Missionaries of the Gospel of Life

Well, if you were wondering just how appalling the aftermath of the Schiavo case was going to be, now you know: the right-wing of the Catholic church is founding a new religious society whose sole purpose is fighting abortion and euthanasia. The LA Times (go to bugmenot.com for a password) reports:

AMARILLO, Texas - The Roman Catholic Church plans to establish its first religious society devoted exclusively to fighting euthanasia and abortion, church leaders said this week.

The male-only Missionaries of the Gospel of Life - founded by Father Frank A. Pavone, an outspoken opponent of abortion rights - will be housed in a vacant Catholic high school and dormitory on the grounds of the Diocese of Amarillo.

The order will have a decidedly political bent, and will be active rather than contemplative, Pavone said. Its priests will be trained to conduct voter-registration drives, use the media to get out their antiabortion message and lobby lawmakers to restrict abortion rights. They also will learn to lead demonstrations outside offices where abortions and family-planning services are provided. [snip]

The society's priests will be given the general mission of "preaching and teaching the pro-life message effectively," Pavone said. They also will "bring healing and forgiveness" to those who have had abortions and will provide what they describe as counseling services to women who are "tempted to abort their child," he said.

Where to start with just how disgusting this is? I mean, look, I know the official stance of the Church has always been and will probably always be anti-abortion. I'm not expecting the zebra to change its stripes here. But to form an order - an all male order - that's exclusively committed to protesting abortion and euthanasia? What, because celibate males are best qualified to weigh in on this issue? Because there aren't enough anti-choice wingnuts out there already? Where was the need???? It won't surprise you to discover that Father Pavone has recently been spending his time recruting other wingnuts in support of Terry Schiavo's parents. Those of us who've been paying attention have long realized that the hoopla around Ms. Schiavo had far more to do with abortion rights than any of the major players were admitting. But this is taking it to a whole new level. You know, there was a time, not long ago, when the Catholic church was known for its committment to socially progressive issues like fighting for the poor and disenfranchised. And there are still pockets of that tradition out there - St. Joan of Arc church right here in Minneapolis, for example, is as progressive a church as you will find anywhere in the world. But more and more the Church is choosing to align itself with backward-thinking, politically motivated zealots like Father Pavone. What a sad thing. (Thanks to my Mom for the heads up.)