Notes From D.R. | Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene

Boston Mayor Tom Menino is once again doing what he does best: whining, moaning, and complaining.

This time, Menino is thowing a fit over efforts by a conservative Catholic group to have him removed as the keynote speaker at a December 9th dinner/fundraiser hosted by Catholic Charities of Boston. The group, which has successfully lobbied Archbishop Sean O’Malley to skip the fundraiser due to Menino’s planned participation, persuasively argues that Menino should not be honored by Catholic Charities when he blatantly disregards church teachings concerning same-sex marriage and abortion.

Menino claims that the group’s actions are mean-spirited, but what exactly is mean-spirited about their efforts? The group is merely pointing out that Menino’s fidelity to Catholicism is suspect as a result of his pro-choice, pro-gay marriage views, and as such, he should not be honored by a Catholic organization. Where’s the hate?

Menino is just positioning himself as a victim because he can. Boston, after all, is filled to the brim with blue-state Catholics–those who agree with the church’s teachings on "social justice" (because those teachings can be used to support big-government "anti-poverty" programs that actually have the effect of keeping people in poverty in perpetuity) but ignore all that pesky stuff about protecting the unborn and maintaining marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Globe columnist Eileen McNamara is a perfect example of this sort of Catholic.

However, Menino’s claims to martyrdom do not hold up to strict scrutiny. There is nothing intrinsically hateful about wanting a Catholic organization to honor someone who doesn’t thumb his nose at the church’s teachings on critical social issues. To honor Menino, the group correctly argues, is to honor the sort of politically-correct Catholicism that has little to do with the actual religion.

Carol McKinley, a leader of the group that wants Menino removed as keynote speaker, notes that Menino is "trying to portray our efforts to preserve the tenets of our religion for our children as angry and hateful." Unfortunately, Menino may well succeed, because so many people in this city buy into the notion that holding fast to traditional Catholic teachings on such issues as abortion and gay marriage is retrograde, small-minded, and hateful. Menino has a receptive audience in Boston, which is why he will not be removed as the keynote speaker, even though by all rights he should.

It’s hard to understand why Catholic Charities would want to honor Menino in the first place. (We’ll leave aside for now the obvious question of why the organization would want someone of Menino’s negligible oratory skills as a keynote speaker.) The group claims that Menino "has been an advocate and an effective political leader, responding to the needs of the poor, immigrants, the elderly and children and families of all races, religions and ethnic communities in the city," which is an elaborate way of saying that Menino supports the current political definition of "social justice" (i.e., the embrace of left-wing social policy). However, Menino is not an advocate for the unborn, "the weakest among us," and he is not an advocate for those who believe that marriage should be preserved as the institution of one man and one woman. Because he rejects traditional Catholicism when it comes to these issues, the conservative group would like to see Menino dismissed as keynote speaker. Disagree with their position if you will, but in your dissent, please explain how it is "hateful," for I do not see where the hard-heartedness is in their stance.

Granted, the Catholic Church has been damaged by the recent sex-abuse scandal. However, contrary to popular belief, the damage has not been fatal, and the Catholic Church can still be a force for good in the world. However, in order to do so, it must hold fast to its central principles, and not glorify those who reject some of those principles for PC purposes. This is the view of the group that seeks Menino’s ouster, and it is a view rooted in a desire to preserve the faith. Contrast that with the moaning of Menino, which is rooted, as ever, in a desire to preserve himself.