Rep. Mark Walker (R-NC) has stepped down from the chaplain selection committee in the wake of his controversial comment that he would like the next chaplain to be married and have adult children, criteria that would exclude Catholic priests and nuns, according to a Sunday USA Today report.
On Thursday, Walker, a Southern Baptist minister, spoke to a group of reporters per a Hill report. “I’m looking for somebody who has a little age, that has adult children, that kind of can connect with the bulk of the body here, Republicans and Democrats who are going through, back home the wife, the family … that has some counseling experience,” he said.
Catholic clergy take a vow of chastity upon receipt of the sacrament of holy orders, ensuring that they will never marry or have children.
Walker is reportedly ducking out of the search of his own volition, not under pressure from House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) who made his own headlines last week when news broke that he fired current chaplain Rev. Patrick Conroy on dubious grounds. Some suspect that the dismissal came as a result of a prayer Conroy said on the day that the House marked up the GOP tax bill, calling for a lessening of wealth inequality.
Conroy, a Jesuit, is only the second Catholic to hold the position and is scheduled to leave the post in late May.
On Friday, a group of 170 lawmakers reportedly wrote a letter to Ryan demanding transparency about Conroy’s dismissal. “We believe that, absent such details, questions will inevitably arise about the politicization of the process for hiring and dismissing a House chaplain,” it reads. “Not revealing such details could also risk resurrecting prior questions of religious bias.”
Can’t wait for the real story to get out on this situation.
I nominate this guy for the next chaplain.
Gee, Mark, WWJD?
Republicans aren’t Christian, no matter what they claim or how often they attend church.
You can’t spend Monday-Saturday chastising the poor for being poor, refuse to support them, hate on immigrants and so, then show up in Church on Sunday and act like everything is fine.
What a dummy. Like most of the GOP in the House he’s just a dummy.
Take back our country!
Run for office- and run FOR something! Don’t just run against Trump. You’ll either be preaching to the choir or confirming, in some people’s minds, that ‘the elites’ are out to get their man.
Get REAL specific, too. You want to run on jobs or healthcare reform or the new landfill? You must have a plan. Show what’s needed and show how to make it work. THEN point out the differences between having a plan and vague promises to work on a plan “very soon”.
This site, https://www.runforoffice.org/, allows you to enter your ZIP code and see what offices are available to you and the filing window for that office. They also have a few video short-courses on running a campaign. In my state you file for office during a 1-week period in May.
Become a Precinct Committee Officer, sometimes it’s a Ward officer. Meet your neighbors and get out the vote. Find good citizens willing to run for office.
Run for School Board. Make sure Civics is being properly taught. Think a majority of America knows how government works? Just 26% of eligible voters in America voted for Trump, and half of all voters stayed home last November. HALF! Today’s 12-year olds will be voting for President in 6 years. Make sure they’re prepared.
Run for Mayor, City Council, County Commissioner, Borough Assembly. And get on your Planning Commission.
Run for State Legislature or Congress. The next census is in 2020 when we’ll redraw Congressional Districts. Make them fair and open. Trump is ALREADY trying to rig the census- talk about ‘voter fraud’!
Register people to vote. If you need to help people overcome the GOP-led voter-run-around campaign help them do that. This site, https://www.aauw.org/resource/organize-a-voter-registration-drive/, has a how-to on organizing a voter registration drive. Or even sitting outside Wal Mart with a folding chair and a card table. Yes, that’s the American Association of University Women. And while we’re here organize a League of Women Voters chapter in your community if you don’t already have one. Fair, honest and above board. Democracy functions better with them involved.
Civics, civility and civilization all share the same roots.