Kennedy appointment to Vatican scotched

Fri, 04/10/2009 - 3:02pm

Not such a good Friday for Caroline Kennedy, daughter of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy.

Just last week, her name emerged as a possible ambassador to the Vatican. News outlets reported that Senator John Kerry (the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee) recommended her for the role, lobbying U.S. President Barack Obama, who makes the appointments, on her behalf. 

The rumor sparked outrage among Catholic groups, because Kennedy, who is Catholic, supports abortion rights, which the church vehemently opposes. One called it an "insult," saying, "It's inappropriate to appoint someone who pretends to be a Catholic but rejects the fundamental teachings of the church."

It seems that the Vatican has crossed names off of Obama's list. "At least three names...have been 'burned' even before the proposal of nomination could be made formally, because they were unwelcome to the church," one Italian journalist wrote, as translated by the Washington Times. (The Vatican denies the allegation.)

The United States has never appointed a pro-choice ambassador to the Holy See. 

Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

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One would think

by Don Bacon on Fri, 04/10/2009 - 4:33pm

that John Kerry, who was sued in Catholic ecclesiastical court for heresy in 2004 for his own stance on abortion, would have learned something. But we shouldn't expect too much from anyone who in a political campaign could make even George W. Bush look smart and capable.

US Ambassador to reflect American values, not Vatican dogma

by FP_thinker on Fri, 04/10/2009 - 5:07pm

Access to abortion is a constitutional right in the United States. The US Ambassador to the Vatican, whether or not Catholic, should reflect American values, not Catholic dogma. Caroline Kennedy is a fine choice.

The USSR and other communist states never refused an American ambassador because the US choice was not a Marxist. Why should the Catholic Church be permitted to impose an ideological litmus test on the Ambassador that President Obama appoints. The US Ambassador should be urging a change in backwards Catholic dogma. If the Vatican refuses Caroline Kennedy, it will embarrass the Pope, not Obama. If the Vatican refuses to accept Kennedy, Obama should leave the post vacant or appoint a foreign service officer as charge d'affaires who will defend the pro-choice policies of the United States.

A controversy revisited

by NJZimmermann on Fri, 04/10/2009 - 10:09pm

The nomination of members of the Kennedy family to ambassadorial positions has always been controversial for one reason or an another.

In 1937 when Joseph P. Kennedy was appointed as Ambassador to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, his appointment was considered controversial because of his Irish heritage and his Roman Catholic upbringing.

Likewise controversy swelled around President Clinton's 1993 appointment of Jean Kennedy Smith as United States Ambassador to the Republic of Ireland. In some quarters it was felt that she lacked the experience necessary for such a sensitive post. A criticism some would argue that was borne out by the State Department report on her conduct during the controversy surrounding the the 1994 visit of Gerry Adams to the United States.

I am not surprised or shocked that the thought of Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg being appointed to be the United States Ambassador to the Vatican being that she comes from a distinguished Roman Catholic family, however liberal their views on social issues may seem. What the conservative elements of the Roman Catholic Church within the United States fail to comprehend, is that there exists a sizable minority of Roman Catholics in the United States who either share or are sympathetic towards Mrs. Schlossberg's views on political, social, economic, and theological issues.

Controversy and the Kennedy name are synonymous. What would surprise me more, would be if no controversy accompanied the mention of her name.

It is a shame that Caroline

by Alan M on Sat, 04/11/2009 - 5:25pm

It is a shame that Caroline Kennedy will not get this position. All she has wanted to do is to serve her country in one way or another. And, Senator Kerry doing what he could to help her and possibly Senator Kennedy since she lost out on the Senate seat in NY. It is ashame the Church holds it nose regarding everyone who does not see things as they do- I suppose they really don't want a US representative at all. And, frankly with the litmus test they want to put everyone through, I don't care if they do not receive an Ambassador.
Senator Kerry was railroaded by some of these same people in 2004 I bet. And, because of their unwillingness to compromise or even consider others opinions they helped put Bush back in office-by demonizing Senator Kerry. So instead of supporting the truely better and smarter candidate- the one who told the truth and had the vision to see what was ahead- they helped further the mess in Iraq, allowed incompetence to rule in New Orleans during Catrina and assisted in the financial meltdown of this country. All because they are blind to compromise.

What's a shame is that Ms. Kennedy does not respect the sanctity

by murphyII on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 8:19am

of Human Life. The last line of your comment tells exactly why you don't get it... The issue of Life cannot be compromised. It's not like taxes or healthcare or education or immigration... Please tell me how you compromise human life.

no pro-rubber ambassador either

by Don Bacon on Sat, 04/11/2009 - 10:23pm

Vatican City will soon receive scores of condoms in the mail as part of a protest against Pope Benedict XVI, demonstration organizers say. Vatican City is bracing itself for the delivery of possibly millions of condoms, the culmination of a protest against Pope Benedict XVI. Organizers of a group on Facebook say they have orchestrated a mass mailing of condoms to the Vatican.

The condom mailing is in protest of Benedict's condemnation of condom use to try and stem the spread of AIDS in Africa. Pope "B" stated that condoms do not hinder the spread of AIDS, they make the problem worse. He preached abstinence and no sex outside of marriage.--Mar 27, 2009
http://fileunderi.blogspot.com/2009/03/vatican-expecting-5-million-condoms-in.html

An ambassador's obligation is

by rowenalee on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 2:59am

An ambassador's obligation is to serve as the official representative of their country regardless of his/her religion and of what he/she believe. So, Caroline Kennedy is a fine choice for me.

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