WASHINGTON-The Office of General Counsel of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. Supreme Court, February 1, on behalf of USCCB, the Texas Catholic Conference and several Christian partners in support of a Texas law mandating health and safety standards protecting women who undergo abortions. Other groups joining the brief include the National Association of Evangelicals, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, and the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention. The case is Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.
"There is ample evidence in this case that hospital admitting privileges and ambulatory surgical center requirements protect women's lives and health," said the brief. "When such requirements are not enforced, abuses detrimental to women's lives and health arise."
The brief noted that some abortion clinics have declared the standards too strict, although the standards are similar to those issued by the abortion industry. It added that abortion providers "should not be allowed to rely upon their own failure to comply with health and safety laws" as a reason to strike such laws down. The brief said the providers' resistance to such regulations is not in the best interests of women's health and safety. It also noted that over 40 years of precedent, including the Court's 1992 decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, reaffirms that states may regulate abortion to protect maternal life and health.
Full text of the brief is available online: www.usccb.org/about/general-counsel/amicus-briefs/upload/Whole-Woman-s-Health-v-Hellerstedt.pdf
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Keywords: General Counsel, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, Texas law abortion, amicus curia, National Association of Evangelicals, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, U.S. Supreme Court
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Catholic News 2
WASHINGTON-The Office of General Counsel of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. Supreme Court, February 1, on behalf of USCCB, the Texas Catholic Conference and several Christian partners in support of a Texas law mandating health and safety standards protecting women who undergo abortions. Other groups joining the brief include the National Association of Evangelicals, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, and the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention. The case is Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, currently before the U.S. Supreme Court."There is ample evidence in this case that hospital admitting privileges and ambulatory surgical center requirements protect women's lives and health," said the brief. "When such requirements are not enforced, abuses detrimental to women's lives and health arise."The brief noted that some abortion clinics have decla...
Vatican City, Mar 2, 2016 / 02:46 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The office of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations has announced that Pope Francis will hear confessions from the faithful at St. Peter’s Basilica on Friday, March 4.At 5:00 p.m., the Holy Father will preside over the Rite of Reconciliation with individual confession and absolution of penitents, the Vatican office said.The Pope's participation at the penitential celebration is part of a “24 Hours of Reconciliation” initiative in Italy, which is celebrated once a year on a Lenten Friday.Cardinals, bishops, priests and religious are invited by the Vatican to participate in the event by gathering around the Altar of the Confession inside the basilica.Pope Francis has led several penitential celebrations during his pontificate. During one of them, celebrated on March 28, 2014, he personally went to confession.
Vatican City, Mar 2, 2016 / 02:46 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The office of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations has announced that Pope Francis will hear confessions from the faithful at St. Peter’s Basilica on Friday, March 4.
At 5:00 p.m., the Holy Father will preside over the Rite of Reconciliation with individual confession and absolution of penitents, the Vatican office said.
The Pope's participation at the penitential celebration is part of a “24 Hours of Reconciliation” initiative in Italy, which is celebrated once a year on a Lenten Friday.
Cardinals, bishops, priests and religious are invited by the Vatican to participate in the event by gathering around the Altar of the Confession inside the basilica.
Pope Francis has led several penitential celebrations during his pontificate. During one of them, celebrated on March 28, 2014, he personally went to confession.
Washington D.C., Mar 2, 2016 / 03:49 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- As the Supreme Court heard arguments about a Texas law requiring abortion clinics to meet higher medical standards, advocates outside the court said the regulations are about protecting women’s health. For Nona Ellington, the case is a personal one.Standing outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday, she told EWTN about her own experience of undergoing an abortion in Texas as a teenager. Rather than solving her problems, she said, the procedure resulted in lasting complications that continue to haunt her to this day.“As a result of that abortion at age 15, I’m no longer able to have children,” she said. “I had five miscarriages instead.”And these miscarriages led to in life-threatening complications of their own, including tubal pregnancies and a ruptured fallopian tube that resulted in “near death experiences.”Ellington said that she also suffered severe psychological effects...
Washington D.C., Mar 2, 2016 / 03:49 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- As the Supreme Court heard arguments about a Texas law requiring abortion clinics to meet higher medical standards, advocates outside the court said the regulations are about protecting women’s health.
For Nona Ellington, the case is a personal one.
Standing outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday, she told EWTN about her own experience of undergoing an abortion in Texas as a teenager. Rather than solving her problems, she said, the procedure resulted in lasting complications that continue to haunt her to this day.
“As a result of that abortion at age 15, I’m no longer able to have children,” she said. “I had five miscarriages instead.”
And these miscarriages led to in life-threatening complications of their own, including tubal pregnancies and a ruptured fallopian tube that resulted in “near death experiences.”
Ellington said that she also suffered severe psychological effects after the abortion, including suicidal thoughts and attempts to take her own life.
Now, she is taking a stand against “shoddy abortion clinics” and warning that abortion is “a very dangerous procedure.”
“I believe women’s health should be protected no matter what kind of facility they’re in,” Ellington said, voicing her support for additional regulations in the industry to protect women should complications arise.
Inside the court, the justices heard a challenge to a Texas law that requires abortion clinics in the state to conform to the same regulatory health standards as ambulatory surgical centers.
Under these health standards, abortion doctors must have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles in case of a medical emergency resulting from an abortion. In addition, final regulations increased the required number of staff at clinics, as well as mandating building requirements such as a designated operating room.
Critics say that the law’s regulations could result in 75 percent of Texas abortion clinics closing, due increased operating costs or lack of additional real estate to conform to the regulations. Most remaining clinics would be in urban areas, critics say, creating a substantial burden on women seeking abortions.
The state of Texas, defending the law, argues that the medical consensus is split on the need for the regulations, and so it is within the state’s power to act if it sees the need for oversight of clinics.
The law “does provide a continuity of care,” insisted Aimee Murphy, founder of Life Matters Journal, in an interview with CNA outside the Supreme Court.
Abortion doctors may only see a patient once, with no follow up, she observed.
“If abortion is a surgical procedure, why are we not treating it with the same weight, with the same responsibilities that we do all other surgical procedures?”
And contrary to what abortion advocates say, “it’s not an inherently safe procedure,” she said, pointing to statistics indicating that over 400 women have died from abortion since it was legalized in 1973. And many more women – including Nona Ellington – have suffered complications, miscarriages, and psychological disorders directly relating to an abortion, Murphy said.
Inside the Court, the oral arguments focused on whether the law’s intent was to place an “undue burden” on the right of women to have an abortion, as prohibited in the Court’s 1992 decision Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
The law puts “heavy burdens on abortion access that are not medically justified,” said Stephanie Toti, challenging the Texas legislation before the Court. She pointed to clinics closing throughout the state in anticipation of the law’s enactment or right after it was enacted.
Texas Solicitor General Scott Keller argued that the bill was passed in the wake of the Kermit Gosnell scandal, and had the intent of preventing future cases like his clinic, which fell so far below proper medical standards that a woman died from neglect.
In the first lawsuit filed against the law, “Planned Parenthood admitted that over 210 women annually are hospitalized because of abortion complications,” he added.
There is no reason to expect a Gosnell scenario in Texas, Justice Elena Kagan argued, as the state allows for constant inspections of clinics. Justice Samuel Alito countered that the scenario is already taking place, with amicus briefs in the case showing clinics cited for “appalling” health violations.
Alito questioned whether the law directly resulted in the closure of abortion clinics, bringing up other possible factors like cuts to state family planning funds. Kagan argued that the legislation was responsible for the closings, noting that clinics opened when the law was stayed by a court and closed when it was subsequently re-enacted.
The regulations also enforce “basic safety” like wider hallways to allow quick transport of women on a stretcher to an ambulance in case of a medical emergency, Alito noted.
“This is one of the lowest-risk procedures,” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg insisted of early-stage abortions, suggested that the regulations were unnecessary. Other procedures like colonoscopies pose much more risk and yet are not regulated like abortions, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said.
After hearing oral arguments in the case March 2, the Supreme Court is expected to issue its ruling later this year. The recent unexpected death of pro-life Justice Antonin Scalia leaves a hole in the ideologically-divided body of justices, leaving the remaining eight members of the bench to issue the decision.
Still, pro-life advocates such as Kristen Day, executive director of Democrats for Life of America, hope that the court will side with the Texas law for the sake of women.
Day said in a statement that the regulations “bring oversight to an industry that generally lacks protections, just as Democrats did with the Occupational Safety and Health Act in 1970, when factory owners vouched that factories were safe places to work.”
“The Texas law is a model of Democratic values, putting the protection and safety of women over corporate interests,” she added.
Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Mar 2, 2016 / 04:38 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Marking the fifth anniverary of the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti on Wednesday, a Pakistani diocese has opened a process of enquiry towards declaring the late politician a martyr.Bhatti, a Catholic and the only Christian in the Pakistani cabinet, worked as the federal minister for minorities and spoke out against religious persecution, and particularly the misuse of Pakistan's blasphemy laws.He was gunned down by members of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan while driving in Islamabad on March 2, 2011, after more than a year of death threats.“He spoke with faith and demonstrated courage. Thanks to him the voice of Pakistan's Christians was heard. He paved the way for us. He was a good Catholic and gave his life for his mission,” Archbishop Joseph Coutts of Karachi said at a March 2 ceremony marking the anniversary of Bhatti's death.The Diocese of Islamabad-Rawalpindi has begun collecting testimonies abou...
Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Mar 2, 2016 / 04:38 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Marking the fifth anniverary of the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti on Wednesday, a Pakistani diocese has opened a process of enquiry towards declaring the late politician a martyr.
Bhatti, a Catholic and the only Christian in the Pakistani cabinet, worked as the federal minister for minorities and spoke out against religious persecution, and particularly the misuse of Pakistan's blasphemy laws.
He was gunned down by members of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan while driving in Islamabad on March 2, 2011, after more than a year of death threats.
“He spoke with faith and demonstrated courage. Thanks to him the voice of Pakistan's Christians was heard. He paved the way for us. He was a good Catholic and gave his life for his mission,” Archbishop Joseph Coutts of Karachi said at a March 2 ceremony marking the anniversary of Bhatti's death.
The Diocese of Islamabad-Rawalpindi has begun collecting testimonies about Bhatti to enquire into his martyrdom and sanctity.
Among the testimonies is that of Bishop Anthony Lobo, who died in 2013.
Bishop Lobo entrusted his testimony to the Vatican's missionary news agency Fides in 2012, in which he said that Bhatti, “although he had little desire to so … decided to play an active part in politics in order to protect the country’s Christians and other minorities. A man of great commitment he decided not to marry. He lived a life of celibacy. He had no possessions and saw his activity as a service. I believe that Clement Shahbaz Bhatti was a dedicated lay Catholic martyred for his faith.”
Shahbaz' brother Paul succeeded him as Pakistan's Minister of National Harmony and Minority Affairs. Paul spoke to CNA in 2013, saying he has “no doubt he is a martyr, because his whole life was dedicated to the teaching of the Bible and he was a strong believer of Our Lord Jesus Christ … we are getting help from him.”
Shahbaz “never negotiated his faith, and he expressed his faith openly everywhere, even when he knew he could be killed,” Paul said.
“He believed so strongly that he laid down his life for his Christian principles and for Jesus Christ.”
Before his death, Shahbaz Bhatti told Fides that “I am a man who has burnt his bridges. I cannot and will not go back on this commitment. I will fight fanaticism and fight in defense of Christians to the death.”
On March 1, the chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, Robert George, called Bhatti “a close friend” and marked the anniversary of his death by calling for an end to Pakistan’s blasphemy law, which he said “conflicts with fundamental human rights protections.”
“It is long past time for the Pakistani government to bring to justice Bhatti’s killers, reform and then repeal the blasphemy law, and release, pardon and ensure the safety of all individuals imprisoned for blasphemy,” George added.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- From a crumpled paper bag in a dilapidated house came a baseball-card find of a lifetime. Seven of them actually....
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- From a crumpled paper bag in a dilapidated house came a baseball-card find of a lifetime. Seven of them actually....
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) -- A hospital orderly pleaded guilty Wednesday to abducting and killing two Virginia college students, wrapping up a mystery that began in 2009 when one of the women disappeared from a Metallica concert. The other young woman, 18-year-old Hannah Graham, vanished five years later under similar circumstances, after a night of partying with friends....
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) -- A hospital orderly pleaded guilty Wednesday to abducting and killing two Virginia college students, wrapping up a mystery that began in 2009 when one of the women disappeared from a Metallica concert. The other young woman, 18-year-old Hannah Graham, vanished five years later under similar circumstances, after a night of partying with friends....
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Aubrey McClendon, a natural gas industry titan, was killed when police say he drove his sport utility vehicle "straight into a wall" in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, a day after he was indicted on a charge of conspiring to rig bids to buy oil and natural gas leases in northwest Oklahoma....
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Aubrey McClendon, a natural gas industry titan, was killed when police say he drove his sport utility vehicle "straight into a wall" in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, a day after he was indicted on a charge of conspiring to rig bids to buy oil and natural gas leases in northwest Oklahoma....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson said he is effectively ending his bid for the White House Wednesday, concluding a roller-coaster campaign that briefly took him to the top of a chaotic GOP field but ended with a Super Tuesday whimper....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson said he is effectively ending his bid for the White House Wednesday, concluding a roller-coaster campaign that briefly took him to the top of a chaotic GOP field but ended with a Super Tuesday whimper....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Staring down the prospect of nominating Donald Trump for president, Republicans spiraled into a chaotic, last-ditch search Wednesday for a way to save the GOP from hitching its fortunes to an unpredictable celebrity candidate without alienating his throng of followers....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Staring down the prospect of nominating Donald Trump for president, Republicans spiraled into a chaotic, last-ditch search Wednesday for a way to save the GOP from hitching its fortunes to an unpredictable celebrity candidate without alienating his throng of followers....
WASHINGTON-Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York called on everyone "concerned about the tragedy of abortion" to recommit to a "vision of life and love, a vision that excludes no one" on January 14. His statement marks the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. Cardinal Dolan chairs the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops."Most Americans oppose a policy allowing legal abortion for virtually any reason - though many still do not realize that this is what the Supreme Court gave us," wrote Cardinal Dolan. "Most want to protect unborn children at later stages of pregnancy, to regulate or limit the practice of abortion, and to stop the use of taxpayer dollars for the destruction of unborn children. Yet many who support important goals of the pro-life movement do not identify as 'pro-life,' a fact which should lead us to examine how we present our pro-life vision to others.""Even as Americans rema...
WASHINGTON-Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York called on everyone "concerned about the tragedy of abortion" to recommit to a "vision of life and love, a vision that excludes no one" on January 14. His statement marks the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. Cardinal Dolan chairs the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
"Most Americans oppose a policy allowing legal abortion for virtually any reason - though many still do not realize that this is what the Supreme Court gave us," wrote Cardinal Dolan. "Most want to protect unborn children at later stages of pregnancy, to regulate or limit the practice of abortion, and to stop the use of taxpayer dollars for the destruction of unborn children. Yet many who support important goals of the pro-life movement do not identify as 'pro-life,' a fact which should lead us to examine how we present our pro-life vision to others."
"Even as Americans remain troubled by abortion," wrote Cardinal Dolan, a powerful and well-funded lobby holds "that abortion must be celebrated as a positive good for women and society, and those who cannot in conscience provide it are to be condemned for practicing substandard medicine and waging a 'war on women'." He said this trend was seen recently when President Obama and other Democratic leaders prevented passage of the Abortion Non-Discrimination Act, "a modest measure to provide for effective enforcement" of conscience laws.
"While this is disturbing," said Cardinal Dolan, "it is also an opportunity." Pro-life Americans should reach out to "the great majority of Americans" who are "open to hearing a message of reverence for life." He added that "we who present the pro-life message must always strive to be better messengers. A cause that teaches the inexpressibly great value of each and every human being cannot show disdain or disrespect for any fellow human being." He encouraged Catholics to take part, through prayer and action, in the upcoming "9 Days for Life" campaign, January 16-24. More information on the campaign is available online: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxJwfcefUiU
He also cited the Year of Mercy called by Pope Francis as a time for women and men to find healing through the Church's Project Rachel post-abortion ministry.
The full text of Cardinal Dolan's message is available online.
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Keywords: Roe v. Wade, anniversary, Pro-Life, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, 9 Days for Life, USCCB, U.S. bishops, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Year of Mercy, Project Rachel, Pope Francis
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