Former papal theologian praises Obama's 'realism,' even on abortion

It's pretty clear that old celibate white men in the Vatican are not in touch with the questions on the ground in America. Obama is pro-abortion all the time and his speeches are just political cover to hide his real beliefs. This is clearly a case where the new generation has to come in and see things straight.

The President's actions often stray from his words, so what he says should be taken with a grain of salt.

He says he seeks common ground, yet is working aggressively to expand abortion access worldwide.

For example, as we speak, his administration is pushing for universal access to abortion worldwide at the UN.

I say, judge the man by his actions not, by his words.

Postscipt: President Obama's anti-life record as President can be found here:
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/may/09050808.html

His record is reality, not his words.

When will they wake up to the truth that Obama says whatever he thinks will get votes and NEVER what he really is doing or going to do!!!

Wow! This great column sheds light on a subject that usually only produces heat. Cardinal George Cottier's wise words should be read by every American Catholic. They are a much needed antidote to the simple minded rhetoric we usually hear on this topic.

Steve

When "Act For Change" says these things the church thinks excommunication. When Obama says them it's wisely considering the needs of the ordinary Christian. I said Christian, not Catholic. This is why Catholics are so confused, they try hard to be Catholics amid the changing tunes of their leaders; stopping just short of marching off the cliff.

Who is our Pope, Benedict or Obama? Take heart, fellow Catholics, you know the rules, and some of them should be dumped, but don't give up on all of them.

Obama is not a great President. His words and actions do not match up (broken promises, saying he isn't for abortion but supports abortion overseas, etc.), he will stretch the truth in order to appear tolerant (at Cario, he gave a very exaggerated list of Islam's accomplishments and the world's debt to Muslims), he dose not ask the media to tone down their seeming obsession over him (the newest Obama hyper is the comic Barak the Barbarian), and he follows Bush's plan while on the compain trail he said he wouldn't be like Bush and, at one press conference, he had referred back to what he said about Iran during the compaign as a way to seem constant and credible. All of this adds up, it seems to me, to a man who is either one of three things: a man who lies and deceives to get his way, a man who is not experienced enough to be President, or a man who believes he can do whatever he wants as the President.

How incredibly wise Cardial Cottier is! Can we arrange to have this essay read at every Mass in our country??

It seems that both the Vatican and Cardinal Cottier are doing the 'climb down'from 'the war' with Obama that the hardline 70 US bishops can't or won't do.
So sad that some US bishops egos and their too highly esteemed role as teachers has left them high and dry after the Notre Dame fiasco.
The continuing Catholic conservative vitrol and attack on Obama gives us a new perspective on what is a 'sore loser'.

This is a very encouraging article. I am excited that we can enter into a dialogue with each other to bring abortions to as small a number as possible.

fyi

With all due respect to the Good Cardinal, he is either incredibly gullible, or has been another victim who has been brainwashed by Obama's numerous lies. There is absolutely no "common ground" that Obama is trying to create, all he does is state that goal in each of his speeches, then goes ahead and institutes policies which undoubtedly lead to an increase in abortions. We need more than platitudes from this President, everything that Obama has stated, which the Cardinal referenced, is simply the President giving lip-service in an attempt to diffuse an argument by the respect-life community. Again, with all due respect, I think the Cardinal has just been reading Obama's speeches and not actually reviewing his actions. Gullible optimism does not remedy an evil such as abortion, it simply helps to perpetuate it. We have a responsibility to work together with the President on mutual goals, unfortunately abortion will not be something this administration would be willing to work with the Church on. In short, this whole "common ground" argument is a complete farce, Obama has no actual intent in reaching common guard on this issue, after all, to many of his friends make a fortune off the slaughter of the innocence.

God bless Cardinal Cottier!

Thanks, John. Oh what howls this will provoke on the Catholic right.

What a relief to hear such prudent words of wisdom from somebody whose views may carry some weight with bishops and other Catholics with a single-issue mindset.

Again we have a compromise. Less abortions = morality. No, one abortion = immorality and murder. First, do no harm. Then feed the hungry, heal the sick, visit the imprisoned, etc. Though I do not believe killing abortionists is the way to go, you cannot equate that with abortion. Abortion, with all due respect to Cardinal Cottier, is killing of an innocent human being. Whether one or millions, the sin to almighty God is the same Cardinal. When will you ever learn?

Thank you, Cardinal Cottier. It is refreshing to hear a person rooted in the finest traditions of the Church stand up and speak, with quiet dignity, about the need for the Church to be in dialogue with this world, as it is, with all its warts and bumps and inconsistencies. I believe that the comments on 'civility' that have been seen in the press these past months are really about this very thing. The Church cuts of relations with those whom it may not agree at its peril. President Obama is another man of moral principle who is struggling with the same issues in an honest, thoughtful manner. We, as a Church, should be more than willing to clasp his hand and walk this very difficult path together. Our opinions may not always be the same - but we shame our tradition if we fail to be open to all of the currents that are forming moral life in our world today.

John: Excellent summary. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. As an American who lived 37 of his 40 year working career overseas in Belgium and Hong Kong how I miss what I would call the "sophisticated realism" of intelligent commentary on critical issues of politics, morality etc readily available in "Old Europe". When I remember the absurd and ignorant response of those Bishops to Obama's Notre Dame invitation I feel sick and, more to the point, I simply block out the noise from the so-called leadership of the American Church. Instead I read The Tablet and whatever French commentary I can access on the Web. Thank God for the NCR, America, Commonweal and the fact they have not managed to silence commentators like Reese and McBrien.

What balderdash. Obama is a tyrant or the first order. He and his handlers are crafty indeed to try to mitigate opposition to schemes of government control over everything and everybody by squelching the oldest and most powerful force in the world, the Catholic Church through reaping the dissent that exists within her. Any ordinary fool can see that the dissent is deep and and in high places. I believe Pope Benedict XVI has the integrity to defend against any enemy of the Bride of Christ and will see through this fiend who will stop at nothing to institutionalize an ideology that will make naziism and communism look benevolent.

It is encouraging that we have a bishop (in this case, also a cardinal and theologian), willing to step up to the plate with a rational, Christian response to complex social issues. His praise for our president’s approach is primarily directed toward the manifest Christian virtue of charity when engaging those of differing beliefs, and the associated characteristics of reasonableness and respect.

Cardinal Cottier was one of the members of the Roman Curia who also took a clear pastoral approach in the matter of condom use within marriage when one spouse was infected with HIV. His essays, along with those of Cardinal Berragan, are well worth taking the time to read. Both men have presented the almost “lost” teaching in Tradition and Scripture, related to the obligation to do no murder by protecting one’s own life (the moral obligation of self-defense). This argument also applies to abortion.

Too often discussion of life issues get bogged down in emotional circular reasoning where the end conclusion defeats the purpose and spirit of the doctrinal rule. Cottier points out that in an imperfect world it is not always possible to perfectly apply doctrine. A slow progression in the right direction is preferable to a ham-handed all-or-nothing approach of forced compliance. That is entirely consistent with our Lord’s approach to humanity and the ongoing Tradition of the Church. Thus, Cottier has no major quarrel with President Obama’s desire for common ground.

There are many bishops and theologians who concur with the thinking of Cottier and Berragan regarding what the Church has always taught in these matters, but it would appear they have been somewhat intimidated by strident voices of criticism, and so remain quiet. I hope they will eventually make their voices heard.

I hope 80 American bishops read this and pray.

It is realism, not relativism, when we strive for the perfect as we suffer the imperfect.

Sadly, I believe these well intended comments from Vatican 'insiders' suffer from one common flaw. The Vatican 'insiders' are always reacting simply to President Obama's speeches and public statement, and generally only to a handful of those.

The problem with Obama and his "common ground" approach isn't the speeches he makes. The problem is the approach is to ONLY make speeches. There is no real sincerity in it. Obama has never made a major compromise with his political adversaries - ever. Obama has been the most extreme supporter of abortion rights. Obama has taken every opportunity to reverse any limitations on abortion since taking office. Obama promised to enact FOCA.

Obama makes great speeches and if one bases their evaluation of President Obama only on his speeches I can see why he can be viewed positively. However, when one examines his record, and other statements and when considers his remarkable skills as a politician it is very very reasonable to be extremely skeptical.

President Obama is big on talk about common ground, but I'll be very surprised if he makes any real effort to find it with traditional Christianity, Catholics (other that progressive dissenters) or the pro-life movement.

In my analysis - President Obama's speeches are just soothing talk. Very good and very soothing talk.

Sorry not to have the entire text, but...As reported, the Cardinal's remarks simply don't square with Evangelium Vitae. On Aquinas: St. Thomas never suggests, much less teaches, that laws against the killing of the innocent somehow demand too much. (This is a ploy that I haven't heard since Fr. McBrien attempted to "distract" us with it here at LMU.) Cottier overlooks, too, the Obama administration's UN policy re: abortion. Why not, for a start, take a serious look at Austin Ruse's reports on this matter?

It's also sad to see an appeal to "realism" from someone who at least once had far better conceptual tools to employ.

Many good points, but I was sorry to read that many of the sentences were garbled or incomplete, perhaps some glitch in the electronic transmissions. Please review the text and if possible reprint it in correct sentence format in a later issue?

Thank you,John Allen,for your keen analytical presentations that free us Catholics from "holding the line" on issues where we need to take into consideration the human condition. I read every article you write, as well as your Book on Pope Benedict - I needed to hear a more positive viewpoint from that given in our free press on Cardinal Ratzinger. Keep up your GREAT Work!

Looking at his skewed reasoning, one can only surmise that there have been many like him who have contributed to the blossoming of modernism within the Church. He talks about governing in pluralism and the president making no formal declarations supporting abortion; however, I would have to say that examining one's actions can show much more than what their words say.

The fact that abstinence only programs are losing their funding, money is being given to Planned Parenthood in greater quantities and the countless other actions that are contrary to the culture of life are being promoted. It would seems that this cardinal cannot distinguish between political rhetoric and the relativistic attitude and the true Catholic position.

This Cardinal needs to get his head out of the clouds and get a dose of reality. -One can never compromise on the death of an innocent.-

Thank God for NCRonline courageously and correctly publishing this excellent article from a greatly respected and Reverend Roman Catholic theologian.

DEO GRATIAS
frere charles du desert OSB Oblat (Subiaco Congregation)

I thank God for hierarchy like Cardinal George Cottier. It gives me faith that a rational person may still find a home in the Catholic Church.

Ken

Maravilloso! Wonderful! I praise what the Swiss Cardinal George Cottier wrote about Obama's approach for abortion. Of course it has to be a European person who said such a great intelligent way. Obama seems to be more European in his thinking than many American bishops . It has always been the complex of American Church leaders. I mean how to either be smart and intelligent as many European thinkers, or how to be a Red Neck thinker. Usually the last one is the common denominator in Church cirles. Thanks God for Obama and Cardinal Cottier. Viva la Inteligencia!

While I suspect that many Catholics in the US will react rather harshly to the Cardinal's remarks I believe two things are being said here. First of all the Cardinal is stating what is actually in the speeches as perceived by a less emotional personage because of his being a non citizen of the US. IN other words he sees it from Rome and not Grand Rapids. He also brings a sense of dealing with the cards Mr. Obama has dealt and they are not all bad. Indeed not as bad as were anticipated. Second this article gives a clear cue to the President on how some in Rome perceive the situation and give him clues as to how to proceed. If Mr. Obama reads this article and applies it he is likely to have a broader support from the Church than he has had up until now. It is to be remebered that the Bishops who were against the awarding of an honorary degree did not so much object to his actual speech but rather to his invitation based on his history, and indeed granting him a degree for that work which was clearly not in keeping with Catholic teaching on any number of issues.

That being said, we should not get too giddy in praising the man until he does something more pro life than appointing pro abortion official to his administration. His appointment to the Supreme Court is not to be confused with pro abortion. She has not decided a case in favor of the pro abortion agenda in her career.

The cards are dealt; we cannot fold. Play on and let us see what GOD intends to do through or with this matter. Prayer would be a good idea.

While I suspect that many Catholics in the US will react rather harshly to the Cardinal's remarks I believe two things are being said here. First of all the Cardinal is stating what is actually in the speeches as perceived by a less emotional personage because of his being a non citizen of the US. IN other words he sees it from Rome and not Grand Rapids. He also brings a sense of dealing with the cards Mr. Obama has dealt and they are not all bad. Indeed not as bad as were anticipated. Second this article gives a clear cue to the President on how some in Rome perceive the situation and give him clues as to how to proceed. If Mr. Obama reads this article and applies it he is likely to have a broader support from the Church than he has had up until now. It is to be remebered that the Bishops who were against the awarding of an honorary degree did not so much object to his actual speech but rather to his invitation based on his history, and indeed granting him a degree for that work which was clearly not in keeping with Catholic teaching on any number of issues.

That being said, we should not get too giddy in praising the man until he does something more pro life than appointing pro abortion official to his administration. His appointment to the Supreme Court is not to be confused with pro abortion. She has not decided a case in favor of the pro abortion agenda in her career.

The cards are dealt; we cannot fold. Play on and let us see what GOD intends to do through or with this matter. Prayer would be a good idea.

Heresay to be sure, loftiness of ideals to be seen. The good author's proposed juxtiposition between esteemed catholic prelates, whose lives actually mirrored their beliefs of word and action, is premature. Speech writing is an art in American politics. Speeches often grab the moment and are rewarded in actionable legislation or consensus for movement. President Obama's speeches are not his words. Strike one. His actions do not demonstrate an understanding of the issue at hand. His actions demonstrate a weakness to be pressured into decision making and being persuaded by the merest of argument to assuage the many in his corner. Strike two. If one looks hard enough at a wall, one will eventually see behind them. One can not look at these speeches and look forward. Look behind Obama and see what is.

Heresay to be sure, loftiness of ideals to be seen. The good author proposed a juxtiposition between esteemed catholic prelates, whose lives actually mirrored their beliefs of word and action, is premature. Speech writing is an art in American politics. Speeches often grab the moment and are rewarded in actionable legislation or consensus for movement. President Obama's speeches are not his words. Strike one. His actions do not demonstrate an understanding of the issue at hand. His actions demonstrate a weakness to be pressured into decision making and being persuaded by the merest of argument to assuage the many in his corner. Strike two. If one looks hard enough at a wall, one will eventually see behind them. One can not look at these speeches and look forward. Look behind Obama and see what is.

I notice nobody is hurrying to write a scathing coment about this. Where are all the critics today. I thought this was a wonderful realistic article about the abortion problem.

Sometimes I think I'm living on another planet when I hear that a Catholic cardinal thinks this way. Cottier praises Obama for his talk about finding common ground. Perhaps he didn't read what the President said about the abortion debate in the same speech:

"No matter how much we may want to fudge it - indeed, while we know that the views of most Americans on the subject are complex and even contradictory - the fact is that at some level, the views of the two camps are irreconcilable."

Obama is not about finding common ground. That's baloney. He voted three times against the Born Alive Infant Protection Act while he was a state senator, for the reason that it might lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. He has never deviated from the position that abortion is a woman's right. While he may actually find it regrettable and tragic, he still has yet to speak up for the right to life of the defenseless infant in the womb, something that even some of our supposedly Catholic theologians can't seem to come to terms with.

A baby is a baby...is a baby. As many have pointed out, to say you're going to reduce the number of abortions is to acknowledge there is something wrong with the procedure. And what is wrong with abortion except that it is the taking of an innocent life? So why take a slow, incremental approach to eliminating abortion if you know that thousands of babies are still being killed every day, and it's still the law of the land? And to imagine that Thomas Aquinas would have sided with such a compromise position!

That point is moot with Obama, however, because so far he's done more to increase the number of abortions than any sitting President. Since 1973, we're up to 45,000,000 dead and counting...and the debate continues.

from ROME, a realistic Catholic view......

If only abortion were the only thing Catholics had to think about. For some it is the only thing, still, they don't know what to do about this other than excommunicate someone.

The bishops have caused so much upheaval and heartache. In the Rio Grande Valley in Texas one bishop has destroyed a wonderful Catholic parish but we don't hear about this because the bishops do not want to "hurt" each other.

Actually, the bishops now are more concerned with sainting Obama then helping their own people. Those of us desperately clinging to the faith we love have no help. However, we will prevail. When you go to an SOA watch or an Act For Change meeting and sing "We Shall Overcome" or "I am Open, I am Ready" with our arms around each other we know we have the real religion and we don't really need the bishops.

Oops, overlooked something. We need cardinals even less.

Thank you, John Allen, for acquainting readers with these helpful comments on President Obama's words and laying out balanced approaches to the complex issues addressed by him.

No disrespect intended, but the cardinal's assessment reflects P.T. Barnum's statement that there's a sucker born every minute. Our mothers all tell us growing up that actions speak louder than words. It's a truism that Jesus knew well. He told his followers to do what the pharisees said, not to imitate their actions which would make their followers fit for hell.

Obama speaks lovely words while he names the most radical pro-abortion, pro-homoaexual advocates at every level of government. While he claims moderation and the spirit of "common ground" he actively works to make sure only bloody ground will have a place in his administration.

Jesus would not have taken Obama at his word. He would have looked at his actions and repeated his words to the pharisees. "You hypocrites! How accurately did Isaiah prophesy about you when he said: ;This people pays me lip service but their heart is far from me. The do me empty reverence, making dogmas out of human precepts.'"

Obama is a liar and a con artist. there is not an iota of humility in his radical plans to make the United States a socialist country while he uses honeyed words to dissemble. Cardinal Cottier has done Catholic Americans a grave disservice by praising this modern-day pharisee.

Hooray! Finally an intelligent, thinking and thoughtful response to Obama's real position, not the stereotype the radical conservatives have waved around for him. And from upper echelons of Rome! I'm impressed, and grateful. We need all the common sense views we can gather. I hope these comments will be widely taken in and pondered. We can't go on with all the very non-Christian demonizing we've seen the last three months....

I know that the Cardinal's remarks are offered in good faith but I'm perplexed. How can this path lead to God's will being done and on to a culture of life? This is one nuance too far for me.

It is refreshing to me to read a calm and thoughtful response to this issue. I'm so tired of all the noise and name calling and labeling. We are so quick to condemn on the issue of abortion but I rarely see anyone who is so outspoken also speaking about working hard to support women through difficult pregnancies. Insted of beating each other over the head with our righteous morality what if, instead, we burn that energy making sure that single moms can make ends meet and have the emotional and physical support they need? What if we offer opportunity instead of criticism, love instead of condemnations, time instead of criticism?
I, for one, am moved by President Obama's efforts to work toward peaceful solutions to problems that have no easy answers. It's much harder than being judgmental and takes longer, but the results are worth it.

Meanwhile, "At United Nations (UN) headquarters this week, the Obama administration continued its push for ever increasing access to legal abortion around the world. ... The US proposal calls for 'universal access' to 'sexual and reproductive health services including universal access to family planning.'" (C-FAM)

I hope the good cardinal is merely scandalously out of touch with what Obama is really doing. It is hard to reconcile this kind of irenicism with the prophetic witness of Evangelium Vitae.

It appears to me that what the good Cardinal is saying is that most of the bishops in the United States have a lot to learn from the President. This is a reversal of what so often is the attitude: that by virtue of our ordination as bishops, WE are the ones with all the wisdom and by virtue of the fact that we are Catholics, WE are the only ones with the Truth. Let us pray that the next generation of bishops will truly discover the Spirit's strength and wisdom of Vatican II. It appears that most of this generation's bishops in the United States (at least, since Archbishop Jadot has left us) are so closed to the Holy Spirit and Vatican II.

Some folks (mentioning none in particular) who wish to persuade others to their line of thinking might consider employing a strategy other than blanket stonewalling and name calling. "Agree with us and our methods in totality, and we'll admit you to our choir. Anything less than that constitutes incontrovertible proof that you are a pseudo-Catholic." Somehow I can't quite picture Jesus using this approach in proclaiming the Gospel.

I am confused. Conservative Catholics are always telling us to follow the Vatican and heed the words coming from the heirarchy. The comments on this article suggest to me that conservatives are just like the rest of us. They agree with those who agree with them, and are willing to attack anyone, even a Cardinal and Papal Theologian if his comments aren't congruent with their own. Maybe conservatives are more liberal than I thought. I guess that's a good thing??
Pat

There is no Catholic Left or Catholic Right. There is only Catholic. Either you follow the Magisterium or you don't. If you do not follow the dictates of God and the Church as His representative then you are not Catholic.

"To compromise is a sure sign of not possessing the truth. When a man gives way in matters of ideals, of honour or of Faith, that man is a man without ideals, without honour and without Faith." (The Way, 394, St. Josemaria Escriva)

The protection of human life in all its forms is an essential part of the Catholic faith. This has been made clear through papal encyclicals. As for those who have stated that this is just pure criticism, read your catechism. We are not fringe Catholics setting a conservative tone. The protection of human life is part of the fundamental truth of the Catholic Church, especially the innocent.

Cottier's "severe law" point makes sense to me.

My commentary has been before: I don't believe in abortion in principle, and I don't want to encourage abortions.

However as I also said before, in the one abortion case I personally knew of, I don't think that as a Christian it was my job to harshly judge, blame, or in any way, ostracize that person.

It involved desperate poverty issues--a married Woman, who did not in that decade even know that she was in a Domestic Violence marriage, only that her other children were already close to nutritionally deficient. And that the husband was getting worse by the day. She didn't know at that time she needed to get out of the marriage; and together with her children, flee from the abusive male.

I haven't had time to research the statistics on this issue, but from my knowledge of other Domestic Violence statistics, there must be a correlation between Moms in desperate poverty and Domestic Violence and abortions.

In this case, Jesus was not telling me to be "severe" with that person who had an abortion. It was sad and tragic. But so was the entire life of that Mother, who received no support or ministry from Catholics.

My opinion is that what Jesus wants us to do about this issue is look around; look at our neighbors, and help poor Moms and single Moms. If there are poor, single Moms that we know of, could they be even more desperately poor than we realize? Are they actually so ashamed of their poverty, that they are covering it up?

Do American Catholics realize that Food Stamp amounts have been drastically cut in 2009? When it comes to struggles for food and survival, it is not a time for "severe laws" to be levied, IF NO HANDS ARE REACHING OUT TO HELP THESE IMPOVERISHED WOMEN.

It's about helping real people, not endlessly arguing and debating. Poor women who are desperate, need our nurturing help WITHOUT DELAY. This very minute.

In this context Cottier's words are correct: pointing towards compassion, not condemnation.

Ok, so we legally force these babies to be brought into this world, and then drastically cut the programs that would support them and their mothers after their birth? Seems like a double standard to me.

The last time I checked, our political representation has a duty to represent the PEOPLE. Not the church, not a certain group, but the majority of their constituents. You can't make all the people happy all the time.
Even if abortion were made illegal, do you think it would stop happening?

Why not address bad policy... like how a teen has complete autonomy for medical decisions relating to prenatal care, labor, and delivery, but then you want to force her to tell her parents that she wants an abortion? She isn't even legally required to tell them she is pregnant in the first place! You can't have it both ways.

Regardless of how strongly pro-life groups push, it isn't very likely that abortion will be made illegal. In the meantime, instead of throwing your PAC dollars at fighting the impossible, why not do something constructive and fund some programs that support pregnant women, new moms, adoptions, foster homes, at risk daycare centers, after school programs, food pantries, job training, and continuing education?? You can't force every individual to share the same morality as you, to agree that life begins at conception, to think the same things are right and wrong...that is the reality of living in a free country that allows us to choose our own belief system... but you CAN create a supportive, nonjudgmental environment that leaves little room to consider abortion as an option.

Ok, so we legally force these babies to be brought into this world, and then drastically cut the programs that would support them and their mothers after their birth? Seems like a double standard to me.

The last time I checked, our political representation has a duty to represent the PEOPLE. Not the church, not a certain group, but the majority of their constituents. You can't make all the people happy all the time.
Even if abortion were made illegal, do you think it would stop happening?

Why not address bad policy... like how a teen has complete autonomy for medical decisions relating to prenatal care, labor, and delivery, but then you want to force her to tell her parents that she wants an abortion? She isn't even legally required to tell them she is pregnant in the first place! You can't have it both ways.

Regardless of how strongly pro-life groups push, it isn't very likely that abortion will be made illegal. In the meantime, instead of throwing your PAC dollars at fighting the impossible, why not do something constructive and fund some programs that support pregnant women, new moms, adoptions, foster homes, at risk daycare centers, after school programs, food pantries, job training, and continuing education?? You can't force every individual to share the same morality as you, to agree that life begins at conception, to think the same things are right and wrong...that is the reality of living in a free country that allows us to choose our own belief system... but you CAN create a supportive, nonjudgmental environment that leaves little room to consider abortion as an option.