Saturday, March 11, 2000
Miss America's wedding plan stirs protest
Some Catholics irked by cathedral site
The Associated Press
LOUISVILLE — It's still nearly eight months away, but the wedding of Miss America Heather French and Kentucky Lt. Gov. Steve Henry has already caused some to object.
Some church members have been grumbling about a decision to relax parish rules and let the couple — both Protestant — marry in the Cathedral of the Assumption, the Rev. Bill Fichteman said. At least 15 people have called the parish to complain, he said, and others have protested to Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly's office.
Parish regulations ordinarily require either the bridegroom or the bride to be Catholic to be married in the cathedral.
At his office at the cathedral Thursday, Father Fichteman opened a white envelope with no return address. Inside was a black-and-white flier calling on Catholics to protest the wedding. The anonymous letter was mailed to officials and members of the Catholic church.
“Faithful Catholics Defend the Cathedral!” it began.
Mr. Henry said he and Ms. French are honored to be able to exchange their vows “in the heart of Louisville and in one of the most beautiful churches in the state of Kentucky.” He said Ms. French chose the church, in part, because it housed the first homeless shelter in the state and continues to assist the homeless. Ms. French, a Maysville native who was crowned Miss America last year, is crusading on behalf of homeless veterans during her yearlong reign.
Mr. Henry said neither he nor his fiancee have been contacted by people opposed to the wedding in the cathedral.
“We've literally not had one phone call, not one person to express any negative feelings,” he said. “In fact, just the opposite.”
Father Fichteman said Thursday he doesn't know who wrote the flier, but he suspects it's from a fringe group. He believes the protest will dissipate before the wedding. The flier urged picketing.
The subject arose Friday in the Kentucky Senate. Minority floor lead er David Karem, a Catholic from Louisville, said in a floor speech that whoever sent the mailer was “utterly spineless.”
Archbishop Kelly couldn't be reached for comment. He defended his decision last week in The Record, a Catholic newspaper.
Father Fichteman said the parish rules were lifted because of Mr. Henry's position and because he wanted to be married downtown in a church large enough to hold his guests. Mr. Henry is from Louisville.
“We thought it was not only hospitable but in the best spirit of ecumenism,” he said.
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