Says he wouldn’t refuse Communion

Asked whether he would follow at least one other bishop who directed priests to deny Communion to politicians who back abortion rights, George said: “No, not at this point. No.” He made the comments at a downtown luncheon of the City Club of Chicago.

“I don’t have a good answer” to how the church should react to politicians who hold positions contrary to church law, George said. “I’m loath to say we should take too many public positions on that at this point.”

And on a related topic, at the same luncheon

“The great scandal, to my mind, of the Democratic Party is that there’s no pro-life caucus,” George told the crowd at the luncheon where he was guest speaker.

“A party that historically has been concerned about the weakest among us — why, most Catholics were Democrats historically — doesn’t permit any freedom of speech around the question of abortion.

“One can say, as I have, that the Democratic Party has lost its soul,” he said, as the largely Democratic audience, which included Cook County Board President John Stroger, sat gaping back at him.

Then, with the comic timing of a late-night talk-show host, the cardinal quickly added, “One could also argue that the Republican Party never had a soul,” as the audience erupted into belly laughs and applause.

“That’s called equal opportunity,” George quipped.