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News Briefs
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NEWS BRIEFS Jun-13-2008
By Catholic News Service
U.S.
Bishops' vote on liturgy document inconclusive; mail ballot required
ORLANDO, Fla. (CNS) -- Following a lively debate, the U.S. bishops left a 700-page translation of one section of the Roman Missal in limbo June 13 when it failed to obtain the number of votes needed to approve the text or to reject it. The translation of the proper prayers for Sundays and feast days during the liturgical year requires the approval of two-thirds of the 250 Latin-rite members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. But after more than a dozen bishops spoke against the translation, results of the voting were inconclusive. Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, USCCB president, did not announce the vote totals but said the document had not obtained the 166 "yes" votes needed to approve it or the 83 "no" votes that would have resulted in its rejection. USCCB members not present at the spring general assembly in Orlando will vote by mail on the issue. "John and Mary Catholic have the right to have prayers that are clear and understandable," said Bishop Donald W. Trautman of Erie, Pa., in speaking against the translation that had been in the works for more than two years.
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Bishops begin dialogue with priests on fallout from sex abuse scandal
ORLANDO, Fla. (CNS) -- In the aftermath of the clergy sex abuse crisis, the U.S. bishops are working to rebuild relations with some unanticipated victims: their priests. Bishop Gregory M. Aymond of Austin, Texas, and other members of the bishops' Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People, met June 12 in Orlando with representatives of half of the nation's priests to begin a dialogue on issues that arose during and after the sex abuse scandal. "Some felt guilty by association," while others felt their fellow priests who were accused of wrongdoing were not treated fairly or with pastoral concern, Bishop Aymond told Catholic News Service after the closed-door listening session at the spring general assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The priests at the meeting represented half of the regions into which the USCCB is divided. Representatives of the rest of the regions were to meet with the committee in November.
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Embryonic stem-cell research immoral, unnecessary, bishops say
ORLANDO, Fla. (CNS) -- Declaring that stem-cell research does not present a conflict between science and religion, the U.S. bishops overwhelmingly approved a statement June 13 calling the use of human embryos in such research "gravely immoral" and unnecessary. In the last vote of the public session of their Jan. 12-14 spring general assembly in Orlando, the bishops voted 191-1 in favor of the document titled "On Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: A Statement of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops." "It now seems undeniable that once we cross the fundamental moral line that prevents us from treating any fellow human being as a mere object of research, there is no stopping point," the document said. "The only moral stance that affirms the human dignity of all of us is to reject the first step down this path." Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, Kan., introduced the document on behalf of Philadelphia Cardinal Justin Rigali, chairman of the bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities, who was not at the Orlando meeting.
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Communications strategists ready to play offense on media matters
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- After nearly a generation of being on the defensive on media policy issues, activists are gearing up for a new presidential administration in which they could play offense on such issues. Many activists point to the 1987 repeal of the Fairness Doctrine for when things began to get worse in the media landscape. It was a Federal Communications Commission policy guaranteeing on-air reply time to opposing political viewpoints. Already in the current session of Congress, a bill to restore the Fairness Doctrine has been introduced, although chances are remote that it would be enacted this year. They also point to the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which, among other things, greatly expanded the number of broadcast stations one company could own in one metropolitan area. The FCC has, since then, been generous in granting waivers permitting greater consolidation than the law allows. Two attempts in the past five years to codify some of those actions as federal policy have been beaten back -- once in the courts and once with a "resolution of disapproval" passed by the Senate that would nullify the FCC's Dec. 18, 2007, vote. House action on the resolution is expected to follow later this year.
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WORLD
Bush, pope meet in Vatican Gardens for private talks, informal stroll
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- In a cordial and festive visit to the Vatican, U.S. President George W. Bush met with Pope Benedict XVI in the lush Vatican Gardens for private talks, an informal stroll and a choral performance by the Sistine Chapel Choir. The hourlong visit June 13 was the fifth time Bush came to the Vatican for a papal audience and his third meeting with Pope Benedict. However, it was the first time in recent memory a head of state was welcomed in such an informal way and at such a unique location. The Vatican had said it wanted to break with protocol to show its appreciation for the president's warm hospitality during the pope's visit to the White House during his April 15-20 trip to the U.S. With birds chirping and a cool, light breeze blowing through gnarled olive trees and looming cypresses, the pope greeted the U.S. president at the entrance of a medieval tower on the Vatican's highest hill in the gardens. They both expressed their pleasure at seeing each other again.
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Church in England expands process to investigate priestly abuse cases
LONDON (CNS) -- Priests who say they have been wrongly accused of child abuse will be allowed a right of appeal against any alleged mistreatment by their bishops. The Catholic Church in England and Wales will introduce review panels in September to examine complaints made by priests who insist they are innocent but say they have been sacrificed to save their superiors. The measure was announced at a June 12 press conference in London. It was recommended after a review of child protection procedures last year. Bill Kilgallon, chairman of the National Catholic Safeguarding Commission, which oversees child protection for the Catholic Church in England and Wales, said it was felt widely that "another step in the process would improve the justice of it to all parties. We want to feel that the systems dealing with abuse are (as) robust as possible," he said. "We want a system that is thorough in investigations and fair to all parties."
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Archbishop calls move to regulate religion in Kazakhstan disastrous
LONDON (CNS) -- A proposed law to regulate religion in Kazakhstan could force the expulsion of Catholic missionaries and the closure of churches, a Catholic archbishop said. In an interview with the London branch of Aid to the Church in Need, a charity helping persecuted Christians, Archbishop Jan Lenga of Karaganda, Kazakhstan, called the planned legislation a "disaster." "This proposed law is against all non-Orthodox (and non-Muslims) and will hit us," he said in a June 11 statement issued by the charity. If approved, the law severely would restrict the activities of all religious faiths and denominations except for the approved Russian Orthodox Church and a state-controlled form of mainstream Islam. Some analysts believe the law is aimed principally at growing fundamentalist Islamic groups and some evangelical sects which the authorities fear and seek to control.
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Lambeth Conference: Time of reckoning for ecumenical dialogue
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- This summer's once-a-decade Lambeth Conference marks a potentially defining moment for the worldwide Anglican Communion and a time of reckoning for ecumenical dialogue. The Vatican, which is sending representatives to the July 16-Aug. 4 gathering of the world's Anglican leadership, will be closely following its deliberations to see what direction it takes on such crucial questions as internal unity, authority, the role of the bishop and Anglican identity. What has pushed these questions to the forefront is the ordination of openly gay clerics, the blessing of gay unions and the ordination of women bishops in some Anglican provinces. Those developments have threatened to split the Anglican Communion. For the Vatican, they have raised new questions about the future of the 40-year-old dialogue with the Anglican Church. "It's very important for Anglicans to understand the depth of the change in our relationship that, in a sense, is being forced on us by the positions they are taking," said one Vatican official, who asked not to be named.
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Mothers, other women bear brunt of toll HIV/AIDS takes, panelists say
UNITED NATIONS (CNS) -- Women, especially those who are mothers, are at the center of treating, preventing and caring for people with HIV and AIDS, said panelists at a June 11 side event to a high-level U.N. meeting held to review progress on HIV/AIDS initiatives. The focus of the side event was on "women and mothers who in some parts of the world bear the heaviest brunt of HIV's impact on society," said the apostolic nuncio to the United Nations, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, host of the discussion. "Despite significant achievements," he said, "HIV still takes the lives of some 6,000 people every day and is still the number one cause of death in Africa, even ahead of malaria. The number of people newly infected with HIV is far and away outpacing the antiretroviral drug treatments." The program drew a standing-room-only crowd of 100 people and was co-sponsored by the permanent observer mission of the Holy See, the Path to Peace Foundation, the Association of Volunteers in International Service, the New Humanity Movement and MaterCare International.
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Romanian bishop defends Orthodox leader for receiving Communion
WARSAW, Poland (CNS) -- The Romanian Catholic Church, an Eastern rite, has defended an Orthodox archbishop who faces sanctions for receiving Communion at an Eastern Catholic Divine Liturgy. "This man of humanism, dignity and dialogue has helped create excellent Catholic-Orthodox ties in our region," Bishop Alexandru Mesian of Lugoj, Romania, said in a June 11 interview with Catholic News Service. "He wishes to be in communion with other Christians and we've welcomed his unprecedented, progressive gesture with great joy. We are sad he's now being attacked with such ferocity for it." Bishop Mesian said Orthodox laypeople regularly go to confession and receive Communion at Eastern Catholic churches in Romania. Orthodox Metropolitan Nicolae Corneanu of Banat, a region of Eastern Europe partly in Romania, will appear before Romanian Orthodox leaders in July to explain why he received Communion during the dedication of an Eastern Catholic church in late May. Father Constantin Stoica, spokesman for the Orthodox church's Bucharest Patriarchate in Romania, said Metropolitan Corneanu's action would be "analyzed and dealt with" when his church's governing synod meets July 8-9.
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PEOPLE
Russert remembered for his fondness for church, faithfulness
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- NBC News Washington bureau chief and "Meet the Press" moderator Tim Russert, who died June 13 at the age of 58, was remembered for his warm lifelong ties to the Catholic Church and his support for Catholic education as well as for his career covering politics. Russert collapsed of an apparent heart attack at work. An active Catholic who apparently kept a promise to God to never miss Sunday Mass if his son was born healthy, Russert spoke often and fondly of his Catholic school education and of the role of the church in his life. "Americans valued his tremendous command of the political electoral process and his commitment to discovering each aspect of the story that contributed to people having a better awareness of the issues of public life and candidates for political office," said Archbishop George H. Niederauer of San Francisco, chairman of the U.S. bishops' communications committee, who was attending the U.S. bishops' spring meeting in Orlando, Fla. "But those of us who shared his Catholic faith and his deep love for it appreciate his sharing of the story of his own faith and his loyalty to the life of the Catholic Church in this country and the many charities to which he contributed his time and talent," the archbishop told Catholic News Service.
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Bishops accept invitations to attend opening ceremony of Olympics
HONG KONG (CNS) -- One Anglican and two Catholic bishops from Hong Kong and Macau have accepted invitations from the Chinese government to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games Aug. 8. Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun of Hong Kong told the Asian church news agency UCA News in early June that Coadjutor Bishop John Tong Hon was invited from the diocese, but that he was not. Bishop Tong was quoted in the June 15 issue of the Hong Kong diocesan English weekly, the Sunday Examiner, as saying that Cardinal Zen had given his blessing for the two-day trip after consulting the Vatican. On June 4, Bishop Jose Lai Hung-seng of Macau confirmed with UCA News that he, too, had received an invitation to the opening ceremony. He said he would represent the Catholic Church in Macau and join a Macau government delegation and other religious leaders at the ceremony. Anglican Archbishop Paul Kwong of Hong Kong also will attend the opening ceremony, his secretary confirmed to UCA News June 12.
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Retired law school dean, widowed grandfather, ordained to priesthood
GARY, Ind. (CNS) -- A 71-year-old retired law school dean and widowed grandfather became one of three newly ordained priests June 7 in the Diocese of Gary. "I'm at the highest point I could ever be," said Father David T. Link, on the day of his ordination at Holy Angels Cathedral in Gary. "I know the Holy Spirit and my wife, Barbara, are here with me." On what the bishop of Gary called a "day of great joy and jubilation" for his diocese, the prelate introduced the region's three newest priests, Fathers Link, Michael "Mick" Kopil and Richard "Rick" Holy. As Bishop Dale J. Melczek noted in his homily, their priestly ordination is "both a manifestation of God's great love and care for the church of Gary and, at the same time, a manifestation of God's love and confidence in them." A father of five and grandfather of 13, Father Link is dean emeritus of the University of Notre Dame Law School. His wife of 45 years died in 2003. A man who spent much of his life training future attorneys, Father Link became interested in ministry through his work at Indiana State Prison in Michigan City.
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