North County Gazette:  January 29, 2006

http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/012906MarriageAtRisk.html

Schiavo-Centonze Marriage At Risk

Some Catholics are calling it premeditated murder.Many are calling for the removal of St. Petersburg Diocese Bishop Robert N. Lynch for allowing the ceremony to occur in the diocese. It could be the latest scandal in the Catholic church---at least in the Diocese of St. Petersburg.

Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centonze were married in the Espiritu Santo Catholic Church in Safety Harbor in a private ceremony Saturday, Jan. 21.
Church law specifically states that you cannot kill your wife in order to marry another woman.

There is absolutely no doubt that Michael Schiavo was responsible for the death of his wife, Terri Schindler-Schiavo and that he intended long before her death that he was going to marry Jodi Centonze, the mother of his two illegitimate children. That constitutes criminal behavior in the Catholic church.

Michael Schiavo had lobbied in the Florida Courts for nearly eight years for legalized murder of his wife by the removal of her nutrition and hydration and had ordered that all rehabilitation be stopped.

According to Catholic canon law, Schiavo and Centonze have engaged in "criminal" behavior which would invalidate their marriage.The biggest question at the moment is will the Catholic hierarchy take the proper steps and why they even allowed it occur.

According to Catholic canons, crimen (latin for crime) is an impediment to marriage, crimen being when a surviving spouse causes the death of his or her spouse. The survivor is prohibited from gaining from that deed and attempting another marriage in the Catholic church.

Michael Schiavo was raised Lutheran. Although he testified that he occasionally attended the Catholic Church with Terri who was raised Roman Catholic, Michael Schiavo apparently had not converted to the Catholic faith.

Jodi Centonze reportedly had their second child, born in October, 2003 at the time when the feeding tube had been removed from Terri the second time by order of Judge George Greer in Michael Schiavo's efforts to kill her, baptized in Espiritu Santo church. According to knowledge sources, the priest who baptized the baby was aware that Jodi was not married to Michael Schiavo and that she had been involved in an adulterous affair with him for over 10 years.

The Catholic church prevents someone from entering a marriage when in order to be free to contract such a marriage that person had brought about the death of a former spouse.
 

According to canon law, three things are required in order for the canonical impediment of crimen to apply.

The original parties, Terri and Michael Schiavo must have been validly married. They were---on Nov. 10, 1984, in Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Southampton, Pa. with about 200 guests present.

At the time of the killing, the surviving spouse must be intending to enter marriage with a specific person. Michael Schiavo clearly intended to marry Jodi Centonze upon the death of his wife, refusing to divorce Terri. He had announced his engagement to Jodi in July, 1997, while his wife was still living and did so, in all places, in his mother's obituary.

When Clara Schiavo, Michael's mother, died in July, 1997, instead of her obituary listing her son, Michael and his wife, Terri as survivors, the obituary said she was "the devoted mother of….Michael R. and his finance, Jodi of Florida".

The obituary read:

Clara M. Schiavo
Former Levittown Resident

Clara M. Schiavo (nee Henkell), passed away Wednesday, July 2, 1997. For the past five years she was a resident of Seminole, Fla., living formerly for 30 years in Junewood, Levittown. She was the assistant personnel manager for the Gimble Department Store, formerly located in the Oxford Valley Mall, for ten years. She was a member of Hope Lutheran Church in Levitttown for 30 years. She was the beloved wife of William F. and the devoted mother of William F. Jr. and his wife Joan of Mayfair, Stephen O. and his wife Pamela of Fairless Hills, Brian J. and his wife Donna of Newtown, Scott E. and his wife Karen of Indiana and Michael R. and his fiancé Jodi of Fla. She was the dear grandmother of William J., Aleen C., Steven G., Kelly M., Scott R., Lisa M. Thomas M. and Ryan A. She is also survived by her sister, Joan May Enoch of Delran, NJ. Relatives and friends are invited to her viewing Mon., 10:30 a.m. until noon and to her funeral service at noon in the Campbell & Thomas Funeral Home, 905 Second St. Pike (at Old Bustleton Pike), Richboro. Her interment will take place in Sunset Memorial Park.

 

Thirdly, the death of one spouse must have been brought about by the surviving spouse. The entire world knew that Michael Schiavo had been battling Terri's parents, Mary and Bob Schindler, in the courts for over eight years to end the life of his wife.

The death must be brought about at the behest of the survivor. According to canon lawyer Dr. Edward Peters, even if the death occurs with the approval of the civil or probate court, the survivor is considered to be morally responsible for the death of the spouse.

From 2001-2005, Dr. Peters taught at the (Graduate) Institute for Pastoral Theology based on the campus of Ave Maria College. He holds the Edmond Cardinal Szoka Chair at Scared Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, MI. http://www.canonlaw.info  According to Peters, once incurred, the impediment of crimen never ceases and pastors cannot grant dispensation from the impediment nor can bishops, not even the Bishop of the St. Petersburg Diocese, Robert Lynch.

Only the Pope can grant dispensation.

Even if the wedding is held in the church, if the impediment of crimen exists, any attempt at marriage by the surviving spouse is null and of no worth in the eyes of the church. Schiavo, Centonze Wed In Catholic Church

In the last 100 years, there has reportedly been no known example of dispensation where the fact of one's moral responsibility in the death of a former spouse is public knowledge, according to Peters.

Canon 1090, Section 1 provides that anyone who, with a view to entering marriage with a certain person has brought about the death of that person's spouse or of one's own spouse, invalidly attempts the marriage. Section 2 provides that those who have brought about the death of a spouse by mutual physical or moral cooperation, which would apply to Jodi Centonze, also invalidly attempts a marriage together.

According to Catholic law, there is no valid union between Centonze and Schiavo.

As in criminal law, intent is the key element to violating canon law. The survivor has to have a definite person in mind to marry rather than just causing the death of a spouse for the purpose of remarrying. Those violating Catholic canons are liable to an ecclesiastical penalty "according to the gravity of the offense". In the eyes of the Catholic church, Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centonze have engaged in criminal behavior.

And many feel that the person at fault is Bishop Lynch and that he should be removed from the diocese as well as the marriage publicly invalidated.

The canon does not require any judicial act or proceeding. It is automatic. Thus, by Catholic law, the marriage of Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centonze is invalid. According to court records, Michael Schiavo claimed that he had no intentions of carrying out Terri's alleged oral proclamation "not to be kept alive" until after his mother passed away.

However, public record clearly disputes Michael Schiavo's statement. A letter written by Schiavo's attorney, Deborah Bushnell, on May 14, 1997, to Sixth Circuit Court Judge Mark Shames indicates that Schiavo had been trying to kill his wife without telling her parents and wanted Shames to authorize spending the monies in Terri's trust fund to hire George Felos to help him legalize the killing. Legal billings in the case, public until Greer sealed them, indicate that Bushnell and Felos were discussing Terri's death back in 1995.

After Michael announced his engagement to Jodi in his mother's obituary, he then petitioned the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court and Judge George Greer in 1998 to removing the feeding tube from Terri in order to end her life.

The three elements for canonical impediment of crimen to be applicable have been met-Michael and Terri were validly married; at the time of Terri's death, Michael had announced his intent to marry Jodi Centonze (in May, 1997) and Terri's death was "brought about" by Michael Schiavo, the surviving spouse.

In order for the marriage to be valid, the Rev. Robert J. Schneider, pastor of Espiritu Santo Catholic Church, should have taken steps to contact Pope Benedict and had the impediment of crimen dispensed. If he did not do so, he authorized an invalid union which was further exacerbated by sanctioning of church officials.

The church is part of the Diocese of St. Petersburg of which the Most Robert N. Lynch is bishop. Although Lynch was Terri's bishop, he stood by silent while she was forcibly starved to death----after she struggled to declare that she wanted to live. Bishop Lynch issued a statement directly at odds with church teaching that food and water is basic sustenance and cannot be withheld by private choice.

Just days before Terri died last March 31, Lynch left the country. However, he left a statement posted on the Diocese website before Easter in which he didn't seem particularly concerned about the death decree issued and that it was against the official position of the Vatican and the Pope. Lynch's position was contrary to the official Vatican position. Bishop Lynch's position was also directly contrary to "the teaching of the Pope" who had written that food and water is not extraordinary support for life and that it cannot morally be withheld from a dying or incapacitated person.

Scandals would not be new to the St. Petersburg Diocese or to Bishop Robert Lynch. The Diocese has spent more than $1 million in recent years to settle sexual abuse claims. Lynch told the public that all sexual abuse claims have been covered by insurance underwriters or the diocese's insurance reserves.

Bishop Lynch has remained in office after disclosure that the diocese paid $100,000 to a former aide who claimed Lynch had sexually harassed him.

William Urbanski, diocese spokesman and former Lynch aide, filed a complaint with the diocese alleging that Lynch had made sexual advances towards him. He alleged that Lynch forced him to share a hotel room when they traveled on business together and that Lynch had grabbed his thigh as the two drove in a car. He also claimed that on one trip, Lynch had come out of the shower nude to show Urbanski how much weight he had lost.

Lynch denied all the allegations.

Although the Roman Catholic Church opposes euthanasia, the Florida law firm representing the St. Petersburg and Venice diocese including representing Lynch in the sexual harassment claim contributed to the reelection campaign of Sixth Circuit Court Judge George Greer, the judge at the core of the Schiavo case who religiously and judiciously supported the efforts of Michael Schiavo and his attorney, euthanasia advocate George Felos to end Terri's life.

According to Greer's campaign contribution records on file with Florida's Division of Elections, the law firm of Divito and Higham of St. Petersburg, general counsel for the St. Petersburg Diocese, made the maximum contribution allowable to Greer at approximately the same time that Pope John Paul II had issued his statement disallowing death by starvation and dehydration. Firm principal Joseph DiVito represented Lynch in the sexual harassment claim.

Despite being Terri's bishop, Lynch never made an appeal for her life and in fact, issued a statement asking the public and Catholics not to castigate Greer for his death position, virtually endorsing Greer's decision to end Terri's life.
http://www.dioceseofstpete.org/news.php?NID=9
June Maxam 1-29-06

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