First Ammendment Rights and Eucharistic Sacrilege

PZ Meyers author of the blog Pharyngula

There are days, and then there are other days. This is one of those other days. Here's a story that I'm not sure what to make of, but it's caused a lot of stress for a lot of people. First you need to read the original story: http://www.wftv.com/news/16798008/detail.html. It's about a college student at the University of Central Florida who kept a Consecrated Host in a baggy in protest of student fees being used at a public university to support religious services. He did return it after one week, unharmed. By then he had received numerous death threats, not to mention other acts of harassment and vilification.

This article caught the attention of science blogger PZ Meyers. Mr Meyers is on the faculty of the University of Minnesota's biology department, and maintains a personal blog on a science website not affiliated with the University. He has an international reputation in his field of study. It's an interesting blog written with a great deal of sarcasm on current events from the point of view of a 'godless liberal---a most irreverent godless liberal at that, but this time his sarcasm caught the attention of Bill Donohue and the Catholic League. Here's the original post by Mr. Meyers: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/its_a_goddamned_cracker.php#more

It's too bad that Mr. Meyers didn't make his points a little less vehemently, with a little more class, but given his perspective I'm sure the theology behind transubstantiation makes very little rational sense, but then neither do the responses he's been getting from Donahue's supporters, and like the student at UCF these have included death threats. But the Catholic League itself is going after PZ Meyer's job, which in turn prompted them to be deluged with email supporting Dr. Meyer's. Which brings us to yesterdays article on the Catholic League website:

HYSTERIA MARKS MYERS AND HIS ILK July 11, 2008

Yesterday, Catholic League president Bill Donohue issued a news release calling attention to the plea that Paul Zachary Myers made on his blog: he solicited the Communion Host for the express purpose of desecrating it. Donohue now responds to the reaction he has received from the University of Minnesota Morris professor, as well as others:

“Myers went on Houston radio station KPFT last night saying that Bill Donohue has ‘declared a fatwa’ against him. He should know better—I don’t need others to do the fighting for me. I’m quite good at it myself. But he’d better be careful what he says, because if I get any death threats, it won’t be hard to connect the dots. {I guess turn about is not fair play.}

“Myers, who claims expertise in studying zebrafish, has quite a following among the King Kong Theory of Creation gang. Indeed, we’ve been inundated with hate mail from all over the world, and it all stems from those whose alleged god is reason. { This is a statement dripping with class.}

“As a result of the hysteria that Myers’ ilk have promoted, at least one public official is taking it seriously. Thomas E. Foley is chairman of Virginia’s First Congressional District Republican Committee, a delegate to the Republican National Convention and one of two Republican at large nominees for Virginia’s Electoral College. His concern is for the safety of Catholics attending this year’s Republican National Convention in Minneapolis, Myers’ backyard. Accordingly, Foley has asked the top GOP brass to provide additional security while in the Twin Cities so that Catholics can worship without fear of violence. Given the vitriol we have experienced for simply exercising our First Amendment right to freedom of speech, we support Foley’s request. {I guess it's only OK for God's self appointed warriors to engage in vitriol, attacks on a person's employment, and inciting your followers to harass another person for exercising his First Amendment right to freedom of speech.}

“We already know that Myers lost one round: the university has removed the link to his blog from his faculty page. He should be prepared to lose a few more rounds. By the way, Myers says he is delighted to have finally garnered my attention. Too bad I can’t say the same—I never heard of the guy until yesterday.”

This latest salvo ends with the email address for the president of the University of Minnesota in case more Catholics want to load his email box. I feel sorry for this man because both sides are loading his email box. He has to be hitting the 'delete all' button. Just in case you think Tom Foley is being a little paranoid, keep in mind that right now at UCF, all Masses have armed campus security guards in attendance.

I'd like to think this is all just a tempest in a teapot, but it's not. It's become personal, and resulted in death threats and reams of hate mail. PZ Meyers has had to close a number of threads because of the volume of email and it's effect on the rest of the Scienceblog site. His position at UofM is seriously being threatened. Minnesota legislators are also experiencing their share of emails from Donohue supporters with the intent of forcing Mr. Meyer's ouster.

If Mr Cook, the UCF student, wanted to make a point with his act of stealing a host, it seems he certainly did. Unfortunately for him, his original intent, which was to draw attention to the issue of using student funding to support religious services has been lost in all the subsequent rhetoric. I doubt Mr. Cook thought of his act as a kidnapping or a hate crime, both of which were positions taken by the diocese of Central Florida. I know I don't. Is this a sacrilege, yes, I can see that, but a hate crime or a kidnapping. I don't think so because as Dr. Meyers points out in his own initial response, Mathew Sheppard, and Lawrence King's murders were hate crimes.

In essence what the Church response seems to be is that a Consecrated Host should be treated exactly as a real flesh and blood person. I'd be curious as to how many Catholics would agree with this position. For Catholics, this really is an issue of just what one believes about one of the core faith dogmas of the Church. For atheists like Dr. Meyers, or most non Catholics for that matter, it's sheer insanity. But in Dr. Meyer's case it's an insanity with a lot of political bite, and it just might cost him his living.