CCHD - The Scandal Goes On and On and On and.....

I sat in Mass yesterday (not at my home parish) and listened to the announcement for the second collection to benefit CCHD (Catholic Campaign for Human Development). It was all the usual drivel about how the collection helps the poor, yadda...yadda...yadda. Not a word was said about the organizations receiving grants that promote abortion, contraception, homosexuality, etc. Of course, that would have a chilling effect on the purse and pocket pickers running the so-called "charity."

CCHD has a scandalous past and its present isn't too pretty either. As Michael Hichborn of the Lepanto Institute revealed today, things go on as they always have with Catholic money funneled to organizations undermining everything Catholicism stands for. Read their report about 2014-2015 grant recipient Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition (NBCCC). It promotes homosexual activism and communism! Yes communism!

Why?

Why do the Catholic bishops allow this to go on? Write to your diocesan bishop and ask why they continue to fund this national collection? Its continuation undermines the trust of the flock for their shepherds. What would you think of a shepherd who went out every night with a knife and bled his sheep? That's what CCHD does to the sheep in the pews, and it's way past time for it to stop!

Here's the Lepanto Institute's press release issued today.

CCHD Collection is Coming Up: BOYCOTT!

And pass the word on. Don't let your friends be the chumps in the pews fleeced to pour money into leftwing causes that undermine Church teaching! It's a sad truth but you just can't trust the bishops not to support moral evils with your money! They've been doing it for years through CCHD and nothing ever changes despite promise after promise to reform. Remember the old adage, "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me!

Conflict of Interest at Catholic Campaign for Human Development

I Can't Say it Loud Enough....

BOYCOTT THE CATHOLIC CAMPAIGN FOR HUMAN DEVELOPMENT!

Just say no to fraudulent CCHD collection and the faux liberal Catholic Ralph McCloud

More CCHD Poison

While hoping that the Catholic Campaign for Human Development will actually be reformed, faithful Catholics are right to remain skeptical. Prudence dictates continued withholding of contributions from this "Catholic" in name only charity that funnels money to so many immoral organizations. Michael Hichborn details the latest head shaker in his article about the Chelsea Initiative, a group that promotes homosexual activism. CCHD actually tried to convince this pro-homosexual group to KEEP their $40,000 grant after the group returned it saying they could not comply with CCHD rules. HUH? Can somebody at CCHD explain this? Sounds like Chelsea has more integrity than CCHD! Here's what Hichborn says: 

OPEN LETTER TO PRIESTS ABOUT THE CATHOLIC CAMPAIGN FOR HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Dear Father,


You are no doubt well aware of the on-going controversy surrounding the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD). The recently released American Life League report evaluating CCHD grants found that the situation in 2010 was worse than the previous year. Sadly, the same scenario has repeated, like an endless loop, since CCHD’s establishment in 1969. Concerned Catholics expose grantees who directly or indirectly promote abortion, contraception, liberation theology, the gay agenda, etc. CCHD engages in “reform,” but the objectionable grants continue. In this latest go-around, CCHD has attacked ALL and others accusing them of an “agenda” and claiming their critique is rehashed information. But within weeks of ALL’s exposé, CCHD defunded a group in the report.

Recently Real Catholic TV entered the fray with a CIA (Catholic Investigative Agency) review on CCHD which is devastating. Twenty-four percent of the collection last year went to groups that either directly or indirectly support abortion, contraception, the homosexual agenda including same-sex marriage, and cultural Marxism. Real Catholic TV exposed several additional groups besides the ALL list. The fact is, millions of dollars collected through CCHD from unsuspecting Catholics went to these evil organizations.

Serious questions must be addressed with regard to the annual CCHD collection:

Boycott CCHD! They're in Bed with Enemies of the Church

American Life League Responds to CCHD Smear
CCHD: Evidence, Dismissals, and Clarifications

Former Chicago CCHD Director Criticizes Organization
Catholic Campaign for Human Development: Reform or Bust

And then there's Stephanie Block's analysis of CCHD over the years, a devastating account of their connections to cultural Marxism.
What Is the Catholic Campaign for Human Development Trying to Do?
Did you say you want a revolution?
 
Don't throw your money to the community organizers. Boycott CCHD!

American Life League was Right After ALL

As soon as American Life League (ALL) and Reform CCHD NOW released their latest report on the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) showing how it has increased its funding of objectionable groups, CCHD went into overdrive to discredit them. All their info was rehashed, we were told, exaggerated and innacurate. CCHD had investigated. ALL has an agenda. Yada-yada-yada. Well, it appears that ALL was right after all -- at least in one recent case raised by ALL which leads astute readers to ask, "How many others." See here.

Turns out that that the NYC AIDS Housing Network lied about not violating Church teachings and that, in fact, they distribute condoms, an act that not only violates Catholic teaching, but is counterproductive in controlling AIDS as the experience in Africa shows. (The only program showing significant reduction of AIDS is the one promoted in Uganda, premarital abstinence and marital fidelity. That's the real solution to the AIDS crisis. See here. African countries with the highest rate of condom distribution also have the highest rate of AIDS.)

But I digress. The fact is that CCHD, with all their "vetting" and all their paid bureaucrats working in chanceries around the country and at the national office in D.C., can't find the material that a few activist researchers, mostly volunteers, turn up easily.

May one be forgiven for thinking that CCHD is the one with an agenda that includes funding liberal organizations and electing liberals to state and national government? How many other grantees have CCHD bureaucrats "vetted" who are actively engaged in undermining Catholic teaching and promoting liberalism? As I've written before in, "Who to believe?", CCHD is far from trustworthy.

For my part I'll stick with ALL, Reform CCHD Now, Stephanie Block, the Catholic Media Coaltion, The Wanderer, and the all the other trumpet blowers who believe CCHD is all about funneling money into Alinsky groups and electing liberals who will work to empower, not the poor, but the community organizers. It's been going on for decades. Why should we believe things have changed? I agree completely with Janet Baker of Reform D.C. Catholicism, a member of the Catholic Media Coalition who outlined the horrible treatment of Rey Flores in Chicago who tried to reform the local organization and direct money to truly worthy organizations. Rey was fired for doing what every CCHD officer should be doing! Here's what Janet wrote after noting the injustice to Flores from this "social justice" organization:

It is my serious contention that the Catholic Campaign for Human Development is beyond reform. It is a blight upon Catholicism that should be abolished as soon as possible. At the very least, it should be stripped of the name "Catholic" (which it did not have originally) and expunged from the Church. Let's boycott any and all future collections and starve this nefarious beast. (See article.)

In 2009, I made the video below to alert folks to CCHD's corrupt agenda. Nothing really has changed despite all the huffing and puffing at the bishops' conference. Who do you trust to spend your charity dollars wisely? CCHD or yourself? When the CCHD collection comes to your parish in a few weeks, drop  an acorn in the basket. It isn't just nuts who are running things at the CCHD; the organization is an enemy of the Church.

Should a Catholic Support the CCHD (Catholic Campaign for Human Development)?

The CCHD's annual collection is billed as an anti-poverty measure. Who can possibly argue with helping the poor, eh? But since the inception of the collection, a strategy that included collaberation between Msgr. Jack Egan of Chicago and community organizing guru Saul Alinsky, faithful Catholics have complained that much of the money goes into organizing for liberal causes. Many groups supported in the past have direct ties to abortion, contraception, and liberal politics. Opposition to the collection has grown to the degree that CCHD has apparently mounted, not so much a cleanup of the organization, but a new strategy to make opposition difficult.

Let me explain. Traditionally, the collection for CCHD is the weekend before Thanksgiving. But in the past year or so, diocese have taken a new approach to the special collection by taking it up at odd times. As we were passing through South Dakota, the bulletin for the church in Spearfish was advertising it for September. In some places, even the name has changed. The collection in the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. labeled it Communication +. Now isn't that interesting? It comes across to me as a measure to eliminate the effectiveness of the opposition and fool as many people in the pews as possible. What does that say about the bishops' bureaucracy?

Catholics need to be careful about where they put their money. Sadly, in many dioceses, the people in the pew cannot trust that their bishop is protecting the interests of the most vulnerable. When Catholic money goes to organizations that enable the culture of death, it's time to rise in righteous anger and fight. One way is to stop giving to special collections altogether.

In order to get a better idea of how CCHD advances the culture of death, see Stephanie Block's series at SperoForum. And hold on to your wallet. If your diocese collects for CCHD, you can be sure that someone in the chancery is not minding the store.

The New CCHD Strategy

I've noticed during the past few weeks that our bulletin listing of upcoming collections for the rest of the year omits the traditional CCHD (Catholic Campaign for Human Development) collection usually taken up in November the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Regular readers of this blog know CCHD is notorious for funding groups with links to abortion, same-sex marriage, and the election of liberal politicians I'd like to think the Diocese of Arlington is opting out of the CCHD collection, but that is too much to hope for. What's more likely is implementation of strategies cropping up around the country in some dioceses: bait and switch or the bob and weave. In some places the collection is being rolled into other collections, or the date is being changed, or it is being taken up different weekends at parishes in the same diocese. It appears that, rather than correct the problems with CCHD, many bishops are gaming the collection. Hey, if nobody knows when the collection will occur or if it's hidden under another name, opponents will have a hard time organizing a boycott.

In the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., as reported by Restore D.C. Catholicism, this year's collection was switched to August and combined with the Catholic Communications Campaign. The diocese retitled it the Catholic Communications and Human Development Campaign. The Diocese of Superior lists the CCHD campaigns on its calendar for June in 2012 and 2013. Is this a change for them? I don't know. I couldn't find anything on previous years. See here for a number of articles on this year's collection in D.C.

According to friends around the country, fellow members of the Catholic Media Coalition, similar things are happening in their own dioceses. To me it seems just one more indictment of CCHD. No other national collection gets disguised with another collection or gets the date-changing bob and weave treatment. But CCHD is a special case and last year, under increasing scrutiny, they brought out the big guns to go after the enemy, their critics, who must be isolated, and discredited. Unfortunately for CCHD, it's an impossible job when there is so much evidence that indicates serious problems. All you have to do is look at the list of the 2010-2011 grantees on the USCCB website to see that community organizing groups are still among CCHD's main "charities."

To be fair, the devious strategies being used to disguise the collection are not universal. Some dioceses clearly identify when CCHD will be collected. The Diocese of Davenport for example announces it on their website. And some, like the Diocese of Kansas City, MO, announced last year that they were dropping all the community organizing groups from their local grants. A handful of bishops in the past few years have declined to take up the collection at all or took it up, but distributed it locally or to organizations outside the CCHD national grant system.

The problems with CCHD continue and are systemic. They are symptomatic of the problems with the entire social justice arm of the Catholic Church. Many of the professionals working for social justice "charities" are liberal cafeteria Catholics who support abortion, same-sex marriage, and other issues that violate Church teaching. They sit on boards of pro-abortion groups; contribute to liberal pro-abortion, pro-homosexual politicians; and often publicly dissent from Church teaching. Their approach to social justice is to forever demand increased government funding "for the poor" which often goes instead to the bureaucracies who claim to work for the poor but actually work to advance the liberal agenda. In view of government's "charity" to Planned Parenthood and other evil organizations that work for population control to eliminate the poor, the idea that somehow government is the solution is flawed to say the least.

Watch ALL's report from last year about CCHD. And be alert to "special collections" and where they are really going. Last year over seven million was collected and distributed by the national CCHD office. That's  I wonder how much of that money really went to help the poor and how much went to promoting philosophies that undermine Catholic teaching. Seven million buys a lot of grease for the liberal skids.

At least Ten Dioceses Opt Out of CCHD Collection

LifeSiteNews reports on dioceses that skip the CCHD Collection.

Stop, Mary! Boycott CCHD!

Keep Up the CCHD Boycott!

In June LifeSiteNews reported on ten dioceses opting out of the bishops' Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the "charity" that funds groups supporting abortion and other activities anathema to Catholic teaching. The group has a history of advancing leftwing causes and politicians. In fact, leftwing politics played a large part in the beginning of CCHD when Saul Alinsky and Msgr. Jack Egan hatched a plan to get their hands in the pockets of Catholics in the pew for their socialistic version of "social justice." The Reform CCHD Coalition sent a report to all the bishop prior to their June meeting listing the continued problems with the group. You can see the press release here and the PDF report here. The Coalition documents 50 CCHD recipients that have links to positions in opposition to Church teaching.

As of June ten bishops had publicly opted out of CCHD. Here's the list:

Bishop Joseph Adamec - Altoona-Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Bishop Robert J. Baker - Birmingham, Alabama
Bishop John O. Barres - Allentown, Pennsylvania
Bishop Lawrence Brandt - Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz - Lincoln, Nebraska
Bishop Victor Galeone - St. Augustine, Florida
Bishop Robert C. Morlino - Madison, Wisconsin
Bishop Kevin Rhoades (formerly) - Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Bishop David Ricken – Green Bay, Wisconsin
Bishop Edward J. Slattery - Tulsa, Oklahoma

CCHD has refused to release the list of 2010 grantees until AFTER the November Collection. The message is -- "Trust us!" Anybody who does is like the Gingerbread Boy who let the fox swim him across the river. Here's what Mike Voris has to say about the upcoming collection. As for "the insider" I think I know who he is and he definitely knows of what he speaks. CCHD is a fraud and no informed Catholic would give to this bogus collection. Pass it on.

No Money for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development!

Hey, liberal bishops, you aren't going to fool us that you've fixed the leftist CCHD. NO MONEY for groups that support issues opposed to Church teaching! READ OUR LIPS!

The CCHD Hucksters Know All the Tricks

A few days ago I wrote about the Catholic Campaign for Human Development and their bogus reform. (See here.) Apparently, the CCHD hucksters are worried that too many Catholics in the pew are on to their game and won't buy into their message of hope and change at CCHD. Ah, what to do, what to do? Got it! Repackage and change the name. For sure that's happened in California which is calling this year's CCHD collection "National Needs in the Diocese of Orange."

Is this happening in other dioceses? Probably. So watch out for any "national" collection and verify before you give. Although my blanket recommendation is don't give to any special collections at all unless you know exactly how the money is being spent. Most of the church collections, especially the national and international "charities", are so tainted by federal money that they are no longer identifiable as Catholic. This is certainly true of "Catholic" Charities. Remember a few years ago when the Richmond Catholic Charities enabled the abortion of a young teenager in their care? (See here.)

It's time for a new national/international Catholic charity run by orthodox laity that refuses federal money, is completely voluntary (i.e., doesn't coerce through taxation), and follows Catholic teaching in grant-giving. It's time to cut off the bogus groups that operate according to secular policies using the name "Catholic" as window dressing.

We need truth in advertising in Catholic giving! How many would put one penny in the CCHD collection if they knew their money enabled abortion, contraception, gay rights, illegal immigration, and a host of other leftwing initiatives?

Nothing's Changed at the Catholic Campaign for Human Development

The shell game continues at the U.S. bishops' conference. Don't believe the empty promises about reforming the leftwing "charity." BOYCOTT CCHD!

Thirteen bishops refused to participate last year in the Catholic Campaign for Human Developement (CCHD) collection taken up in most dioceses the weekend after Thanksgiving. Ostensibly to help the poor, CCHD is notorious for refusing direct aid to the poor, funneling money instead into radical leftwing organizations. Recently the bishops established a review and reform committee and now claim that CCHD is fixed. Forget it! CCHD is still the same group as it began -- formed to pick the pockets of Catholics in the pew to pass it to radical groups some of which work for abortion, contraception, and the election of liberal politicians like Barack Obama who advance socialism.

Stephanie Block, a researcher who has followed CCHD for at least 25 years, reviewed their recent report and finds it unconvincing. There is NO reform of CCHD! Just like the bogus reform of 1998 when the group was exposed for giving money to pro-abortion organizations and added "Catholic" to its name, the latest fix is the same cosmetic cover-up.

Read the articles below and boycott CCHD this November.

USCCB "Review and Renewal of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development" betrays utter lack of reform

Liberal priests oppose CCHD reform efforts in Chicago (Exclusive)

 CCHD critics raise new questions on grants to radical groups

 CCHD Coalition Finds Radical Group Featured in Bishop's Renewal Document; Urges Delay of Annual Collection

Chicago CCHD working for real reform

Life Site News reports that the Chicago branch of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development is making real strides in cleaning up the organization. Because of changes in the way they administer the program, including letting people in the pew designate whether their money stays in Chicago, 50% of the collection is now going to local efforts including pro-life groups.

Congratulations to Rey Flores, Chicago's director, for his honest commitment to serving the poor instead of local community organizers. If you live in Chicago, give Rey a call and commit your CCHD donation to local efforts. If you don't live in Chicago let the collection basket pass you by. Most dioceses cooperate with evil by funding organizations that advance liberalism, even abortion and contraception. The scandal is on-going in some dioceses. So be on guard.

Almost 50 CCHD Grantees Engage in Activities Opposed to Catholic Teaching

The bishops continue to stonewall about the scandal of using money collected from trusting Catholics to fund organizations promoting decidedly un-Catholic activities: abortion, contraception, same-sex marriage, etc. It's important to let your Catholic friends know that a dollar for CCHD may fund abortion lobbying. A handful of bishops have stopped participating in the collection but most are silent enablers who continue to promote the fantasy that CCHD serves the poor. Read more here....

Matt Abbott Chimes in on the USCCB Controversy

Columnist Matt Abbott has a great article at Renew America on the USCCB Controversy and the Tim Tebow Super Bowl ad. He wants to see the USCCB dismantled agreeing with political analyst Tom Roeser. More and more Catholics agree. Reform is impossible. The liberal, stonewalling bureaucracy is so riddled with scandal it seems beyond redemption. It's been taken over by many who have an agenda diametrically opposed to Church doctrine. How do you reform a group like that? I don't care how pro-life these folks are personally. For some reason they are willing to coddle and enable the enemies of the faith. It's time to stop pouring more millions into this corrupt organization and hand out the pink slips, turn off the lights, and lock the doors.

Connecting the Dots: Why the USCCB Cooperates with so much Evil!

 Have you connected the dots? Has the light bulb gone on? How many evils can one organization support before one comes to the conclusion that it is diabolical? A press release from American Life League today reveals some shocking data about John Carr, executive director of the Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development at the USCCB (bishops' conference) which, incidentally, oversees the CCHD (Catholic Campaign for Human Development). Carr has worked at the bishops' bureuacracy since 1987.

Now lets take a look at his long-term connection to the Center for Community Change (CCC) which goes back at least to 1983. According to an American Life League press release, Carr held leadership positions at CCC from 1999 to 2006 "including chairman of the board."

ALL gives more interesting details:

In 2001, while Carr served as both a USCCB exec and CCC leader, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference funneled $150,000 to the pro-abortion group. The USCCB web site currently promotes the group and officials have spoken at CCC events.

“Strangely, Carr’s leadership on the CCC’s board shows up on several bios he’s submitted for speaking engagements, but the word for word bio on the USCCB web site mysteriously omits that one detail,” Hichborn said. “Why?”

Revelations of John Carr’s involvement in the Center for Community Change come only months after members of the Reform CCHD Now coalition, including American Life League, uncovered 31 CCHD grantees partnered with the CCC.

Some of us have been calling for reform of the CCHD for years because of the evil organizations it funds. Did the light go on as you read this? Is it any wonder that "31 CCHD grantees" were CCC partners since the fella overseeing the grants process works closely with the pro-abortion, pro-gay group?

I visited their website and they are self-professed "progressives," the new buzz word to replace "liberal." One blog entry on proposed health care legislation describes the need "for lifting restrictions on women's access to health services." Translation: abortion must be included in universal health care coverage. 

Then there was the Stop Stupak Coalition supported by CCC. Here's what CCC's representative said addressing the meeting. "Health Care Reform could represent a huge step forward in economic opportunity for women but these improvements should not come at the cost of more restrictions on reproductive health!" Obviously "abortion rights" are on their list of non-negotiables.

Now exactly why are the bishops who say they stand unequivocally for life, supporting this pro-abortion community organizing group? And why did they keep someone on who was working intimately with CCC in leadership positions while he was involved in CCHD grants, a clear conflict of interest? The answer: the bishops are either clueless and irresponsible or they support the evil while they pay lip service to Catholic teaching. In any case, they need to immediately fire John Carr who obviously works against their purported pro-life goals. But don't hold your breath. If they fired all of the bad guys at the USCCB most desks would be empty.

I recently wrote an article calling for the good bishops in the U.S. to divorce the USCCB for irreconcilable differences. Write to your bishop and suggest that he do so. And don't give to any fund drives he runs until he does. No money to CCHD and no money to the USCCB including through your parish collection which sends a percentage to the diocese. In ours I think the parish tax is 7%. Ask your pastor how you can give without any of your money going to the diocesan assessment. Unfortunately, money seems to be all they understand. The bishops are showing themselves to be out to lunch when it comes to their own wicked bureaucracy. Until they get it under control, you can't trust them with your money!

Sixth Bishop Passed Up CCHD Collection

Bishop Edward J. Slattery of Tulsa, OK, is the sixth bishop who declined to support the CCHD collection this year. While the bishop held a collection that Sunday the funds were reserved for self-help projects within the diocese. Read more here. The bishops boycotting the collection included:

Bishop Robert J. Baker - Birmingham, Alabama LSN

Bishop John O. Barres - Allentown, Pennsylvania LSN

Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz - Lincoln, Nebraska LSN

Bishop Victor Galeone - St. Augustine, Florida Statement LSN

Bishop Robert C. Morlino - Madison, Wisconsin Statement LSN

Bishop Edward J. Slattery - Tulsa, Oklahoma