Dublin archbishop sorrowed by clerical abuse

Armagh, Northern Ireland, Oct 9, 2019 / 02:51 am (CNA).- Health professionals in Northern Ireland are writing to the region’s secretary to protest a liberalization of the region’s abortion laws, which the UK parliament is set to impose on Northern Ireland this month unless Northern Ireland’s parliament reconvenes.

According to the Impartial Reporter, over 800 health professionals in Northern Ireland have written to the Secretary of State expressing concern and opposition to the potential legal change.

“As a Christian my faith in God also plays a major part of my belief in the sanctity of life,” a midwife from County Fermanagh told the Impartial Reporter.

“[God’s] word says we are ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ and it is my personal conviction that the miracle of life is given by God. But I want to make the point that many midwives who are part of the ‘Midwives for Both Lives’ Facebook group are of non-faith backgrounds and still they believe in protecting the life of the unborn child,” she said.

The British parliament voted in July to add same-sex marriage and a loosening of abortion restrictions as amendments to the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) Bill, which is designed to keep the region running amid a protracted deadlock in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The Northern Ireland Catholic bishops’ conference has condemned the legislation’s “unprecedented” use of authority to legalize abortion in the region.

The Assembly has been suspended for the past two years due to a dispute between the two major governing parties. The Democratic Unionist Party, the largest, is opposed to changing the law. Sinn Féin, another prominent party in Northern Ireland, backs a liberalization of the abortion law.

If Northern Ireland Assembly is not reconvened by Oct. 21, the expansion of abortion rights and the legalization of same-sex marriage will take effect. Secretary Julian Smith would be mandated to put the laws into effect by March 31, 2020.

The UK government on Tuesday morning published guidelines for health professionals for when the abortion law tentatively goes into effect. The guidelines state that between Oct. 22, 2019 and March 31, 2020, no criminal charges can be brought against those who have an abortion, or against health care professionals who perform and assist in an abortion.

The health professionals’ letter of concern also lamented a lack of conscience protections in the bill for medical personnel who object to participating in abortions. The new guidelines instruct those health professionals with a conscientious objection to direct women to information about where to obtain an abortion elsewhere.

The guidelines go on to say that health professionals may object to participating “hands-on” in an abortion, but this does not include the “ancillary, administrative and managerial tasks” related to the procedure.

“You must not express your personal beliefs (including political, religious and moral beliefs) to patients in ways that exploit their vulnerability or are likely to cause them distress,” the guidelines state.

Last year, the Republic of Ireland held a referendum in which voters repealed the country’s pro-life protections, which had recognized the life of both mothers and their babies. Irish legislators then enacted legislation allowing legal abortion in what had long been a Catholic and pro-life stronghold.

Elective abortion is legal in the rest of the United Kingdom up to 24 weeks, while currently it is legally permitted in Northern Ireland only if the mother’s life is at risk or if there is risk of permanent, serious damage to her mental or physical health.

Northern Irish women have been able to procure free National Health Service abortions in England, Scotland, and Wales since November 2017.

Leaders of the Catholic Church, the Church of Ireland, Methodist Church in Ireland, Presbyterian Church in Ireland, and the Irish Council of Churches, have called on their congregations to lobby their locally elected representatives, and ask them to reconvene the assembly before the deadline.

“We are, along with others, gravely concerned that the imposition of this Westminster legislation,” the leaders wrote, calling for two special days of prayer over the weekend of October 12-13 for the unborn and for women facing difficult pregnancies and their families.

The religious leaders also objected that the people of Northern Ireland were not consulted about the measure, and there is no evidence that it reflects the will of the citizens.

Arlene Foster, the leader of the DUP, has reiterated her party’s stance in its opposition to abortion, and she called for the restoration of the devolved government in the region.

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Reykjavik, Iceland, Mar 8, 2018 / 11:19 am (CNA/EWTN News).- As Iceland’s parliament continues to consider a bill that would bar circumcision for non-medical reasons, the head of the country’s Catholic diocese has expressed concerns over religious persecution.

“To us it looks like this can be an opportunity for those who are interested in this matter to misuse the subject of circumcision in an attempt to persecute individuals for their religion,” said Bishop David Tencer of Reykjavik, according to RUV, Iceland’s public broadcaster.

Circumcision is a religious ritual in both Judaism and Islam. Jewish boys are circumcised eight days after birth, while Muslim practices vary widely.

The proposed bill states that “Anyone who…causes damage to the body or health of a child or a woman by…removing sexual organs shall be imprisoned for up to 6 years.”

Female genital mutilation has been banned in Iceland since 2005.

The bill was introduced by Silja Dogg Gunnarsdóttir of the Progressive Party of Iceland, who said, “We are talking about children’s rights, not about freedom of belief. Everyone has the right to believe in what they want, but the rights of children come above the right to believe.”

A recent poll suggests that 50 percent of Icelanders support the ban, 37 percent oppose it, and 13 percent have no opinion.

The health risks and benefits of circumcision have been a topic of debate for several years in some European countries, although none have banned the practice outright.

Iceland, which has a population of around 334,000, has a small Muslim population of less than 1,500, and an even smaller Jewish population of fewer than 250.

Agnes Sigurðardóttir, the Lutheran Bishop of Iceland, has warned that “the danger that arises, if this bill becomes law, is that Judaism and Islam will become criminalised religions. We must avoid all such forms of extremism.”

Yair Melchior, chief rabbi of Denmark, and and Yoav Melchior, rabbi of Oslo, have commented that “There is no country in the world now that bans circumcision. This sets a dangerous precedent that may affect other countries.”

Ahmad Seddeeq, an imam at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Iceland, said that circumcision “is something that touches our religion and I believe that this is… a contravention [of] religious freedom.”

[…]

Children participate in the annual St. Lucy’s Day celebration in Sweden. / Credit: Claudia Gründer, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2023 / 04:45 am (CNA).

St. Lucy’s Day, also known as Lucia Day, is a traditional Swedish celebration filled with children in costumes, elaborate processions, and Swedish treats — all honoring the beloved saint.

St. Lucy, whose feast day is celebrated by the Catholic Church on Dec. 13, was a virgin and martyr from Syracuse, Sicily, born in the year 283. The young woman, whose name means “light,” devoted herself to God and to serving the poor.

Legend has it that when Lucy was taking food and supplies to Christians hiding in the catacombs during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, in order to bring as much as possible in both hands, she wore a candle-lit wreath on her head to light her way.

That story has inspired a long-standing annual tradition of Swedish candle-lit processions honoring St. Lucy on her feast day. Girls dress in long white robes with red sashes. A young girl selected to be “Lucia” — the Italian name for Lucy — wearing a wreath with lit candles in addition to the white robe, leads the “Luciatåg” procession. She is followed by her handmaidens, who also carry a candle; star boys, who carry stars on sticks and have tall paper cones on their heads; and gingerbread men, who carry lit lanterns.

In previous years, the country held a competition on national television to select a woman to be Lucia in the procession. These days, schools and local churches simply choose a girl to be Lucia by random draw. These processions take place across the country in churches, schools, offices, town halls, care homes, and even restaurants. 

Swedish treats called “Lussekatt,” which are S-shaped saffron buns similar to cinnamon rolls, also make an appearance in this popular custom. Lucia carries a tray filled with these buns and gingerbread cookies. 

The main song people sing is “Sankta Lucia,” which is a Swedish translation of the Neapolitan song “Santa Lucia.” The lyrics highlight the cold, dark winter nights and the light being brought into homes by the saint.

Historically, before reforms to the calendar, the feast of St. Lucy landed on the shortest day of the year on the Julian calendar. This made it the longest night of the year. According to Swedish folklore, “Lucia Night” was a dangerous night when dark spirits would come out in full force. By morning, livestock would need extra feed and people were encouraged to eat seven to nine breakfasts.

In agrarian Sweden, individuals would dress up as Lucia figures and wander from house to house singing songs and scrounging for food. This custom disappeared with urban migration, and the white-dressed Lucia became a more acceptable form of celebration.

The first recorded appearance of the white-dressed Lucia was in a country house in 1764. The custom became a universal Swedish tradition in the 1900s.

[…]