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 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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Don Clemmer
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 WASHINGTON-Fourteen bishops representing the Catholic Church in Canada, Latin America and the United States concluded three days of prayer and dialogue at the 38th Meeting of the Bishops of the Church in America, February 25. Gathering together after the two visits of Pope Francis to the region, the bishops spoke of a strong sense of fraternity and solidarity as they shared their pastoral experiences of being one Church in America.

Participating in the meeting were the elected officers of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM) and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

"Looking across the table, I saw brothers in Christ," said Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the USCCB. "My prayer is for all the people of God to see their neighbor, north to south, as their sister and brother in Christ."

"This gathering of bishops is always an encouragement for our respective Conferences. We learn from one another; we support one another; we encourage one another. We are united in our desire to follow Christ faithfully," said Bishop Douglas Crosby, OMI, president of the CCCB.

"The faithful are searching for a more dignified life for their families and we seek to accompany them," said CELAM President Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez.

Despite the complexity of issues facing Catholics today and the distinct cultures within the Church, the bishops shared a common desire to invite everyone into "an encounter with Jesus Christ." The bishops witnessed to how the love of Jesus heals and unifies. Their discussions were wide ranging. Immigration, evangelization of urban cultures, the rights of native peoples, physician assisted suicide, the danger of pornography, and the growing threat to religious freedom around the world were all on the agenda the first day.

On the second day, the bishops shared with each other the various projects underway in support of the Year of Mercy. A particular focus was the topic of mercy in the Aparecida document. As one participant said, "the work is to reveal the presence of God and encourage prophets of mercy." As the year unfolds, resources are being made available in each of the Conferences to help people live their faith in practical ways each day.

The final morning was spent in prayer together.

The Meeting of the Bishops of the Church in America is part of a series of informal gatherings, previously known as the Interamerican Meeting of Bishops, held every few years since 1967 to emphasize the unity of the Church in the Western Hemisphere. This year's meeting was organized by the CCCB.
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Keywords: USCCB, U.S. bishops, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, CCCB, Latin American Episcopal Conference, CELAM, Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, Pope Francis, Year of Mercy, Laudato Si', Aparecida,
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Norma Montenegro Flynn
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Retired Bishop Michael Atul  D'Rozario of Khulna died Feb. 24 in a Dhaka hospital after suffering from various chronic ailments. He was 91.

A requiem Mass was celebrated at St. Mary's Cathedral in Dhaka later on Feb 24. A funeral Mass was celebrated Feb. 25 at St. Joseph's Cathedral in Khulna followed by his burial there.

Bishop D'Rozario was born Nov. 23, 1925 in Noyansree in Dhaka. He entered Little Flower Seminary in Bandura, Hashnabad, in 1939. He was ordained a priest on June 10, 1953, at the Sacred Heart Church of Indiana in the United States.

He served in various pastoral roles including parish priest, president of Caritas, editor of the national Catholic weekly Pratibeshi and a philosophy professor at the church-run Notre Dame College. Pope Paul VI appointed him bishop of Khulna on Sept. 21, 1970, the post he served until his retirement in 2005.

Bishop D'Rozario who was a priest for 62 years and a bishop for 45 years,  is highly lauded for his concern  for the poor.

"Bishop Michael had unique concern for the downtrodden communities, for their development and dignity in society. His love for the poor is an encouraging lesson for all," said Benedict Alo D'Rozario, Caritas Bangladesh executive director. (UCAN)

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The Franciscan Families in India have initiated a Nationwide plan during their 15th National Assembly to release at least 1000 prisoners free in this year of Mercy.  

Please read below the full text of the press release.

FREEDOM TO THOUSAND CAPTIVES!

INDIAN FRANCISCAN INITIATIVE IN THE JUBILEE YEAR OF MERCY

The Indian Franciscans under the network of Association of Franciscan Families of India – AFFI have initiated a Nationwide plan to release at least 1000 prisoners free if not more, in this year of Mercy. The Major Superiors (Provincials and Generals) of all the Franciscan Religious Congregations in India gathered together for their 15th National Assembly in Shanthi Sadana in Bangalore from 16-19 February, 2016 and elected the National Executive Team for the next three years. The four day Assembly took up the theme: Franciscans: Christ’s Face of Mercy in this World.

There are around 50000 Franciscan Religious men and women in India with 54 Congregations and 164 Provinces spread throughout India. They are involved predominantly in the uplift of the poor and the marginalised through the various educational and medical institutions along with social works. Having already involved into the spiritual and corporal works of Mercy in the footsteps of St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi, the call of the Pope Francis and the Church to the Jubilee year of Mercy added a special excitement in the mission of the Franciscans in India.

Among various programmes of Animations, trainings and seminars, the Major Superiors have specially focused on the release of the Prisoners who suffer due to petit theft and other minor crimes. Already the Franciscans have initiated this process of freeing the prisoners with the involvement of their school and succeeded in this mission. It would be spread  throughout India this year. Through negotiations with the Government authorities and concerned officials along with the involvement of the members of the Franciscan Congregations and their Institutions, the Franciscans would be strategically working out the ways and means not only to release the prisoners but also guide them to settle in life with dignity and hope.

The Franciscans have also planned to focus on the Sustainable Development Goals with special thrust on those living under extreme poverty and hunger, to stop violence against women, to focus on the education of the poor and the needy children and to involve in the holistic health of the rural poor and slum dwellers. All these undertakings will be the outcome of genuine spiritual search in Deep God experience and commitment to the oppressed and the marginalised.

To enhance this the Indian Franciscans will have country-wide trainings and updates both at the national level and at the zonal levels. The outgoing National Team of Br. Mathew OFM.Cap, Sr. Sinclare FCC and Sr. Apoline UFS developed the National Network of Indian Franciscans as a model to other countries in view of deeper involvement into the lives of the poor. The New team that was elected for three years on 19th Feb. and it consists of the President Brother Dolphy Pais OFM.Cap, Vice President Sr. Ann Joseph FCC, Secretary Sr. Severine UFS and Treasurer Br. Remish Ekka OFM.Cap. Brother Nithiya was re-elected the National Coordinator.

Report by Nithiya OFM.Cap

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This year’s Ash Wednesday and the Lenten ‎Season have taken on a special connotation and colour, occurring during the Jubilee Year of Mercy.  Pope Francis marked the beginning of the church's Lenten journey by sending off several hundred ‎religious and diocesan priests on their own special path as "Missionaries of Mercy" in local dioceses and parishes. ‎At the Feb. 10 Ash Wednesday Mass, the Pope ‎officially commissioned 762 priests from around the world to go out as special ‎Missionaries of Mercy, empowering them to forgive even the sins that are reserved for the Holy See to ‎pardon.  ‎

Look upon these your servants, Oh Lord, that we are sending as messengers of mercy, salvation and ‎peace, Pope Francis prayed at the end of the Dec. 10 Ash Wednesday Mass.  "May Christ's voice resound in their words and Christ's heart in their gestures, so that ‎those listening to them may be drawn in obedience to the Gospel,” the Pope prayed.  Earlier, in his homily, the Holy Father said that the Missionaries of Mercy were to be signs and instruments of God’s forgiveness.  “Dear brothers, may you help to open the doors of hearts, to overcome shame, not to avoid the light,” he said.  “May your hands bless and lift up brothers and sisters with paternity; through you may the gaze and the hands of God rest on his children and heal them of their wounds!” the Pope said.   ‎The Holy Father sent out the Missionaries of Mercy in the presence of the relics of two great apostles of ‎the sacrament of confession – Cappuchin priests, Sts. Leopold Mandic and Padre Pio.  Pope Francis had the relics ‎specially brought to Rome for the occasion.  The original plan was to have just ‎‎800 Missionaries of Mercy.  However, with the ‎overwhelming requests from around the world, the Pope ended up choosing over 1,000.

On the eve of Ash Wednesday, Pope Francis offered the Missionaries of Mercy a pep talk on how to show the tenderness of God’s love to those who confess to them during the Jubilee of ‎Mercy.‎ ‎“Let us not forget: Before us is not a sin, but a repentant sinner: a person who feels the desire of ‎being welcomed and forgiven” and who no longer desires to be far from God, the Pope said on Feb. 9.‎   Recalling the biblical episode of Noah’s nakedness being covered by his sons, the Pope said, ‎“To be a confessor according to the heart of Christ means to cover the sinner with the blanket of mercy, ‎so that they are no longer ashamed and can recover the joy of their filial dignity.” 

Among the ‎762‎ Missionaries of Mercy who came to the Vatican to receive the official mandate, were some 8 Indians.  We talked with one of them - Fr. S. Panneer Selvam, the director of  Suvarta Kendra in Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh, the national centre for New Evangelization of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), the association of India’s Latin rite bishops. Today, in the first of a 2-part interview, Fr. Selvam, who is also the executive secretary of CCBI’s commission for proclamation, first explains the mandate he received form Pope Francis. 

Listen: 

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has met with several of the children who wrote him letters for his new book, “Dear Pope Francis,” which was presented to him during the meeting.

The young people were accompanied by the President of Caritas Internationalis, Manila Archbishop Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, and the editor-in-chief of the Jesuit magazine La Civiltà Cattolica, Fr. Antonio Spadaro, SJ, who helped Pope Francis with the book.

During the encounter – involving children from Italy, the Philippines, India, Kenya, Australia, Argentina, the United States, Canada, Singapore, Ireland, Belgium, and China – the Holy Father said the questions asked for the book were some of the “most difficult” he had ever been asked.

Pope Francis then proceeded to answer more questions the children had.

He said his favourite thing about being Pope was “being around people,” adding he “learned something every time” he met someone new.

He told another child that when he was young he wanted to be a butcher, since when he went to the market with his mother, the butcher’s work was fascinating and “the way he cut the meat, that was art.”

One young person caused some indecision on the part of Pope Francis by asking who was his favourite saint: “I have several saints friends, but I do not know which I admire the most,” –  the Holy Father said – “but I'm a friend of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus; I am a friend of St. Ignatius; I'm a friend of St. Francis…I would say these three, perhaps, are the ones I most keep in my heart.”

He said being Pope gives him a sense of “calm,” and said that it is “a grace from God,” adding that it “feels as I am coming to the end of my life with so much peace.”

The Holy Father said  when he was elected, Cardinal Hummes told him to “not worry, it is the work of the Holy Spirit,” and told him to “not forget the poor.”

When asked about his love for Jesus, Pope Francis said “I do not know if I truly love Jesus. I try to love him, but I am sure that He loves me. I’m quite certain of this.”

Pope Francis said being Pope is “both easy and difficult, as is the life of any person,” explaining “it’s easy because you have a lot of people to help you…and there are difficult moments because there are difficulties in all the work there is.”

Pope Francis was also asked about his prayer life.

“I pray in the morning when I wake up: The prayer book all priest pray, called the breviary,” he said. “I pray the Mass, then I pray the Rosary…and then in the afternoon, I take time for Eucharistic Adoration.”

The Pope encouraged the children to always carry a rosary with them, and added he also carries a Via Crucis in his pocket, because it is a reminder that Jesus also suffered and this helps him to be “more good, and less bad.”

At the end of the encounter, Pope Francis addressed the issue of “Why do children suffer?” saying it is question which causes him great pain, and he admitted he did not know the answer to the question.

“The only thing that gives me light is looking at the cross, and seeing what Jesus suffered; it is the only answer I can find,” he said.

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Washington D.C., Feb 25, 2016 / 06:30 am (CNA).- Countering claims by some politicians that torture is an acceptable part of the fight against terrorism, experts in ethics and interrogation say that the practice is both immoral and ineffective.

“Torture is an intrinsic evil, an action that is an evil no matter the circumstances or the consequences,” said Prof. Joseph Capizzi, an associate professor of Moral Theology at The Catholic University of America.

“Often these arguments begin with the assumption that we need torture to get information. Most people in the intelligence community tell us that it’s false,” he told CNA.

But torture’s ineffectiveness in itself is not why the Church opposes it, he clarified. Instead, torture ought to be rejected simply because it is wrong.

“No matter what the circumstances or the consequences are, acts like torture can never be justifiable, can never be good.”

The question of torture has been raised during the election season. During the Feb. 6 Republican debates, candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was asked to defend previous statements on waterboarding. He responded that he does not believe the practice of waterboarding meets the definition of torture, but is instead a form of “enhanced interrogation” because it is not the equivalent of losing organs or one’s life.

Frontrunner Donald Trump, who has promoted the use of torture in the past, also told the debate audience he supported the use of waterboarding “and more.” The day after the debate, in a statement to CNN he said that “torture works.”

In response to the statements, Human Rights First, a nonpartisan international human rights organization, on Feb. 17 released a letter written by former interrogators who have worked in various federal agencies including the armed forces, the CIA, the FBI and other groups.

They detailed their opposition to torture practices and enhanced interrogation on practical grounds: the practices provide less trustworthy information than other forms of interrogation and their use by the U.S. can serve as a recruitment tool for extremist organizations.

The former interrogators urged presidential candidates to uphold current laws banning torture should they become elected.

Capizzi further explained the religious and ethical reasons to oppose torture.

While some Catholic rulers or theologians may have felt that the use of force may be permissible, the professor said, there has been “a longstanding prohibition against torture” from within the Church since the Middle Ages.

That teaching has been added to and supported throughout the centuries. The Church teaches that prohibiting torture is a matter of human dignity, he said.

“Everyone’s been created in the image and likeness of God,” Capizzi stressed, and this teaching is much more than simply a “sweet” sentiment – it is immensely powerful when taken seriously.

“If we say that people are actually bearing the image and likeness of God, it means we have to respond to them in a way that is appropriate to the image and likeness of God,” he said. Torture “requires a direct violation of the dignity of the person.”

The Church teaches that to respect the dignity of other people, even prisoners or detainees, one must not treat them as instruments or tools for one’s own goals.  

“We can never treat people simply as a means to our ends, they are an end in themselves,” Capizzi emphasized. “Torture always involves instrumentalizing somebody.”

Raha Wala, senior counsel of defense and intelligence for Human Rights First, said he is not surprised that many Americans support the use of torture, given its depiction in media.

However, he told CNA, “It’s important to listen to the experts, rather than the pundits.”

“(T)he experts on this are clear that torture is ineffective: there are better ways to gather intelligence.”

In the Human Rights First letter, the former interrogators – some of whom have interviewed top terror suspects for United States intelligence organizations – explained that the goal of interrogation is to build “a rapport” with a detainee and to understand him or her as a person. This approach encourages willing cooperation. It can reveal a detainee’s life story which “can be incredibly useful for understanding terrorist organizations, and detecting and ultimately thwarting terrorist plots.”

In contrast, they said, torture can provide less accurate and trustworthy information. In this way, it actually harms intelligence gathering and long-term work against terrorism and other national threats.

“If you talk to the professionals, they’ll say that torture – causing pain and suffering to an individual – actually compromises their memory, disrupts their ability to recall information and transmit it accurately to the interrogator, and often causes them to provide false information if they think that’s what the interrogator wants to hear,” Wala elaborated.

The use of torture by American forces can also be a recruitment tool extremist organizations use in propaganda, the former interrogators said.

“It is a hard truth, but we note that a large proportion of the fighters who opposed the U.S. in Iraq did so expressly as a result of the U.S. use of ‘enhanced interrogation,’ which the entire world recognizes as, quite simply, torture,” said the interrogators’ letter.

Wala said that he had heard similar explanations from former extremists. He noted that the Islamic State group is “reportedly dressing prisoners in orange jumpsuits, waterboarding them, as part of a propaganda effort.”

“I think it’s really important in the struggle against terrorism for the United States to as clearly and persuasively distinguish its actions from those of the terrorist groups that we are seeking to ultimately defeat,” he commented.  

Under current laws, the U.S. already has the guidelines available to do just that, Wala said.

“It’s been clear for decades that torture is universally prohibited,” he said. He noted international rules against torture in the Geneva Convention, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the United Nations Convention Against Torture. There are also federal laws banning the use of torture by U.S. forces that were passed with support from both political parties.

“Even then Congress came together after the abuses of Abu Ghraib, and passed legislation prohibiting cruel inhuman or degrading treatment,” Wala added. A 2015 law limited interrogation to techniques listed in the Army Field Manual, “which explicitly prohibits waterboarding and other forms of abuse.”

“This is not a partisan issue,” Wala said. “Any policymaker or candidate who is suggesting a return to these tactics is essentially going against clear domestic and international law.”
 

Photo credit: View Apart via www.shutterstock.com

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Vatican City, Feb 25, 2016 / 07:32 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Thursday Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi SJ announced that after Pope Francis celebrated his usual morning Mass, he canceled the rest of his appointments due to a small fever.

The spokesman told journalists Feb. 25 that the cancellations were caused by “a slight indisposition,” which he described as a “slight fever.”

He explained that the fever is nothing serious, and that the Pope celebrated Mass at 7a.m. as usual in the Vatican’s St. Martha guesthouse. He stressed that there is nothing to worry about, and that the Pope usually “recovers quickly” when he’s sick.

Although it doesn’t happen often, Pope Francis has canceled appointments before due to illnesses such as a cold or a headache.

Francis’ fever isn’t surprising given the intense schedule he’s had since he got back from Mexico. He traveled to the country Feb. 12-17 for an apostolic voyage that took him to the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Chiapas, Morelia and Ciudad Juarez.

The day after he got back the Pope continued his routine activities without missing a beat, meeting with groups and individuals throughout the day.

On Saturday he celebrated his second Jubilee general audience of the Holy Year, which takes place once a month on a Saturday, and on Sunday spoke to pilgrims during his weekly Angelus address.

Despite today's fever, Pope Francis is expected to resume his normal schedule tomorrow.

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