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Home Page > Blogs > News blogs > Periscope > Cardinal Dolan right to see the light and agree to speak at Democratic convention -- Huge error appearing at Republican convention only with closing prayer

Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

Cardinal Dolan right to see the light and agree to speak at Democratic convention -- Huge error appearing at Republican convention only with closing prayer

Posted on Wednesday, August 29, 2012 at 08:37 AM

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New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan (Photo: AP)

Cardinal Timothy Dolan is doing the right thing speaking at both the Democratic National Convention and the Republican one.

His decision came after a storm of criticism about him appearing only at the Republican National Convention in Tampa and not at the Democratic one in Charlotte, North Carolina.

There was also news of a secret meeting between Mitt Romney and Dolan at Dolan’s office in New York which took many observers by surprise.

Why a secret meeting? Why not acknowledge out front that the Cardinal Archbishop of New York was meeting one of the two men who will be president come January next year?

Clearly Dolan, by far the most powerful figure in the American Catholic Church, was displaying a partisan approach that went down badly with many American Catholics.

On social justice issues such as immigration and caring for the poor, the church is far closer to the Democratic party.

On doctrinal issues such as abortion and church affairs, they are closer to the GOP.

The Catholic faithful are probably split in a similar manner with the more conservative wing leaning towards the Republicans and cultural Catholics siding with Democrats.

So the New York archdiocese and Dolan went ahead and finally did the decent thing and acknowledged both parts of their divided faithful.

In a statement on Thursday, the New York Archdiocese stated:

“Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York, has accepted an invitation to deliver the closing prayer at next week’s Democratic National Convention. As was previously announced, he will also be offering the closing prayer at the Republican Convention on Thursday of this week.

The news of the Democratic convention gig also came after the New York Times revealed that Romney had secretly met with Dolan last month.

“The two had a private meeting, previously undisclosed, at the chancery in New York, across from St. Patrick’s Cathedral, said Peter G. Flaherty, a senior adviser to the Romney campaign on religious issues.

Secret meetings and offering benedictions to one side and not the other should not be the style of the Catholic Church and its undisputed leader.

Dolan has already displayed animosity to Obama and sued him over his health care law. He has made plain his disdain for this president and his policies.

On the other side, he positively gushed in a recent radio interview about GOP VP candidate Paul Ryan who hails from his home state of Wisconsin.

It has become obvious for some time that Cardinal Dolan loves his media image and pumps it up at every opportunity.

He positively preens in the spotlight which is harmless enough, but putting the Catholic Church squarely on the side of the Republicans was a major mistake.

It does not seem that long ago that Protestant churches mounted a savage campaign against Catholic John F. Kennedy in 1960.

Many of those churches never fully recovered from the backlash to that onslaught.

This is a deeply divided society right now, even at the level of the US Bishops where some have criticized VP candidate Paul Ryan for targeting his budget cuts at the poor.

Cardinal Dolan should have really known better than to totally align himself with one side.

Luckily he has seen the light.

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aloistmartin | Aug 29, 2012, 05:07 PM EDT

Franco`s John Carlos II and his entourage of Enlightened Aristocrats, and Ireland's Edna Kenny are no different. The Church will say or do Anything, to keep herself swimming in Cafe Milano and Chocolate Biscottii !

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Shmrck5S | Aug 29, 2012, 03:34 PM EDT

And how do you liberals who villify the Cardinal reconcile your support for the President who champions a woman's (and her doctor's) right to take an innocnet life?

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joeustace | Aug 29, 2012, 01:00 PM EDT

Be careful what you wish for, Cardinal. If by chance Romney gets elected and the Republicans actually enact their draconian social policies, you will be blamed and held accountable for it. You will then have to explain how these policies are consistent with Church teaching (good luck), or explain why you were in bed with these guys to begin with.

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handsome68 | Aug 29, 2012, 11:24 AM EDT

Niall O'Dowd does not seem to understand that Cardinal Dolan made a huge mistake having now Pres. Obama again participate in the Al Smith Dinner. Knowing what this president stands for, being in litigation with him, and aware as he should be that any "Irish charm offensive" won't work, Dolan will have his work cut out for him in what seems to be a lose-lose-LOSE situation.

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eiriamach | Aug 29, 2012, 10:04 AM EDT

It was kind of the Democrats to pull Cardinal Dolan's f*t out of the fire by inviting him to their convention. Does the cardinal realize that the press will scrutinize the words of his prayers at the two venues? Can he have any reason to offer two different prayers before the two different groups if the cardinal's faith is not relative to the political environment? Can he pray for a nation united behind its president--whoever that president is, or has he been too partisan to make such a prayer? I suspect his limitations are about to catch up with his love of the spotlight.

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handsome68 | Aug 29, 2012, 09:29 AM EDT

Youse liberal omadhauns who think you know your religion should realize it might not be what your drinking buddies or Sister Mary Bluntinstrument from the 4th grade says it was/is. In adulthood, one is responsible for deepening one's understanding, unless you don't care to do so, which is another situation. Try using your head for more than a hat rack.

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McNamara31 | Aug 29, 2012, 09:05 AM EDT

The Democrats at the convention would have enjoyed a prayer with the "Nuns from the Bus" who toured the nation in behalf of the poor and disenfranchised;rather than this Cardinal who's center is purely politically aligned with the GOP.

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