The Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Australia, George Cardinal Pell, has created quite a stir by suggesting that any Catholic member of parliament who supported overturning a ban on therapeutic cloning would face "consequences."
In response to his outspoken defense of Church teaching, including the wages of sin, he was roundly criticized by some politicians including a "frontbencher" (politician) who urged the cardinal to apologize to Catholic MPs or risk comparisons with a controversial Muslim leader, Sheik Taj Aidin Alhilall.
The cardinal was accused of "world class" hypocrisy because since a politician would not interfere with Church teaching, a cardinal should not interfere in politics.
While I find this quite offensive, and know that the cardinal is not about to back down regardless of what sort of bullying tactics are used to intimidate him, I do find it interesting that those who are always so quick to criticize courageous churchmen are usually people who could not defend their positions on such things as killing preborn babies and thus have to resort to such childish tactics.
Thankfully, Cardinal Pell is sticking to his guns, and told the press, ""In a pluralistic society bishops are free to explain Catholic doctrines and discipline, while all individuals and legislators are free to accept or reject what is proposed."
Bravo, your Eminence. We salute you, praise God for you and hope your American counterparts are paying very close attention.
If you would like to thank Cardinal Pell personally, you can do so by e-mailing
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