Why? For the following!
America's First Saint
"Pope Paul VI sat on his red throne as gusts of autumn wind blew across St. Peter's Square, flapping clerical capes in the crowd of more than 100,000 persons," reported the Wellsville Daily Reporter on September 15, 1975. "In a colorful ceremony against the imposing, domed backdrop of St. Peter's Basilica, the Pope declared Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton the first American-born, Roman Catholic saint. 'Rejoice, we say to the great nation of the United States of America,' he declared. 'Rejoice for your glorious daughter. Be proud of her. And know how to preserve her fruitful heritage.' About 16,000 Americans led the crowd's applause Sunday as the Pope canonized Mother Seton, culminating a 100-year-old campaign by U.S. Catholics for her sainthood."
"The 77-year-old Pope speeded up the canonization process to name Mother Seton a saint during the church's 1975 holy year. He waived clerical proofs for the last of four miracles required for sainthood. Pope Paul gave communion to the surviving beneficiaries of two of the reputed miracles -- Swedish-born American Carl Kalin, 73, and Mrs. Ann O'Neill Hooe, 28, of Severn, Md. Kalin recovered from fulminating meningo-enephalitis in 1963 after prayers to Mother Seton. Mrs. Hooe recovered from leukemia in 1952. The third, a Sister of Charity nun, recovered from cancer of the pancreas in 1933."
Not a Catholic myself, I was curious about this woman so went searching electronically. There are lots of citations. Her birth in 1774 "was just before the fight for our Nation's birth. Catholicism was not the religion of the time as evidence of this event (found in Wikipedia):
"Four years later, in 1791, the First Amendment to the American Constitution was ratified. This amendment included the wording, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." This amendment officially granted freedom of religion to all American citizens, and began the eventual repeal of all anti-Catholic laws from the statute books of all of the new American states."
"Some anti-Catholic political movements like the Know Nothings, and organizations like the Orange Institution, American Protective Association, and the Ku Klux Klan, were active in the United States. Indeed, for most of the history of the United States, Catholics have been victims of discrimination and persecution. It was not until the time of the Presidency of John F. Kennedy in the following century that Catholics lived in the US largely free of suspicion. The Philadelphia Nativist Riot, Bloody Monday, the Orange Riots in New York City in 1871 and 1872,[54] and The Ku Klux Klan-ridden South discriminated against Catholics (as they did the Jews and African Americans) for their commonly Irish, Italian, Polish, German, or Spanish ethnicity.[55] Many Protestants in the Midwest and the North labeled Catholics as "anti-American Papists", "incapable of free thought without the approval of the Pope." During the Mexican-American War, Mexicans were portrayed as "backward" because of their "Papist superstition". In reaction to this attitude, some hundred American Catholics, mostly of Irish origin, fought on the Mexican side in the Saint Patrick's Battalion.[56]"
"In 1850, Franklin Pierce, as the US Attorney for the District of New Hampshire, presented resolutions for the removal of restrictions on Catholics from holding office in that state, as well as the removal of property qualifications for voting; however, these pro-Catholic measures were submitted to the electorate and were unsurprisingly defeated.[57] As the 19th century progressed, animosity between Protestants and Catholics waned. Many Protestant Americans came to understand that, despite anti-Catholic rhetoric, Catholics were not trying to seize control of the government. Another reason was that many Irish-Catholic immigrants fought alongside their Protestant compatriots in the American Civil War on both sides. Nonetheless, concerns continued into the 20th century that there was too much "Catholic influence" on the government.[citation needed]Some anti-Catholic political movements like the Know Nothings, and organizations like the Orange Institution, American Protective Association, and the Ku Klux Klan, were active in the United States. Indeed, for most of the history of the United States, Catholics have been victims of discrimination and persecution. It was not until the time of the Presidency of John F. Kennedy in the following century that Catholics lived in the US largely free of suspicion. The Philadelphia Nativist Riot, Bloody Monday, the Orange Riots in New York City in 1871 and 1872,[54] and The Ku Klux Klan-ridden South discriminated against Catholics (as they did the Jews and African Americans) for their commonly Irish, Italian, Polish, German, or Spanish ethnicity.[55] Many Protestants in the Midwest and the North labeled Catholics as "anti-American Papists", "incapable of free thought without the approval of the Pope." During the Mexican-American War, Mexicans were portrayed as "backward" because of their "Papist superstition". In reaction to this attitude, some hundred American Catholics, mostly of Irish origin, fought on the Mexican side in the Saint Patrick's Battalion.[56]"
"In 1850, Franklin Pierce, as the US Attorney for the District of [57] As the 19th century progressed, animosity between Protestants and Catholics waned. Many Protestant Americans came to understand that, despite anti-Catholic rhetoric, Catholics were not trying to seize control of the government. Another reason was that many Irish-Catholic immigrants fought alongside their Protestant compatriots in the American Civil War on both sides. Nonetheless, concerns continued into the 20th century that there was too much "Catholic influence" on the government.[citation needed]" "
So how did I go from the first American saint to talking about American Catholic history...well, it seemed to just flow in my mind to today's news that there was a mosque and a Muslim pray area in the Twin Towers; bet there was a chapel or two for Christians (maybe) and a synagogue too.
So it is important to note that the terrorists did not care who was in those buildings! They didn't care that a mosque or a chapel was there...they just wanted to kill and terrorize our country. So they killed Muslims! Christians! Jews! and countless people of other faiths, even people without faith! They killed ...as many people as they could....that's what they did. They wanted to do...kill as of many people in those buildings as possible. I don't think they cared a whit about what the political, nationalities or religious persuasions of any of their victims...inside or outside! They created live Americans victims...a country of victims....made some of them forget that we love our country and that people founded our country on freedom of religion even when it difference from mine or yours.
Don't let those awful men push our country back to intolerance! We, the people, are better than that!
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