1. Missouri Battle on Birth Control Gives Hint of a Post-Roe Nation, By Sheryl Gay Stolberg, The New York Times, June 14, 2022, Pg. A1 Last year, the Republican-led Missouri Senate voted to ban taxpayer funding for two common methods of preventing pregnancy: intrauterine devices and emergency contraception — the so-called morning-after pill, also known as Plan B — which many abortion opponents regard as “abortifacients” because they can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in a woman’s uterus. Lawmakers later abandoned the effort, but some have indicated that if Roe falls, they may try again. … Texas already bars its state family planning programs from paying for emergency contraception. Missouri, one of 13 states with “trigger laws” that would immediately ban abortion if Roe is overturned, is becoming another front in the battle over birth control — and may foreshadow what is to come in a post-Roe world. In February, it became the fourth state — after Arkansas, Mississippi and Texas — to eject Planned Parenthood, a major provider of birth control nationally, from its Medicaid program.… National leaders of the anti-abortion movement say their next push will be to ban medication abortion — a two-pill regimen that terminates a pregnancy. Birth control “is not something that’s on our radar,” said Kristan Hawkins, the president of Students for Life of America, a leading anti-abortion group. But like Mr. Wieland, Ms. Hawkins said she believed that I.U.D.s and the morning-after pill had been “mislabeled as contraceptives.” She added, “This is the ‘con’ in contraception.” https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/13/us/politics/birth-control-roe-v-wade.html___________________________________________________________ 2. Pope Francis: There are many ‘restorers’ in the US who do not accept Vatican II, By Hannah Brockhaus, Catholic News Agency, June 14, 2022, 4:12 AM There are many “restorers” in the United States who do not accept the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis said in an interview published on Tuesday. Speaking to the editors of Jesuit journals, he criticized what he called “restorationism” in the Church, which he defined as the failure to accept Vatican II, the ecumenical council held from 1962 to 1965. He said: “Restorationism has come to gag the Council. The number of groups of ‘restorers’ — for example, in the United States there are many — is significant.” https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/251536/pope-francis-there-are-restorers-in-the-us-who-do-not-accept-vatican-ii__________________________________________________________ 3. Yes, Susan B. Anthony Was Pro-Life, She and Elizabeth Cady Stanton railed against abortion in the pages of their paper., By Colleen Kelly Spellecy and Eric Anthony, The Wall Street Journal, June 14, 2022, Pg. A17, Opinion Early feminist icons Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony changed forever the role of women in American society. In the 19th century they tirelessly promoted public education on behalf of women’s equality and demanded that women be given the right to vote. But contrary to recent claims by advocacy groups, they were not in favor of abortion. … In fact, it’s the pro-choice groups that have it wrong. During their lifetimes, both women vociferously condemned abortion. They certainly wouldn’t have embraced the use of their names to promote what they termed “foeticide.” … Modern abortion-rights activists are wrong to enlist Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony in their cause. Both women were firmly opposed to abortion, as their extensive writing and publishing on the subject confirms. Arguments to the contrary do a disservice to women—and to women’s history. Ms. Spellecy and Mr. Anthony are board members of the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum in Adams, Mass. https://www.wsj.com/articles/susan-b-anthony-was-pro-life-elizabeth-cady-stanton-roe-abortion-dobbs-decision-11655151459?___________________________________________________________ 4. Pope Francis: Ukraine war cannot be reduced to ‘good guys and bad guys’, By Inés San Martín, Crux, June 14, 2022 Pope Francis says he refuses to reduce the Russian invasion of Ukraine to a case of “good guys and bad guys” in his latest comments on the conflict. “There are no metaphysical good guys and bad guys here, in an abstract way,” Francis said during a May conversation with Jesuit media outlets published by the Italian newspaper La Stampa.  “Something global is emerging, with elements that are very intertwined with each other,” he added. While condemning “the ferocity, the cruelty of Russian troops, we must not forget the real problems if we want them to be solved,” Francis said, citing the armaments industry among the factors that provide incentives for war. He also quoted the opinion of a head of state he met several months before the start of the war who expressed his concern “about how NATO was moving.” https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2022/06/pope-francis-ukraine-war-cannot-be-reduced-to-good-guys-and-bad-guys___________________________________________________________ 5. Pope Francis steps in to appoint new Order of Malta leader, By Ed. Condon, The Pillar, June 13, 2022 Pope Francis has appointed a new interim head of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, following the sudden death of the Lieutenant of the Grand Master last week. The papal appointment is likely to bring a measure of stability at the head of the order, which has had four leaders since 2017. Francis appointed the Canadian born Fra’ John T. Dunlap as Lieutenant of the Grand Master by decree Monday morning, instructing his special delegate to the order, Cardinal Silvano Tomasi, to inform the knights’ sovereign council of his decision. A copy of the decree was obtained by The Pillar. … While the possibility of a direct papal appointment to the role is not foreseen in the order’s current law, in his decree appointing Dunlap, Francis stressed the interventions of previous popes in the internal governance of the order and recognized the ongoing constitutional gridlock facing the knights, saying that “unfortunately, new events and circumstances seem almost to want to prevent the Order of St. John the Baptist from walking the necessary path of renewal in fidelity to the original charism.” https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/pope-francis-steps-in-to-appoint?s=r___________________________________________________________ 6. Expert says Nigerian Christians no longer view the U.S. as a ‘credible partner’, By Jonah McKeown, Catholic News Agency, June 13, 2022, 8:45 PM More than a week after a devastating massacre at a Catholic church in Nigeria on Pentecost, an advocate for persecuted Christians says that Nigerian Christians largely do not view the U.S. government as a “credible partner” that will advocate on their behalf.  Stephen Rasche, an American lawyer who has worked and advocated extensively in persecuted Christian communities in Iraq and Nigeria, said during a June 13 discussion with Kathryn Jean Lopez of the National Review Institute that Christians in Nigeria continue to joyfully and publicly live out their faith despite the many dangers they face. …  The location where the Pentecost massacre took place was a great distance from where the Fulani historically operate, Rasche noted, and he said that the claim that this attack was related merely to resources, land, or climate change is “absurd” and amounted to “pouring salt in the wounds” of the many Christians suffering persecution at the hands of their Muslim neighbors.  Rasche and Lopez rejected the idea that the violence in Nigeria does not have a religious component, discussing the recent killing of Deborah Yakubu, a Nigerian university student who was stoned to death and her body burned by a Muslim mob after being accused of disrespecting the Prophet Muhammad in a study chat group.  They also praised Nigerian Christians for their strong faith and “overflowing” churches, holding them up as an example of a joyful living of the faith despite persecution. They encouraged people of goodwill wanting to help to donate to aid organizations such as the Knights of Columbus and Aid to the Church in Need, and to contact their elected representatives to ask why Nigeria was delisted as a Country of Particular Concern.  https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/251534/nigeria-christian-persecution-us-government___________________________________________________________ 7. Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop Lori decry attacks on pro-life centers, By Catholic News Service, June 13, 2022 Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York and Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore pleaded for peace in light of recent attacks on pro-life pregnancy centers in the United States. “Each of us must choose the path of peace and open our hearts to the love that God has for his children,” said a joint statement June 13 by the two prelates. “O Sacred Heart of Jesus, touch our hearts and make them like your own.” They made the comments as committee chairs of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops: Dolan chairs the Committee on Religious Liberty and Lori of Baltimore is chairman of the bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities. https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2022/06/cardinal-dolan-archbishop-lori-decry-attacks-on-pro-life-centers___________________________________________________________ 8. Ban Kids from Social Media, By Christine Rosen, National Review, June 9, 2022, 1:43 PM, Opinion Why don’t we have a legally enforceable age requirement for the use of social media? As a society, we long ago agreed upon age-restriction laws governing a range of behaviors (driving, voting, enlisting in the military, smoking, drinking alcohol, getting a tattoo). Why do we treat social-media use differently? A recent survey by Common Sense Media of social-media use found a significant increase in the number of children ages eight to twelve (so-called tweens) using social-media platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram. “The huge number of kids using social when they’re so young — it makes me want to cry,” Diana Graber of Cyberwise told the New York Times. “These social-media apps are not designed for children.” … The law is a blunt instrument for solving complicated social problems, and yet sometimes it is the only one at hand.  Social-media use should be limited by law to adults, or at the very least to people 16 years old and older. … Large social-media companies can afford to lose the revenue they now generate from child influencers and tween TikTok users. The more important question is: Can we afford to lose another generation of children to the whims of social-media platforms that were made for adults, built to keep you engaged (and enraged) as much as possible, and designed without concern for their impact on our most vulnerable citizens? Perhaps one day someone will create a perfectly designed social-media platform that brings only happiness and joy to children’s lives, or parents will hit upon the perfect formula for monitoring their kids’ screen time. But that day is a long way off. For now, we should put social media legally off limits to children. https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2022/06/27/ban-kids-from-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.
Subscribe to the TCA podcast!
“Conversations with Consequences” is a new audio program from The Catholic Association. We’ll bring you thoughtful dialogue with the leading thinkers of our time on the most consequential issues of our day. Subscribe today or listen online and enjoy our entertaining and informative weekly episodes.