To me, it is disturbing to see and hear that there are some out there who object to the Church having buried Senator Kennedy with the Mass of Christian Burial. How can we stand in such judgment as to say he should have been denied these rites?
As those who know me will attest, I am about as pro-life as one can get. I fully and unequivicably support and preach the Church’s teaching on the sanctity of every human life, even those we find most difficult to embrace. I have been and continue to oppose the pro-death policy Senator Kennedy actively espoused by advocating laws supporting abortion during his political career. He was wrong in his advocacy of abortion.
But I believe in the mercy of God, and I personally know of God’s forgiveness.
None of us knows the state of the soul of Senator Kennedy at the moment of his death. What we do know is he was with priests and the Eucharist in the days just prior to his death. I know he had written to Pope Benedict and received a reply.
It is never permissible to take pleasure in the thought that someone may be damned. The Church always entrusts the souls of the departed to the mercy of God. We hope that we will be so entrusted when we die. Senator Kennedy was born a Catholic. He was buried as a Catholic.
Let us pray for him, as we must do for all the departed.
