It’s well known that Bobby Kennedy was quite devout. I would also say that his Catholicism inspired his politics more so than any other American Catholic public figure in recent memory. But did you know that a very young Bobby was the one who first raised the red flag about Fr. Leonard Feeney, subsequently excommunicated? Apparently, Bobby was one of the young men drawn to Feeney’s Boston circle, and went to hear him speak regularly. But Feeney’s approach to salvation troubled him, and he asked his father if it was true that all non-Catholics were automatically damned. Joseph P. Kennedy said he must have misunderstood, that the priest could not have meant this, and if he was really worried he would put in a call to “Richard” and ask him to talk to his son. Richard, of course, was Richard Cardinal Cushing, friend of the Kennedy family. Bobby was indeed worried, and did go to see Cardinal Cushing. Upon hearing what Bobby reported, Cushing immediately sent some people to Feeney’s talk. Upon verifying what Bobby had told him, he banned Feeney from speaking, the first step towards his excommunication.
I think this is a cute story. It has no point really, and it may well be highly exaggerated, but it is a nice story. The source is Teddy Kennedy’s autobiography.
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