Associated Press – May 13, 2008
WASHINGTON – John Hagee, an influential Texas televangelist who endorsed John McCain, apologized to Catholics Tuesday for his stinging criticism of the Roman Catholic Church and for having “emphasized the darkest chapters in the history of Catholic and Protestant relations with the Jews.”
Hagee’s support for McCain has drawn cries of outrage from some Catholic leaders who have called on McCain to reject Hagee’s endorsement. The likely Republican nominee has said he does not agree with some of Hagee’s past comments, but did not reject his support.
In a letter to William Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights, Hagee wrote: “Out of a desire to advance a greater unity among Catholics and evangelicals in promoting the common good, I want to express my deep regret for any comments that Catholics have found hurtful.”
Donohue, one of Hagee’s sharpest critics, said he accepted the apology and planned to meet with Hagee Thursday in New York.
“I got what I wanted,” Donohue said in an interview. “He’s seen the light, as they like to say. So for me it’s over.”
The controversy had threatened to pursue McCain throughout the campaign, potentially hurting his standing with Catholic voters. A narrow majority of Roman Catholics voted for President Bush in 2004 and for Al Gore in 2000, critical votes in close elections.
The letter came after Hagee met Friday for lunch in a French restaurant in downtown Washington with 22 influential religious activists, virtually all of them Catholics.
Hagee has cited the Inquisition and the Crusades as evidence of anti-Semitism within the Catholic church and has suggested that Catholic anti-Semitism shaped Adolf Hitler’s views of Jews.
“In my zeal to oppose anti-Semitism and bigotry in all its ugly forms, I have often emphasized the darkest chapters in the history of Catholics and Protestant relations with the Jews,” Hagee wrote. “In the process, I may have contributed to the mistaken impression that the anti-Jewish violence of the Crusades and the Inquisition defines the Catholic Church. It most certainly does not.”
Hagee has often made references to “the apostate church” and the “great whore,” terms that Catholics say are slurs aimed at the Roman Catholic Church. In his letter, Hagee said he now better understood that his use of those descriptions, taken from the Book of Revelations, are “a rhetorical device long employed in anti-Catholic literature and commentary.”
He stressed that in his use, “neither of these phrases can be synonymous with the Catholic Church.”
The remarkable 2 1/2-page letter was no doubt inspired by the political storm Hagee’s endorsement caused. Hagee leads a San Antonio, Texas, megachurch with a congregation in the tens of thousands. He has an even wider television audience.
When he endorsed McCain in late February, Donohue and other Catholic leaders demanded that McCain repudiate him. The Democratic National Committee also weighed in, highlighting Hagee’s remarks over the years.
Some commentators even likened Hagee’s affect on McCain to the controversy Democrat Barack Obama faced as a result of the views expressed by his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
McCain initially embraced Hagee’s endorsement, eager to reach out to religious voters by securing the support of a prominent Christian conservative. But he was soon forced to put some distance with Hagee.
“Any comments that he made about the Catholic Church I strongly condemn, of course,” he said during an April appearance on ABC’s “This Week.”
Campaigning in North Bend, Wash., McCain on Tuesday said Hagee’s apology was “very helpful.”
“Whenever somebody apologizes for something they did wrong, then I think that that’s a laudable thing to do,” he said.
Asked if he or his campaign played a role in brokering Hagee’s letter, McCain simply said: “I certainly wasn’t.”
During the early primaries, McCain won strong support from Catholic voters. But Hagee threatened to become an issue heading into the general election.
Hagee is no stranger to provocative remarks. On National Public Radio in 2006, he said Hurricane Katrina was God’s judgment because “New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God.” He has written that the feminist movement represents “a rebellion against God’s pattern for the family.” On Tuesday, the Democratic National Committee said that considering those and other comments McCain still should renounce Hagee’s endorsement.
But Donohue said Hagee, by offering his apology now, may have defused a potential problem from the Arizona senator.
“Had this happened after Labor Day I think it would have been an insurmountable problem for McCain to reach out to Catholics,” Donohue said. “Now, with this behind him, I think the raised eyebrows in the Catholic community will begin to normalize.”
In a statement posted in the Catholic League’s Web site, Donohue added: “What Hagee has done takes courage and quite frankly I never expected him to demonstrate such sensitivity to our concerns.”
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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posted May 14, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Somebody threatened to turn off the spotlight that had been on him. That was enough for him to scramble out some terse and ill-thought through apology. All he wants is to ride on McCain’s wagon so he can be seen and heard. He will not avoid his usual verbal weeds for long. Stay tuned – McCain will be refuting him again soo, and this time it may be more devastating. Hagee cannot keep from hating someone and spouting his attitude and spreading the raw fertilizer of his narrow perspective.
posted May 14, 2008 at 6:54 pm
I agree with the jestify’s comments. When a individual in the person of John Hagee reaches the financial, historical, and popularity heights that have propelled him into a class all by himself, he forgets the two divine rules that Jesus himself proclaimed. “Love God with all your heart, mind, and spirit, and love your neighbor as yourself”. He beats the drum of his own personal gain amongst the millions of dollars he earns annually, and forgets that God has not placed him as a Judge of All Others. He minimizes others to that he can maximize himself. That has a familiar strain of what Lucifer did when he rebelled against God. God sealed his fate. In conclusion, I don’t believe that Reverend John Hagee is sincere in his apology, nor will he cease from making inflammatory remarks about others. This episode will pass, but he will continue to expound from his own heights about something else and state that “God said so”.
posted May 14, 2008 at 7:57 pm
So what does Hagee claim this “great whore” is and which is the “apostate church” in his opinion? And did he suddenly realize the RCC’s former endemic anti-Semitism no longer represents it? Inquiring minds want to know.
I’m guessing that, as others said, Hagee wants to ride McCain into power so he’ll hide his real nature till after the election.
Next question: Donohue was quite mad, but Hagee makes a pretty clearly false apology and Donohue shows signs of kissing his ring. Why is Donohue so quick to forgive? Has someone from Italy told him to back off?
posted May 15, 2008 at 1:41 am
I don’t feel that pastor Hagee’s apology was real but I’m not terribly concerned about him. He’s an extremist. I’m more concerned that McCain doesn’t really repudiate what Hagee says. Hagee’s comment on the level of sin in New Orleans promted God to bring Hurrican Katrina to the people there. I don’t know about his God, but my God would never do that. My God is a loving God. He doesn’t bring fire and brimstone down on people. I’m very concerned that William Donahue of the Catholic League-who is also very extreme, says that everything is alright now. I’m a cradle Catholic. Abortion was never OK. Rape, incest, the life of the Mother I feel need different considerations. It should be between the woman, her spouse and God. As a Catholic growing up in the 60′s, we were concerned about people. If the president cut funds for the elderly or children or the poor, the Catholic Church and the Catholic people protested. I felt my faith and my politics,I’m a Democrat, went hand in hand. I’m a very frustrated Catholic now-and that is putting it very mildly. The only thing that seems to matter now is abortion, stem cell research and according to William Donahue, school vouchers. What about the war that we were lied into? More than 4000 dead Americans(possibly 100,000 dead Iraqi’s), I don’t know how many with missing limbs and PTSD as a result of this war. We have a Republican party and President who don’t want to pass the GI bill because it might make soldiers after 4 to 7 rotations to the war want to get out. To be fair, we don’t have Democrats that fight hard enough for what is right either. We fight so hard to protect life-the Terri Schrivo affair-abortion etc, but we don’t care if the same people we try to protect die once they’re alive for lack of food, healthcare or a place to live. I don’t want to give welfare to everyone but don’t we have some responsiblity to the least fortunate among us? What happened to ‘Whatever you do unto the least of these, you do unto me.” we have Bill O’Reilly (and he’s a Catholic!!) screaming about the redistribution of wealth. We’ve become a very selfish nation-well, not everyone. We have people saying they pulled themselves up by their bootstraps and you can too. Bush in particular was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Obama didn’t have an easy life but he did have people who loved him and stood beside him. What about those whose parents are drug addicts or in prison? These kids need an extra boost in life. Why do people like Hagee say these things and they go almost unchallenged? Why do supposed men of God, like Donahue, excuse these things? Why wasn’t he mad about Hagee’s words about Katrina also? Because it wasn’t about the Catholic Church? Don’t we care about all hateful messages?? Hagee doesn’t represent me or what I believe, but why aren’t we all protesting about everything hateful because of race, religion, gender etc. Are we guilty if we don’t speak up? Maybe I do care about Hagee and I renounce him!!
posted May 15, 2008 at 8:18 pm
Another televangelist apology, when will they ever learn that the showmanship and addiction to being in front of the camera is their god and they no longer serve God when they come to this place. Hagee is brilliant but at the same time a idiot it weird how that happens.
posted May 16, 2008 at 12:02 pm
azul, your post was interesting. Obama will help the US come together again, we’re too fragmented to help our country and the people in it, and he sees this. The opposition sees that we may become united, and personally I think this scares the pants off them. You’ll be hearing all kinds of virulent speeches by the spliters of our country in the next few months, their nests are being rattled and they will sting like wasps until November.
posted May 26, 2008 at 11:19 am
Yet another spouting of B.S. from Hagee! Anyone actually believe him? His apology is a political move on his part. He is a compulsive “hater.”