Thursday 5 August 2010

The Benedictine Sisters of Virginia denounced the notion that the death of one of their own had become a political rallying cry. Sister Denise Mosier OSB was killed Sunday in a car crash on Bristow Road, when, police said, 23-year-old Carlos A. Martinelly Montano slammed into the car in which she was riding. Two other sisters who were also in the car were flown to a local hospital where they remained in critical condition Tuesday (WTVR, Richmond, VA). Carlos Montano, who police say is illegally in the country, is charged with drunken driving, involuntary manslaughter and felony driving on a revoked license after the accident in Prince William County.

The Department of Homeland Security and local politicians expressed outrage that Montano has been allowed to stay in this country (InsideNoVa.com). "The Benedictine Sisters are dismayed and saddened that this tragedy has been politicized and become an apparent forum for the illegal immigration agenda," said Benedictine Sister Glenna Smith OSB. "While grieving and dealing with the death and severe injuries of our sisters, we would like to re-focus attention on the consequences of drinking and driving, and on Christ's command to forgive" (Statement, August 3, 2010). Come on now Sisters, please don’t talk around the elephant sitting there, on the table! ILLEGAL is the elephant.

Cardinal Francis George, The President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, decried the August 4 decision of a federal judge to overturn California voters' 2008 initiative that protected marriage as the union of one man and one woman. “Marriage between a man and a woman is the bedrock of any society. The misuse of law to change the nature of marriage undermines the common good,” Cardinal George said. “It is tragic that a federal judge would overturn the clear and expressed will of the people in their support for the institution of marriage. No court of civil law has the authority to reach into areas of human experience that nature itself has defined.”

Now Cardinal, it’s wrong for a Federal Judge to overturn what is clearly expressed by the people, right? What about Illegal Immigration? The people clearly oppose it! You and your cronies endorse it! What the hell is the difference?

Cardinal George, Illegal immigration is immoral because:
--Illegal immigrants defy the laws of the host nation.
--Illegal’s, by the millions, take American jobs, especially, but not solely, devastating lower-income minority communities and robbing native-born Americans of much-needed jobs during these tough economic times.
--An estimated 70,000 illegal, criminal gang members have infiltrated our cities.
--Illegal immigration has spawned an entire industry of identity theft, disrupting the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocent men, women, and children.
--Even legal immigration, due to the so-called brain drain, is further under developing already underdeveloped nations.
--Illegal immigration enables corrupt Third World leaders to pocket taxpayer monies that should be used for national development.
--The families of illegal, who remain behind in the host country, are disrupted, causing enormous socioeconomic and spiritual harm. Family life is devalued for material gain.
--The politics of ignoring immigration laws have encouraged Catholic Church leaders [like Cardinal George] to and aid and abet all the evils connected with illegal immigration, thus corrupting the churches themselves.