1. Vatican says health of retired pope Benedict XVI ‘worsening’, By Frances D’Emilio, Associated Press, December 28, 2022, 6:06 AM
The health of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has worsened due to his age, and doctors are constantly monitoring the 95-year-old’s condition, the Vatican said Wednesday.
Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni said Pope Francis, who asked the faithful earlier Wednesday to pray for Benedict, went to visit his predecessor in the monastery on Vatican grounds where the retired pontiff has lived since retiring in February 2013.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pope-asks-for-special-prayers-for-very-sick-benedict-xvi/2022/12/28/c2afa2c4-8692-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html
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2. State lawsuits defend abortion access with religious freedom, By Arleigh Rodgers, Associated Press, December 27, 2022, 11:05 AM
Critics of religious freedoms laws often argue they are used to discriminate against LGBTQ people and only protect a conservative Christian worldview. But following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in June, religious abortion-rights supporters are using these laws to protect access to abortion and defend their beliefs.
The Dobbs v. Jackson ruling left abortion rights up to the states. As a result, lower courts in at least five states, including Indiana, have issued rulings in abortion-related religious freedom lawsuits.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/state-lawsuits-defend-abortion-access-with-religious-freedom/2022/12/27/38ad1698-8600-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html
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3. Suit challenging several N. Carolina abortion laws withdrawn, By Gary D. Robertson, Associated Press, December 27, 2022
A North Carolina abortion provider, medical professionals and an abortion-rights group have withdrawn their 2020 lawsuit challenging several state laws restricting and regulating the procedure.
The voluntary dismissal document, filed in Wake County Superior Court late last week, doesn’t prevent the plaintiffs from attempting to overturn the laws again in similar future litigation.
Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, the lead plaintiff in the case, didn’t immediately respond on Tuesday to an email request for comment about the decision filed last Thursday. Neither had the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina, whose attorney signed the dismissal notice but isn’t a plaintiff.
Five laws approved in the 2010s by the GOP-controlled legislature had been challenged, with the plaintiffs’ lawyers contending in part that the laws burdened the fundamental right of North Carolina citizens “to decide whether and when to bear a child.”
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-politics-health-north-carolina-state-government-phil-berger-da0d698538f6693e6984a791993cb9ea
__________________________________________________________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. |
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