Something I’ve been wanting to see for a while:

Ottawa’s Catholic archbishop says he will refuse communion to any politician who “obstinately” supports access to abortion, but only if he or she cannot be persuaded to stand down.

No, I am not religious. I am in fact something of an anti-Catholic, in good part from having grown up in Quebec (long, dull story). But it bothers me no end to see politicians profess to be good Catholics, then publicly support positions, like abortion and same-sex marriage, that are clearly against Church teachings, insisting that they have the right to interpret their religion as they see fit. No they don’t. Not in the Catholic Church. I’m glad to see the Ottawa archbishop is ready to crack down. It’s about time.  

Oh, and please spare me ridiculous lectures about the separation of Church and state. First of all, it’s an American concept. There’s no such thing in Canada, where the preamble to the Constitution (the 1982 one, not the dusty old 1867 document) says: “Whereas Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law”. And second, the archbishop isn’t trying to change Canadian laws – he may be advocating for changes he’d like to see, but we all have the right to do that, religious or not. What he’s doing is trying to apply his own religion in his own church, and last time I checked there was no constitutional right to communion.