Why was Eamonn De Valera ex-communicated when he was such a devout Catholic?

Question

For those who don't know who I am talking about, he was a pivotal figure in Irish history. A former Irish Taoiseach.

Answer 1

I didn't think he was. He had even thought about entering the priesthood and was a devout Catholic.
On the occasion of the death of Adolf Hitler, de Valera did pay a visit to Eduard Hempel, the German minister in Dublin, to express sympathy over the death of the Führer but I have found no evidence of his ex-communication. During the Civil War the Church was ex-communicating any anti-treaty republicans left, right and center so maybe he was then, though I doubt it. In fact, De Valera is alleged by critics to have kept Ireland under the influence of Catholic conservatism.

Answer 2

Taoiseach Eamon De Valera may have been ex-communicated by the Pope because he said he was sorry to hear of the death of Adolf Hitler.

This may not have been the reason at all, it does seem to me a trifling matter, unless of course a person happens to be a victim of Nazi oppression - a Jew.

I'm not at all sure why.

Answer 3

I do not know of Eamonn De Valera's case but here is some information about excommunication.

Excommunication is a severe penalty resulting from grave crimes against the Catholic religion.

It is imposed by church authority or incurred as a direct result of the commission of an offense.

Excommunication excludes the offender from taking part in the Eucharist or other sacraments and from the exercise of any ecclesiastical office, ministry, or function.

In other words, it kicks you out of the Catholic Church. It does not necessarily condemn you to hell.

There are two types of excommunication
+ a jure - by law. The law itself declares that whosoever shall have been guilty of a definite crime will incur the penalty of excommunication.
+ ab homine - by judicial act of man. An ecclesiastical prelate issues a serious order under pain of excommunication or imposes excommunication by judicial sentence and after a criminal trial.

A Jure excommunication comes in two type:
+ latæ sententiæ - incurred as soon as the offence is committed and by reason of the offence itself
+ ferendæ sententiæ - inflicted on the culprit only by a judicial sentence

There are a few offenses for which Catholics are automatically excommunicated (the Latin term is Latæ Sententiæ):
+ Apostasy - the formal renunciation of one's religion, especially if the motive is deemed unworthy
+ Heresy
+ Desecration of the Eucharist
+ Physical force against the Pope
+ Attempted sacramental absolution of a partner in adultery
+ Ordination of a bishop without a Papal mandate (e.g. all bishops in the government-run Chinese Patriotic Church)
+ For non-electors present in the conclave, revelation of the details of the conclave
+ Simoniacal provision of the Papal office
+ Violation of the sacramental seal of confession by a priest or bishop
+ Procurement of a completed abortion

With love in Christ.

Answer 4

Because he was a terrorist. He helped to instigate the easter rising and used violence to further his cause. He killed people and urged others to follow suit and as one of the 10 commandments explicitly states that murdering people is NOT christian behaviour, id say thats the reason he was excommunicated. The fact that, as others here have said, he sympathised with a crazy murderer (hitler) only helps to emphasise my point.

Answer 5

You may well find that due to his support of Terroist activities during the 1916 uprising and his support for totalitarian regiemes have something to do with it.

Answer 6

He went to the German embassy on learning the death of the Fuhrer to offer his condolences. Could it be connected with that?

Answer 7

because he was a murderer of inocent women and children,

Answer 8

Because he was a murderer