More so-called Catholics that should be excommunicated from the Catholic Church

This story is a continuation of my earlier article about so-called “Catholics” whose actions and policies stand against the Catholic Church and its teachings.

1) Jimmy Kimmel 

One thing you might not know about Jimmy Kimmel, the night show host, is that he's Catholic. At least he claims he is. But Kimmel aligns himself with the Liberal Left and alienates conservatives, including Catholics who have conservative beliefs. On August 15, 2017, Kimmel stated that everyone who voted for Trump is an idiot and blamed them for division in the United States.  

Kimmel also uses his platform to push forward his own agenda, especially against Catholic beliefs and conservatives, including (you know it) conservative Catholics. 

At the 2018 Academy Awards ceremony, which he hosted, Kimmel made anti-conservative and anti-men remarks when he discussed the Oscar Statue design in his opening monologue. Kimmel also said that America needs more wimpy men, using “Oscar” statue as an example of that kind of man.

While this joke came as a result of the Harvey Weinstein and other sexual abuse scandals, it's clear to the observer that Kimmel is pushing forward the liberal agenda of emasculating young men and boys. This cultural heresy aims at preventing young men from being who they are and practicing real masculinity in their lives. 

Hollywood's desire to portray men as either barbarians or wimps is written in their DNA. Just look at any movie and you see it. Instead of creating good and strong male characters young men can look up to, they . For example, "Thor: Ragnarok (2017)" shows the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth)—the serious, strong, and brave Avenger—as a wisecracking dimwit throughout the film. That's something we'd expect from Iron Man, not the God of Thunder. 

Kimmel pushes forward Hollywood ideology of glorifying weak, timid men. This goes against what the Church and several Catholic organizations are fighting for. We need men who have the strength and confidence to be themselves and take action without fear or doubt. That’s what a good man is.

Kimmel's positions earn him nothing less than complete excommunication from the Catholic Church. 

2) All of these U.S. Senators who voted against the 20-week abortion ban bill 

On January 29, 2018, the U.S. Senate failed to bring the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act to a vote. 46 out of 97 senators, mostly Republicans, voted in support of the bill in order to bring it to a final vote. It would have ended most late-term abortions after the 20-week gestation period. 

The bill had passed the U.S. House of Representatives before it was sent to the Senate. 

It needed 60 votes in the Senate to pass into law and be sent to President Trump's desk, unless Republican senators decided to end a Democrat filibuster by using the "nuclear option" and have Vice President Mike Pence act as a deciding vote.

Debate on the bill was expected to continue after the vote. From there, the bill could be sent to President Trump's desk and signed into law. 

Yet 14 senators who voted against the bill are facing controversy because they are "Catholics" who support abortion and killing unborn children. 

LifeSiteNews reported that Fr. Dwight Longenecker called on Catholic bishops to excommunicate the 14 "Catholic" Democrat senators who voted against this 20-week abortion ban bill. 

Fr. Longenecker argues that since these 14 senators publicly degrade the Catholic faith by supporting abortion and enact polices that keep abortion legal, as seen in their votes against the 20-week (late-term) abortion ban bill, they deserve to be publicly excommunicated from the Catholic Church. 

The names of the 14 so-called "Catholic" U.S. Senators are: 

·      Maria Cantwell (D) – Washington

·      Susan Collins (R) – Maine

·      Dick Durbin (D) – Illinois

·      Kirsten Gillibrand (D) – New York

·      Heidi Heitkamp (D) – North Dakota

·      Tim Kaine (D) – Virginia 

·      Patrick Leahy (D) – Vermont

·      Ed Markey (D) – Massachusetts

·      Catherine Cortez Masto (D) – Nevada

·      Claire McCaskill (D) – Missouri 

·      Bob Menendez (D) – New Jersey

·      Lisa Murkowski (R) – Alaska

·      Patty Murray (D) – Washington

·      Jack Reed (D) – Rhode Island

Only four of the senators are from the Midwest and the center of the United States. The rest are from the East and West Coasts.

The fact that these men and women failed to uphold the Catholic faith by passing a bill aimed at protecting unborn human life shows that they deserve to be completely severed from all ties to the Church. 

I already discussed the merits for Sen. Tim Kaine's excommunication in my earlier article. Now I will focus on his Democrat counterpart from Illinois, Dick Durbin.  

3) Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) 

Senator Dick Durbin from Illinois, like other Democrat politicians, shows he's not above attacking Catholics for their faith. 

Fox News contributed Todd Starnes reported that Durbin was one of several Democrat senators who attacked devout Catholic Amy Barrett, a law professor at Notre Dame and one of President Donald Trump's federal judicial nominees. Durbin and his Democrat colleagues attacked Barrett because she's a Catholic. 

It is also worth noting that Senator Dick Durbin was denied receiving Holy Communion as a result of his pro-choice and anti-life position. 

Is it too much to ask for his excommunication for voting against the abortion ban bill back in January?

4) Sen. Claire McCaskell, D-MO

Sen. Claire McCaskell’s is out of touch with the Catholic faith and the values of everyday Americans. Her decision to vote against the 20-week abortion ban shows that.

To her credit though, McCaskell has condemned Hillary Clinton’s recent comments against white men and women who voted for Trump.

Clinton made the remarks on Tuesday, March 13, as she visited India. She told an audience in India that white women are victims to their husbands and sons. 

Clinton claimed white women only voted for Trump because their husbands and sons told them to. Clinton assumes that white women, and white men, can't make decisions on their own.

Clinton has previously labeled all conservatives and Trump supporters as a "basket of deplorables." And yes, that includes Catholics who are conservative.

Never mind the fact that Clinton demonized women who accused her husband, Bill Clinton, of sexual assault and harassment. Never mind that Clinton is pro-choice and anti-life. Never mind that Clinton continues to blame everyone but herself for losing the election

Clinton’s remarks show that she is bigoted against men and women who are white Caucasians or have conservative beliefs. She is completely out of touch with reality, average Americans, and Catholics. 

If McCaskell’s statement against Clinton is just a political stunt before the midterm elections in November, then that is hypocritical. After all, she did try to cover up her family’s use of a private plane from the public, as reported by Fox News.

What better way to condemn Missouri Senator Claire McCaskell and reject her polices than to vote against her in the November midterm elections this year and excommunicate her from the Catholic Church?

The Lion King: A story of real masculinity and real femininity

This article was originally published on September 27, 2017.

In our present day, it is important that young men and women be more confident in themselves. Now more than ever, we need to live the way we're supposed to be living—active and meaningful ones to the fullest.

And since St. Valentine's Day is here, I think now is a good time to talk about real masculinity and real femininity.

An example of this real masculinity portrayed in film is Simba from "The Lion King (1994)." Now, Disney and director Jon Favreau are already producing a new live-action remake of “The Lion King,” which will be released next year. I think they run the risk of ruining the original “Lion King” in the way they portray Simba.

In today’s society, men are often portrayed as timid weaklings or elitist barbarians who abuse women and other men. We see this in film and television. Too often, Hollywood says the best example of a man is to be an idiot who never strong enough to be himself (especially when it comes to women) and take action (especially when he’s facing combat and must fight for himself)

This needs to stop.

Young men and women need strong characters who embody the characteristics and ideals us Catholics associate with real masculinity and real femininity—qualities such as strength, confidence, and the will to better ourselves in order to grow as a person.

The original “Lion King” is one of my favorite films. But how I look at it now is different then when I was a kid growing up. At first I saw “The Lion King” as an adventure story: a young cub named Simba grows up wanting to be king and must fight in order to reclaim it. As a cub, he just wants to have fun, but then as he grows up and gets older into a young adult, he matures into the king we all know him to be—the real lion he is.

Through my time at Benedictine College and with my friends I met there, I learned to “see” the elements that go into filmmaking and creating a good story, not just “watching” a film. Basically taking the entire film and characters into consideration and really think about them and “Why” this is happening in the film.

I have a better understanding about the message of “The Lion King,” one that is important for young men and women today.

“The Lion King” isn’t just a family adventure film; it’s a young man’s journey—or in this case, a young lion’s—to become his true self with confidence and courage.

Once Simba found that strength inside him to return home, he was able to overcome his fear and be bold, showing that passionate zeal that makes him a lion and the king Nala knows he is. More on that later.

Simba experiences great changes in his life as he grows up. From a highly confident cub, he becomes a stronger and more mature young adult, having the strong character of a good man and showing that he is real.

Believing that he was responsible for his father's death, Simba ran away from home instead of facing his fears. But with a little help and a hard hit on the head, Simba now has the strength and courage to not let his past control him or decide his future, his destiny. He therefore is able to defeat his evil uncle Scar and take his rightful place as King of Pride Rock. That is why Simba is a good feature film character young men can relate to. I know I myself have been in Simba's place on more than one occasion, and I work hard to persevere and keep going – to be real and to be a good man.

Another character trait I like about Simba as a person is his relationship with Nala, his future wife. There’s a reason people tell you that when you get married you’re marrying your best friend (because that’s how you should treat your spouse), and that’s true in Simba’s case. He and Nala were best friends growing up, and their friendship grew as they get older and Simba matured on his hero’s journey. At first Simba just wants to have fun with Nala, but soon he changes. We see this even before they are reunited as young adults. Simba risks his life to save Nala from the hyenas and even rushes in to protect her, after he puts them in harm’s way. He goes back for her. Later, Nala tells him that she thinks he was brave. Once Simba sees Nala again when they’re young adults, his feelings for her start to become true love. They have their good and bad moments, along with their strengths and weaknesses, but they still love each other. They complement each other.

Simba has that will and potential to be a great leader, and Nala sees that in him. She also gives him a reason to fight, just as she did all those years ago. She pushes him to step up into his role as the rightful king and supports him.

Nala knows Simba is a good lion and that he is real. She’s already strong and brave, and Simba reaches that point in his life where he acts like a man when he decides to return to Pride Rock. He becomes that person he’s supposed to be.

She gives him a reason to fight, just as she did all those years ago when he saved her from the hyenas. She pushes him to step up into his role as the rightful king and puts herself under his mission (to fight back and reclaim his homeland), which is the real message St. Paul writes about in Ephesians 5 about men and women in the Church. Nala knows Simba is a good lion and that he is real, even though he doesn't believe it at first. Yet he comes around though and sees himself for who he really is. He is real and she is real.

At the end of the movie, we see what good things happen when a young man steps up as a man and pushes on, moving forward in his life with strength and confidence. Simba has confidence in himself and who he is up for himself into the man he knows he is and lives his life everyday, every step of the way as he continues on his journey and follows his God-given mission and task.

Nala gave Simba that confidence he needs to be strong, and after some life lessons from Rafiki, just as Yoda had trained Luke Skywalker in “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980), he confidently decides to go back home and stop Scar. He chooses to take action and stop running away from his fear and past mistakes.  

Our own journey in life is like Simba’s journey, each with our own destination. We see at the end of the film that good things happen when a young man steps up as a man and continues to work hard, pushing himself harder. Simba overcame his doubt in order to defeat Scar and he became a better lion because of it. We can’t let our past failures prevent us from being better men and women and move forward, always forward, in our lives.

As one crazy monkey says, "The past can hurt. But in my experience, you can either run from it or learn from it.”

The Lion King is more than just an adventure film; it's a reflection about our lives and where we're going. Like Simba, we grow into that person we're meant to be. We're faced with challenges and decisions that define us, and how we act during those times makes us who we are.

Simba has the characteristics we should be striving for as men. He's one example of characters who show real masculinity and aren't afraid to show it every day of his life going forward. And Nala is a great example of strong female characters in films that women can be proud of. The two young

There are plenty of real life men and women who, like Simba and Nala, rise to the occasion. St. Joseph answered God's call to be Mary's husband and protect Jesus. And St. Valentine married many Christian couples in a time when the Romans persecuted them. St. Joan of Arc, barely into her young adult life, answered God’s call rallied the French people against their English oppressors.

As young men, we all are called to stand up for ourselves and be men. Not barbarians or wimps, but somewhere in the middle. That's where real masculinity thrives.

Young women are also called to be real women. They aren’t afraid to practice real femininity in their own lives and reject Hollywood’s objectification of women.

We aren't perfect. No one is. The good news is we don't have to be.

Just be ourselves, our true selves, and not be intimidated because something is hard and is a big risk. That's when we gather our courage and be more confident in ourselves.   We carry ourselves with confidence and face our fears head-on, holding nothing back.

Simba became truly alive when he took responsibility and freely chose to go back home and save his family, making things right.

Nala never gave up hope that the Pride Lands would be saved from Scar’s tyranny and that Simba would save them.

Catholic young men and women, those of us who live our faith and do our best to be great men and women, should not doubt themselves or their abilities.

It is not a coincidence that we are here today and that this St. Valentine’s Day is Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent.

Each one of us must answer that call to be better men and women. We continue striving to be ourselves and unafraid.

Let’s reflect on that message this St. Valentine’s Day and not waste another moment.