Conscience articles from September 2005

Conscience archives from September 2005

God talk and the Democratic Party: saving God from God talk.(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2005... IN THE TIME OF JESUS, like our own time, there were some religious leaders who were all talk and no faith. He said, rather clearly, "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I tell you?" (Luke 6:46) For once in the Democratic Party,...

On Jim Wallis.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2005... REV. AARON PAYSON'S ARTIcle, "The Politics of Jim Wallis" (Summer 2005), articulates very well the inconsistencies in Wallis's so-called "ethic of life" argument. Wallis argues that the seamless garment is "an invaluable plumb line by which to...

Pope Benedict XVI.(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2005... WHEN POPE BENEDICT WAS elected, Catholics in Asia, Africa and Europe celebrated. But is this a good day for American Catholics? After examining the man's politics, I am not sure any progress will be made in the areas of gay Catholics, prochoice...

Is There Life after Roe?(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2005... FRANCES KISSLING'S ARTIcle, "Is There Life after Roe? How to think about the fetus" (Winter 2004-5), fails to convince that an accommodation with antiabortionist positions is either feasible or acceptable. Firstly, the lack of information...

Vatican forces out editor of America.(Fr. Tom Reese)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... FR. TOM REESE, THE editor of the Catholic journal America, has resigned following the Vatican's five-year campaign to force him out. The final straw came when the Vatican threatened to impose a board of censors on the magazine if Reese did not...

Irish bishops ban abortion options leaflet from counseling service.(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... THE IRISH CATHOLIC bishops' conference has instructed its pregnancy counseling service CURA (Irish for "Cares") to stop distributing a leaflet that contains contact information for other Irish agencies that provide information on abortion...

Catholic doctors support contraception, condoms.(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... ACCORDING TO A SURVEY OF doctors in the US, 87 percent of Catholic doctors would "prescribe birth control pills to any adult patients that request them and for whom they are medically appropriate." This compares to 93 percent of all doctors who...

Portugal delays abortion referendum until 2006.(The Church and Abortion)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... WHILE A RECENT POLL shows that more than 50 percent of Portuguese voters want abortion laws relaxed, President Jorge Sampaio has decided to delay a planned referendum until 2006. Parliament had previously approved a government proposal to hold...

Majority of Catholic hospitals refuses to provide emergency contraception.(The Church and Contraception)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... A NATIONAL SURVEY OF hospital emergency rooms found that staff at 55 percent of Catholic hospitals and 42 percent of non-Catholic hospitals said they do not dispense emergency contraception (EC) for any reason, including sexual assault. ...

Slovakia considers new treaty with the Vatican.(Church and State)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... A PROPOSED TREATY BEtween Slovakia and the Vatican will create a joint commission to approve cases of conscientious objection related to health care, military service, education and the law. The treaty will allow religious Slovaks to appeal to...

Vatican seeks immunity for pope in US court.(Church and State)(Pope Benedict XVI)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... THE VATICAN HAS ASKED the US State Department to declare that Pope Benedict XVI is immune from prosecution in a sexual abuse lawsuit filed in Houston, Texas. According to court documents, an official from the Vatican contacted the State...

Australian priest appointed to state cabinet post.(Msgr. David Cappo)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... THE CENTER-LEFT GOVernment of South Australia has appointed a priest to the executive committee of its Cabinet. It is believed to be the first time that a non-elected official has been appointed to such a position. Msgr. David Cappo will deal...

Church claims of victory ring false in Italian vote.(The Church and New Reproductive Technologies)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... A REFERENDUM ON CHANGing Italy's assisted fertility laws failed to reach the required 50 percent plus one mark, negating the result. In fact, nearly three-quarters of the country's eligible electors did not vote. The referendum asked...

Take action.(IN CATHOLIC CIRCLES)
September 22, 2005... In our article on p36, we reveal how the Catholic hierarchy is closely involved in a concerted campaign to permit pharmacists to refuse to supply contraceptives, including emergency contraception. If you hear or experience any such instances...

The Secretariat of State for the Vatican has announced that Fr. Marcial Maciel, the founder of the conservative Catholic sect, the Legionaries of Christ, will not face charges in a case involving the sexual abuse of seminaries.(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... The Secretariat of State for the Vatican has announced that Fr. Marcial Maciel, the founder of the conservative Catholic sect, the Legionaries of Christ, will not face charges in a case involving the sexual abuse of seminaries. However, the...

During its biannual meeting, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) voted by 228 votes to four to retain its "zero tolerance" policy of dismissing from the ministry all abusive priests.(Sexual Abuse Scandal)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... During its biannual meeting, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) voted by 228 votes to four to retain its "zero tolerance" policy of dismissing from the ministry all abusive priests. In other decisions, the bishops also...

CFFC has collaborated with groups in Australia and the Philippines in submitting NGO shadow reports to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC).(Sexual Abuse Scandal)(Catholics for a Free Choice)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... CFFC has collaborated with groups in Australia and the Philippines in submitting NGO shadow reports to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC). In Australia, the report was prepared with the NGOS Bravehearts and Broken Rites and...

The Vatican has barred eight priests from ministry in Detroit.(sexual abuse scandal)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... The Vatican has barred eight priests from ministry in Detroit, and defrocked another priest following accusations of abuse.

The Diocese of Tucson, Ariz., has filed a claim to cap its payments in the sexual abuse scandal.(Arizona)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... The Diocese of Tucson, Ariz., has filed a claim to cap its payments in the sexual abuse scandal at $20 million.

The Diocese of Covington, Ky., has agreed to pay out up to $120 million.(Kentucky)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... The Diocese of Covington, Ky., has agreed to pay out up to $120 million in settlement of claims.

The Diocese of St. George's in Newfoundland, Canada, has agreed to sell all its 150 church properties in order to raise the CDN $13 million ($10.5 million).(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... The Diocese of St. George's in Newfoundland, Canada, has agreed to sell all its 150 church properties in order to raise the CDN $13 million ($10.5 million) that it needs to settle claims of abuse. In a novel approach, the diocese will ask...

Come again?(IN CATHOLIC CIRCLES)
September 22, 2005... Where's the dignity? "St. Jude Educational Institute serves the educational and spiritual needs of single young men and women in grades eight through twelve integrating faith into daily life, making moral choices, and acting in a manner...

The Archdiocese of San Francisco has settled 15 lawsuits relating to sexual abuse for $12.2.(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... The Archdiocese of San Francisco has settled 15 lawsuits relating to sexual abuse for $12.2. At least 40 other cases are pending.

Court documents released as part of the $100 million settlement by the Diocese of Orange County, Calif., show that "senior officials ... were shown to have routinely moved priests and church employees accused of sexual misconduct from parish to parish.(sexual abuse scandal)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... Court documents released as part of the $100 million settlement by the Diocese of Orange County, Calif., show that "senior officials... were shown to have routinely moved priests and church employees accused of sexual misconduct from parish to...

Church in UK using beer mats to recruit new priests.(End Notes)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... CARDINAL CORMAC MURPHY-O'Connor, the leader of the Catholic church in England and Wales, has announced a new approach to recruiting priests: advertising on beer mats and posters on the London Underground, part of the city's rail transportation...

Latin America's abortion battles: advocates for women's rights sense progress in the ongoing battle for better reproductive health care services.(Cover Story)
September 22, 2005... IT WAS ONE OF THE UGLIER MOMENTS IN LATIN America's increasingly heated debate over reproductive rights and abortion. Argentina's minister of health, Gines Gonzalez Garcia, went on record in February to state a few compelling facts and hazard...

Two to tangle: church and state clash heads in Spain.
September 22, 2005... "IN SPAIN, THE PEOPLE ALWAYS FOLlOW the priests; sometimes holding candles, sometimes clubs." It took a home-grown existentialist like Miguel de Unamuno to underscore the peculiar nature of the church-state conflict in Spain that came to a boil...

A cautionary tale: has progressive religion moved far enough away from patriarchy to do women and democracy much good?
September 22, 2005... I WAS SITTING IN A SENATE MEETing room a few months ago when I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. A US senator started talking about Jesus. She (and it was not Hillary Clinton, so keep guessing) said, "What I want to do is get on...

Understanding Catholic voters.
September 22, 2005... THE 2004 ELECTION continued a long-standing truism of American presidential politics: the candidate who wins the most Catholic voters also wins the most votes across the nation. The Catholic vote in the United States has been one of the...

Giving women room to exhale: listening to women who have had abortions.
September 22, 2005... ON THE 32ND ANNIVERSARY of Roe v. Wade this past January, the US had just inaugurated four more years of an administration hostile to abortion rights. That day, when Senator Hillary Clinton addressed 1,000 abortion rights supporters, she...

The making of a papacy: Pope Benedict XVI charts a conservative course in his first 100 days.
September 22, 2005... July 27 marked the 100th day of the papacy of Pope Benedict XVI. As with any transition of power, the first one hundred days are a crucial indicator and opportunity to establish the values and priorities of a new administration. Clear...

Prescriptions denied: pharmacy refusal clauses have become the latest battleground in the provision of safe and legal medical services.
September 22, 2005... IN JANUARY THIS YEAR, A MOTHER of six walked into a Walgreen's pharmacy in Milwaukee, Wis., to get a prescription filled for emergency contraception (EC). The condom she and her partner were using had burst and she wanted to take precautions...

Respecting women's rights and fetal value: reflections on the question of fetal anesthesia.(Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act)
September 22, 2005... Earlier this year, Senator Sam Brownback, a Republican from Kansas, introduced the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act (S.51). The introduction of legislation by those opposed to legal abortion that would require doctors to not only inform...

Recruiting the next generation: how conservative groups influence and enlist young people.
September 22, 2005... IN AUGUST, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF YOUNG Catholics will gather in Cologne, Germany, to celebrate World Youth Day. This year, the festival provides the first chance for Pope Benedict XVI to influence an enormous group of young Catholics. It...

The pearls in our oyster.(Good Catholic Girls: How Women Are Leading the Fight to Change the Church)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Good Catholic Girls: How Women Are Leading the Fight to Change the Church Angela Bonavoglia (Regan Books, 2005, 338pp) 0 06 057061 X, $25.95 In Good Catholic Girls Angela Bonavoglia, a noted feminist and investigative journalist, profiles...

A tale of two priests.(Vows of Silence: The Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Vows of Silence: The Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II Jason Berry and Gerald Renner (Free Press, 2004, 353PP) o 7432 44419 $26.00 I received Vows of Silence: the Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II on the day Pope John...

Abortion Politics in North America.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Abortion Politics in North America Melissa Haussman (Lynne Rienner, 2005, 211pp) Haussman provides a useful overview of the state of abortion politics in North America, taking into account the underlying policies and overlying realities of...

Choice and Coercion: Birth Control, Sterilization, and Abortion in Public Health and Welfare.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Choice and Coercion: Birth Control, Sterilization, and Abortion in Public Health and Welfare Johanna Schoen (University of North Carolina Press, 2005, 384pp) Schoen takes the history of North Carolina's eugenic sterilization program...

Church, State and Civil Society.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Church, State and Civil Society David Fergusson (Cambridge University Press, 2004, 222pp) Fergusson, a professor of divinity at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, examines some key differences and similarities between church/state...

A Church that Can and Cannot Change: The Development of Catholic Moral Teaching.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... A Church that Can and Cannot Change: The Development of Catholic Moral Teaching John T Noonan (University of Notre Dame Press, 2005, 297pp) Noonan shows how some church teachings (he cites slavery, usury, religious freedom and marriage)...

Goddesses and the Divine Feminine: A Western Religious History.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Goddesses and the Divine Feminine: A Western Religious History Rosemary Radford Ruether (University of California Press, 2005, 336pp) CFFC board member and regular Conscience contributor Rosemary Radford Ruether provides an expansive...

The Moral Theology of Pope John Paul II.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... The Moral Theology of Pope John Paul II Charles E. Curran (Georgetown University Press, 2005, 262 pp) Curran is a noted theologian who was hounded out of Catholic University in Washington, DC, for his progressive views on theological...

There's more to it than this.(The Soul of the Embryo: An Enquiry into the Status of the Human Embryo in the Christian Tradition)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... The Soul of the Embryo: An Enquiry into the Status of the Human Embryo in the Christian Tradition David Albert Jones (Continuum, 2004, 266pp) 0-8264-6296-0, $23.95. SOUL OF THE EMBRYO IS A book that covers attitudes toward human...

Our Bodies, Ourselves: A New Edition for a New Era.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Our Bodies, Ourselves: A New Edition for a New Era Boston Women's Health Book Collective (Touchstone, 2005, 704pp) An updated and expanded version of the 1970s feminist classic that provides comprehensive information on health,...

Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith Anne Lamott (Riverhead, 2005, 336pp) Lamott is a widely published author and from this series of articles and essays, it's easy to see why. The San Francisco Chronicle once said that she could be...

Priests in Love: Roman Catholic Clergy and Their Intimate Friendships.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Priests in Love: Roman Catholic Clergy and Their Intimate Friendships Jane Anderson (Continuum, 2005, 215pp) Anderson is an Australian anthropologist who started her study in 1995, and has since interviewed more than 50 priests who...

Reconceiving Pregnancy and Childcare.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Reconceiving Pregnancy and Childcare Amy Mullin (Cambridge University Press, 2005, 214pp) One in the Cambridge Studies in Philosophy and Public Policy series, Mullin argues that society needs to reconfigure its attitudes towards...

Sacred Work: Planned Parenthood and its Clergy Alliances.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Sacred Work: Planned Parenthood and its Clergy Alliances Tom Davis (Rutgers University Press, 2005, 245pp) Davis is an ordained minister with the United Church of Christ. Frances Kissling, CFFC president, had the following to say about...

Sexing the Church: Gender, Power, and Ethics in Contemporary Catholicism.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Sexing the Church: Gender, Power, and Ethics in Contemporary Catholicism Aline H. Kalbian (Indiana University Press, 2005, 169pp) Kalbian explores why the church is so often referred to as 'she' and the 'mother church' when its...

Warning Signs of Fundamentalisms.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Warning Signs of Fundamentalisms Ayesha Imam, Jenny Morgan & Nira Yuval-Davis, eds. (Women Living Under Muslim Laws, 2004, 182pp) This is a collection of the papers from a 2002 international conference of the same name, analyzing the...

Reconciling two identities.(Acts of Faith, Acts of Love)(Book Review)
September 22, 2005... Acts of Faith, Acts of Love Dugan McGinley (Continuum, 2004, 246pp) 0826415458, $26.95 DUGAN MCGINLEY USES THE autobiographical work of gay Catholic men to explore the nexus of religious and homosexual identities. He begins by...

Postscript.
September 22, 2005... "Use Natural Planning: It Doesn't Work!... NFP proponents tout its 99 percent effectiveness rate, but they neglect to mention that this is only true if the husband is in the Navy assigned to extended, uninterrupted sea duty of three-year tours...

Index: women in Latin America.(Brief Article)
September 22, 2005... In Bolivia, the maternal mortality rate of 420 deaths per 100,000 live births is one of the highest in Latin America and more than 40% of women give birth without the assistance of a skilled attendant. (1) Abortion is illegal in almost all...