Cardinal Pell on Church And State

Some supporters of the cloning bill made little attempt to argue that it was right to create and then destroy human embryos, but claimed that this evil was out-weighted by the cures for diseases which would follow. This is not a justifiable line of argumentation, but the promised cures have nowhere materialized from embryos. . .

As well as arguments about whether it is right to destroy early human life for some real or hoped for gain, another controversy erupted over whether bishops, or the Pope, have any rights to point out Catholic teaching to the public and remind the politicians, especially Catholics, that public acts usually bring public consequences.

Some seemed to suggest that while a football club, a political party or a business certainly could in some circumstances sack or exclude a member or employee, it was totally out of order to suggest a Christian Church might even consider a similar possibility. Certainly Pope Benedict teaches that an unrepentant abortionist should not receive Communion.

Nor should any other unrepentant sinner. But most especially grevious and scandalous are those who publicly proclaim their rejection of the teachings of the Church while, at the same time, professing to be "devout Catholics"...

All Catholics who continue to reject important Catholic teachings, even in areas such as sexuality, family, marriage, abortion, euthanasia, cloning where “liberals” claim the primacy of conscience rules, should expect to be confronted, gently and consistently, rather than comforted and encouraged in their wrongdoing.

Certainly every Catholic politician who voted for this bill should think twice and examine his or her conscience before next receiving Communion.