VOLUME 1, ISSUE 34  •  AUGUST 22, 2015

Table of Contents

Copyright Notice

VATICAN NEWS

For Pope Francis, Mary’s greatness comes down to this one virtue

Pope Francis: Let yourself be transformed by the Eucharist

Pope Francis mourns death of Hungarian Cardinal Laszlo Paskai

Pope Francis assures his prayers, solidarity after deadly Bangkok attacks

When it comes to work, don’t feed off the backs of others, Pope says

Our limits remind us that we are made for great things – Pope Francis

Eleven cardinals join forces to tackle marriage prep, family issues in pre-synod book

Exclusive: Swiss Catholic money targets African bishops ahead of Synod

WORLD NEWS

Shortages in Venezuela mean priests are running out of Hosts

The dark road to decriminalization: Why tolerating prostitution is dangerous

U.N. development goals for ‘reproductive health’ likely to increase abortions worldwide

Why is Christianity growing so quickly in mainland China?

Greece tour brings Saint Paul’s ministry to life for priests

This cardinal sees no reason to expect the Family Synod to be outside Church teaching

Dozens of new grads join the ranks of Kenya’s Catholic nurses

How a Jesuit school in Nepal is helping earthquake survivors manage trauma

Islamic State destroys ancient Catholic monastery in Syria

U.S. NEWS

Knights celebrate life of founder 125 years after his death

Killing sick people is not compassionate, New Mexico bishops affirm

A gruesome accident, a powerful faith – one Catholic couple’s story

The role of friendship in helping young people with same-sex attraction

Despite Iran deal proposal, American pastor remains imprisoned

Here’s how one Catholic congressman is prepping for the Pope’s U.S. visit

EWTN forms new publishing group with Sophia Institute Press

Incest, suicide, and murder: What we can expect from Tolkien’s dark new story

Is Planned Parenthood ‘aborting’ babies after birth?

Elderly woman brutally attacked in Church responds with forgiveness

The bizarre tale of 5,000 relics finding a home in a Pittsburgh chapel

The rise of millennial Catholic artists – and here’s a chat with one of them

Grassroots discernment program announced as Philly priestly vocations soar

Little Sisters get temporary relief while Supreme Court mulls taking case

FEATURES

Catholic Education I: Jesus the Teacher

Science and religion are partners, not antagonists

SCRIPTURE READINGS

Sunday • August 23, 2015

Monday • August 24, 2015

Tuesday • August 25, 2015

Wednesday • August 26, 2015

Thursday • August 27, 2015

Friday • August 28, 2015

Saturday • August 29, 2015

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VATICAN NEWS

For Pope Francis, Mary’s greatness comes down to this one virtue

by Elise Harris (CNA/EWTN News) • August 15, 2015

Pope Francis prays before a statue of Mary in St. Peter’s Basilica on Nov. 30, 2013. (Lauren Cater/CNA)

Vatican City — On the feast of the Assumption of Mary, Pope Francis said that faith is the defining virtue of her greatness and that the mysterious way she was taken into heaven is a foreshadowing of what awaits each of us.

“The Gospel also shows us the truest reason for Mary’s greatness and her blessedness: it is faith,” the Pope told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square for his Aug. 15 Angelus address, marking the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary.

Faith, he said, “is the heart of Mary’s entire story; she knew - and she said it - that throughout history weighs the violence of the overbearing, the pride of the rich, the arrogance of the proud.”

Yet she still believed and proclaimed “that God does not leave his children alone, humble and poor, but sustains them with merciful care, casting down the mighty from their thrones, scattering the proud in the conceit of their hearts.”

Dogmatically defined in 1950, the assumption of the Virgin Mary’s body into heaven is celebrated Aug. 15 every year, and is one of the most important Marian feast days in the Catholic Church.

In his address, Pope Francis turned to the day’s Gospel reading from Luke, which recounts Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth shortly after conceiving Jesus through the Holy Spirit.

He recalled Elizabeth’s greeting to Mary: “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”

“This is the faith of our mother, this is the faith of Mary!” he said.

Francis pointed to the famous canticle Mary uttered in response, called the “Magnificat,” in which she praises God for the marvelous deeds he has done both in her own life and throughout history.

In this prayer Mary expresses her joy, because she is fully aware of what all the great works in her life at that point mean, namely that through her the Lord will accomplish the salvation her people have long been waiting for, the Pope said.

The prayer also shows us the full meaning of Mary’s life, he added, explaining that “if the mercy of the Lord is the engine of her story (then) she who bore the Lord of life (could not be touched by) the corruption of the tomb.”

Francis continued, saying that the message of Mary’s assumption isn’t limited to just her life, but serves as a reminder for each person of what is to come.

“The great things done in (Mary) by the Omnipotent One touch us deeply, they speak to us of our journey in life, they remind us of the end that awaits us: the house of the Father.”

Because of Mary’s assumption into heaven, we see that life “is not a senseless wandering, but a pilgrimage which, with all of the sufferings and uncertainties, has a sure destination” where the Father awaits us with love, he said.

However, until that destination is reached, God has given his people a sign of consolation and hope for the journey, the Pope said.

And that sign “has a face and a name: the luminous face of the Mother of God, the holy name of Mary, full of grace, blessed because she believed in the word of the Lord.”

Each member of the Church is also destined to share in the glory of Mary, their mother, because we also believe in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and, through baptism, have entered into the mystery of salvation, Francis said.

The Pope concluded by asking for Mary’s intercession, so that “while winding our way on this earth, she turn her merciful eyes upon us.”

After leading pilgrims in the traditional Marian prayer, Pope Francis turned his thoughts to all those affected by Wednesday’s chemical explosions in Tianjin, China.

Tearing through an industrial area where toxic chemicals and gas had been stored, the Aug. 12 explosions were large enough to be picked up by space satellites, and have so far left 85 dead and more than 700 injured, according to reports.

“I assure my prayers for those who have lost their lives, and for all those suffering from this disaster; may the Lord give relief to them and support those committed to alleviating their suffering.”

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VATICAN NEWS

Pope Francis: Let yourself be transformed by the Eucharist

by Elise Harris (CNA/EWTN News) • August 16, 2015

Pope Francis celebrates Mass for the Canonization of St. John Paul II and St. John XXIII on April 25, 2014. (Stephan Driscoll/CNA)

Vatican City — On Sunday Pope Francis said that the Eucharist is no mere symbol, but is in fact the true body and blood of Jesus Christ, which has the ability to transform our hearts and minds to be more like him.

“The Eucharist is Jesus who gives himself entirely to us. To nourish ourselves with him and abide in him through Holy Communion, if we do it with faith, transforms our life into a gift to God and to our brothers,” the Pope said Aug. 16.

To let ourselves be nourished by the “Bread of Life,” he said, “means to be in tune with the heart of Christ, to assimilate his choices, thoughts, behaviors.”

It also means that we enter into “a dynamism of sacrificial love and become persons of peace, forgiveness, reconciliation and sharing in solidarity,” he added.

Pope Francis spoke to pilgrims who gathered in a rainy St. Peter’s Square for his Aug. 16 Sunday Angelus address.

In his speech the Pope turned to the day’s Gospel reading from John Chapter 6, which recounted the last part of the “Bread of Life” discourse, and in which Jesus tells his disciples that “whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.”

Francis noted the shock and astonishment of the crowd when they heard Jesus say this, and explained that such a reaction is understandable given the provocative nature of the Lord’s statement.

With a style mirroring that used by many of the prophets, Jesus gives the people a strong image in order to stir up questions, and ultimately a decision, within them and us, he said.

Above all arise the questions “what does to ‘eat the flesh and drink the blood’ of Jesus mean? Is it only an image, a symbol, or does he mean something real?” the Pope said.

In order to respond, Francis continued, we have to look at what happened in Jesus’ own heart when he broke the loaves to feed the five thousand.

“Knowing that he will die on the the cross for us, Jesus identifies himself with that bread, broken and shared, and it becomes for him the sign of the sacrifice that awaits him.”

This process culminates in the Last Supper, when the bread and wine actually become Jesus’ Body and Blood, the Pope said, explaining that when he gives us the Eucharist, Jesus does it with a purpose: “that we may become one with him.”

Communion, he said, “is assimilation: eating him, we become like him. But this requires our ‘yes,’ our adhesion of faith.”

Pope Francis then noted how some might question the purpose of attending Mass, going only when they feel like it with the excuse that they pray better alone.

In response, Francis stressed that the Eucharist “s not a private prayer or a beautiful spiritual experience, it’s not simply a commemoration of what Jesus did in the Last Supper.”

Rather, it is a “memorial, namely, a gesture that actualizes and makes present the event of the death and resurrection of Jesus: the bread is truly his Body given, the wine is truly is Blood poured out.”

To live in concrete communion with Jesus through the Eucharist while on earth is already the beginning of our passing from death to life, he said.

By doing this “we close our eyes to this world in the certainty that on the last day we will hear the voice of Jesus Risen who will call us, and we will awaken to always be with him and with the great family of saints,” the Pope concluded.

He prayed for Mary’s intercession in helping us to always be faithful to Jesus before leading attendees in the Angelus. Afterward, he greeted pilgrims present from around the world, and asked to be remembered in their prayers.

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VATICAN NEWS

Pope Francis mourns death of Hungarian Cardinal Laszlo Paskai

by Elise Harris (CNA/EWTN News) • August 18, 2015

Cardinal Laszlo Paskai. (Gabor Bejo/Wikicommons)

Vatican City — In a letter of condolence Pope Francis has offered his comfort and prayer to the Church of Hungary following the recent death of Cardinal Laszlo Paskai, archbishop emeritus of Budapest.

“I was saddened to learn the news of the death of His Eminence Cardinal Laszlo Paskai, OFM,” the Pope said in an Aug. 18 letter, written in English and addressed to the current archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, Cardinal Peter Erdo.

“I offer prayerful condolences to you, the clergy, men and women religious and lay faithful of the Archdiocese of Esztergom-Budapest, and I thank Almighty God for his many years of service to the Church in Hungary.”

Francis commended the late cardinal’s soul to the merciful love of the Father and assured his spiritual unity with all those attending the upcoming funeral rites.

“I impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of consolation and peace in the Lord.”

The late Cardinal Laszlo Paskai passed away yesterday at the age of 88. Born May 8, 1928 in Szeged, he was ordained a priest May 3, 1951 in the Order of Friars Minor, more commonly knowns as the Franciscans.

His parents were of Jewish decent, and although they had converted to Catholicism, they were killed in the Holocaust.

Bl. Pope Paul VI named him apostolic administrator of Veszprem March 2, 1978, and he was ordained bishop March 31, 1979.

In 1982 Pope St. John Paul II named him coadjutor archbishop of Kalocsa, and just five years after, on May 3, 1987, he was tapped to lead the Archdiocese of Esztergom Budapest, holding the title of Primate of Hungary.

St. John Paul II elevated him to the cardinalate in June 1988, assigning him to the titular see of the Santa Teresa al Corso d’Italia in Rome.

Cardinal Paskai retired from his pastoral governance of Esztergom Budapest in December 2002. Although he no longer held active pastoral responsibilities, the cardinal participated in the 2005 conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI.

The cardinal’s funeral will be held Aug. 21 in Budapest. With his death, the College of Cardinals now consists of 219 members; 120 under the age of 80 and therefore eligible to vote in the next conclave, and 99 of non-voting age.

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VATICAN NEWS

Pope Francis assures his prayers, solidarity after deadly Bangkok attacks

by Elise Harris (CNA/EWTN News) • August 19, 2015

Pope Francis prays with journalists on the papal flight en route to South Korea on Aug. 14, 2014. (Alan Holdren/CNA)

Vatican City — After two bombings this week in the Thai capital of Bangkok left several dead, injured and fearful of other attacks, Pope Francis offered his condolences and prayers to the victims and their families.

“His Holiness Pope Francis was deeply saddened to learn of the injury and loss of life caused by the attack at the Erawan Hindu Shrine and of the threat to life and property caused by the bombing at the Sathorn Pier,” said an Aug. 19 letter, signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Addressed to the king of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej, the letter expressed the Pope’s “heartfelt solidarity” both with the king and all those affected by the violent acts.

“Mindful of the security and emergency personnel who are seeking the perpetrators of these crimes, while also assisting the injured, their families and those of the deceased, His Holiness offers the assurance of his prayers and invokes the divine blessings of peace and healing upon the Kingdom.”

On Monday evening around 7p.m. local time what police have identified as a pipe bomb exploded at Bangkok’s Erawan Hindu Shrine. It sits near a busy intersection, and it was in the middle rush hour when the bomb went off, according to the Guardian.

In the deadliest attack Thailand has seen in years, the blast has so far killed at least 22 and left 123 others injured.

According to the BBC, although of the victims of Monday’s attack were mostly Thai, foreigners from China, Hong Kong, the UK, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore were also numbered among those killed.

A second pipe bomb went off at Bangkok’s Sathorn Pier Tuesday, however the device landed in the water, doing no damage.

It is believed that the aggressor had intended to thrown the bomb onto the busy walking platform leading to the pier, but missed. Instead, the device bounced off a post and landed in the Sathorn canal, where it detonated harmlessly in the water.

So far no one has claimed responsibility for either of the attacks, however police believe they could be related, and have released a sketch of the man they think could be responsible for Monday’s blast, the BBC reports.

The image is of a man in a yellow shirt caught on camera sitting on a bench and taking off a large, black backpack inside the shrine before standing up and walking away without it.

Local authorities have said they believe the bomber may have accomplices and are offering a 1 million baht ($28,100) reward for anyone able to provide information leading to the man’s arrest.

According to the Guardian, the attacks are a test for Thailand’s military-run administration, who ousted the former, elected government in May 2014. The military has been fighting a Muslim insurgency in the south, however it is rare that the militants launch attacks of this scale in the capital.

Bangkok’s last major bombing took place New Year’s Eve at the close of 2006, when three people were killed in a series of explosions.

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VATICAN NEWS

When it comes to work, don’t feed off the backs of others, Pope says

by Elise Harris (CNA/EWTN News) • August 19, 2015

Pope Francis greets a newly married couple at general audience in Paul VI Hall on Aug. 19, 2015. (Bohumil Petrik/CNA)

Vatican City — Pope Francis said Wednesday that work is something sacred, and called out those who abuse it by either contributing to the unemployment crisis, or refusing to work in order to feed off the system.

“Work is precisely from the human being. It expresses his dignity of being created in the image of God. Therefore it is said that work is sacred,” the Pope said Aug. 19.

Because of this, he added, managing employment “is a great human and social responsibility which can’t be left in the hands of the few, or discharged to a divinized market.”

The Pope spoke to pilgrims present in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall for his Wednesday general audience. His comments are part of his continued series of catechesis on the family.

After announcing last week that he would shift his focus to the different rhythms of family life, such as celebration, work and prayer, Francis today turned to the topic of work.

“Through work, the family is cared for and children are provided with a dignified life. So too the common good is served, as witnessed by the example of so many fathers and mothers who teach their children the value of work for family life and society,” he said.

Francis noted how in the bible the Holy Family appears as a family of workers, and Jesus himself was referred to as “the son of a carpenter” and even “the carpenter.”

He criticized the lifestyle of those who refuse to work, choosing instead to live off others.

Even St. Paul, in his second letter to the Thessalonians, doesn’t hesitate to admonish the Christians who espouse this attitude when he tells them that “whoever doesn’t want to work, doesn’t eat,” Francis observed.

Although this might be “a nice recipe to lose weight,” what St. Paul refers to is the “false spiritualism of some who live off the backs of their brothers and sisters without doing anything,” the Pope said.

However, on the other hand he said that because work is something sacred, managing it within civil society is a major responsibility, and “to cause a loss of jobs is to cause a serious social harm.”

The Pope told attendees that he is always sad when he sees a person who lacks work and the dignity of bringing bread home to their family.

But “it gives me joy when I see that the governments make a lot of effort to find places of work and ensure that everyone has work,” he said, and encouraged those present to pray that no family suffer from unemployment.

Francis cautioned against placing the management of employment “at the mercy a logic of profit or a deified market.”

Modern organizations at times have the “dangerous tendency” to consider the family as a burden or a liability for productivity, he said, and questioned what is being produced and for whom.

He pointed to the “so-called ‘smart-cities’” who, although they boast of having a wide variety of different services and organizations, are frequently hostile to children and the elderly at the same time.

The family “is a great testing ground,” he said. When work organizations take the family “hostage, even obstructing their path, then we are sure that human society has begun to work against itself!”

As a result civil life and the natural environment also end up corrupted, he said. This “contamination of the soul affects everything: even the air, water, grass and food.”

He quoted the Book of Genesis, recalling how when God made the heavens and the earth “not a plant of the field was on the land, no herb of the field had yet sprung up – the Lord God had not sent the rain on the earth and no one had tilled the soil and made rise the water of the canals for irrigation.”

Man’s role in caring for creation “isn’t romanticism, it’s God’s revelation,” the Pope said, adding that man has the responsibility to both understand creation and cultivate it fully.

Francis then referred to the integral ecology proposed in his recent encyclical on the environment “Laudato Si,” which he said offers the message that “the beauty of the earth and the dignity of work are made to be joined.”

“The land becomes beautiful when it is worked by man. They go together,” he said.

Pope Francis then turned to the balance between work and spiritual life. He said that the two are not opposed, but rather go hand in hand, since work expresses the dignity of the human person, created in God’s image.

“Prayer and work can and should go together in harmony … the lack of work also damages the spirit, just as the lack of prayer damages every practical activity.”

However, when work deviates from God’s covenant with man and fails to respect his spiritual qualities, the Pope said, it becomes “a hostage of the profit-only logic” and despises life’s affections, producing negative consequences that hit families and the poor particularly hard.

Part of the challenging mission God has given to Christian families is to present the basic elements the creation of man was founded on, Francis continued.

Among these foundations, he said, are a true understanding of “the identity of man and woman and the bond they share, their call to bring children into the world, and the gift of work in making the world ever more fruitful and hospitable.”

“The loss of these fundamental elements is a very serious matter, and in the common home there are already too many cracks!” he said, explaining that the task of promoting these truths isn’t easy.

Pope Francis concluded his address by asking Mary to intercede for all families, particularly those who suffering due to unemployment and the current economic crisis, and that she help them to fulfill their mission in the Church and in the world.

“May Jesus Christ strengthen you and your families in faith, so that you may be a sign to the world of his love and mercy,” he prayed.

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VATICAN NEWS

Our limits remind us that we are made for great things – Pope Francis

by CNA/EWTN News • August 20, 2015

Pilgrims reaching out for Pope Francis at the Wednesday general audience in Paul VI Hall on Aug. 5, 2015. (L’Osservatore Romano)

Vatican City — In a message sent on behalf of Pope Francis to the Rimini Meeting, an annual gathering organized by the lay movement Communion and Liberation, Cardinal Pietro Parolin said humanity’s limitations point to the greatness to which we are called.

“Life is not an absurd desire, lack is not a sign that we were born ‘wrongly’, but on the contrary is the bell which alerts us that our nature is made for great things,” the Vatican Secretary of State wrote Aug. 17.

This is the 36th annual Meeting for the Friendship Amongst Peoples, held in Rimini. The Aug. 20-26 event gathers people from the world over for cultural encounter, panel discussions, art exhibits, and musical presentations.

This year’s meeting is themed “What is this lack a lack of, o heart, of which all of a sudden you are full?” a line from the 20th century Italian poet Mario Luzi.

The theme “puts the accent on the ‘heart’ that is in each of us, and which St. Augustine has described as a ‘restless heart’, which is never content and seeks that which lives up to its expectation. It is a search which is expressed in questions about the meaning of life and of death, about love, about work, about justice, and about happiness,” Cardinal Parolin wrote in his message to the event’s participants.

“But to be worthy of finding an answer one must consider in a serious way one’s own humanity, always cultivating this healthy restlessness,” he urged.

Cardinal Parolin wrote that contemporary society offers “so many partial answers, which offer only ‘infinite falsehoods’ and which produce a strange anesthesia” which results in lack of the “courage, strength, or seriousness” needed “to express the decisive questions” of life.

“None of us can initiate a dialogue about God, if we do not succeed in feeding the smoking lamp which burns in the heart,” he maintained.

The first step in the task of Christians is “to reawaken the meaning of the lack of which the heart is full and that frequently lies beneath the weight of fatigue and dashed hopes. But ‘the heart’ is, and is always seeking.”

“The drama of today consists in the perilous danger of the negation of the identity and the dignity of the human person. A worrying ideological colonization reduces the perception of the authentic needs of the heart to offer limited answers which do not consider the magnitude of the search for love, truth, beauty, justice that is in each of us. We are all children of this time and we suffer the influence of a mentality which offers new values and opportunities, but which can also condition, limit, and spoil the heart with alienating proposals that extinguish the thirst for God.”

Cardinal Parolin noted that the human heart is restless because it is open to the inifite, and asks questions that no-one can escape: “Why do we have to suffer and, in the end, die? Why is there evil and contradiction? Is life worth living? Can one still hope before the prospect of a “Third World War fought in pieces” and with so many brothers persecuted and killed because of their faith? Does it still make sense to love, to work, to sacrifice and to commit oneself? To what end is my life going, and the lives of the people I never want to lose? What must we do in the world?”

“These are questions which arise in all, youth and adults, believers and non-believers. Sooner or later, at least once in their life, becaue of a trial or a joyous event, reflecting on the future of one’s children or the utility of one’s work, each one finds himself in need of dealing with one or more of these questions. Even the most callous are not able to eradicate them entirely from their existence.”

Commenting that human desire is a sign of capacity for greatness, he quoted the founder of Communion and Liberation, Msgr. Luigi Giussani: “human needs constitute the reference, the implicit affirmation of an ultimate answer that is beyond the existential modalities that can be experienced” and that the myth of Odysseus demonstrates “the nostalgia that can find satisfaction only in an infinite reality.”

In answer to the inifinite capacity of the human heart, “God, the infinite Mystery, bent down to our nothingness … and offered the answer that all await without realizing it.”

“Only the initiative of God the creator can fulful the measure of the heart,” Cardinal Paroline said, “and he has come to encounter us, to let himself be found by us, as is a friend. And so we can rest even in a stormy sea, because we are certain of his presence.”

The theme of this year’s Rimini Meeting, he said, “can cooperate in an essential task of the Church, that is, not to agree that someone be content with little, but that one can say fully: ‘it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me’ because Jesus’ ‘is the message capable of responding to the desire for the infinite which abides in every human heart,’” quoting Pope Francis’ 2013 apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium.

God’s love is “the contribution which the Christian faith offers to all,” the cardinal wrote, adding that the Rimini encounter can witness to this through the lives of its participants.

“Therefore the Holy Father hopes that the organizers and volunteers of the Meeting will go out to encounter all, supported by the desire to propose with strength, beauty, and simplicity the good news of the love of God, which also today bends over our lack to fill it with the water of life which flows from the risen Jesus.”

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VATICAN NEWS

Eleven cardinals join forces to tackle marriage prep, family issues in pre-synod book

by CNA’s Vatican Observer, Andrea Gagliarducci (CNA/EWTN News) • August 20, 2015

Participants begin to enter the Vatican’s Synod Hall before the Friday session of the Synod on the Family, Oct. 10, 2014. (Daniel Ibáñez/CNA)

Vatican City — With the Synod of Bishops rapidly approaching, 11 cardinals have contributed to a small but important book offering a pastoral perspective of the issues at stake, while reaffirming the truth of the Gospel on family and marriage issues.

The book is titled “Eleven cardinals speak on marriage and family,” and will be published in English by Ignatius Press. An Italian edition will also be published.

It is curated by Fr. Winfried Aymans, a German canon law professor and expert. It includes contributions by Cardinal Carlo Caffarra of Bologna; Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India; Cardinal Paul Joseph Cordes, president emeritus of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum; Cardinal Dominik Duka of Prague; Cardinal Willem Jacobus Eijk of Utrectht; Cardinal Joachim Meisner, archbishop emeritus of Cologne; Cardinal John Onaiyekan of Abuja; Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, archbishop emeritus of Madrid; Cardinal Camillo Ruini, Pope’s General Vicar emeritus for the diocese of Rome; Cardinal Robert Sarah, prefect of the Congregation for the Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments; and Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino of Caracas.

The book will be out just a few days before of the upcoming Synod of Bishops in October and will likely be part of the discussion at the synod.

Scheduled for October, the synod will gather bishops from around the world at the Vatican. They will discuss a wide range of matters dealing with family life, building upon last fall’s meeting on the same topic.

Rather than offering a rebuttal of any arguments presented at last year’s Synod on the Family, the book is instead aimed at giving a pastoral point-of-view of the issues at stake.

While most of the discussion has been focused on homosexual couples and access to communion for divorced and remarried Catholics, the 11 cardinals will likely try to show that there is in fact a more in-depth problem, which deals above all with education of Catholic principles.

In the words of publisher Ignatius Press: in preparation for the Synod of Bishops, “11 Cardinals from around the world have written powerful essays on some of the problems to be discussed: the challenge of providing adequate marriage preparation in a secularized world; the need for evangelization and conversion; the relationship between charity and truth; the situation of divorced and civilly remarried Catholics; and the demands of authentic pastoral care.”

On May 25, leaders of the German, French and Swiss bishops, theologians and select journalists met at an unannounced meeting at the Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The meeting included theological reflection and a discussion of goals for the Synod on the Family.

Critics of the meeting dubbed it a “shadow council.” Some of the speakers advocated changing Catholic teaching on contraception, homosexual acts, and communion for the divorced and civilly remarried.

In contrast, the authors of the new book “understand that doctrine and pastoral ministry are not opposed to one another,” according to Ignatius Press.

“They carefully steer a wise and merciful course that engages genuine concerns, while avoiding false compassion, which compromises both truth and authentic love.”

The contribution of the 11 cardinals cannot be ignored, and will be part of an intense discussion as the synod approaches.

Another Symposium on “Faithful voices, discerning hearts: marriage and family in the Church and society” will be organized in Rome Sep. 10-12.

The upcoming book has also been described as a sort of follow-up to the book “Remaining in the Truth of Christ. Marriage and communion in the Catholic Church.” The book collected the contributions of five cardinals, and was a response to Cardinal Walter Kasper’s opening address at the February 2014 consistory, when he called for the Church to open its doors to allow divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the Eucharist.

More than a rebuttal of Cardinal Kasper’s thesis, the “11 cardinals’ book” will try to respond to pastoral questions, though theology will obviously be at the roots of any pastoral response. Among the questions the cardinals will address: How can we better accompany those who had been abandoned by their spouse and remain faithful to the marriage? How can the preparation for marriage more effectively address the situation of young people who have had poor catechesis and have been strongly influenced by the secularist culture?

The tone of the discussion could be hinted at in an article Fr. Aymans wrote in a June 9 article for Vatican newspaper ‘L’Osservatore Romano.’ In the article, Fr. Aymans raised the issues of the “theological understanding of marriage,” and that of the “importance of faith in order to establish if a marriage is null or not.

Fr. Aymans wrote that “in a moment when the civil right is always going to leave the matrimonial contract to an increasing free will, the Church must be even clearer” in the announcement of the Gospel of marriage.

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VATICAN NEWS

Exclusive: Swiss Catholic money targets African bishops ahead of Synod

by Kevin Jones (CNA/EWTN News) • August 21, 2015

Swiss francs. (Marcel Grieder via Flickr)

Washington, D.C. — The Swiss Catholic Lenten Fund and a major U.S. foundation have helped fund an LGBT activist project intended to counter West African bishops at the Catholic Church’s Synod on the Family.

The Netherlands-based European Forum of LGBT Christian Groups originally planned to make a documentary film of self-identified LGBT Catholics in Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria and Cameroon.

“Reacting to the extremely negative influence from bishops from Western Africa on the final document of the Family Synod 14, we found it important to bring the voices of LGBT Catholics from this region to broader attention,” the European Forum said in its 2014-2015 activity report.

The forum’s activities report said the project was funded by the Swiss Catholic Lenten Fund Fastenopfer and the Arcus Foundation. The wealthy U.S.-based foundation has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to LGBT activist groups to target the synod.

But Fastenopfer is a Catholic development organization. It traditionally raises its funds during Lenten almsgiving. Its Italian-language name is Sacrificio Quaresimale, which means “Lenten Sacrifice.”

Bishop Felix Gmur of Basel, Switzerland is president of the Lenten fund’s foundation council, which oversees the NGO’s directors group. Two of the nine members of the foundation council are named by the Conference of Swiss Bishops, with the rest being named by a separate body.

Michael Brinkschroeder, who until this year was co-president of the European Forum of LGBT Catholic Groups, said that Fastenopfer’s support was in the form of a small project grant. He told CNA Aug. 10 that the grant was under 15,000 Swiss Francs (about $15,300) and was approved by the fund’s executive director. The grant did not have to be approved by the foundation council or its president, Bishop Gmur.

Romana Buchel of Fastenopfer told CNA Aug. 7 that the film project did not take place as planned because the filmmaker “suddenly had fear of flight” and left the plane at a transit stop. She said the interviews were collected from “afflicted people, from collaborators.”

She said the material “will be used for written works of sensibilization (sic) regarding the second Synod of the Family.”

The European Forum’s activity report similarly noted the filmmaker’s health problems. It said that due to a funding shortfall, the project’s interviewer could not reach Cameroon.

Instead, the project took the form of a written report based on interviews, to be included in a book.

The European Forum aims to publish the book under the name of a new global group of LGBT activists, the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics, whose creation was announced in June. This book will include “other important documents” and lectures from a conference held in Rome last year before the Extraordinary Synod on the Family. It will be published in Italian in print form and in English as an e-book before October 2015.

The Catholic Church’s Extraordinary Synod on the Family, held in October 2014 to prepare for the October 2015 synod, was marked by a significant split between African bishops and a primarily European faction of bishops. Controversial issues included how the synod should address church ministry to homosexuals.

On May 25, leaders of the German, French and Swiss bishops, theologians and select journalists met at an unannounced meeting at the Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The meeting included theological reflection and a discussion of goals for the Synod on the Family. Some of the speakers advocated changing Catholic teaching on contraception, homosexual acts, and communion for the divorced and civilly remarried.

Critics of the meeting dubbed it a “shadow council.” Bishop Gmur was one of the three Swiss bishops reportedly at the meeting.

CNA contacted the Diocese of Basel for comment but did not receive a response by deadline.

The European Forum activity report does not say how much the Arcus Foundation gave to support the European Forum’s video project. However, the report notes a $134,000 Arcus grant from 2013 to combat “religion-based homophobia in Europe” and to help the forum improve its ability to mobilize as “the main faith-based LGBT advocate in the region.”

The activity report said the forum will draft, test and use “a counter-narrative to traditional values and gender ideology” in various faith contexts from 2014-2016, with a special focus on “advocacy opportunities” like the 2015 synod, the Pan-Orthodox Synod in 2016, and efforts in the World Council of Churches.

The Arcus Foundation’s grant listings also show a $262,500 grant in 2015 to assist the European Forum’s response to “anti-LGBT opposition.” The foundation’s Jan. 20 grant announcement said the forum intended to use the grant to “pursue its successful strategy of shifting traditional views” and “responding to homophobic Catholic Church family synod decisions.”

Brinkschroeder told CNA that the European Forum had the impression that several African Catholic bishops and bishop conferences had not been willing to fulfill what he characterized as “their Christian duty to avoid signs in support of such unjust and violent discriminations and to protect the dignity of every human person.”

He objected to bishops’ support for increased penalties in Nigeria and Cameroon’s laws against homosexual behavior, some of which criminalize attempts to enter a same-sex marriage or displays of public affection between same-sex couples.

Brinkschroeder said that the purpose of the project was “not to blame any specific bishop” but to bring attention to the experiences of Catholic LGBT people from the region he said are usually ignored and suffer “severe discrimination and violations of their rights.”

Brinkschroeder and his organization were highly critical of the 2014 synod’s final document.

In an October 22, 2014 statement, Brinkschroeder characterized the synod outcome as “a disaster for gays and lesbians.” The European Forum criticized the final document for removing a “positive evaluation” of same-sex couples and the treatment of children they might raise. The forum also criticized the final document’s paragraph rejecting the use of international aid to force poor countries to recognize same-sex “marriage.”

The Global Network of Rainbow Catholics’ first official assembly, titled “LGBT Voices to the Synod,” will take place Oct. 1-4 in Rome. It will also hold a public conference, titled “Ways of Love,” to promote what it considers best practices for Catholic LGBT ministry.

Last year the European Forum of LGBT Christian Groups sponsored the October 2014 “Ways of Love” conference in Rome. The conference’s keynote speaker was the controversial retired auxiliary bishop Geoffrey Robinson of Sydney, whose book was rebuked by Australia’s Catholic bishops for doctrinal problems.

The 2014 conference had financial support from the Netherlands Ministry of Education, Science and Culture. The Dutch government and the Arcus Foundation are partners of the U.S. State Department’s Global Equality Fund, which is helping promote LGBT activism around the world. The 2014 conference’s organizing committee included representatives of the U.S. dissenting Catholic groups New Ways Ministry and Dignity USA, which have received $200,000 in Arcus backing to conduct synod-related advocacy.

Recently, the two American groups called for same-sex “marriage” to be recognized as a Catholic sacrament. The groups are part of the Equally Blessed Coalition, which is holding an LGBT advocacy event in September to coincide with the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, when Pope Francis will visit the U.S.

The European Forum has also received funding from the businessman George Soros’ Open Society Institute. The forum took part in an Open Society institute conference in Barcelona in September 2014 about reaching the “movable middle.” The forum contributed to conference sessions in partnership with the pro-abortion group Catholics for Choice and the European Parliamentary Forum for Population and Development, its activity report says.

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WORLD NEWS

Shortages in Venezuela mean priests are running out of Hosts

by CNA/EWTN News • August 15, 2015

Empty shelves in a Venezuelan market, March 2014. (The Photographer via Wikimedia CC0 1.0)

Caracas, Venezuela — Venezuela’s ongoing economic crisis has hit the Church in a unique way: the production of Hosts fell 60 percent during the past month, affecting three states in the South American country.

Giovanni Luisio Mass, prior of the Order of Poor Knights of Christ of the Temple of Jerusalem, explained to local media that the shortage of unleavened wheat flour needed to make Hosts has been acute for a month now.

According to Caracol TV, the monthly production of Hosts has dropped from 80,000 to 30,000. This drop, Mass indicated, has affected every parish in three Venezuelan states. He added that they can only send 1,500 Hosts to the parishes in the north of the country, because there is no longer enough flour to make the 8,000 they have always needed.

Several parishes, along with the local communities, have organized to search for the wheat flour needed for the Hosts.

Venezuela is dealing with shortages including food, toilet paper, medicines, auto parts, chocolate, oil, and clothes irons. According to the Central Bank of Venezuela, food prices went up 92 percent last year, and during the last ten years inflation has risen 1,250 percent.

According to the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, since 2003 the Venezuelan government has imposed price controls on 165 products, including cooking oil, soap, milk, flour, cereals, toilet paper , cleaning products, detergent, diapers, toothpaste, and sugar. The local currency has plummeted in value.

As a result, price-controlled commodities are affordable, but disappear from shelves in no time, often to be resold on the black market at market rates. And the good that are not price-controlled, are unaffordable because of the devalued currency.

The government has also instituted policies to control sales, such as distributing tickets for the purpose of taking turns at the supermarkets, and placing digital fingerprint readers in the stores to prevent people from exceeding the allotted amount of products they could buy.

According to the BBC, every day Venezuelans have to form long lines at the supermarkets, but often they do not find the products they need and have to get in another line.

On average, a Venezuelan spends five hours a week shopping. The BBC quoted the Venezuelan polling company Datanálisis that said that in 80 percent of the supermarkets there is a shortage of basic goods. Consequently the black market, where the price is four times higher, has grown, and 65 percent of the people in lines outside the supermarkets are people who will resell what they buy.

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WORLD NEWS

The dark road to decriminalization: Why tolerating prostitution is dangerous

by Maggie Lawson (CNA/EWTN News) • August 16, 2015

(Georgie Pauwels via Flickr CC BY 2.0)

Washington, D.C. — In a controversial new policy move, global human rights organization Amnesty International has announced that they support the worldwide decriminalization of consensual prostitution and sex work.

While the group claims this will ultimately help women, a swarm of critics – scholars and celebrities alike – mobilized in quick and fierce opposition, arguing that bad far outweighs the good.

Announcing the development on August 11, secretary general Salil Shetty lauded the “historic day for Amnesty International,” while noting that the decision was not made “easily or quickly.”

This shift, according to Amnesty, marks a step towards an effort to regulate the sex industry more closely, aiming to lower the amount of exploitation and abuse that women who are involved in prostitution notoriously experience.

The new policy would also theoretically encourage better health care for women in prostitution and reduce the stigma involved with the industry.

Preceding Amnesty’s decision, the New York Times published a piece on the slippery slope of the sex industry – calling it a vague, gray area, especially when it comes to its decriminalization.

“Can we really draw a bright line between a person who has casual sex, in private, with various lovers, and a person who has sex in private, with various short-term and long-term lovers, from whom she accepts monetary support?” the piece asks, arguing that private, consensual acts – whatever they may be – have a right to be protected.

However, a slew of therapists, sex trafficking survivors, and celebrities have recently spoken out against the policy change to decriminalize a criminal business – saying that there is in fact a very bright line that should be drawn to keep prostitution on the criminal side.

“It’s a terrible idea,” said Tina Frundt, founder of Courtney’s House in Washington, D.C.

“This has been tried and failed – in the Netherlands, in Germany – they’ve closed down over 30 brothels because we are talking about a criminal industry that we are trying to legalize,” Frundt said.

“Criminals think like criminals. It’s a die-hard criminal business making millions,” she added.

Many brothels in Germany or Amsterdam obtain fake identification for minors and adult women who are forced over from other countries so that they can be sold in a legalized market, Frundt said.

For the underworld of prostitution, global decriminalization is the best thing that could happen.

Frundt herself is a survivor of child sex trafficking and founded Courtney’s House in 2008 to help women and children heal from domestic sex trafficking and commercial sex exploitation. She sees multiple people per day who have experienced trauma and wounds from the trafficking industry.

If prostitution is tolerated globally, especially within the United States, she believes the amount of people who seek help at Courtney’s House will double – simply because trauma comes with the territory.

Frundt is not alone in her stance against decriminalizing prostitution.

Candace Wheeler is a therapist with Restoration Ministries, an organization that aims to heal and help sex trafficking survivors. She believes that Amnesty’s new policy could have a dangerous effect.

“As a therapist, I don’t really see a difference between sex trafficking and prostitution,” Wheeler told CNA.

She said her main job is to heal the wounds that have been caused by the prostitution and trafficking industry. Although Wheeler recognizes the need for legal boundaries, she was skeptical about what decriminalizing sex work could result in.

“There has to be some kind of accountability,” she said, and pointed to Amsterdam’s tolerant policy for sex work within the country, asserting that their model just doesn’t work.

“What they have found (in Amsterdam) is that tolerance is not protecting women who are in prostitution there, because it’s mostly women who are trafficked from other countries, and they are realizing that their tolerance is a huge problem,” Wheeler said.

“If it’s decriminalized, then that just opens up the door for that kind of business. We could have established brothels and red light districts, and then crime comes with that, and drugs – and I am the person that gets to see them afterwards and try and heal them,” she said.

Celebrities such as Kate Winslet, Anne Hathaway, Chris Cooper, and Meryl Streep echoed this stance by signing a letter asking Amnesty to rethink their decision on decriminalizing an unregulated $99 billion global sex industry.

These celebrities are also joined by various survivors of the sex trade, who have experienced the “inescapable harms the sex trade inflicted,” as stated in the letter.

Medical professionals, gynecologists and mental health professionals have also asserted that regardless of how a woman ends up in the sex trade – consensual or not – their experience can lead to long term physical and psychological harm, and in some cases, death.

“Growing evidence shows the catastrophic effects of decriminalizing the sex trade,” the document reads, pointing to the German government who found that decriminalizing the sex industry did not make women safer or the industry more regulated.

Instead, it’s tolerance only increased the amount of human trafficking and expanded “legal brothels” within the country.

The signed letter also states that decriminalizing the industry will only transforms brothel owners into businessmen and women into “deals.” In addition, lifting the ban on prostitution will do nothing to separate the difference between the women who have a choice in the trade and the women who are forced into it – it will only give the industry a green light to continue forward.

“Amnesty’s reputation in upholding human rights for every individual would be severely and irreparably tarnished if it adopts a policy that sides with buyers of sex, pimps and other exploiters rather than with the exploited,” the letter read.

“By so voting, Amnesty would blow out its own candle.”

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WORLD NEWS

U.N. development goals for ‘reproductive health’ likely to increase abortions worldwide

by Matt Hadro (CNA/EWTN News) • August 17, 2015

U.N. flag outside the United Nations headquarters in New York. (United Nations photo via Flickr CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Washington, D.C. — The United Nations’ global development goals for the next 15 years still contain language that is all but certain to be used to increase access to abortion worldwide, say pro-life advocates.

“We are profoundly concerned,” Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) told CNA in an interview about the agenda. “This is being launched by the heads of state as a transformative document. And it’s supposed to be the agenda for the next 15 years, for the entire globe, including the United States. For the developing world and for the developed world.”

The Sustainable Development Goals are part of the United Nations’ comprehensive development plan for the next 15 years to fight poverty, end world hunger, fight human trafficking, and promote sustainable energy. They are a continuation of the original 15-year Millennium Development Goals set in 2000 to “reduce extreme poverty” worldwide.

The language for the goals was finalized Aug. 2 in an outcome document and will be voted on this September at the U.N. General Assembly – right around the time of Pope Francis’ address to the assembly on Sept. 25 in New York City.

The goals set a broad global development agenda, but are broken up into smaller targets to achieve this development. And it is here that the problematic language is hidden, pro-life advocates say, because while many of the outcome document’s goals are laudable – such as ending poverty and hunger – two specific targets could enable a massive expansion of abortion access worldwide.

Target 3.7 lies under the overall goal “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.”

The target states, “By 2030, ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes.”

Target 5.6 sits within the goal “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.”

The target states, “Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences.”

The language of the targets – “sexual and reproductive health-care services” and “sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights” – has been commonly acknowledged in the past to include abortion access.

Many U.N. agencies and Western donor countries, including the U.S., interpret the language to include abortion access, a former diplomat at the U.N. and a participant in numerous negotiations involving sexual and reproductive health language told CNA in June.

And even though the two programs mentioned in target 5.6 – the Beijing Platform for Action and the ICPD Programme of Action – limit the push for abortion access to remain within national laws and regulations, donors can still wield their influence here.

The donors will tie development funding to conditions that largely pro-life developing countries must liberalize their abortion laws, the former diplomat explained.

Other politicians and diplomats have conceded that the “sexual and reproductive health” language includes abortion access.

Back in 2001, at a preparatory committee meeting for the drafting of the U.N. document “A World Fit for Children,” the head of Canada’s permanent mission to the U.N. stated outright that the “services” for “reproductive health care” included abortions.

And in 2009, former U.N. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Smith at a congressional hearing that the United States’ definition of “reproductive health” does include abortion access.

The chief of staff for then-U.N. secretary general Kofi Annan told Smith in 2006 that the language does not include abortion, but only “after a very, very long pause,” the congressman recalled.

And regardless of what Western diplomats have already said, the biggest problem with the targets is the ambiguity of the text, Smith pointed out. Wealthy donor countries can easily interpret “reproductive health-care services” to include abortion. And poorer countries rely heavily on their development funding.

“To most of the world, especially the developing world, the U.S. is like a life-or-death situation for them,” Smith said. “If they have refugees, they need refugee money. And to the developing world, the U.N. is almost like another government, if not a major government, for them.”

Countries such as Liberia, which recently experienced a health care crisis with the spread of Ebola, are very dependent on foreign aid, Smith said.

“The funding is going to be such a pressure, because these are the countries that need the help to continue to reduce maternal mortality, child mortality,” explained Marie Smith, founder and director of the pro-life outreach group Parliamentary Network for Critical Issues.

Those countries objecting to the language – Malta and some African countries, including Nigeria – were ignored at the documents’ Open Working Group in 2014.

“It all really finalized last July [2014] with the Open Working Group,” Marie Smith said. “And after that time, Nigeria and a number of countries, even Malta, were objecting to ‘reproductive rights’. But the gavel was just brought down with over 20 countries still wanting to object and issue reservations.”

Those reservations did not stop when the outcome document was finalized on Aug. 2 and the language remained there, she added.

“This whole concept of the sustainable development goals and targets really do not have universal agreement. And the countries’ reservations really are not accounted for in any way. So there still are broad differences.”

“I’ve been to these conferences many times,” Smith said. “The governments practically plead for changes in text, and the co-chairs and their staff decide what’s in and what is out. So there’s no democratic process whatsoever.”

After the language for the goals is voted on in September at the U.N. General Assembly, indicators will be crafted to measure the progress of countries in achieving these goals. This is where the big push for abortion could make headway with donor countries tying aid to the progress that developing countries have made with respect to the indicators.

The World Health Organization will be “helping write these indicators,” Smith said. They openly support increased access to abortion worldwide and are very much relied upon in developing countries, he added.

The organization is not shy about its support of abortion. In the executive summary of its report “Safe Abortion: Technical and policy guidance for health systems,” it states that “to the full extent of the law, safe abortion services should be readily available and affordable to all women.”

“This means services should be available at primary-care level, with referral systems in place for all required higher-level care,” the report added.

“WHO has credentials, and now they have integrated abortion into their agenda,” Smith said.

And other groups implementing the goals have done so as well. “If you look at all the organizations and read their own webpages,” he said, “these are the terms that they use, and it has clear definition to them, and they will be part of the implementation brigade.”

Pro-abortion non-governmental organizations like the International Planned Parenthood Federation have pushed for the language to remain in the goals, Marie Smith noted.

In a statement on its website, IPPF said that the goals are “important because they will guide national policy making and budget prioritisation.”

They added that “we’ve been fighting for inclusion of universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights in the SDGs. Half of all the anti-poverty targets are focused on sexual and reproductive health and rights which proves that these rights are critical to global development.”

“There is a will not to unravel the package of goals and targets, and upset the political balance, which is good news as there is a target for sexual and reproductive health under the health goal and reproductive rights under the gender goal,” the organization continued.

The Vatican has responded to the development goals with seemingly mixed messages.

On June 22, the Apostolic Nuncio to the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the U.N., Archbishop Bernardito Auza, supported the “verbatim inclusion of the Sustainable Development Goals and targets.”

Yet he added that “We would oppose the imposition of targets and indicators on countries and peoples whose laws and values are contrary to them” – the imposition of targets increasing abortion access in countries with pro-life laws, for example.

“With this in mind, we would need to address how reservations of delegations contained within the Report of the OWG will be reflected in the Outcome document,” he added. This statement was made well before the final document was finished Aug. 2.

On Tuesday, however, the Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the United Nations criticized the goals for pushing access to abortion.

Archbishop Silvano Tomasi said the U.N. is acting as if “with abortion, that is, with ‘reproductive health,’ you can help eliminate underdevelopment.” That is akin to thinking that through “eliminating people there would be fewer problems,” he added.

Smith believes the language will enable a massive, unprecedented push for abortion access worldwide.

In “40 years in the pro-life movement, 35 as a member of Congress, I have never seen such a well-orchestrated effort to promote abortion,” he said.

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WORLD NEWS

Why is Christianity growing so quickly in mainland China?

by Carl Bunderson (CNA/EWTN News) • August 17, 2015

(BriYYZ via Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0)

Fort Worth, Texas — Christianity is spreading rapidly in China, and it could be because of how well the faith fits in with modern scientific technology.

According to the renowned sociologist Rodney Stark, the number of Christians in China is growing at an impressive annual rate of seven percent.

Stark coauthored, with Xiuhua Wang, the 2015 work A Star in the East: The Rise of Christianity in China. Stark views himself as a social historian and is co-director of the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University.

Stark and Wang estimate that in 1980 there were 10 million Christians in the People’s Republic of China, and that in 2007 the figure was 60 million. These numbers yield an annual growth rate of 7 percent – which means that last year, there were nearly 100 million Christians in China.

They hold that this large increase in the number of Christians in China is driven by the conversion of the better educated, who are experiencing “cultural incongruity” between traditional Asian culture and industrial-technological modernity, which results in a spiritual deprivation, which Christianity is able to answer.

China’s intellectuals, Stark told CNA Aug. 14, “are very convinced they’ve got to turn West to understand the world they live in … and they’re convinced by my argument that eastern religions don’t fit the modern world they’re engaged in, and that they need to look to the West to find philosophies and religions. It’s quite amazing.”

Eastern religions, like Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism, Stark maintained, “are all anti-progress; they all proclaim the world is going downhill from a glorious past, and that we should look backwards, not forwards. None of them admit that we’re able to understand anything about the universe – it’s something we have to meditate on, not something to try and theorize about, as the physicists and chemists do. And that doesn’t fit with the world that modern Chinese are experiencing having happened around them.”

“Industrial society, and all the science it’s based on, doesn’t fit well with those kind of religious views,” Stark reflected.

“But the question of what does the world mean, and how do we live in it, persists – and so that’s a major motor in the Christianization of China, and it explains why it’s the most educated Chinese who are the most apt to join.”

The spread of Christianity in China, he said, has been possible even “during the worst time of Chinese persecution” under Mao Zedong’s cultural revolution of the 1960s and 70s because “this process of conversion is invisible; the government can’t see it.”

According to Stark, religious conversion occurs primarily through social networks, and so is “invisible” to government officials. He holds that Chinese living in rural areas are more likely than city dwellers to be Christian, because their social ties are stronger, and thus Christianity can be transmitted there more easily.

Revivalist tent meetings, he said, “is not really how it’s done … People join things in a much more intimate, a much quieter way.”

Catholic missionaries have been in China since the Jesuits of the 16th century, and in 1949 – when communist forces gained control over the whole of the mainland – there were some 5,700 Catholic foreign missionaries, and a total of nearly 3.3 million Catholics.

The communist government of China expelled foreign missionaries, and later established the “Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association,” a government-sanctioned Catholic Church. This has existed in opposition to the ‘underground’ Church, which is persecuted and whose episcopal appointments are frequently not acknowledged by Chinese authorities.

Stark noted, however, that the Aug. 4 consecration of Fr. Joseph Zhang Yinlin as auxiliary bishop of Weihui is “the most important news from a Catholic perspective to come out of China in years.”

Bishop Zhang was approved of by both the Chinese government and the Holy See – the appointment of bishops has been the two states’ most prominent area of contention throughout the past 60 years, so their agreement is of some import.

“That was a very big deal,” Stark said, “because that’s been the whole basis of Catholic persecution since the 1950s: that there were to be no trekking with religion that had any external, foreign ties; and the Protestants of course could and did accept that very easily, but for Catholics, the whole business of rejecting Rome wasn’t really on, although some Catholic bishops at least pretended to do that – although it’s not clear that they really did … I think this is very, very big news.”

The last episcopal consecration before Bishop Zhang’s had ended in icy relations between the Vatican and China: in July 2012, Bishop Thaddeus Ma Daqin – who had been part of the Patriotic Association – announced shortly after his consecration that he was leaving the association. He was subsequently confined by the government.

Stark suggested that because of the agreement between Beijing and Rome on Bishop Zhang’s nomination “there’s no reason now that the Catholics have to be at all be underground; they can now all be part of the above-ground Church.”

“It was also made very, very clear in all the press releases that he had been pre-approved by the Pope. And consequently he violates that part of the Association’s rules, and the government is condoning it; which means in a sense, the end of that particular government-controlled, non-standard Catholicism. The fact of the matter is that most of the people in that Church were real Catholics – they just pretended. I mean there was a lot of contact with Rome on the sly, but this is coming right out in the open, and I think it’s very important.”

Stark affirmed that the change in the past three years – from the consecration of Bishop Ma to that of Bishop Zhang – is a huge change, adding, “I was extremely surprised by it.”

“But the fact is, the Communist Party is fairly deeply involved in Christian growth, in ways that are not talked about – but out in the villages, many of the local communist leaders are very openly Christian, to the point of having crosses on their doors, their living room walls, which is hardly being discreet about it.”

“In the cities it’s more discreet, but still, in all there are enormous numbers of sons and daughters of communist officials who are now Christians, and you go to their elite university campuses, and it’s shocking, the Christian feel of the place, in a way that you don’t get in American, Christian colleges. You don’t get this feeling at Notre Dame, or at Texas Christian, that you get walking around the University of Peking.”

He noted that there are many Christian professors, and that Christianity is strongest at the universities – where the future members of the country’s Communist Party are studying.

“This may be part of what’s going on behind the scenes,” Stark supposed: “that it’s becoming uncomfortable to push Christianity around.”

Stark then noted that this is not the case in one of China’s 34 province-level administrative divisions. In Zhejiang province, churches have been ordered to stop displaying crosses, and a number of churches have been demolished. Seven Christians have also been detained in that province.

Stark suggested that this persecution, localized as it is, may be because “the head of that province might be some communist who’s in rebellion, if you will, against the loosening of reservations in the rest of the country.”

This loosening of reservations is notable – Stark reflected that “this whole notion of an underground church is very peculiar, since some of these ‘underground’ churches are four stories tall, and have crosses all over them. They’re underground only in the sense that they don’t have legal sanction – but they sure aren’t hidden.”

In light of this new openness to Christianity across China as a whole, Stark supposed a continued 7 percent annual rate of growth of the religion. At that rate, there will be 150 million Christians in China in 2020; 295 million in 2030; and 579 million in 2040.

“The growth might stop: you never know what’s going to happen in the future,” Stark said. “But at the current rate, there’ll be a whole heck of a lot of Christians in China awfully soon.”

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WORLD NEWS

Greece tour brings Saint Paul’s ministry to life for priests

by Elise Harris (CNA/EWTN News) • August 18, 2015

Athens, Greece. (Matías García via Flickr CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Athens, Greece — A two-week trip to Greece will let priests in Rome follow in the steps of St. Paul: all the way from his conversion in Philippi, to his preaching in Corinth and finally his overnight stop in Crete as a prisoner.

“Studying the Bible in the places where it was written – the Holy Land, Greece, Turkey – is essential for all students of Scripture, in my opinion,” Father Scott Brodeur S.J. told CNA Aug. 13.

“Of course classroom lectures and readings are essential to the learning process, but well-planned trips to the Biblical lands really help people put that knowledge into better perspective.”

Fr. Brodeur is a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, and a specialist in Pauline studies.

For the second year in a row he will be leading the “Paolo e il suo ambiente (Paul and his environment)” course in Greece, a two-week a licentiate-level study done through the Biblical Theology department of the Gregorian University.

Starting Sept. 7, the course is meant to introduce students to what would have been St. Paul’s world in the first century.

“After visiting the baptistery area along the river bank in Philippi, you cannot read the story from Acts about Paul’s conversion of St. Lydia in the same way,” Fr. Brodeur said. “The same with a visit to Corinth or Thessalonica – Paul’s letters make more sense and take on greater meaning.”

The 33 students who will participate in the course this year are mostly religious and diocesan priests from the Gregorian, with the exception of one laywoman and her husband, and a few students from the other pontifical universities.

A handful of non-students coming just for the experience are also numbered among the group, including the rector of Pontifical Brazilian College.

“That said, the real diversity in the group is our national makeup: many different countries from all over the world are represented, and the one language we all share, thanks to Rome, is Italian,” the priest observed.

Structured around the major places in St. Paul’s life and ministry in Greece, the course will take students to Philippi, Thessalonica, Athens, Corinth and Crete.

The fact they will be traveling by bus will help those enrolled to appreciate the long distances Paul and the other apostles traveled by foot, which was “an extraordinary achievement for people in the first century!” Fr. Brodeur said.

After spending roughly a week and a half going around continental Greece, the group will spend their final three nights on Crete, which is the last place St. Paul – while in chains – visited before shipwrecking on the island of Malta.

Although the main goal is to visit the churches that Paul himself founded, the priest stressed that it’s also important to learn about the major pagan sanctuaries of the day.

In addition to visiting the shrines of Delphi, Olympia and Epidaurus, the students will also be taken to the Orthodox monasteries of the Meteora, which Fr. Brodeur noted are ”unique in the whole world.”

St. Paul, he observed, “is the Church’s greatest evangelizer. He brought the Gospel to the nations and brought the Gentiles into the Church.”

“Thanks to his brilliant articulation of the Christian faith Christianity spread from Asia to Europe. He was a man of extraordinary intellect, courage and zeal,” he said, and expressed his admiration of the apostle for these and the many other virtues he possessed.

Since first teaching the course two years ago Fr. Brodeur said that he has seen the students who participate come back to Rome not only more enthusiastic about St. Paul, but also more interested in the New Testament.

“This renewed interest helps them to persevere in their ongoing studies as well as prepare them for their own teaching careers.” With many of the course participants likely to soon return to their home dioceses or provinces and join faculties in seminaries and Catholic universities.

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WORLD NEWS

This cardinal sees no reason to expect the Family Synod to be outside Church teaching

by David Ramos (CNA/EWTN News) • August 19, 2015

(Tekke via Flickr CC BY-ND 2.0)

Piura, Peru — Only two months away from the beginning of the 2015 Synod on the Family, Cardinal Raúl Vela Chiriboga has said there is no room “to expect ‘extraordinary things’ from the synod, outside of the doctrine of the faith.”

“The Church is the depository of the faith, and that faith is the teaching of Jesus: we can’t go against his commandment,” the emeritus Archbishop of Quito explained Aug. 14 to CNA in Piura, where he was participating in Peru’s Tenth National Eucharistic and Marian Congress as an envoy of the Holy Father.

“There are fundamental truths” that will not change, Cardinal Vela said, even “by more news outlets stirring things up by saying things contrary to, or wanting to misinterpret, what the Lord commands.”

The cardinal recognized there is a need to develop “a better pastoral approach to the faithful, as well as to the faithful who are separated, or who are in other unions.”

“However, this does not mean that they will again have the opportunity to return to receiving Communion, because their situation is irregular.”

What can be done, he added, is “to give them other (spiritual) ‘arms’, if the term can be used, such as spiritual communion, and feeling supported and aided in prayer, so that they can discover the mercy God has for each of us.”

The Ecuadorian cardinal also pointed out the need to develop a more serious and lengthy marriage preparation for engaged couples.

He noted that “now, a lot is being improvised,” and questioned whether “two sessions, each lasting 10 minutes, are enough for the faithful to receive this sacrament which will transform their entire lives.”

This pastoral ministry, he said, “requires that we pastors encourage the faithful to discover all the beauty that receiving the sacrament of matrimony means.”

“We’re not going to find the strength for marriage in the media or on television, but in the grace of God which comes to us through the sacraments,” Cardinal Vela said.

Recalling Pope Francis’ recent visit to Ecuador, the prelate said that “The presence of the Holy Father is a grace from God through his words and his witness. Everything he spoke to us about, everything he told us, was to remind us that Jesus is for us, and consequently we have to imitate him in our lives, in our way of being, in our attitudes, as the Lord teaches us through his example to share our lives with others.”

Commenting on the Eucharistic Congress, Cardinal Vela said it “has for its goal reviving our love for Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, for Jesus who makes himself present in the sacrament of the Eucharist, and who remains with us to be adored, that’s true, but above all he remains with us to be the food of our daily lives.”

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Dozens of new grads join the ranks of Kenya’s Catholic nurses

by CNA/EWTN News • August 20, 2015

Bishop Joseph Mbatia of Nyahururu says Mass at the graduation ceremony for nursing graduates in Nairobi on Aug. 14, 2015. (Catholic News Agency for Africa)

Nairobi, Kenya — What began as a training facility for rural health care workers in the 1970s has now turned into a Catholic nursing school with hundreds of graduates.

This year, during the Aug. 14 graduation ceremony held in Nairobi for St. Luke’s Registered Community Health Nursing School, Bishop Joseph Mbatia of Nyahururu told the 54 new nurses that they have been trained for a very distinct reason.

“The Church and indeed the Kenyan society was training you for their own purpose,” Bishop Mbatia said, according to an Aug. 17 report by the Catholic News Agency for Africa. “St. Luke’s … was training you to perpetuate Gospel and human values.”

Bishop Mbatia is the Vice Chairman of the Catholic Health Commission of Kenya — a project that started in 1957 under the umbrella of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops. It has now grown to make up 30 percent of all healthcare facilities in Kenya.

“In the contemporary times, the culture of death has prevailed over the culture of life,” he told the graduates. “A country that does not defend, protect and promote life is heading to doom.”

He challenged the new nurses to be the “loving face and healing touch of Jesus” for their patients.

St. Luke’s Nursing School in North Kinagop in Nyandaru County was founded in 1977 to train local health care workers, and saw its first graduating class of five student nurses in 1991.

Students of the nursing program undergo three and a half years of study and training before receiving a degree in nursing.

The nursing school has grown so much that more than 500 students graduated in the past decade alone.

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How a Jesuit school in Nepal is helping earthquake survivors manage trauma

by Antonio Anup Gonsalves (CNA/EWTN News) • August 21, 2015

A view of the southern Kathmandu Valley, near Godawari, Nepal. (Ananta Bhadra Lamichhane via Flickr CC BY 2.0)

Kathmandu, Nepal — A Jesuit primary school located near Kathmandu is using increased counseling and student-parent orientation programs to help both children and parents to cope with the experience of the earthquake which struck Nepal earlier this year.

”After the massive earthquake of 7.9 magnitude that struck the nation, we as educators had also a bigger challenge before us, to reach out to the people, especially those struck in remote areas,” explained Fr. Arul Selvam S.J., a teacher at St. Xavier’s School in Godawari, a town located 10 miles southeast of the Nepali capital of Kathmandu.

Fr. Selvam recounted to CNA that St. Xavier’s School – which was founded by Indian and American Jesuits and serves students in grades 1 through 10 – itself suffered devastating effects to its infrastructure.

Eight of the school’s buildings have been declared unsafe, and the school has had to find alternative ways of accommodating students, as the government has ordered a momentary halt to permanent construction.

The 7.9 earthquake struck Nepal in April, killing some 9,000 people, and was followed by a number of strong aftershocks. The series of aftershocks only added to the anxiety, fear, and psychological scars among the survivors – and children are most vulnerable to these factors.

Fr. Selvam explained that St. Xavier’s School has increased its counseling, as well as student-parent orientation programs which help both the children and their parents to cope with their trauma, and help their overall growth.

He noted the strong support St. Xavier’s School has received from it’s alumni, saying that many of them, most of whom are non-Catholic, “went out of their way, in their own little way, to help, without any prompting” during the earthquake relief.

“The moral education they received, supplementing their academics while studying in our Catholic schools, is always present in our students and our alumni,” Fr. Selvam reflected.

“This is the effect of the sound quality education in our Jesuit schools, based on education in morals, values, and ethics, which the students have inculcated parallel to their academic curriculum, which lingers and becomes a part of life that is reflected in their personality … that makes a big difference.”

He added that the Jesuit community is coordinating with alumni to support earthquake victims and to co-ordinate relief activities.

Fr. Jiju Kevillil, S.J., principal of St. Xavier’s, has written that “resilience is one of the best qualities of our people. We are devastated but not defeated. We are survivors and not victims. We want to get back to ‘new normal’ life as early as possible and move ahead. We want to rebuild our lives again and give renewed hope to our students and families.”

St. Xavier’s School in Godawari was founded in 1951 at the invitation of the Nepali government.

Describing the growth of the Society of Jesus in the service of Nepal, Fr. Selvam described that apart from the schools and a college, the Jesuits have also institutions to serve the poor, children, the physically challenged, and the blind, including a mobile clinics unit which is run with the help of religious sisters.

The Jesuits recently founded the Nepal Jesuit Social Institute to respond to earthquakes with systematic and effect relief services.

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WORLD NEWS

Islamic State destroys ancient Catholic monastery in Syria

by CNA/EWTN News • August 21, 2015

Remains of the Mar Elian monastery. (YouTube)

Homs, Syria — Reports surfaced on Thursday that Islamic State militants have bulldozed Mar Elian Monastery, an ancient structure located just outside a Syrian town captured by the group earlier this month.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based monitoring group, on Aug. 20 said that the Islamic State had destroyed the monastery using bulldozers. Photos of the destruction were soon released online by the militant Sunni Islamist group.

The destruction was confirmed to the AP by a priest in Damascus.

Mar Elian monastery, which was founded before the year 500, is located just outside Al Quaryatayn, which is some 60 miles southeast of Homs. The monastery also provided refuge to hundreds of Syrians displaced from Al Quaryatayn, and partnered with Muslim donors to provide for their needs.

The town was captured by the Islamic State Aug. 6, and between 160 and 230 Christians and Muslims were abducted from the town.

Many of the Christians who were in Al Quaryatayn when it fell to the Islamic State had fled there from Aleppo. Around 30 Christians were able to escape the town for Homs after it was captured.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Islamic State has transported 110 of the captives from Al Quaryatayn to its de facto capital, Ar Raqqah.

In May, two members of Mar Elian’s community had been abducted: Father Jacques Mourad and Deacon Boutros Hanna. Fr. Mourad was prior of Mar Elian, and was pastor of a parish in Al Quaryatayn, where he served as an active mediator between the Syrian army and rebel forces.

The Islamic State has persecuted all non-Sunni persons in its territory – Christians, Yazidis, and even Shia Muslims. It destroys any non-Sunni religious sites, which are regarded as pagan. In addition to churches, it has destroyed Shia mosques and shrines, and the sites of ancient, pre-Islamic cities.

The militant group overran the ancient city of Palmyra in May, and have since destroyed statues and other artefacts there. It was reported Aug. 19 that Islamic State militants had killed Khaled al-Asaad, an 81-year-old archaeologist who curated the ruins at Palmyra.

Since the Syrian civil war broke out in March 2011, more than 230,000 people have been killed. Four million have become refugees, and another 8 million have been internally displaced.

What began as demonstrations against the nation’s Ba’athist president, Bashar al-Assad, has become a complex fight among the Syrian regime; moderate rebels; Kurds; and Islamists, such as al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State.

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Knights celebrate life of founder 125 years after his death

by CNA/EWTN News • August 15, 2015

The statue of Father McGivney is carried in procession at the conclusion of Mass at St. Mary’s in New Haven, CT on August 14, 2015. (Knights of Columbus)

New Haven, CT — On Friday, hundreds of faithful gathered in New Haven, Conn. to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the death of Venerable Father Michael J. McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus.

Although he lived just 38 years, Fr. McGivney left a remarkable legacy – the order he founded has become the world’s largest Catholic fraternal service organization. Just last year, the Knights raised more than $173.5 million for charity and performed more than 71.5 million hours of volunteer work.

The memorial Mass on Friday was held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in New Haven, where Fr. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882.

Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, the organization’s supreme chaplain, recalled in his homily how Fr. McGivney’s priesthood modeled the teaching of recent popes.

“St. John Paul II said that the priest’s personality must be a bridge to Christ, and indeed Father McGivney’s unassuming, lighthearted-yet-determined character attracted many to the Catholic faith and to St. Mary’s Church,” said Archbishop Lori. “When Pope Francis tells priests to acquire ‘the smell of the sheep’ and ‘to bring the Gospel to the margins of society,’ I think of Father McGivney. He loved the priesthood deeply.”

At the end of the Mass, John Walshe, a great grandnephew of Father McGivney, joined Archbishop Lori and Supreme Knight Carl Anderson in the incensing of the sarcophagus near the entrance of the church, where Fr. McGivney’s remains are interred. The Archbishop then led those present in prayers for the canonization of the priest.

Father McGivney passed away Aug. 14, 1890, two days after his 38th birthday, in the rectory of St. Thomas parish in Thomaston, Conn., where he served as pastor for six years. He was also pastor at the time of Immaculate Conception parish in nearby Terryville. Previously, he was assistant parish priest for seven years at St. Mary’s, where he gathered a handful of parish men in the church’s basement to found the Knights of Columbus.

These first Knights saw in Fr. McGivney an example worth following, Archbishop Lori said.

“These men would not have committed to the principle of charity had they not seen in Father McGivney a man of tireless pastoral charity, who reflected God’s love through acts of personal generosity and compassion. These men would not have committed to the principle of unity had they not seen how Father McGivney brought together the people of St. Mary’s parish and how he served as a source of unity in the wider community of New Haven. Nor would they have committed to the principle of fraternity had they not witnessed how Father McGivney was not only the father but also the brother to his parishioners and indeed to anyone in need.”

Archbishop Lori added that not only does Fr. McGivney continue to guide and influence the nearly 1.9 million Knights worldwide, he is a very personal source of grace in his own life.

The archbishop said he considers Fr. McGivney to be “my parish priest, the parish priest of my soul. Every morning I pray to him and I pray that he be canonized, as I know you do. Every day I load his plate with all kinds of intentions.”

The cause of sainthood for Father McGivney was opened in 1997, and he was declared a Venerable Servant of God by Pope Benedict XVI in March 2008 in recognition of his life of heroic virtue. One Vatican-approved miracle through his intercession is needed for beatification, and another miracle is needed for canonization.

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Killing sick people is not compassionate, New Mexico bishops affirm

by CNA/EWTN News • August 17, 2015

(David K via Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0)

Santa Fe, N.M. — It is in Christ that true compassion for the dying is found – not in assisted suicide, said the Catholic bishops of New Mexico.

Their comments came after the state’s Court of Appeals struck down a lower court’s ruling that assisted suicide is a constitutional right.

“We conclude that aid in dying is not a fundamental liberty interest under the New Mexico Constitution,” Judge Timothy L. Garcia said in the 2-1 majority decision Aug. 11.

The state’s Catholic bishops thanked God for the court’s decision.

“Only God can give or take life and the state does not have the competency to shorten this precious gift, even for seemingly laudable purposes. While each stage of life is sacred, the end of life is filled with special meaning and opportunities,” the bishops said Aug. 13.

“Christ showed what true compassion is when he died for us that we might live forever with him in heaven. The way to prepare for that ultimate reality is to live our lives as fully as possible until God calls us home.”

They said that assisted suicide is not compassionate. Rather, it allows suffering to “blind us to the meaning of life.”

In January 2014, a New Mexico court ruled that a 1963 law making assisted suicide a felony was invalid when applied to doctors who administered a lethal dose of drugs to medically competent, terminally ill patients, the Washington Times reports. The ruling came in response to a lawsuit on behalf of two doctors and a cancer patient in her 50s who were seeking to legalize requests for lethal treatment.

The patient’s cancer is now in remission.

The lawsuit had the support of the American Civil Liberties Union and Compassion & Choices, the organization once known as the Hemlock Society.

In the latest ruling, Judge Linda M. Vanzi dissented. She said that the state’s interests in preserving life and preventing suicide are “insufficient” to justify what she characterized as “infringing the right to aid in dying.”

New Mexico’s bishops reflected on Christian duties to the suffering and recounted the Church’s history of health care and service to the dying. They also encouraged people to take a Christian view of pain and suffering.

“All too often, our society sees pain as the enemy while in fact suffering often accompanies genuine growth and new opportunities. The answer to suffering is not death but rather the grateful acceptance of life while at the same time managing pain through proper medications and the support of loved ones.”

The process of dying is a “communal event” for loved ones to accompany a dying person in his or her final days.

The bishops stressed the need for true compassion that “invites us all to journey with our loved ones as they prepare for eternal life, sharing and easing their suffering as we assure them that we are with them every step of the way.”

Catherine Glenn Foster, litigation counsel for the legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, said that New Mexico law “clearly criminalizes deliberate assistance in someone else’s suicide.”

“The court was right to reverse the lower court’s decision which invented a right to doctor-prescribed death that does not exist,” Foster said. “Families will now have the opportunity to honor and cherish their loved ones in their final days.”

She said suffering patients need “understanding and sound medical treatment, not encouragement to kill themselves.”

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A gruesome accident, a powerful faith – one Catholic couple’s story

by Mary Rezac (CNA/EWTN News) • August 18, 2015

(MNStudio via shutterstock.com)

Lincoln, NE — It was a cold December day in Nebraska, and Ashley Stevens was riding in a car with four other women.

It was the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the women and the rest of their FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) team was headed to a retreat center near Gretna, Neb. when a large truck smashed into their car on Highway 6 near the Platte River, several miles east of Lincoln.

While the other women had minor injuries – a broken shoulder, whiplash, cuts and bruises – Ashley was life-flighted to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha in critical condition.

She had sustained major head trauma, and had significant swelling and bleeding in her brain among other injuries.

Brad Stevens, Ashley’s fiancé of just a few weeks, got the call from Nikki Shasserre, a staff member at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Newman Center, who had hosted an engagement party for the couple three weeks prior.

Get to the hospital now, Ashley’s in critical condition.

Father Robert Matya, the chaplain for the UNL Newman Center, had been on his way to the same retreat and was able to be with the women at the scene, praying with them and comforting them. He then rushed to the hospital to be with Brad, a former student he’d known for years, and was with him to receive the grim diagnosis.

“I remember very distinctly arriving at the hospital, and Brad and I went in to sit down with the doctor, who told us that he didn’t think it was going to be possible that Ashley would survive at that point,” Fr. Matya recalled. “He was just trying to be honest with us.”

That was around 10 in the morning. By 3 p.m., Ashley was heading to surgery. Father stayed with Brad and Ashley in the ICU that night.

From the very first moment, Father said, the way Brad handled the situation was remarkable.

“What was beautiful about watching Brad in that experience was that he was just unwavering from the first moment on, in terms of being at her side. There was never a question of his dedication to her throughout the whole experience, and that was the case not only on that day of the accident but throughout the entire process of her rehabilitation,” he said.

Brad’s faith in God had been what initially attracted Ashley to him. They were both working as Residential Assistants in the Husker Village dorms, and during the long walks patrolling the halls on duty nights, she would pepper him with all of her questions about Catholicism. A devout Protestant, Ashley was amazed at how well Brad could defend and explain his faith using scripture. She became “like a little sponge,” she said, soaking up knowledge about the Catholic Church.

A few years after they became friends, and in the early phases of their dating relationship, Ashley became Catholic after taking classes at the Newman Center and developing strong friendships there.

The day of the accident, dozens of friends from the Newman Center and beyond had arrived at UNMC, offering meals and prayers and whatever support they could. Word spread quickly, and more prayers and support started pouring in from UNL students and the Catholic community around the state – and even the world.

Ashley, who does not remember “literally a single day” of the entire month she spent at UNMC, said she has only heard and read of the tremendous outpouring of love that occurred within those first days and weeks.

“I was submerged in prayer,” she said. “From holy hours at the Newman Center, across the country, there people I didn’t even know were surrounding me with prayer that I’m so thankful for.”

“It’s amazing seeing God’s love through so many instruments when you’re quite literally helpless.”

Slowly, Ashley started making improvements, though for a long time it was uncertain exactly how healed she could be. She had a stroke while at UNMC, and it was uncertain for a while whether she’d ever be able to walk, or hold a job, or take care of future children.

“I can’t even imagine Brad, just three weeks after getting engaged, and my parents just sitting by, not knowing if I’m going to make it and if I did, what would be the end result? How much of Ashley would they get back, would he get back?” she said.

Even the tiniest glimpses of hope, however, made Brad “just giddy excited,” Ashley said.

“Even if I was just able to squeeze his hand or open my eyes and look at him, or just try to smile, anything gave him glimpses of hope that I was going to make it,” she said.

A gratitude journal Brad kept at the time proves his incredible hope. In an entry dated Dec. 13, one day after the accident, Brad responded to the prompts in his journal:

Today I feel: “Great, it was starting out to be a good day, until Nikki Shasserre called and told me the news. After that a mix of scared, sad, mad, happy.”

Spiritually I: “Am overwhelmed by the huge support you have received from all over the country. I feel consoled during a moment of great trial.”

Magical moments (comfort, peace, and love): “You opened your eye and looked at me!! That was huge. I was so thankful to know I had communicated with you and was able to show my love for you and show you I’m there for you.”

It was Brad’s faithfulness that kept Ashley going in the hard months of recovery and therapy to come.

After UNMC, Ashley was flown down to Atlanta to continue her treatment – it was closer to her parents, who live in Knoxville, Tenn., and was highly recommended for brain trauma recovery.

Brad kept his job as an aide to a state senator in Nebraska, but flew down to Atlanta every Thursday through Sunday to be with his fiancé.

“That was beautiful to me and exactly what I needed to keep fighting and to keep doing frustrating therapies,” Ashley said.

For a while, even the basics were extremely difficult. She had to re-learn how to write, eat, walk, do long division – but Brad’s visits kept her looking forward to the weekends.

“I remember seeing him every Thursday and just being giddy, when you’re going through something so life-altering, being able to cling to normalcy is exactly what you need,” she said.

But May 16th, the day they had originally planned for their wedding, was harder than most. Brad flew down to be with Ashley, and they went to a church to pray.

“I’m not a crier, I’m just not, but that day we went to the chapel and I just broke down, and I walked out of the church and he came after me and he said ‘What’s wrong? I’m still here, we’re still going to get married,’” Ashley recalled.

She told Brad about all the doubts she had – doubts, she thinks now, that came from Satan.

“We didn’t have our wedding rescheduled, I didn’t know when or if I would go back to work, I still wasn’t approved to drive, and I just kept thinking: Am I worth it?”

“I remember he took my hands and said, ‘Ashley, I still love you, I love you just as much as when I asked you to marry me, I’m going to marry you, and it’s not going to be today, but it will be as soon as it makes sense, as soon as you get back and we get in our rhythm, it will be then.’”

And it was. The next week, Ashley found out her release date. She entered a driving program, and was approved to start working again part-time. As the improvements kept coming, Ashley and Brad started re-looking at wedding dates.

They settled on Dec. 12 – exactly a year after the accident.

“It was Ashley’s idea,” Brad said. “She wanted to conquer a sad day and remember it with joy, or in her words ‘kick the accident in the face.’”

“I think some people question like why would you want to do that, so many hard memories will be evoked on that day, why would you want to have the happiest day of your life kind of conflict with that?” Ashley said. “To me, that was the point.”

It was a cold December day in Nebraska again. There had been a blizzard the day before Dec. 12, 2009, the day of Ashley and Brad Stevens’ wedding.

“I guess you should expect (a blizzard) in December in Nebraska,” Ashley joked. Nonetheless, friends and family from all over the country were able to make it.

“It was just a party,” Ashley said. And the FOCUS team – half of whom had been in the car with Ashley – were in the choir loft. They sang and played Bethany Dillon’s “Let Your Light Shine”, which the team had listened to together, per Ashley’s request, at a meeting a week before the accident.

The truck driver was there too.

“Seeing the church surrounded by people that had stood by our sides whether its prayers, meals, visits, and just having a party, it was a way of saying I’m still here, that God healed us, healed me, and performed a miracle,” Ashley said.

The Stevens have now been married for almost 6 years, with two beautiful little girls. They travel in between Tennessee and Nebraska often, so the girls can get to know both sets of grandparents.

They still have their ups and downs, like any couple, but in large part because of the accident, Ashley never doubts that Brad is in it for the long haul.

“Marriage is hard,” Ashley said, “but it’s part of the cost, and when you sign the marriage license you know that. The vow, ‘in good and in bad, in sickness and in health,’ obviously Brad’s already lived the in sickness and in health vow out before we even walked down the aisle.”

“The best advice we can offer for marriage prep is to take a step back, and evaluate your relationship,” Brad said. “And (if) there’s not much about God, there’s not much about how the relationship has challenged you to be better, change habits or to find joy in sacrifice, then there’s a disconnect.”

There are reminders of the accident – Ashley permanently lost hearing in her right ear, she suffered nerve injuries and lost partial control of her right hand. But at the end of the day goodness prevailed, Ashley said, which is why she is working on a book telling her story.

“God gives us all different gifts,” Ashley said. “And I don’t have the gift of musical ability, or anything artistic, at times I don’t have the gift of extraversion, but I do have the gift of a cool story. And I have the gumption to share it.”

“The point (of the story) is that God always wins,” she said. “And that may not look like the win that has always played out in your head, but he’s faithful, and he works miracles in our lives, and we can’t forget all he’s done in our life.”

These days, the Stevens are looking forward to settling in Nebraska as their oldest starts school. As for Brad, he’s thankful that after everything, they’re able to have a normal life.

“Ashley is a rock star and I thank God for her and the family we have together.”

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The role of friendship in helping young people with same-sex attraction

by Matt Hadro (CNA/EWTN News) • August 18, 2015

(Christian Mueller via shutterstock.com)

Detroit, MI — True friendship is vital in helping young people who are struggling with same-sex attraction but trying to live a chaste lifestyle, said a prominent gay Catholic blogger.

“We love when we make ourselves vulnerable,” said blogger Joseph Prever who writes under the pseudonym Steve Gershom for a blog with the tagline, “Catholic, gay, and feeling fine.” Prever was speaking at an international conference on pastoral care for those experiencing same-sex attraction, organized by the Catholic ministry Courage.

In his talk titled “The Curse of the Ouroboros: Notes On Friendship,” he explained how close, chaste friendships can help young people experiencing same-sex attractions escape a self-destructive cycle that can result from an excessive inward-focus.

Many of these young people struggle with intimacy because they feel their attractions make them radically different from other people, he said. This creates a self-absorbed condition Prever called the “Ouroboros,” the classical Greek image of a snake devouring its tail.

Prever told CNA he identified with the image as a teenager because he felt his attractions made him different from most other people, and thus became excessively focused on himself.

“A lot of people struggle with being sort of inward-turned, sort of self-enclosed, sort of unable to engage people in actual person-to-person relationships, because you’re so concerned with maintaining your own self-image, maintaining your image in other people’s minds,” he said in an interview after his talk.

“So for me, the struggle has always been learning to sort of unknot that knot, and a large part of the way that has happened in my life has been via friendships, both in learning to let other people see into my interior and to sort of help me when I was not quite willing to be helped,” he said.

“And also learning to reach out and help other people who are in even worse, or just different, spots.”

The Courage conference, “Welcoming and Accompanying Our Brothers and Sisters with Same-Sex Attraction,” was held from August 10-12 in Detroit, Michigan. Almost 400 people attended from six countries, 125 of whom were clergy and four bishops. The rest were primarily lay persons who hold ministry positions at parishes, and family members of persons with same-sex attraction.

It was the organization’s first conference devoted to Church leaders in pastoral ministry on the issue. Speakers included persons who have experienced same-sex attraction but who have been guided to live chastity by friendships and the Church, as well as experts in areas of psychology, natural law, and chastity.

The conference, directors noted, was developed from the questions posed ahead of the 2015 Ordinary Synod on the Family in the lineamenta, or part of the preparatory document for the synod featuring questions sent to bishops’ conferences and Eastern Catholic synods all over the world for consideration.

“The pastoral care of persons with homosexual tendencies poses new challenges today, due to the manner in which their rights are proposed in society,” the lineamenta states.

“How can the Christian community give pastoral attention to families with persons with homosexual tendencies? What are the responses that, in light of cultural sensitivities, are considered to be most appropriate?”

Prever blogs as a self-described “gay Catholic” who is “celibate” and trying to faithfully follow the teachings of the Catholic Church.

A big obstacle to friendship for contemporary men, he said, is that society looks down on male friendship as “secretly gay.”

“I think that to an extent, our cultural image of masculinity is of somebody who’s very self-enclosed and self-sufficient. But that kind of self-sufficiency really can’t coexist with radical intimacy,” he stated.

Yet being an active friend to others – for their own good and not to “use” them for his own fulfillment, he cautioned — helped him escape his own “Ouroboros” of self-absorption.

The “watershed moment” was when he reached out to an old friend who had fallen on hard times but whom he could not successfully help. “Is this guy worth my time?” Prever remembered asking, considering what he was getting out of the friendship. His spiritual director provided the answer: don’t seek to get something out of the relationship, but simply “be a friend to him.”

In seeking healing from previous intimate friendships, Prever had not yet considered that he had something to offer others. It was an eye-opening moment, he recalled, and one where he realized he could provide healing in addition to his need to be healed.

Prever also had advice for young people struggling with same-sex attractions but who want to live chastely.

Ideally, they should have a spiritual director during their adult lives, he said, noting that he had a spiritual director from the time he was 19 onward who was always available to talk about anything at all.

However, he acknowledged, having such a figure who is both available and competent to handle such cases is non-existent for many people. At minimum, people should seek to talk about their struggles with someone they trust, he insisted.

“I spent three or four years carrying it around on my own, and I think a lot of damage was done in that time. I think that’s the case with a lot of people,” he said.

And in advance of the 2015 Ordinary Synod on the Family in October, he hopes that chaste, faithful Catholics with same-sex attractions will be able to speak to the bishops of the world.

“One thing I hope that will be the case is that they will hear a lot from people who have walked that particular walk, and less theorizing from an abstract point of view, which is really good and necessary, but also totally insufficient,” he said.

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Despite Iran deal proposal, American pastor remains imprisoned

by CNA/EWTN News • August 18, 2015

Imprisoned pastor Saeed Abedini with his family. (American Center for Law and Justice)

Washington, D.C. — Amid Congressional debate over President Barack Obama’s proposed Iran nuclear deal, family and friends of an imprisoned American are pleading for his release to be a part of the agreement.

Now entering his third year in Iran’s Rajai Shahr prison, American pastor Saeed Abedini continues to face harsh treatment. Prison guards targeted him on Aug. 6 when they raided his cell for no apparent reason, according to reports from Human Rights Activists News Agency Iran.

Clear information about Abedini’s condition is not available, as all the relatives who are permitted to visit him are currently out of the country and the Iranian government has rejected the request for phone calls with his wife and family in the U.S., according to reports.

Born and raised as a Muslim in Iran, Abedini converted to Christianity in 2000, becoming an American citizen in 2010 following his marriage to his wife Naghmeh, who is also an American citizen.

After his conversion to Christianity, Abedini began working with house churches in Iran which, though technically legal, drew complaints from the government. He then agreed to shift his work towards non-religious humanitarian efforts.

While visiting non-religious orphanages in September 2012, Pastor Abedini was arrested on charges of threatening national security. He was sentenced to eight years in prison; he has now served nearly three years.

Iran is notorious for harassment and imprisonment of religious minorities and human rights dissenters, including Jews, Armenian and Assyrian Christians, Zoroastrians, and even minority Sunni and majority Shi’a Muslims, according to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.

Now advocates are calling for Congress to reject the deal unless Iran agrees to release imprisoned Americans, including Pastor Abedini.

“Whatever benefit the Iranian regime believes it may receive from continuing to hold Pastor Saeed and the other Americans, the American government and the international community must make clear that unjustly imprisoning innocent men and continuing its hostage tactics will only result in Iran’s continued outcast from the international community,” Tiffany Barrans of American Center for Law and Justice, which is representing Abedini’s wife in the U.S., said in a recent post.

Three other American citizens – former Marine Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, retired FBI agent Robert Levinson, and Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian – are also being held in Iranian prisons for what critics call “politically motivated charges.”

“The Iranian government wants the world to look the other way while these individuals, prosecuted under bogus charges and without any semblance of due process, languish in Iranian prisons,” said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran in a recent statement.

Mrs. Abedini has testified before Congress about her husband’s imprisonment.

“For the past 3 years I have been carrying with me a deep excruciating pain knowing that my husband continues to suffer yet another day in one of the worst prisons in the world,” she told a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing in June.

Every year since her husband’s arrest and imprisonment, Mrs. Abedini has held a prayer rally calling for his release and asking for prayers for all persecuted Christians.

This year the rally will be held on Sept. 26 in Washington, D.C. with other vigils hosted around the world. She has asked pastors and church leaders to pray for persecuted Christians during their regular Sunday services on Sept. 27.

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Here’s how one Catholic congressman is prepping for the Pope’s U.S. visit

by Matt Hadro (CNA/EWTN News) • August 18, 2015

Pope Francis greets pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square during the Wednesday general audience on Oct. 1 2014. (Bohumil Petrik/CNA)

Washington, D.C. — As the nation’s capital works to get ready for Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S. this fall, one Catholic congressman is preparing by reading papal encyclicals.

“I say as a Catholic, I’m pretty excited,” Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) told CNA of the upcoming papal visit. He added that it is an opportunity to “evangelize as Catholic members of Congress.”

The Pope’s visit is a “serious matter,” he said, even though many might see it as “just another celebrity in their mind coming.”

“This is a historical opportunity,” he stressed, “this is the one time you’ll have a Pope speaking to Congress.”

The congressman has announced that, in preparation for the first-ever papal address to a joint meeting of Congress on Sept. 24, he is reading two encyclicals – Pope St. Paul VI’s “Humanae Vitae” from 1968, and Pope Francis’ “Laudato Si” from June this year – as well as Francis’ apostolic exhortation, “Evangelii Gaudium,” from 2013.

Huelskamp is a third-term GOP congressman who rode the Tea Party wave into office in 2010. His district comprises a huge chunk of North and West Kansas. He was raised Catholic and entered seminary out of high school before eventually graduating from the College of Santa Fe and later earning a Ph.D. in political science from American University. He and his wife have four adopted children.

Pope Francis will be visiting Washington, D.C., New York City, and Philadelphia from Sept. 22-27, culminating with his papal Mass at the World Meeting of Families on the 27th in Philadelphia. In New York City, he will address the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 25.

During his visit to D.C., the Pope will meet with President Obama, pray with the U.S. bishops, address a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol building, and celebrate the canonization Mass for Bl. Junipero Serra outside the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

His Sept. 24 address to Congress is a highly-sought after ticket, as each member of Congress only receives one guest ticket for seating in the House Gallery.

Huelskamp said he sees a common thread in all three of the papal documents that he is reading, namely, the sanctity of human life.

“But that is the underlying thing, essentially, the incomparable worth of the human being. I see that in all three of those, and that is the message that needs to be heard,” he said.

Huelskamp is most familiar with Humanae Vitae, or “On the Regulation of Birth.” St. Paul VI’s landmark encyclical, the document solidified the Church’s teachings on marriage and sexuality and reaffirmed its teaching against the use of artificial birth control.

Most Catholics and some bishops dissented from the encyclical at the time, the legislator recalled. Many Catholics today have not even heard of it.

“In my opinion, it was not preached enough in our churches, and today if you look at the polling, I think it’s probably accurate, overwhelmingly not agreed to by the average American Catholic,” Huelskamp said. “For me, I do agree, it is an undeniable truth.”

The congressman hopes that Pope Francis will talk about Church teaching on marriage and sexuality when he preaches to American Catholics in September.

“Most folks still don’t know Humanae Vitae,” he said. “When you have 95 to 98 percent of American Catholics [who] have decided to ignore Humanae Vitae and to use artificial contraception, that’s a real concern that hopefully is addressed.”

Huelskamp does not agree with everything in the Pope’s most recent encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si. Specifically, he disagrees with the claim that there is a scientific consensus on man-made global warming.

“I’m not a theologian. I’m a farmer in real life, and a politician in my public life. But (the encyclical) doesn’t seem to rest on as much of a theological consensus. It actually rests heavily on a scientific consensus that frankly I don’t believe existed to the extent the Holy Father believes that in that encyclical,” he said.

He called out some Catholics in Washington for not obeying clear Church teaching on marriage and sexuality, but saying that they follow the Church by believing in a scientific consensus on man-made global warming.

When pressed on the connection between the two encyclicals – that both Humanae Vitae and Laudato Si warned of the human desire to control nature for selfish ends – Huelskamp agreed the connection was there.

“I think it’s critical,” he said. “That’s the arrogance of man, the original sin, the fall of man is to be his or her own God,” he said. “The prophetic vision of Humanae Vitae predicted all this.”

Another issue the congressman hopes Pope Francis will confront is the peril of religious liberty for Catholic organizations in the U.S.

“We’re in a battle right now,” he said, “we’re working with the Conference of Catholic Bishops where they aren’t allowed to participate in certain grants from the Obama administration because they refused to give up their views on contraception and abortion. And the dignity of marriage and the individual.”

Catholic members of Congress are working together to prepare for the Pope’s visit, he revealed.

“There’s a component, a small group of us that have been engaging one another, engaging our staff together, and engaging theologians in America,” he said.

He added that he’s “trying to catch up” with Kansas bishops “and discuss with them some of the implications of issues and moving our nation forward in a direction that will be more pleasing to the Lord.”

One puzzling development is that he has not received any requests for lawn seats outside the U.S. Capitol when Pope Francis addresses Congress.

“I don’t think I’ve had a single request yet from a constituent,” Huelskamp said of the 50 tickets allotted to each member of Congress to view the address on jumbotrons from the lawn outside the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. Pope Francis has expressed his wishes to appear outside after he addresses Congress inside the Capitol building.

“I’ve had family members and friends, Catholic friends that have made some requests, but not a single constituent has requested yet. So I’m not sure what that means but so far no interest in coming.”

Ultimately, he hopes that U.S. Catholics will make the papal visit a memorable one.

“As Catholics, we’ve got a long history in this country where we have been one of the most discriminated-against minorities,” he said. “It was just a few years ago when we had our first chaplain in the U.S. House that was a Catholic priest.”

“So we’ve come a long way as Catholics, and the hope I see is that folks don’t see Catholics as just another one of the many denominations, but understand that Catholics don’t see ourselves as a denomination, but see ourselves as keepers of the faith and holders of the truth.”

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EWTN forms new publishing group with Sophia Institute Press

by CNA/EWTN News • August 19, 2015

(EWTN/Sophia Institute Press)

Manchester, N.H. — Although EWTN Global Catholic Network already reaches over 250 million television households in 140 countries worldwide, they have decided to further expand their outreach down another avenue: book publishing.

Announced this month, the publisher Sophia Institute Press will be joining the EWTN network to print books and publish content electronically, making Catholic literature available globally through their newly formed publishing group.

“By partnering with Sophia Institute Press, the Network does not need to build an entire publications and marketing team from scratch; but rather, we can rely on the technical expertise of a proven publisher who knows what it takes to edit, print and promote books for the Catholic marketplace,” EWTN chairman Michael Warsaw stated Aug. 12.

“There is still a very strong demand for books related to topics of faith and religion, and while EWTN has done limited self-published titles for some time, this new publishing house will allow us to be more deliberate and focused in our efforts.”

This venture will form a new entity called EWTN Publishing Inc. The enterprise will produce various publications, with a focus on the written works of EWTN’s founder, Mother Angelica. These publications will also include various content from her show, “Mother Angelica Live,” which will be edited, printed, and turned into books.

“All of us at Sophia Institute Press are thrilled to partner with EWTN in this new venture,” stated its president, Charlie McKinney.

“EWTN played a profound role in my conversion to the Catholic Church, and I am excited to help expand the great content they produce into book form,” McKinney continued, saying that Sophia Institute Press is excited to collaborate with EWTN in serving the worldwide Church.

Sophia Institute Press, based in New Hampshire, has been known for its Catholic publications focused on the teachings of the Church and has featured authors from St. Augustine to Archbishop Fulton Sheen.

The reach of Sophia Institute Press also expands into other organizations, including affiliates such as Crisis Magazine, Catholic Exchange, and Sophia Institute for Teachers.

Together with EWTN, Sophia Institute Press will continue to produce Catholic publications while engaging the faithful on a more global level.

“Everyone I’ve met at EWTN has been incredibly gracious and encouraging,” McKinney noted, saying that “we’re excited to join their work in saving souls and serving the Church.”

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Incest, suicide, and murder: What we can expect from Tolkien’s dark new story

by Kate Veik (CNA/EWTN News) • August 19, 2015

Kullervo Marches to War by Akseli Gallen-Kallela (1865-1931). (Public domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Nashville, TN — A previously unpublished short story by J.R.R. Tolkien will release in the U.K. next week, and it promises to give a fascinating look into one of the literary giant’s first experimentations with fantasy writing.

“The Story of Kullervo” is Tolkien’s retelling of “The Kalevala,” the dark 19th-century Finnish epic about an orphan who avenges the massacre of his family and accidentally seduces his own sister before taking his own life.

“Tolkien did say that he wanted to do his own thing with (“The Kalevala”), so I’d be intrigued to see what his Christian imagination does with that pagan story,” said Joseph Pearce, a Tolkien expert and director of the Center for Faith and Culture at Aquinas College in Nashville.

Though “The Story of Kullervo” went unfinished and unpublished, Tolkien considered it “the germ of my attempt to write legends of my own”, according to The Guardian. The unfinished manuscript was the foundation for Tolkien’s later work The Silmarillion.

Tolkien began writing “The Story of Kullervo” at age 23, when he was an English student at Oxford University. He and C.S. Lewis had a shared love for Norse mythology at the time, and Pearce said that is likely how Tolkien first discovered “The Kalevala.”

“They loved the storytelling, the fantasy of the whole thing,” Pearce explained. “But also, there is a sense in which man, if he believes himself to be master of his own fate, he’s actually mastered by his fate. In other words, that we’re not gods and when we try to make ourselves gods, we are headed for destruction.”

“That’s something that unites the paganism of the Norse myth-makers and the Christianity of Tolkien and Lewis.”

The murderous revenge, incest, and suicide found in “The Story of Kullervo” do not seem to be typical themes of Christian literature. However, Tolkien was not the only Christian author to explore darker themes in the early 20th century: G.K. Chesterton’s “The Man Who Was Thursday” published in 1908 and T.S. Eliot published “The Wasteland” in 1922.

Pearce explained the Christian fascination with darkness saying, “the modern world is very dark and if depicted in its ugliness, it’s made to be truthful.”

The moral truth behind “The Story of Kullervo”? Pride goeth before a fall.

“When we believe we’re master of our own fate, we’re actually heading for a fall,” Pearce said.

“The Story of Kullervo” will publish August 27 in the U.K., and April 2016 in the U.S. In the meantime, Tolkien enthusiasts can check out another of his early works, The Children of Hurin, which published posthumously in 2007.

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Is Planned Parenthood ‘aborting’ babies after birth?

by Matt Hadro and Adelaide Mena (CNA/EWTN News) • August 19, 2015

(Amy Quinn CC0 1.0)

Washington, D.C. — Warning: this article contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.

A new video in an investigative series on Planned Parenthood shows a former technician saying that she had once been traumatized by the experience of gathering tissue from an aborted baby whose heart was still beating.

Holly O’Donnell, former technician for the biotech company StemExpress, LLC, said that after the intact delivery of “the most gestated fetus and closest thing to a baby that I’ve seen,” a clinic worker called for her to come over and see something “kind of cool.”

“She just taps the heart, and it starts beating,” O’Donnell said in the video released by the Center for Medical Progress.

“I’m sitting here and I’m looking at this fetus, and its heart is beating, and I don’t know what to think,” she said. “I don’t know if that constitutes it’s technically dead, or it’s alive.”

After seeing the fetus, O’Donnell said she was handed scissors “to cut down the middle of the face” in order to obtain brain tissue for medical research. “I can’t even describe what that feels like,” she said.

Dr. Ben Van Handel of Novogenix Laboratories, LLC, said in the video that “there are times when after the procedure [abortion] is done, that the heart actually is still beating.”

The accusation that Planned Parenthood has been harvesting organs of babies born before an abortion procedure is part of an ongoing legal controversy between the abortion giant and citizen journalist group Center for Medical Progress.

In July, StemExpress sought an injunction to block the release of a video “where their leadership admitted that they sometimes get fully intact fetuses shipped to their laboratory from the abortion clinics they work with,” said David Daleiden, project lead for Center for Medical Progress, in a July 31 interview with CNN.

“That could be prima facie evidence of born alive infants,” he said.

While the temporary restraining order was initially granted, a California judge later stated that it was unlikely that a preliminary injunction would be granted. StemExpress severed its ties with Planned Parenthood last week.

According to the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2002, a baby “born alive” is one who “breathes or has a beating heart.” Under the law, infants born alive or those who survive botched abortion attempts must be granted the same protection and treatment that any other newborn baby is entitled to under federal law.

Daleiden, discussing fully intact fetuses and tissue procurement on CNN Aug. 4, said that any feticide or fatal drug like digoxin that is administered before an abortion procedure would adversely disrupt the tissue extraction process since it “poisons” the fetal tissue. Thus harvesters who obtain a “fully-intact” baby from an abortion did so from an abortion procedure performed after a live birth, he claimed.

The Aug. 19 video claims evidence of “fully-intact” babies delivered to harvesters. Perrin Larton, a procurement manager for a company called Advanced Bioscience Resources, described in the video how women would sometimes give birth before an abortion procedure could be performed.

“I literally have had women come in, and they’ll go in the O.R. and they’re back out in three minutes,” she said, adding that “the fetus was already in the vaginal canal whenever we put her [the mother] in the stirrups, it just fell out.”

Larton also described how “they induce fetal demise at about 18 to 20 weeks,” but when asked if the babies were administered digoxin she replied “no, no, no, no, no.”

In addition, O’Donnell said she had witnessed correspondence between a doctor and worker that a “fully-intact fetus” had been procured and they “were sending it straight to the lab.”

In a previous video released by the Center for Medical Progress, one Planned Parenthood doctor said that mothers sometimes give birth before an abortion can be performed.

“Sometimes, if we get, if someone delivers before we get to see them for a procedure, then we are intact, but that’s not what we go for. We try for that to not happen,” Dr. Savita Ginde, vice president and medical director of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, said in an undercover video released July 30, of providing tissue procurement companies with “intact” body parts of aborted babies.

CNA reached out to Planned Parenthood for comment on the Aug. 19 video, but did not receive a response.

O’Donnell said that the experience of seeing and dissecting a developed fetus with a beating heart shook her. After transferring the baby’s brain and body for research transport and disposal, she said “that was the moment I knew I couldn’t work for the company anymore.”

She said that she held the fetus afterwards in her hands. “It’s pretty hard knowing you’re the only person who’s ever going to hold that baby,” she reflected.

The Aug. 19 video is the seventh released by the Center for Medical Progress. Previous undercover videos show Planned Parenthood and medical procurement officials discussing the collection and transfer of body parts from aborted fetuses, compensation and itemization of the parts, and possible alteration of abortion procedures to obtain more intact specimens.

The videos have sparked investigation and calls for the removal of funding from Planned Parenthood from both congressional and state legislators and officials. The organization receives more than $500 million a year from the federal government.

Planned Parenthood maintains that it has been acting within federal law, and that any donation of fetal organs of aborted babies are made with the mother’s consent and are not done for “valuable consideration.”

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Elderly woman brutally attacked in Church responds with forgiveness

by CNA/EWTN News • August 19, 2015

Saint Cecilia’s Cathedral in Omaha, NE. (bluekdesign via Flickr CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Omaha, NE — Police have arrested one suspect in the assault and robbery of a 76-year-old woman at Omaha’s Catholic cathedral – and the woman is asking prayers for her attackers.

“She is doing well and recovering at a friend’s house,” Father James Netusil, an associate pastor at St. Cecilia’s Cathedral, said on the cathedral’s Facebook page Aug. 18.

“She is grateful for all of your prayers, and her hope is that you will pray for her attackers. What a witness to Christian forgiveness. God bless her!”

The 76-year-old Iowa woman was reading a parish bulletin in the cathedral lobby on Sunday when one man approached her from behind. He grabbed her purse and ran out the door. A second man then hit the woman on her face and knocked her down. The woman hit her head on the table as she fell.

She was taken to a local hospital’s emergency room, where she was treated and released. She suffered a large bump and scrapes on her forehead.

A video of the attack was posted to the cathedral’s Facebook page in hopes of identifying the suspects.

The Omaha police believed they recognized the 22-year-old suspect, Wayman B. Clark, from videos of the attack. Police also received several tips suggesting Clark was one of the two participants in the attack, the Omaha World-Herald reported. He was arrested Wednesday morning.

Father Netusil was preparing for Sunday Mass at the time of the attack and briefly comforted the victim before paramedics arrived.

He said the video “just makes you cringe.”

“After the first kid grabbed her purse, the second one hits her, and there’s no point to it. It was just evil,” he said, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

The church has had security cameras for 10 years.

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The bizarre tale of 5,000 relics finding a home in a Pittsburgh chapel

by Adelaide Mena (CNA/EWTN News) • August 20, 2015

St. Anthony’s Chapel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania has the largest collection of relics outside of Rome. (Addie Mena/CNA)

Pittsburgh, PA — Nestled in a sleepy neighborhood in the hills rising over Pittsburgh lies a small chapel. Inside St. Anthony’s Chapel lies a piece from the Crown of Thorns, a tooth of St. Anthony of Padua, and more than 5,000 other verified relics, or remains, of saints from around the world.

Indeed for the fragments from the bodies and scraps of the belongings of countless saints, these relics continued to have earthly adventures long after the saints’ deaths. Many of the relics traveled across the world to escape war, confiscation, and desecration to make it into the safe hands of a Belgian-born physician and priest, Fr. Suitbert Mollinger, who founded the chapel.

The chapel now holds the largest collection of relics outside of Rome.

“Fr. Stewart Mollinger, well, he had an unusual hobby in which he liked to acquire relics of the saints,” Carole Brueckner, chairperson of the committee for St. Anthony’s Chapel, explained to CNA.

But in the midst of the political and social turmoil which Europe experienced at the end of the 19th century, this curious hobby was crucial to saving relics from across the continent.

Since the second century, Catholics have honored the relics of saints- either pieces of body parts or cherished belongings of holy men and women. While theologians and Church documents clarify that relics are not to be worshiped, nor do they hold magical powers, the teaching adds that relics must be treated with respect, as they belong to persons now in heaven. While relics do not have power in and of themselves, God can continue to work miracles in the presence of the saint’s body even after death, the Church teaches. Relics are present in, or below, many Catholic altars.

Because of their important place in Catholic devotion as well as their presence at Mass, relics became a target of anti-Catholic persecution in Europe.

“It was a very chaotic time, in a sense, for Catholics, because people were fighting for territories and countries,” Brueckner said. During the mid- to late- 19th century the political boundaries – and also religious identities – of regions across Europe shifted as the modern nation-states of Germany, Italy, France, and Belgium formed, the power of the nobility and the Church ebbed, and secular governments arose.

Many nobles and religious “were afraid that their governments or the monarchies under which they lived would commit and confiscate the relics from them,” she explained. In some regions, Brueckner continued, authorities even “desecrated the relics and on occasion they would put someone in prison for having a relic in their possession.”

“Due to what was happening in Europe, this was an opportune time for Father to enrich upon his own personal collection of relics of the saints,” she elaborated. While it is forbidden for Catholics to sell or purchase relics, Fr. Mollinger was loaned or granted relics from friends in his home country of Belgium, as well as from his travels in the Netherlands, Italy, and elsewhere.

“Many times, his friends, who are also religious, would write and ask him if he could take some of their relics and keep them in safekeeping, until their countries or monarchies became stable, and Father always responded ‘yes,’”’ she explained. “Father also had agents that he had throughout Europe that were looking for the relics, because in essence, he would try to rescue them from being destroyed by governments and monarchies that existed in Europe at this time.”

Initially, Fr. Mollinger kept the growing relic collection in his rectory. Medical patients as well as faithful Catholics would visit the doctor-priest for both spiritual and physical treatment, and “they had the opportunity to venerate them those relics when they were there.”

Many pilgrims, Brueckner said, “were cured of their anomaly or disability” after receiving physical or spiritual aid in the presence of the relics. As a result, “Father was gaining the reputation as a priest-physician-healer,” she elaborated. Records of local Pittsburgh newspapers of the time documented Fr. Mollinger’s treatments, as well as the thousands of people who traveled to venerate the relics.

Fr. Mollinger, however, “thought they belonged in a beautiful church so that everybody could visit and venerate the relics,” and thus built with his own funds a chapel to house them.

The first section of the chapel was completed on the feast of St. Anthony in 1883, and houses the thousands of relics collected by Fr. Mollinger at the time. The second section was also completed on the feast of St. Anthony, nine years later in 1892, and contains the Stations of the Cross and relics collected after the chapel’s completion. Fr. Mollinger died two days after the last section of the chapel was completed.

Among the relics the chapel currently claims are splinters from the True Cross and the Column of Flagellation; stone from the Garden of Gethsemane; a nail that held Christ to the Cross; material from Jesus, Mary and Joseph’s clothing; a “piece of bone from all of the apostles”; and relics from St Therese of Liseux, St. Rose of Lima, St. Faustina, St. Kateri Tekawitha.

“If I had to name all the saints, we’d be here forever,” Brueckner exclaimed.

Nearly all these relics have been verified, as well.

“When a relic is placed within that reliquary, it is sealed and it can never be opened again,” Brueckner said, explaining that the Church’s strict rules guard against tampering and forgery of relics. “For a relic to be venerated, you do need to have a document, and the document comes from the hierarchy in the Church. That document will tell you who the saint is, what the relic is, and it is saying that the Catholic Church has done their research and we can say what the relic is.”

“We do have the certificates of authenticity for almost all of our relics here within the chapel.”

While belief in the authenticity of the relics relies on a trust that “the Catholic Church has done their research, and I’m going to believe what the Catholic Church is saying,” Brueckner said, visitors still experience the same presence documented by the first pilgrims to the collection of saintly relics. “Many times when people come into the chapel they will say that they actually feel a presence.”

“I say that it’s like stepping into a little piece of heaven, because you are surrounded by so many people that our Church tells us are in heaven,” she remarked.

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U.S. NEWS

The rise of millennial Catholic artists – and here’s a chat with one of them

by Mary Rezac (CNA/EWTN News) • August 20, 2015

Luke Spehar. (Luke Spehar)

Denver, CO — Luke Spehar was an aspiring musician with a girlfriend when he couldn’t shake the feeling that God was calling him to enter the seminary and consider the priesthood.

He turned the painful (but inevitable) breakup into a song (what are painful breakups for?) but said there was still an uncertainty at the beginning – how would his gifts and talents as a musician be used if he were called to be a priest? He had already recorded his first album, “Be Still,” before graduating high school, and had dreams about where music could take him.

“Entering seminary, that was a huge choice that kind of pushes you off the fence in regards to faith, and I think because of that level of extreme expression of faith, that actually helped my music deepen and grow,” Spehar told CNA.

“So there was a tension there because of what I wanted to do in regards to music, but then there was also the gift of it being purified so that I could really actually do what I was meant to,” he said.

After four years, Luke discerned out of seminary, and began praying about the next right step. He started going on tour throughout the country with his second album, “No Other Way,” which started naturally morphing into a sort of music ministry.

“I realized I was telling my conversion story,” he said. “It has a lot of ups and downs and it has a lot of questions and answers. I’m just sharing what’s happened to me and how the Lord’s worked in my life”

Music interested Spehar from an early age – whether it was violin lessons, or picking up the drums or guitar and learning from family friends. Some of his earliest influences included folk singers like Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkle and Cat Stevens, which is reflected in his own acoustic, folky style.

Spehar attributes the inspiration and motivation for most of his songs to three things: His relationship with God, boredom, and anxiety.

“I had a lot of questions in regards to my faith and then answers that came to me, so (songwriting) was a form of prayer for me,” he said. “And especially when I was younger I would play a lot of music when I got bored or stressed out, that really influenced my style.”

Several of Spehar’s songs also reflect his Midwest childhood in Minnesota, where he grew up with two brothers and two sisters in the woods just north of the Twin Cities. In much of Spehar’s music, he essentially pulls a Bon Iver, a band whose lead musician wrote an entire album while spending three months in a cabin in Wisconsin.

Many of Spehar’s songs evoke memories of times spent in the forests and hills of Minnesota, and of crazy antics with his brothers and sisters, including smashing into a tree while testing a treehouse rope.

“It was just kind of us to entertain each other, so we got tight,” he said.

Because his music was so personal, Spehar said he was hesitant to record, at least at first.

“In a lot of ways I just wrote them because that’s what was in my heart to write,” he said. “I really didn’t have much more intention behind a lot of my earliest music, and I was hesitant to record kind of for that reason, these were just kind of my songs and my thoughts.”

“Then I realized that it’s maybe not just for me,” he said. “I’m sharing what’s happened to me and how the Lord’s worked in my life, and people can just relate to it, so that’s what’s been really exciting to me.”

Life looks a little different now for Spehar than when he first started writing songs. In September 2014, he released his third album, “All is Gift,” which he has been taking on tour ever since, minus a small break to marry his wife Elizabeth in January.

Since then, they’ve put about 30,000 miles on their Honda Odyssey minivan and have been as far north as Maine, as far south as Texas, and as far west as Hawaii. Spehar had concerts in over 20 states, and travelled through at least 40.

“We’ve really enjoyed it, and come to have a new respect and love for America,” Spehar said. “That was really neat to show her America, to see it together.”

Spehar said it was a “dream come true” to have his wife with him on tour, after experiencing three tours on his own.

And although Living in a van with your pregnant wife for over 6 months can create a lot of opportunities for “conflict management,” Spehar joked, the tour proved to be full of adventures and opportunities, which they blogged about on lukespehar.com.

They even came up with their best road trip advice, including: always do a head count when you leave a rest stop, even in a party of two.

Luke had been sleeping in the back of the van when Elizabeth pulled up to a rest stop and hopped out to use the bathroom. When she got back, she thought Luke was still sleeping in the back and drove off.

“She jumped back in the van thinking she was being efficient and drove off, while I groggily walked out of the bathroom to see my wife driving off onto the 80 mph Texas highway leaving me without a cell phone!” Luke wrote.

“She did come back 40 minutes later after I figured out how to get in touch with her without a cell phone. I highly recommend memorizing your wife’s phone number. I had to borrow the rest stop attendant’s phone to call my dad for Elizabeth’s number and wrote her number in the sand. Oh the practical lessons you learn from Jesus …”

Something that stood out to Spehar about the tour was how ecumenical of an endeavor it was. He played for a wide range of audiences and denominations; Catholics and non-Catholics.

“It was really exciting to me to be welcomed in and to feel that music was a way we could connect and to remember that it’s all about Christ … and people that are singing and praising him are welcome anywhere.”

He said it was also encouraging to meet other Catholic musicians while he was on the road, and to realize that the genre was growing.

“(There’s) a surge of Catholic musicians that are picking up on an earthy, acoustic singer-songwriter style, I like that type of music so I was excited to see that grow, and it’s exciting to me to see young adults and Catholics and non-Catholics really relate to it and really get into it and find a connection to Christ that way.”

Spehar already has another album that’s in the works, though there’s not a set release date yet. It’s going to have a different tone than his other three albums that will reflect some of the recent changes in his life.

“Since my three albums I’ve grown and there’s been a lot of fun stuff that’s happened, and I hope my newest album will reflect the excitement of getting married and being on the road.”

The Honda Odyssey will be putting on less miles in the near future, with baby on the way, but the travelling will continue.

“We’ll continue to pursue it as long as God wants to bless it, so we’re really hoping that it will grow into something that could sustain us and hopefully grow into something that will really bless a lot of people.”

Spehar’s music can be found on his website lukespehar.com or on iTunes.

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U.S. NEWS

Grassroots discernment program announced as Philly priestly vocations soar

by CNA/EWTN News • August 21, 2015

Vesting of news priests during their Mass of Ordination. (Bohumil Petrik/CNA)

Philadelphia, PA — The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is witnessing a lot of exciting things these days: there’s the World Meeting of Families next month that will include a visit from Pope Francis, and now, a sizeable increase in vocations to the priesthood.

On Aug. 19 the archdiocese announced that in the upcoming academic year St. Charles Borromeo Seminary will have the highest enrollment numbers it’s seen in over ten years, with 20 new seminarians and 145 total seminarians.

“With the servant leadership example of Pope Francis and Archbishop Chaput, these young men are once again experiencing the freedom that comes from this choice over a society that is increasingly secular and experiencing the emptiness of a world without God,” Bishop Timothy Senior, an auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese and rector of Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary, said in the announcement.

“It is extraordinarily gratifying to see these young men choosing a life of service to Jesus Christ and the people of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.”

Capitalizing on this momentum, the Philadelphia archdiocese has announced it will launch a new program focused on engaging parishioners, as well as potential candidates, in the discernment process.

“Building on the visit and anticipated inspiration of Pope Francis’ visit, Called by Name will educate parishioners about the qualities of a good priest and ask people to suggest the names of potential candidates,” said Fr. Stephen Delacy, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s vocations director.

“Called by Name” will help teach Catholics about the priesthood during the first two weekends in November, and then invite them to recognize those in their parish who they think might be called to that vocation beginning Nov. 16.

Potential candidates will also be invited to “Come and See” weekends at the seminary, and dinners focused on vocational discernment.

The archdiocese said that this increase in vocations has been accompanied by a greater diversity of seminarians at St. Charles Borromeo.

“Our church must continue to reflect the ethnic diversity of our world and especially our region. These new seminarians will make us even more sensitive to the spiritual needs of our parishioners,” Bishop Senior said.

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U.S. NEWS

Little Sisters get temporary relief while Supreme Court mulls taking case

by CNA/EWTN News • August 21, 2015

A resident and a sister arrange flowers at the Little Sisters of the Poor’s Mullen Home in Denver, CO. (El Pueblo Catolico/James Baca)

Washington, D.C. — The Little Sisters of the Poor have received temporary protection from the federal contraception mandate until the Supreme Court decides whether or not it will hear their case.

On Aug. 21, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Little Sisters will not be subject the mandate’s requirements or the fines associated with resisting it. The court order lasts until the Supreme Court announces whether it will take up the sisters’ appeal. If the Court agrees to hear the case, the protection from the mandate will last until it issues a final ruling.

For 175 years, the Little Sisters have cared for the elderly poor and dying throughout the world.

However, they say that their service is now threatened by the federal contraception mandate, which requires employers to offer health insurance plans covering contraception, sterilization and some drugs that can cause early abortions.

The sisters are among several hundred plaintiffs who have challenged the mandate, saying that it forces them to violate their sincerely-held religious beliefs.

Employers who fail to comply with the mandate face crippling penalties. In the case of the Little Sisters, the fines could amount to around $2.5 million a year, or about 40 percent of the $6 million the Sisters beg for annually to run their ministry.

Sr. Loraine Marie Maguire, mother provincial of the Little Sisters of the Poor, emphasized that the religious women “dedicate our lives to serving the neediest in society, with love and dignity.”

“We perform this loving ministry because of our faith and simply cannot choose between our care for the elderly poor and our faith, and we shouldn’t have to,” she said in a statement after a ruling last month. “We hope the Supreme Court will hear our case and ensure that people from diverse faiths can freely follow God’s calling in their lives.”

Met with a wave of protest, the contraception mandate has undergone a number of revisions. However, the sisters say that it still requires them to violate their beliefs.

Because the Little Sisters of the Poor are not affiliated with a particular house of worship, they do not qualify for the religious exemption to the mandate. The federal government has argued that it has sufficiently provided for the religious freedom of the Little Sisters and other religious organizations through an “accommodation” under which the faith-based employers can pass the burden of providing the objectionable coverage to insurers, who must then offer it directly to employees without cost.

The government says that providing contraception coverage is ultimately free for insurance companies, because birth control results in better health for women and lower pregnancy rates, resulting in lower overall costs for insurers.

Critics, however, reject this claim, arguing that the costs of the coverage will ultimately be handed on to the employer in some way. Several religious organizations have also said that they still object to signing a form that passes the burden of providing the objectionable content to another party.

“The federal government doesn’t need the Little Sisters or any other ministry to help it distribute abortion-inducing drugs and other contraceptives,” said Mark Rienzi, senior counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and lead attorney for the Little Sisters.

“Yet it not only insists on forcing them to participate in the delivery, it argues that their beliefs against participating are wrong and that government officials and judges can tell the Little Sisters what Catholic theology really requires,” he continued. “That’s wrong, and it’s dangerous.”

On July 14, the Tenth Circuit Court ruled that because the Little Sisters had the option of signing the form, they failed to show that the mandate required a substantial burden on their free exercise of religion. The sisters responded by appealing to the Supreme Court.

Last year, the Little Sisters had received temporary protection from the mandate under two orders from the U.S. Supreme Court – one order from the full court and the other from Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who oversees the section of the country where the sisters’ case originated. The orders had protected the Little Sisters from mandate penalties while their case was working its way through the court system.

The new court order will continue that temporary protection while the Supreme Court decides whether or not to take the Little Sisters’ case.

The Supreme Court has also ruled directly on the mandate. In June 2014, it struck down the mandate as it applied to Hobby Lobby and other closely-held for-profit companies.

In its July 14 decision, the Tenth Circuit said that the Hobby Lobby reasoning did not apply in the Little Sisters’ case because they were a non-profit and therefore fell under the terms of the “accommodation,” which were not offered to Hobby Lobby as a for-profit company.

The Tenth Circuit’s order also applies to Christian Brothers Services and Christian Brothers Employee Benefit Trust, the Catholic organizations through which the Little Sisters obtain their health coverage.

This is the fifth petition on the contraception mandate that the Supreme Court has received. The court is expected to consider the petitions later this year. If it takes up the case, a final decision would be expected next summer.

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FEATURES

Catholic Education I: Jesus the Teacher

by Sr. Joan L. Roccasalvo, C.S.J. • August 19, 2015

The new academic year is just around the corner. For the next few weeks, this column will address some topics concerning the education our children and young adults irrespective of the type of school they attend or their grade level. All of them deserve a quality education second to none. They are our national treasure, the future of this country. Their education must be our highest priority, and no child must be left behind. Not one. Christian educators look to Jesus the teacher as their Exemplar.

The Icon of Jesus the Teacher

From the beginning of the third century, Jesus has been depicted in several guises, for example, as a young shepherd dressed in a simple tunic, as Jesus the Teacher, and as Christ the Pantocrator, the majestic Ruler of the world. Jesus in his humanity is the visible presence of the hidden God.

One of the earliest and most beloved icons of the universal Church is that of Jesus the Teacher, located in Saint Catherine’s Monastery at the base of Mount Sinai on the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula.

In the icon, a bearded Christ wears a brownish-purple imperial tunic and a dark blue cloak. His head is encircled by a halo. His oval face, emphasized by the circular contour of a well-trimmed and full head of hair, radiates quiet strength. The light of God’s glory illumines his face and is depicted by a warm copper glow. His penetrating eyes are in direct contact with the viewer. He is looking at you and me. To show that his senses are disciplined, his nose and mouth are small and pinched.

The left hand holds a jeweled book, the Book of the Gospels. If it is opened, a consoling scripture verse is printed across its pages: “I am the light of the world,” or “Learn of me for I am meek and humble of heart” (Jn 8:12; Mt 11:29). His right hand is strong and secure. The fingers, elongated and thin, are arranged in a stylistic way: the thumb, fourth and fifth fingers touch and are curved inward toward the palm. The index and middle fingers are raised and symbolize the two natures of Jesus, the human and divine. With this pose, he blesses the viewer. This icon depicts an attractive and even handsome Christ.

Jesus, the Model for Educators

Modern pedagogues have written much about the education of our children. Yet, Jesus’ approach with others merits prior consideration. What were some of the qualities of this perfect teacher?

Authenticity. He taught not only by word but by example as well. People experienced his honesty, truthfulness, and integrity. Today young people turn their backs on those who display artifice or insincerity. They are searching above all for truth and honesty in their elders.

Compassion. Jesus showed compassion to others, especially to the least in the crowd.

Attention to the individual. Jesus dealt with the individual according to his or her needs. Centuries later, Jesuit pedagogy would give this the name, cura personalis, the care of the individual person. In the parable of the talents, everyone was enjoined to develop the talents given them by the master. They were not to bury even one talent, as a servant in the parable did.

The individual sitting in classrooms awaits the adventure of learning, that of being led out from the darkness of ignorance in to the light and joy of knowledge. How many images can be used to describe each child? Each is a temple of God, an icon of God, an unfinished symphony. Each is a garden of budding flowers. All are works of art in progress. The teacher is the essential mover who opens up new possibilities for those under his or her care.

Respect. Even when Jesus was admonishing others, he respected them. Our students expect to be corrected, but in the process, they also expect to be respected because they are deserving of respect. Jesus never ridiculed others, not even those who argued for his death.

Quality. Can you imagine Jesus dealing in mediocrity, or that he didn’t care? Can you imagine Jesus deciding that he was too tired to spend himself for the last person waiting to speak with him? There is no more vivid biblical curse against mediocrity than the sharp words in the Book of Revelation (3:16): “Because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” Those who gave scandal to children Jesus denounced.

Inspiration and vision. Jesus inspired others and gave them a vision for life. He set out to form disciples who would establish the kingdom of his Father. He breathed inspiration into their lifeblood.

Our students should be able “to taste and see the goodness of the Lord” in every educator who stands before them. Here begins education worthy of its name.

(To be continued).

Sr. Joan L. Roccasalvo, a member of the Congregation of St. Joseph, Brentwood, NY, holds degrees in philosophy (Ph.L.), musicology (Ph.D.), theology (M.A.), and liturgical studies (Ph.D.). She has taught at all levels of Catholic education and writes with a particular focus on a theology of beauty and the sacred arts. Her e-mail address is jroccasalvo@optonline.net.

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FEATURES

Science and religion are partners, not antagonists

by Msgr. M. Francis Mannion • August 20, 2015

People are often surprised to learn that the Vatican runs an Astronomical Observatory in Arizona in association with the Mount Graham International Observatory. Questions arise in many minds as to what the Vatican is doing meddling in astronomy. Is the Observatory’s task to bend science to the convictions of religion? Is the Observatory simply a hobby for Jesuits with too much time on their hands?

In fact, the Vatican Observatory symbolizes the truth that science and religion are properly partners, not antagonists, and should work together in seeking to unveil the mysteries of the universe.

Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno, one of the principals at the Arizona Observatory states: “Religion needs science to keep it away from superstition and keep it close to reality, to protect it from creationism.” By the same token, science needs religion to answers questions like: Why is there something and not nothing? Where did the order of the universe and the laws of nature come from? How is it that creation had a beginning in time?

The Vatican Observatory reminds us of the mostly-forgotten truth that the Catholic Church was, from the early Middle Ages, a leader in the development of science. The Church founded the first universities, like Paris, Oxford, and Cambridge.

What people are most surprised about is that many of the great scientists of the past were priests and members of religious communities. Polish cleric Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) was the first person to place the sun at the center of the solar system, with the earth revolving around it, rather than the sun revolving around the earth. This discovery upset the accepted theories of religion and science.

Ignatio Danti (1536-1586), Bishop of Altari, was renowned for his wide-ranging interests in astronomy, mathematics, architecture, civil engineering, hydraulics, and cartography. The French Jesuit Jean-Felix Picard (1620-1682) was the first person to provide an accurate measure of the size of the earth.

The Augustinian Gregor Mendel (1822-1884) is acclaimed as the father of modern genetics, and his work continues to be an important starting point for genetic science today.

The Belgian priest Georges Lemaitre (1894-1966) was the first to propose the “Big Bang” theory — which revolutionized standard views of how the universe was created. The “Big Bang” theory continues today to be the accepted view of the origin of the universe.

So where did the antagonism between science and religion originate, so that people like Galileo were condemned by the Church? Not from a supposed religious hostility toward science, but from misunderstandings and ecclesiastical politics. In fact, popes over the centuries have been far more positive about science than is often thought.

Both Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI devoted considerable attention to the relationship between religion and reason, insisting that they are two complementary tracks toward an understanding of the world. In 1988, Pope John Paul II issued a landmark encyclical titled “Faith and Reason” (Fides et Ratio) in which he argued for the complementarity of religious faith and scientific reasoning.

In recent times, the “New Atheists” (principally Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens) have been enormously successful in convincing people at a popular level that science and religion stand in radical opposition, and that religion is fundamentally nonsense, even dangerous and destructive, and has nothing to offer science.

The truth is that the development of science stands at the heart of the Church’s mission. Catholic universities and colleges have science programs not only to qualify young people for jobs, but to advance the cause of science through rigorous study and research.

Msgr. Mannion is pastor emeritus of St. Vincent de Paul parish in Salt Lake City. He holds a Ph.D. in sacramental theology from The Catholic University of America. He was founding president of The Society for Catholic Liturgy in 1995 and the founding editor of the Society’s journal, Antiphon. At the invitation of Cardinal Francis George of Chicago he founded the Mundelein Liturgical Institute in 2000.

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SUNDAY • AUGUST 23, 2015

Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

First Reading (Jos 24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b; NRSVCE)

Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, “Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.”

Second Reading (Eph 5:21-32; NRSVCE)

Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the body of which he is the Savior. Just as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, so as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind — yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish. In the same way, husbands should love their wives as they do their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hates his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, because we are members of his body. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the church.

Gospel Reading (Jn 6:60-69; NRSVCE)

Many of Jesus’ disciples said, “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” But Jesus, being aware that his disciples were complaining about it, said to them, “Does this offend you? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But among you there are some who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray him. And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.”

Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. So Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also wish to go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

MONDAY • AUGUST 24, 2015

Feast of Saint Bartholomew

First Reading (Rv 21:9b-14; NRSVCE)

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. It has the glory of God and a radiance like a very rare jewel, like jasper, clear as crystal. It has a great, high wall with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates are inscribed the names of the twelve tribes of the Israelites; on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

Gospel Reading (Jn 1:45-51; NRSVCE)

Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

TUESDAY • AUGUST 25, 2015

Tuesday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time

First Reading (1 Thes 2:1-8; NRSVCE)

You yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our coming to you was not in vain, but though we had already suffered and been shamefully mistreated at Philippi, as you know, we had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of great opposition. For our appeal does not spring from deceit or impure motives or trickery, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the message of the gospel, even so we speak, not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts. As you know and as God is our witness, we never came with words of flattery or with a pretext for greed; nor did we seek praise from mortals, whether from you or from others, though we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children. So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us.

Gospel Reading (Mt 23:23-26; NRSVCE)

Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.”

WEDNESDAY • AUGUST 26, 2015

Wednesday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time

First Reading (1 Thes 2:9-13; NRSVCE)

You remember our labor and toil, brothers and sisters; we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how pure, upright, and blameless our conduct was toward you believers. As you know, we dealt with each one of you like a father with his children, urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers.

Gospel Reading (Mt 23:27-32; NRSVCE)

Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which on the outside look beautiful, but inside they are full of the bones of the dead and of all kinds of filth. So you also on the outside look righteous to others, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous, and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ Thus you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your ancestors.”

THURSDAY • AUGUST 27, 2015

Memorial of Saint Monica

First Reading (1 Thes 3:7-13; NRSVCE)

For this reason, brothers and sisters, during all our distress and persecution we have been encouraged about you through your faith. For we now live, if you continue to stand firm in the Lord. How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.

Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

Gospel Reading (Mt 24:42-51; NRSVCE)

Jesus said to his disciples, “Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.

“Who then is the faithful and wise slave, whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves their allowance of food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. But if that wicked slave says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know. He will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

FRIDAY • AUGUST 28, 2015

Memorial of Saint Augustine

First Reading (1 Thes 4:1-8; NRSVCE)

Finally, brothers and sisters, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus that, as you learned from us how you ought to live and to please God (as, in fact, you are doing), you should do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from fornication; that each one of you know how to control your own body in holiness and honor, not with lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one wrong or exploit a brother or sister in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, just as we have already told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God did not call us to impurity but in holiness. Therefore whoever rejects this rejects not human authority but God, who also gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Gospel Reading (Mt 25:1-13; NRSVCE)

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

SATURDAY • AUGUST 29, 2015

Memorial of the Passion of Saint John the Baptist

First Reading (1 Thes 4:9-11; NRSVCE)

Now concerning love of the brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anyone write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another; and indeed you do love all the brothers and sisters throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, beloved, to do so more and more, to aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we directed you.

Gospel Reading (Mk 6:17-29; NRSVCE)

Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because Herod had married her. For John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.” And he solemnly swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the baptizer.” Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.