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Today’s blacklisted American: Priest removed by Catholic Church for condemning Democrats who violate actual Catholic teachings

Catholic Church now opposes its own basic tenets in order to politically help Democrats
The Catholic Church: Down with Catholic teachings!
Up with the leftist Democratic Party!

They’re coming for you next: A Wisconsin priest was removed from his parish by his superiors in the Catholic Church in late May because he has bluntly condemned Democratic Party politicians for their “pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, and pro-transgender agendas” that violate the church’s foundational teachings.

The priest, James Altman, is most well known for a video homily he posted that stated the following:

“Here’s a memo to clueless baptized Catholics out there: You cannot be Catholic and be a Democrat. Period,” Altman said in the video. “Their party platform absolutely is against everything the Catholic church teaches. So just quit pretending that you’re Catholic and vote Democrat. Repent of your support of that party and its platform, or face the fires of hell.”

Altman’s homily also strongly criticized his own superiors for their willingness to protect these same Democrats, no matter what those Democrats do.

I am not Catholic but I do know the church’s most basic tenets, which are pro-life and insist that marriage must be between a man and a woman in order to properly raise children. Anyone with the slightest intellectual honesty knows that the Democratic Party opposes those tenets in word and deed, and has for decades. To make believe otherwise is to believe in fantasy, something that the leadership in the Catholic Church has become very good at in recent years. Altman was simply calling them on it.

Altman has since founded an organization called Coalition for Canceled Priests, focused on defending blacklisted priests like himself. He backed up his support with a $100,000 donation, raised by supporters for his own defense since his ouster.

The issue here is not whether the Catholic Church’s tenets are correct. That is beside the point. The issue is that it has those tenets, and if you are Catholic you are expected to follow them. If you are a priest or bishop of that church you are expected to defend them. This is what Altman was quite properly doing. For doing so, his own church leader fired him, proving somewhat bluntly that the present leadership in the Catholic Church no longer believes in its own religion.

More important, this action shows that the present church hierarchy now wishes to put politics above its own teachings while protecting the leftist ideals advocated by the Democratic Party. To achieve this it is now willing blacklist anyone who does otherwise.

It was a similar conflict in the Catholic Church that led to the Reformation in the 16th century. The church hierarchy was then corrupt and refused to follow the plain words in the bible. Many priests rebelled, and ended up being forced to form their own churches independent of that corrupt hierarchy. The time may be coming when modern priests like Altman will have to do the same.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 

The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

10 comments

  • Joe Wooten

    My wife and I left the Catholic church 4 years ago after it became apparent that Frankie the Red was going to accelerate the plunge of the church into “modernity”. It’s a shame that a 2000 year old institution will soon come to an end

  • Greg the Geologist

    Joe, that’s understandable, but we’ve been through eras of monumentally bad popes and bishops before, and got through it (by the grace of God if by nothing else). To borrow a phrase from Mr. Z., I choose to ‘stand and fight’. I don’t financially support our Leftist local bishop. I do support efforts to keep the Church true to her teachings, and I try to support some of the many worthwhile Church-based organizations that assist the homeless (while insisting they get the help they need), properly educate the young, and provide charitable relief in and beyond the U.S. The good causes are out there, but will take some work to find them and be sure you’re not supporting our Loony Left. Here’s one of many – the Archdiocese for the Military Services USA, whose bishops are orthodox, and who go above and beyond to assist our service personnel (many of them very young and far from home). Stand and fight.

  • pzatchok

    Fr. Altman speaks the truth according to Church teachings.

    He is appealing this all the way to the Vatican. good for him. The local bishop can only remove him from official parish duties. He can not defrock him.

  • Chris

    I left the Catholic church when I realized that subsidiarity was a Roman Catholic tenet and my parish priest would not even address the idea of it.
    This was the work of the American Council of Bishops – read their voter handout circa 2012. Indeed Pope John Paul took this issue head on in 1991 in strong support of subsidiarity arguing against the welfare state.

    Centesimus Annus
    https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_01051991_centesimus-annus.html

    This article of the Acton institute speaks to subsidiarity
    https://www.acton.org/pub/religion-liberty/volume-6-number-4/principle-subsidiarity

    There are many more articles on the Acton site if interested.

  • Owen Hayes

    He is right the Democrat party is the tool of Satan it is plain as day for those with open eyes.

  • John V

    Remember the debate in 2016 between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton? During the debate Hillary Clinton reaffirmed that she supported abortion through all nine months of pregnancy (that is, right up to the moment of birth). Trump called that position “evil”, right from the devil evil. The following Sunday the priest at our parish used that event to teach how Catholics cannot vote for or in any way support politicians (or anyone else) who reject foundational Catholic Teachings. Hurray for him. And hurray for Father James Altman. May the bishops find faith in Christ and choose to follow His moral teachings.

  • James Street

    If you want to hear a good 10 minute homily (“sermon” for us Protestants) this Sunday morning I suggest the one Robert linked in this “Today’s Blacklisted American”: Father James Altman.

    Father Altman nails it.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-7eoTN2vNM

  • Carol Pooley

    This is total craziness. What Christian principle, following the teachings of Jesus Christ, does the Republican Party believe in? Economic & financial gain at the cost of ethical consciousness & conscience? My Christian, Catholic & spiritual beliefs lead me further & further away from the R party. As compassionate Catholics, in my opinion, Christian Catholics we must evolve to inclusion of all, just as Jesus Christ taught us. Furthermore, myself & many others consider Father James Altman to be one of the MOST unchristian priest or person to hear scream his horrible misinterpretation of Christian doctrine. It truly saddens me to read these backward comments. Many Catholics left the church precisely because of teachings mimicking this Altman guy (it disturbs me to call him a Christian, much less a Catholic priest). I suppose people making these absurd comments support Trump. Trump demonstrates highly unchristian behaviors & beliefs. These people making these comments are backwards & truly, IMO, brainwashed by the R party, Fox & Trump. They sound like crazy people, without a heart or brain (similar to trump) & without a truly spiritual focus. How can this be? Christ came down & did what he did to correct the old ways & old teachings. These people here are a bunch of non-progressive people, i.e., without any vision of forward movement. In the Democratic Party I am taught to include all, that means including these very misguided people with their unholy & unchristian doctrine, in complete opposition to the teachings of Christ. What gives? Pope Francis is acting similarly to Jesus Christ in his teachings. And just as Christ was rejected by his own people so is the Pope being rejected by his own people. You all should be ashamed & asks God’s forgiveness.

  • Carol Pooley: Boy, do you sound like AI, from top to bottom.

  • Edward

    So, the Catholic Church will excommunicate someone for merely getting a divorce, but supporting abortion is OK?

    I suspect that Altman has it correct. As I have seen it for decades, many Democrat policies go against Catholic doctrine. Back in 2012 at the Democratic National Convention, the leadership had a difficult time getting the delegates to adopt a platform that acknowledged God. Eventually, they had to rule that the voice vote didn’t go the way it audibly went. The party ruled against the God-denying representatives of Democrat voters.

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