Catholic News 2
WASHINGTON (AP) -- When buildings collapse in future disasters, the hero helping rescue trapped people may be a robotic cockroach....
CHICAGO (AP) -- For more than a year after an officer shot and killed a black teen named Laquan McDonald, the Chicago Police Department had video footage that raised serious doubts about whether other officers at the scene tried in their reports to cover up what prosecutors now contend was murder....
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Saudi Arabia's offer to send troops to fight Islamic State in Syria is as much about the kingdom's growing determination to flex its military might as it is about answering U.S. calls for more help from its allies in the Middle East....
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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MEDIA CONTACT
Don Clemmer
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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...
"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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Pope Francis on Monday appointed an auxiliary bishop to the diocese of Dhaka in Bangladesh. Fr. Shorot Francis Gomes, the Vicar General of the Diocese of Sylhet is the new Auxiliary Bishop of Dhaka. He takes the place of Auxiliary Bishop Theotonius Gomes who retired in April 2014. Born Dec. 15, 1965, in Hashnabad, Fr. Shorot Francis Gomes completed his primary and secondary schooling from Holy Cross Bandura and entered the Little Flower Minor Seminary in the capital Dhaka. While at Dhaka's St. Joseph Seminary, he studied for his B.A. degree at Notre Dame College. In 1984 he began studying philosophy and theology at Holy Spirit Major Seminary. After his ordination on May 31, 1990, he was assigned several posts such as parish priest of the Cathedral parish and of Nagari Church and rector of the Little Flower Minor Seminary, Bandura. From 1998 to 2002 he was in Rome, where he obtained a doct...
Pope Francis on Monday appointed an auxiliary bishop to the diocese of Dhaka in Bangladesh. Fr. Shorot Francis Gomes, the Vicar General of the Diocese of Sylhet is the new Auxiliary Bishop of Dhaka. He takes the place of Auxiliary Bishop Theotonius Gomes who retired in April 2014.
Born Dec. 15, 1965, in Hashnabad, Fr. Shorot Francis Gomes completed his primary and secondary schooling from Holy Cross Bandura and entered the Little Flower Minor Seminary in the capital Dhaka. While at Dhaka's St. Joseph Seminary, he studied for his B.A. degree at Notre Dame College. In 1984 he began studying philosophy and theology at Holy Spirit Major Seminary. After his ordination on May 31, 1990, he was assigned several posts such as parish priest of the Cathedral parish and of Nagari Church and rector of the Little Flower Minor Seminary, Bandura. From 1998 to 2002 he was in Rome, where he obtained a doctoral degree in moral theology from Alfonsianum. Back in Bangladesh he served as the parish priest of Nagari and Tejgaon from 2002 to ’05. He was appointed the vice-rector of the Holy Spirit Major Seminary which he served until his appointment as Vicar General of Sylhet Diocese in 2012.
(Vatican Radio) From February 12 to the 17th Pope Francis is set to visit Mexico in the footsteps of two of his predecessors to the See of Peter, Saint John Paul II who travelled there five times and Benedict XVI once in 2012. An Apostolic journey which marks the fourth time Pope Francis visits Latin America, whose Bishops are represented in a body by the title of Episcopal Council of Latin America and the Caribbean, more popularly known as 'Celam'.The current President of this body is Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez, Archbishop of Bogotà ColombiaAs we know Francis is the first Pontiff from Latin America and during his pontificate has kept in touch with representatives of this body which was first founded by Pope Pius XII in 1955. Veronica Scarisbrick delves into Vatican Radio's sound archives and comes up with recordings of this Pope’s radio message dating back to 1955, as well as sound relating to 'Celam' and the following pope...
(Vatican Radio) From February 12 to the 17th Pope Francis is set to visit Mexico in the footsteps of two of his predecessors to the See of Peter, Saint John Paul II who travelled there five times and Benedict XVI once in 2012. An Apostolic journey which marks the fourth time Pope Francis visits Latin America, whose Bishops are represented in a body by the title of Episcopal Council of Latin America and the Caribbean, more popularly known as 'Celam'.The current President of this body is Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez, Archbishop of Bogotà Colombia
As we know Francis is the first Pontiff from Latin America and during his pontificate has kept in touch with representatives of this body which was first founded by Pope Pius XII in 1955. Veronica Scarisbrick delves into Vatican Radio's sound archives and comes up with recordings of this Pope’s radio message dating back to 1955, as well as sound relating to 'Celam' and the following popes: Blessed Paul VI, Saint John Paul II and Benedict XVI, now Pope Emeritus. So as Pope Francis is about to set off for a six day Apostolic visit why not listen to sound bites from our Vatican Radio archives relating to these popes and Celam.
A programme presented and produced by Veronica Scarisbrick :
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a greeting to the people of Mexico as they await his arrival telling them that he is travelling to the nation as a “missionary of mercy and peace”.Four days before the start of his apostolic journey to Mexico, the Pope sent a video message to those awaiting him.In the message, in his native Spanish, the Pope highlights the fact that he wants to embrace all Mexican people, especially those who suffer.He also speaks of his devotion for the Blessed Virgin and he expresses his joy at being able to visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Listen to the report: Please find below Vatican Radio’s translation of the Pope’s video message:Dear brothers and sisters,With not long to go before my visit to Mexico, I am happy, I feel great joy. In my prayers, I always have a thought for all Mexicans. I carry them in my heart. Now I will be able to visit them and tread the soil of this blessed land, so beloved by God...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a greeting to the people of Mexico as they await his arrival telling them that he is travelling to the nation as a “missionary of mercy and peace”.
Four days before the start of his apostolic journey to Mexico, the Pope sent a video message to those awaiting him.
In the message, in his native Spanish, the Pope highlights the fact that he wants to embrace all Mexican people, especially those who suffer.
He also speaks of his devotion for the Blessed Virgin and he expresses his joy at being able to visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Listen to the report:
Please find below Vatican Radio’s translation of the Pope’s video message:
Dear brothers and sisters,
With not long to go before my visit to Mexico, I am happy, I feel great joy. In my prayers, I always have a thought for all Mexicans. I carry them in my heart. Now I will be able to visit them and tread the soil of this blessed land, so beloved by God and so close to the Virgin Mary.
It’s possible that you may be asking yourselves: "What does the Pope want with this journey?" The answer is immediate and it is simple: I want to come as a missionary of mercy and peace; I want to meet with you so we can confess our faith in God together and share a fundamental truth in our lives: that is that that God loves us very much, He loves us with an infinite love which goes well beyond our merits. I want to be as close to you as possible, especially to those of you who are suffering, I want to embrace you and tell you that Jesus loves you very much, that He is always at your side.
I am glad to know that you are preparing for the visit by praying a lot. Prayer opens our hearts and prepares it to receive God’s gifts. Prayer gives us the light to see others as God sees them, to love as God loves. Thank you for praying for me because I need your prayers.
Would you like me to share with you one of my greatest wishes? It is to be able to visit the home of the Virgin Mary. Like one of her many children, I will go up to the Mother and lay at Her feet all that I carry in my heart. It’s wonderful to be able to visit the maternal home and feel the tenderness of Her benevolent presence. There, I will look into Her eyes and beg Her to never stop looking upon us with mercy, because She is our Mother in Heaven. From this moment, it is to Her that I entrust my journey and all of you, my dear Mexican brothers and sisters.
May Jesus bless you and may the Blessed Virgin assist you.
Sri Lanka's ethnic Tamil leaders on Sunday asked the top human rights official of the United Nations to help determine the fate of more than 4,000 civilians reported missing in the country's long civil war amid the government's assertion that most of them are probably dead. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Raad al-Hussein, met the chief minister of Sri Lanka's Northern Province, the arena of the civil war, which ended in 2009. Zeid arrived in Sri Lanka on Saturday on a four-day visit aimed at reviewing the measures taken by the island nation to investigate alleged atrocities committed during the long civil war that left tens of thousands dead. Both the Sri Lankan government and the defeated Tamil Tiger rebels are accused of serious human rights violations. According to U.N. estimates, up to 100,000 people were killed in the 26-year war, but many more are feared to have died, incl...
Sri Lanka's ethnic Tamil leaders on Sunday asked the top human rights official of the United Nations to help determine the fate of more than 4,000 civilians reported missing in the country's long civil war amid the government's assertion that most of them are probably dead. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Raad al-Hussein, met the chief minister of Sri Lanka's Northern Province, the arena of the civil war, which ended in 2009. Zeid arrived in Sri Lanka on Saturday on a four-day visit aimed at reviewing the measures taken by the island nation to investigate alleged atrocities committed during the long civil war that left tens of thousands dead.
Both the Sri Lankan government and the defeated Tamil Tiger rebels are accused of serious human rights violations. According to U.N. estimates, up to 100,000 people were killed in the 26-year war, but many more are feared to have died, including up to 40,000 civilians in the final months of the fighting.
The U.N. Human Rights Council last year adopted a consensus resolution in which Sri Lanka agreed to an investigation with foreign participation.
Zeid said he discussed several issues with Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran and other provincial officials, including the missing people, detentions without trial and military-occupied private land. He said he would take the issues up with the central government. ``The discussions very much focused on the challenges faced by the province, but also the plans and achievements in that regard, and the people who aspire to see more information in terms of those detained and those missing and the issue of release of lands,'' Zeid said. He said the discussions would continue during his visit.
Wigneswaran said he gave Zeid a list of the more than 4,000 people reported missing, with dates and places where they were seen last. Many civilians have not been heard from since they were picked up by police or military personnel at their homes or abducted by pro-government militia during the war. Relatives say there are many whom they personally handed over to the military at the end of the fighting, after the military requested the surrender of anyone who had even the smallest link to the now-defeated Tamil Tiger rebels, promising their early release.
7 Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was elected last year, has said most of those reported missing are probably dead. He said that the new government found no secret detention centers being run by the state, as suspected by families of the missing, and that there are only 292 people in government detention. Wigneswaran said Zeid opposed the suggestion of negotiating an amnesty for Tamil rebel suspects detained for years without trial. Zeid said releasing innocents through a quick and proper legal process would be the best course of action. (Source: AP/Reuters)
(Vatican Radio) Today, February 8, we mark the International Day of Prayer and Awarenesss Against Human Trafficking.Amongst the faith-based organizations whose mandate is to raise awareness about this global phenomenon, fight it and work with its victims is Caritas, the helping hand of the Catholic Church.Caritas offers humanitarian action and support in many fields, it also coordinates the work of COATNET - Christian Organisations Against Trafficking in Human Beings - a network of 42 Christian groups around the world who fight human trafficking. This International Day of Prayer has been chosen to coincide with the feat of St. Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese woman who was sold into slavery, abused and finally freed becoming an icon of Christian hope and forgiveness.As Pope Francis himself has said again and again “human trafficking is a crime against humanity”, “an open wound of the body of contemporary society”, and COATNET believes that “th...
(Vatican Radio) Today, February 8, we mark the International Day of Prayer and Awarenesss Against Human Trafficking.
Amongst the faith-based organizations whose mandate is to raise awareness about this global phenomenon, fight it and work with its victims is Caritas, the helping hand of the Catholic Church.
Caritas offers humanitarian action and support in many fields, it also coordinates the work of COATNET - Christian Organisations Against Trafficking in Human Beings - a network of 42 Christian groups around the world who fight human trafficking.
This International Day of Prayer has been chosen to coincide with the feat of St. Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese woman who was sold into slavery, abused and finally freed becoming an icon of Christian hope and forgiveness.
As Pope Francis himself has said again and again “human trafficking is a crime against humanity”, “an open wound of the body of contemporary society”, and COATNET believes that “the first step towards beating trafficking is to raise global awareness on how it dehumanises people and to take this knowledge to the level of action”.
On this day of prayer and awareness Caritas invites all to go the “International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Trafficking” website and light the candle; to pray alone or arrange a prayer service and generally to become informed on the many issues that are connected to trafficking including supply chains, prevention programmes and what each of us can do to contribute to the fight.
We spoke to Fr. Evaristus Bassey, the National Director of Caritas Nigeria who points out that the “Day of Prayer and Awareness” is even more poignant this year as it falls within the Holy Year of Mercy.
Click here to read Fr Bassey’s blog on the International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Trafficking”.
