
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/oct/04101801.html
In divided Vatican opinion, Kerry appears to lead Bush
http://ncronline.org/NCR_Online/archives2/2004d/101504/101504a.htm
jhw
Back to TopLatest Headlines
- "Manhattan Declaration" Embodies U.S. Christian Pushback against Abortion, Same-Sex "Marriage"
- Hoffman Loses Final Tally of NY-23 Race; Alleges ACORN Tampering and Fraud
- Abortion Activist Judge Hamilton Confirmed with Help of Ten Republican Senators
- CDC Reverses Gardasil Vaccine Requirement for Immigrants
- Germany Faces Economic Downturn with Plummeting Birth Rate and Aging Population
- CCHD in Archdiocese of Chicago Says it is Working to Fix Problems
- Rejection of Washington DC Marriage Referendum Challenged With Legal Suit
- Obama-Supporting Homosexual Activist to Out Sexually Involved Priests Unless they Support Gay 'Marriage
- Austrian Catholic Bishops Issue Bland Response to Govt's Homosexual Partnership Bill
- Interim Report on Catholic Sex-Abuse Says "Homosexual Identity" Not a Predictor of Sex Abuse
- Commentary on Nov 20 NewsBytes
- LSN NewsBytes - US Health Care Reform
- LSN NewsBytes - Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD)
- LSN NewsBytes - Life Issues, Religion, Swine Flu, US Politics, Sarah Palin, Miscellaneous
- LSN NewsBytes - Climate Change/Global Warming
- 59 Bishops Contributed Financially to Maine Bishop's Effort to Oppose Maine Same-Sex "Marriage" Law
- Pro-Abortion Lawmakers Shower Praise on Senate Bill's Phony Abortion Compromise
Most Read this Week
- Largest U.S. Homosexual Publisher Shuts Down, Closing Major Gay Newspapers
- EWTN's Arroyo Hosts Reform CCHD Reps Who Reveal Shocking Evidence Against USCCB Anti-Poverty Arm
- "Manhattan Declaration" Embodies U.S. Christian Pushback against Abortion, Same-Sex "Marriage"
- Italian Mayors Order Crufixes Put in Classrooms in Revolt against European Court Ruling
- Nat'l Organization for Marriage Responds to Miss California "Sex Tape" Scandal
- Obama Evades Questioning on Stupak Amendment in FOX Interview
- French Judge Finds Hospital Guilty of "Unreasonable Obstinacy" in Saving Newborn's Life
- EU Leaders to Choose President today in Secret "Soviet Style" Meetings
- Hoffman "Unconcedes" Battle for NY-23: Recount Provides Hope for "Miracle" Victory
- Hoffman Loses Final Tally of NY-23 Race; Alleges ACORN Tampering and Fraud
MORE NEWS: 
LifeSiteNews.com Home Page Last 10 Days Archives Special Reports
Copyright © LifeSiteNews.com. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivatives License. You may republish this article or portions of it without request provided the content is not altered and it is clearly attributed to "LifeSiteNews.com". Any website publishing of complete or large portions of original LifeSiteNews articles MUST additionally include a live link to www.LifeSiteNews.com. The link is not required for excerpts. Republishing of articles on LifeSiteNews.com from other sources as noted is subject to the conditions of those sources.