Hi our national leader Prime Minister Helen Clark will soon be opening a new Catholic school in my city. SHe is pro abortion, pro euthanasia, pro gay marriage, an atheist etc etc and makes me look as conservative as the forum regular Joe "I could have been a priest but instead I died and was renicarnated as Atila the HUn" Stong...

ANyway My question was if I wished to write to my Bishop and complain about our leaders suitability

1.Is this issue a problem?

2. Is this disrespectful to do this to a Bishop ie to consider someone of his position is not aware of what is required...

2. Is there any specific documents from the Vatican regarding this type of "conflict of interest"

Many Thanks

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 26, 2003

Answers

excuse the spelling and grammar as ever

-- (csisherwood@hotmail.com), August 26, 2003.

What you are running into here is the "respect for the OFFICE vs. respect for the PERSON holding the office" problem. No doubt many in the area are looking at it from the "Wow, the Prime Minister is coming to visit!" perspective. This is a big deal for the locals--money being spent on food, lodging, security, etc. Chances are this school opening is not the real reason why she's there.

I'm sure your Bishop knows by now (via the Vatican, for instance), but it never hurts to express your views. And maybe his idea is to have a quiet chat hoping for a change of heart--there is something to the fact that so many non-Catholics send their children to Catholic schools these days.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), August 26, 2003.

Jmj

I'm pleased to say that, in the U.S., there is an ever-increasing boldness among some of the bishops not to tolerate these kinds of situations. Instead, they are doing such things as the following:

1. Requiring institutions over which they have full jurisdiction (e.g., schools) to withdraw invitations from pro-death politicians.
2. Requesting that the more "independent" Catholic institutions (e.g., universities) avoid inviting such people to give lectures, etc.
3. Refusing to accept invitations to take part in events that honor such people or feature them as speakers.

I agree that bishops should have private talks with these kinds of people, to try to persuade them to change. But I believe that they need to avoid even the slightest perception that they are tolerant of the pro-death positions these people hold. They need to find very "visible" ways of showing their disapproval -- such as publicized "disinvitations" and "notable absences."

Kiwi, there is NO WAY that your PM should be permitted by the bishop to "open a new Catholic school in" your city. That would be a disgrace, in my opinion, and you have every right respectfully to express this in writing to the bishop. He ought to be doing everything legal to prevent her from being re-elected, rather than doing things that make her look "normal" in the eyes of the Catholics who will see her at the new school. I wish that I were enough of an expert on the contents of Church documents to be able to quote something to you [something supportive of my position here] that you could include in your letter to the bishop, but (alas!) I am not.

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), August 26, 2003.