A Rogue Catholic Is Ejected From Religious Liberty Commission

UPDATE: William Donohue wrote on Feb. 11: "At 9:57 a.m. I called for the ouster of Carrie Prejean Boller from President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission. I just learned that the Commission chairman, Dan Patrick, gave her the boot at 10:03 a.m. Kudos to him."

A half-century ago, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, stunned the delegates when he condemned the 1975 resolution equating Zionism with racism. He said the resolution “reeked of the totalitarian mind, stank of the totalitarian state.” He added, “What we have here is a lie.”

The same mindset was on display on February 9 when Carrie Prejean Boller, who sits on President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, told her fellow panelists and the audience that “Catholics do not embrace Zionism, just so you know.” She objected to definitions of anti-Semitism that equated opposition to the state of Israel as an expression of anti-Semitism.

To be sure, it is possible for someone to oppose Zionism yet not be anti-Semitic. But the fact is that those who are activists for the anti-Zionist cause invariably harbor an animus against Jews. And yes, this would include self-hating Jews.

Prejean Boller is a former Miss California and a convert to Catholicism. She does not run a Catholic organization, has no Catholic credentials as an author or instructor, and indeed represents no one but herself. For her to say, without qualification, that “Catholics do not embrace Zionism,” is presumptuous and arrogant.

In reply to Prejean Boller, fellow panelist Rabbi Meir Soloveichik said, “This is an incredibly diverse country, and the one thing we should be careful about is speaking on behalf of all members of a religious community, even if one is a member of that religious community. I certainly wouldn’t claim to speak for all Jews on all subjects.”

He is too kind. Her audacity is stunning. I have run the nation’s largest Catholic civil rights organization for over three decades, and never once have I said that I represent all Catholics. I represent the Catholic League, period. Hopefully, I also represent many others who share my convictions.

Zionism is a movement that promotes Jewish self-determination in a homeland. There are millions of Catholics like myself who, even if they do not identify themselves as Zionists, recognize the Jewish state of Israel. Prejean Boller apparently does not—she is more comfortable showing up at the Religious Liberty Commission wearing a Palestinian flag pin. So telling.

Prejean Boller asked a witness if we should censor 1 Thessalonians 2:15; it spoke about Jews who killed Christ. No, but that passage, like many biblical passages, needs to be put alongside other biblical references, as well as the teachings of the Catholic Church. Moreover, the quote she cites mentions, “The Jews who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets.” (My italic.) It does not say “the Jews killed Christ.”

English warriors killed Catholics in Ireland, but no one blames all the English. Indian tribes killed each other, but no one says all Indians are killers. Rapists are typically men who rape women, but not all men are rapists. Careful scholars recognize these differences—they are not nuances. Prejean is not careful and she is certainly not a scholar.

My good friend Ed Koch, the former mayor of New York, noted, “It should never be said that Christians were responsible for the Holocaust—Nazis were. Blaming Christians would be as unjustified as holding Jews accountable for the death of Jesus.” Well said.

The Religious Liberty Commission should have nothing to do with those who are publicly undermining its mission, nor should it become a platform for those who want to exploit it as a vehicle to further their own agenda. Trump should kick Carrie Prejean Boller off immediately. 

William Donohue PhD is the president of the Catholic League.