A recent national poll by a leading Catholic organization found that most Mass-attending Catholics believe that Catholic public officials who oppose church teaching should be denied Holy Communion.
CatholicVote, a national faith-based advocacy organization, released the poll on Tuesday. The poll comes just before the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) annual general assembly meeting this week, during which they plan to discuss whether Joe Biden should receive communion despite supporting abortion. The annual meeting began on Wednesday and will conclude on Friday.
According to CatholicVotes, a significant majority (83 percent) of mass-attending Catholics believe Catholic public officials who openly oppose church teachings create “confusion and disunity.” Similarly, 82 percent said Catholic public officials who endorse policies hostile to church teachings, such as abortion, are hypocritical.
The poll also found 74 percent of Catholics say these officials should not present themselves to receive communion.
Regarding the discussion that the USCCB will have about President Biden receiving communion, 72 percent of Catholics agreed that this discussion should occur.
“Catholic politicians who advocate for policies considered ‘gravely immoral’ create confusion and discord among believers,” Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote, said in a statement. “Catholics’ concern about the flouting of Catholic social teaching by public leaders is less about politics and more about the integrity of the faith, along with reverence and respect due [to] the Holy Eucharist.”
“This polling data should bolster the confidence of Catholic bishops as they prepare to discuss how to recover an understanding of the beauty and richness of the sacrament – among all Catholics,” Burch added. “The data is very clear: Bishops have an obligation to act.”
According to The Christian Post, Students for Life of America, a pro-life organization, held nationwide rallies urging bishops to “address the scandal of radical, pro-abortion [Catholic] politicians receiving the sacrament of Communion” at their annual meeting, which was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
