when Texas falls the rest of the entirecountry will fall

As I was watching this vortex, I don't know why I bagan to feel a sudden joy and exhilaration. I have been asking in my masses and Rosaries for the Lord to intervene directly and stop all this insanity, nonsense and vertical fall into darkness. This move by the Texas Bishops, shooting themselves in the foot, might be the answer to my prayers. If all of a sudden the Texas Catholic Church is stripped of Her tax-exempt status, how would these bureaucrat laden chanceries survive? How would many chancery and other officials would keep their six figure salaries? How would some bishops keep their mansions and beach houses and other properties? Yes, I agree that such a move would be catastrophic and perhaps handicapping, certainly very painful, but it would be a loving purification of a loving Father that is disgusted to look at his vineyard so full of cockle and bad weeds! Let the chips fall where they may. Everything works for the good of those who love the Lord. Pray, pray and pray hard and fast, this time of Lent is the appropriate time for conversion. Blessed be God forever!

Don't you know devil always lurks and uses the women to do his infiltration? The Catholic church of Vatican II allowed women entered the sanctuary, allowed new mass of mockery, women hold positions that Christ did not call them for... and for decades. Now look at their church, it is no longer a real Catholic but a Pseudo Catholic church of the Synagogue of Satan.

The loosing of the Tax exempt status may just be a blessing in disguise. Free us from the slavery of economic dependence to Caeser. Let us embrace Lady poverty. God's will be done.

Second that!

I live in Houston , Texas. Cardinal Dinardo was at a Young Catholic Proffesional gathering and a Young man asked him what was his big surprise being President of USCCB , he response "meeting President and having to speak all the time about pro -LIFE issues when I wanted to speak immigration."
We are in TROUBLE folks. My daughter's conservative Catholic school just accepted the first children from a gay couple. The pastor response to me was "We all sin."

The school, St. Vincent Dr Paul Catholic school is a classic example of how we have stayed silent to long. Make some NOISE people now. Now. Take our churches back. Firm up the holy priests. Gather people to pray, protest. But stay engaged in your parishes and others. Write letters, call churches that burden the faithful by their actions. Make Noise, Now.

I am a mexican immigrant and I came to this country with my family in 2003, because my father, a U.S. citizen (may Our Lord rest his soul) filed a petition for my legal residence 10 years earlier. We had to undergo rigorous health exams, x-rays and tests for certain diseases. We had to be given some vaccines that the U. S. DHSS deemed necessary. Our criminal background was checked thoroughly and we had to submit a lot of paperwork to prove that we would not become a burden to the U.S. We also had to answer a questionnaire under oath, stating that we were not communists, terrorists, criminals of any sort, having nothing to do with drugs or drug organizations, etc. Over all, the process took about 4 months. All of these procedures made perfect sense to us and made us have a lot of respect for a country that took great care and was concerned about who were they allowing to enter the country, so as not to put their own citizens at risk. For a real Catholic perspective on the real teaching of the Church about the issue of immigration, read this important essay: http://www.returntoorder.or...

I don't know what the church is like in Mexico or Central America. Do their bishops favor sending their own to America?

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI truly prophesied rightly. The Church will be poorer, smaller, but more fervent. Honestly, let it be. Let the faithful be filled with righteous indignation so that they will finally lay themselves out as an offering unto the Lord. Engage the enemy on their own turf. Go to the sodomite-pride festivals and engage in conversations about how disgusting sin is. Don't even talk about their sin. Talk about others and watch their faces still curdle.

Amen again!

amen

Bingo! You got that right: Hang on to the reins of the state to church grants coming to the USCCB and trash pro life to keep the money flow. So sad to see how low they will go to sell off life for pieces of silver.

The Johnson Amendment is from 1954 (not the 1960's)
when Lyndon Johnson was a United States Senator (not President).

"How is it that the bishops of Texas would collectively sign on to an agreement that could potentially bankrupt the Church in the United States?"

Gee, if I didn't know any better I'd say traitors infiltrated the Church to undermine her, bankrupt her and betray all her teachings and all her believers. But may that's just me...?

Oh and the fact the bishops of Texas turned in their man cards and allowed a WOMAN, Jennifer Carr Allmon, to be the EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of the Texas BISHOPS' Conference, is beyond laughable. What could you not find ONE, single (male) bishop to hold that post? I'm embarrassed for you.

Michael, where do you get your ties?

There was a fantastic BOGO sale at Jos A. Bank last week. According to a number of viewers in the last few years - I was in SORE need of some new ones. ;)

Yes, Michael has great ties. Very stylish.

This is utter nonsense. There is no way the Catholic Church will lose its tax exempt status over this. Just more CM sky-is-falling hucksterism.

True. They will just go along with some other political ploy to keep their tax exempt status. (will sell their soul to the highest bidder)

Good, good, good! lol The Church doesn't need to be aligned with the unrighteous king (US/Feds/Washington DC). The Church needs a fresh start through independence and practice of the right of self-determination, self-governance, yes! without the United States/Washington DC/Fed. Gov. and its people need to start lifting its eyes to God and His Kingdom to bring it down here on earth.

Don't be surprise those bishops know what they are doing. They depend on the ignorance of Catholic parishioners that don't know what the right of self-determination and self-governance is. It is too late for the old parishioners to ever practice this awesome right because they are too dependent on the system. It is a great opportunity for the young Catholics to pick up the cross of independence and live and build the Church again with God and aligned with Christ the King and Mary the Queen.

Is it really that difficult to understand this? I know it is. It took me 5 years to shift my way of thinking. It is possible, though.

The IRS should take over that church of nice and destroy it because from it a new Church, the old Church, should rise.

Do you see? Probably not, but that's alright. It's God's will for all men to owe allegiance to Him alone and not worldly systems of government. Jesus didn't, why should any of us Christians? It will happen whether you believe any of what I am saying or not, His Church will be again His, and believers will devote their lives to Him and Her, the Church, like saints always did.

Be blessed.

What is wrong with these Bishop's heads? Do they so enjoy engaging the world that they have forgotten the love of God?If so, they will soon be experiencing His wrath, and being crapped on from a great height is the least they have to worry about! Lord, we need holy priests & bishops & we need them NOW!

SO...I let my 11 year old watch the occasional Vortex (when the topic is suitable).

AND...his response to this one was...

"Those people in Texas should vote for ELEPHANTS instead of R(H)INOS."

Hahaha

Bless your heart for your kindness - he was pretty proud of that pun. 😊

All unborn human beings need protection from abortion, from conception to birth. Thinking about protecting only SOME unborn babies is, in my opinion, not pleasing to God because EACH ONE needs protection. I believe in protection for ALL unborn babies with "no exceptions" as did Lila Rose and does Judy Brown of the American Life League. Trying to protect them without total trust in God and Mary is a victory for Planned Parenthood. I think we need to believe in total protection for each age and condition, and that the victory will be ours by the grace of God and Mary, Mother of God.

The Johnson law was enacted before the 1960s after Lyndon Johnson narrowly won a Democratic primary for the US senate (tantamount to election in those days). He had been openly opposed by a clergyman. The Johnson amendment was the punishment meted out to religion because of this one person's exercise of his right to freedom of spech.

I wonder, if the Bishops' diocese in Texas loses exempt status, will all of the Catholic Churches become traditional again? I really do want all Catholic churches to be traditional again, and no more Church of Nice.
Michael is right. This is all mind-boggling.

If the Catholic Church loses their tax exemption then they would have to go after Black Churches which does politics as usual all the time.

The Texas bishops’ pastoral letter is clear on their reasons to bar TRL from our parishes. Your use of the immigration issue is a red herring. This is a tactic of the socialists. It can be found in a book written by a socialist that was dedicated to the devil. Please stop doing this. So let’s stick to the 3 issues that were sighted by the bishops. The 1st is that TRL opposes incremental pro-life legislation. Check. The 2nd is that TRL has opposed the bishops on end of life legislation. Check. And the 3rd is that TRL voter guide unfairly judges many legislators. Check again. You also claimed that Texas is no longer a leader in Pro-Life reform. I pray that you are just confused. The pro-life world looks to Texas for her leadership in her advancements of pro-life legislation. Finally, your claim that this will somehow lead to the loss of our tax exempt status is laughable. The bishops simply barred a political activist group from our parishes. I pray the next time you wade into Texas business, you won’t do it half-cocked. May God continue to bless you and your ministry/apostolate.

Speaking as a fellow Texan, the Texas right to life guide ranked people based on their political leanings - liberal, moderate, conservative, very conservative. The Bishops did elect to jump in when several of their Moderate/liberal incumbents were rated justly. One comment on Kel Seliger, that he had voted 100% pro life, was correct for the last Legislative session. However, if you look at his record, he always voted 100% pro life when coming into a potentially contested election, while voting an average of less than 50% prolife for non-election years. I believe (since he is my state senator) his off year voting reflects either his personal preferences, or those of his wife, who was the local head of Planned Parenthood for several years.

1) Our bishops point out that St. John Paul II wrote that we are allowed to vote for incremental improvements when it comes to issues like abortion, but not that we are required to support incremental legislation over absolutist legislation. I support incremental improvements, but when Texas Right to Life (TRL) works for absolutist legislation to end abortion that is *also* allowed. Also, TRL *has* supported incremental legislation.

2) I do *not* think that if I and my relatives determine in accord with our Catholic faith that we should receive life-saving treatment that a doctor's conscience rights should over-ride our right to treatment if the doctor thinks we would be better off dead because of his views on quality of life, availability of resources, or whatever else would inform *his* (or her) conscience. If a particular doctor cannot in good conscience give treatment, a doctor should be found who can. I agree with TRL on this issue.

3) The bishops wrote that the TRL voter guide opposes some pro-life legislators, but their voters' guide clearly supports pro-life legislators. What is wrong with that? They aren't promoting pro-abortion candidates over pro-life candidates, they are promoting some pro-life candidates over some *other* pro-life candidates. How is that worthy of rebuke?

Please watch tomorrow's vortex where the report goes into the multiple errors in the "statement".

Does TRL or their recommended legislators hold positions that are immoral or anti-Catholic requiring them to be banned from parishes?
TRL unfairly judges many legislators? Specifically HOW SO?
And exactly how has TRL slandered or defamed
those Legislators pro life efforts such that Texas Bishops now censor them from all parishes?
Red Herring? OK-What immigration benefits/monies do the bishops presently receive that the current legislators support??

If the bishops would have asked me, I would have advised them to not ban TRL. There are many Catholic lay organizations that have ties to the party of death that should have been booted way before TRL. And by them doing this, they are encouraging the socialist "catholics" to disparage the pro-life movement. This is what Michael V should have focused in on instead of immigration. Their is no relation between the two topics. Regarding the scoring of Legislators, my own rep was downgraded from 100% to 95% because he did not support an amendment (not a whole bill) that never received a vote. He publically disagreed with the amendment for a different reason than why TRL supported it. TRL didn't care. They just marked him down. And my rep is not the only one. To me, this is all disgraceful. We all want the same thing - to end abortion. Why the public infighting? When we sin, our children suffer. May God have mercy on us.

LOL please tell us about Saul Alinsky.

"The 1st is that TRL opposes incremental pro-life legislation. Check."

HB2 was incremental legislation, pushed by TRL. "Check"

TRL opposes involuntary passive euthanasia, and you never defined what constitutes "fair" evaluation of legislators. Not pro abort is a starting point for a standard.

Instead of just asserting that the immigration issue is a red herring, you should prove it.

What a joke of a comment. Must work in the chancery or something.

We are in a spiritual battle. The enemy has control of our government and many governments around the world. Pray that God will deliver us from this evil.

Top 11 Intrinsic Evils perpetrated by the US Government and other "1st" world countries:

11. Euthanasia / assisted suicide is already legal in some states. It will be the next big push by the evil-doers known as the party of death. SCOTUS will find a right to this in the near future as they did for hormonal contraceptives, abortion, no-fault divorce and so called “same-sex” marriage.

10. In Vitro Fertilization: violates the original commandment by separating the procreative from the unitive and destroys 6x or more human lives for every successful birth.

9. Legalized & Funded Embryonic Stem Cell Research and Human Cloning. And now we are learning that the abortion industry is pedaling the organs of the aborted babies to do “research” and "improve" consumer products. These are insidious forms of cannibalism.

8. Legalized & Promoted Pornography: breeds lust & destroys the ability to properly bond in marriage.

7. Attacks on Freedom of Conscience / Freedom of Religion (e.g., HHS mandate): erodes our ability to live & practice our Faith.

6. Redefinition of Marriage: denies the primacy of God's Word. Promotes acceptance of disordered sexual behavior, thus encouraging more of the same.

5. Non-Abstinence only Sex Education: Promotes & encourages sexual acts outside of Holy matrimony.

4. No Fault Divorce Laws: destroys the foundation of civilization & breeds selfishness with no regard for children. And no one is talking about this one.

3. Legalized & Funded Abortion: 60+ million innocent lives ripped from their mother's womb. And know that Jesus has watched each and every one.

2. Legalized & Funded Hormonal Contraception (despite it being a category 1 carcinogen): separates couples from the Grace of God by separating the unitive from the procreative, causes spontaneous abortions, and leads to the acceptance of all the other top 10 evils.

1. Replacing God with our Government: a clear disregard of the 1st commandment, an attempt at deicide. This includes all of the above intrinsic evils plus the removal of God from our public life. It also includes the massive wealth redistribution & unabated expansion of the National Debt: Theft sold as "social justice." In reality, it has enslaved generations and quite possibly could collapse our economy one day which would lead to a massive growth in poverty and suffering in the USA and around the world.

(Note that wealth redistribution & unabated expansion of the National Debt should be its own category above. However, many would stop reading the list as they mistakenly label this as political)

You really think that someone at a chancery would sport a profile pic like mine? The guy in charge of my diocese pro-life office has a pic of himself and our last president shaking hands. And it is hanging on his diocese office wall. Apparently, he has no clue, nor does his boss. (or maybe he does O_O) Pray for their conversion.

Red Herring: "a fact, idea, or subject that takes people's attention away from the central point being considered." There is no evidence of a connection between the bishops' support of illegal immigration and their barring TRL publicizing on parishes grounds. Expo facto, the use of illegal immigration is by definition, a red herring. “They are guilty of supporting illegal immigration, therefore they must be guilty of unjust treatment of TRL. Somebody get a rope.” O_o

Opposing abortion should definitely be the lion’s share of our consideration when voting. There are other issues that should be considered as well. So if two guys are solidly opposed to abortion, then you can go down the list of intrinsic evils to see who falls of 1st.

Please read my responses to others to clarify the rest of your concerns.

There are many PAC’s, especially Democratic ones, who support issues which oppose ACTUAL CHURCH TEACHINGS, not just bishops’ particular positions and political preferences. I’ve seen zero pastoral letters denouncing these groups from Texas bishops. TRL is the oldest, largest, most successful and powerful pro-life group in Texas. This action by the Texas bishops is disgraceful!

I agree with you on the confused message from our shepherds. They mention issues of prudential judgment in the same sentence with issues involving intrinsic evils. The abortion issue alone is dispositive. There are many more that outweigh their stance on illegal immigration. Catholics have a moral obligation to vote against the party of death. Pray for His priests and bishops.
"There are no 'truly grave moral' or 'proportionate' reasons, singularly or combined that could outweigh the millions of innocent human lives that are directly killed by abortion each year."
Bishops Farrell & Vann, 2008

Seriously? I did not weigh in on immigration one way or the other. Stick to the merits of the topic at hand. Do not add or subtract from the bishops' letter. And please take your sanctimonious condemnation to the box at the back of the church.

I stated that their, "use of the immigration issue is a red herring." Sorry for the confusion. For the record, I am 100% behind locking down our boarder to prevent illegal immigration. Build a wall and whatever else it takes. We have a moral obligation to stop illegal immigration. Ask yourself, who is responsible for the rape and pillage, the sex slavery and murder of those enticed to run the gauntlet in hopes of reaching the USA (illegally). Pray for the conversion of those that promote it.

I have my TRTL voters guide ready for tomorrow.

Funny that those 30 pieces of silver could wind up bankrupting the Catholic church of USA. (TM)

The image of Our Lady offensive? Such a thought brings me to tears. How backwards can one’s thinking be to find Our Lady’s image offensive? Worse, why should a bishop prefer than to hide her in appeasement of those who don’t know her rather than to praise her?

“Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array?” Sg. 6:9

Michael, if I could like this post 10,000 times - I would.

Me, too.

Double dittos,

So would I.