On December 3, the Catholic Climate Covenant (CCC) made headlines by equating climate change with abortion. Sarah Spengeman, the director of programs for CCC told the San Diego Union-Tribune, “It’s clear that climate change is a pro-life issue.” She added, “If we want to leave our children an inhabitable earth, if we have a responsibility to the unborn, we have a responsibility to act on climate.”
Abortion is an intrinsically evil act whereas man-made global climate change isn’t even settled science. But while there has already been plenty of online discussion regarding this equivocation, the real question is:
“Why is someone who supports women’s ‘ordination,’ same-sex ‘marriage,’ and is an online member of a group dedicated to the election of pro-abortion politicians speaking on behalf of the Catholic Church and attempting to call-out pro-lifers on anything?”
According to Spengeman’s linkedin profile, she is a member of the EMILY’s List Linkedin group. The only stated mission of EMILY’s List is this: “We elect pro-choice Democratic women to office.” So, its sole purpose for existing is to place pro-abortion women in public office. It’s important to note here that one does not simply click a button to become a member of the Emily’s List linkedin group. In order to become a part of the Emily’s List linkedin group, the individual has to request to join the group and then be approved for membership.
But Spengeman’s association with a stridently pro-abortion organization isn’t the only issue. Sarah Spengeman was a signatory on an Amici Curiae submitted to the Supreme Court by the Human Rights Campaign, endorsing same-sex “marriage.” On March 3, 2015, the Human Rights Campaign announced that it submitted a “people’s brief” with more than 200,000 signatures in support of same-sex “marriage.” In volume 1 of the brief, it states:
The Human Rights Campaign, the largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the United States, together with more than 200,000 Americans from across this country, respectfully submit this brief as amici curiae in support of Petitioners. Amici have come together for the sole purpose of urging the Court to reverse the Sixth Circuit’s judgment below.
The brief then argues that the 6th Circuit Court’s decision against same-sex “marriage” in DeBoer v. Snyder should be overturned.
Sarah Spengeman’s name is provided on page 475 of volume 5 of the Human Rights Campaign’s Amici Curiae.
Given this, it’s no surprise that on facebook, Spengeman “likes” dozens of pro-homosexual and pro-women’s ordination groups and stridently pro-abortion politicians.
For instance, Spengeman “likes” the following pro-homosexual organizations: New Ways Ministry, DignityUSA, Equally Blessed, Dignity Washington, Capital Pride, People of Faith for Equality in Virginia, OneWestmont: LGBT & Allied Alumni, Cuesta College Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA), NO H8 Campaign, Human Rights Campaign, and Lambda Legal.
Her “likes” of pro-women’s ordination groups include: Women’s Ordination Worldwide, FutureChurch, Future Church, Call To Action, and Roman Catholic Women Priests.
In addition to “liking” pro-abortion activists like Gloria Steinam and Sandra Fluke, Spengeman’s “likes” of politicians are exclusively pro-abortion. Her pro-abortion politician “likes” include (among many others) Wendy Davis, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Tim Kaine, Bernie Sanders, Barbara A. Mikulski, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Rosa DeLauro.
Once again, there can be no equating the murder of preborn children with stewardship of the earth. While it can be said that the reckless poisoning of water-supplies, soil and air are sins against our neighbors, it is not tantamount to murder or sins against nature, like abortion and sodomy. Sarah Spengeman’s finger-wagging at pro-lifers is the very height of hypocrisy, and given her background, the only thing she accomplished is to discredit the Catholic Climate Covenant.
Lepanto is amazing…..thank you for exposing the evil intentions of these progressive abortion supporters.
Good work. The “Francis Effect” has emboldened people like this.
Whenever any public Catholic starts talking about how almost all pro-lifers fail to understand how unimportant abortion is, and how important all other issues are, some kind of history with a pro-abortion group seems to surface.
Shame on Bishops like Cupich, McElroy and Gomez for promoting this agenda as well.Urge Catholic bishops to rebuke those wayward bishops and AB Weurl for their refusal to defund these apostate groups. Openly we need the USCCB and Vatican to rebuke the wayward bishops Weurl, Cupich, Gomez and McElroy for their refusal in Invoking Canon Law 915 for these apostates like Spengerman , Kaine, Kerry, Pelosi & Biden and their wayward parties and organizations.
No longer surprised by any of this…..
The Catholic Church is clearly in a process of fundamental change on its policies on a lot of traditional pro-life issues. After Vatican II the Church has always sought to bring its teachings more in line with the views of the modern secular world. My prediction is that it is only a matter of time before Pope Francis or his successor will simply will give in on all thse issues to the dominant secular position. The Church will develop into a post-Christian entity and become the main worldwide ideological institution promoting environmentalism, abortion rights, euthanasia rights, LBGT rights, &c, &c. For the traditional faithful there’s no place in the Catholic Church anymore, as has been clear since decades. They should join independent traditionalist organizations, like the SSPX.
I think what you are doing with this organization is Pharisaical and contrary to the Gospel. Your perpetuation of the guilt by association fallacy is precisely the type of behavior that got Jesus Crucified.
I challenge you to read the Gospel of Matthew (:10-13:
While he was at table in his house,* many tax collectors and sinners came and sat with Jesus and his disciples.The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher* eat with tax collectors and sinners?” He heard this and said, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.Go and learn the meaning of the words, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’* I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”
I would also challenge you to read the Holy Father’s encyclical “Laudato Si,” since you missed the part when he quite clearly states, “Everyone’s talents and involvement are needed to redress the damage caused by human abuse of God’s creation”. All of us can cooperate as instruments of God for the care of creation, each according to his or her own culture, experience, involvements and talents. [Laudato Si 14]”
I am fully aware that Archbishop Chaput has had the folllowing to say about your organization: “Both Lepanto and Church Militant sow division wherever they tread. They do not seem to acknowledge the need to work with civic society and its representatives on a project like the World Meeting of Families. And we are not going to spend/waste time arguing with them. They are sincere, but also destructive.” http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott/150827
I pray that you take this Lenten time to reflect upon the sin of Self-righteousness.
Organizations claiming to be Catholic should not employ individuals who directly oppose Catholic teaching.
Catholic teaching is that “EVERYONE’S talents and involvement are needed to redress the damage caused by human abuse of God’s creation.” That comes from Laudatory Si and the Catholic Social Teaching of the church. You may benefit from reading that which you claim to be an authority on.
Let’s face reality, this organization doesn’t really care about the entire corpus of Catholic teaching, it just wields its legalism to support politically Conservative special interests. Catholic teaching speaks of refraining from calumny, which this entire post is guilty of. Bearing false witness is a violation of the Ten Commandments and a grave sin. Here is a relevant passage from the Catechism:
“2477 Respect for the reputation of persons forbids every attitude and word likely to cause them unjust injury.277 He becomes guilty:
– of rash judgment who, even tacitly, assumes as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of a neighbor;
– of detraction who, without objectively valid reason, discloses another’s faults and failings to persons who did not know them;278
– of calumny who, by remarks contrary to the truth, harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them.
2478 To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor’s thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way:
Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favorable interpretation to another’s statement than to condemn it. But if he cannot do so, let him ask how the other understands it. and if the latter understands it badly, let the former correct him with love. If that does not suffice, let the Christian try all suitable ways to bring the other to a correct interpretation so that he may be saved.”
Michael, the author of this article did not consult Sarah, the person it slanders (even though he clearly had access to her contact information). Instead, he took time to engage in a cowardly witch hunt. There was no attempt to give a “favorable interpretation” as the Catechism suggests, nor was there an attempt to “correct with love.” Most atrociously, there was no “respect for the reputation” of Sarah, the person under consideration. You can ignore this post, but not the validity of its interpretation of Church teaching. The author should ask himself if his disregard of the Gospel, the Catechism, and the mandate from Catholic Social Doctrine should be trumpeted on a website by some so called “Roman Catholic” engaging in what could more accurately be described as McCarthyism.
I added a comment to this peace that was censored by your moderator(s) with no explanation.
I pray your conscience will overcome your need to suppress dissenting opinion. I would not want to live a life where the reality of my life’s work cannot undergo scrutiny.
Your comment was not censored … you are impatient.
Ten hours is an unusually long time to wait for a comment to be verified. I will work to practice patience, and might I suggest that the author of the article engage in the patient process of consulting the person that the article focuses on before engaging in a public shaming campaign.
Isn’t what you are doing “public shaming,” Mr. Engelking?
A big thank you to Lepanto for exposing PUBLIC SCANDALS. Sarah Spengeman is all over social media promoting moral evils. When someone is doing that, they need to be called out for the sake of others, especially the young, who might be misled by her. It is certainly not gossip or detraction. And that is confirmed by St. Thomas Aquinas.
BTW it’s Laudato Si, not Laudatory Si.
If you read my posts, you will see that I write “Laudato Si” on multiple occasions. Unfortunately Autocorrect sometimes makes faulty corrections based upon faulty automatic assumptions. In a way the autocorrect is a lot like the Lepanto Institute in that regard. Unfortunately, Christianity does not need individuals to serve as autocorrectors, because Jesus has introduced us to the Advocate.
I don’t understand where in my posts that I am engaging in public shaming.
The fact is, the Lepanto Institute did not confer with Ms. Spengeman before publicly judging her with a truncated version of Catholic Moral Teaching. They did not satisfy even the most basic criteria that the catechism sets forth for the correction of others.