 WASHINGTON-The National Prayer Vigil for Life will be held from Thursday afternoon, January 21-Friday morning, January 22, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, where Pope Francis celebrated Mass during his recent visit to Washington. Over 20,000 pilgrims from around the nation will pray there for an end to abortion before the annual March for Life. The Vigil marks the 43rd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions legalizing abortion nationwide. Since those decisions, over 56 million abortions have been performed legally in the United States.
The principal celebrant and homilist at the Vigil Opening Mass will be Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities. It will be concelebrated by his fellow cardinals and many of the nation's bishops and priests in the Basilica's Great Upper Church. The 14-hour Vigil continues in the Crypt Church with confessions, a National Rosary for Life, Byzantine Rite Night Prayer, and holy hours led by seminarians from across the country from 11 p.m.-6 a.m. That same evening, The Catholic University of America will host approximately 1,000 pilgrims overnight.
"It's a huge encouragement to see so many young people praying, fasting, and marching to end abortion," said Deirdre McQuade, assistant director for pro-life communications at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). "The loss of unborn children often devastates mothers, fathers, and other family members. And in the broader society, if life in the womb is not protected, then no one's right to life is secure."
"The Jubilee Year of Mercy calls us to pray for the respect of all vulnerable people, and for the healing of those seeking peace after abortions," McQuade said.
On the day of the March for Life, January 22, the Basilica will host Morning Prayer in the Crypt Church and then the Vigil's Closing Mass at 7:30 a.m. in the Great Upper Church, with Bishop David A. Zubik of Pittsburgh as principal celebrant and homilist.
The National Prayer Vigil for Life is co-sponsored by the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and The Catholic University of America.
Media are welcome to attend the Opening Mass and speak with and interview pilgrims throughout the 14-hour Vigil.
Media should check in at the Basilica's Great Upper Church Sacristy and present press credentials to Jacquelyn Hayes or a designated Basilica press representative to receive a press pass. Advance registration is preferred. Footage from the Mass may also be obtained by satellite feed courtesy of the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). For coordinates, or to register, contact Jacquelyn Hayes, director of communications for the Basilica, at 202-281-0615 or jmh@bnsic.org.
For more details on the overnight National Prayer Vigil for Life and other Washington, DC, Roe v. Wade events, visit www.usccb.org/about/pro-life-activities/january-roe-events. To join thousands nationwide in prayer and action during the U.S. bishops' annual pro-life novena, January 16-24, visit www.9daysforlife.com.
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Keywords: National Prayer Vigil for Life, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, abortion, Roe v. Wade, U.S. Supreme Court, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Bishop Zubik, Committee on Pro-Life Activities, Secretariat, The Catholic University of America, bishops, seminarians, 9 Days for Life, #9daysforlife, #whywemarch, #marchforlife2016, #prolifeprowoman, Project Rachel, post-abortion healing, #afterabortion, Pope Francis, Jubilee Year of Mercy, #mercyinmotion
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 WASHINGTON-The National Prayer Vigil for Life will be held from Thursday afternoon, January 21-Friday morning, January 22, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, where Pope Francis celebrated Mass during his recent visit to Washington. Over 20,000 pilgrims from around the nation will pray there for an end to abortion before the annual March for Life. The Vigil marks the 43rd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions legalizing abortion nationwide. Since those decisions, over 56 million abortions have been performed legally in the United States.The principal celebrant and homilist at the Vigil Opening Mass will be Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities. It will be concelebrated by his fellow cardinals and many of the nation's bishops and priests in the Basilica's Great Upper Church. The 14-hour Vigil continues in the Crypt Church with confessions, a Na...
Rome, Italy, Jan 16, 2016 / 10:33 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Riccardo Di Segni, the chief rabbi of Rome, said Pope Francis’ visit to Rome’s major synagogue this weekend is a sign of strengthened Jewish-Catholic relations, and shows that differences in belief should be a source of peace rather than violence.The rabbi told CNA Jan. 14 that for the Jewish community in Rome “there are two main points” to the Pope’s visit to the synagogue, which is scheduled to take place Sunday, Jan. 17.“The first one is that it is a sign of continuity. This Pope wants to confirm the way of his two predecessors and not to put a stop in the way of good relations.”“And the second point is related to the urgency of our time, which is marked by intolerance and violence inspired by religion, or bad teachers of religion.”Pope Francis’ encounter with Rome’s Jewish community, then, is aimed at communicating the opposite: “we want to show th...
Rome, Italy, Jan 16, 2016 / 10:33 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Riccardo Di Segni, the chief rabbi of Rome, said Pope Francis’ visit to Rome’s major synagogue this weekend is a sign of strengthened Jewish-Catholic relations, and shows that differences in belief should be a source of peace rather than violence.
The rabbi told CNA Jan. 14 that for the Jewish community in Rome “there are two main points” to the Pope’s visit to the synagogue, which is scheduled to take place Sunday, Jan. 17.
“The first one is that it is a sign of continuity. This Pope wants to confirm the way of his two predecessors and not to put a stop in the way of good relations.”
“And the second point is related to the urgency of our time, which is marked by intolerance and violence inspired by religion, or bad teachers of religion.”
Pope Francis’ encounter with Rome’s Jewish community, then, is aimed at communicating the opposite: “we want to show that differences of religion is a seed of tolerance, coexistence, and building peace,” Di Segni added.
Known for the great emphasis he places on interreligious dialogue, Francis will follow in the footsteps of two of his predecessors. In 1986 St. John Paul II became the first Pope to visit the synagogue. Benedict XVI imitated the gesture, making a visit of his own in 2010.
According to a Nov. 17, 2015, Vatican communique announcing the Pope’s visit, the encounter will consist of a personal meeting between Pope Francis and representatives of Judaism and the members of the Jewish Community in Rome. No other details have yet been published.
In his comments to CNA, Di Segni said that as far as Jewish-Catholic relations go, “we are in an interesting point of development.”
He noted that 2015 marked the 50th anniversary of the publication of Nostra aetate, the Second Vatican Council’s declaration on the relation of the Church to non-Christians religions.
When Nostra aetate was promulgated by Bl. Paul VI in 1965, it marked the first time bishops had explicitly said that the Church “rejects nothing that is true and holy” in other religious traditions, urging Catholics to pursue dialogue and collaboration with people of all religions.
In particular, the document radically reshaped Catholic relations with the Jewish world, decrying “hatred, persecutions, displays of anti-Semitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone” and stating that “what happened in [Christ's] passion cannot be charged against all the Jews, without distinction, then alive, nor against the Jews of today.”
Fifty years after the document’s publication, which marked “a fundamental point, a turning point, of history,” the two religions still enjoy “a good experience” in terms of their relationship, Di Segni said.
“Many problems were solved, others were discussed. The important point is that there are ways of communication and good will to discuss together.”
One example of a recent landmark in Jewish-Catholic relations is the Dec. 10, 2015, publication of a Vatican document that discusses the means of salvation for the Jewish people.
Another move reflecting Pope Francis’ desire to strengthen interreligious dialogue was an Oct. 26-28, 2015, conference hosted by the Vatican in honor of Nostra aetate's anniversary.
Representatives of religions from around the world were invited to participate. Among the traditions represented were Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Jainism, and Sikhism.
In continuity with what has proved to be his great desire to strengthen interreligious relations, the Pope also released a new video message on his monthly prayer intentions dedicated to the topic.
The Pope's intention for this month is dedicated to interreligious dialogue, that “sincere dialogue among men and women of different faiths may produce the fruits of peace and justice.”
However, when it comes to the Church’s dialogue with the Jewish people, Di Segni said that “we think that our dialogue is not theological dialogue.”
Rather, it’s “a dialogue between people of different faiths who gain reciprocal respect and understand that differences are a powerful tool in the hands of the people who manage them well.”
Omaha, Neb., Jan 16, 2016 / 12:09 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Nebraska’s Catholic bishops have called for the reversal of a new school athletics participation policy that would recognize gender identity, not biological sex, as a standard for student athletes.The Catholic schools in the Nebraska School Activities Association are dismayed by the association board’s “arbitrary, non-collaborative decision” on the policy vote, the Nebraska Catholic Conference said Jan. 14.“Member-schools and parents must make every effort to reverse an NSAA board action that compromises fairness, equality, privacy, safety, and respect for Nebraska’s high school students,” said the conference in a statement signed by the state’s three bishops.The conference said student athletes, parents and member schools of the association are discouraged that the association “ignored their concerns.”“The board’s decision circumvents the will of the voting...
Omaha, Neb., Jan 16, 2016 / 12:09 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Nebraska’s Catholic bishops have called for the reversal of a new school athletics participation policy that would recognize gender identity, not biological sex, as a standard for student athletes.
The Catholic schools in the Nebraska School Activities Association are dismayed by the association board’s “arbitrary, non-collaborative decision” on the policy vote, the Nebraska Catholic Conference said Jan. 14.
“Member-schools and parents must make every effort to reverse an NSAA board action that compromises fairness, equality, privacy, safety, and respect for Nebraska’s high school students,” said the conference in a statement signed by the state’s three bishops.
The conference said student athletes, parents and member schools of the association are discouraged that the association “ignored their concerns.”
“The board’s decision circumvents the will of the voting members expressed in the democratic process that was recently completed,” the conference added.
The activities association’s membership had voted in district meetings Jan. 6 and 13 to continue to require athlete participation in sports to be based on the sex of a student’s birth certificate. Four of the six districts voted in favor of the 'sex at birth' policy.
However, on Jan. 14 the association’s board voted 6-2 to create a process for students who identify as transgender to take part in sports based on their chosen gender. The process would allow individual school districts to decide on participation, the Lincoln Journal-Star reports.
The board rejected a proposal to table the policy vote until the association’s legislative assembly meets in April.
Now only a super-majority vote at the legislative assembly could change the policy.
The activities association’s interim director, Jim Tenopir, said that the new policy allows religious schools to follow their beliefs. The policy also puts the burden of legal defense on the schools, not the association.
If a school decides a transgender student is eligible to play, the association’s gender-eligibility committee would rule on the case based on documentation about the student’s gender expression from a health care professional and from friends, teachers, or family.
Male students who say they are female must document a year of hormone therapy, a requirement intended to address concerns that men are physically larger than women. Self-identified transgender students must use private bathrooms and locker rooms, or those that match their biological sex.
The Nebraska Catholic Conference backed the birth certificate policy favored by the activities association districts.
The state’s bishops stressed the need to show respect and support for those who experience gender dysphoria. However, they said this respect “must be provided with due consideration to the fairness and the safety, privacy, and rights of all students.”
The bishops said it would be unjust “to allow a harmful and deceptive gender ideology to shape either what is taught or how activities are conducted in our schools.”
They said the policy choices would have religious liberty implications.
Backers of the policy change said it would provide opportunities for more students, while some transgender activists said the change did not go far enough and was excessively intrusive and exclusionary.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska said the new policy exposes the activities association and schools to litigation. It cited the Title IX protections under federal law, which are increasingly being broadly interpreted.
Existing association policy allows girls to wrestle or play football because there is no comparable girls’ sports.
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