1. 1 In 3 Women Have Mostly Lost Access To Abortion, More State Bans, Restrictions Expected Rapid Changes in two months after reversal of Roe., By Katie Shepherd, Rachel Roubein and Caroline Kitchener, The Washington Post, August 23, 2022, Pg. A1
Two months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, about 20.9 million women have lost access to nearly all elective abortions in their home states, and a slate of strict new trigger laws expected to take effect in the coming days will shut out even more.
Texas, Tennessee and Idaho all have existing restrictions on abortion, but the laws slated to begin Thursday will either outlaw the procedure entirely or heighten penalties for doctors who perform an abortion, contributing to a seismic shift in who can access abortion in their home states.
At least 11 other states have banned most abortions, prohibiting the procedure with narrow exceptions from the time of conception or after fetal cardiac activity is detected, at about six weeks of pregnancy, with legislation known as “heartbeat” laws. Five more states have similar bans temporarily blocked by the courts. If those injunctions are lifted, abortion could soon be inaccessible for millions more — in total, 36 percent of U.S. women between the ages of 15 and 44 would be largely unable to obtain an elective abortion in the state where they live.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/08/22/more-trigger-bans-loom-1-3-women-lose-most-abortion-access-post-roe/
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2. Archbishop Rembert Weakland, Progressive Catholic Intellectual, Dies at 95, By Robert D. McFadden, The New York Times, August 23, 2022, Pg. A20
Archbishop Rembert G. Weakland, a liberal critic of Vatican orthodoxy who led the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee for 25 years but resigned on the eve of retirement in a scandal over a long-secret love affair with a man, died on Monday at his home in Clement Manor, a retirement community in Greenfield, Wis. He was 95.
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An intellectual touchstone for progressive Catholic reformers, Archbishop Weakland, over the course of a distinguished if often controversial half-century career, was head of the worldwide order of Benedictine monks for a decade, presided in a rocky tenure over the Milwaukee archdiocese’s 700,000 Catholics, wrote many books and was an influential voice among the nation’s Catholic bishops.
But after an ecclesiastical life that lifted him from poverty in a Pennsylvania coal town to one step below the College of Cardinals — he was the recipient of more than 35 honorary degrees, international acclaim as a voice for change, and even talk that he might someday be the first American pope — Archbishop Weakland was disgraced in May 2002 as he reached the mandatory retirement age of 75.
As he watched television, a familiar face appeared on the screen. Paul J. Marcoux, a former theology student who had been his lover more than 20 years earlier, told an interviewer on the ABC program “Good Morning America” that he had received $450,000 from the Milwaukee archdiocese in 1998 in a pretrial settlement of a lawsuit over what he called date rape at the hands of the archbishop long ago.
The archbishop, whose resignation was accepted a day later by the Vatican, denied that he had committed sexual assault. But, apologizing to his archdiocese, he admitted that he had used church funds to pay what he called hush money when Mr. Marcoux threatened to file suit and expose an affair that took place in the early 1980s.
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In a nation reeling from disclosures that thousands of children had been sexually abused by Catholic priests, he also acknowledged that he had allowed sexually abusive priests to continue working without informing parishioners of their histories. He blamed psychologists who advised him that abusive priests could be treated and returned to work; he also blamed Vatican courts for taking years to remove abusers from the priesthood.
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Archbishop Weakland was the author or co-author of a dozen books on topics including Catholic education and the church since the liberalizing Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. In 2009 he published “A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church: Memoirs of a Catholic Archbishop,” which discussed church reforms and also addressed his homosexuality. In the 2009 interview with The Times, which was conducted just before the book’s publication, he disputed the Catholic view that homosexuality was “intrinsically disordered.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/22/us/archbishop-rembert-weakland-dead.html
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3. Why it’s a good thing pregnancy centers outnumber abortion clinics, It takes more to help a woman choose life versus an abortion procedure, By Jor-El Godsey, The Washington Times, August 23, 2022, Pg. B3, Opinion
It takes more to do more.
Abortion proponents are suddenly very concerned about the fact pregnancy help centers outnumber abortion clinics. In fact, pregnancy help centers have outnumbered abortion clinics in the United States since the mid-1990s. That was when the surge of new pregnancy centers in the mid-’80s and the steady opening of new locations overtook the number of abortion clinics.
Now, two decades later, pregnancy help centers and their local, grassroots support fueled continuous growth into the new millennium. As we step into the post-Roe era, there are nearly four pregnancy centers for every one abortion clinic.
As state abortion bans take effect, even Planned Parenthood is announcing location closures, despite the fact that they, at least in their name, exist to support parenthood. Or do they? A look at Planned Parenthood’s own list of services reveals literally nothing to do with actual, you know, parenthood.
A few years ago, the creative marketing team at Planned Parenthood tried to convince everyone that “abortion is only 3%” of their business. So why are Planned Parenthood locations in life states closing following an abortion ban? Clearly, it’s not due to their parenthood products. But then there are the supposed 97% of their “women’s services” that are intended to help women, right? Apparently not. It seems as though they were willing to stay open to do abortions, but not to serve women.
Yet, somehow, abortion supporters like Sen. Elizabeth Warren are gravely concerned.
“In Massachusetts right now, those crisis pregnancy centers … outnumber true abortion clinics by three to one,” Ms. Warren told NBC 10 Boston. “We need to shut them down here in Massachusetts and we need to shut them down all around the country.”
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The path to parenting is longer. Sometimes that makes it harder. And for the families thriving today thanks to the help of a pregnancy center, it is certainly worth the investment.
Jor-El Godsey is president of Heartbeat International.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/aug/22/why-its-a-good-thing-pregnancy-centers-outnumber-a/
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4. Pope Francis instructs Vatican entities to move all funds to Vatican bank by Sept. 30, By Hannah Brockhaus, Catholic News Agency, August 23, 2022, 5:51 AM
Pope Francis has ordered that the Holy See and connected entities move all financial assets to the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), commonly known as the Vatican bank.
The pope’s rescript, issued Aug. 23, clarifies the interpretation of a paragraph in the new constitution of the Roman Curia, Praedicate Evangelium, promulgated in March.
According to Francis’ rescript, financial and liquid assets held in banks other than the IOR must be moved to the Vatican bank within 30 days of Sept. 1, 2022.
The IOR, based in Vatican City State, has 110 employees and 14,519 clients. As of 2021, it looked after 5.2 billion euros ($5.6 billion) of client assets.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252093/pope-francis-instructs-vatican-entities-to-move-all-funds-to-vatican-bank-by-sept-30
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5. Newest US cardinal: A San Diego-based ally of Pope Francis, By David Crary, Associated Press, August 22, 2022, 10:40 AM
When San Diego Bishop Robert McElroy receives his prestigious red hat at the Vatican on Saturday, he will bring to the College of Cardinals a fervent loyalty to Pope Francis that has often put him at odds with the conservative majority in the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
McElroy, 68, is the only American among the 21 clerics being installed as cardinals by Francis in a ceremony at St. Peter’s Basilica. He was chosen over numerous higher-ranking American archbishops, including two from his home state — outspoken conservative Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco and José Gomez of Los Angeles, the president of the U.S. bishops conference.
McElroy has been among the few American bishops who questioned why the conference insists on identifying abortion as its “preeminent” priority. Echoing the pope’s concerns, he has questioned why greater prominence is not given to issues such as poverty, immigration and climate change.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/newest-us-cardinal-a-san-diego-based-ally-of-pope-francis/2022/08/22/6eafac6a-2228-11ed-a72f-1e7149072fbc_story.html
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6. Theologian at Academy for Life claims one may dissent from Church teaching on contraception, By Hannah Brockhaus, Catholic News Agency, August 22, 2022, 11:25 AM
The Pontifical Academy for Life has published an interview with a theologian who says Catholic teaching on contraception is open for “theological discussion, within the Church, and even the possibility of dissent.”
The interview with Father Maurizio Chiodi, a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life since 2017, was published in Italian and English and shared on the pontifical academy’s Twitter page. It was conducted by Fabrizio Mastrofini, the communications and social media manager of the Pontifical Academy for Life.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252089/theologian-at-academy-for-life-claims-one-may-dissent-from-church-teaching-on-contraception
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7. Catholic Church in Argentina opposes legalization of euthanasia, By Catholic News Agency, August 22, 2022, 2:21 PM
The Committee for Life, the Laity, and the Family of the Argentine Bishops’ Conference expressed its opposition to four bills introduced in Congress to legalize euthanasia. The committee said the country is facing “a new manifestation of the culture of death and the throwaway culture.”
In an Aug. 18 statement, the committee said that “the Gospel commits us not to be indifferent in the face of discussions on the beginning and end of life.”
There are currently four bills to legalize euthanasia: two introduced last year and two this year.
In its statement, the Church in Argentina warned that “we are facing a new manifestation of the culture of death and the throwaway culture” and at the same time, “we are a people that wants such important needs as health, work, housing, and land” to be taken care of.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252091/catholic-church-in-argentina-opposes-legalization-of-euthanasia
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8. Will Pope Francis reinstate Becciu?, By Ed. Condon, The Pillar, August 22, 2022, Opinion
During a Sunday homily in his native Sardinia, Cardinal Angelo Becciu told the assembly that Pope Francis had called him the previous day to invite him to this week’s consistory, and — according to Becciu — promised to reinstate his rights as a member of the College of Cardinals.
It is, as the saying goes, “big, if true.”
While the cardinal’s account of the telephone call has been splashed across Italian and Catholic media, and his brother Mario has written on Facebook that it marks the end of “two endless years” for Becciu, there has been no official explanation from the Holy See on the matter.
This is not the first time the Becciu clan has confidently predicted the rehabilitation of “Don Angelo,” as he is known in his hometown.
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While it is possible the cardinal is over-selling whatever the pope allegedly told him about his future “reinstatement” to his “cardinalatial functions,” it seems settled that when the consistory meets later this week, Becciu will be there, at least in some capacity.
Of course, there are a range of possible ways in which Becciu could be “present” for the consistory, each open to a different interpretation.
The Vatican’s official outlet, somewhat oddly, cited unnamed “sources in the Holy See,” who apparently noted that “the rights of the cardinalate do not refer to participation in the life of the Church; Christians are called upon to take part in it, according to their state.”
“In the case of cardinals this may include an invitation – sometimes personal – to attend certain meetings reserved for them,” the Vatican news site said.
The Vatican’s media move is somewhat reminiscent of previous efforts to downplay the 2021 home Mass: In short, it is possible that Becciu could be invited as a courtesy by the pope to sit in at the back of the consistory’s meetings as, essentially, a spectator.
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However well-intentioned or “pastoral” Francis may intend to be by inviting Becciu to the consistory this week, the move will be interpreted across the Vatican — including by those involved in the cardinal’s trial — as a sign of the mind of the city state’s supreme judge.
That reading will drag the pope further into the middle of Becciu’s trial — even while the both cases against the cardinal, and for Francis’ credibility as a legal reformer — hang on the court’s independence.
https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/will-pope-francis-reinstate-becciu
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9. Visa CEO remains on Catholic boards amid child porn dispute, By The Pillar, August 22, 2022
As advocates point to evidence that Visa knowingly does business with child pornography distributors, Visa CEO Alfred Kelly continues to hold high-level leadership positions at several large Catholic institutions.
Kelly disputes the allegation, claiming that his company’s apparent entanglement with child porn distributors is a misunderstanding. And Visa suspended its relationship with some pornography websites this month, amid litigation for its role in child porn distribution.
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As Kelly navigates that situation, he also serves as a member of the finance council for the Archdiocese of New York, and is a member of the boards of trustees for both Boston College and St. Joseph Seminary in Dunwoodie, New York.
https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/visa-ceo-remains-on-catholic-boards
__________________________________________________________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. |
