Lying isn't love! Church says no to communion for some couples

Philly mayor objects to guidelines.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has released guidelines on marriage to help people understand the Church's teaching. Those guidelines instruct some people to refrain from sexual activity. This instruction has caused the mayor of Philadelphia to speak out.

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) - The Mayor of Philadelphia, Jim Kenney, spoke out against Church teaching on marriage. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia released new guidelines for marriage to help people better understand the sacrament. The guidelines instructs people in same-sex relationships, the divorced, civilly married and unmarried couples to refrain from sex.

The guidelines reinforce that only those who are living in accord with Church teaching may receive communion.

Mayor Kenney has spoke out against the guidelines, tweeting, "Jesus gave us the gift of Holy Communion because he so loved us. All of us. Chaput's actions are not Christian."

Mayor Kenney was raised Catholic. However, he is not an official of the Catholic Church, as Catholic League president, Bill Donohue pointed out. "James Kenney was elected mayor of Philadelphia. He seems to think that gives him the authority, or qualifications, to run the Catholic Church in his city. It does not."

Donohue added:

"Yesterday, Kenney ripped Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput as "not Christian." The archbishop's offense? He issued pastoral guidelines reiterating Catholic teaching on marriage, family, and reception of the Eucharist. There is nothing new in Chaput's document. It merely calls - as the Church always has - for clergy to provide pastoral care for those living in relationships outside its teachings, while upholding the integrity of the sacraments. "Anything less," Chaput correctly observed, "misleads people about the nature of the Eucharist and the Church."

"Kenney disagrees. Fine. But it is an abuse of his office to use his platform as mayor to publicly intrude on what is clearly an internal Church matter. And it is far from the first time he has used his position as a government official to attack the Catholic Church. [...]

"Kenney labels Archbishop Chaput un-Christian for upholding Catholic teaching. The mayor is demonstrably un-American in misusing his public office to conduct his personal war on the Catholic Church."

The release of the guidelines coincides with Pope Francis' request that the Church emphasize its pastoral role in teaching the truth and upholding the dignity of the human person. Unfortunately, many people construe repudiation of sin as a lack of respect. This is an absolute falsehood. Respect requires the truth be told, even if it is not what the listener wants to hear. Love means directing people towards good, not evil. Any pastor who fails to share the truth with others also fails to love those people.

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