Reactions to Bishops Reactions to Chaos at the Capital

This is just a trendy topic to write about and seeing I’m just confined to my room with Covid, why not.

My wife tested negative and I hope that it stay that way.

The National Catholic Register put out this article.

Bishops React to Chaos at the Capitol in Statements and Tweets
“We fervently pray for peace and for God’s protection over our country, our lawmakers, and all those in harm’s way this terrible day.”

It elicited responses like this…

Chaos at the Capital? No burning & looting? All I saw was police swinging & fighting at people over their barriers. Where was this police force this Summer when people were looting & burning? Evil is winning over the good. The swamp is back!

Bishop should just concentrate on preaching the Holy truth.

And this comment.

What was terrible about it? A handful of antifa idiots stormed the building while tens of thousands peacefully protested. The bishops are worthless. Where are our martyrs willing to do the right thing?

My thoughts are that…

I’m saddened to see my fellow Catholics fail to admit that…

1. Those really are Trump supporters causing chaos.

I just saw a Video of some Antifa being dropped off near White House. Was the crowds salted with BLM and Antifa to lead the charge and stir up crowd to attack the Capital. They needed to hide the election and get Trump out of the way. Mission Accomplished. – Catholic Commenter.

Another FB friend wrote…

I support Trump. Trump supporters did not riot. It was BLM and Antifa dressed as Trump supporters (photos of some of the rioters have been traced back to antifa website photos). I now realize that many were watching mainstream media, and believing their false narrative. This was staged by the democratic party.

Those who are more concerned with the ideology of who did what are the problem.
Stand against violence. PERIOD. This is just like over the summer when people were more concerned if it was the alt-right in costume doing stuff.
WHO CARES. Arrest the little #$%@s and throw the damn book at them.
End it. -A Catholic Commentator

Some popular ideas circulating online recently include this claim…

Viral social media posts and a Republican House member have amplified claims wrongly identifying some right-wing figures at the U.S. Capitol riot as part of “antifa.” The claims feed into an unfounded conspiracy theory that anti-fascist activists in disguise orchestrated the event.

Someone else said…

Bishops are partly responsible. Only a select few can be respected or trusted. – Catholic Commentator.

It is good to remember that…

2. The bishops are right in denouncing this mob violence and asking for prayers.

“The Gospel itself is a full-throated and stern warning against mob action. If institutions of order & lawful transitions of authority are systematically deconstructed & trampled upon by factional self-interests, it leads to just that, a mob. Let the elected govern.”- Bishop Daniel E. Flores (Brownsville, Texas)

Let’s not forget that…

3. The Protesters breached our country’s capital, something that is usually considered an act of war. Something the British did back in the war of 1812. Would be terrorists will look at incidents like that and conclude that was..

As you read above some people have such a hatred for democrats that people actually think…

The Democrats are responsible for this! The relentless hatred and division they promoted everyday for 4 long years and then stealing the election….it was all just too much! – Catholic Commenter

But remember that…

4. This is not the Bishop’s fault, not the Dems Fault, but it is TRUMP’S FAULT. He is the ringleader of all this.

Just for the record I’m not a anti-Trump guy. I’m sort of neutral towards him in general. This post from fellow Patheos writer Jennifer Fitz almost made me want to vote for him.  But I didn’t vote for him or for Biden. I have concerns about his policies on the pro-life front. But with Trump I can’t ignore all the events that have transpired since the election. His refusal to concede like his predecessors over the years is unprecedented.

WATCH: Years of Trump's violent rhetoric led to his supporters sieging Capitol Hill pic.twitter.com/P3FEmEKWlS

— The Beat with Ari Melber (@TheBeatWithAri) January 8, 2021

— The Beat with Ari Melber on MSNBC � (@TheBeatWithAri) January 8, 2021

So who did this?

We did this. It wasn’t China or Russia or Mexico. It wasn’t Daesh or the Taliban. It wasn’t strange people from somewhere else that we can shut out and bomb to smithereens. The invaders at the Capitol weren’t any of the vicious stereotypes we were taught to fear and hate. No godless Communists, no religious extremists from the Middle East, no drug cartels from South America, no Mexican this or that. They were Americans, attacking America. They were our neighbors. They were good old fashioned right-wing white supremacists, as American as apple pie.
We made these people ourselves. They are homegrown, American terrorists.

We did this to us.
Mary Pezzulo,We Did This To Us (January 7, 2021) Steel Magnificat @ Patheos Catholic

Catholics, Christians, Atheists, Scientologists and anyone else of sound mind and body should be able to say with confidence and conviction…

5. This is unacceptable behavior and those who are Catholic and or Republican need to own up to this and condemn it. To do anything less is to condone sedition against our government, perpetuate attitudes that started this mess in the first place, and show the world that Catholics and Americans don’t really care about law and order.

Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), who was endorsed by Trump in 2019, also didn’t mince words. “Today, the United States Capitol — the world’s greatest symbol of self-government — was ransacked while the leader of the free world cowered behind his keyboard — tweeting against his vice president for fulfilling the duties of his oath to the Constitution,” Sasse slammed, adding: “This is not how we peacefully transfer power.”

Some have asked…
Did the bishops speak out against BLM! No some of them even marched with them. They are spineless!
Where were you with your statements when BLM and Antifa were destroying our cities?- Catholic Commentator.

Well…

6. The Bishops have condemned other acts of violence that were not Trump related. And they also give a little context to why those protests actually happen.

We should all understand that the protests we are seeing in our cities reflect the justified frustration and anger of millions of our brothers and sisters who even today experience humiliation, indignity, and unequal opportunity only because of their race or the color of their skin. It should not be this way in America. Racism has been tolerated for far too long in our way of life.

It is true what Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, that riots are the language of the unheard. We should be doing a lot of listening right now. This time, we should not fail to hear what people are saying through their pain. We need to finally root out the racial injustice that still infects too many areas of American society.

But the violence of recent nights is self-destructive and self-defeating. Nothing is gained by violence and so much is lost. Let us keep our eyes on the prize of true and lasting change.

Legitimate protests should not be exploited by persons who have different values and agendas. Burning and looting communities, ruining the livelihoods of our neighbors, does not advance the cause of racial equality and human dignity.
Statement of U.S. Bishops’ President on George Floyd and the Protests in American Cities (May 31, 2020)

And finally Fr. Matthew P. Schneider LC reminds us

7. Catholics, Promoting Conspiracy Theories Harms Our Cause.

Catholicism is not a conspiracy theory. Catholicism is dedicated to the truth in all areas. Conspiracy theories start with a conclusion then cherry-pick or twist facts to fit that conclusion. That is not the way of science or theology. Let’s be faithful to the Church and honest in our pursuit of truth. Let’s end the constant sharing of conspiracy theories among Catholics online. Let’s show others the beauty of the Church, not send them away by the untruth of such nonsense.

Were supposed to win hearts and minds to Christ and his Church, not to Trump, and to be fair not to Biden either. Those of you who think supporting Trump is part of Catholic teaching will probably be upset at my words. Those of you who are governed by faith and reason even if you are a Trump supporter will see the truth of what I’m saying.

By the way not all Trump supporters are the angry insurrectionists that were in D.C. on January 6. Some very good people I know are Trump supporters. Some of them write for Patheos.

Have the Bishops erred in the past. I would be lying if I said no. The bishops have erred BIG TIME in the past, but we should acknowledge them when they are telling the truth and promoting the good. If the Republican party loses seats it’s because conservatives and Republicans don’t condemn criminal acts when they see it but cheer it on and pass the buck to someone else.

Anifa did it.

The Democrats did it.

George Soros did it.

The Lizard People did it.

You cannot act in loyalty to your party no matter what they do and should stand up and speak out against it when its wrong.

Pro-Life democrats, that also means you need to be vocal about you pro-life stance and fight against any support of abortion under the Biden administration.

Be loyal to America before being loyal to Trump.
Be loyal to the Church and Christ before being loyal to America.

I want to end with this National Examination of Conscience by Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble, FSP

After the frightening and sobering events in the US Capitol this week, Bishop Barron (@bishopbarron) recommended that, as a nation, we engage in an examination of conscience.
I came up with the following questions and I am sharing them in case they are helpful to any of you:

1. Do I make an effort to inform myself in a way that is open to truth wherever it might be found or do I only read opinions and media with which I always agree?
2. Do I make an effort to find, understand, and read news sources that are objective and follow journalistic standards?
3. Do I regularly reduce complex issues to simplistic, partisan sound bites to avoid engaging honestly and vulnerably with people with whom I disagree?
4. Do I speak of my ideological opponents in a way that dehumanizes, stereotypes, or objectifies them? Do I speak scornfully or dismissively of those with whom I disagree rather than engaging with their ideas?
5. Do I allow feelings of rage, hatred, and bitterness toward those I see as political enemies grow in my heart?
6. Do I cultivate sin in my heart more than I cultivate virtue?
7. Do I read spiritual books as much as or more than I read the news?
8. Do I speak of and focus on political events more than the Church’s liturgical calendar?
9. Am I regularly distracted from my responsibilities by news, pundits, political arguments, and negative feelings toward those with whom I disagree?
10. What are my highest priorities? Where do I direct most of my energies? Do I put living for God first in my life?
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
For all those injured and who lost their lives recently, we pray they may rest in peace.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
For an end to division in our nation, Lord hear our prayer.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
That peace, justice, and truth may reign in our hearts and in our nation, Lord hear our prayer.