Catholic Archbishop of Seattle Hunthausen issues a letter
against homosexual discrimination
July 1, 1977
On July 1, 1977, the Catholic Archbishop of Seattle, the Most Reverend Raymond G. Hunthausen, publicly defends the rights of gays and lesbians. The letter is reprinted in the Seattle Gay News. Photo
Archbishop Hunthausen had many disagreements with the Vatican over gay rights, women’s rights, and other social issues.
The letter from Archbishop of Seattle Most Reverend Raymond G. Hunthausen made public July 1, 1977, is here reprinted along with the brief introduction to it that appeared in the Seattle Gay News... Read more:
Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen of Seattle, Washington
– Support for gays and lesbians 1970’s
&
Ratzinger/Benedict XVI
These excerpts, from Chapter Sixteen, “On Catholic Hill,” chronicle the courage of Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen in his attempt to create a home for gays and lesbians within the Seattle archdiocese in the late 1970s and 1980s. His efforts prompted a Vatican investigation of the Seattle archdiocese for its openness to gay and lesbian ministry and an unprecedented intervention ordered in the 1980s by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI…
In fall 1985, the Vatican finally acted again.
The first news the public heard was overwhelmingly positive for Hunthausen. A church heavyweight, Rome’s ambassador to the United States, Archbishop Pio Laghi, sent a letter in November that bluntly attacked the “exaggerated and mean-spirited criticism” that Hunthausen’s opponents had been making, and warmly praised the archbishop’s “clear evidence of loyalty to the church.” However, there were “areas of concern,” Laghi noted, where Hunthausen needed to show “greater vigilance in upholding the church’s teaching.” One was the ministry to homosexuals. In the letter released to the public, Laghi said no more than that. It seemed the gentlest possible of criticisms.
But what was not publicly known at the time was that six weeks earlier, at the end of September, another powerful Vatican bureaucrat, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, had sent a confidential and far blunter letter. He headed the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the successor to the church’s Inquisition office. In that letter, Ratzinger said, “The Archdiocese should withdraw all support from any group which does not unequivocally accept the teaching of the Magesterium concerning the intrinsic evil of homosexual activity. The ill-advised welcome of a pro-homosexual group to your cathedral . . . served to make the Church’s position appear to be ambiguous on this delicate but important point. A compassionate ministry to homosexual persons must be developed that has as its clear goal the promotion of a chaste lifestyle . . . ”…
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Hunthausen Case
…The most extreme intervention in a U.S. archdiocese by the Vatican was in Seattle, where an auxiliary was appointed who was supposed to have final authority over important areas of diocesan life including the tribunal, liturgy, former priests, priestly formation, medical ethics and ministry to homosexuals…
…The Hunthausen case is worth examining because it shows what concerns Rome has about the American church. In addition, it shows how Roman procedures and American concepts of due process come into conflict.
It all began in May 1983 when Archbishop Laghi approached Archbishop Hunthausen at a meeting of the American bishops in Chicago and told him that the Vatican wanted to have a visitation of Seattle. Hunthausen, not having the slightest idea what a visitation was, said, "Fine, we have all sorts of wonderful things going on in Seattle." Archbishop Hickey of Washington, DC, was appointed visitor.
Later, Hunthausen began to question the visitation when it became clear that its purpose was to evaluate criticisms about his ministry as archbishop. He objected that he was never given any specifics about what was to be investigated so that he could defend himself. In addition, the Vatican wanted the visitation to be secret, but he argued that was impossible. When the fact of the visitation became known, Seattle officials insisted that the leak occurred in Washington, DC.
In November 1983, Archbishop Hickey spent a week in Seattle conferring with the archbishop and over seventy priests, religious, and laypersons, many of whom were suggested by the archbishop. He also examined documents issued by the archbishop or the archdiocese. Hunthausen was never given a copy of the report sent by Archbishop Hickey to the Vatican. The Vatican argued that those interviewed were promised anonymity, and therefore he could not see it.
In September 1985, the archbishop received a letter from Cardinal Ratzinger concluding the visitation and outlining its findings. The letter is important because it shows what things worry the Vatican, not only in Seattle, but in other dioceses in the United States…
1986 - Warnings to Vatican inquisitor – valuing rigidity of doctrine over people
Archbishop Asks Rome To Ease Up - September 28, 1986
MILWAUKEE — Rembert George Weakland… forthrightly told the Vatican to…soften its drive to coerce doctrinal uniformity by punishing dissenters.
He asserted that Draconian measures used throughout Christian history to silence those who challenge traditional church teaching have resulted in
``much cruelty, suppression of theological creativity and lack of growth.`` Photo
Archbishop Weakland…is the first American Catholic leader of wide repute and influence to publicly raise alarm over the perceived crackdown by Rome on prominent and liberal U.S. Catholic thinkers who question Vatican stands on sexual morality and other issues…
They involved a Catholic University of America theologian, Rev. Charles Curran, whose teaching credentials have been removed, and Seattle Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen, whose administrative authority in several areas of ministry were stripped and given to an auxiliary bishop…
…The liberal Auxiliary Bishop Thomas J. Gumbleton of Detroit predicted that the ``cruel (and) demeaning`` treatment of Archbishop Hunthausen would effectively ``intimidate`` his fellow prelates.
The moderate Archbishop Francis T. Hurley of Anchorage…petitioning Rome to offer a more detailed rationale for its ``drastic reprimand`` of Archbishop Hunthausen, who has withheld a portion of his income tax in protest of U.S. military policies and who has permitted a national convention of gay and lesbian Catholics to use the Seattle cathedral church.
``Would itemization of specific (charges) reveal some fundamental flaws…or would they appear trivial and therefore provide feeble basis . . . for such action?`` Archbishop Hurley wondered aloud in his column.
The more philosophical and historically grounded warnings raised by Archbishop Weakland…in his columns, titled ``The Price of Orthodoxy,`` …appeared to be directing his remarks to Vatican inquisitors…
…He contended that previous efforts to monitor and safeguard Catholic doctrine have been undertaken in an atmosphere where ``amateurs-turned-theologians easily became headhunters and leaders were picked (on the basis of) the rigidity of their doctrine, so that often second-rate and repressive minds, riding on the waves of fear, took over.
``Religion under such circumstances then can become an ideology that tolerates no obstacle and that values ideas more than people,`` he wrote…
Read complete article:
Ratzinger & the persecution of Seattle Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger…
efforts to prevent the
evolution in church teaching
toward acceptance of
homosexuals -
a timeline beginning 1984 -
Milestones in campaign to hold the doctrinal line - National Catholic Reporter, July 30, 1999
GAY MARRIAGE - Benedict XVI Dismisses Science Reason – NATURAL LAW | Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely | PART 1
Excerpts:
Benedict XVI and the hierarchy public statements promoting marriage have been subtle systematic increments of often-disguised antigay propaganda void of any supporting factual evidence. Unsuspecting innocent people are unknowingly being in a way seduced into colluding with such kind of people in power, Benedict XVI, by remaining silent. This is a gradual process of falsely devaluing a whole group of people in order to ignite public hostility against an innocent group of people. This is a dangerous procedure because if those who are in power are able to succeed at it then who is next – no one is safe.
"First they came for the Communists but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out;
Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists but I was not one of them, so I did not speak out;
Then they came for the Jews but I was not Jewish so I did not speak out.
And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me."
And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me."
Benedict XVI’s unsubstantiated antigay statements – even those that are disguised – such as; “gay marriage threatens family and society” are truly statements about him. Benedict XVI threatens family and society – not gay marriage. There is overwhelming evidence, over 30 years of child sexual abuse cover-ups and the ongoing Vatileaks & Vatican Bank scandals that support this statement that - Benedict XVI threatens family and society. Benedict XVI has absolutely no factual evidence to support any of his statements made against gay people. In fact, every antigay statement that Benedict XVI has made can be easily turned around to accurately describe Benedict XVI own personal behavior. Jesus warned us how we can avoid this kind of self-deception from happening to us – when he said:
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,' when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. - Luke 6:40-42
There are different perspectives of how Natural Law is viewed by others - then Benedict XVI’s elitist attitude his inordinate importance he seems to place on his use of the Natural Law concept, which is over and beyond that of the Gospels and scientific research.
Benedict XVI - Demeaning Accusations of Gay People -
Lacking Evidence / Reason – Corruption of Natural Law
All human life is sacred. Human life is never to be devalued or demeaned in any way by anyone. To deliberately devalue anyone or any group of human beings while others remain silent is what will destroy humanity as a whole – not gay marriage -
Pope: Gay marriage threatens humanity’s future, Jan. 9, 2012.
NATURAL LAW - "NONSENSE UPON STILTS"
"NATURAL LAW" AND LAWS OF NATURE
In the history of human thought few words have created as much confusion as the words "nature" and "law". They can assume very different meanings, and these meanings are not always made sufficiently clear. Indeed, when people use the words in an argument, they often switch from one meaning to another without becoming aware of it and thus trap themselves in logical fallacies.
NATURAL LAW is AMBIGUOUS
The term “natural law” is ambiguous. It refers to a type of moral theory, as well as to a type of legal theory, but the core claims of the two kinds of theory are logically independent. It does not refer to the laws of nature, the laws that science aims to describe. According to natural law moral theory, the moral standards that govern human behavior are, in some sense, objectively derived from the nature of human beings and the nature of the world. While being logically independent of natural law legal theory, the two theories intersect.
LAWS OF NATURE
Laws of Nature are to be distinguished both from Scientific Laws and from Natural Laws.
NATURAL LAW - "NONSENSE UPON STILTS"
Jeremy Bentham (15 February 1748 – 6 June 1832) was an English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer. He became a leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law…
His position included arguments in favour of individual and economic freedom, usury, the separation of church and state, freedom of expression, equal rights for women, the right to divorce, and the decriminalising of homosexual acts. He argued for the abolition of slavery and the death penalty and for the abolition of physical punishment, including that of children. Although strongly in favour of the extension of individual legal rights, he opposed the idea of natural law and natural rights, calling them "nonsense upon stilts."
HOMOSEXUALITY IS NOT UNNATURAL
Read more:
France - Pour Benoit XVI le mariage gay menace la famille – 21 September 2012 | “Could it be that Benedict XVI is unconsciously repeating Hitler's crime against humanity?” UNSUBSTANTIATED ANTIGAY Propaganda – 9/22/12
Vatican’s Antigay Teachings are UNSUBSTANTIATED - life-threatening to very young children globally - Vatican needs to immediately RENOUNCE all their antigay teachings, because they are NOT based on truth -- Kids Are Being Hurt!!! – 9/07/12 Photo
FRENCH President Hollande - UN to DECRIMINALIZE HOMOSEXUALITY - Benedict XVI’s tenacious attacks Unprecedented – impetuousness, HUBRIS SYNDROME??? * Hunthausen Case 1983
As SCIENCE moves forward on Research & Understanding Homosexuality -- RATZINGER/BENEDICT XVI Ignoring Science - Sanctions Ignorance & Silence Promoting discrimination of Homosexuality – A Timeline
Benedict XVI Ongoing - Crackdown 2012 on GAY MARRIAGE Supporters – LCWR USA Nuns - “Just Love: A Framework for Christian Sexual Ethics” - Statement by Mercy Sister Margaret A. Farley – 6/4/12 Photo
VATICAN CRACKDOWN - Gay Catholic Priest 1997 - Fr. Marty Kurylowicz “Coming Out” for “Protection of Children from Antigay Social & Religious Norms”- to be Permanently Remove & Silence of Gay Priest | Vatican Ordered REPARATIVE THERAPY
US Nuns, Rebuked by Vatican, Plan Road Trip to Spotlight SOCIAL JUSTICE Issues - To Highlight Their Work With The Nation’s Poor And Disenfranchised – 6/5/12
Gay Marriage & Benedict XVI Mirroring – “Hitler Youth” supporting Nazis Brutal RE-EDUCATION of Homosexuals |1997 Orders RE-EDUCATION for Gay Priest, Fr. Marty Kurylowicz’s Public “Coming Out” for Protection of Gay Children |No USA Civil Laws to Protect Gay Catholic Priest or Children
Could it be that Benedict XVI is unconsciously repeating Hitler's crime against humanity? Fierce relentless promulgation of UNSUBSTANTIATED ANTIGAY statements
Minnesota's Anti-Gay Marriage Constitutional Amendment – The Rachel Maddow Show – 5/23/11 - STATE REP. STEVE SIMON (D), STATE REP. JOHN KRIESEL (R), JEFF and LORI WILFAHRT, the parents of CORPORAL ANDREW WILFAHRT, who was killed on February 27th in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
Minnesota – USA Catholics Supporting All People & NOT Nienstedt Anti-Catholic Global Papal Mandate Disguising Discrimination of Gay People - DOUBLE-SPEAK Deception
Obama Gay Marriage Endorsement Is 'Political Bravery'- RACHEL MADDOW (VIDEO) & Obama Lets Go Of Fear – “…I think of all the GAY KIDS out there who now know they have their president on their side…” By ANDREW SULLIVAN - NPR – May 9 & 10, 2012
Michelle Obama – “Kids who now feel like, for the FIRST TIME, if they're gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, that they feel like they have a place.” 9/26/12
Benedict XVI & Bush 2003 against GAY MARRIAGE - Help Wins USA Presidential Election 2004 - A Well-informed Conscience - protects RELIGIOUS FREEDOM and NOT Tyranny in Religion
As Support for Gay Marriage Increases - Benedict XVI & USA Bishops Panic of Exposure Increases - Child Sexual Abuse Cover-ups Accountability - VATICAN RENOUNCES ALL ANTI-GAY TEACHINGS – 11/30/11
GAY MARRIAGE – Propaganda Tactics|B16’s Naturalistic fallacy & Homosexuality - Dehumanizing, Depriving Civil Rights, Silencing Gays - Covering Up B16 Crimes Against Children 30+yrs? |PART 5
'Less Than Human'
by David Livingstone Smith 2011
Excerpts:
Dehumanizing Homosexuals
Depriving Civil Rights – Human Rights
…We dehumanize our fellow human beings when we convince ourselves (or allow ourselves to be convinced) that they are less than human and come to believe that, although these people appear to be human beings like us, this is merely a façade. Beneath the surface they are really subhuman creatures, fit to be hunted down and destroyed. The immense destructive power of dehumanization lies in the fact that it excludes its victims from the universe of moral obligation, so killing them is of no greater consequence swatting a mosquito, or poisoning a rat. If dehumanization is a key factor in war and genocide, we ought to be working very hard to prevent it.
Read more:
Psychology of Violence - David Livingstone Smith 2010
The way that Benedict XVI and the hierarchy are able to maintain this false notion about homosexuals is by publically dehumanizing homosexuals. It is their relentless condemnation of homosexuals using anti-gay propaganda trying to convince the public that homosexuals are less than human, are subhuman and therefore, homosexuals can be “excluded from the system of moral rights and obligations that bind humankind together ('Less Than Human' - by David Livingstone Smith 2011).”
What is it that enables one group of human beings to treat another group as though they were subhuman creatures?
…A rough answer isn't hard to come by. Thinking sets the agenda for action, and thinking of humans as less than human paves the way for atrocity. The Nazis were explicit about the status of their victims. They were Untermenschen — subhumans — and as such were excluded from the system of moral rights and obligations that bind humankind together. It's wrong to kill a person, but permissible to exterminate a rat. To the Nazis, all the Jews, Gypsies and others were rats: dangerous, disease-carrying rats…
Dehumanizing the enemy allowed German soldiers and officers to agree with the Nazis' new vision of warfare, and to fight without granting the Soviets any mercy or quarter."
…The Holocaust is the most thoroughly documented example of the ravages of dehumanization. Its hideousness strains the limits of imagination. And yet, focusing on it can be strangely comforting. It's all too easy to imagine that the Third Reich was a bizarre aberration, a kind of mass insanity instigated by a small group of deranged ideologues who conspired to seize political power and bend a nation to their will. Alternatively, it's tempting to imagine that the Germans were (or are) a uniquely cruel and bloodthirsty people. But these diagnoses are dangerously wrong. What's most disturbing about the Nazi phenomenon is not that the Nazis were madmen or monsters. It's that they were ordinary human beings…
NPR book review:
'Less Than Human': The Psychology Of Cruelty
Benedict XVI Fights Against Homosexuals Civil Rights
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