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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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Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Jan 29, 2016 / 06:46 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Mexican artist Pedro Francisco Rodríguez is asking for the public’s help in making a larger-than-life sculpture of Pope Francis to commemorate his historic visit to Mexico next month.

How can the general population help? By donating millions of scraps of bronze, including old keys.

Fr. Hesiquio Trevizo, spokesman for the Diocese of Ciudad Juarez, said at a recent press conference that people can donate their scraps at ten stations located in public areas throughout the city, such as malls.

Any bronze still needed for the project will be donated by local businesses.

Rodríguez began work on the 16-foot statue in December and said he hopes to have it ready in April, just a few months after the Holy Father’s Feb. 12-18 visit. The sculptor described how the statue will depict a smiling Pope Francis releasing a white dove into flight.

 

Realizarán estatua de bronce al Papa Francisco, medirá cinco metros: Ciudad Juárez--> https://t.co/kHpKUz1luR pic.twitter.com/097oGWeVmQ

— RASAInforma.com (@rasainforma) January 25, 2016  

Fr. Trevizo said that plans for the statue's location have not been finalized, but they will be looking for a place where all the faithful and pilgrims can see and appreciate it.

The Holy Father’s visit will include the celebration of Mass at the border city of Ciudad Juarez, across from El Paso, Texas. The Mass at the Mexico-U.S. border is expected to draw thousands of pilgrims from both countries.

Other highlights of the Pope’s trip to the country include the veneration of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mass with the indigenous community of Chiapas, and a visit to a prison in Ciudad Juarez.

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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
# # #
MEDIA CONTACT
Don Clemmer
O: 202-541-3206

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Vatican City, Jan 29, 2016 / 03:07 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The saints were also sinners, Pope Francis emphasized during his homily at the Santa Marta residence chapel on Friday morning, in which he highlighted the difference between sin and corruption, saying that while everyone is a sinner, not everyone is corrupt.

"Corruption is a very easy sin for all of us who have some power, whether it be ecclesiastical, religious, economic, political … because the devil makes us feel certain: 'I can do it,'" Pope Francis stated Jan. 29.

However, the Holy Father noted that the difference between sin and corruption is forgiveness. While the corrupt think they have no need for God, "regular sinners" feel the need for forgiveness.

Pope Francis used the reading from 2 Samuel 11 to further explain his point, which outlined the story of King David's own passage from sin to corruption.

"David is a saint, but also a sinner," the Holy Father explained.

First, David lustfully sought a married woman, Bathsheba. After she became pregnant, David tried to cover up his sin of adultery from her husband Uriah.  

After many failed attempts, David sent Uriah to fight on the front lines of battle. By doing this, David secured his own safety through the certain death of Bathsheba’s husband.

It was “because the kingdom was strong," Pope Francis noted, that David's lust led him down the corrupt path to murder, making him confident that "he has the power, he has the strength."

"This puts David in a difficult position, but he says to himself ‘I can do it,'" Pope Francis stated, saying that this was the moment "where David begins taking the first step towards corruption."

“He condemns him to death. This man, this faithful man [Uriah] – faithful to the law, faithful to his people, faithful to his king – carries his own death sentence,” Pope Francis continued.

However, the "courageous youth" David was ultimately saved from corruption by the grace of God because he turned towards God's forgiveness. Pope Francis emphasized this turning point as the ultimate distinction between sin and corruption.

Just like David, there are moments in everyone’s lives where the attitude of sin ends and turns to corruption, Pope Francis explained. This spirit of corruption leads to the rejection of God and forgiveness.

According to Pope Francis, "one of the ugliest things" about this stage is that corruption leads one to believe that he has "no need for forgiveness."

However, even if one sins regularly and still turns to God for mercy, he remains free from corruption. It is only when one believes they do not need God or forgiveness that they become corrupt.

"Today, let us offer a prayer for the Church, beginning with ourselves," the Pope said, praying, "Lord, save us, save us from corruption. We are sinners, yes, O Lord, all of us, but let us never become corrupt."

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Vatican City, Jan 29, 2016 / 03:33 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Speaking to the plenary assembly of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on Friday, Pope Francis spoke of the prime importance of all the works of mercy, both corporal and spiritual.

“We are in the Holy Year of Mercy. I hope that in this Jubilee all the members of the Church will renew their faith in Jesus Christ, the face of the Father's mercy, the way who united God and man,” the Pope said Jan. 29 in the Vatican's Clementine Hall. “Mercy, then, is the foundation of the life of the Church: the first truth of the Church, indeed, is Christ's love.”

“How then can we not desire that all Christian people – pastors and faithful – rediscover and return to the center, during the Jubilee, the corporal and spiritual works of mercy?”

“When, in the evening of life, it shall be asked of us what we did to feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty, equally shall it be asked of us if we have helped people to set their doubts aside, if we have committed ourselves to welcoming sinners, admonishing them or correcting them, if we have been able to combat ignorance, especially in relation to the Christian faith and the good life.”

The works of mercy, he said, are how Christians are to concretely carry out “the spirit of mercy,” adding that they are important, and not merely a devotion.

The Pope lamented how few Catholics know what the works of mercy are. He recounted that during one of his crowded audiences in the Paul VI Hall, he mentioned the works of mercy.

“I stopped and I asked the question: 'Which of you remember well what are the spiritual and corporal works of mercy? Those who remember, raise your hand.' Not more than 20 in a hall of 7,000. We must continue to teach the faithful these things, which are so important.”

Pope Francis then reflected on how mercy relates to the tasks undertaken by the CDF, saying, “In faith and in charity a cognitive and unifying relationship is established with the mystery of Love, which is God himself. The effective mercy of God became, in Jesus, affective mercy, as he made himself man for the salvation of men.”

“The task entrusted to your dicastery here finds its ultimate foundation and adequate justification. Christian faith, indeed, is not only knowledge to be committed to memory, but also truth to live in love. Therefore, along with the doctrine of the faith, it is also necessary to safeguard the integrity of customs, particularly in the most delicate areas of life. Adhering to faith in the person of Christ implies both an act of reason and a moral response to his gift. In this respect, I thank you for all your commitment and the responsibility you exercise in treating cases of abuse of minors by clerics.”

He added that “care for the integrity of faith and customs is a delicate task” and that this requires a “collegial commitment.” He commended those who work with the CDF for their exercise of collegiality, mentioning in particular a meeting between the congregation and the Doctrinal Commissions of the Episcopal Conferences of Europe.

That meeting, the Pope said, contributed to “stirring up in the faithful a new missionary impulse and greater openness to the transcendent dimension of life, without which Europe runs the risk of losing that humanist spirit which it nevertheless loves and defends.”

“I invite you to continue and to intensify your collaboration with these advisory bodies that assist episcopal conferences and individual bishops in their solicitude for sound doctrine, in a time of rapid change and growing complexity of problems.”

Pope Francis also indicated that an important contribution of the CDF is in studying “the complementarity between the hierarchical and charismatic gifts.”

“According to the logic of unity in legitimate difference – the logic which characterizes every authentic form of communion among the People of God – the hierarchical and charismatic gifts are called to collaborate for the good of the Church and of the world. The testimony of this complementarity is now more urgent than ever, and represents an eloquent expression of that ordered plurality which connotes every ecclesial community, as a reflection of the harmonious communion which lives in the heart of the Triune God.”

The relations between hierarchical and charismatic gifts springs from a “Trinitarian root,” he said, “in the bond that unites the divine Logos incarnate and the Holy Spirit, who is always a gift of the Father and the Son. It is precisely this root, if acknowledged and listened to humbly, that permits the Church to let herself be renewed.”

“Unity and plurality are the seal of a Church that, moved by the Spirit, knows how to walk with a sure and faithful step towards the purpose that the Risen Lord has indicated to them throughout history. Here we see clearly how the synodal dynamic, if correctly understood, is born from communion and leads towards an increasingly implemented, deepened and extended, in the service of the life and the mission of the People of God.”

Pope Francis concluded assuring them of his thoughts and prayers.

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