It’s morally indefensible that abortions of viable children could occur while nearby, infants of identical gestational age embrace life in NICUs. Our laws and conscience cannot remain divided on whether the value of a child’s life, or any life, depends solely on whether he or she is wanted or is convenient to others. Any society that adopts such a standard places itself on a slippery slope, where the worth of human life becomes negotiable and the powerless exist only at the mercy of the powerful.
New Jersey abolished capital punishment to spare even the lives of convicted criminals. How can we now contemplate taking viable innocent lives that have committed no crime and have no advocate?
As an adoptive father, I know firsthand that a life once despaired of can become a source of immeasurable love. Countless families are ready to open their hearts if our policies make choosing life as accessible as its alternative.
We’re calling on the New Jersey Legislature to ensure that every public dollar spent facilitating abortion is matched by a dollar supporting life, — housing, prenatal care, adoption support, and childcare assistance for mothers in crisis. Otherwise “choice” is no choice at all.
True compassion defends both mother and child. True choice requires real support.
“While compassion must always embrace the mother, it can never excuse the deliberate taking of innocent life.”
#AOH #ProLife #TrueChoice #NewJersey #DefendLife #SupportMothers
]]>The apparition in County Mayo in Ireland of Our Lady of Knock is reported to have occurred on the evening of August 21, 1879, the vigil of the octave of the feast of the Assumption. Those who witnessed the miracle ranged in age from five years old to seventy-five.
The apparition was described as follows: “Our Lady was wearing a large, brilliant crown and clothed in white garments. On her right was Saint Joseph, his head inclined toward her and on her left Saint John the Evangelist. To the left of Saint John was an altar on which stood a cross and a lamb.” Standing only a few feet off the ground, the Blessed Virgin wore a white cloak and was described by witnesses as being incredibly beautiful. She wore a bright golden crown, and appeared to be praying with her eyes looking toward heaven with her arms bend in front of her with her palms facing inward.
Fifteen parishioners stood to witness the apparition for two hours as they recited the rosary. Although it was daylight when the apparition began, the weather turned for the worse and it began to rain heavily. The area around the apparition appeared unaffected, however, as the ground remained dry as long as the vision lasted. She did not speak, but the gable of the church where the manifestation was made was covered with a cloud of light.
Saint Joseph, the foster-father of Jesus, also wore white robes and stood on the Virgin’s right. He inclined his head respectfully toward the Blessed Virgin. Saint John the Evangelist wore a miter, and appeared to be preaching as he held a book in his left hand.
Since then thousands of people have gone to Knock to pray to Our Lady. Their prayerful, penitential and reverential spirit has been commended again and again by visitors from other lands. No sign of commercialism detracts from the purely religious atmosphere of that hallowed spot. People from all walks of life kneel in humble supplication before the shrine of Our Lady, fully confident that she has sanctified that spot by her apparition.
Organized pilgrimages from various dioceses are conducted frequently to the shrine of Our Lady of Knock. The rosary comprises the main portion of the devotion; the shrine is therefore appropriately called the Rosary Shrine. The “Knock Shrine Annual” relates many interesting stories of cures and conversions effected at the shrine.
Brothers, in today’s world, might I suggest a prayer to Our Lady!
Our Lady of Knock, Pray for us!
In our motto,
James Russell
Catholic Action Chairman,
Ancient Order of Hibernians in America, Inc.
Note: Since August 17th, 2025 falls on a Sunday this year, the feast day is not celebrated.
]]>Celebrated every year on August 15th, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is important to many Catholics and Orthodox Christians as the day that Mary was received into Heaven at the end of her earthly life. This is not a Holy Day of Obligation this year; please stop into a Church to pray during the day to honor our Blessed Mother on this special day.
Can you imagine what a moment the Assumption must have been for Mary! In describing the scene, some Church Fathers spoke of Jesus Himself coming back to Earth to take His mother and bring her to her Heavenly home.
Many years ago, St. John Paul II said that the Assumption truly was an event of love, in which Mary’s ardent longing to be with her Son was finally fulfilled. In fact, many paintings of the Assumption portray Mary rising in splendor on a cloud to Heaven, received by the angels with trumpets and celebration, and reunited joyfully with her beloved Son.
In light of the Assumption of Mary, it is easy to pray her Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) with new meaning. In her glory, she proclaims the greatness of the Lord and finds joy in God, her Savior. God has done marvels to her and she leads others to recognize God’s holiness. She is the lowly handmaid who deeply reverenced her God and has been raised to Heavenly heights.
Who can describe the benefits of devotion to Mary? She not only listens, she anticipates our petitions, and grants them beyond all expectations. Let us make every effort to guard our devotion to Mary as a precious treasure.
Let us take Mary for our Mother and let us pray to her every morning and evening, and in life’s difficult trials Mary will comfort and save us.
On this special day, let us join in her joy and happiness.
The Almighty has done great things for me, And Holy is His Name.
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Mary has a unique place in salvation history and in the Church. Because she responded yes to becoming the Mother of God, she is our first model of discipleship and our model of grace and trust in God.
Among Catholics, May is most well known as “Mary’s Month,” a specific month of the year when special devotions are performed in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Ancient Greek and Western cultures view May as a month of life and motherhood. This was long before “Mother’s Day” was ever conceived, though the modern celebration is closely related to honor mothers during the spring months.
In the early Church there is evidence of a major feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary celebrated on the May 15th each year, but, it wasn’t until the 18th century that May received a particular association with the Virgin Mary. It was a Jesuit priest in Italy who asked his students to make a vow to devote the month of May to Mary. This practice spread to other Jesuit colleges and to the universal Church.
In 1945, Pope Pius XII solidified May as a Marian month after establishing the feast of the Queenship of Mary on May 31st. After the Second Vatican Council, this feast was moved to August 22nd, while May 31st became the feast of the Visitation of Mary.
The Month of May is one rich in tradition and a beautiful time of the year to honor our heavenly mother.
Below are some Marian Celebrations and Feast Days:
Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God (January 1st)
Our Lady of Lourdes (February 11th)
The Annunciation (March 25th)
May Crownings
Our Lady of Fatima (May 13th)
The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (Day after Pentecost)
Our Lady of Mount Carmel (July 16th)
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (August 15th)
Our Lady of Knock (August 17th)
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (September 8th)
Our Lady of the Rosary (October 7th)
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (November 21st)
The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (December 8th)
Our Lady of Guadalupe (December 12th)
May Our Lady, Queen of Ireland continue to watch over us and protect us!
Peace and Prayers,
Jim Russell
Catholic Action Chairperson
National Ancient Order of Hibernians
]]>“We look forward to working with Bishop Elect Keehner as he assumes the office of Bishop for the Diocese of Sioux City, Iowa”, said Sean Pender, National President of the Ancient Order of Hibernians President. As our immediate past National Chaplain, I have worked with Bishop Elect Keehner on a number of different projects. Our Brother Hibernians in Ohio have sung the praises of Bishop Elect Keehner. We look forward to working with him now as the Bishop of Sioux City, Iowa in the future.
Immediate Past National President Daniel J. O’Connell echoed that praise, stating, “Father Keehner is a natural leader. His sincerity and wisdom guided the AOH on all levels of our Order. His commitment to our faith and his work ethic is second to none. I am confident in his continued success.”
Father Keehner, 59, is a native of Youngstown, Ohio, and is one of five children. He attended Austintown schools and graduated from Austintown Fitch High School in 1984.
Father Keehner earned a B.A. in English in 1988 from the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio. He then began studies at Mount St. Mary Seminary of the West in Cincinnati where he earned his M.Div. and M.A. in biblical studies in 1993.
He was ordained a priest in 1993 by Bishop James Malone at St. Columba Cathedral. His first assignment was parochial vicar for St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Boardman, Ohio. Father Keehner began canon law studies at the University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the Angelicum) in Rome and earned a licentiate in canon law in 1999. The priest was then assigned as a judge to the diocesan Department of Canonical Services.
He has served as vice rector and later rector of the St. Columba Cathedral, director of campus ministry at Youngstown State University. He has served as pastor of St. Casimir Parish, St. Christine Parish in Youngstown as well as St. Luke in Boardman, St. Paul in North Canton and Holy Spirit in Uniontown.
The bishop-elect currently serves as dean in Ashtabula County, Ohio, and is pastor of four parishes in the Diocese of Youngstown:
– Our Lady of Peace Parish in Ashtabula, Ohio
– Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Geneva, Ohio
– Corpus Christi Parish in Conneaut, Ohio
– St. Andrew Bobola Parish in Sheffield, Ohio
Father Keehner served as adjunct instructor of canon law at St. Mary Seminary in the Diocese of Cleveland from 2021-24.
In additional pastoral assignments, the bishop-elect has served on the diocesan board of religious education, priest council, board of mediation and arbitration for the Office of Conciliation, presbyteral council and the priest personnel board. Father Keehner has served as a spiritual director for the permanent diaconate.
The bishop-elect has served as state chaplain and national chaplain for the Ancient Order of Hibernians.
“The National Ancient Order of Hibernians welcomes you to the episcopate!”
“ Beannacht Dé leat agus go gcoinní Dia thú”
We know he was a carpenter, a working man, for the skeptical Nazarenes ask about Jesus, “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” (Matthew 13:55). He wasn’t rich for when he took Jesus to the Temple to be circumcised and Mary to be purified he offered the sacrifice of two turtledoves or a pair of pigeons, allowed only for those who could not afford a lamb (Luke 2:24).
Despite his humble work and means, Joseph came from a royal lineage. Luke and Matthew disagree some about the details of Joseph’s genealogy but they both mark his descent from David, the greatest king of Israel (Matthew 1:1-16 and Luke 3:23-38). Indeed the angel who first tells Joseph about Jesus greets him as “son of David,” a royal title used also for Jesus.
We know Joseph was a compassionate, caring man. When he discovered Mary was pregnant after they had been betrothed, he knew the child was not his, but, was as yet unaware that she was carrying the Son of God. He knew women accused of adultery could be stoned to death, so he resolved to send her away quietly to not expose her to shame or cruelty. However, when an angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins,” he did as the angel told him and took Mary as his wife. (Matthew 1:19-25).
When the angel came again to tell him that his family was in danger, he immediately left everything he owned, all his family and friends, and fled to a strange country with his young wife and the baby. He waited in Egypt without question until the angel told him it was safe to go back (Matthew 2:13-23).
We know Joseph loved Jesus. His one concern was for the safety of this child entrusted to him. Not only did he leave his home to protect Jesus, but upon his return settled in the obscure town of Nazareth out of fear for his life. When Jesus stayed in the Temple we are told Joseph (along with Mary) searched with great anxiety for three days for him (Luke 2:48). We also know that Joseph treated Jesus as his own son for over and over the people of Nazareth say of Jesus, “Is this not the son of Joseph?” (Luke 4:22)
Since Joseph does not appear in Jesus’ public life, at his death, or resurrection, many historians believe Joseph probably had died before Jesus entered public ministry.
Joseph is the patron saint of the dying because, assuming he died before Jesus’ public life, he died with Jesus and Mary close to him, the way we all would like to leave this earth.
Joseph is also patron saint of the Universal Church, families, fathers, expectant mothers (pregnant women), travelers, immigrants, house sellers and buyers, craftsmen, engineers, and working people in general.
We celebrate two feast days for Joseph: March 19 for Joseph the Husband of Mary and May 1 for Joseph the Worker. March 19 has been the most commonly celebrated feast day for Joseph, and it wasn’t until 1955 that Pope Pius XII established the Feast of “St. Joseph the Worker” to be celebrated on May 1. This is also May Day (International Workers’ Day) and believed to reflect Joseph’s status as the patron of workers.
In art, Joseph is typically portrayed as an older man, with grey hair and a beard, often balding, sometimes appearing frail and a marginal figure next to Mary and Jesus, if not entirely in the background. Some statues of Joseph show his staff topped with flowers. St. Joseph is shown with the attributes of a carpenter’s square or tools, the infant Jesus, his lily blossomed staff, two turtle doves, or a spikenard.
There is much we still wish we could know about Joseph — exactly where and when he was born, how he spent his days, exactly when and how he died. But Scripture has left us with the most important knowledge: who he was — “a righteous man” (Matthew 1:18).
Prayer:
Saint Joseph, patron of the universal Church, watch over the Church as carefully as you watched over Jesus, help protect it and guide it as you did with your adopted son. Amen
James Russell
Catholic Action Chairperson
]]>St. Patrick of Ireland is one of the world’s most popular saints. He was born in Roman Britain and when he was fourteen or so, he was captured by Irish pirates during a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave to herd and tend sheep. At the time, Ireland was a land of Druids and pagans but Patrick turned to God and wrote his memoir, The Confession. In The Confession, he wrote:
“The love of God and his fear grew in me more and more, as did the faith, and my soul was rosed, so that, in a single day, I have said as many as a hundred prayers and in the night, nearly the same. I prayed in the woods and on the mountain, even before dawn. I felt no hurt from the snow or ice or rain.”
Patrick’s captivity lasted until he was twenty, when he escaped after having a dream from God in which he was told to leave Ireland by going to the coast. There he found some sailors who took him back to Britain and was reunited with his family.
A few years after returning home, Patrick saw a vision he described in his memoir: “I saw a man coming, as it were from Ireland. His name was Victoricus, and he carried many letters, and he gave me one of them. I read the heading: ‘The Voice of the Irish.’ As I began the letter, I imagined in that moment that I heard the voice of those very people who were near the wood of Foclut, which is beside the western sea-and they cried out, as with one voice: ‘We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us.'”
The vision prompted his studies for the priesthood. He was ordained by St. Germanus, the Bishop of Auxerre, whom he had studied under for years, and was later ordained a bishop and sent to take the Gospel to Ireland.
Patrick arrived in Slane, Ireland on March 25, 433. There are several legends about what happened next; with the most prominent claiming he met the chieftain of one of the druid tribes, who tried to kill him. After an intervention from God, Patrick was able to convert the chieftain and preach the Gospel throughout Ireland. There, he converted many people -eventually thousands – and he began building churches across the country.
He often used shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity and entire kingdoms were eventually converted to Christianity after hearing Patrick’s message.
Patrick preached and converted all of Ireland for 40 years. He worked many miracles and wrote of his love for God in Confessions. After years of living in poverty, traveling and enduring much suffering he died March 17, 461.
He died at Saul, where he had built the first Irish church. He is believed to be buried in Down Cathedral, Downpatrick. His grave was marked in 1990 with a granite stone.
In His Footsteps:
Patrick was a humble, pious, gentle man, whose love and total devotion to and trust in God should be a shining example to each of us. So complete was his trust in God, and of the importance of his mission, he feared nothing -not even death.
“The Breastplate,” Patrick’s poem of faith and trust in God:
“Christ be within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ inquired, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.”
St. Patrick, Patron Saint of Ireland, Pray for us!
]]>Do you remember a time when someone or something changed before your eyes and even though you were afraid, you saw the beauty of that moment? Jesus’s transfiguration is a glimpse of transformation to which we are all called to experience in the resurrection. However, we are called to live day by day, remembering that God is faithful to his promise. While we must endure many fears, hardships, and pain on our journey of life, the only thing that will endure is God’s love for us.
The call of God is not just for us to have a mountain-top experience but to live this mountain-top experience on the ground in the midst of those who hunger and thirst to hear that they are God’s beloved. We will forever hold sacred and be encouraged on our faith journey by our experience and memory of Jesus, transfigured and broken for us. We worship Jesus as one who was sent from God to show us what it means to be human. Jesus invites us, with our many weaknesses, to grow in holiness. We may not see great visions, but we must still follow God faithfully. Without faith, we cannot please God.
No matter what’s going on in your life, God is in control. Never lose heart. Do not be afraid. God’s plan for our lives will always lead us through whatever we are experiencing. We trust in the power of God to see us through this difficult and uncertain time. During this season of Lent, we are called to be the dream of God living in this world. Our transfiguration comes when we are willing to place before God all that blinds us and keeps us from trusting him.
We need a revival. A moment to lift our voices with strength and call on the name of the Lord. Let this moment be our moment of transfiguration. We ask God to break the chains that bind us! We ask God to speak a healing word into our lives. We ask God to lead us and guide us on this journey as we strive to change. Jesus is pardon for the sinner and a shepherd who invites us to listen. We all can change. We are never alone. God’s mission has a church and a people who seek what is right and just. We are his pilgrim people following Jesus, the one who God calls his beloved.
Our lives are filled with transfigurations and change. These moments can cause us fear, surprise, and hope. We are called to be attentive to moments where God is revealed in our lives. We are called to open our eyes and hearts to deepen our relationship with Jesus in our lives.
Let us continue to pray for one another
James Russell
Catholic Action Chairperson
National AOH
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“Let it crawl, Rev! Let it crawl!” shouted the congregants.
“And then,” the Reverend continued, “a Church needs to walk!”
“Let it walk, Rev!” yelled the people in the pews. “Let it walk!!!”
“And my brothers and sisters,” the minister said, his voice growing,” after this Church walks, it needs to run!!!”
“Let it run, Rev! Let it run!” shouted the congregants, matching the pastor’s volume.
Now the Reverend was leaning forward, the veins in his face bulging, “And for this Church to run, it’s gotta have MONEY!!!”
“Let it crawl, Rev! Let it crawl!”
These uneasy and uncertain time in which we live has wreaked absolute havoc on our personal lives and our economy. A large number of businesses have closed, people are out of work, and more than ten million people have applied for unemployment.
Our churches are not exempted from this financial uncertainty. We all have been benefitting from on-line worship either through EWTN or our own parishes streaming worship, but those collection baskets cannot come through the television or computer screens. And while when it comes to church, we are fond of saying, “It is not about money,” it really is about money. Past D.C. President George Rogers reports that some collections in his archdiocese are down seventy percent. Those collections keep the lights on and the water running, pay the salaries of those workers who assist the clergy in their ministry, and—perhaps most importantly—assist those who are less fortunate and rely on parishes for significant support.
Brother Rogers is right to call upon the great generosity of the members of our Ancient Order to step up and encourage one another and the people who would be in the pews to continue being generous and donating to their parishes as usual. A check in an envelope into the post office may seem archaic, but we actually still consider that an effective method. For those who want to be more in the 21st Century, then Brother Rogers has suggested www.faithdirect.net/church-staff/ as a method of contributing to your parishes.
Some of our fellow Hibernian Brothers are not in position to contribute at this time. Some of our brothers, though, can certainly pick up the slack if needed. Brother Rogers has rightfully pointed out that this Ancient Order was founded to protect our churches and clergy. This is but one manner in which we Hibernians can make sure the churches and our clergy can continue serving and come out of this ready to serve in person, and I am both pleased and proud to forward these helpful suggestions and appropriate exhortations to all the Brotherhood to “let it run!”.
]]>The Ancient Order of Hibernians is an organization with clearly defined principles. We stand for a free and united Ireland and the comprehensive principle of life, and we stand with all children and vulnerable adults who have suffered abuse and failed to receive justice. Christian Charity “comes from God Himself, from our Blessed Savior’s Most Sacred Heart that throbs forever with love for mankind.” It is a “divine love filling the universe with inspiration and with hope.” “Charity of thought, act, and word is the essence of fraternal love.”
The small number of priests and religious who have yielded to the demons into their souls and those who have enabled them have not only violated their Sacred Vows and Orders but have denied those who are vulnerable the gift of Christian Charity. At our annual meeting held in conjunction with the National President’s Testimonial Dinner, the National Board resoundingly approved a motion to hold another Day of Prayer and Fasting in solidarity with the victims of the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church and to continue to do so until the scourge of sexual abuse is eradicated from the Church.
Therefore, the Ancient Order of Hibernians in America, Inc., and its National Board and Officers call upon its membership to engage in a Day of Prayer and Fasting for the victims of the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church on Sunday, December 8, 2019, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. All Hibernians who are able are asked to observe the rules for fasting on Catholic holy days. The Feast of the Immaculate Conception is an appropriate day for this observance because first, it is on a Sunday, to which we expect all Hibernians will adhere by attending Mass. Secondly, as our nation is dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, we ask our Blessed Mother to intercede on behalf of those who are victims.
St. Patrick understood in the end that God“guarded me before I knew him, and before I came to wisdom and could distinguish between good and evil. He protected me and consoled me as a father does for his son.” In the Christian Charity practiced by our Ancient Order, let us share the burden of protection for the victims of abuse and the priests and religious who surrender to the call of the Holy Spirit. Let us share their grief and suffering and resolve to bring them justice.
The National Board requests that all State, County, and Division Presidents disseminate this information to their Brother Hibernians; and we call upon St. Patrick, St. Brigid, and Our Lady of Knock to intercede for us to remain strong in the face of this crisis and lead our fellow Catholics in standing with and speaking for all those without a voice.
]]>As Chair of Catholic Action, I have been careful not to stray too far into the realm of the great work Project St. Patrick has been doing on behalf of all current seminarians, but I want to bring to light the current numbers on our priests from the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate.
The statistics are comprehensive, and I shall go over only a few of them; but they are currently not very good. Back in 1970, there were 59,192 total priests in the United States. There are currently 36,580, which means that the number of priests in the country has dropped 40% over the last fifty years. The same can be said for the number of yearly ordinations to the priesthood, which has dropped from 805 to 518. And the number of graduate level seminarians has dropped from 6,602 to 3,553 in that time.
And here is the last statistic, but perhaps the most important: Parishes without a resident priest pastor have gone from 571 to 3,363 in that time.
Brothers, given the current circumstances regarding the priest-abuse scandal and outside influences, the clergy of the Catholic Church is in trouble and the numbers for religious sisters is even more dire.
We Hibernians need to confront this issue head on and be at the forefront of helping young men answer their Vocation if they have one. And we should not restrict ourselves to young men. My own cousin-in-law was widowed several years ago and was just ordained last month.
Let’s put aside the issue of married priests, which we already have, and just talk about what we need to do as Hibernians.
A priest and a friend of the family made it his mission to make sure he asked every young man he knew or even met for the first time if he ever thought about being a priest. When they said no, he always responded, “Well, don’t say no one ever asked you.”
In the coming days and months, I plan to reach out to Brother Vogel, who has done and continues to do an excellent job with Project St. Patrick and see what we can do to help replenish the ranks of the Catholic priesthood.
Thank you, Brothers, for your kind time and God bless you.
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The tenth chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew underscores the cost and requirements of proclaiming Jesus’s message to the Church. “One’s enemies will be those of his own household,” is the stark reality Christ presents those of us who would preach that gospel message. Those passages have become prescient in light of the recent forced resignation of House Chaplain, Fr. Patrick Conroy, S.J., by House Speaker and self-proclaimed devout Catholic, Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. Only twice in its history has the House of Representatives employed Roman Catholics as chaplains, and Fr. Conroy is the first Chaplain of any denomination ever to be dismissed before the end of his tenure.
Numerous theories surround Fr. Conroy’s dismissal. Many point to the Jesuit priest’s prayer back in November that called upon all members of the House to remember the basic principles and tenets of fairness and justice in passing the major tax overhaul. Others have cited the remarks of Rep. Mark Walker (R-NC), a Southern Baptist minister, who opined that someone who is married and has children of his own would be better suited to serve as chaplain (which would thus eliminate any Catholic Priest or Nun and even Jesus himself from consideration). A third story circulating was that Fr. Conroy was apparently not meeting the “spiritual needs of the lawmakers.”
The problem is that whatever scenario regarding the dismissal of Fr. Conroy proves true, it presents troubling issues for Roman Catholics and people of faith in general. Speaker Ryan has either jettisoned a chaplain for adhering to the recognized tenets of all major religions or caved in to thinly veiled anti-Catholicism.
From the founding of the nation through the campaigns of Al Smith and John F. Kennedy, some members of our society have openly questioned the ability of Roman Catholics to function as “full and true Americans.” Roman Catholics of all stripes have proven their patriotism and devotion time and again either through military or public service. Those of us who know the history of the days when the Know-Nothings sparked fear throughout Catholic America shall remind Americans that there was nothing great about that time. If Fr. Conroy’s forced resignation came about because his prayers made some “uncomfortable”, then they should revisit our Nation’s history. In 1774 when there was discussion as to appoint a Chaplain to Congress, some representatives raised the issue that some may be “uncomfortable” if the minister was not of their denomination. This controversy was ended when Samuel Adams observed “He was no bigot and could hear a Prayer from a Gentleman of Piety and Virtue, who was at the same Time a Friend to his Country”. We would be wise to follow Sam Adams’ wisdom in an effort to make America great again.
We, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, call upon Paul Ryan, Speaker of the House of Representatives, to give sufficient answer to the questions surrounding the dismissal of Reverend Patrick Conroy, S.J.
John Fitzmorris III, National Catholic Action Chairman
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The Ancient Order of Hibernians was established in 1836 to protect and defend Our Holy Mother, the Roman Catholic Church, from the violence and bigotry of anti-Catholic nativist mobs. While violent physical attacks on our churches have become largely a thing of the past, bigotry and disdain for the Catholic Church has not vanished; it hides in the shadows where it nurses on the darkness until its next opportunity to spread the poison of prejudice.
On Friday evening, October 21, President Trump through twitter promoted the work of Dr. Robert Jeffress, a megachurch pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas. In his tweet, the President lauded Dr. Jeffress book, A Place Called Heaven: 10 Surprising Truths About Your Eternal Home, calling the book “great” and effusively praising Dr. Jeffress himself as “a wonderful man.” Many Catholic Americans would not concur in the President’s veneration; there is nothing “wonderful” in Dr. Jeffress’ well documented hatred of anyone who is not an evangelical Christian.
In 2010, Jeffress declared that the Catholic Church was a “counterfeit” religion that had its origins in a Babylonian “pagan religion,” making Catholicism the “Whore of Babylon” foretold in the Book of Revelation. On his radio show, Path to Victory, Jeffress opined: “Isn’t that the genius of Satan? If you want to counterfeit a dollar bill, you don’t do it with purple paper and red ink, you’re not going to fool anybody with that. But if you want to counterfeit money, what you do is make it look closely related to the real thing as possible.”
It is in truth Jeffress who has proven the most counterfeit in his abandonment of Christian tolerance; wallowing in the muck of bigotry and resurrecting the old hatreds that threatened the very fabric of this nation. His pronouncements are in the tradition of the screeds penned by American “Know Nothings” against “Papist influence” each time a fresh surge of Catholic Irish immigrants arrived in this country or throughout the 1928 presidential campaign of Al Smith as the first Catholic nominee of any major party and resurrected again during the campaign of John F. Kennedy.
It is profoundly troubling that Jeffress’ comments and public stances do not appear to have caused the President any qualms. Jeffress’ effusive praise and encouragement to evangelicals to be open-minded about Candidate Trump in 2016, while simultaneously promoting his narrow-minded intolerance of Catholicism, have apparently earned him a prominent place near the head of the table. The Ancient Order of Hibernians does take notice of the despicable comments made by Dr. Robert Jeffress toward our Holy Mother Church and the fact that he has never apologized or attempted to distance himself from them. People holding such bigoted and unsanctified views towards others of different faiths are in contradiction not only with the basic tenets of Christianity, but also the founding principles which make our nation great.
John Fitzmorris III, Catholic Action
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