News Briefs

Clericalism at root of abuse scandals in Church, pope told Jesuits in Ireland

September 14, 2018 CNA Daily News 2

Dublin, Ireland, Sep 14, 2018 / 10:05 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis told a group of Jesuits during his visit to Dublin last month that elitism and clericalism in the Church are a cause of the abuse scandals in places such as the United States and Ireland.

“There is something I have understood with great clarity,” he said. “This drama of abuse, especially when it is widespread and gives great scandal – think of Chile, here in Ireland or in the United States – has behind it a Church that is elitist and clericalist, an inability to be near to the people of God.”

During his visit to Ireland last month, Pope Francis continued his tradition of stopping to meet with local Jesuits during a papal trip. The Aug. 25 meeting was closed to media, but the pope’s remarks were published by the Jesuit-run journal La Civilta Cattolica Sept. 13.

Speaking to a group of 63 Jesuits, mostly from Ireland, the pope said, “Elitism, clericalism fosters every form of abuse.” He asked for their help in putting an end to abuse, explaining that he meant more than to “simply turn the page.”

“Seek out a cure, reparation, all that is necessary to heal the wounds and give life back to so many people,” he said.

Francis went on to say that he believes “sexual abuse is not the first [abuse],” but that “the first abuse is of power and conscience. I ask you to help with this. Courage! Be courageous!”

Asked about concrete actions they could take against abuse, he said, “we have to denounce the cases we know about” and reiterated that “sexual abuse is the consequence of abuse of power and of conscience.”

Equating authoritarianism and clericalism, he asked, “who among us does not know an authoritarian bishop? Forever in the Church there have been authoritarian bishops and religious superiors.”

He emphasized that to be sent on mission “decisively and with authority” can be confused with authoritarianism, but they are two different things and need to be separated.

During the brief meeting, the pope also referenced an encounter he had immediately beforehand with eight survivors of sexual abuse, at which he also heard about the cases of Irish mother and baby homes. He said these cases particularly touched his heart.

“I really was unable to believe the stories that I have seen well documented,” he said. “I heard them now in the other room and was deeply upset. This is a special mission for you: clean this up, change consciences, do not be afraid to call things by their name.”

He also told the members of the Society of Jesus that “we need to work so that the freshness of the Gospel and its joy are understood.”

“Jesus came to bring joy, not moral casuistry. To bring openness, mercy. Jesus loved sinners. But now I am preaching … I didn’t intend to! Jesus loved sinners … he loved them! He had a strong dislike of the corrupt! The Gospel of Matthew in chapter 23 is an example of what Jesus says to the corrupt.”

He commended a confessor who, he says, makes confession “an encounter with Jesus Christ, not a torture room or a psychiatrist’s couch.”

“We need to be the reflection of merciful Jesus,” the pope stated.

“And what did Jesus ask of the adulteress? ‘How many times and who with?’ No! He simply said, ‘Go and sin no more.’ The joy of the Gospel is the mercy of Jesus, indeed, the tenderness of Jesus. And Jesus liked the crowd, the simple, ordinary people. The poor are at the heart of the Gospel. The poor follow Jesus to be healed, to be fed.”

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Mystic and religious founder Mother Alphonse Marie beatified in Strasbourg, France

September 14, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Strasbourg, France, Sep 14, 2018 / 08:45 am (CNA).- A personal encounter with Mother Alphonse Marie Eppinger inspired “conversions which were far more miraculous than the raising of the dead,” recounted her spiritual director, Father Jean-David Reichard. The nineteenth century French mystic and religious founder was beatified this week in her native Strasbourg after a miraculous physical healing through her intercession was confirmed.

Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, prefect of the Congregation for Causes of the Saints, celebrated the beatification Mass in the Cathedral of Notre Dame on Sept. 9 in Strasbourg, France.

Mother Alphonse Marie had “the gift of seeing people, what is in their souls,” wrote Abbe Glöckler, who knew Eppinger personally and later wrote her biography.

“She had a right word and advice for everyone. God gifted her with a good mind and right judgment. Many left her with the decision to change their lives and to walk the right path.”

Eppinger was able to “scrutinize human hearts” and “reveal things that were hidden,” using these spiritual gifts to advise the priests who would “visit her in abundant numbers” seeking counsel.

“God gave her a specific commission for priests,” Glöckler continued, “She told them about dignity and the grandeur of the priesthood.  She prayed a lot for priests, the Holy Father, and the Diocesan Bishop.” Eppinger also composed many several prayers for confessors.

Speaking at the Mass of beatification, Cardinal Becciu called the occasion a “providential opportunity to rediscover, 150 years after her death,  … the testimony of an authentic Christian life and a deep spirituality.”

The eldest of eleven children, Elizabeth Eppinger, was born into a peasant family on Sept. 9, 1814, in Niederbronn, France.

Her devotion to Christ’s passion stemmed from an episode in her childhood, which Cardinal Becciu recounted in his homily:

“As a child – when she was still called Elizabeth – one day on the way to a station of the Stations of the Cross, she asked her mother, ‘Why did they crucify Jesus?’”

“‘My little one, he was killed because of our sins,” he replied her mother.”

“‘But what is a sin?” insisted Elizabeth. ‘It’s an offense to God …’”

“‘Well, I do not want to offend him anymore!’” she replied.”

Eppinger’s devotion deepened through her experience of suffering through a serious illness with which she struggled intermittently throughout her life. It kept her bedridden for years at a time, prayerfully “immersed in the mystery of the cross.”

It was during her illness that Eppinger received her first vision of Christ and that her mystical gifts became well known.

At the request of her bishop, Eppinger founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Most Holy Saviour in 1848, taking the religious name Sister Alphonse Marie, in honor of her great devotion to Saint Alphonsus de Liguori, whom she made patron of the new congregation.

She asked her sisters to meditate daily on the passion of Christ, and she encouraged devotion to Eucharistic adoration. In addition to their devotions, the sisters also aided the sick during epidemics, including a cholera outbreak in 1854.

Mother Alphonse Marie died in 1867. Ten years after her death, the congregation she founded had grown to include 550 sisters in 88 religious houses throughout Europe. Today the sisters are present  in 68 dioceses accross 16 countries, and they continue to serve others through the ministries of health care, social services and education

In his Sunday Angelus address, Pope Francis expressed gratitude for  Mother Alphonsus Marie’s beatification:

“Let us thank God for this courageous and wise woman who, in suffering, in silence, and in prayer, witnessed the love of God especially to those who were sick in body and in spirit.”

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UK government rejects calls for nationwide abortion clinic buffer zones

September 13, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

London, England, Sep 13, 2018 / 04:15 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The British Home Secretary has rejected proposals for buffer zones around abortion clinics throughout England and Wales as disproportionate, after finding that most abortion protests are peaceful and passive.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid said in his Sept. 13 decision that after reviewing the evidence, which included “upsetting examples of harassment … what is clear from the evidence we gathered is that these activities are not the norm, and predominantly, anti-abortion activities are more passive in nature.”

The typical activities of those protesting outside of abortion clinics “include praying, displaying banners and handing out leaflets,” Javid noted.

He added that there were “relatively few” reports of more “aggressive activities”, such as “handing out model foetuses, displaying graphic images, following people, blocking their paths and even assaulting them.”

Furthermore, he noted that in 2017, only 36 of the 363 hospitals and clinics in England and Wales that offer abortions have experienced pro-life demonstrations near their facilities.

Because the majority of protests are peaceful, enforcing buffer zones throughout the country “would not be a proportionate response,” he said.

Be Here for Me, a group of mothers who have received pro-life help outside of abortion clinics and oppose buffer zones, applauded Javid’s decision in a statement on their website.

“This carefully considered decision represents the common sense we have been calling for all along. It demonstrates Sajid Javid’s commitment to fundamental civil liberties as well as ensuring that women will continue to be offered much needed help and support. It will mean that people offering this vital support will not be criminalised,” said Elizabeth Howard, spokeswoman for the Be Here For Me campaign.

Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott, of the Labour Party, denounced the decision as having “given the green light for women to be harassed and abused for exercising their right to choose,” according to the BBC.

“This is a disgusting failure to uphold women’s rights over their own bodies. Sajid Javid must urgently reconsider,” she said.

The decision to reject nationwide buffer zones comes after the High Court of England and Wales upheld a buffer zone imposed by Ealing Council, in west London, around a Marie Stopes abortion clinic. The zone prevents any pro-life gathering or speech, including prayer, within about 330 feet of the clinic.

Two pro-life London women are working to have the decision appealed, including Alina Dulgheriu, who chose to forgo an abortion at the Ealing clinic in question after being offered pro-life support.

Dulgheriu told CNA in July that clinics like the ones in Ealing do not offer women any alternatives to abortion. She said out that her efforts to see the buffer zones overturned are as much for the protection of mothers as for children.

“If the vigils are removed – who will look out for the mothers who desperately do not want to go ahead with an abortion? These mothers can be in very vulnerable circumstances, sometimes in abusive relationships, and vigils can offer them housing and refuge that abortion clinics could never provide,” she said.

The other woman in the court challenge has filed for anonymity in the court proceedings. The women, who have crowdfunded more than £40,000 ($52,000) so far for court expenses, have said they are willing to take their appeal to the UK’s Supreme Court if necessary. The appeal is expected to be heard sometime later this year.

In his decision, Javid said that there are already laws in place to protect people against intimidation and harassment in public spaces, including the Public Order Act 1986 and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

He also noted that the Ealing case is an example of a local government using civil legislation “to restrict harmful protest activities.”

Javid noted that England and Wales should support both the right to free speech and individual’s rights to be safe from harassment and intimidation, and noted that the police are free to act in cases where the law has been violated.

“In this country, it is a long-standing tradition that people are free to gather together and to demonstrate their views. This is something to be rightly proud of,” he said.

However, he added, “I am adamant that where a crime is committed, the police have the powers to act so that people feel protected.”

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Kavanaugh vote delayed by one week

September 13, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Washington D.C., Sep 13, 2018 / 02:30 pm (CNA).- The Senate Judiciary Committee will vote Sept. 20 on whether or not to recommend Judge Brett Kavanaugh for confirmation to the Supreme Court, committee chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) announced on … […]

Bishop Rhoades cleared of wrongdoing by district attorney’s investigation

September 13, 2018 CNA Daily News 2

Harrisburg, Pa., Sep 13, 2018 / 01:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A district attorney in Pennsylvania cleared Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend of any wrongdoing Thursday, and both the district attorney and the Fort Wayne diocese lamented that unnecessary harm was done to the bishop by speculation going public.

“After a full investigation, the Dauphin County District Attorney has determined that there is no basis to conclude that Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades ever engaged in a criminal or otherwise improper relationship with a person whom we will refer to as J.T.,” read a Sept. 13 statement by Francis Chardo, Dauphin County district attorney.

A cousin of J.T. (who died in 1996) had contacted the Diocese of Harrisburg saying he recalled Rhoades having travelled with J.T. when J.T. was a minor, and that he thought it was odd and was compelled to report it. Harrisburg is the seat of Dauphin County.

The suggestion of impropriety was leaked to the press.

The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend stated that “While it’s important that allegations be brought forward, it’s equally important for due process to take place. The result of this investigation underscores the importance of allowing appropriate authorities to determine credibility of accusations before the reputation of any individual is impugned in the court of public opinion.”

Similarly, Chardo wrote that “This has been a case of a public airing of mere speculation of impropriety with no foundation. In this case, the leaking of what turned out to be an unfounded report did unnecessary harm. This has done a disservice to actual victims of sexual abuse. It has also caused significant and unnecessary harm to Bishop Rhoades.”

He encouraged “reports of any suspicion of the abuse of a child to law enforcement,” while adding that “once reports are made to proper authorities, they should be fully investigated without public speculation about guilt. Where appropriate, we will bring charges. Here, we found no evidence of wrongdoing. We now regard this case as closed.”

Bishop Rhoades, 60, was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Harrisburg in 1983. He became Bishop of Harrisburg in 204, and continued serving there until his 2009 appointment as Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend.

Chardo explained that J.T. turned 18 in July 1988, and that Rhoades had no connection to J.T.’s parish until that month, and that he “would have had no opportunity to even meet J.T. before July 1988. In fact, he did not meet J.T. until almost two years later.”

Rhoades first met J.T. in 1990 at the Dauphin County Prison, the district attorney found. J.T.’s mother had asked Rhoades to visit her son in prison. Bishop Rhoade’s recollection of events coincided with the records of the county jail, Chardo noted.

J.T. Was paroled April 6, 1990, after Rhoades told a court that J.T. could do community service at his parish.

“During the time that J.T. was doing community service and spending time at St. Francis Parish, Father Rhoades decided to make a trip to Puerto Rico,” Chardo wrote. “A friend of Father Rhoades, a teacher, who was considering the priesthood, also made the trip. Upon learning of the impending travel to Puerto Rico, J.T. asked if he could also join the trip so that he could visit his grandmother there. Father Rhoades agreed. All three men made the trip to Puerto Rico and there was no sexual or intimate contact between them. We interviewed the teacher by telephone as he lives in England … He confirmed Bishop Rhoades’ account of the trip and that there was no sexual or intimate contact between Father Rhoades and anyone else during the trip.”

J.T.’s mother was also interviewed by detectives, and she “corroborated Bishop Rhoades’ account,” confirming that the Puerto Rico trip took place when J.T. was in his 20s, and that “she never had any indication of sexual contact between J.T. and Father Rhoades.”

Chardo noted that the investigation began with a report by one of J.T.’s cousins to the Harrisburg diocese that he recalled Rhoades “had travelled with J.T. to Puerto Rico twice and South America once when J.T. was 13 or 14 years old. The cousin did not witness any sexual or unlawful acts and did not receive information relating any such acts from any source. The cousin merely thought the conduct he remembered was odd and so he felt compelled to report it. The Diocese promptly forwarded the report to the Dauphin County District Attorney.”

The district attorney noted that when he was re-interviewed, “the cousin indicated that he was not certain of the timeframe but he was sure that the contacts between J.T. and Father Rhoades occurred after 1986, based upon a milestone in his own life. He conceded that it may very well have been when J.T. was in his late teens or early twenties.”

“Based upon the records relating to Bishop Rhoades’ assignments and the interviews of Bishop Rhoades and J.T.’s mother, we have determined that Bishop Rhoades first came in contact with J.T. at the request of his mother while J.T. was an adult inmate of the Dauphin County Prison. This contact was in the context of religious outreach to an inmate to provide spiritual guidance.”

Chardo also determined that the trip to Puerto Rico “occurred when J.T. was an adult” and that “this was the only time that Bishop Rhoades travelled with J.T.”

“The report relating to multiple trips was the result of an honest, mistaken recollection and the passage of nearly three decades. All of Bishop Rhoades’ contact with J.T. was in the context of pastoral care and arose out of the recognized tradition of prison ministry.”

Chardo noted that J.T.’s name was not disclosed “because the report by a member his family was made confidentially and without the expectation that it would be publicly aired.”

He added that “no witness has alleged observing any criminal or improper conduct by Bishop Rhoades with respect to J.T., and that “Bishop Rhoades and the family of J.T. fully cooperated in the investigation.”

The Fort Wayne-South Bend diocese noted its appreciation of “the swift and thorough investigation into the unsubstantiated allegation against Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades. As anticipated, the investigation exonerated Bishop Rhoades.”

The diocese said it “stands firm in sympathy and support for all victims of child sexual abuse and encourages victims to report allegations.”

Bishop Rhoades commented, “I have offered up the pain of this difficult time for the victim survivors of child sexual abuse.”

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As England allows abortion pills at home, what does this mean for NI women?

September 13, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Belfast, Northern Ireland, Sep 13, 2018 / 01:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Coming into effect at the end of 2018, English women will be allowed to take abortion pills at home; but it remains unclear whether Northern Irish women who travel to England will be allowed to do so.

Currently, women who plan to end a pregnancy at 10 weeks or less are required to take two abortive pills at the clinic. The second pill is taken between 24-48 hours after the first one.

With the new plan, the women will be allowed to take the second abortion pill at home, after the first one has been taken at the clinic.

The women may have to prove English residency; a similar program in Scotland requires a residence test.

If the residency test is adopted in England, it “would deny women coming from Northern Ireland this choice of procedure,” Labour MP Stella Creasy has said.

Victoria Atkins, British Minister for Women and Equalities, explained that the Department for Health is only able to approve English homes as a place that the abortion bill can be taken.

Atkins said officials “are working with the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists to determine protocol which will set out criteria for which places should be covered by the term ‘home’.”

“We will look at how the (early abortion pill) schemes are working in Scotland and Wales and learn from the experience there.”

Abortion is allowed 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. Abortion pills are illegal in Northern Ireland.

Bills to legalize abortion for fatal fetal abnormality or rape or incest failed in the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2016.

In June 2017, Teresa May’s government announced that Northern Irish women would be able to procure free National Health Service abortions in England.

The UK Supreme Court threw out a case challenging Northern Ireland’s abortion law in June 2018, saying the commission which brought the case does not have standing to do so. However, the judges also said the current law violates the European Convention on Human Rights.

Lord Mance, delivering the judgement June 7, said that had the commission the competence to bring the challenge, “I would have concluded, without real hesitation at the end of the day, that the current Northern Ireland law is incompatible with article 8 of the [European human rights] convention insofar as it prohibits abortion in cases of fatal foetal abnormality, rape and incest but not insofar as it prohibits abortion in cases of serious foetal abnormality.”

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Planned Parenthood announces new president, pro-life advocates react

September 13, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Washington D.C., Sep 13, 2018 / 11:00 am (CNA).- Dr. Leana Wen, a former Baltimore City Commissioner of Health, is the new president of Planned Parenthood. The abortion provider announced Wen’s appointment on Sept. 12. She replaces Dr. Cecile Richards, who was appointed to the role in 2006.

In a three-minute video posted by Planned Parenthood announcing her hiring, Wen described her immigrant background–she moved to the United States from China at the age of eight–and her past work as an emergency room doctor and as the health commissioner of Baltimore.

“Reproductive health care is health care. Women’s health care is health care, and health care has to be understood as a fundamental human right,” said Wen in the video.

“Having a physician as the head of Planned Parenthood–it is a sign that what we are doing is mainstream medical care.”

While Wen stressed her enthusiasm for the role, former Planned Parenthood clinic director-turned-pro-life activist Abby Johnson told CNA that she hopes to one day welcome Wen into her ministry for former abortion industry workers.

“Doctors take an oath to first ‘do no harm’ and when it comes to pregnant women, there are two patients. Doctors understand this, even those who do abortions,” said Johnson.

“We have had seven abortionists come through our ministry at And Then There Were None–they left their jobs and realized they could authentically practice that oath elsewhere. It’s my hope that Dr. Leana Wen, Planned Parenthood’s new president, comes to realize the atrocity of abortion for both mom and baby. We are here when she decides to quit and to use her talents to first do no harm.”

Wen is the first physician to lead Planned Parenthood in five decades. In a statement on Twitter, she said her new position was “an incredible honor and privilege” and that she was “proud to stand alongside millions of (the organization’s) supporters as we embark on this next chapter together.

Americans United for Life President and CEO Catherine Glenn Foster said in a statement that she believes that Wen “puts politics ahead of women’s health,” and that she has an “abysmal and tragic record” combatting sexually transmitted diseases from her time in Baltimore.

During Wen’s time as a city commissioner for health, Maryland had some of the highest diagnosis rates in the country for diseases such as syphilis and HIV/AIDS, said Foster.

“Without irony, Wen further hails the ‘life saving work’ of the nation’s largest abortion network, even though Baltimore’s African-American community has been decimated by abortion.”

While in her post in Baltimore, Wen sued the Trump administration over funding cuts to a grant for teen pregnancy prevention programs. The funding was eventually restored.

Foster was also critical of Wen’s attack on conscience rights, saying “[Wen] refers to the principled decisions of doctors and nurses to refrain from the destruction of innocent human lives as ‘refusals,’ and teamed up with NARAL in the attempt to force pro-life pregnancy centers to refer for abortions.”

Planned Parenthood is the largest provider of abortions in the United States. In 2016, the organization performed about one out of every three abortions, the largest single share by far.

While Wen emphasised the “basic health care” offered by Planned Parenthood, the past decade has seen its number of patients decline by about 700,000, while the number of cancer screenings, contraceptives distributed, and prenatal services provided by the organization decreased as well.

Abortions, however, have increased by about 10 percent since 2006, despite Planned Parenthood seeing fewer patients.

The amount of federal funding received by Planned Parenthood increased by 61 per cent over the past decade. In 2016, Planned Parenthood received over half a billion dollars in federal funds.

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Cardinal DiNardo calls meeting with pope lengthy, fruitful

September 13, 2018 CNA Daily News 4

Vatican City, Sep 13, 2018 / 10:10 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Cardinal Daniel DiNardo has called a Sept. 13 meeting between Pope Francis and leaders from the Church in United States “lengthy and fruitful.”

The cardinal, who is Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and president of the U.S. bishops’ conference, travelled to Rome together with Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, the vice-president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and USCCB General Secretary Msgr. Brian Bransfield.

Also present at the meeting was Cardinal Séan O’Malley of Boston, who serves as president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and is a member of the C9 Council of Cardinals charged with advising the pope on the governance of the universal Church.

DiNardo requested the meeting with Francis to discuss the ongoing sexual abuse scandals which have rocked the Church in America, in particular the case of Archbishop Theodore McCarrick. Cardinal DiNardo had previously pledged to investigate the case of Archbishop McCarrick to “the full extent of the USCCB’s authority.”

Following a private audience with Pope Francis this morning, DiNardo released a brief statement through the U.S. bishops’ conference.

“We are grateful to the Holy Father for receiving us in audience. We shared with Pope Francis our situation in the United States – how the Body of Christ is lacerated by the evil of sexual abuse. He listened very deeply from the heart. It was a lengthy, fruitful, and good exchange.”

The meeting follows a series of calls by commentators for the Pope Francis to release files held on Archbishop McCarrick in Rome and at the apostolic nunciature in Washington, D.C.

While the statement did not specify if McCarrick’s case or Vatican files related to it were discussed during the meeting, DiNardo has previously called for greater transparency by Church authorities on matters of sexual abuse, and especially that case of Archbishop McCarrick.

DiNardo’s statement said he, together with Cardinal O’Malley, Archbishop Gomez, and Msgr. Bransfield, looked forward to continuing to work together with Pope Francis on resolving the crisis facing the Church in the United States.

“As we departed the audience, we prayed the Angelus together for God’s mercy and strength as we work to heal the wounds. We look forward to actively continuing our discernment together identifying the most effective next steps.”

Earlier this week, Pope Francis announced a special meeting with all the presidents of the world’s bishops’ conferences to discuss sexual abuse in the Church. That meeting is expected to be held in February of next year.

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