O’Malley pays tribute to Shriver's faith

Great post!

Belief in God is such a motivator for so many people to do good and be good.

A nice post. Got me thinking about what a great Archbishop of Boston Mrs. Shriver might have been.

The life of Eunice Kennedy Shriver gives the lie to those who assert that pro-lifers only care about the baby before s/he is born. Shriver showed that by caring for the baby before and at birth, we can then care for him/her especially if s/he turns out to have special needs, and for the social justice needs of the downtrodden symbolized in the name Ceasar (not Hugo) Chavez. May Eunice be justly rewarded by our Lord, and more folks in public life follow her example of conception to natural death love and care for all humans.

I would like to know the truth about Rosemary's alleged lobotomy.
Was she of high-school age when it was preformed?
All the kings horses, and all the kings men couldn't put Rosemary together agaZin.
With all his wealth Joe opted for his daughter to spend her life
in a nunnery?

What an inspiration Eunice Kennedy Shriver was! She worked so hard for those with special needs.
May you rest in the eternal peace of the Lord, Eunice.

With all the Kennedy/Shiver money --- to respond to Ed Nelson. What have you done lately to better the world, the USA, MA, your family or even yourself? With all the pros and cons for this wonderful family --- compare this family to your own.........
All they work and wish for is.... goodness in the world, by helping others. If a family member ... like Rosemary has a difficulty .... I am sure at the time they did everything possible to help her. God works in wonderous ways .... maybe HIS plan was to learn from her - Eunice and the family did. Too bad you did not.

It's disappointing that Cardinal O'Malley accepted it as normal for anyone to kiss his ring. It shows that he is not literate in Scripture, and that he too, has been indoctrinated with Vatican ways. Further, I pray the new crop of Kennedy children will NOT kiss anyone's ring (or any other part of the clergy's anatomy).

WHO we know will not get us into heaven, and we cannot work our way in, either. I pray the younger generation will read Scripture, and learn what is important.

Oh come on, Cradle. He was using the ring as a point of reference for Shriver's mental capacity to recognize others. Don't read something sinister into it.

Cradle, looks like you have been indoctrinated with the "sola scriptura" stuff... Been there, done that... please come back to the core of the Church... Your brethren think that the deposit of faith is only contained in scripture... the bible doesn't teach that, and that thinking is rather new in church history... come home, Cradle, come home!

Eunice Kennedy Shriver made inspiring footprints we are all want to follow. The disabled are no longer shrouded in secrecy as 'untouchables', but integrated as a crucial part of our society and the kingdom of love, calling us us to service. For many these are hard steps to follow, nevertheless we are blessed by her existence, work and crusade. Eunice's zest for life, faith & love of family set standards for every generation.

Cradle Catholic, your comment shows you're not literate in scripture. Sola Scriptura is a very un-biblical concept. Both in the old Testament which speaks of the tradition of Moses, and in the new Testament which notes that there are many things which Jesus said and did which the people clearly knew about, but which were too many to be contained in one book, the importance of tradition is highlighted. There's also the fact that the Bible as one book was not put together until the lat 300's AD. If that's the case, what did the Church do for the first 300 years or so?

As far as Sargent Shriver’s kissing of the Cardinal’s ring. It’s a sign of respect more to the office of bishop than to the particular office holder (though the office-holder in this case is a good and holy man). It’s ultimately a sign of respect to the Church which Christ instituted. Have traditions arisen which the early Church knew nothing about? Clearly they have, but it’s more a matter of culture developing and finding ways to express and reverence the fullness of the faith, rather than simply un-Christian accretions being created.

If all Catholics had the reverence and respect which Eunice Shriver and Sargent Shriver have for it. If all Catholics were willing to love it, to learn the faith, and to hold the Church accountable and bring it back during those times when it has strayed (like such luminaries as St. Catherine of Siena have done), the Church would truly be a powerhouse!

So Cradle Catholic, learn the faith before you bash it. And may Eunice Shriver rest in peace and richly enjoy the reward for a life filled with love of God and all his people, particularly the most neglected and forgotten!

I am not a cradle catholic. I know Scriptures. I am beside myself at the moment knowing our humble Cardinal who was so awe -inspired by the kissing ring thing is such a hypocrite. A priest from ours in the Archdiocese , name withheld, who faces mental challenges of his own was begged not to return to his homeland in Boston for good. Now there's charity.

Yes, I'm pretty angry at the moment. I know this is not a made up or exaggerated story because the good Cardinal and his elite chain of command would not meet with me regarding this person several years ago.

To comment # 8 Biscuit - You are right and I am wrong. I *did* read too much into it. Having re-read it, per your suggestion, I see the cardinal was merely referring to Mr. Shriver's ability to recognize him. Thank you for pointing that out, & may Eunice's soul rest in peace. Maria Shriver's eulogy was inspiring, as was the good example of faith from her parents.

To comment # 9, KJR - I never left the Roman Catholic Church, and have been to mass (believe it or not) 4 times this weekend. Not that I'm trying to "work my way into Heaven"... I know it doesn't work like that "lest no man boast".

I just love the mass! It's the most perfect prayer. I go to 8AM mass Saturday morning; 5PM Saturday night. 9AM on Sunday & I help with a senior citizen center mass at 11AM. So I never left the church ever; I'm middle aged. The only thing I did differently, was read the bible. which brings me to...

Comment # 11, Colin --
Questioning a Roman Catholic practice is not "bashing". It's merely questioning a practice. We are called to love God with our hearts, and our MINDS and our souls.

My questioning isn't based on Sola Sciptura. I base my questioning on:
I look for Truth (Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life", thus, we find "truth" in 1) Scripture; next, I look at 2) Universal Church Tradition" throughout a 2000 year history, and then 3) I use my own Reason, to see where everything fits.
Even the USCCB and the Vatican should approve of that process.

We are called to "test the spirits", and "hold fast to what is True". Thus, Scripture, Universal Church Tradition and Reason, is how I 'test the spirits". Do you suggest another way?

Specifically, thank you for taking the time to explain the custom of kissing the ring of a cardinal is to show respect for the office. And in the secular world, I accept that deference. But I do not accept it, within the Body of Christ.

Here's why:
At the foot of the cross there is a level playing field. There is 'neither man, nor woman, nor slave nor free... ' We are all equal in the Body of Christ. There IS no "office". We all have different roles and the goal is to glorify God.

Thus, kissing a ring and showing deference to a person, based on office is a *bad* custom, and a slippery slope that nurtures "clericalism". Outside of Ireland, Boston is a stellar example of what clericalism brings.

Jesus said the one that seeks a high position in His kingdom is to take the position of a servant among them. So kissing a cardinal's ring isn't even good for the cardinal. We need to have reverence and respect for God and for each other, as people, but not for an office among the members of the Body of Christ.

Lastly, you asked what the church did prior to compilation of the New Testament. That period of time was within the "Universal Church Tradition" I mentioned earlier. In order for a book to be included in the New Testament, it had to be read and accepted by ALL the churches at the time, making it "universal" and a part of church "tradition".

If a letter or a book was not read in ALL the churches, but only in SOME churches, it did NOT make it into the new Testament that we have today.

So even in the compilation of what we know as the New Testament, the early church used 1) Scripture, (Hebrew Bible), 2) Universal Church Tradition (among them were readings read at the Liturgy of the Word at the early church's "Lord's Supper") and 3) Reason, in order to form the foundation of Christian dogma, doctrine and practices.

The tradition of the kissing the ring is not just a show of respect for the office of the Bishop. At one time, there was a relic of a saint contained within the ring; this showed the connetion to the tradition and the role of the bishop in that tradition. The act of kissing the ring was a public sign of reverence to that (similar to the priest kissing the altar at the start of mass--the altar stone contains a relic, a tradition dating back to the early Christians celebrating mass on the tombs of the martyrs in the Catacombs.

Cradle Catholic, I don't disagree with your eloquent response. Thank you. I still affirm though that while clericalism is a serious disease to beware of, it should not thoroughly make us avoid any signs or gestures of respect. Afterall, when respect is showed to one member of the body of Christ, it is shown to the whole body. The kissing of the ring, is showing reverence to the role of being a fisher of men, which again reflects Christ's presence among us in the person of the bishop. It is not that bishops are holier, or wiser than other people, but they are an essential part of the church Christ instituted.

Colin-
Find me a bishop that knows his bible and lives it; a bishop whose work bears the *fruit* of saving souls for Christ (a man like Billy Graham) not a bishop that merely fills a church with people that contribute to his Annual Diocesan Appeals, that sit in the pews for 50 years, not understanding the Christian faith they proclaim to believe, and I'll show you a true Fisher of Men. Get a bishop in the trenches, doing Bible studies and acting like a regular guy (which he is).

That man won't need anyone to kiss his ring. At the end of his life, a pat on the back from God, a "Well done, good and faithful servant" will be enough for him.
Bottom line: that is *all* that counts, for all of us. A commendation from God.

Colin, we already know how to treat each other - it's all there in the Bible. Regarding clergy - we are not to "muzzle an ox" - and we are to support, encourge and affirm them.

But we are not to kiss their rings. That must be a custom from feudal times that the church adapted, maybe with the relics about which Dave wrote. Who knows. It's still a bad idea. A humble bishop may have even sold his ring, to give it to the poor. He would know what is important. He would have *no* ring to kiss.

Let's all read Scripture, and not tamper with the pearls of wisdom it contains. Even the Vatican holds the Bible as the inspired Word of God, right from the Holy Spirit. It can get no better than having instructions about our church, given directly from Him, the Holy Spirit.

We reverence the Holy Bible at Sunday mass, holding it up and singing Allelulia to it. But how much more reverence can we pay to His Word, than to READ what it says, and to HEED it's advice, and to CHANGE our lives, based on its wise and sound teaching.

Duet. Chapter 6 is the most often quoted phrase the whole world. Orhtodox Jews quote it daily, and for 4000 years, Jesus was even raised knowing that. We honor God by heeding the wisdom in that chapter. Let's teach our children to know God, to love God and to serve God -- so that we, and they, can live with Him forever.

The path is narrow. It's there for us to find. We start the journey in His Word. I was clueless sitting in the pews, going through the motions of being "Catholic", until I got into His Word. I got all A's in Catechism & I knew nothing of importance.

Many Traditions are good. But when 'tradition' is put over God's Word, it is bad. Read Mark Chapter 7..... and then just continue to read God's love letter to us. Reading the Bible is the single best thing I ever did in my life.

Today is my birthday, by the way. When I blow out the candles on my birthday cake tonight, I will wish for what I wrote in my first sentence to come true! ,,, and pray that with all the candles on the cake, it won't set off a fire alarm.

May both Ted and Eunice rest in God's peace.

What do you think the likelihood is that Cardinal O'Malley will celebrate Ted's funeral?