Obama Says Religious Schools Divisive

President Barack Obama angered some proponents of Catholic education during his visit to Northern Ireland this week when he told a Belfast audience that towns will remain divided "if Catholics have their schools and buildings, and Protestants have theirs." An article, which subsequently appeared in the Scottish Catholic Observer, carried the headline, "U.S. President Undermines Catholic Schools After Vatican Prefect Praised Them." The article said Obama "made an alarming call for an end to Catholic education in Northern Ireland," and quoted from recent remarks of the Vatican’s Archbishop Gerhard Müller, who had said that Catholic education was "a critical component of the Church." Dr. Matthew Bunson, senior correspondent for Our Sunday Visitor and author of the new book "Pope Francis," tells Newsmax the president should have chosen his words more carefully, and he pointed to the contribution that Catholic education has made to bringing about the 15-year-old peace in the once-troubled region. Ashley McGuire, a senior fellow with The Catholic Association, also viewed Obama's remarks as an attack on Catholic education. "Catholic education is a longstanding tradition and a gift to society at large," she said. "Why the president chose to attack that tradition is beyond comprehension and represents his continuing effort to relegate religion to the private sphere." Read Latest Breaking News