(Stella Maris Media) — Chicago’s Cardinal Blase Cupich is doubling down in the face of backlash to his decision to honor pro-abort Sen. Dick Durbin. Durbin is a Catholic who lives in Chicago, with a long track record of voting in favor of abortion.
“Recently some have criticized the decision of the Archdiocese of Chicago to recognize Senator Dick Durbin at our annual fundraiser for our immigration ministry, Keep Hope Alive,” he wrote in a Sept. 22 statement.
He went on to reaffirm his decision to bestow an award on the pro-abortion Catholic Democrat, in spite of vocal opposition from the public, including bishops.
Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois told Catholic media organization The Pillar, “I was shocked to learn that the Archdiocese of Chicago plans to honor Senator Richard Durbin with a Lifetime Achievement Award.”
Paprocki is bishop of Durbin’s home diocese, where Durbin has been banned from receiving Holy Communion since 2004.
READ: Cupich defends decision to honor radical pro-abortion, pro-LGBT Democrat senator
In a Sept. 23 article, Paprocki noted, “Cardinal Cupich did not consult with me about this award or even notify me about his decision. I learned about it in the media.”
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, California weighed in, saying he stands “in solidarity” with Bp. Paprocki. Both bishops, along with thousands of people on social media, called on Cupich to rescind the award.
Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska also expressed dismay: “I too was shocked and bewildered to learn of this Lifetime Achievement Award to be presented to U.S. Senator Dick Durbin.”
Considering the rarity of such public opposition among Catholic hierarchy, who usually reserve such criticisms for private communications, the public rebukes are noteworthy, and have drawn national headlines. They indicate that Cupich’s star may be descending under this pontificate, whereas he held greater power and influence under the late Pope Francis.
Cupich refuses to budge.
Federal purse strings pulled for Chicago archdiocese
Cupich has a long and friendly history with Durbin, who has pulled the federal purse strings for the Chicago archdiocese.
Durbin sits on the Senate Appropriations Committee, a seat he has occupied for nearly three decades. The committee is one of the most powerful and significant bodies in the U.S. Senate.
It “writes the legislation that allocates federal funds to the numerous government agencies, departments, and organizations on an annual basis.” In other words, it controls where federal money goes and how much is given.
Every U.S. government agency relies on the Appropriations Committee for funding. This includes a broad range of special interests, including some of the most powerful: defense contractors, oil and gas companies and bankers, among others.
In 2020, in a staged phone call, Durbin, along with fellow Illinois Democrat Sen. Tammy Duckworth, spoke with Cupich about increased funding for Catholic Charities Chicago. At the time, Catholic Charities was experiencing a loss in revenue, and Durbin used the highly publicized phone call to stress his support for more money to flow to Cupich’s archdiocese.
“I will continue to work with my Senate colleagues to provide nonprofits the financial support they need to weather this storm and continue helping the most vulnerable in our state,” Durbin said on the call.
Earlier that year, Durbin had co-signed a letter urging the Senate to include emergency funding for nonprofits like Catholic Charities Chicago.
Several months after that call, Durbin’s committee approved expanded COVID relief for nonprofits, which directly benefited the Chicago archdiocese.
Catholic Charities received $1.4 billion total, with more than $8 million going to Chicago’s arm — the single largest PPP loan of all Catholic Charities affiliates in the country. The second highest was the San Francisco archdiocese, with a loan of nearly $6 million.
The Chicago archdiocese itself received $77 million from the Paycheck Protection Program.
It was the second-highest award for all Catholic archdioceses, with Los Angeles taking top place at $80 million. Third highest was the archdiocese of Boston, which received $35 million.
READ: Cardinal Cupich deserves to be rebuked for honoring pro-abortion Sen. Durbin
Cupich won’t ban Durbin from Holy Communion
Durbin has been banned from receiving Holy Communion in the Springfield diocese since 2004, a ban that was renewed by Bp. Paprocki in 2018 after Durbin voted against the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.
In fact, Durbin has voted for the most extreme abortion measures, including voting to legalize partial-birth abortion, and against providing medical care for infants born alive after botched abortions.
“I think that is fundamentally unfair,” Durbin said of his communion ban. “I don’t think anyone should be judged in that matter.”
Cupich has welcomed him with open arms. Durbin said: “I found another Catholic venue, the Archdiocese of Chicago, and a church where they were willing to let me in and allowed my wife to join me. So it’s become my new faith home.”
Cupich has a long history of rejecting Canon 915 of the Catholic Code of Canon Law, which makes it mandatory to deny Holy Communion to public figures “obstinately persevering in manifest grave sin.” This would include politicians who vote in favor of abortion.
In a 2014 Face the Nation interview, Cupich said, “I would not use the Eucharist, or, as they call it, the Communion rail, as a place to have those discussions, or a way in which people would be either excluded from the life of the Church.”
The bottom line
Some have wondered why Cupich is not bestowing the Lifetime Achievement Award to the far more deserving Illinois Democrat Rep. Dan Lipinski, who holds similar positions on immigration, yet has a stronger pro-life voting record.
Lipinski does not have direct access to the federal purse strings, and therein may lie the answer.
Reprinted with permission from Stella Maris Media.
