NYT Reporter Who Got Pulitzer for Trump Russia Hoax Investigates Amy Coney Barrett’s Faith
In a lengthy “investigative” piece on President Donald Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett, a New York Times reporter — who was on a reporting team that won a Pulitzer Prize for its false reporting on the president’s alleged collusion with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign — analyzes Barrett’s religious beliefs.
Sharon LaFraniere had a co-byline on a Pulitzer Prize-winning story claiming that George Papadopoulos spilled the beans on the Russians having dirt on Hillary Clinton. As Breitbart News reported, recently unclassified documents and recordings show that Papadopoulos repeatedly denied any connection between the Trump campaign and Russia, debunking some of the Times’ prize-winning reporting.
In the Barrett piece, LaFraniere admits that “those who did agree to interviews had left the People of Praise community, their perspectives were more likely to be negative,” and that Barrett and her family declined to be interviewed. She also reported that the Times could not confirm if Barrett and her family are still part of the People of Praise.
“The People of Praise declined to confirm Judge Barrett’s membership,” the Times reported. “But a photocopy of an undated membership directory obtained by the New York Times includes Judge Barrett, her husband, Jesse, and five of their now seven children.”
Nonetheless, the Times decided to put together a piece about Barrett’s faith — she is an unabashed Catholic — based on interviews with people who do not know her and others who chose to leave the People of Praise, a network of Bible study and worship groups headquartered in South Bend, Indiana. The organization was founded in 1971, according to the organization’s website, which said there are currently about 1,700 members in 22 cities across the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean.
LaFraniere’s investigation also does not include facts offered on the People of Praise website, which pops up at the top of the list on a Google search.
On the “About” page, there is a lengthy explanation of the organization’s mission and beliefs, which says, in part:
Jesus desires unity for all people. We live out this unity the best we can, in spite of the divisions within Christianity. We are Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Episcopalians, Methodists, Pentecostals, Presbyterians and other denominational and nondenominational Christians. Despite our differences, we are bound together by our Christian baptism. Despite our differences, we worship together. While remaining faithful members of our own churches, we have found a way to live our daily lives together.
Our community life is characterized by deep and lasting friendships. We share our lives together often in small groups and in larger prayer meetings. We read Scripture together. We share meals together. We attend each other’s baptisms and weddings and funerals. We support each other financially and materially and spiritually. We strive to live our daily lives in our families, workplaces and cities in harmony with God and with all people.
Our community life is grounded in a lifelong promise of love and service to fellow community members. This covenant commitment, which establishes our relationships as members of the People of Praise community, is made freely and only after a period of discernment lasting several years. Our covenant is neither an oath nor a vow, but it is an important personal commitment. We teach that People of Praise members should always follow their consciences, as formed by the light of reason, and by the experience and the teachings of their churches.
The Times report said Barrett’s father decided to quit a promising job in Houston, Texas, because he and his family were happy living in Louisiana and enjoyed the close-knit Christian community they belonged to as members of People of Praise.
https://www.breitbart.com/the-media/2020/10/11/nyt-reporter-pulitzer-russia-hoax-investigates-barrett-faith/