Hagee Weakly Apologies to Catholic Folk; Should We Hold Our Collective Breath For Other Apologies?

by: Autumn Sandeen

Tue May 13, 2008 at 19:30:00 PM EDT

"The tone of Hagee's letter is sincere. He wants reconciliation and he has achieved it. Indeed, the Catholic League welcomes his apology. What Hagee has done takes courage and quite frankly I never expected him to demonstrate such sensitivity to our concerns. But he has done just that. Now Catholics, along with Jews, can work with Pastor Hagee in making interfaith relations stronger than ever. Whatever problems we had before are now history. This case is closed."

I had no idea that Bill Donohue spoke for all Catholics, but apparently he believes his pronouncement is good enough close the case for all Catholics.

The apology sent via Bill Donahue came with a kind of caveat. Rev. Hagee's apparent calling of the Catholic Church "the apostate church" and the "great whore" weren't specific to the Catholic Church -- the Catholic Church and all other Christian Churches apparently will become "the apostate church" and the "great whore" after the rapture, during the tribulation  ...

And, this explanation came with a weakly worded, if I have offended you kind of apology...

Apparently, it doesn't take much of an apology to satisfy Catholics, if one is to judge by Mr. Donohue's acceptance of Rev. Hagee's apology.

John McCain wooed Rev. Hagee for his endorsement for a year -- should Sen. John McCain breath easier now that Rev. Hagee has sort of apologized to Catholics?

Well, Rev. Hagee has some other issues. His quote on NPR regarding Hurricane Katrina should still be problematic:

All hurricanes are acts of God, because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are -- were recipients of the judgment of God for that. The newspaper carried the story in our local area that was not carried nationally that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came. And the promise of that parade was that it was going to reach a level of sexuality never demonstrated before in any of the other Gay Pride parades. So I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing. I know that there are people who demur from that, but I believe that the Bible teaches that when you violate the law of God, that God brings punishment sometimes before the day of judgment. And I believe that the Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans.

(For the record, Rev. Hagee retracted his comments on what caused Hurricane Katrina, then un-retracted his retraction.)

A quote of his regarding Islam could also be considered problematic:

[Rev. Hagee comments on Islam and Jewish people after the fold]

Terry Gross: If you use the Bible as the basis for policy, is there any room for compromise? And if you use the bible as the basis for policy, should Muslims use the Koran as the basis for their policy, and then again, what possible basis is there for compromise at that point?

John Hagee: There is really no room for compromise between radical Islam --

TG: I'm not talking about radical Islam. I'm just talking about Islam in general.

JH: Well Islam in general -- those who live by the Koran have a scriptural mandate to kill Christians and Jews.

And, he's also claimed that Jews, as a people, are Christ-killers:

Where that leaves them is that during the tribulation, the book of Revelation says in the 14th chapter that God is going to send angels who will preach the everlasting gospel across the face of the earth so that everyone will have the opportunity of knowing who Jesus Christ is. Now, when it comes to the Jewish people, Zechariah very clearly says that they are not going to believe that Jesus Christ is the Messiah until they see him. Zechariah says in the 14th chapter 'and when they, the Jewish people, see him whom they have pierced'--and the word pierced there actually refers to his rib and side--'when they see him whom they have pierced, they will weep as one weeps for his only son for a period of one week. They're simply not going to believe he is the Messiah until they actually see him, and that's at the Second Coming. Then, at that point in time, there is the judgment of the nations in which all nations are judged for the way in which they have treated the nation of Israel and the Jewish people, and the Jewish people are front and center in the kingdom of God that will be an eternal kingdom.

As to whether John McCain is still comfortable with Rev. Hagee's endorsement, McCain has stated "I've accepted his endorsement." And, just so we're clear that we know Rev. Hagee isn't McCain's pastor, but that Rev. Hagee's endorsement is more than just a random endorsement we should treat as the fodder of a guilt by association attack on Sen. McCain:

McCain didn't just "accept" Hagee's endorsement; he actively sought it. In fact, he "personally wooed Hagee for more than a year." Hagee recently told the New York Times Magazine that "it's true that McCain's campaign sought my endorsement."

I know my personal belief is that if you seek an endorsement, you take on the baggage that comes with that endorsement.

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Further reading:
* John Hagee: Iran Poses Grave Threat to Western Civilization
* On Fox's Your World, apocalyptic pastor John Hagee claimed Iran will nuke Israel and the U.S.
* The Lord Has Chosen ZION
* Lieberman Address to Christians United for Israel

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Related:
* John Hagee and his gay friends
* Chocolate Christ = Bad, Cracker Christ = Good
* Seton Medical Centre, A Catholic Hospital, Changes Policy To Comply With California Law

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