Grace Thompson
The Catholic League is a lay Catholic organization that is independent of the Catholic Church. It is the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization, founded in 1973 by Father Virgil C. Blum to defend the right of Catholics to participate in American public life without discrimination. The Catholic League has been led by its board of directors president, Bill Donohue, since 1993. To join the Catholic League, one can fill out a membership form or join online.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Founding | 1973 by the late Father Virgil C. Blum, S.J |
| Leadership | Bill Donohue (since 1993) |
| Board of Directors Chair | Walter Knysz |
| Board of Advisors | Prominent lay Catholics like Brent Bozell, Linda Chavez, Mary Ann Glendon, Alan Keyes, Tom Monaghan, and George Weigel |
| Membership | Print and mail the form or join online |
| Membership Benefits | Receive Catalyst, the League's journal, and updates on league activities in your area |
| Mission | Defend the right of Catholics to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination |
| Activities | Education campaigns, issuing condemnations, initiating boycotts and protests, defending priests against accusations, fighting proposed legislation, threatening legal action against bigotry, etc. |
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What You'll Learn
The Catholic League's history
The Catholic League, founded in 1973 by Father Virgil C. Blum, is the largest Catholic civil rights organisation in the US. It is a lay Catholic organisation independent of the Catholic Church, but is listed in the Official Catholic Directory. It defends the right of Catholics to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination, and safeguards their religious freedom and free speech rights.
The League has been led by its board of directors president, Bill Donohue, since 1993. It publishes a journal, Catalyst, and operates a website. The League has been criticised for its conservatism and combative responses to high-profile media stories. It has also been criticised for defending priests against accusations of child sexual abuse.
The Catholic League has taken a stand against anything perceived as anti-Catholic, including the entertainment industry, certain art exhibits, school programs for sex education, government-funded contraception and abortion, media bias, and restrictions on religious schools. It issues condemnations, initiates boycotts and protests, fights proposed legislation, and threatens legal action against what it sees as bigotry against Catholics.
The League has also been active in politics, calling on John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign to renounce pastor and televangelist John Hagee for his alleged "anti-Catholic hate speech". It has been characterised as "right-wing" and "a conservative reactionary organisation".
In addition to its activities in the US, the Catholic League has also been involved in international issues. For example, it has released a special report on its campaign against the LA Dodgers.
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Joining the Catholic League
The Catholic League is a lay Catholic organization that is independent of the Catholic Church. It is the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization. Founded in 1973 by the late Father Virgil C. Blum, the Catholic League defends the right of Catholics to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination. The league is organized under a board of directors chaired by Walter Knysz and has a board of advisors consisting of prominent lay Catholics.
The Catholic League publishes a journal, Catalyst, and operates a website. The league under Donohue's leadership has been criticized for its conservatism and combative responses to high-profile media stories. Besides education campaigns, the group issues condemnations, initiates boycotts and protests, defends priests against accusations of child sexual abuse, fights proposed legislation, and threatens legal action against what it sees as bigotry against Catholics.
To join the Catholic League, you can either print the membership form, fill in the membership and payment information, and mail it back to the organization. Alternatively, you can join online by visiting the membership page on their website. By joining, you become part of the most influential lay Catholic organization in the country.
The Catholic League should be on every Catholic’s shortlist of essential organizations to support. The league has done much to ensure that the Church’s positions are presented clearly and fairly, and it is important in the mission of the Catholic Church.
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The Catholic League's mission
The Catholic League is a lay Catholic organization that is independent of the Catholic Church. It is the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization. Founded in 1973 by the late Father Virgil C. Blum, the Catholic League defends the right of Catholics—laypeople and clergy—to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination. Motivated by the letter and spirit of the First Amendment, the Catholic League works to safeguard the religious freedom and free speech rights of Catholics whenever and wherever they are threatened.
The Catholic League has taken a stand against anything they perceive as anti-Catholic. This includes the entertainment industry, certain art exhibits, school programs for sex education, government-funded contraception and abortion, media bias, restrictions against anti-abortion activism, and restrictions on religious schools. The group issues condemnations, initiates boycotts and protests, defends priests against accusations of child sexual abuse, fights proposed legislation, and threatens legal action against what it sees as bigotry against Catholics, irreverence against religious figures, and attacks on Catholic dogma.
The Catholic League publishes a journal, Catalyst, and operates a website. It is led by its board of directors president, Bill Donohue, who works with a small number of organizational staffers. Donohue has been criticized for his conservatism and combative responses to high-profile media stories. He has also been called "right-wing" and "a conservative reactionary who wants to undo the work of Vatican II and suppress varying opinions within the Church."
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The Catholic League's criticism
The Catholic League, led by Bill Donohue, has been criticized for its conservatism and combative responses to high-profile media stories. Despite claiming to be politically neutral, the organization has been characterized as conservative and right-wing. Donohue himself has been labelled "a conservative reactionary who wants to undo the work of Vatican II and suppress varying opinions within the Church".
The Catholic League has been scrutinized for its strong stance against anything perceived as anti-Catholic, including the entertainment industry, art exhibits, school sex education programs, government-funded contraception and abortion, media bias, restrictions on anti-abortion activism, and limitations on religious schools. They have been known to issue condemnations, initiate boycotts and protests, defend priests facing child sexual abuse accusations, and threaten legal action against perceived bigotry towards Catholics, irreverence towards religious figures, and attacks on Catholic dogma.
One notable instance of criticism involved singer Joan Osborne and her song "One of Us", which explores the idea of God as a human being. Donohue criticized the song and questioned Osborne's activism in support of pro-choice groups, suggesting that her music bordered on "Catholic baiting".
The Catholic League has also been criticized for its defence of the Catholic Church in various controversies. For example, they protested against Kevin Smith's film, which depicted the main character, supposedly a descendant of Mary, working in an abortion clinic. While the League framed this as a defence against anti-Catholic blasphemy, Smith suggested that the protests were more about media attention for the group.
Additionally, the Catholic League has been accused of threatening rape and murder in emails to McEwan, who resigned from their position in 2007, possibly due to this hostility.
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The Catholic League's president
The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights is an independent lay Catholic organization. It was founded in 1973 by Jesuit priest Virgil Blum to counter discrimination against Catholics in American government and popular culture. The Catholic League says it is politically neutral, but it has been characterized as conservative. It has also been criticized for its conservatism and combative responses to high-profile media stories. The league issues a journal, Catalyst, as well as reports, books, brochures, and an annual Report on Anti-Catholicism.
Bill Donohue has been the president and CEO of the Catholic League since 1993. He is known for his strong and sometimes controversial stances against what he perceives as anti-Catholic sentiment. For example, he has criticized Christmas cards sent by President George W. Bush for not mentioning "Christmas," called out an atheists organization for displaying a message saying, "You KNOW it's a myth!" and condemned Patrick Buchanan for launching his presidential campaign at Bob Jones. Donohue has also been accused of being abusive and right-wing. Despite this, he is described as pragmatic when it comes to religion and "media-savvy."
Under Donohue's leadership, the Catholic League has become the largest Catholic advocacy organization in the US. It has taken a stand against anything perceived as anti-Catholic, including the entertainment industry, certain art exhibits, school programs for sex education, government-funded contraception and abortion, media bias, restrictions against anti-abortion activism, and restrictions on religious schools. The league has also defended priests against accusations of child sexual abuse and fought proposed legislation that it believes is harmful to the Catholic Church.
The Catholic League operates with a small number of organizational staffers, including Michael P. McDonald, the Director of Communications. The league is organized under a board of directors chaired by Walter Knysz and advised by prominent lay Catholics such as Brent Bozell, Linda Chavez, and Mary Ann Glendon.
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Frequently asked questions
The Catholic League is the largest Catholic civil rights organization in the US, founded in 1973 by Father Virgil C. Blum. It works to defend the right of Catholics to participate in American public life without discrimination.
The League safeguards the religious freedom and free speech rights of Catholics. It also works to ensure that the Church's positions are presented clearly and fairly.
You can join the Catholic League by printing and mailing the membership form or by joining online.
By joining the Catholic League, you become part of the most influential lay Catholic organization in the country. You will receive the League's journal, Catalyst, and be informed of various league activities in your area.
