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Denver, Colo., Aug 10, 2017 / 03:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Catholic YouTube junkies of the world, unite – you are needed for the New Evangelization.

That was essentially the message of the recent Catholic YouTubers Hangout, the first-of-its-kind online meeting of dozens of Catholics from around the world who last month about bringing the Gospel to their YouTube channels.

About 50 channels logged on to take part, hailing mostly from the United States, but also with channels joining from places like Italy, Brazil and Spain.

The hangout started as the brainchild of Daniel Glaze, who is one-half of the channel “That Catholic Couple” – the other half is Daniel’s wife, Ana. On their channel, they show their followers (dubbed “The Donut Squad,” a play on Glaze) all about their life as a young Catholic couple and first-time parents.

Daniel said the idea for the hangout came when he was watching a Catholic YouTube video one day and wondered whether Catholics on YouTube knew each other or ever collaborated together.  

Steve the Missionary (aka Steven Lewis) of the “Steve the Missionary” channel, and Maria Mitchell, the producer of the “Ascension Presents” channel, had similar questions. Why weren’t there more Catholics on YouTube, the way there were on other social media platforms like Twitter? Why wasn’t there a Catholic community on the platform?

“(We all) noticed that there really wasn’t a cohesive community of people who create together, react to each other, or collaborate with each other,” Lewis told CNA.

“Daniel was the one who was smart enough to start calling his friends and asking what we wanted to do about it.”

And that’s how the Catholic YouTubers Hangout was born. The free online conference was open to any channel that was in some way, shape or form, Catholic – meaning either the content explicitly talked about Catholicism and the Catholic church, or the creator of a channel is a Catholic who is letting their faith influence their work.

The goals for the hangout were twofold: to create a community of Catholic YouTubers, and to encourage further collaboration within that community.

Each host of the hangout also gave a keynote address, the main ideas of which can also mostly be found in this collaborative by Daniel, Ana and Lewis: https://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=inXOliuYdQk&t=21s  

This community of Catholic YouTubers is necessary, Lewis said, because “Catholics need to get their voice in the hyper-progressive, strictly materialistic, and atheist and agnostic conversation happening on YouTube.”

He said he wants there to be a “Catholic YouTube” of sorts – a corner within the platform dominated by explicitly Catholic conversations and creators, like there is on Twitter or Instagram.

“But I know that that’s not enough,” he said.

“The second thing I want is for Catholics to be a part of every other corner of YouTube. We should be earning our rights to be heard in the conversations happening on ‘Gamer YouTube,’ ‘Politics YouTube,’ or ‘Movie-Nerd YouTube,’” he said.
 
“Having both of these is important to spreading the Gospel. The first is important for answering the explicit questions of people interested in the faith, the second is important for putting the Gospel in new places among the people of the world.”

Lewis, who has been creating videos for his channel since 2013, said he was inspired to start making videos because he was already a major YouTube junkie, as well as a missionary with the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) at the time. He realized there was a need for the Gospel to reach one of his favorite online platforms.

“I love trying to say old truths in new ways. I love seeing and explaining the new ways that deep truths percolate into our lives,” Lewis said.

While many of his videos could fit in a category of apologetics and faith conversations geared towards millennials, they also include things like Lewis’ thoughts on the World Cup, eulogies for closing coffee shops, or his ability to eat bacon on certain Fridays in Lent when some dioceses were granted dispensations and others were not.

Daniel noted that even within his own Catholic-themed channel, the conversations are not necessarily explicitly Catholic, but are about life as a young family, informed by a Catholic view.

“We need more variety of Catholic content on YouTube, which means we need Catholic content creators living out their faith and showcasing it through video. For example, my channel ‘That Catholic Couple’ is a vlogging (video blogging) channel where we regularly share what it means to be a young family. Yes, we speak about our faith, but our content isn’t always explicitly Catholic. Plus, we need different perspectives on the platform to put the Gospel in the niche corners of YouTube,” he said.

During the hangout, Lewis said he challenged Catholic YouTubers to do two things: first, to watch and subscribe to each other’s channels, because it helps build community. Secondly, he encouraged them to keep watching their favorite secular videos on YouTube, because it can help creators to hone a more professional style.  

“Don’t be afraid of the secular influences on your style,” Lewis said.

“We think of Audrey Assad (a Catholic singer/songwriter) as writing in the tradition of modern praise and worship writers. While that’s true, if you ask her what her musical and lyrical interests are, she’ll tell you about artists like Paul Simon: a secular artist of such quality, that anyone can learn from him,” Lewis said.

Daniel added that the community is important, because it will allow Catholics to push each other to be better. Creating great art is something that the Church used to lead the world in, but has fallen behind in recent years, especially when it comes to creating good video.

“To be frank, the time of bad Catholic video content needs to end,” he said.

And the need for good Catholic video has never been more urgent, as video streaming has exploded in recent years with the boom of smartphones, Lewis added.

“The explosion of streaming video, especially through our phones, means that people are open to the possibilities of what a video can show them. Like any media, streaming videos can be baptized and used to glorify God. Let’s not waste our time!” Lewis said.

“It’s tough because we are currently outnumbered on YouTube, but so were the Apostles, so we’re in good company,” he added. “Also, I really like this new bromance I’ve got with Daniel.”

Daniel said that the hangout was only the beginning, and the he plans on continuing to look for opportunities to provide resources to foster community and collaboration among Catholic YouTubers, ultimately to help further the message of the Gospel.  

“A good friend of mine once said, ‘conversion of the heart isn’t fostered by one video, but it can start one.’”

Lewis urged all Catholics to share videos and blogs that further the Gospel message. And, if they find a gap somewhere, to fill it.

“Online evangelization is not about getting famous, it’s about seeing a need and addressing it,” he said.

“If you find a video/post/blog that says what you need to say right now, like and share it! If you can’t find that video/post/blog, I guess it’s time for you to make it yourself!”

[…]

El Paso, Texas, Aug 9, 2017 / 04:50 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Deportation to Mexico of the mother of a cancer-stricken girl would be cruelty, the Bishop of El Paso has said.

“It certainly touched my heart to hear about this little girl in the hospital, facing the possibility that her mother would be deported,” the Bishop Mark Seitz told the El Paso Times Aug.7, adding “Clearly it would be a cruel thing for our country to deport her mother.”

He has met with Alia Escobedo, 8, and her mother Maria Elena de Loera, who sought asylum in the U.S. in 2014 after her husband was killed in Mexico. She has said she feared for the safety of her children.

Bishop Seitz joined other religious leaders and the woman’s lawyer at the El Paso Processing Center in asking ICE officials to halt her deportation.

Since her mother arrived in the U.S., Alia has since been diagnosed with bone cancer. She has gone through eight surgeries on her leg, lungs and mouth. While the cancer appeared to be removed and went into remission in February, it has returned with tumors in her lungs.

“Her medical condition is very complicated. Two different kinds of cancer,” the bishop said of the girl. “Her ongoing treatment is something that is extremely important in a situation like this.”

The woman facing possible deportation reflected on her daughter’s endurance. “She is very strong,” de Loera said. “She has tremendous strength. She does not give up. She wants to keep living.”

“If we go back to Juarez, she is not going to survive. She has a better chance to live if she stays here,” the mother told the El Paso Times.

The case was the first time Bishop Seitz had intervened directly to prevent an individual’s deportation.

“The Church’s responsibility is, I think, to speak the gospel and to speak to the conscience of people in our country to call us to something better, to call us to be a place of compassion, even as we deal with these complex issues of immigration,” he said.

In 2015 immigration officials denied de Loera’s request to remain in the U.S., but granted her a reprieve while her daughter was undergoing cancer treatments. They have argued that her sister is caretaker of her daughter, but de Loera said that there are no documents guaranteeing her sister is the guardian.

De Loera wears an ankle monitor and immigration officials can access her location any time.

Her attorney, Linda Rivas, has asked immigration officials to reconsider renewal of her permit and to reverse orders to deport her.

Rivas said ICE officials have agreed to consider the evidence to decide whether de Loera can remain in the U.S.

“We find this to be good news and we do appreciate the cooperation from ICE at this time given that Maria is at her daughter’s side,” she said.

[…]

Lincoln, Neb., Aug 9, 2017 / 11:45 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pornography exposure affects men’s attitudes towards women, but in different ways depending on the age when they are first exposed, a new study suggests.

“We found that the younger a … […]

Los Angeles, Calif., Aug 9, 2017 / 12:03 am (CNA/EWTN News).- More than 1,600 youth gathered at the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles this weekend for the third annual City of Saints conference, where local teenagers participated in w… […]

Washington D.C., Aug 8, 2017 / 03:49 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Some U.S. evangelical Christian leaders want to talk with Pope Francis about a prominent Jesuit-run journal’s essay on Christianity and American politics that depicted some Catholic-Evangelical collaboration as an “ecumenism of hate.”

“Rather than being offended, we have chosen to attempt to make peace,” Johnnie Moore said, according to Time Magazine. “We would be willing to get on a plane tomorrow to Rome to meet with whoever, whenever to create a space for dialogue instead of conflict.”

Moore, a board member of the National Association of Evangelicals and past president of the Virginia-based Liberty University, requested the meeting with the Pope and other Vatican leaders on behalf of some U.S. Evangelical leaders, including some close to President Trump.

He is part of a group of evangelical Christian leaders who are informal advisors to President Trump. Only parts of the letter were made public.
 
Moore voiced surprise at the essay, considering the Pope’s reputation as a “bridge-builder,” the Washington Post reports. His letter alluded to contemporary “ongoing persecution, political division and global conflict,” saying there are “efforts to divide Catholics and Evangelicals.”

“We think it would be of great benefit to sit together and to discuss these things,” said the letter. “Then, when we disagree we can do it within the context of friendship. Though, I’m sure we will find once again that we agree far more than we disagree, and we can work together with diligence on those areas of agreement.”

Moore sent the request to Pope Francis as well as to the Archdiocese of Washington and other possible intermediaries on Aug. 3.

The Rome-based Jesuit-run journal La Civilta Cattolica on July 13 published an analysis piece co-authored by its editor, Father Antonio Spadaro, S.J., and Rev. Marcelo Figueroa, a Presbyterian pastor who is editor-in-chief of the Argentine edition of L’Osservatore Romano, the daily newspaper of Vatican City.

The essay, titled “Evangelical Fundamentalism and Catholic Integralism in the USA: A Surprising Ecumenism” made a number of claims, alleging that many conservative Christians have united to promote an “ecumenism of hate” in policies that contradict Pope Francis’ message of mercy. They claimed that that “Evangelical fundamenta lists” and “Catholic Integralists” are being brought together in a “surprising ecumenism” by a shared desire for religious influence in politics.

The piece’s analysis of American Christianity listed various influences like Christian fundamentalism, the “dominionism” of Presbyterian thinker Pastor Rousas John Rushdoony, the Prosperity Gospel, inspirational writer Rev. Norman Vincent Peale, and the polemical lay Catholic site Church Militant. It attempted to link these figures and trends with political trends and figures like Republican strategist Steve Bannon and Presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Donald Trump.

The essay did not mention by name any of President Trump’s religious advisers.

The essay noted the American trend of “values voters” whose political decisions prioritize abortion, same-sex marriage, religion in schools and other matters. Both of these Catholic and Evangelical factions, the authors claimed, “condemn traditional ecumenism and yet promote an ecumenism of conflict that unites them in the nostalgic dream of a theocratic type of state.” They charged that this collaboration also advances a “xenophobic and Islamophobic vision that wants walls and purifying deportations” and thus an “ecumenism of hate.”

However, the essay drew criticism from several quarters, including the editors of Commonweal Magazine, themselves unsympathetic to U.S. Catholic conservatism.

In a July 25 editorial, they described the essay as “a mishmash of wild and erroneous claims, made in a disjointed, almost impenetrable style,” whose authors “seem woefully ignorant of American religious history.” They said the essay was a “lost opportunity” to criticize the partisan use of religion in a way that might engage “those who do not yet have ears to hear.”

Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia characterized the essay as “an exercise in dumbing down and inadequately presenting the nature of Catholic/Evangelical cooperation on religious freedom and other key issues.” He characterized this cooperation as “a function of shared concerns and principles, not ambition for political power.” The archbishop said it was surprising “when believers are attacked by their co-religionists merely for fighting for what their Churches have always held to be true.”

New York Times columnist Ross Douthat half-panned the essay as “bad but important.” Despite its apparent intention to warn about “the darker tendencies in Trumpism,” he said it reflected a superficial understanding of American religion and missed the fact that both Catholic-Evangelical alliances and liberal religious politics have failed. Douthat saw an increase in “disillusionment and homelessness” among Catholic thinkers, while the contradictions of political liberalism seem to make the moment “ripe for serious Catholic rethinking.”

For his part, Catholic commentator George Weigel suggested the publishing of the article reflected poorly on the competence of La Civilta Cattolica and the Vatican Secretariat of State, which vets its articles.

The essay drew support from Prof. Miguel H. Diaz, a U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See under the Obama administration. Writing at Crux, he said the essay rejects “human indifference” that is “politically manifested and religiously justified.”

Anthony Annett, a climate change and sustainable development advisor at the Center for Sustainable Development – Earth Institute at Columbia University, wrote in Commonweal July 28 that the essay showed a light on “the pathologies of a certain brand of American Catholicism.” Its basic point, he contended, was that “a small but vocal and influential segment of American Catholicism is now far more comfortable with the world of right-wing political evangelicalism than with global Catholicism.”

[…]

Washington D.C., Aug 8, 2017 / 10:33 am (CNA/EWTN News).- David Daleiden, the undercover journalist behind the 2015 Planned Parenthood videos, has appealed to the US Supreme Court for the release of more undercover footage from National Abortion Federa… […]

Denver, Colo., Aug 8, 2017 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Candid Camera, the show that caught video of unwitting people in bizarre situations, premiered in 1984 and is considered by most to be the birth of the reality TV genre.

Today, the genre dominates a large corner of both regular and cable programming, with entire channels dedicated to reality shows. But there’s an element of life that nearly all of these shows consistently fail to address – faith.

That was something Catholic speaker, author, and youth minister Chris Stefanick wanted to change.

“Most reality TV leaves out the most important things,” he told CNA.

“It struck me watching (reality TV chef) Anthony Bourdain’s trip to the Philippines, and Catholicism didn’t come up once,” he said. Approximately 86 percent of the country identifies as Catholic.

“I thought, man, you have to try really hard to go the Philippines and avoid Catholicism. We’re not really getting reality when we turn the TV on, so I thought, I want to show the full picture.”

That’s why, when approached by EWTN about creating a new Catholic TV show, Stefanick pitched the idea of “Real Life Catholic”, a travel documentary of sorts that involves telling the stories of people’s lives and faith in their own element.

The idea, and the name, are based off his experiences with his ministry “Real Life Catholic”, for which he as traveled extensively and met Catholics all over the US and the world. Stefanick said he felt called to share the stories of Catholics he had seen in his travels.

For the project, Stefanick partnered with film production company Lux Lab, founded by Nick Falls and John Wojtasek, two filmmakers who first met as missionaries for the Fellowship of Catholic University Students.

The team then started scouting locations, planning episodes, and looking for stories of faith to tell around the country for the new show.

Filming would take them all around the US and the world, including Krakow with Pope Francis and more than a million young people for World Youth Day.

Throughout the episodes, Stefanick has adventures with the Catholics he encounters, such as surfing in Hawaii, flying over cranberry bogs in Wisconsin, or walking the streets of Denver and meeting the city’s homeless. He gets his hands dirty in order to learn and showcase the Catholic culture of the particular area where he finds himself.

“It’s an incarnational going out into real life, experiencing the world of real life Catholics,” said Falls, who directed the show.

It was important, Stefanick said, to encounter Catholics and their culture in their own homes and lives, rather than talk about them from a studio. The experience has given him a new appreciation for Catholicism in his country, he said.

“A lot of the country doesn’t know just how Catholic south Louisiana is, or how amazing New Mexico is, and that it has a unique Catholic culture that is not Mexican but New Mexican.”

Stylistically, Wojtasek said it was important for him as a filmmaker that the show be as accessible as possible.

Since travel documentaries and other kinds of reality TV shows are so popular, he said he wanted the show to have a similar look and feel in order to pique people’s interest, even if they might not be Catholic.

“We wanted it to be something that someone could find and relate to, even if they came in late,” he said. “So we put those stories (of faith) within the framework of something that is very much in style and form like any other documentary or travel show or cooking show that people might want to watch and stick around for.”

“But we also don’t shy away from the deepest reality, in that we’re all made human, and we all have a spiritual component and a desire for God.”

Besides Stefanick having fun by getting out of his element, woven into every story and conversation with the people in each episode is how their Catholic faith has impacted their lives.

Through these real stories, the show tackles topics like how disabled people impact those around them, what it means to really serve the homeless, and what death with dignity means in a culture that increasingly promotes assisted suicide.

The death with dignity episode in particular “was sacred material for me,” Stefanick said, because he knew the family personally, whose wife and mother passed away within the course of two different filmings of the episode.

“To go into someone’s life and family and see how they’re coping with the death of a mom of young children, and the single dad raising the kids himself…to go into that and to see just how amazing grace is, the love, the faith, the hope that’s still there, that’s because the message of the Gospel is as real as ever,” he said.

God’s presence was felt not only on camera, but off camera as well. Wojtasek said that while he and Falls both are filmmakers by trade, they are also Catholics by faith, and God made his work and timing evident throughout the filming process.

“There’s a component of this where we recognize that there’s only so much planning we can do” before God’s timing and plans take over, he said.

For example, the last episode, which airs Aug. 8, shows Stefanick surfing in the icy-cold waters of Lake Michigan off the shores of Sheboygan, Wisc. in February, when the surrounding temperature was just 35 degrees.

On the afternoon of the shoot “it started dropping snow like crazy,” said Falls, which worried him and Wojtasek, whose film equipment isn’t waterproof.

“It was terrifying, the snow was terrifying especially for Chris, but he just had this grace that made him tackle this surfing in Lake Michigan with heavy snow falling. We couldn’t even really see through our cameras because of it, but he did it easily, the adrenaline just kind of kicked in and forced him to do it, to sacrifice for the shot,” he said.

“We were freezing, we couldn’t see, so we just had to trust we were getting the right shot,” he said. After they checked the tape, they realized the shots turned out beautifully.

“It was amazing to have the climax of our show,” he said.

Wojtasek said the show demonstrates that the universal Church is alive and active throughout the country and the world.

“To see the family of the Church has been profound, because everyone has their own story, their own journey, but we’re all pilgrims on the same road. Watching the show, what it boils down to is we’re all living life the best we can, united in this common faith,” he said.

Stefanick said the process of creating the show taught him that he needs to be more aware of the presence of God in his everyday life, and he hopes that viewers take that away from the show as well.

“It was my job as the host to put away the notes, the agenda, my email and my phone, and to pay attention to the grace of God in that moment, so that I could alert the viewer to God’s presence in the life of the person in front of me,” he said.

“And practicing that helped me a better person, and I hope people watching the show come away with that and that I continue to do that. Because life is very busy, and it’s difficult to do, but God’s calling us to find him in the moment.”

The final episode of Season 1 of “Real Life Catholic” airs Aug. 8, but episodes will be re-run on EWTN through October.

The future of the show is uncertain, depending on funding and on feedback received from viewers. The team already has plans to pitch the show to Netflix, and they have also received many invitations from the U.S. and abroad for future episodes.

Stefanick said he is encouraged by the number of people who have approached him with new ideas for episodes, because that means the show was successful at giving people a voice.

“I think of the show ‘Dirty Jobs’ and its popularity – it gave a voice to people who usually don’t have one in terms of media,” he said. “When people give me show ideas, that’s encouraging because it shows me that it successfully gives a voice. The show isn’t about me, it’s about the people that we’re highlighting.”

It’s also about reclaiming the narrative about Catholics that too often has been hijacked by secular media, who often portray Catholics as driven by guilt, or as followers of ancient and strict rules and rituals.

“The purpose was to give the average Catholic a voice and say, this is who we are, this is what we look like, it’s something beautiful, joyful, it gives us life to the full. It presents faith as something attractive, and there’s a real evangelistic power to that witness.”

[…]

Philadelphia, Pa., Aug 8, 2017 / 03:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The archdiocese of Philadelphia voiced joy and gratitude for 10 young Discalced Carmelite nuns and a new chaplain who have recently transferred to the local Carmelite monastery.

“The support provided by the Carmelites to the mission of the local Church is inestimably valuable,” said Ken Gavin, director of communication for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

In comments to CNA, Gavin noted the youth and vitality brought by the new sisters, who are all in their 20s and 30s.

“As women who have dedicated their entire lives to contemplation and prayer for the good of others, they constantly seek intercession on behalf of all members of the Church, for the conversion of hearts to Christ, and for the ministries and good works of the Church to bear fruit,” he said.

The monastery increased their community from three to 13, in a recent transfer of six nuns from Valparaiso, Nebraska, and four more nuns from Elysburg, Pennsylvania.

As a member of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, Father William Allen will also be welcomed as the monastery’s new chaplain.

A Mass was celebrated on July 26, the Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, to welcome the new sisters and introduce them to the community. The liturgy fell on the anniversary of the first Mass for the Carmel community in Philadelphia, marking 115 years since their arrival from Boston to Philadelphia.

A nun from the community who requested anonymity said the transferring sisters weren’t aware of the anniversary, and that it served as a beautiful confirmation for them.

“It was a joyous surprise for everyone. God does those little things, just to say ‘Here I am,’” she told   CNA/EWTN in an Aug. 3 interview.

She noted that the addition of the sisters is not only a wonderful event that will increase both the membership and youthful zeal within the community, but something central to Philadelphia’s Catholic identity that will aid the diocese and the world by means of prayer and penance.

“Through prayer and sacrifice. We came to Carmel because we love the Church, and we love the world, we love people. And we come to sacrifice or to consecrate our lives to Jesus, who gave His life for the salvation of souls.”

“Generally, we come here for the work of redemption, which is the work of the Church of course. And that’s our major work.”

The nuns offer their work and prayer for Christians throughout all of the world: the intentions of the Holy Father, the cardinals, and Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, but especially for the conversion of sinners.

This is an important aspect of the message of Saint Teresa of Avila and Our Lady of Fatima, she said, noting the Christian obligation to aid sinners who cannot help themselves.

“Those souls in mortal sin cannot help themselves. It’s as though their hands are tied behind their backs. They cannot feed themselves, it is up to us, and through our prayer, to nourish them with God’s mercy, to beg God’s mercy upon them.”

Additionally, the community will praise God for the goodness he pours out into the world and for all those who receive his blessings.

They will also specifically pray and sacrifice for the sanctification of all their local priests – a practice of Saint Teresa, who wanted “her sisters to be warrior champions of the church to fight the spiritual battle.”

Having been involved in the French Carmelite tradition, the nun said the transition has brought about a beautiful correspondence between the French and Hispanic tradition of the Discalced Carmelite order.

The Philadelphia community stemmed from the French tradition of the Carmelites, which came to the United States from Belgium in 1790. The community of Elysburg and Valparaiso stem from the Mexican tradition of the Carmelites, which fled to San Francisco, California in fear of Mexico’s religious persecution during the Cristero War in the 1920s.

Little differences in the way the sisters wear their habits or attend Mass in Latin, she said have been a delight to experience.

[…]

Phoenix, Ariz., Aug 7, 2017 / 12:37 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Bishop Thomas O’Brien, the former bishop of the Diocese of Phoenix, has denied allegations he sexually molested a young boy in the late 1970s and early ’80s.

“Bishop O’Brien categorically denies the allegations,” the diocese said Aug. 3. “According to Diocese of Phoenix records, Bishop O’Brien was never assigned to any of the parishes or schools identified in the lawsuit, and no specific information has been presented which connects Bishop O’Brien to the plaintiff.

Bishop O’Brien, 81, is accused in a lawsuit of sexually abusing the alleged victim several times at parishes in Phoenix and Goodyear, Ariz. from 1977-1982.

His accuser, now 47 and living near Tucson, has said he started having flashbacks of the abuse in September 2014 as he prepared for his son’s baptism, his lawyer Tim Hale told the Associated Press.

“It has turned his life upside down,” Hale said.

The Phoenix police department is investigating the allegation.

The diocese said it contacted the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office “immediately” upon learning of the allegations in September 2016.

Because the matter is pending litigation, the diocese said it would not share additional information. It expressed commitment to protecting all young people.

“We are dedicated to providing a safe environment in which every individual is valued and honored as created in the image and likeness of God. Anyone who has been a victim of abuse or who may have information concerning these crimes is encouraged to call a local law enforcement agency.”

The diocese promised continued prayers for victims of childhood abuse and pledged continued vigilance to protection efforts.

Bishop O’Brien’s handling of sex abuse charges against church employees resulted in a 2003 immunity deal. He acknowledged that he allowed employees accused of sex abuse to continue to have contact with children.

That deal said a grand jury investigating sex abuse allegations against the Church did not find evidence that the bishop engaged in sexual misconduct. But the deal did not prevent bringing charges against the bishop if there were evidence he committed sexual abuse.

After 21 years as Bishop of Phoenix, Bishop O’Brien resigned in June 2003, after being accused of striking and killing a 43-year-old man with his car in a hit-and-run accident. The bishop did not stop to help the man or to report the accident. He told investigators he didn’t realize he had hit a person, thinking the collision was with a dog, a cat, or a rock thrown at his window.

He was convicted of leaving the scene of a fatal accident, then sentenced to probation and 1,000 hours of community service.

[…]

Denver, Colo., Aug 5, 2017 / 04:01 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- With awareness of mental health conditions on the rise, how is the Church called to respond to those who do not simply wish to end their lives, but push for the right to do so legally?

Adam Maier-Clayton was a young Canadian activist who suffered from a variety of mental health issues and began campaigning for just such a law after his symptoms worsened.

The 27-year-old, who spent the final years of his life promoting such activism, from childhood had suffered from anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. He had been to therapy and tried medication.

However, his symptoms worsened drastically at age 23, when he experimented with marijuana. He spent about a week in and out of the hospital, his father told the BBC, and began suffering severe physical pain. Any cognitive activity, such as reading, writing, or even sustained conversation, would trigger the pain, which had no evident physical cause.

Adam’s new symptoms were ultimately attributed to a somatic symptom disorder. The condition is little understood, but the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5) notes that it is often co-morbid with depressive disorders.

As a result of this condition, Adam developed suicidal thoughts, according to the BBC piece. For someone in his situation, this is far from unusual, according to the DSM-5.

“Our first response to somebody who is suicidal really needs to be compassion,” Dr. Jim Langley of St. Raphael’s Counseling in Denver told CNA of suicidal tendencies. “For someone to want to take their own life, they must be suffering to a large degree. The drive for survival is very, very strong in us.”

In June of last year, Canada passed Bill C-14, the country’s right to die legislation. The law allows adult persons perceived to be at the end of their life whose deterioration has been deemed irreversible to request euthanization. The Church is opposed to all forms of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide.

Adam began campaigning for a change to the law, so that its provisions would be extended to people with mental disorders. He expressed frustration with the crippling nature of the disease.

However, finding a new way of life accommodated for the illness is key to finding meaning amid the suffering, Langley emphasized. That meaning is important in recovery and developing the ability to bear the suffering and thus continue living.

“Somatoform disorder can take all sorts of different forms,” he said, “but when it happens it definitely can incapacitate people in things that mean a lot to them… I’d be working with him to find more useful things that he could do with himself, whatever that is. It might even be raising awareness about somatoform disorder.”

According to Langley, “People who in general have meaningful relationships can overcome all sorts of different pain. My guess is, even if he had parents who were supportive of him taking his own life, he must have felt like he had fallen out of his community.”

Adam, however, became devoted to advocating the legalization of physician-assisted suicide for those with mental conditions perceived to be unbearable. His parents supported him in this effort.

“The legislation literally forces people to kill themselves in an undignified manner,” he said on his YouTube channel.

However, the logic of a “death with dignity” by suicide is flawed, according to Dr. Greg Battaro of the CatholicPsych Institute.

“Where they’re claiming the right to choose to die, based on the dignity of the person, is an error in their logic. It’s because precisely of the dignity of the person that we don’t have the right to choose how we’re born or die. The dignity of the person is greater than what they presume it to be.”

Adam ultimately took his life using an illegally imported drug mixture April 13, 2017, after checking into a motel room that morning.

“My son deserved to die with dignity, with his family and his friends beside him, in his own, comfy bed,” his mother, Maggie Maier, says in her closing remarks in a YouTube video, having just read the letter he had written her before taking his life.

In that eulogy, she noted that had she and Adam’s father been present, they could have been criminally prosecuted. She characterized her son as having been forced to take his own life by himself by Canada’s law.

Battaro also described the legalization of euthanasia as a “complete and utter failure of the medical system and of the government in providing the hope that people would need to actually get better.”

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) refused to comment for this story. Both the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the U.S. and the KidsHelpPhone in Canada did not respond to CNA’s request for comment.

The Center for Disease Control’s guidelines on media coverage of suicide warn against “(p)resenting suicide as a tool for accomplishing certain ends” or “(g)lorifying suicide or persons who complete suicide,” as such coverage is “likely to contribute to suicide contagion.”

“Such actions may contribute to suicide contagion by suggesting to susceptible persons that society is honoring the suicidal behavior of the deceased person, rather than mourning the person’s death,” the guidelines state.

A video accompanying the BBC piece contains speakers who suggest that the exclusion of mental health cases from the Canadian law stems from a stigma around psychiatric issues.

However, legalizing suicide will not serve to fight existing stigmas around mental issues, as the advocacy of Adam and his parents suggested, but will only legitimize that aversion to mental issues further, said Battaro.

“It’s taking that avoidance to the extreme,” according to Battaro. “We’re just going to make these people disappear.”

Additionally, the “moral stigma,” as Langley described, around suicide can often save lives.

“Sometimes, it’s just the desire to not want to make an immoral decision that keeps people alive, if they’re suffering from a mental illness,” he said, although we must also keep in mind that their pain is often so great that moral decision-making is impaired.

How can suffering be redemptive?

In Adam’s case, Battaro said, “(t)here was a total absence of understanding of anything good coming from suffering. Helping somebody process the meaning of their suffering would help move towards a different conclusion. There’s really almost nothing as unbearable as suffering without meaning, or purposeless suffering.”

Both Battaro and Langley emphasized the need to find purpose, meaning, and redemption amid the suffering of our lives.

First, as Christians, we believe that our suffering is redemptive as it is joined to Christ’s suffering on the cross, Langley said.

“If you look at the cross, that is the perfect answer to the problem of suffering. Jesus is up there on the cross, and he’s saying, ‘Me too. I suffer too.’”

But what does this purpose, this meaning of suffering look like? How do we lift our view past the notion that pain is meaningless and to be avoided at all costs?

According to Battaro, “we’re talking about the invitation to join to the suffering of Christ, and to be united to him in his suffering. We see that our human concept of fulfillment is really limited unless we open it up to the Resurrection, that understanding that death is not the end, and there’s something past it, but it’s only through the doorway of suffering that we enter into the Resurrection.”

But communicating this redemptive image of our mental and physical anguish to those who do not share our beliefs requires conviction on the part of Christians, Battaro said.

“The first thing we need to do is work on ourselves, change our own understanding and pray for the grace of faith so that we can really believe in the hope of redemptive suffering ourselves, and not live lives which are catered to avoiding every ounce of suffering we can,” said Battaro.

This redemption of suffering can be found in even the hardest of cases, according to Battaro.

“For most disorders, even the one that Adam suffered from, there’s hope.”

Mental illness and euthanasia – what’s it like where it is legal?

The proposal to include mental illness in the criteria for euthanasia and assisted suicide is not new. Such provisions already exist both in Belgium and the Netherlands.

In the Netherlands, from 2010 to 2015, euthanasia in the case of psychiatric disorders grew from just two cases to 56.

From 2014 to 2015, 124 cases of euthanasia in Belgium involved patients with a “mental and behavioral disorder.” Five persons diagnosed with autism were killed.

According to a piece from February 2016 in the New York Times, most of those euthanized in Belgium for psychiatric reasons suffered from depression or, even more prevalent, loneliness. The depression cases were often co-morbid with issues such as substance abuse, dementia, or physical pain.

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