1. Florida Senate passes 6-week abortion ban backed by DeSantis, By Anthony Izaguirre and Adriana Gomez Licon, Associated Press, April 4, 2023, 7:24 AM
The Florida Senate on Monday approved a bill to ban abortions after six weeks, a measure supported by Gov. Ron DeSantis as the Republican prepares to launch his expected presidential candidacy.
The vote prompted demonstrations at the state’s capital that resulted in the arrest of the leader of the Florida Democratic Party and a state senator by city police.
The proposal must still be approved by the House before it reaches the governor’s desk. Florida currently prohibits abortions after 15 weeks.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/04/03/abortion-florida-desantis-election/c9419432-d24e-11ed-ac8b-cd7da05168e9_story.html
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2. Francis causes controversy in Brazil for saying Lula was victim of lawfare, By Eduardo Campos Lima, Crux, April 4, 2023
During an interview with an Argentinian TV station aired on March 30, Pope Francis claimed that Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, convicted of bribery and imprisoned in 2018, and former President Dilma Rousseff, impeached due to alleged budgetary manipulation in 2016, were both victims of judicial persecution.
His comments sparked anger among the supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro and other conservatives.
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Many left-wing leaders in the region claim that they have been subjected to lawfare, like Argentinian Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, convicted in 2022 for corruption, and Lula, who was going to run for president against Bolsonaro in 2018 and ended up being arrested and impeded to do so.
“Lawfare begins… the means of communication open the way. ‘We have to prevent that person from reaching that office,’ and then they hit the person. […] They disqualify the person and raise suspicions of a crime,” described Pope Francis.
https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-americas/2023/04/francis-causes-controversy-in-brazil-for-saying-lula-was-victim-of-lawfare
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3. Archbishop Cordileone to hold Holy Hour for Cardinal Zen, Jimmy Lai, and Hong Kong, By Peter Pinedo, Catholic News Agency, April 3, 2023, 11:00 AM, Opinion
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco will hold a eucharistic Holy Hour and rosary Monday evening for the people of Hong Kong, directing prayers to leading freedom advocates Cardinal Joseph Zen and Jimmy Lai in particular.
The Holy Hour will take place at 6:30 p.m. PST at St. Anne of the Sunset Church in San Francisco.
As the Chinese Communist Party attempts to tighten its hold on every aspect of culture and life in China and Hong Kong, religious freedom in the region is increasingly threatened.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/254009/archbishop-cordileone-to-hold-holy-hour-for-cardinal-zen-jimmy-lai-and-hong-kong
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4. Polish bishops regulate social media use by clerics, By Luke Coppen, The Pillar, April 3, 2023, 1:37 PM
Poland’s clergy face new rules on social media use after the Vatican approved a decree drafted by the country’s bishops.
The wide-ranging decree, promulgated March 30, says that priests’ social media accounts should clearly identify them as clerics through their profile photograph, account name, or description.
The decree, which comes into force April 20, extends not only to priests but also to others who are perceived to speak for the Church, including members of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life. Some of its provisions also apply to lay people who hold Church positions.
https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/polish-bishops-regulate-social-media
__________________________________________________________TCA Media Monitoring provides a snapshot from national newspapers and major Catholic press outlets of coverage regarding significant Catholic Church news and current issues with which the Catholic Church is traditionally or prominently engaged. The opinions and views expressed in the articles do not necessarily reflect the views of The Catholic Association. |
