Cardinal Cupich: Sen. Durbin 'has decided not to receive' controversial lifetime achievement award

(OSV News) -- Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., has decided not to receive a "Lifetime Achievement Award," scheduled to be presented in November at the archdiocese's "Keep Hope Alive" celebration, according to a statement by Chicago Cardinal Blase J. Cupich Sept. 30.

The award, scheduled to be given to Durbin for his work on immigration issues, had met with significant opposition from several Catholic bishops due to the Catholic senator's longstanding public position in favor of abortion.

"While I am saddened by this news, I respect his decision," Cardinal Cupich said in his statement. "But I want to make clear that the decision to present him an award was specifically in recognition of his singular contribution to immigration reform and his unwavering support of immigrants, which is so needed in our day."

The decision comes only hours after Pope Leo XIV commented on Cardinal Cupich's decision to give Durbin the award, saying he was "not terribly familiar with the particular case."

An EWTN News reporter asked Pope Leo about "Cardinal Cupich giving an award to Sen. Durbin" saying, "some people of faith are having a hard time with understanding this because he is pro or rather he is for legalized abortion. How would you help people of faith right now decipher that, feel about that, and how do you feel about that?"

"I am not terribly familiar with the particular case," he responded. "I think that it's important to look at the overall work that a senator has done during, if I'm not mistaken, 40 years of service in the United States Senate. I understand the difficulty and the tensions. But I think as I myself have spoken in the past, it's important to look at many issues that are related to what is the teaching of the church."

"Someone who says I'm against abortion but says 'I'm in favor of the death penalty' is not really pro-life," the pope continued. "Someone who says that 'I'm against abortion but I'm in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants who are in the United States,' I don't know if that's pro life."

"So they are very complex issues, and I don't know if anyone has all the truth on them," the pope said, "but I would ask first and foremost that they would have respect for one another and that we search together both as human beings, in that case as American citizens or citizens of the state of Illinois, as well as Catholics, to say that we need to, you know, really look closely at all of these ethical issues. And to find the way forward as a church. The church teaching on each one of those issues is very clear."

Cardinal Cupich and the Archdiocese of Chicago's Office of Human Dignity and Solidarity Immigration Ministry were scheduled to give Durbin the award Nov. 3 at an event supporting the Archdiocese of Chicago's local Immigration Ministry and National Pastoral Migratoria.

In a Sept. 24 interview with OSV News, Bishop Thomas J. Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois -- in whose diocese Durbin resides, according to his official biography -- said that presenting the award would be "contrary to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' statement on 'Catholics in Political Life'" which states "The Catholic community and Catholic Institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

He added that the Archdiocese of Chicago has a similar policy that the award would violate.
In comments posted Oct. 1 to his Facebook page, Bishop Paprocki said he was "grateful Sen. Durbin has declined this Lifetime Achievement Award. As we begin Respect Life Month, I ask that all Catholics continue to pray for our Church, our country, and for the human dignity of all people to be respected in all stages of life including the unborn and immigrants."

In his statement, Cardinal Cupich said in his 50 years as a priest, he has "seen the divisions within the Catholic community dangerously deepen. These divisions harm the unity of the church and undermine our witness to the Gospel. Bishops cannot simply ignore this situation because we have a duty to promote unity and assist all Catholics to embrace the teachings of the church as a consistent whole."

Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, responded to Cardinal Cupich's appeal on the social media platform X, on how the church might move forward in unity.

"As Pope Leo XIV's motto reminds us, 'In the One, we are one'. Certainly, we can only move forward together if we recognize that our unity as a Christian people depends upon our responding with daily fidelity to our Lord and by our witness to the Gospel of Life," he said.

Bishop Burbidge said sincere dialogue is essential to the health of a political community, but said productive conversations require "participants share a basic commitment to certain objective moral realities about what is good and evil." He said true dialogue "cannot take place when a purportedly Catholic lawmaker turns a blind eye to the killing of innocent persons" and will first require a conversion of heart and mind.

He acknowledged the prudential application of the church's teachings on human dignity will be complex in a polarized society, but also emphasized that the church "must continue to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Life in its entirety."

"Our public witness to the Gospel, to convincingly move hearts and minds to conversion, will always require that the Church show the hierarchy and unity of all truths," he said. "A consistent ethic of life requires the faithful proclamation of challenging teachings just as it also requires the avoidance of scandal from actions that would convey ambiguity or indifference to the moral law."