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Cardinal Tobin warns against 'toxic partisan strife' of denying Biden Communion

Deena Yellin
NorthJersey.com

Newark Archbishop Joseph Tobin urged fellow Catholic leaders not to descend into "toxic partisan strife" by drafting guidelines that could discourage Holy Communion for President Joe Biden and other pro-abortion-rights politicians. 

But the spiritual leader for some 1.3 million North Jersey Catholics was distinctly in the minority last week in a debate that has arrayed conservative prelates in the U.S. against more moderate bishops, as well as Pope Francis himself. 

Tobin made his statement during a three-day virtual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which voted overwhelmingly to begin drafting a "teaching document" that many hope will rebuke supporters of abortion rights who receive Communion, also known as Eucharist. The vote, 168-55, was announced Friday. 

Any effort to exclude Catholic leaders from the Eucharist "based on their public policy positions would thrust the bishops of our nation into the very heart of the toxic partisan strife which has distorted our own political culture and crippled meaningful dialogue," Tobin said, according to a video posted by the conference.

Cardinal Tobin of the Newark Archdiocese gives a homily on the impact of coronavirus during a livestream of Mass on Sunday, March 15, 2020.

"Voting in the affirmative will produce a document but not unity," he said. "Voting against it will allow us to work together in dialogue to forge a broad agreement on the searing questions embedded in the issue of Eucharistic worthiness. Our very identity as an episcopal conference tells us to vote no."   

The archdiocese covers more than 200 parishes in Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Union counties. 

Supporters of the measure said a strong rebuke of Biden was needed because of his recent actions protecting and expanding abortion access. One section of the document is intended to include a specific admonition to Catholic politicians and other public figures who disobey church teaching on abortion and other core doctrinal issues. 

Bishop Donald Hying of Madison, Wisconsin, said during Thursday's debate that he speaks with many people who are confused by a Catholic president who advances "the most radical pro-abortion agenda in history," and that action from the bishops conference is needed. 

"They're looking for direction," Hying said.

Newark's was the only one of the five New Jersey dioceses to respond to questions about where their bishops stood in the debate. The Paterson, Camden, Trenton and Metuchen dioceses didn't respond to messages seeking comment. 

Opinion:US Catholics need a crash course in Church teaching on Communion. Biden gave an opening.

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The Eucharist is part of the Catholic Mass and considered one of the most important sacraments in Christianity. It commemorates Jesus' last supper with his disciples, and participants consume bread and wine, which Catholics believe are transformed into the body and blood of Christ.

Not everyone is permitted to receive Communion: Only Catholics may take part in the ritual, and worshippers who have committed what the church would consider a "grave sin" could be excluded. 

Biden, who attends Mass regularly, says he personally opposes abortion but doesn't believe he should impose that position on Americans who feel otherwise. He has taken several executive actions during his presidency that were hailed by abortion-rights advocates. 

The chairman of the doctrine committee said no decisions have been made on the final contents of the proposed document. 

The goal of the the proposal is a document that stresses "the beauty" and centrality of the Eucharist, said Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana. No decisions have been made on its final content, but it will offer guidelines rather than imposing a national policy, he said.

That would leave decisions about Communion for specific churchgoers up to individual bishops and archbishops. Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington, has made it clear that Biden is welcome to receive Communion at churches in the archdiocese. 

In this Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021 file photo, President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, attend Mass at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle during Inauguration Day ceremonies in Washington.

Catholic bishops have grown worried in recent years about declining Mass attendance and the lack of understanding about the importance of the Eucharist to Catholic life, prompting the push for more guidance. 

With the vote, the American bishops turned aside warnings from the Vatican to avoid a divisive decision. In May, the head of the church's office of doctrine in Rome urged the conference to seek consensus lest the document become "a source of discord rather than unity within the episcopate and the larger church in the United States.”

About 67% of American Catholics believe that Biden should be permitted to receive Communion, according to a Pew Research Center survey published earlier this year.

The church is already facing a crisis of confidence among the rank and file, amid years of sex abuse scandals and Americans' declining religious affiliation, said Michele Dillon, a sociology professor at the University of New Hampshire and author of "Postsecular Catholicism: Relevance and Renewal." 

"Their focus on President Biden’s eligibility to receive Communion seems like an own goal, and one that ultimately doesn’t benefit anyone who cares about Catholicism," she said. 

While most of the bishops said they supported the initiative, Tobin did have some company. Gregory, in Washington, and Archbishop Blase Cupich of Chicago also spoke out against the proposal.

The bishops are expected to discuss the draft at their next meeting in November. 

This article contains material from The Associated Press.

Deena Yellin covers religion for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to her work covering how the spiritual intersects with our daily lives, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: yellin@northjersey.com 

Twitter: @deenayellin