The Bishops are Back

[I]t turned out that in 2004, the American bishops played a decisive role in turning the presidential candidacy of Sen. John Kerry into a teaching moment about Catholics in public life. It was no mean accomplishment.

The challenge to pro-abortion politicians emerged on the national scene as the result of Archbishop Raymond Burke’s decision to bar certain politicians from receiving holy Communion just before he moved from La Crosse to St. Louis. Within days, the relevant documents from La Crosse were readily available on websites, and bishops all over the country were being asked whether they agreed or disagreed.

A national debate no longer requires national institutions to take the initiative. Neither the major media nor the bishops’ conference had the abortion/Communion question on the agenda at the end of 2003. That an individual bishop can break into the national conversation this way is an encouraging development — especially for those bishops who face unfriendly mainstream media on the local scene.

Excerpts from an editorial in the National Catholic Register by Fr. Raymond J. de Souza.