Catholic Replies
Q. Could Ngo Dinh Diem of Vietnam be considered a martyr? Is anyone working on his cause for beatification? — G. P., via e-mail.
A. Ngo Dinh Diem served as the president of South Vietnam from 1955 to 1963, when he was assassinated following a military coup. He did not die for the Catholic faith, so he is not considered to be a martyr and there is no cause for canonization being pursued.
Q. Recently a TV host said that, during World War II, there was a regiment of soldiers whose commander had them pray the 91st Psalm every morning, and they all survived. That Psalm mentions “pestilence,” so maybe it’s a good idea to pray this Psalm every morning for protection against COVID-19. — M.L., Arizona.
A. It certainly would be a good idea. Here are some of the relevant passages in Psalm 91:
“God will rescue you from the fowler’s snare,/ from the destroying plague. . . You shall not fear . . . the pestilence that roams in darkness,/ nor the plague that ravages at noon. . . . No evil shall befall you,/ no affliction come near your tent. . . . All who call upon me I will answer;/ I will be with them in distress; I will deliver them and give them honor./ With length of days I will satisfy them/ and show them my saving power.”
Q. I have a question about the morality of doing business with certain companies who donate to Planned Parenthood. For example, I shop at Fry’s food market, which is owned by Kroger, which supports the LGBTQ agenda. Should I shop elsewhere? Also, I have a Visa credit card with the Bank of America, which supports Planned Parenthood. The credit card is rarely used since it is our backup card. Is it a sin to use this card? Should we get rid of it? — R.D., via e-mail.
A. The questions have to do with cooperation in evil, of which there are two kinds. Formal cooperation in evil means that one shares in the intention of the evildoer. For example, one gives money purposefully to a baby-killing conglomerate like Planned Parenthood, or to an organization that promotes homosexual behavior, knowing that one’s money will be used for immoral actions. Such cooperation is a grave sin.
Material cooperation means that one does not will or intend the evil, but knows that some of his funds could be used for evil activities. The morality of this cooperation depends on how close one is to the immoral action (proximate or remote) and whether there is a proportionate reason for the cooperation.
You are not close to Kroger or the Bank of America, so your material cooperation would be remote and, therefore, not sinful. But since you could shop elsewhere, and since you have another credit card that you could use, there is no compelling reason for you to involve yourself at all with the Kroger-connected company or with a Bank of America credit card. Doing so would guarantee your avoiding morally tainted companies.
Q. What does St. John mean in his first letter when he says that “if anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly, he should pray to God and he will give him life. This is only for those whose sin is not deadly. There is such a thing as deadly sin, about which I do not say you should pray. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly” (1 John 5:16-17)? — M.C., via e-mail.
A. While it is not completely clear what St. John meant by sin that is not deadly, he is probably referring to mortal sin since life will be given to the sinner who petitions God through the Sacrament of Penance. The “deadly sin” probably refers to apostasy (the total rejection of the Catholic faith by one who was baptized into that faith) or to final impenitence (rejection of God’s love and mercy at the moment of death).
John is not saying that we shouldn’t pray for those who are steeped in mortal sin because only God knows whether a person is finally impenitent or not. We know that God wants everyone to be saved (1 Tim. 2:4) and that He takes “no pleasure in the death of the wicked man, but rather in the wicked man’s conversion, that he may live” (Ezek. 33:11). So we pray for the conversion of the wicked man.
Q. A Girl Scout leader asked me if my local Knights of Columbus parking lot was available to distribute Girl Scout cookies. I have supported this drive in the past, but haven’t the Girl Scouts gotten into bed with Planned Parenthood? — C.B., via e-mail.
A. Unfortunately, they have, and no K of C council or any other Catholic organization should lend support to the Girl Scouts until they break ties with the largest baby-killing conglomerate in the country. As far back as 2004, Kathy Cloninger, then-CEO of Girl Scouts USA, said on the Today show that “we partner with many organizations,” including “with Planned Parenthood organizations across the country.”
Dozens of local Girl Scout troops from coast to coast have promoted abortion (under the mantra of “reproductive justice”) by holding up as role models for young girls such pro-abortionists as Hillary Clinton, Gloria Steinem, and Betty Friedan.
According to Catholic News Agency, “The Girl Scouts have filled their national leadership team and board of directors with unwavering ideologues whose careers, nonprofit work, and philanthropic choices reflect a heavy commitment to liberal causes — same-sex marriage, gay and lesbian rights, abortion rights, comprehensive sex education, and ‘girl power’ feminism.” GSUSA has an “all-inclusive” policy that boasts of “being a voice for all girls, regardless of their…sexual orientation or gender identity.”
More than 90 Girl Scouts have marched in the San Francisco Gay Pride parade because, as one spokesperson said, “Girl Scouts is inclusive and reflects the communities we serve.” Former Scout leader Sydney Volanski expressed concern that the organization would endorse participation in an event “that features vulgar male dancers dressed only in underwear, a lesbian statue of liberty (courtesy of the ACLU float), free condoms, and more.”
She said that “GSUSA has promised they have ‘established standards that do not permit the advocacy or promotion of a personal lifestyle or sexual orientation,’ yet here is undeniable participation in an advocacy campaign. Unfortunately, this is not their first broken promise.”
Councils across the country have promoted Margaret Sanger as a role model for women’s rights. A notorious racist and eugenicist, Sanger was a founder of Planned Parenthood and lobbied “to exterminate the Negro population” and called immigrants and the poor “human weeds” and “reckless breeders . . . spawning . . . human beings who never should have been born.”
In 2018, the Girl Scouts promoted and participated in the Teen Vogue Summit, which, according to LA Weekly, emphasized “grassroots social activism” and featured panels on such topics as “menstrual power and reproductive justice, LGBTQ+ rights, bipartisan environmentalism in the face of climate change, and humane immigration policy.” Speakers at this summit in the past have included Hillary Clinton, Cong. Maxine Waters of California, and former Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards.
When you purchase cookies from your local Girl Scout troop, less than 20 percent of the proceeds goes to the local troop. The rest goes to regional and national councils. GSUSA gets a royalty from each box of cookies, which amounted to over nine million dollars in 2018. GSUSA pays dues to the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, which advocates for abortion worldwide.
In response to GSUSA’s abandonment of its original principles, Patti Garibay founded in Ohio in 1995 an alternative organization called American Heritage Girls (Americanheritagegirls.org) to build “women of integrity through service to God, family, community, and country.” It is now functioning in all 50 states and in 15 foreign countries.
AHG’s “inclusion policy” invites as members “all biological girls of any color, race, national origin, and socioeconomic status who agree to live according to the standards of the AHG Oath and the AHG Creed.” Their oath reads: “I promise to love God, cherish my family, honor my country, and serve in my community.”