Cardinal George Enters The Chick-fil-A/"Chicago Values" Debate

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Aug 2, 2012 9:40PM

We were wondering when Cardinal Francis George would have something to say about the anti-Chick-fil-A comments from Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Ald. Proco "Joe" Moreno (1st). Actually, we weren’t. But the leader of Chicago’s Catholics struck while the iron was hot and decided to take Emanuel and Moreno to the woodshed anyway.

In a post on the Cardinal’s blog, George wrote:

” I was born and raised here, and my understanding of being a Chicagoan never included submitting my value system to the government for approval. Must those whose personal values do not conform to those of the government of the day move from the city? Is the City Council going to set up a ‘Council Committee on Un-Chicagoan Activities’ and call those of us who are suspect to appear before it? I would have argued a few days ago that I believe such a move is, if I can borrow a phrase, ‘un-Chicagoan.’”

Comparing Emanuel’s comments that Chick-fil-A’s values “aren’t Chicago’s values” to the HUAC isn’t surprising for a priest who compared Chicago Pride Parade organizers to the Ku Klux Klan and excoriated Gov. Pat Quinn for presenting an award to a rape victim’s rights advocate at an awards ceremony hosted by an abortion rights group.

George continued.

”Approval of state-sponsored homosexual unions has very quickly become a litmus test for bigotry; and espousing the understanding of marriage that has prevailed among all peoples throughout human history is now, supposedly, outside the American consensus.

…

“Marriage existed before Christ called together his first disciples two thousand years ago and well before the United States of America was formed two hundred and thirty six years ago. Neither Church nor state invented marriage, and neither can change its nature.”

You know what also existed long before Christ called together his disciples and the formation of the Union? Homosexuality. And while neither church nor state invented marriage, here in the United States church and state are separate.
Moreno, a Catholic, didn’t take kindly to George’s remarks.

"The Bible says many things," Moreno said. "For the cardinal to say that Jesus believes in this, and therefore we all must believe in this, I think is just disingenuous and irresponsible. The God I believe in is one about equal rights, and to not give equal rights to those that want to marry, is in my opinion un-Christian."