William McGurn, Notre Dame, and Apologists for Pro-Abortion Politicians

Journalist William McGurn delivered the first Bob Casey lecture in the Archdiocese of Denver earlier this week. He has much to say that is directly pertinent to the discussions we have had on the Mirror of Justice about abortion and politicians and those Catholics, especially when affiliated with Catholic institutions such as Notre Dame (notably Dean Roche), who ask us to look past a politician’s uncompromising support for the war on the unborn when casting our vote. As did the last-Governor Casey, Mr. McGurn is speaking to the consequences of pro-abortion orthodoxy, and the failure of pro-life Catholics to speak more clearly and unequivocally, for the Democratic Party. The full lecture, which is most powerful, can be found here. The following is but a sample from his lecture:

“And just as we now see that abortion is not simply a procedure but the lynchpin in an entire culture given to death, the nature of the Democratic argument to American Catholics has shifted steadily downhill, to the point where it has been largely reduced to the They Are Just As Bad As We Are line of attack.

The rationales, which carry the Notre Dame label, are not merely academic musings that disappear in the faculty lounge ether. They may and do irritate those of us who believe differently. But the consequences do not fall on me. They fall heaviest on pro-life Democrats who are working, with little internal support and virtually zero favorable publicity, to grow little blades of pro-life grass through the party concrete. Of articles such as Dean Roche's, Brian Golden, a Massachusetts Democratic state representative, told me, 'They cut us off at the knees.’”

Tomorrow I will offer some additional thoughts, drawing not only from Mr. McGurn but also from statements by those of a diversity of perspectives as participating on our blog, about whether there is any possibility of Catholic unity to make a meaningful difference on this, the signal social crisis of our time.

Greg Sisk