"Were he not to experience scandal at the public support of attacks on human life & the family, his conscience would be uninformed or dulled"

I am forwarding a copy of the 10/9/10 address by Archbishop Raymond Burke, prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, to Human Life International. His comments were absolutely powerful, challenging "the hypocrisy of Catholics who claim to be practicing their faith but who refuse to apply the truth of their faith in their exercise of politics, medicine, business, and the other human endeavors....The obedience of faith obliges us in all situations of life, also in situations in which it is most difficult to do what God asks of us. Ultimately, the obedience of faith could require martyrdom." Not exactly a feel good, "I'm OK, You're OK" sort of homily! Archbishop Burke specifically talks of "self-professed Catholics, who sustain and support the right of a woman to procure the death of the infant in her womb, or the right of two persons of the same sex to the recognition which the State gives to a man and a woman who have entered into marriage. It is not possible to be a practicing Catholic and to conduct oneself publicly in this manner."
The archbishop also offers clarification about the nature of scandal - a clarification which can be uncomfortable, to say the least: "To ignore the fact that Catholics in public life...who persistently violate the moral law regarding the inviolability of innocent human life or the integrity of the marital union, lead many into confusion or even error regarding the most fundamental teachings of the moral law, in fact, contributes to the confusion and error, redounding to the greatest harm to our brothers and sisters, and therefore, to the whole nation. The perennial discipline of the Church, for that reason among other reasons, has prohibited the giving of Holy Communion and the granting of a Church funeral to those who persist, after admonition, in the grave violation of the moral law." In offering those words, it seems quite reasonable that Archbishop Burke would have easily recalled two recent funerals in Massachusetts for professed Catholics & long time advocates of abortion (While Senator Ted Kennedy was certainly well known at the time of his death, younger Catholics may not have been familiar with Father Robert Drinan, SJ's career as a U.S. congressman.). We can certainly not know the state of someone's soul at the moment of their death, but "The person in question bears a heavy responsibility for the grave scandal which he has caused. The responsibility is especially heavy for political leaders. The repair of such scandal begins with the public acknowledgment of his own error and the public declaration of his adherence to the moral law."
(Oh and by the way, is Canon 915 followed in our own archdiocese?)
Among many Catholics trying to defend the sanctity of human life & marriage/family, there sometimes exists a perception that they are not receiving clerical support. Archbishop Burke comments that "One of the ironies of the present situation is that the person who experiences scandal at the gravely sinful public actions of a fellow Catholic is accused of a lack of charity and of causing division within the unity of the Church....Were he not to experience scandal at the public support of attacks on human life and the family, his conscience would be uninformed or dulled about the most sacred realities."


Archbishop Burke's 10 9 10 Address