God in Government: Obama Takes Sides in Catholic Family Fight

Obama Takes Sides in Catholic Family Fight

By Jacqueline L. Salmon

Obama waded into the thick of a family feud in the American Catholic church today in his interview with religion reporters. He spoke of his admiration for the late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, who led the archdiocese of Chicago when Obama worked with Catholic parishes on the south side of the city as a community organizer.

Bernardin was known--and controversial--for his philosophy of the "seamless garment of life." Articulated in a series of speeches in the early 1980s, Bernardin said he opposed all threats to life -- from conception to natural death. That included abortion, but also poverty, capital punishment, even nuclear weapons. (Bernadin also called it a "consistent ethic of life.")

His views have been a source of tension within the American Catholic Church. Progressive Catholics have seized on Bernardin's ethic and view the fight over abortion as part of a series of battles over life issues. Conservative Catholics, in general, see abortion as intrinsically evil and preeminent in the fight for life. In many ways, the battle over Obama's appearance at the University of Notre Dame commencement came down to a struggle between these two traditions.

Today, Obama (a non-Catholic), came down firmly on the side of Bernardin. "That part of the Catholic tradition is something that continues to inspire me," he said.

But, he said that he believes that over the last decade or two, "that more holistic tradition feels like it's gotten buried under the abortion debate." He added that "as a non-Catholic, it's not up to me to try to resolve those tensions." But, he said, the Bernardin tradition has made him a better person and had a powerful influence on his life.

"And that tells me that it might be a powerful way to move a broader set of values forward in American life generally," he said.

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Obama Takes Sides in Catholic Family Fight

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