Minn. Catholics discuss role, position in political debate

The role of the Catholic Church in the public sphere has become an issue lately as the state debates a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage.

Two Notre Dame ethics director Angela Pfister and executive director Jason Adkins of the Minnesota Catholic Conference spoke on the topic at Our Lady of Grace Church in Edina Saturday.

The Catholic Church supports the amendment.

Anthony Picarello Jr., general counsel for the U.S. conference of Catholic Bishops, said church leaders have a right to express their beliefs.

"You need to have bishops teaching the faithful and proclaiming to the world in order to transform the culture out of which these bad thing arise," Picarello said "I think it took about 40 years for us to end up in the predicament we're in. It's probably going to take that time or longer to get out of the predicament. But you got to start somewhere."

Darlene White, who is Catholic, stood as lone demonstrator outside the conference. She held a sign outside the conference that said "God is God. Bishops are not."