LETTERS
2006 LETTERS
November/December
September/October
July/August
June
May
April
March
February
January
ARTICLES
Little Notes
Confessions
Talk About Movies
Roamin' Catholic
Follow Me
Contents © 2006
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.
LETTERS
April 2006
CORRECTION
Due to an editorial mishap, a story in the March 2006 issue about the funeral of Donna Godinez (Pastoral Dilemma, by Stanford Espedal), contained the following erroneous statement regarding Father Earl Eggleston's homily: ""Neither Heaven nor Hell nor Purgatory was mentioned."
"The fact is," says Espedal, "he spoke much of Heaven, and in such a way as to make it seem to his listeners that Donna was there, but without ever directly affirming it."
News Notes regrets the error.
BRACKET RACKET
The February 2006 issue of San Diego News Notes contains a "Little Notes" article entitled "Pro-Choice Catholic Assemblyman, Juan Vargas...." In that article I was interviewed about Mr. Vargas' talk at the Thomas More Society meeting. The article is fair and accurate except in one respect. It states: "After the talk, LiMandri spoke to Vargas at some length. 'And I remember telling him afterwards, I used to see a lot more gray area [in the abortion debate] until I developed a more sincere devotion to the Eucharist There's just not so much gray anymore.'"
Unfortunately, the phrase in brackets should not have been added to the quote. When I spoke to Juan Vargas, and reported the conversation in the News Notes interview, I did not mean to suggest that the abortion debate had ever been a "gray area" in my own mind. Rather, I was making the point that until I started taking my faith more seriously, there was more gray area in life in general. The interview was taped and I believe the recording will support that interpretation.
I feel that the piece as reported, in that one respect, was somewhat misleading in that the bracketed portion of the quote misrepresented that somehow my position on the fundamental immorality (and preferable illegality) of abortion had somehow changed over time. My fundamental views on the abortion issue were well formed while I was a student at Saint Augustine High School (1970-1973) and they have not changed over time. Abortion remains the greatest social evil of our generation and no one who calls himself "pro-choice" should also call himself "Catholic." This was my unambiguous position as related to Juan Vargas and I believe the article in general gets that point across.
The reporter did a good job overall with the interview and I am sorry to have to bring this one issue to your attention. Then again, I am sure that you know how important it is for those striving to be true to their faith to be as clear and consistent on this vital subject as possible. Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to express my concern over the issue and to correct an apparent misunderstanding.
Sincerely,
Charles S. LiMandri
SHROUD REMOVED
Please keep publishing the News Notes, sad though much of the news about the Church is. As a longtime advocate of the Holy Shroud of Turin, I was to read that Our Mother of Confidence Church has removed the representation of the Shroud from the sanctuary. (Roamin' Catholic, by Stanford Espedal, March 2006) Also disappointing is the expenditure of millions of dollars to renovate the Church at a time when there is so much need all over the world, and when the Church itself is being viciously attacked.
Sincerely,
Margaret L. Johnson
La Mesa