Results tagged “archbishoptimothydolan”

While President Obama drew a lot of flak from the Catholics angry about him giving the commencement speech at Notre Dame yesterday, pro-choicer Mayor Bloomberg seemed to fly under the church's radar for being honored (and giving "humorous" remarks) at local Catholic university Fordham on Saturday. A spokesman for Archbishop Dolan said that he was "unaware that the mayor was at Fordham," but stopped short of offering any take on the school's choice. Dolan has been very open about his objections to Obama speaking at Notre Dame, saying this weekend it could be seen as an endorsement of the president's pro-choice stance. Good thing he cleared that up since there's been so much speculation on just where the Catholic Church stands on the issue. The Post talked to one New Yorker who sat out her Notre Dame graduation yesterday (opting to spend the time praying instead). She told the paper, "I wouldn't be able to approve them handing him a degree. Your commencement speaker is supposed to be someone you emulate, and they're supposed to be sending you off into the world."

Newly-installed Archbishop Timothy Dolan is continuing to make his presence felt in the media, keeping open discussions about hot button issues such as gay marriage and the possibility of marriage within the priesthood. Dolan seems to be making a concentrated effort to put a positive spin on the church's stance on topics that he knows might not sit well in a town as socially liberal as New York.

Archbishop Timothy Dolan, newly installed as the head of the NY Archdiocese, gave his first mass yesterday at St. Patrick's Cathedral. While the NY Times found he offered "only indirect signs of the activist role he has hinted he will take as an advocate of the church’s agenda in the public sphere" (have faith and "trust in what cannot be seen," not just “on empirical, scientific evidence"), some parishioners are pleased with Dolan, with one telling the paper, "His focus is on the Catholic point of view and if he keeps doing that he’s going to bring a lot of enthusiasm to the church." Another told the Daily News, "I'm very much taken in by how warm he is - he has an energy about him." Dolan was also not above joking about the Yankees' 22-4 loss to the Indians on Saturday or thanking the crowd, "I'm still your baby archbishop and my heart is so very, very grateful."

Governor Paterson held a press conference today introducing legislation to legalize gay marriage in New York. The governor was not the least bit tepid in his strong support of the issue, saying he has been on record as an advocate for same-sex marriage since 1994. The state's first black governor drew a strong connection between the fight for marital rights and the abolition movement, citing the names of Harriet Beecher Stowe and Frederick Douglass. Paterson said: