Father Radcliffe tries to walk back racist trope against African bishops

(LifeSiteNews) — On this week’s episode of Faith & Reason, John Henry-Westen, Father Charles Murr, and Frank Wright discuss Kamala Harris skipping the Al Smith Dinner and mocking students who shouted “Christ is King!” at a campaign event, Fr. Timothy Radcliffe’s seemingly racist remarks toward African bishops, the largest ever survey of American Catholics showing that the faithful want an end to Communion in the hand, Bishop Athanasius Schneider’s clarification that St. Peter was not the pope when he denied Our Lord, and more.

The panel began the episode by discussing Kamala Harris’ decision to skip the Al Smith Dinner, which occurs every presidential election and benefits Catholic charities in the Archdiocese of New York. It is tradition for both presidential nominees to give speeches during the event. Harris opted to make a video for the dinner instead, which received no laughter from attendees, and critics have described it as “disrespectful,” “offensive,” and “cringeworthy.”

The panel watched a clip of comedian Jim Gaffigan, the dinner’s emcee, roasting the vice president and Democrat presidential nominee for skipping an event hosted by a critical voting bloc, yet making time to appear on The View and several podcasts, including the “Call Her Daddy” podcast.

Westen called the decision “stunning,” considering the dinner is attended mostly by liberals who support Harris’ candidacy, with likely only about 20 percent of conservatives in attendance. “And yet Kamala doesn’t show up. I think even for the liberal Catholics in the room, that’s like, ‘Well, wait a minute. What’s that? We support you. But no, she didn’t think it worth her while,” the host said.

Fr. Murr agreed and suggested that Harris skipped the event because it was a roast, and she simply can’t laugh at herself. “It’s sort of the one time that everyone puts away his weapons … and it’s sort of an American spirit. … I think it’s obvious that the poor dear felt incompetent and unable to laugh at herself. I think she had a problem with that. And rather than do a poor form show, she just chose not to be there at all,” the priest said.

Wright quipped that it was odd that Harris skipped the event, considering that her entire political career is an exercise in tragic comedy. “But of course, she’s terrified of exposure because people will see when they come up to them that there’s nothing there behind the cackle,” Wright said.  

The journalist added that one reason politicians can’t just put aside their differences and come together for a fun event is because this isn’t a typical election campaign and we’re in fact in a state of war.

“Given recent developments in the attempts to undermine democracy, which I think is serious, also to silence free speech in the United States and in Britain. And Grand Atlantic collusion … in order to destroy Twitter and implicate Donald Trump and the Vance campaign through the direct involvement of labor politicians as well. There’s some very dirty business going on at the moment,” he said.

Later in the episode, the panel turned to news from the Vatican, where pro-LGBT Cardinal-elect Timothy Radcliffe, in an article for the Italian daily edition of the Vatican newspaper, blamed Russian money and pressure from American evangelicals as the reason for African bishops rejecting last year’s Fiducia Supplicans document, which allows for the blessing of same-sex “couples.” Westen read part of Radcliffe’s letter and suggested that it smacked of racism.

“Here’s how I read that: ‘The Africans are not sophisticated enough to understand what we enlightened and new Catholics understand over here in the West. Me and my LGBT flag stole and all. They just don’t get it, and besides, they’re bamboozled by the money they need so desperately from America, and Saudi Arabia and the Russians, of course. And therefore there should have been consultation because if they listened to me, I’m sure they would have known the faith,’” the host said. 

The panel then watched a clip of LifeSite senior Vatican correspondent Michael Haynes asking Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, president of the African bishops’ conference, about the article during a press conference. The cardinal responded that Radcliffe did not write the article and suggested that LifeSite got the story wrong. Westen defended LifeSite’s reporting and urged the mainstream media to look into this because it’s a major story. Fr. Murr agreed that Radcliffe’s article was racist and dove into similar tropes he’s heard over the years about African prelates.

“I’ve heard that for years from a lot of people, perhaps not even meaning to sound racist. But saying that ‘the poor Africans, if they could just get their act together, they’d understand. We have to teach them more; they’re ignorant.’ No, they’re not ignorant. Listen, I studied with some of the sharpest young men in the world from Africa. A couple of them were brilliant, even to learn German, Hebrew, and Aramaic,” the priest said.

Murr added that the African people simply have different values from the West that are rooted in Christianity, which is why the Catholic faith is growing on that continent.

Wright said he didn’t think the article was racist, but rather what he calls “liberal chauvinist.”

If you disagree with liberals, you must be stupid. You must be misguided, someone must have corrupted you, or you must be insufficiently subsidized. Because when you get money, then you begin to believe in the liberals that are giving it. Now this is why every single social ill that is downstream of the liberal government is described as a lack of money, usually yours, given to causes that liberals say will cure everything, which they never do. So, I think if you’re logically consistent, you can see that the same prejudice is applied to Michael Haynes himself, [who] must, of course, be mistaken and ignorant. The noticing [of] reality, and that is what liberals [are] objecting [to] because their system is one of unreality, which is there to displace the ultimate reality, Christ Himself.

For more discussion on Fr. Radcliffe’s article, Kamala Harris offending Catholics, and much more, tune in to this week’s episode of Faith & Reason. 

Learn more

Kamala Harris’ horrifying campaign video, and comedians on her skipping the Al Smith dinner

Kamala mocking students at her rally when they shouted “Christ is King”

Students mocked by Kamala speak up

Donald Trump says that he likes the Catholic Church

Archbishop Viganò supports Donald Trump and says how evil Kamala is

Harrison Butker endorses Donald Trump

Elon Musk on abortion

Survey of Catholics who want Communion in the hand to end

Cardinal-elect Radcliffe and his pro-LGBT commentaries

Bishop Schneider on Pope Francis

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