“Devout Catholic” President Biden will not be attending the funeral of Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday per the last wishes of the pontiff and will instead send the U.S. ambassador to Italy to represent America in a clear snub by the Vatican.
(Video Credit: Forbes Breaking News)
The cat was let out of the bag by White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday. The embarrassing disinvite almost assuredly has to do with Biden’s pro-abortion stance and possibly the fact that the late Pope simply did not care for the president.
“The U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, Joe Donnelly, will represent the United States at the funeral of the Pope, in line with the wishes of the late Pope and the Vatican,” Jean-Pierre stated after being asked about the funeral by journalist Owen Jensen with EWTN. “This is what — this is what their requests were. This is what their wishes were.”
Benedict, who was born in Germany, passed away on December 31 at the age of 95 after being very ill. He stepped down as the Pope in 2013 due to health concerns and was succeeded by Pope Francis while retaining the title of Pope Emeritus.
Euro News is reporting that Italy and Germany were the only nations whose delegations were officially invited. Vatican spokesman Matteo Burni announced, “If other heads of state or government come, they will do so in a personal capacity.”
(Video Credit: EWTN)
Among those expected to attend the funeral are German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Queen Sofia of Spain, and King Philippe of Belgium. Also coming to see the pontiff laid to rest will be Poland President Andrzej Duda and President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, according to the Daily Wire.
The Catholic News Agency is reporting Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni told reporters that “following the wishes of the Pope Emeritus, the funeral will be held under the sign of simplicity,” stressing that it will be a “solemn but sober funeral.”
“The express request on the part of the Emeritus Pope is that everything be simple, both with regard to the funeral as well as the other celebrations and gestures during this time of pain,” he added.
The late Pope Benedict XVI allegedly banned Joe Biden from attending his funeral.
But I thought Joe was such a great Catholic?
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) January 4, 2023
Devout Catholic 🤨 https://t.co/kUOXA9rs3N
— Dramamama (@RoxieRufus) January 4, 2023
Jean-Pierre claimed that Biden was an admirer of Benedict, whom he met over a decade ago. However, there is not much evidence of any kind of warm relationship between the two men. The president is the first Catholic commander-in-chief in six decades and to be excluded from the service is seen as a definitive statement by the Vatican.
“So, as the president said in his statement, as I’m sure you saw, he joins Catholics and so many others around the world in mourning the passing of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI,” Jean-Pierre remarked. “He will always remember the Pope’s generosity and meaningful conversation they had when he visited the Vatican in 2011.”
Many Catholics, including priests, do not see Biden as devout due to his abortion stance.
Q: "You're not attending [Pope Benedict XVI's] funeral tomorrow, though. Why?"
BIDEN: "Well why do you think?
Q: "You tell me."
BIDEN: "You know why."
Q: "You can tell me, sir." pic.twitter.com/cl6kOaAFhX
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 4, 2023
In October 2019, Biden was denied communion at a Catholic church in South Carolina. Father Robert Morey, who is the pastor at Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Florence, contended that he refused Biden communion because “any public figure who advocates for abortion places himself or herself outside of Church teaching.”
“Holy Communion signifies we are one with God, each other, and the Church. Our actions should reflect that,” Morey noted according to the Daily Wire. He added, “As a priest, it is my responsibility to minister to those souls entrusted to my care, and I must do so even in the most difficult situations. I will keep Mr. Biden in my prayers.”
President Biden responds to my questions about the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI and why he's not attending Benedict's funeral tomorrow. @EWTNNewsNightly @EWTNews #BenedictXVI pic.twitter.com/rorgMsnbws
— Owen Jensen (@owentjensen) January 4, 2023
Jean-Pierre went out of her way to assert on Wednesday that Biden is a man of faith, all facts to the contrary.
“Look, you know, the president, as you know, he takes his faith very seriously,” she told reporters who did not seem to buy it either. “This is someone who is passionate about his faith. That’s not something I even need to tell you; you know this for yourself.”
Republished with permission from American Wire News Service
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