News Briefs
By Catholic News Service
U.S.
Komen reverses decision, reinstates grants to Planned Parenthood
DALLAS (CNS) -- The Feb. 3 decision by Susan G. Komen for the Cure to reinstate grants to Planned Parenthood affiliates for breast cancer screenings was the result of a "vicious attack" on the organization, said a pro-life leader. Pro-life leaders hailed Komen's announcement Jan. 31 that it would no longer give grants to Planned Parenthood, but it sparked a maelstrom of negative reaction and an online petition asking the group to reverse its decision. "I am troubled that the Komen foundation has come under such heavy fire for their recent decision to tighten and focus their funding guidelines," said Charmaine Yoest, president and CEO of Americans United for Life. "This week we have all been witness to highly partisan attacks from pro-abortion advocates and an ugly and disgraceful shakedown that highlights Planned Parenthood's willingness to pursue a scorched-earth strategy to force compliance with their pro-abortion agenda," she said in a statement. Yoest also noted that Komen donors are "now confused about their association with the nation's largest abortion provider." A statement from Komen's founder and CEO Nancy Brinker posted on the Dallas-based organization's website Feb. 3 apologized to the American public "for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives." Brinker said the reaction to the decision to discontinue the funding was "deeply unsettling for our supporters, partners and friends and all of us at Susan G. Komen. We have been distressed at the presumption that the changes made to our funding criteria were done for political reasons or to specifically penalize Planned Parenthood. They were not." She also noted that Komen had planned to stop funding grant applications made by organizations under investigation but that it will "amend the criteria to make clear that disqualifying investigations must be criminal and conclusive in nature and not political." Planned Parenthood is currently the focus of an investigation by U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., to see whether the organization used federal funds to pay for abortions, which would be illegal. Stearns is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
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Rich-poor gap talk less relevant to agencies than caring for the poor
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Whether the rich-poor divide in the United States is a demographic statistic or a politician's talking point is irrelevant to the agencies that are simply trying to make sure the people on the poor side of the equation have a roof over their head and food on the table. They're too busy trying to figure out how to feed more people with less money. The growing gap between rich and poor in the United States is a key theme of the "occupy" movement around the country, with participants emphasizing that they represent the "99 percent," as opposed to the 1 percent who control the majority of financial resources in the world. In his State of the Union address Jan. 24, President Barack Obama talked about whether the United States must settle for being "a country where a shrinking number of people do really well while a growing number of Americans barely get by, or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules." He added that "what's at stake aren't Democratic values or Republican values, but American values." People are definitely noticing the gap between rich and poor and consider it a problem, according to pollsters. Two-thirds of a sampling of Americans told the Pew Research Center in December that there are strong or very strong conflicts between rich and poor in this country, up from 47 percent who said that two years ago. More than twice as many people describe the conflict as "very strong" as did so in July 2009, said the Pew study released Jan. 11. And another survey released Feb. 2 that was conducted by Public Religion Research Institute for Religion News Service found that the gap between rich and poor was cited by voters it polled as the third most critical issue facing the country. Just under half, (49 percent) cited the gap as important, behind "jobs and unemployment," cited by 83 percent, and the federal deficit, cited by 69 percent of the 1,005 voters polled.
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Obama ties call to care for 'least of these' to economic policies
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- In remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast Feb. 2, President Barack Obama linked his actions as president to influences of faith, particularly Jesus' call to care for "the least of these." Obama said at the annual gathering that "when I decide to stand up for foreign aid, or prevent atrocities in places like Uganda, or take on issues like human trafficking, it's not just about strengthening alliances, or promoting democratic values, or projecting American leadership around the world, although it does all those things and it will make us safer and more secure. It's also about the biblical call to care for the least of these -- for the poor; for those at the margins of our society." The National Prayer Breakfast is a multi-day nondenominational event highlighted by the breakfast itself. It is attended by a global representation of political, diplomatic and religious leaders, but most years the only part open to press coverage is the president's remarks. Obama's speech came amid harsh criticism of his administration for policies that are being described as hostile to religious freedom, notably a new federal mandate that all health plans, including those at church-run hospitals, colleges and service agencies, cover contraceptives and sterilizations at no cost. The administration also has put in place a religious exemption to the mandate, but leaders of various Catholic and other faith-based organizations say it is too narrow and they will be forced to provide coverage they oppose. Just a few days before Obama's speech, Catholic churchgoers around the country heard letters from their bishops read from the pulpit decrying the mandate. Other critics said the president's address at the breakfast avoided recommendations made by his advisory council on faith-based activities for ensuring that faith-based organizations that receive government funding do not use the money in inappropriate ways. The Rev. C. Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance, criticized Obama for praising work done by faith-based groups in providing social services, but remaining "silent about essential safeguards on faith-based funding to ensure that when religious organizations receive government funds, this money is not used for sectarian purposes or to discriminate in hiring."
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WORLD
Creating cardinals: Ceremony features something old, new, borrowed, red
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Something old, something new, something borrowed and something red will be part of the mix Feb. 18 when Pope Benedict XVI creates new cardinals. The general format of the consistory has been maintained, but the ceremony has been modified and will include the use of prayers borrowed from ancient Roman liturgies. Cardinal-designate Timothy M. Dolan will even address the College of Cardinals on the subject of new evangelization. And, of course, red will be the color of the day as the new cardinals are reminded that they are called to give their lives to God and the church, even to the point of shedding their blood. Tradition and innovation, solemnity and festivity, high honor and a call to sacrifice are key parts of the creation of new cardinals. The hushed moment when a churchman kneels before the pope and receives his red hat as a cardinal contrasts sharply with the mood in the Apostolic Palace that same evening when the public -- literally anyone who wants to come -- is invited in to congratulate the new cardinals. Pope Benedict will create 21 new cardinals in the morning during an "ordinary public consistory" in St. Peter's Basilica. For reasons of health, the 22nd cardinal-designate, German Jesuit Father Karl Josef Becker, 83, will not attend the ceremony and will be made a cardinal "privately at some other time," said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman. The evening of the consistory, the Bronze Doors will open and the public will be allowed to swarm up the Scala Regia -- the royal stairway -- and into the Apostolic Palace to meet and greet the new cardinals. A consistory is a gathering of cardinals with the pope. According to canon law, an ordinary consistory is called for consultation or for the celebration "of especially solemn acts," such as the creation of new cardinals or a vote approving the canonization of candidates for sainthood. And, in fact, the consistory Feb. 18 will include both. Immediately after the new cardinals are created, all the "princes of the church" are scheduled to vote on several new saints -- including Blessed Marianne Cope of Molokai and Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha -- Msgr. Guido Marini, master of papal liturgical ceremonies, told Catholic News Service Feb. 1.
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Richer orders should share with poorer religious, says Vatican prefect
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Wealthier religious orders should share their resources with struggling religious communities, said the prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. Cardinal-designate Joao Braz de Aviz said that while religious men and women live a life of poverty and possess nothing, their religious "institution doesn't always give the same witness. It's not that we are against holding assets or are saying the church cannot have all the things it needs," he said in an interview with the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, Feb. 2. He said the question is rather, why aren't resources being shared among different religious institutes? One example, the Brazilian prelate said, would be a religious order that has significant financial assets earmarked for caring for and supporting its members in their old age. He asked whether this was the true aim of such funds and whether the money could be given to help another institute that was struggling or in need. "Why don't we know how to say 'We will put our assets at the disposal of many others'?" he asked. The cardinal-designate said he thinks people do not believe enough in God's providence -- that the Lord will provide. "We've taken on a consumerist point of view a bit," he said, noting how sometimes he has had to help communities overcome divisions over the institution's assets and how he has found attitudes that were "not correct."
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Church representatives to ask forgiveness for protecting abusers
ROME (CNS) -- A Vatican cardinal will lead a penitential vigil to show contrition for the sexual abuse of children by priests and for the actions of Catholic officials who shielded the perpetrators from justice. Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops, will preside over the vigil Feb. 7, during a weeklong symposium attended by representatives of 110 bishops' conferences and 30 religious orders. The conference, "Toward Healing and Renewal," will launch a global initiative aimed at improving efforts to stop clerical sexual abuse and better protect children and vulnerable adults. The Feb. 6-9 symposium will be held at Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University and is supported by the Vatican Secretariat of State and several other Vatican offices. During the penitential vigil, to be held in Rome's St. Ignatius Church, a text will be read that is "very profound, clear and explicit," said Jesuit Father Hans Zollner, a licensed psychologist and psychotherapist and one of the symposium organizers. Seven individuals from the church who represent groups who have been "guilty or negligent will ask for forgiveness" both from God and victims, while an abuse victim "will be next to Jesus' cross and will ask for the strength to pardon" the perpetrators who were protected and leaders who were negligent in acting on reports of abuse, Father Zollner said during a Feb. 3 news conference. Which groups were to be chosen to represent "guilty or negligent" parties were not yet known, Father Zollner said, as organizers were in the process of asking representatives to volunteer. Marie Collins, an Irish survivor of clerical sex abuse, said one of the reasons that abuse victims are still so hurt and angered is that, "despite apologies for the actions of the abusers, there have been few apologies for the protection given them by their superiors."
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PEOPLE
Crowds at St. Louis parade pay tribute to soldiers back home from Iraq
ST. LOUIS (CNS) -- Waving flags and holding signs, people three deep along the parade route yelled, "Welcome home," "You rock" and "We salute you" to troops who have returned from Iraq. They were taking part in the nation's first "Welcome Home the Heroes from Iraq Day" Jan. 28 in downtown St. Louis. Catholics from Missouri and Illinois were among the thousands who gathered for the salute or took part in the parade. It started as an idea between two friends, Craig Schneider and Tom Appelbaum, who quickly put together an official thank-you to the men and women who served their country in Iraq. They began a Facebook group that ignited thousands of citizens to donate time, money and services for the cause. "It's nice to be recognized. It means a lot," David Behle, a reservist who served in Iraq, told the St. Louis Review, the archdiocesan newspaper. A member of St. Joseph Parish in Cottleville, he wants to see a similar event when troops return from Afghanistan. "It's hard to believe that private citizens came up with this idea in three weeks time and made it this huge -- a turnout like this on a January day," said Richard Cullen, quartermaster of a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in Illinois. He is a member of Holy Ghost Parish in Jerseyville, Ill. Cullen said his parish pastor, a veteran of the Korean War, and the parish have supported the troops as have many other churches. He noted that while he was in the Army serving in Iraq and Germany he was lucky to have a Catholic chaplain serving his battalion. "It's nice to be able to go to a service and practice your faith," he said, noting that it was a time to put aside worries. "Whether it was in a tent or under a tree, it was really nice to have that."
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Quarterback's ups and downs ring true for teen battling cancer
POTOMAC, Md. (CNS) -- In a football season marked by amazing fourth-quarter comebacks and four overtime victories, Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow not only connected with wide receivers racing for the end zone. Through prayer and an act of kindness, Tebow also connected with Joey Norris, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Our Lady of Mercy School in Potomac who is battling leukemia. This past fall, while Joey was undergoing cancer treatment at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, his dad, Jim, asked him if he had heard about "Tebowing." It's the prayerful gesture made famous by Tebow, who after scoring a touchdown, kneels on one leg and bows his head in prayer, with his arm resting on his bended knee and his fist touching his forehead. Joey, an avid football fan, had earlier drafted Tebow to be the quarterback on his fantasy football team. After seeing photos of his favorite player praying, the youngster said, "I want to do that." And there, in his room at Children's Hospital, Joey knelt down near his chemo pole, and his dad took a picture of him. Later, as the two were walking to their car, wondering what to call Joey's gesture, his dad suggested, "Tebowing while Chemoing." Joey immediately tweeted that photo to Tebow, explaining that "I'm Tebowing while Chemoing!" The youth added that he was a cancer survivor who was trusting the quarterback with his fantasy team. Within two hours, Tebow tweeted a response back to Joey, noting that the boy's tweet was "my favorite one of the day," and he told him, "Praying for you and God bless you, big man." Some weeks later, the Tim Tebow Foundation invited Joey and Jim Norris to attend the Broncos' Jan. 1 home game vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. Joey proudly wore his No. 15 Tim Tebow jersey, and before the game at Mile High Stadium, Tebow finished his warm-up tosses and sprinted over to the sideline to meet Joey. "He gave me a great big hug, and he gave me a game ball they were throwing around in pre-game," Joey said.
Copyright (c) 2012 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops