For quite some time, I have been puzzled about the relative silence regarding the nuptials of Joe and Jill Biden, especially since President Biden has told us repeatedly that he is a devout, practicing Catholic.
In Where the Light Enters: Building a Family, Discovering Myself (2019), Jill’s autobiography, we learn that she and Joe were married at the UN Chapel on June 17, 1977—and, she says, “by a Catholic priest.”
That factoid caused further puzzlement: Why get married at the UN? Neither of the Bidens had any apparent connection to that institution. Given that Joe has been a “priest-collector” his whole life, why go to New York to be married by an anonymous priest? Was he even a priest in good standing? After all, some ex-priests make a handsome living out of performing weddings.
Online searches for information on the UN Chapel turns up an article about it in the New York Times from May 9, 1976 (“UN Chapel Weddings: Ecumenical Spirit”). The chaplain was a Rev. Dr. Melvin Hawthorne, a minister of the United Methodist Church. He says that the chapel does not have an actual relationship with the United Nations, but that many people associated with the UN do opt for his chapel. In 1976, the chapel was the site of over 400 weddings, 60% of which were for couples of different faiths, many of whom had “run into snags elsewhere.”
So, what might the “snags” have been for the devout Catholic Joe Biden and his fiancee? A number of permissions would have been needed (e.g., mixed marriage since Jill is not Catholic; permission to marry outside a church or oratory). Did they participate in the required pre-nuptial investigation, which should have uncovered that Jill was previously married in February 1970 and divorced in March 1975?
An article in the July 24, 1977 edition of Wilmington, Delaware newspaper The Morning News, titled “‘Catholic’ Joe Biden avoids telling the press his wife is a divorcee,” reports Biden saying, “I thought the fact that Jill was married before had no relevance.”
If they did participate in the pre-nuptial investigation, was Jill willing to submit that union to a diocesan tribunal for a possible decree of nullity? If she engaged that process, was such a decree issued? What about the couple’s participation in marriage preparation, known as pre-Cana instructions? Admittedly, some of these matters are more serious than others.
The next step in consideration was to ascertain if the Biden wedding was indeed approved by the Catholic Church. If that ceremony was recognized by the Church, it should have been entered into the marriage register of the parish church in whose boundaries the UN Chapel sits, which is Holy Family Church. The pastor, Father Gerald Murray (coincidentally, a canon lawyer) and well-known member of Raymond Arroyo’s “Papal Posse” on EWTN, stated clearly that no such ceremony or any file for that event is to be found at Holy Family Church. Father Murray went on to mention that several weddings of Catholics at the UN Chapel are, in fact, registered at his church.
So, why not that of the Bidens?
In a call to the chancellor of the Diocese of Wilmington (where Biden’s domicile is), I asked this question of the chancellor’s secretary (since the chancellor was not in the office): In the knowledge of the Diocese, did the wedding take place according to canonical form?
Within an hour, the diocesan director of communications called me back to say that the Diocese cannot comment on the sacramental life of parishioners. When reminded that we are not asking about sins confessed in the Sacrament of Penance but about the reality or non-reality of a public act and sacrament, very politely but firmly, he repeated that the Diocese would not comment on the situation.
The facts of the case, then, appear to be: No Catholic wedding is recorded in the usual places for the Bidens in the Archdiocese of New York, where the ceremony took place. The Diocese of his canonical domicile would not answer a very simple question. If Joe and Jill are truly married in the eyes of Christ’s Church, the answer would likely have been forthcoming as simply: “Yes, of course, they are validly married.”
Absent that declaration, one may suppose that something is seriously amiss.
Again, this is not a private matter between Joe, Jill, family members, and priest. Marriage is public by its nature; it affects the entire community of the Church, and the People of God have a right to know the truth.
From his years in Catholic schools (about which he always reminds us), President Biden should have recalled Our Lord’s warning: “For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open” (Lk 8:17).
(Editor’s note: As of this posting, the White House has not responded to a CWR request for information about the Bidens’ 1977 wedding.)
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Joe Biden attended a historically black college, faced down a black gang leader as a teenage lifeguard, drove a truck for a living, and grew up the son of a Welsh coal miner.
And, oh yes, is a devout Catholic.
(Sigh.)
Wait. Remind me.
What is the nickname of the evil one?
That’s right: The Prince of Lies.
I think he also invented the Internet. No wait, that was Al Gore, sorry. Birds of a feather flock together.
You’re piling on!
Exactly. Allowing oneself to be used by Satan is about as far from “devout Catholic” as you can get.
It appears the USA has had one Catholic president.
I remember at that time Banns? and also there had to be witnesses to the ceremony?
No wtnessess, no marriage.
In extreme situations where witnesses are not available or when a priest can not be available, eligible couples can marry. They confer the Sacrament upon each other. The priest and witnesses are there to ensure things are done properly.
The Bidens were not shipwrecked on a desert island , in danger of death, or any other emergency I’m aware of. But it does seem a matter more appropriately of concern to the Bidens and the priest who married them. As other commentators have said, the wholesale warfare on the unborn that Mr Biden has supported is a much greater public concern than the particulars of his marriage.
Persisting in manifestly grave sin causes one to lose their ability to reason or at least have it significantly compromised. If he is in fact not sacramentally married, then it is yet one explanation as to why he does the completely irrational things he does.
Amen
Now THAT was a very interesting article and you are asking important questions about an important someone who plays very fast and loose with his Catholic status. It seems highly unlikely that either the Delaware bishop or the DC prelate will pursue this matter. But Father, be careful. Perhaps you will be visited by an FBI SWAT team authorized by our national injustice department.
I’m not an apologist for the Bidens. I find it interesting that such an inquiry was made about a couple that clearly are happily married. A real and relevant example of the passage quoted (“For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open” (Lk 8:17).) is the sex abuse scandal in light of Catholic dogma about grace received at ordination.
What about the people left in the wake? Is someone’s happiness all there is to life on earth?
Straw Man fallacy. A great deflection from the issue for someone who is not a Biden apologist.
Marriage is and has been a very public issue. It’s inexcusable that the Biden’s have not rectified the matter over all these years, assuming it is not a valid marriage in the eyes of the church. It is not a difficult effort to fix.
Sometimes those things are normalized/rectified privately. I don’t know what the Biden’s current marital status is, only they & their priest do.
It certainly is difficult, the process is grueling and can take up to 1 to 1 1/2 years to get done by the Diocese Tribunal.
“I’m not an apologist for the Bidens.”
Your followuop sentence suggests otherwise.
“I find it interesting that such an inquiry was made about a couple that clearly are happily married.”
You know, I know several couples that by all outward appearances were “happy” who divorced, and they weren’t politicians used to playing a role for an audience, such as former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell who put on a show with his wife, until his time as Governor was up and he no longer needed to keep up appearances.
You actually have no idea whether they are “happy” or not, and building a marriage on the transient state of happiness is building on a foundation of sand, but if the marriage was invalid, it’s invalid regardless of the emotional state.
Joe’s very sanctimonious, but when the rubber hits the road, he dispenses religion like used facial tissue.
If in fact Joe and Jill are not married in the Catholic Church, every time he receives Communion he commits a sacrilege.
They’d better listen to this one.
Joe Biden is still Catholic even if he married a Methodist. He still can receive the Eucharist. There is no sacrilege involved. Unless he married Jill under pretence that she was also Catholic, and did not receive an annulment. Those facts have not come to light.
If in fact Joe and Jill are not married in the Catholic Church, every time he receives Communion he commits a sacrilege which is a mortal sin.
It is obvious that you ARE, in fact, an apologist for the Bidens. The question is on Catholic World Report. I am guessing you are not Catholic since you don’t understand why the inquiry was made.Joe keeps claiming he is a devout Catholic, yet he apparently doesn’t follow the Faith.
They did not have Jill’s marriage nullified. Joe is living in sin according to them catholic laws.
This take on the Bidens’ wedding reminds me that no wonder Jesus’ big problems were the Scribes and Pharisees. Legalists without mercy, they famously sweated the small stuff, burdened people with little laws, great guilt and notorious negativity. In the end they are the ones who plotted to kill Jesus. Which brings me by connection to Pope Francis’ pet peeve he sees as common among many priests: rigidity. Unsmiling, backward looking, negative, hyper critical, judgmental, the Bishop of Rome calls it a symptom of the sickness of clericalism.
True indeed. I agree. As noted above, it’s interesting to note that while the Bidens are happily married, this rigid judgmental priest is writing this to stir up a controversy. Verily, this piece is by a priest sick with unhappy clericalism.
There’s a lot of invalid marriages that are “happy”.
So what if they are “happy”?
Tell me, Frances. Are the one Billion-plus children whom Lyin’ Biden and his fellow devout Catholics are responsible for killing over the past half century “small stuff”?
Are those of us who decry this slaughter — the greatest crime against humanity ever seen — being “legalistic” and “rigid”?
Are we modern-day Pharisees? Would we have plotted the death of Jesus?
Take care, dear Frances. God hears the blood of the innocents crying out from the earth.
Jan. 31: And let’s not forget that Joe Biden wanted to extend the legal right to kill babies in the womb up until a moment before a healthy, live birth and then wanted Catholic organizations to pay for these deaths through their employee health insurance plans. Joe Biden has led a corrupt life and he brags about it. Does he really think that aiding the mass slaughter of human babies in the womb is something to brag about? Evil generates evil…and what Biden has done is evil.
AMEN!! 🙏🙏🙏
” they famously sweated the small stuff…”
An interesting and telling description of the sacraments.
Pharisees?? Hysterical much? I dont think anyone would be interested in the state of Biden’s religious beliefs AT ALL if he did not make a point of trying to score political points ( and obtain votes) with his supposed Catholicism. Fingering rosary beads does not compensate for being a violently outspoken supporter of the most radical abortion position possible: abortion to the day of birth or as some disturbed and ghoulish Dems would have it, “deciding what to do” should a child survive it’s planned abortion. This is not some politician caught between a rock and a hard place, i.e., personally genuinely opposed, but feeling an obligation to fulfill the mandate given him by those who voted for the issue. This is a man going well out of his way NOT to be a reluctant participant in the legality of abortion, but an outspoken SUPPORTER in every possible way, throwing the weight of his office behind it. As the GENUINE Catholic position on the subject could not be more clear,OPPOSED, Biden is on the wrong side of the issue,and should stop using his religion as a voting tactic. That possibly his “catholic” marriage is not in fact valid as Catholic is another point of contention as to his motivations. I have long felt that the term “Catholic Democrat” is an oxymoron.
Jan. 28th: Well said. I think much of the responsibility for these kinds of situations lies with the hierarchy who are reluctant to hold the wealthy and Catholic politicians accountable for their actions which causes some Catholics – and others – to believe that these abominations like the slaughter of innocent babies in the womb – don’t matter much and aren’t really that important. Evil generates evil.
Some guy in the bible said whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery. Was Jesus a Pharisee?
Touché, ken.
End of discussion.
The point Fr. Stravinskas is making has to do with the ever-present affirmation of the President’s Catholic faith, and that for a Catholic, marriage is a sacrament, surrounded by laws to keep it from being treated casually. The Church follows what Jesus said about divorce and remarriage, and what is stated in the Gospels and in St. Paul are where the teachings and the law derive from. Pope Francis takes a compassionate approach towards divorce and remarriage, created confusion by pushing the envelope on the divorced/remarried Catholics receiving Holy Communion without a Declaration of Nullity or other decision by the Church. These laws reflect the theology of the Catholic Church, and also the seriousness with which the Church approaches matrimony. There’s concern for people’s eternal salvation being expressed, especially in this case where the President is clearly contradicting the clear teaching of the Church derived from the Gospels on the abortion issue. There may be priests who are brusque, “Pharisees, Scribes” in their dealing with people, rigid. Most are trying their best to reach people and to impart the importance of “doing things right” because it’s true, not because they are pharisaical. And to bring up the sexual abuse red herring with this issue is not on point. It’s horrible, sinful, disgusting, destructive, and has done untold damage to countless people over the centuries and especially in this moment forces one to question every word that comes from the mouth of the clergy. But that doesn’t change the reality of the situation which is raised by the author.
Beautifully explicated, from the heart and the head.
It is not “rigid” to be married validly in the Catholic faith. Pope Francis speaks each year concerning the need to use the annulment process prior to marriage in the Church. If Jill was married to Joe, without first seeking an annulment of her first marriage, it is not a valid marriage in the Church. That mean that they are civilly married, but not a marriage recognized by the Church. It means that Joe, as he claims to be Catholic, is not free to receive the Sacraments, including Holy Communion. This can be remedied.
Just because someone wants their past marriage to be annulled does not make is so. You make it sound like it is Catholic Divorce, which it is not.
I never thought to even ask the question of whether the Biden’s were married in the Catholic Church. I just assumed they were – which, of course, is exactly what all the concerned parties, including Church officials, want. One thing I am sure of is that no one in a position of authority at the Vatican, the Dioceses of New York, Washington, Wilmington or anywhere else has the slightest interest in finding out the truth. In fact, they will actively try to avoid learning it and furthermore will try to suppress any independent investigations. Incidentally, Jill’s ex-husband, who the media has studiously ignored, has alleged that Jill and Joe were having an affair before the divorce.
“C’mon man! Pope Francis was my best man.”
Verily, verily!
And if y’all keep pushing the issue, intelligence services will prepare a dossier that proves beyond reasonable doubt that Baby Jesus was the ringbearer at his wedding…
Their case is covered by the notorious footnote in the Pope’s Amoris Latitiae allowing Communion for couples in irregular marriages and other sexual unions!
Joe comes from that branch of the Catholic Church founded in the 1960’s and called the Protestant Branch that allows you to construct your own ecclesiology, your own moral theology and your own ideas about sacramentology. So, being a fully-vested member of this well-established protestant branch of the Catholic Church (which has its own set of priests, bishops and cardinals) you can believe whatever the hell you like. For instance, you can define marriage however you like. You can interpret the Eucharist in a fashion that supports your moral status. You get to determine who lives and who dies whether it pertains to babies in the womb or the elderly in nursing home. Why, there is even a country (Germany) where this branch of the Catholic Church is the national religion. You must understand one thing – truth is fungible. And if you look around, many among your Catholic friends and family belong to this Protestant Branch of the Catholic Church. If you walk into a church and cannot decide whether it’s the Mainline Branch of the Catholic Church or the Protestant Branch just look around. If you can’t immediately locate the tabernacle, or if the Church is built in the round, or if there are no obvious confessionals, or if you see banners on the walls, you are likely in a Protestant Branch. Oh, another thing: don’t bother making any inquiries of anyone in the Proestant Branch of the Catholic Church since they answer to no one – not even to God.
Yep. Jesus specifically talked about the fate of that Branch. (John 15:1-4)
Actually Deacon, Joe comes from Scranton, where the most important commandment is the 11th that enjoins you to engage in the 8th Sacrament. Thou shalt vote Democrat and remain a Democrat in good standing.
Those of us who hail from the area know you can take the boy out of Scranton, but you can’t take the Scranton out of the boy. The amount of corruption is almost unblievable. See former Mayor Courtright and PA Attorney General Kane as the two most recent examples. There’s many, many others.
Maybe Jill thought it was a Catholic priest the way Joe thinks he’s a devout Catholic. I have often wondered about the chaos that would have ensued if Melania Trump had ever presented herself for Holy Communion in the DC Archdiocese. She is, after all, a Catholic married to a divorced man. I’m nearly sure the reaction from the cardinal archbishop and the media would be entirely different than the cricket chirps we’re hearing now.
There are two versions of when and how Joe met Jill. There is the Biden version and then there is the Bill Stevenson version. Stevenson is Jill’s first husband. Do a search for the Stevenson interview he gave with the DailyMail back in 2020. It makes for interesting reading and likely explains why the Biden’s got married where they did. A good question that could be asked, did Jill get an annulment? https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8635281/Jill-Biden-cheated-husband-Joe-ex-claims.html
I am saddened to see a Catholic publication get into trying to do what I think of gutter press trying to do – seek out scandal. This article does nothing but try to discredit a person from claiming they are a practicing Catholic. Does the author have information as to what took place in the confessional between Mr Biden and the Priest. No he does not. Judge not lest ye be judged. This is in my view nobody’s business and it discredits a Catholic publication to get into such matters that are strictly between the person and God.
It goes to character and privileges. Also, since he’s always bragging about everything he’s done it does mean something and is certainly relevant. More of the left’s so as I say preach not as I do.
Read the stories about what her ex said
Scandal there is- but it is not CWR that is seeking out scandal. It is Biden who gives scandal seemingly every day. He gives it primarily with abortion, not just favoring it, but trying to increase it wherever he can, and also with LGBT, same sex so called marriage, etc. He even officiated at a same sex”wedding,” a definite indication that he cares nothing for God’s law or the Church’s laws regarding marriage.
There is a great deal of misunderstanding regarding “judge not lest ye be judged.” As one online priest commenter has put it – “God gave us a brain, we have to use it.” We have to make judgements all the time. We tell our children, “Don’t hang out with bad companions.” How do we know who is a bad companion? We determine (Judge) based on actions. We can make a judgement on Biden based on his actions.
At mass we confess, “what I have done and what I have failed to do.” The bishops (and all of us) should think about the “what I have failed to do,” part.
Good article by Father Stravinskas.
What have the bishops et al failed to do? …….complicit in hiding the truth about Clerical sexual abuse of children, generations of protection and silence, even written into canon law, ‘Crimean Solicitations’. The vaults of the Vatican store the documentation of Victoria Australia’s clerical abuse cases, never to be released for public scrutiny. In doing so our church betrayed the essential message of Jesus. Anyone who can not discern this is truely blind to the Truth of the Gospel.
With respect to the above article as a juxtaposition, a photo op of a former President, not proclaiming to be Catholic but insinuating he is Christian holding a bible-does not make give his claim to be a follower of Jesus any legitimacy. This reality was not addressed in any article I was able to find on this site. The only conclusion I can draw is articles of this nature are not primarily motivated by any desire for kingdom of heaven principals but rather are of a co opted political agenda. Catholics who are politically Republican conservative against Catholics who are politically demarcation and progressive. Nuance is the victim and judgmental discourse becomes the modus operandi
For goodness sakes. This article is not about Pres. Trump. And none of us can read the heart of another or know the legitimacy of their claim to be a Christian.
Betty!
This man has been scandalizing the faithful for more than forty years.
He’s supported and furthered the most horrific holocaust humanity has ever seen. More than a billion babies murdered around the world.
He has lied repeatedly — about absolutely everything — from the accident that killed his wife and child, to his own background, to his son’s disordered lifestyle, to the teachings of the Catholic Church.
He’s the one who has made an issue of his faith, always posturing as a “devout Catholic,” while betraying the faith at every turn.
Joe himself is the one who has invited this scrutiny.
I applaud CWR for having the courage to speak up. The Catholic in the pews who’s being asked to vote for the most anti-Catholic party in our history under the guise of “devout Catholics” like Joe and Nance and Ted Lieu and, incredibly, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, deserves to know the truth.
I think many of us wouldn’t care, except it is Biden who brings up about every other week what a good Catholic he is. I think many non-Catholic Christians look at him and say, “If this is what a good Catholic looks like, then I want nothing to do with the Catholic Church.” It is called “giving scandal.”
Are you kidding?? “It’s between a person and God” has been the coward’s excuse, which far too many priests and church hierarchy have taken in order to avoid the politically unpopular action of condemning Biden’s outspoken abortion support. As he screams about this issue almost every day, there is no question about his position, either with the secular public whose votes he is buying, or with God. The church hierarchy and other Christians have a duty to express their feeling when they observe a supposed church member going off course. It’s sad most lack the spine.The refusal of the clergy to speak on the topic of ANY sin the last few decades has been a slow poison infecting the whole church.
“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses’. If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector”.Matthew 18: 15-20
I agree with you Betty.
Betty, you are right about the “gutter press”. I call it “piling on without proof”.
I’m no fan of Biden, but as a Republican Catholic, I have difficulty calling him a devout Catholic. However, when you look at the man, you see a kind man, a patient man and a good president with many accomplishments.
The less considerate GOPers despise him. If he is at fault with the Church, let God prepare his destiny… I will not be the one to “cast the first stone”.
He is a fake in many ways.
He has violated his oath of office in many ways, directly and indirectly. Not defending our borders is one of the worst ones – a welfare state cannot handle an unchecked surge of illegal residents, who are overwhelming our entire society.
His insistence of unlimited access to pregnancy terminations is a flip flop from his previous position(s) and zeroes out your assertion he is kind. What “kind” person would want the forceps to crush the brains of a new life, a totally helpless human being?!
How much burden are his accomplishments putting on both the current and future generations? Turning heroes in the military and coast/national guard into zeroes because they don’t want an experimental mRNA shot; that we now know sometimes causes myocarditis and other side effects in otherwise healthy young people? Pulling out of Afghanistan and leaving our allies blowing in the wind -sometimes literally – is another example of his wonderful marksmanship.
You forgot to mention Trump’s inciting his criminal minions to invade our Capitol. Enough!
Snort. By telling them to remain peaceful? How dare he!
Another comment thread inevitably detoured to President Trump…May he live forever in the comment boxes.
🙂
“However, when you look at the man, you see a kind man, a patient man and a good president with many accomplishments.”
Actually, 50% of American voters don’t see this type of person at all. This is a patently ridiculous statement.
“you see a kind man”
Oh? I wonder how many of the children murdered by abortion would agree.
The scandal belongs solely to Biden.
“Judge not lest ye be judged.”(sic)
Better brush up on your deficient comprehension of Scripture, Betty and while you’re at it stop your own habit of exercising poor judgment.
“And why even of yourselves, do you not judge that which is just?” Jesus Christ, Luke 12:57
It ceases to be between Joe and Jill when they, or at least he, make his Catholicism a public issue. Meanwhile he actively assaults Catholic Dogma by advancing abortion and assaults CanonLaw by his unapproved marriage to Jill.
It is far past time for the Church to assert its position on Faith and Morals, Catholics like Joe Biden and Tim Kane who tout their Catholicism while using their elected offices to advance abortions need to be called to task for their hypocrisy. Almost all legislators from Massachusetts, likewise, need to be criticized by Catholics including Catholic Media (bet you will never see anything America Magazine”.
Add Nancy Pelosi to that list.
MONEY MONEY MONEY…………LOOK AT WHAT THE KENNEDY’S GOT AWAY WITH! GIVE MONEY….ALL IS WELL,JUST PRAY…THAT IS ALL WE CAN DO…………..FOR SO MANY CATHOLIC???? PEOPLE IN GOVERNMENT!
Why does this not surprise me?
Anyone who doesn’t understand the sacred quality of an unborn life could not be expected to understand the regulations of marriage in the Catholic Church. Joe’s “devout Catholic” identity has been revealed to be a subterfuge long ago. Why would anyone be surprised that he didn’t understand the Sacrament of Matrimony? Or did he? And is that why the locale of the ceremony was not his home parish?
Well, in fairness to the President and his wife (legally married at least according to civil law), I would say that a lot of Catholics have some strange and unorthodox beliefs that certainly aren’t to be found in traditional Catholic teaching or in the Catechism. I think even certain priest and possibly even the Pope seem to validate some of these unorthodox beliefs.
Very true.
I have a dear aunt of Mr Biden’s generation who’s deeply confused about Catholic teaching on marriage and family.
I worry about my aunt’s encounter at the Judgement seat just as I worry about Mr Biden’s. But I worry more about the priests and bishops who allowed them to continue into their 9th decade in such confusion and ignorance. The shepherds are held to a higher accountability than their sheep.
And of course I try to also be concerned with my own final destination. None of us get everything right.
Is Joe a baptized Catholic? He claims that a certain parish that he visited on the morning of the 2020 election in Scranton, Pennsylvania is his church of baptism. However, that church has no record of his baptism.
So never mind about abortion.
Joe shouldn’t have been receiving the Eucharist for the past 46 years because, in the eyes of the Church, he’s living with a woman not his wife!
Seems pretty basic to me!
I’ll tell you this. I would not want to be one of the bishops who allowed him to desecrate our Lord in the Sacrament for all of these years.
I know regular Mass attendees who are living in that type of arrangement or other non standard etc… they never flaunt themselves and they don’t go to Communion.
Is it too much to expect for our priests, bishops, cardinals — and, yes, popes — to actually believe what the Church teaches?
Joe Biden built his political career on lies. What bothers me more is that Catholics voted for him and will continue to vote for him, including priests and bishops.
And now George Santos (or whatever his name is) surpassed him. LOL!
I have to say, I think this is his private business. Unlike his advocacy of abortion and mutilation of people with tragic delusions. Those are genuine scandals.
Some start young and innocent, some grow old and sinful.
It’s all good folks, Pastor Cornpop married them.
Why are the bishops constantly covering for Democratic politicians? Kennedys, Cuomo – father& son, John Kerry, Biden
Why do they let these politicians boast about their Catholic credentials and define what a good Catholic is?
This seems like a reach into a non issue, based purely on speculation
Yes, unless the tables were turned and we were talking about Trump. Then it would be a life or death issue of the utmost concern.
I think the most telling part of the article is the good father revealing that he kept on bugging some secretary at the diocesan office in Delaware.
The most telling part of your comment is that you think a priest asking a diocesan secretary a single question re: public information about a sacrament is a case of perpetual “bugging”. You really must attend to the facts better, if that is within your capabilities.
Can you say “petty?” I am a lifelong Catholic who married a Missouri Synod Lutheran on an island in Maui. Eventually, he joined the church and, some time after, we had our wedding blessed by a priest in a private ceremony at church. We did not publicize it. Some things are, quite simply, none of your business. And, don’t go on about him being a public figure. No one who is sane will want to be a public figure in the future with all the nonsense that goes on detailing private lives.
I’m hardly a fan of Pres. Biden but what you say is true. These things often are normalized privately at a later date & really are more appropriately the business of the couple & their priest.
I guess because Mr. Biden is a public figure claiming to be in good standing with the Church whilst enabling mass casualties on innocent children in their mothers’ wombs he doesn’t get as much of a break when stories like this come to light. I suppose we want to believe the worst of him because of his other actions- which are appalling. But we really shouldn’t.
Are you and your husband highly visible national politicians whose position in office determines the life or death of millions of innocent children? Did you get the votes for the position in part by pretending to be an observant Catholic?? NO? If you are a private person, your marriage being irregular or not, quite frankly, doesnt matter to anyone but you and GOD.Your lives have no national impact. And that is the difference. In the case of Joe Biden, he is a man wielding exceptional power, and he obtained that power by being not only untruthful but by CONSTANTLY bringing up the subject of his Catholicism and even waving rosary beads around. He cant trade on his religious affiliation when it benefits him and then object when people question him on the details. Lying is a common trait among politicians, but that doesnt make it morally acceptable.
Are you God? He’s the one who determines what you call lies or untruths! Who are you to judge his religion? Seems I need to remind you that Jesus asked, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.”
“Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.”(sic)
No one here is advocating that Biden be stoned to death for committing adultery for nearly half a century, thus your paraphrase of Scripture is not applicable, out of context and therefore irrelevant.
Your comment is simply the result of your failure to exercise good judgment, Donna and the manifestation of the cliche behind every double standard lies an unconfessed single standard.
“Who are you to judge his religion?”(sic)
All of us are called to make those judgments, just as Christ exhorted which you fail to discern. Almighty God will judge Biden’s soul. All of us are required to judge his hypocritical behavior.
“And why even of yourselves, do you not judge that which is just?” Jesus Christ, Luke 12:57
A priest’s blessing is not the same as a convalidation. If your marriage was convalidated in the Catholic church, it is recognized as a valid Catholic marriage. Blessings do not validate a marriage in the Catholic Church, only convalidation can do that.
After reading this vitriol I am again reminded why I am a former catholic … Jesus weeps to see how some modern day Catholics have made a mockery of his gentle love, acceptance and forgiveness.
Vitriol?
The mortal sin of adultery is what makes Jesus Christ weep. The scourging and all the wounds and crucifixion is what Christ took on for the possibility that adultery could be forgiven.
But it is not forgiven while it is currently being committed with reflection and full consent of the will, which a public adultery obviously is.
Rather, you just don’t know what true charity is… Or you love the respect of man more than the respect of God.
John the Baptist was martyred for calling out this same kind of adultery.
For the sake of balance and fairness in this election year, I suggest Fr. Stravinskas next write about the marriages and marital infidelities of Trump.
Well, if Mr. Trump was a practicing Catholic, it’s fair enough to hold him to that standard. But he’s not. And Mr. Biden himself barely qualifies for that description.
Honestly, I could care less about a politician’s private life. Unless they commit a crime or in any other way become ineligible to hold office it’s really not my business. And that goes for Mr. Biden also.
I care about their policies & accomplishments in office & whether they have represented me properly.
Unlike Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. Donald John Trump doesn’t walk around telling everyone that he’s a devout Catholic, thus your “counsel” to Father Stravinskas is irrelevant, Maria. Those outside the Church are not subject to the jurisdiction of the Church, those inside the Church are.
I would hate to be a Catholic after reading this article and the comments made by some. My Heavenly Father, God, is the one who decides my fate—not man. And the Catholic priesthood is full of petaphiles!
President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden are a loving couple. If you want to dig up dirt on Presidential crud, look no farther than Ex-President Trump! Now there is a man with no morals at all!
Amen to the comment from Donna. The rest should be reminded of a word from the Almighty: “Judge not, lest ye be judged.”
The rest should be reminded of a word from the Almighty:
“Judge not, lest ye be judged.”
Seems that you need reminding yourself:
“And why even of yourselves, do you not judge that which is just?” Jesus Christ, Luke 12:57
You’re from the “Scripture is a smorgasbord” cabal, aren’t you Devon?
“Now there is a man with no morals at all!”(sic)
“Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.”
Donna Bardocz
June 26, 2024 at 1:45 pm
Who are you to judge, Donna?