By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK
Joe Biden owes Fr. Robert Morey a “thank you.” The Internet exploded last week with the news that Fr. Morey of South Carolina had “denied” the Eucharist to Biden at a parish Sunday Mass there. Biden is known to attend Mass frequently, if not weekly. Priests in other locations have been told in no uncertain terms that they are to give the Eucharist to Biden. Or else.
What Fr. Morey did was to refuse to politicize the Eucharist — despite longstanding claims in high places otherwise — instead putting Biden and his salvation before every other consideration.
The Catholic faith is not a superstition and the Eucharist is not an anti-death pill that communicates the Lord’s Resurrection, life, and holiness despite the lack of a state of grace on the part of the soul receiving Him thus truly present. Any Catholic who knowingly receives Communion in a state of mortal sin is practically functioning in a state of superstition. Leaving such a soul in this dangerous state of delusion is the opposite of pastoral. It is never loving to refuse to intervene for the sake of salvation of souls.
Reception of grace always necessarily involves a cooperation with it. As St. Augustine expressed it, “The God who made us without us will not save us without us.” God gave us free will and we receive the grace of the Eucharist in order to build up the state of grace.
One of the negative side effects of the postconciliar era is that priests are often treated as if they no longer have a conscience and are subjected to political orders from higher headquarters, expected to function like ecclesial bots. Priests make a promise to obey their bishops, but there is no guarantee that they will be always ordered to do what is right or Catholic. Giving Communion to pro-abort politicians is a case in point.
Many bishops telegraph publicly that they intend to give Communion to pro-child-killing pols and, at the same time, make clear that their priests are expected to do the same regardless of the judgment of their own conscience on the matter.
In Fr. Morey’s case, we may be thankful, his refusing Communion to Biden was part of diocesan policy, according to a report from Catholic News Agency. In doing so he has offered Biden a medicinal opportunity to correct his own practice of the Catholic faith in order to save his soul.
Biden’s public betrayal of Christ by advocating for, and voting for, abortion has placed him in objective grave sin and scandal. His physical reception of the Eucharist, therefore, would not communicate grace but rather would place him in the situation described by St. Paul in 1 Cor. 11-27, “Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the Body and the Blood of the Lord.”
In addition, Biden also notoriously presided over a public attempt at “marriage” by two men.
The Lord Jesus’ purpose in the Eucharist is to build up grace for those who are in a state of grace, following Baptism or absolution for mortal sin after Baptism. Have we completely lost our minds? People are talking about giving Communion to pro-abortion politicians, forgetting that it’s a useless and sacrilegious act. Some Protestants are also weighing in.
This is how Fr. Brendon Laroche expressed it on Twitter: “Meanwhile, in the Catholic Church, I am obliged to deny the Eucharist to any manifest and unrepentant Presbyterians who present themselves for Holy Communion.”
He was responding to Presbyterians and Episcopalians who were gratuitously jumping into the debate, among many others, to get traction with their opinions as to what the Catholic Church should and should not do. Amazing how many people who refuse to be Catholic are so certain about what the Catholic Church should do and so free in offering their opinions.
How many have forgotten that presenting oneself for Communion at Holy Mass is predicated on the fact that one is a believing Catholic? Receiving Communion is based on the fact that one is in a state of grace. One is only in the state of grace if free from the stain of mortal sin and embracing, with full assent of intellect and will, all that the Catholic Church teaches.
We always must go back to the purpose of the sacraments before we can talk about who should receive them and why. We can also see the power of Catholic witness in demanding that they be received with the proper disposition.
We see the results of the actions of one pastor in South Carolina in the number of stories on the Internet: This is the power of Catholic witness. What if every Catholic priest was suddenly no longer compromised by fear of what would happen and did the same?
If the witness of one priest, no matter the cost to himself, is powerful because it goes up against a public figure, every Catholic should likewise be inspired to evangelical witness and to radiate the grace of truth throughout society as a leaven in the world.
We are also dealing with the fact that now everybody’s a public figure because of Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks, and that the alluring 15 minutes of fame is now accessible to everyone with a computer or smart phone and access to the Internet.
When those who claim to be Catholic go to the Women’s March, for example, without distancing themselves from the pro-abort, pro-SSA activity and support for the redefinition of marriage that organizers have made clear is the March’s agenda, while posting photos of themselves at the March on Facebook, they’re committing public scandal. After that, the idea of going to Communion publicly without repairing that scandal is untenable.
A prominent cleric with a prior jurisdictional relationship with Biden has spoken out to accuse Morey and priests who agree with him on the matter of Communion for public pro-aborts as “politicizing” the Eucharist. The opposite, in fact, is the case. Priests who participate in public scandal by knowingly giving the Eucharist to baptized Catholics who publicly advocate or support procured abortion in any way are politicizing the Eucharist, especially when the one presenting himself for Communion is a politician running for office. Such politicizing of the Eucharist should never have a place at Mass and no priest should ever aid and abet such sacrilege. Bravo, Fr. Morey.
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