Michael Voris came to town to report on the "scandal" of Cardinal Timothy Dolan and the St. Patrick's Day Parade. Voris didn't really get anything to report about Cardinal Dolan personally. However, Voris is now representing himself as Cardinal Dolan's victim, and the Catholic blogosphere is eating it up. Voris reports that he was "roughed up" by "Cardinal Dolan's handlers" at the St. Patrick's Day Parade in NYC and actually shows us this on video.
A closer look at the video completely disproves his story.
The video starts out with Cardinal Dolan speaking in general to the press around him, saying, "Good to be with you all. I've been looking forward to this for a long time." Voris then interrupted the Cardinal to say, "Your Eminence, do you have anything to say to loyal Catholics who find what you are doing here a great scandal to the faith?" Think about the implications of that question. Voris, without any kind of warning, confronted Cardinal Dolan in a public setting and accused him of being a scandal in the Church and an offense to all "faithful" Catholics. Without using the words, Voris called Cardinal Dolan a heretic to his face. The impertinence and disrespect in this action is staggering. For those who do not agree with Cardinal Dolan or any other prelate of the Church, there is a time and place to talk to them about their disagreements. It is not on a public street in a public setting such as this.
I have to say, I thought Cardinal Dolan handled Voris's disrespectful actions very well. He did not berate Voris or embarrass him in any way, as he well could have. Instead, he replied, "No, come on in, we'd love to have you." The Cardinal then turned away from Voris, who responded in a loud voice, "That's not really an answer, Your Eminence."
What in the world did Voris expect? He obviously was doing nothing more than trying to bait Cardinal Dolan. The Cardinal was in the midst of his duties as Grand Marshal of the St. Patrick's Day Parade. Voris, with no invitation of any kind, pushed his way up to the Cardinal and blasted him with a terrible accusation. There is just no other way to describe this than a spiritual assault.
Voris tells us that after the Cardinal turned away,
One of [Cardinal Dolan's] handlers elbowed me in the stomach and within less than a minute another fellow came by and grabbed both me and my camera, Matt Pierson, and dragged us, pulled us, pushed us, out of the little srum, the press scrum that was developing and as you can see here in this video, it wasn't a very friendly scene.We are shown a scene where a man asks Voris, "Do you have a press pass, sir?"
Voris: "Yes, I do."
Man: "That's not from New York City. You have to leave."
Voris: "We don't need that."
Man: "You do. I said you do. You with him?"
The man then turned and said, "Officer, Officer, help me with this? Escort them out, please. Escort them out."
We can hear Voris in the background saying something like "We're not resisting."
Man: "You don't have a press pass. Out. Out."
Voris: "We're walking. We're walking. Which way do you want us to go."
Man: "This way."
Voris: "All right. We're walking. We're walking."
When Voris got to the gate, we hear someone say, "These guys are out."
It is important to remember where Voris was when he pulled this stunt. He was in New York City at a major event - more than 2 million people attend the parade. We have tight security at all times in this city, but at an event such as this, it is even tighter. Everyone is on high alert. Cardinal Dolan, being who he is and Grand Marshal of the Parade as well, was guarded very closely to make sure no one tried to assault him. Voris approached the Cardinal out of nowhere and blasted him with a very harsh accusation. The security personnel around the Cardinal, whose job is to protect the Cardinal, became instantly aware of this situation and their reaction was to check Voris out. I live in NYC, and I can tell you that no one is above suspicion here, and if you give the slightest sign of hostility, the authorities let you know. Since Voris did not have the proper credentials - no New York City Press Pass - they got him out of there as fast as they could.
Of course, the Catholic blogosphere has lit up with accusations against and condemnation of Cardinal Dolan. A few headlines:
"Cardinal Dolan's Jolly Demeanor - Thin Veneer for Thuggish Behavior."
"Voris Assaulted by Aberro-Grandmarshal's Goons at "St. Patrick's Day" Parade"
"Dolan's thugs caught in Vortex! -- proves existence of Irish mafia"
"All Are Welcome, Right? God Forgive Cardinal Dolan"
Of course, Pewsitter is always the best: "Voris Snubbed, Assaulted by Grandmarshal Dolan's Goons at "St. Patrick's Day" Parade."
No one is better than Pewsitter at misleading headlines.
Cardinal Dolan actually had nothing to do with the situation with Voris. His "handlers" as Voris labels them, or as the Catholic blogoshpere refers to them, "thugs" otherwise known as Security, are the ones who reacted to Voris, and by doing so, they were doing their job. It's amazing. Voris shows complete disrespect for a Cardinal of the Catholic Church, and the Catholic blogosphere calls Cardinal Dolan the bad guy. Now THAT is a scandal.
Voris ends his video with, "You deal with the Church of Nice, and the Church of Nice ain't so nice."
When will Voris ever take responsibility for his actions? Why does he think he can go on day after day criticizing and condemning the ordained hierarchy of the Catholic Church, constantly telling us that we can't trust those in authority over us because they are evil and headed to hell, urging people to stop financially supporting their parishes and dioceses, and even urging people to leave their Catholic parishes,
I know Voris reads my little blog because I have been contacted by email by his organization, which I will be writing about very soon. According to the emails I received, Voris actually keeps a file on me, keeping material from when I first contacted him and supported him a few years ago to the present time. So I am going to direct this personally to Michael Voris.
Mike, you have to stop. I can't read your heart. Maybe you think you are actually doing the work of God. But your philosophy of "saving" the Catholic Church - which you sarcastically refer to as the "Church of Nice" - by destroying her puts you in direct conflict with Jesus Christ Himself. This Church - with all of its faults - is His Mystical Body. I have no doubt that you read my post in which I quoted from St. Catherine of Siena's Dialogue, which reports God the Father as saying:
Christ on earth, then, has the keys to the blood. If you remember, I showed you this in an image when I wanted to teach you the respect laypeople ought to have for these ministers of mine, regardless of how good or evil they may be, and how displeased I am with disrespect. . . .
These are my anointed ones, and therefore it has been said through Scripture, "Dare not touch my christs." Therefore, a person can do no worse violence than to assume the right to punish my ministers.
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ReplyDeleteVoris tried to play hero and got shot down. His plan to elevate himself in the eyes of his fans by publicly embarrassing Cdl Dolan backfired. Cdl. Dolan, though not always so quick with an appropriate response when blindsided by a question, responded well and dismissed Voris without being uncharitable. He was, after all, kicking off a parade/celebration in good spirit and Voris rudely interrupted the Cardinal as if he was at a political press conference.
ReplyDeleteVoris demonstrated how not to treat Church hierarchy. I doubt that Cdl Dolan is aware of all the videos Voris has made in which Voris is scandalously disrespectful in condemning the Cardinal. But even if Cdl Dolan had knowledge of Voris's video smears, why would Voris think Cdl Dolan would give him the time of day? Cdl Dolan has made his view on his decision to marshal the parade clear in a previous statement. Our disagreement with his decision doesn't give us the right to cause a scene at the event. The St Patrick's parade has been scandalous for years with Catholics squarely amidst the promotion of overindulgence in food/alcohold during the Lenten season. Why doesn't Voris complain about that? To characterize his escort from the press area as being "roughed up" is a bit of a stretch. Is Voris really such a sissy?
I don't like the tactics used by Michael Voris. He paints with a broad brush and fact checking too often reveals that he's twisted the truth to fit his personal agenda (whatever that may be....bolstering his own ego?). Nevertheless, I find myself praying for Michael and his fans who seem to have placed him on a pedestal. I only hope they stop adoring Voris long enough to commune with and adore our Lord. Voris is tearing down and dividing when our Church is in dire need of building up and unity.
P.S. I hate the use of the term "handlers". I've seen too many bloggers use it in reference to the Pope and other Church hierarchy. We have baggage and animal "handlers". To use the term in reference to Church hierarchy is demeaning.
Excellent analysis. Thank you.
DeleteExcellent analysis by both of you. Very well done.
DeleteExcellent analysis by both of you. Very well done.
DeleteYou are confusing different issues: Voris' question and his other Vortex videos.
ReplyDeleteI'm not offering any defense for other things that Voris does, but in regard to your attack over the question asked the Cardinal, you are emoting and not thinking.
The question, "Your Eminence, do you have anything to say to loyal Catholics who find what you are doing here a great scandal to the faith?" is fairly well worded.
Contrary to what you assert, it does not actually accuse the Cardinal of scandal, but rather gives him an opportunity to respond to those loyal Catholics that find it a scandal. Objectively speaking, there are more than a few that do.
"confronted Cardinal Dolan in a public setting"
++Dolan is a public figure speaking to a press group. Questions are fair game. ++Dolan was in the midst of committing the very act that is causing such consternation. It's a most appropriate time to ask for an explanation.
"Voris called Cardinal Dolan a heretic to his face."
In the context of this question and episode, that's rubbish. Scandal and heresy are not the same the thing, although public heresy would also be a scandal.
"For those who do not agree with Cardinal Dolan or any other prelate of the Church, there is a time and place to talk to them about their disagreements. It is not on a public street in a public setting such as this."
Again, he was preparing to commit the public act that is causing consternation. He's speaking to the press. It's a very appropriate setting to give him an opportunity to address the confusion. ++Dolan has yet to offer any cogent, defensible reason for taking part in the parade.
"There is just no other way to describe this than a spiritual assault. "
You've gone over the edge into la la land.
If Cardinal Dolan was holding a press conference and taking questions and answers from the press, or if he had granted an interview with Voris, then I would agree with you. Then the question would have been more than fair. But Cardinal Dolan was merely walking through the streets and Voris pushed his way up to him and blindsided him with this question. Voris was not invited to question the Cardinal. And you can be sure that Voris had crafted this question long before he arrived in NYC. It was cleverly phrased so that it could not be construed as a verbal assaul against the Cardinal, but yet the message was loud and clear - you are a scandal to the Church and faithful Catholics view you as a heretic. There is no denying the meaning there.
DeleteThe very fact that the security personnel around the Cardinal viewed Voris as hostile should make it very clear that even they knew where Voris was coming from. If you can't see it, it is because you don't want to. You are the one refusing to see reality. You are the one living in la la land.
The Cardinal has rightfully stated that the Catholic Church is not in charge of the St. Patrick's Day Parade in NYC. It has always been a secular event run by lay persons. The Church has always participated in it, but she has never called the shots.
Despite Voris's accusations, while Cardinal Dolan loves homosexuals, as we all should, he does not support their lifestyle. He in on the Board of Courage, a Catholic ministry started here in NYC to help homosexuals live a chaste life. He has spoken out many times against gay marriage. The homosexual community views him as an enemy.
When Jesus Christ dined with sinners, did that mean he was condoning their lifestyles? Cardinal Dolan was not endorsing the homosexual lifestyle by marching in the parade with openly practicing homosexuals. He was fulfilling these words of Pope Francis:
"An evangelizing community gets involved by word and deed in people’s daily lives; it bridges distances, it is willing to abase itself if necessary, and it embraces human life, touching the suffering flesh of Christ in others. Evangelizers thus take on the “smell of the sheep” and the sheep are willing to hear their voice."
The St. Patrick's Day Parade is not a religious event. It never has been. But it is a great opportunity for evangelization. And that is what Cardinal Dolan saw.
If you would like to read more about this, you can see my post here:
http://catholicinbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2014/09/cardinal-dolan-catcher-in-rye-and.html
When an event bears the name of a Catholic saint, the religious component cannot be ignored. As far as "opportunity for evangelism" goes, that doesn't occur by affirming mortal sin. In taking on the "smell of the sheep" one must take care not to take on the "stench of sin". Cardinal Dolan doesn't understand the difference. You do no one any service by apologizing for the scandal of his appearance (just the latest scandal of quite a few, mind you).
ReplyDeleteI guess Our Lord took on the "stench of the sheep" when he dined and socialized with "sinners and taxpayers" as well. You, of course, keep yourself pristine pure by being sure never to get anywhere near those dirty, nasty sinners. If they are stupid and evil enough to be involved in sin, then let them drown in it. You're not your brother's keeper.
DeleteWhat a cheap mischaracterization of Christ and 2000 years of evangelists. Christ took on the stench of the sheep and dined with sinners to dispel their errors and exorcise their demons, Cardinal Dolan is Aaron,the priest who stinks like the sin of the sheep because he builds a golden calf so his people can dance with their demons. You don't know the difference and should not be teaching Christ's people.
DeleteWhen Cardinal Dolan starts going to gay bars and "dancing" with homosexuals, then you can compare him to Aaron. Marching as Grand Marshal in a parade in which homosexuals are also marching is hardly the same thing. I think I do know the difference. You apparently don't.
DeleteYour characterization would also taint all of the thousands of other people who marched in the parade. How dare they march alongside professing homosexuals! Don't they know these people are unclean and need to be shunned?
Or could it be they are poor sinners in need of God's mercy, and we who are the grateful recipients of that mercy have a responsibility to try to bring them to the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ. That is why Our Lord dined alongside sinners. You don't convert anyone by rejecting them as depraved and evil. You have to reach out to to them, be willing to wash their feet, as it were.
That is what Cardinal Dolan did, and God bless him for it.
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DeleteI know. I should stay much more calm and charitable like you. I guess all of those thousands of other people marching in the parade were also "promoting their status."
DeleteSure. Because a journalist asking question of a big strong, strapping bishop carrying a big stick to march in a clapping fornication parade is a spiritual assault against him. Good one.
ReplyDeleteI guess we need to tell God the Father, as related to us by St. Catherine of Siena, that He is wrong. We can treat "His christs" anyway we want to.
Deletehuh? That doesn't make any sense
DeleteYou obviously have never read St. Catherine of Siena a Doctor of the Church. She had a dialogue with God the Father in which He told her that he considers the very worst sin as attacking the priests and bishops of the Church. If you would like to read about it, I did a post:
Deletehttp://catholicinbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2015/02/st-catherine-of-siena-warns-michael.html
Or you can just pick up a copy of The Dialogue and read it for yourself.
St. Catherine was not referring to Bishops who are pro-aborts and anti-Catholic bigots.
DeleteSt. Catherine didn't refer to anyone. These are the words of God the Father as recorded by St. Catherine, and they are:
Delete" I showed you this in an image when I wanted to teach you the respect laypeople ought to have for these ministers of mine, regardless of how good or evil they may be, and how displeased I am with disrespect"
Doesn't seem to differentiate between any sins. In the words of God the Father:
"Therefore, a person can do no worse violence than to assume the right to punish my ministers."
ReplyDeleteThere are no prohibitions in asking a Cardinal to address the people he is scandalizing.
You might want to google the quote below:
"We've had enough of exhortations to be silent! Cry out with a hundred thousand tongues. I see that the world is rotten because of silence"
Of course you can go to a Cardinal with any questions or concerns you have. But blindsiding him on a public street and trying to make him look bad is not the way to do it. All Voris suceeded in doing was making himself look bad and getting thrown out.
DeleteI have seen this quote all over the Internet, and it is attributed to St. Catherine of Siena. I have never been able to find it in her writings. Can you give me a specific quote and where it is from?
Clearly you're a shill for +Dolan and company, and not a particularly bright one at that. + Dolan is a poster boy for poor leadership and scandal, but I suppose someone will always rise up to defend the indefensible.
ReplyDeleteYou have learned well from Michael Voris. I give you an A+.
DeleteI, for a change, have no problem in how Michael Voris asked the question.
ReplyDeleteOne, the question was rather polite if you compare how he has talked about his Eminence behind his back.
Two, There is scandal is cardinal Dolen serving as Grand Marshal, but not the scandal that Michael thinks. The scandal is from the St Patrick parade excluding Pro-Life groups.
Three, His Eminence is a public personage. Asking his a question in public, even a biting question is fair. Maybe not nice or polite, but fair.
I personally find it unconscionable that a Prince of the Church would preside over an event were Pro-Life groups would be excluded. Especially if the manta of the event was supposed to be "All are welcome"
No, I have no problem with the question or how it was asked.
Further, I have no problem on how Michael was treated afterwards. St. Paul said something about reaping what you sow and brother Michael definitely reaped what he has sown.
I do have a problem with how Michael acted afterwards. He is like a bratty little boy, who throws rocks at people at the park, then freaks out when someone throw rocks back at him. In his vortex, "Love to Have Ya!" he was mocking and insulting of Cardinal Dolen. Gee, I wonder why the Archdiocese does not roll out a red carpet for CMTV?
I saw that Vortex as well today, and I will be writing a post on it.
DeleteI understand your point about the question, but Voris was not really looking for an answer. He wanted to rattle Cardinal Dolan's cage. The question was very cleverly crafted and civil in its tone, but the accusation contained in it cannot be denied.
I think it is very important to reach out to the homosexual community. They aren't going to come to us on our terms, and we most definitely can't be a part of their events. This was a very good mutual ground on which to meet.
Cardinal Dolan accepted the position as Grand Marshal before the pro life group was excluded. That was totally the decision of the parade committee, and Cardinal Dolan had no say in it. I understand your point, but I disagree.
What staggering phony outrage. Since when do cowardly bishops allow themselves to be questioned about anything? When and where exactly? Stop condemning a modest attempt to confront the sort of ecclesial cowardice whose net effect leads to validating all the moral depravity of popular culture including the crushing of baby skulls by the millions.
ReplyDeleteYou're rather angry, aren't you? Did you happen to see the quote from St. Catherine's Dialogue? Oh, that's right, you already explained it to me.
DeleteYou're right. I am angry at pro-abortion and pro-depravity priests and bishops, just as the Catholic religion and the honoring of God requires.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePlease see my post concerning this video:
ReplyDeletehttp://catholicinbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2015/03/michael-voris-faithful-catholic.html
Since I left my comment above on this blog, I've been blocked from commenting on the CMTV Facebook page. It's interesting because, while I sometimes read the page when a post ends up on my newsfeed, I've never commented on the page. Why would the administrator suddenly decide to block me? Does the page administrator comb the internet looking for people who disagree with what Voris is doing and block them all?
ReplyDeleteIt's odd and hypocritical behavior. They don't want anyone who disagrees with Voris to comment on the CMTV page yet they feel that Cardinal Dolan is out of line for sending Voris packing when he tried to publicly smack down the Cardinal. Given the nastiness of Voris's remarks about Cardinal Dolan in a number of Vortex videos, why would Voris and crew think Cardinal Dolan would be interested in giving Voris an opportunity to spout his vitriol during an event over which Cardinal Dolan was presiding?
I can guarantee you that Christine Niles is the one who blocked you. She sent me a private email after this post assuring me that Voris has no time to read postings by "disgruntled bloggers." Yet she seemed to find time to read my blog.
DeleteI have also received emails from Terry Carroll, another right hand to Voris. They keep very close track of everything that is written about Voris, especially anything negative. Richard Nixon had nothing on them when it comes to "enemies list."
Welcome to the club, and thanks so much for your comments.
I used to like Voris and watched every Vortex until he came out with the video where he claims Cdl Dolan was welcoming the gay group at St FX. After viewing the video with audio transcript, I wrote an email to CMTV and respectfully pointed out that Voris was mistaken about Cdl Dolan's reaction. I got a response from Terry Carroll that was less than charitable. That was my first inkling that Voris and company play fast and loose with truth.
DeleteI used to be FB friends with Christine Niles. I liked her Forward Boldly interviews with Fr John Fisher (Fr Roman Manchester) and she seemed like a good Catholic woman/wife/mother. I commented on a post by a mutual FB friend that Voris invalidated his 'poll' on contraceptives at the March for Life by using a poorly worded question. Christine jumped in and seemed very put out that I would dare criticize Voris. After that, it seemed that she was Johnny-on-the-spot to post in opposition (in a rather nasty manner) to any comment I made on FB about any topic. It became so annoying that I blocked her for awhile.
For anything I've read about Voris in blogs and on FB, Christine has been right there to combat anyone who dared to say anything about Voris that wasn't praise. I found it odd and a bit scandalous for a married woman to be defending Voris like a catty high school cheerleader defending her quarterback boyfriend. This is the sort of behavior I experienced from Fr Corapi's fans. They so idolized Fr Corapi that they were intolerant and nasty in their treatment of any who questioned Fr Corapi's fidelity to the priesthood. I also wondered how a mother of young children had so much time to monitor all things Voris on the internet. I had to question my view of Christine as a good Catholic woman/wife/mother.
Thank you for continuing to point out the flaws in Voris's thinking. He doesn't think in a logical pattern, which I've also noted to be true about Christine. So much of his reporting amounts to speculation and gossip based on "credible anonymous sources". I think he's leading people astray and trying to build his own little empire of elite "authentic Catholics" by tearing down other apostolates. There's hardly any group or teacher of the faith that he hasn't targeted from Fr Barron to Catholic news media, Catholic Answers to EWTN, even including his one time friends. It seems Voris doesn't want his fans listening to anyone but him. No disagreement with Voris is allowed on the CMTV FB page. The dynamic of the group resembles a cult. It's dangerous and I hope and pray that his blind followers wake up and that Voris has a conversion of heart.
BTW...whatever happened to the young woman who was refused communion because she was kneeling? Voris made a big deal out of that and used the opportunity to park his new Vortex-mobile outside the church. How many of his fans harrassed that priest with phone calls and emails? My suspicion at the time was that Voris sent the woman into the church to test the priest and the priest may have sensed that the woman wasn't genuine. It's not likely that the woman was a parishioner at the church. I think if the priest had recognized her as a parishioner, his reaction would have been different. They dropped follow-up to that "breaking news" report like a hot potato. But, of course, the damage was done and Voris met his goal of maligning the priest.
You make very good points. I have also pointed out more than once how deceptive Voris is with Cardinal Dolan and St. Francis Xavier. Did you know that one week after that video, Cdl. Dolan became the first NYC bishop to refuse to allow St. FX to carry their church banner in the gay pride parade? Voris not only lies about the incident at the church, he refuses to say anything that would in any way validate Cdl. Dolan.
DeleteI didn't follow the story about the woman being refused communion, but someone who is a professional journalist and very good Catholic told me he was back and forth on Facebook with Christine Niles about the story, saying the report was unbalanced and unfair, it didn't have any response from the priest, the pastor, the archdiocese. And it didn't quote anyone else who went to the Mass to witness it. He said that Niles called him a liar.
So you can see, you are in very good company in your assessments. I have found that the litmus test for anyone presenting himself as Voris does is: do they support Church hierarchy. That doesn't mean agreeing with everything every bishop says, but it does mean no wholesale condemnation. It means realizing that although we disagree with a bishop, we still recognize his authority. This is where Voris is definitely lacking in every way.
I agree. Christ gave us these men, starting with the Apostles who accompanied Him on earth. Voris is attacking the chain of Apostles. He's doing his best to invalidate them.
DeleteThere 's so much foolishness that's gone on in the Church since I was a child. I loved the pre-Vat II Mass and the family atmosphere of the local parish. Voris wants to blame the clergy entirely for all the shenanigans but laity are equally to blame. I watched it happen. Priests can't force people to go to Mass. And laity shouldn't rely solely on their parish priest to teach them the faith. Those who have a fire within, will do some research and reading on their own. That's how I learned the faith.
We can disagree with what clergy do and point out flaws and even heresy when it occurs without maligning the individual man. God loves each of us dearly, including each and every one of the clergy. God's ways are not our ways. We don't know how He'll sort it out but we know that He will. Voris needs to simmer down and let God work in His own way and in His own time. His bullying tactics and ginning up animosity toward clergy isn't helpful.
For asking a very reasonable and civil question, Voris is being denigrated on this Forum, so I will repeat the comments of Father George Rutler which has been previously censored with the lie that the author deleted them. Referring to today's martyrs around the world Father Rutler said:
ReplyDelete"As this suffering continues, many in the United States are willing to tolerate heresy and moral decadence in a vain attempt to “get along” with others. While Christians must “love the sinner and hate the sin,” there are an increasing number of people who are intimidated into enabling the sinner to advertise his sin. In 1992, Cardinal O’Connor said that compromising Catholic truth for the sake of political correctness “was not worth one comma in the Apostles' Creed.”
The holy martyrs in the Middle East honor the Church and atone for our degeneracy. Their bishops are willing to struggle and die with them. They must be amazed that bishops and people in other places have their priorities so wrong."
Catholic in Brooklyn, hold your nose and check out the following URL:
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/uDvjqvgx4WM