Bill Donohue sent the following letter today to Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganó, the U.S. Papal Nuncio:

Your Excellency:

This letter is in response to a missive sent to you by a motley group of dissident Catholics, as well as those no longer in communion with the Church, asking for the resignation of Archbishop John Nienstedt. The request is illegitimate: Those pressing this issue cite Canon law as the basis of their agenda, yet they themselves belong to organizations that expressly reject the teachings of the Catholic Church on many issues. That is why some U.S. bishops have excommunicated anyone who belongs to some of these rogue Catholic groups.

The Catholic Coalition for Church Reform never mentions the fact that the Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis has no offending priests in ministry, or that he has taken exceptional steps to ensure the integrity of the archdiocese. Not surprisingly, some in the secular media are giving high profile to this orchestrated effort to unseat Archbishop Nienstedt. He deserves better.

The letter you were sent contains many factual errors, all intentionally designed to smear Archbishop Nienstedt. I am enclosing a piece that was published today by Joan Frawley Desmond in the National Catholic Register that accurately describes this issue.

Unlike those who harbor an animus against the Church, the Catholic League is listed in the Official Catholic Directory. Our staff, and our members, are loyal sons and daughters of the Catholic Church. As such, it pains us when we read of attempts by the Church’s adversaries to malign innocent persons.

Thank you for your consideration.

To read Joan Frawley Desmond’s article, click here.

Bill Donohue comments on an interview that St. Paul and Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt gave to Minnesota Public Radio (MPR):

It is not uncommon for the leader of any organization to be on the firing line for decisions made by his predecessor and his staff. But in this regard, bishops have no rival: sitting bishops are being held responsible to an absurd degree for the rulings made by those who preceded them.

Two days ago, MPR published the e-mail interview it had with Archbishop Nienstedt. There was one question that showed palpable bias: “Why haven’t you released the names of offending priests?”

The question suggests that MPR knows about a cover-up of guilty priests. It turns out that it does not, which is why it did not name names. Nienstedt replied, “There are no offending priests in active ministry in our archdiocese.” So why did MPR assume he was guilty?

Nienstedt then addressed the issue of falsely accused priests who have been exonerated—a subject that MPR, and the media in general, have been strikingly incurious about—saying that it “would be wrong to publicize their names as offenders when they have not been proven to be offenders.” Good for him.

Equal justice demands that if the leaders of other religious and secular organizations do not publicize the names of those who are accused, but not convicted, then neither should the bishops. Does MPR’s parent organization, NPR, go public with accusations made against its employees?

Just this week, the House voted for a bill to prohibit convicted sex offenders from working in the public schools. It was vigorously opposed by the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers. It received almost no press. Which just goes to show that it is not child sexual abuse that bothers elites in education and the media—it’s who the alleged offender is.

Bill Donohue comments on the latest development over the University of South Florida (USF) professor who mocked Catholic priests:

I was faxed a letter today by Julianne Serovich, Dean of the College of Behavioral & Community Sciences at USF, saying the university was “carefully reviewing” the incident involving Professor Timothy Weil; I recently contacted school officials about this, including her.

On September 27, Weil spoke at the Florida Association for Behavioral Analysis in Daytona Beach, identifying himself as a USF employee. He showed a picture of a priest holding a crucifix on one side, and a toilet on the other side; in between was an equal sign (=). He asked the audience what the picture meant, and someone yelled, “They’re both full of shit.”

Weil does not deny what happened. But according to the Tampa Tribune, he says his presentation was misunderstood, and that it was academically valid.

Weil needs to educate me. He needs to publicly explain exactly what he meant by equating priests with feces. He also needs to explain why, if the audience member who spoke up was wrong, did he gleefully stroll around the room signaling his approval. Moreover, he needs to explain to the Florida taxpayers why they should pay the salary of someone who thinks it is academically valid to insult 70 million Roman Catholics.

Contact Weil: tweil@fmhi.usf.edu

Bill Donohue comments on last night’s episode of the E! show, “Chelsea Lately”:

Priests and Germans were libeled last night by two of Chelsea Handler’s guests, Kurt Braunohler and Moshe Kasher.

The objectionable part began with a discussion of Bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, the German bishop who was suspended by Pope Francis for his opulent lifestyle.

Braunohler: “I love that the Catholic Church has like a zero tolerance policy on everything other than child abuse.”

Kasher: “It’s a German priest, so that’s a difficult set of circumstances. You know what I mean, it’s like-do I make out with that kid or do I kill that Jew.”

The remark by Braunohler came the day after the teachers unions, led by the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers, sought to stop a bill that would prohibit the hiring of convicted sex offenders in the public schools. The bill, which was approved by the House, is aimed at bringing the public schools up to speed so that they will have the same zero tolerance policy that Catholic schools have had for years.

The remark by Kasher, which fails to distinguish between Germans and Nazis, suggests he doesn’t know the difference between those Germans who resisted Hitler—they were disproportionately Catholic—and those who followed the genocidal policies of the National Socialist Party run by an atheist who hated the Catholic Church.

Both of the guests are ignorant, but that is hardly an excuse to smear all priests and Germans.

Contact the head of E!’s PR Department, John Rizzotti: John.Rizzotti@nbcuni.com

Bill Donohue comments on today’s edition of “The View”:

Jenny McCarthy cracked up on TV today but no one seemed to notice. This is not a good sign.

Jenny went into a tizzy about the Catholic Church because her mom was once denied an annulment. The former porn star then went into detail about her mother’s problems.

Jenny said her mom “cries during Communion because she watches all her friends go up there,” while she sits and weeps. She did not say if her mom stops crying after Communion, or whether she cries all the way home. No matter, she said, “I hope the pope gets smart and does something about it.”

[Jenny, listen to Bill: If you know of any shortcuts on how to “get smart,” please test them on yourself before contacting the Holy Father.]

Jenny also shared her delusional story about being in the pope’s apartment. “I went to the Vatican [and] I actually went into the apartment, into the pope’s apartment and I was literally there and I’m going, oh my God, I could take a chunk of this gold cherub and feed a country.” Instead, she settled for a crucifix.

Last year, on “Access Hollywood,” Jenny was more explicit. She credited a few “mafia guys” with sneaking her into the pope’s apartment in 1995; she said she even tried on some of his clothes. After slamming the Italians, she took a shot at Jews: she said her Jewish friends told her to steal a crucifix as a souvenir for her mother. She did not say whether her mom wept upon receipt, or whether she hocked it to feed to a country, or at least a village.

Look for Jenny to either fully crash, or get booted, real soon. In the meantime, contact the stooge behind “The View,” Bill Geddie.

Contact: bill.geddie@abc.com

Bill Donohue comments on Halloween costumes currently on sale:

The priest costume shows the clergyman in black cassock with an erection. The nun costume shows her in full habit and pregnant. Anyone who wants to buy a costume with a rabbi or imam sporting an erection is out of luck—there are none available. There are also no vulgar Jewish or Muslim women costumes available. Just ones for nuns.

The most prominent store selling the offensive priest and nun costumes is Spirit Halloween; they have stores throughout the nation and have a big online following. The store even says of the priest-with-an-erection garb, “Pair this mens [sic] costume with the Pregnant Nun for some really twisted fun.”

Contact the illiterates at: GuestServices@spirithalloween.com

On October 3, Dr. Bill Donohue contacted the president of the University of South Florida, Dr. Judy Genshaft, the Dean, Dr. Julianne Serovich, and the chairman of the Department of Child & Family Studies, Dr. Mario Hernandez, about the alleged conduct of Dr. Timothy Weil. He asked them two questions: a) is the allegation true? and b) if it is, what exactly is going to be done about it? He has not heard back, which is why he is contacting the media. Below is an excerpt from his letter:

 I have been told that at a recent conference held at the Hilton Daytona Beach Resort, Dr. Timothy M. Weil gave a paper, “Impact of Rule Governance on Motivation and its Clinical Application”; it was part of the proceedings of the Florida Association for Behavior Analysis. In his September 27 address, it is alleged that he did the following:

He put up a picture of an equal sign (=) in the middle of the large screen and then added a picture of a priest holding a crucifix to the left of it, and a picture of a toilet to the right. He then asked the audience to comment on what the picture means. Someone from the audience yelled, “They’re both full of shit.” After the audience settled down, Dr. Weil strolled around the room and gleefully repeated the response; those who were there knew he got the response he sought.

I taught sociology for 16 years at a college in Pittsburgh and served for 20 years on the board of the National Association of Scholars. I have also written two books on the First Amendment. I have great respect for academic freedom, but I also have great contempt for those who abuse it. There is obviously nothing of any academic value when someone gratuitously insults the adherents of any world religion. Whatever point Dr. Weil was trying to make could surely have been made without unnecessarily offending Catholic sensibilities.

Donohue will now contact the 16 members of the Florida Board of Governors, and John B. Ramil, Chairman of the University of South Florida System, about this incident, and the failure of USF to respond.

Contact Vickie Chachere, USF News Manager: vchachere@usf.edu

Bill Donohue comments on how St. Paul police are handling investigations of sexual abuse:

St. Paul Police Commander Mary Nash is engaged in one of the most offensive religious profiling actions in recent history, and the fact that the Department is allowing her to continue is equally obscene. On October 17, she made a public plea asking anyone who at one time or another had been a victim of sexual abuse by a priest to come forward and report his case to the police. She did not ask if anyone had been molested by a minister, rabbi, imam, teacher, athletic coach, psychologist, social worker, stepfather, mother’s boyfriend, police officer, or anyone else—just priests.

Nash, a former Catholic, says she is simply following up on a case involving a priest who may have had child pornography on his computer in 2004. The priest was investigated, and after no evidence was found, the case was closed. Now the case has been reopened because new evidence has allegedly been found.

No one objects to reopening a case, but to use this incident as an opportunity to zero in on priests alone is indefensible. The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has expressed its willingness to cooperate with the police, and we commend them for doing so. What is not acceptable is for the police department to engage in religious profiling. This witch hunt should be called off immediately.

Contact St. Paul Police Chief Tom Smith: Tom.Smith@ci.stpaul.mn.us

Bill Donohue addresses Kanye West’s performance Saturday night in Seattle kicking off his “Yeezus” tour:

Kanye West apparently suffers from low self-esteem, and while his condition is entirely warranted, it does not excuse his willingness to cover his inadequacies as a performer by hijacking Christian iconography. At Saturday night’s show, a tall Jesus character appeared on stage prior to West’s “Jesus Walks” number. “White Jesus, is that you?…Oh, s***,” West said.

Nothing that the Jesus figure said was irresponsible, but West could not stop there. His performance also included a Virgin Mary, incense, a crucifix, etc., all trotted out to make a Catholic statement. That it was not exactly reverential is obvious.

In 2006, West appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone wearing a crown of thorns with “blood” streaming down his face. The guy has some issues, and the sooner he deals with them, the less likely he will play fast and loose with Catholicism.

West is a classic rip-off artist with limited talent. It’s time he asked Kim to throw him a retirement party.

Bill Donohue comments on the role that religion is playing in the race for the new mayor of New York City:

New York is a secular town, but mayoral candidates usually say at least something about the public role of religion. Neither Joe Lhota, the Republican candidate, nor Bill de Blasio, the Democratic candidate, has said anything. It’s as if religious liberty issues don’t exist. In terms of their outreach to religious communities, they are both bending over backward to please Jews and Muslims, but Catholics are all but invisible to them.

Is there a synagogue in Brooklyn that these two men haven’t visited? Is there an African-American church that de Blasio hasn’t spoken in? Just yesterday, both Lhota and de Blasio said the public schools should close on two Muslim holidays. “The origins of this nation [are] people of many different faiths coming together,” said de Blasio. This is historically incorrect: this nation was founded almost exclusively by Protestants. It would be more accurate to say that America has always welcomed people of all religions.

An Internet search of Lhota and Jews turns up many articles, as does a search when he is paired with Muslims; there is very little about him and Catholics. Many more articles can be found on de Blasio: “Candidate Says No More NYPD Spying on Muslims,” and “Bill de Blasio and the Jews,” are two examples. Aside from my critical Newsmax article on the Democratic candidate, “NY Mayoral Hopeful de Blasio Has Sordid Past” [click here], there is practically nothing on him and Catholics.

Lhota is puzzling. Unlike de Blasio, who has shown he is no friend to the Catholic community, Lhota carries no such baggage. That he hasn’t seen Catholics as a group to court—when his competitor has disqualified himself from doing so—does not speak well for his campaign. But the problem may be Lhota himself: any man who advertises on TV that he is a big fan of abortion rights and gay marriage—drawing attention to the fact that he shares these positions with his challenger—is not going to appeal to practicing Catholics. Such incompetence is hard to beat.