Your Eminences/Your Excellencies:

We of the Catholic Community, the greater Christian Community at large, and all people of good will implore you to confirm the faith and morals of the Catholic Church's members by publicly dealing with the scandalous behavior and words of John Kerry and other Catholic politicians.

As you know, Presidential Candidate Senator John Kerry is a professing Roman Catholic who supports abortion. His record in support of Roe vs. Wade is clear, and known to all. He even recently voted against banning the hideous partial-birth abortion procedure.

He also voted against the Defense of Marriage Act which defines marriage as between one man and one woman. He has declared his support for states approving "homosexual marriage" or "civil unions" with the legal benefits of marriage. Again, his record is clear. He has vowed to fight against the Constitutional amendment which would declare that marriage is between one man and one woman.

Senator Kerry's obstinate support of these grave evils is an affront to all people who love Our Lord. Senator Kerry's record exhibits grave contempt for God's gift of life, and a flagrant disregard for the Sacrament of Marriage.

Most Reverend Bishops, John Kerry scandalizes the faithful every time he receives Holy Communion while being in open defiance to the teachings of our Lord and His Universal Church.

We respectfully ask that all Bishops call upon all Catholics to show a deep respect not only for the Sacrament of the Eucharist, but also for the sacred gift of life.

We are therefore asking each of you to clearly state two things to the public at large, and to the Roman Catholic community in particular in your diocese:

1) That any politician or candidate who supports abortion is not permitted to receive Communion in your diocese.

2) That Roman Catholics in your diocese cannot in good conscience support a candidate for any office from any party as long as that candidate supports abortion.

An unequivocal statement like this would be in keeping with the Church's historic teachings and disciplines, and would echo the great passion and courage of Saints and martyrs who now watch us and pray for us all.

Remember the Saints and Martyrs.

A particular burden rests on Bishops to uphold the Laws of our God and His Church; a clear duty rests on you to follow the example of the Apostles, Bishops, and martyrs who spoke the Truth in times of great trial.

Consider great Bishops like St. Patrick and St. Athanasius, who withstood the errant political leaders of their day who were scandalizing the faithful by their behavior or their doctrine.

St. Thomas Moore became a martyr for opposing the lifestyle and errors of King Henry VIII. Remember St. Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr, who rebuked King Boleslaus the Cruel for his dissolute life. He was martyred while celebrating Mass.

Justin Martyr and St. Ignatius and St. Lawrence laid down their lives for telling the Caesars the Truth. Remember the Apostles, in whose lineage you stand, who bore witness to Christ before kings and princes...at the cost of their blood.

By the Providence of God, it now falls to you to stand in the heritage of the Saints who have gone before you; it falls to you to clearly herald the Truth of God and His Holy Religion in this hour of history.

Will you rise to the hour?

It is clearly your duty to proclaim that abortion ends an innocent life - the ethical equivalent to murder; and that no Catholic can presume to come to the Eucharist who is actively promoting and aiding the killing of the innocent.

Furthermore, if we support candidates who further the killing of innocent children, we are accomplices with them in this crime against humanity. That is why no Catholic can, in good conscience, vote for any candidate who supports the slaughter of innocent children by abortion from any party.

If you take a clear stand, such valor on your part is likely to ignite a firestorm of complaints from those who reject the teachings of the Church from within and without.

But it would also comfort and strengthen many who are looking for clear guidance and leadership in these turbulent times. It would correct those who are wandering from the faith, but whose hearts are still tender. And it would inspire other Christian leaders from other streams of Christianity to be courageous in their defense of life and Truth.

As Christians, our duty is to obey the Lord to the best of our ability - to uphold and proclaim the Gospel by word and deed - and to leave the results in the hands of God.

Legally, you are completely within your First Amendment rights to make such a statement, because it is a part of your duty as a shepherd. It is not against IRS rules, since you are making a statement of religious principle which is non-partisan, and it does not endorse any candidate.

All Issues are not Equal

We must not allow good brethren who promote a "seamless garment theology," and we certainly must not allow pro-abortion politicians to muddy the waters by bringing up capital punishment, war, social programs, etc. While each of these issues is important, none of them are a part of Catholic Dogma.

For example, one can clearly support "just war," or support or oppose capitol punishment, and stand within 2000 years of Catholic teaching. One cannot, however, support killing children by abortion or "homosexual marriage" and claim to stand within the boundaries of the Catholic Faith.

Moreover, none of the above issues, nor a dozen others on the horizon will ever carry the gravity of so-called homosexual marriage, or the horror of killing of unborn children...which happens over 3,000 times a day in America. This is truly a holocaust of the unborn.

A Prince in the Church recently wrote: "Denying anyone communion is a very grave matter. It should be reserved for extraordinary cases of public scandal." We agree.

Frankly, it strains the imagination to picture a more extraordinary case of public scandal. A wealthy, powerful politician is aiding in the murder of thousands of children; he is promoting the greatest genocide in the history of the human race; he is embracing homosexual marriage - something even pagan Greeks and pagan Romans did not stoop to. If this is not a case of extraordinary public scandal, then nothing is.

Every time John Kerry receives communion it says that the Body and Blood of Christ are not that sacred, and that the murder of innocent children is not that evil: It says that Holy communion is not that holy, and that child-killing is not that profane. Such a message is intolerable.

And this is not about one man, or one party. Men like Rudy Giuliani, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Justice Anthony Kennedy, and others all support the murder of innocent children, and the agenda of militant homosexuals trying to redefine marriage. Their behavior is equally scandalous.

Dear Fathers, we beg you to address this publicly, with great clarity. Please tell the faithful that their obedience to Church teaching is not optional; don't let the faithful think that the rich and powerful can flaunt their disobedience; or that the days of Bishops and Saints and martyrs and heroes who uphold the Truth is long passed.

The survival of the Creed; the end of slavery; the end of Roman persecutions; all of these required great courage and clarity from Bishops during times of crisis.

Please Bishops, take your part in the great company of those who declared the truth when it was inconvenient, unpopular, or even life threatening, remembering the charge of St. Paul:

"Preach the Word: be instant in season and out of season: reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and doctrine."

Your Graces, the Church Triumphant - that unseen cloud of witnesses - is watching, and praying for us all during this time of compromise, darkness, and death. They are praying for you. And we can all be assured they are praying we have the grace of courage to proclaim the Truth, and do the right thing, no matter what the cost.

We leave you with the words of the Holy Father, John Paul II, from his encyclical, Ecclesia de Eucharistia:

"However, in cases of outward conduct which is seriously, clearly and steadfastly contrary to the moral norm, the Church, in her pastoral concern for the good order of the community and out of respect for the sacrament, cannot fail to feel directly involved. The Code of Canon Law refers to this situation of a manifest lack of proper moral disposition when it states that those who 'obstinately persist in manifest grave sin' are not to be admitted to Eucharistic Communion."

Sincerely,

Randall Terry

Chris Slattery

Kathryn Wells

Gary McCullough