CHICAGO — Cardinal Francis George, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago, is defending his decision to bar church funding for immigrant rights groups that support same-sex marriage.
“You can’t play off the pastoral concern of the church for the poor against the church’s teaching,” George said. “That’s exactly what was done, that’s a cynical move, and I’m sorry that it was done.”
George’s response came following an open letter signed by a group of Catholic elected officials and community leaders — including Democratic gubernatorial hopeful and former Chicago mayor William Daley — that urged the church to reverse its decision.
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Last week, George had ordered the Catholic Campaign for Human Development – the Catholic Church’s anti-poverty program in the U.S. – to withdraw financial support for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, after the group had publicly voiced support for same-sex marriage in the state.
Daley and other local leaders have accused George of using immigrants as “pawns in a political battle” over same-sex marriage.
“My view on marriage equality and those of immigrant-aid groups who have similar views really are irrelevant to our collective duty to help those who are less fortunate,” Daley wrote to George last week.
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George fired back at his critics, and said church funding agreements prohibit organizations and groups it supports from pursuing an agenda contrary to the church’s teachings – which includes its opposition to same-sex marriage.
“The church is consistent, over many years – ten years and more – in our concern for immigrants, and just immigration reform, and that will continue,” George said.
George has called same-sex marriage “unnatural and legal-fiction.”
