A faith that is personal, not private
I’m pleased to announce that I’m now a columnist for HeadlineBistro.com, a website providing the latest US, World and Church news that “Catholics need to know.”
An excerpt:
At a time when anti-Catholicism was still palpable in the American mainstream, Kennedy was trying to allay Protestants’ fears of a Catholic president’s faith interfering with his duties in the office. He routinely referred to religious voices in the public arena in a negative light, speaking of “pressures,” “dictates” and a church seeking to “impose its will.”
“I believe in a president whose religious views are his own private affair,” he said.
Chaput thinks this goes too far.
The rest of the column explores Archbishop Chaput’s critique of John Kennedy’s speech on Catholicism given nearly 50 years ago.
There’s also information about the origins of the phrase “the separation of Church and State” as well as what Thomas Jefferson thought of our Catholic priests.
Read the rest at HeadlineBistro.com
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2 Comments
President Kennedy simply stated, in effect, that he was an individual and that his religious beliefs would not go against the wants of his constituancy, something each President must abide by in a democracy. He certainly retained his right to share his personal views.
It’s highly unlikely that President Kennedy would have been elected had he not stated what he did and by stating what he did, the fears of Americans to elect a Catholic candidate were gone forever. How is this wrong?
By the way Joshua, congratulations on being a part of HeadlineBistro.com.
Congratulations!! (Word to the wise – avoid the word “spook” when talking about the NAACP) 
lol
