In Brief...

Holy Father’s Intentions

Pope John Paul II has announced the following general and missionary intentions for June and July 2001:

June

That our every activity may have its beginning and its end in Christ present in the Eucharist.

That in Vietnam Catholic citizens may be allowed to cooperate more in the development of their country in cultural, educational, and social welfare services.

July

That the Gospel may be read and lived in Christian families by parents and children, so that they may bear witness to the hope of Christ.

That catechists and lay missionaries may not lack the necessary means for solid pastoral training.

Cohabitation is Not Marriage

The Pontifical Council for the Family on November 21, 2000 published an important document entitled, “Family, Marriage, and ‘De Facto’ Unions.” The following excerpts are taken from a communiqué signed by Cardinal Alfonso López Trujillo, President of the Pontifical Council for the Family, and Bishop Francisco Gil Hellin, Secretary.

In recent years we have been witnessing repeated attempts to confer legal validity on de facto unions. These are unions that disregard or even reject the institution of marriage in itself, or at the least postpone it indefinitely. Sometimes, the same validity is desired even for that other form of cohabitation between individuals of the same sex, even with the possibility of child adoption. All of these are demanding the same rights as those of the family founded on marriage. On Saturday, October 14, 2000, Pope John Paul II said to parents on the occasion of the Jubilee of Families: “No one knows as you do, dear parents, how essential it is for children to be able to count on you, on both of you—fathers and mothers—in the complementarity of your gifts. No, it is not a step forward in civilization to support trends that obscure this elementary truth and even demand to be legally recognized.”

Aware of the serious repercussions which this situation of human and Christian incoherence implies for society and for the Church, the Pontifical Council for the Family considered it appropriate to make an attentive and thorough examination of this highly sensitive issue. . . . The result of these initiatives, after laborious study, is the document: “Family, Marriage, and ‘De Facto’ Unions.”

The serious challenge to the family in the contemporary world strikes at the very nucleus of the social fabric and involves a central theme concerning the common good of peoples.

Pastors, who very often find themselves in their ministry accepting and guiding people who are experiencing these problems, will certainly receive with this document timely guidelines for their pastoral activity.

To review the full communiqué and document, visit www.ewtn.com/library/curia/pcffmmrd.htm.

NOW—A Relic of the Past

The National Organization for Women chose last April 22 in Washington, DC, to launch an event it promoted as “An Emergency Action to Save Women’s Lives” and “Keep Abortion Legal.” Rock For Life, a division of American Life League’s youth outreach program, counter-protested on the same day.  

While pro-abortion feminists were canceling permits for their event, Rock For Life had to obtain additional permits to accommodate the large numbers participating in the counter-protest.

“The truth is, there really is no NOW now,” said Tina Whittington of American Life League’s youth outreach program. “After years of being led by phony feminists, this once groundbreaking organization is all but dead and buried, suffocating beneath the weight of its hate-based gender politics. And among American women, the most typical response to NOW’s demise is ‘good riddance.’”

For more information about American Life League’s youth outreach program, call Erik Whittington of Rock For Life at (540) 649-4171; or email ewhittington@all.org.

Helping Parish Priests

The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy is an organization committed to the promotion and defense of orthodoxy in the Catholic faith. It was founded 25 years ago by Fr. Robert Levis and several others to encourage local clergy to gather once a month to give each other support. Unfortunately, many priests today are forced to listen to dissident theologians or New Age psychologists at mandatory workshops. The confraternity provides an orthodox and affordable alternative.

On the national level, the confraternity publishes a quarterly magazine for members and holds an annual three-day convocation. Last year, nearly 100 priests and several deacons and seminarians met at EWTN’s Eucharistic Shrine in Hanceville, Alabama.

Since the confraternity’s members are predominantly parish priests on limited income, annual dues barely cover printing and mailing costs, and fall short of compensating the cost of its annual conference. The confraternity needs a few sponsors to help assist with those costs, as well as with the increasing prices of airfare, lodging, publicity, and the standard honoraria for securing good speakers.

To financially assist the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy or for more information, please write: Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, Fr. John Trigilio, Jr., Fraternity of Mary, Inc., P.O. Box 60542, Harrisburg, PA 17106-0542; or call (717) 944-7148; or email confraternity@catholic-clergy.org; or visit www.catholic-clergy.org.

Catholics in the City

Catholics in the field of business offer a unique message to the marketplace. It is the message of our faith. But practicing and maintaining our faith in the modern business environment, while pursuing excellence and success, can be difficult. It certainly doesn’t just happen. It requires knowledge of our faith, courage of our convictions, peer support, and prayer. It sees work as an expression of our unique ability, as a vocation, a calling.

Civitas Dei is a Catholic lay apostolate committed to the personal and professional development of Catholic businessmen and women. Through a national chapter system, Civitas Dei offers its members vocational and faith-based association, education, mentoring, and special events.

Pope John Paul II has repeatedly echoed Vatican II and specifically called on all the lay faithful to heed the Gospel message to be “salt and light” in the world. Civitas Dei answers the call by organizing, serving, catechizing, and evangelizing an underserved and overlooked segment of the Church—the Catholic whose vocation is business.

If you are interested in joining Civitas Dei, or developing a chapter in your area, call Shawn Conway, founding chairman, (317) 590-3382; or email sconway@naiolympia.com.

Melbourne Archbishop Appointed to Sydney

This past March, Pope John Paul II named Archbishop George Pell of Melbourne to head the Archdiocese of Sydney. He replaces Cardinal Edward Clancy, who welcomed the appointment. Archbishop Pell is known for his orthodoxy in upholding Church teaching. Cardinal Clancy said, “Those in Sydney who might not welcome his appointment just don’t know him.”

Archbishop Pell made sure his flock in Melbourne received sound Catholic teaching, as evidenced by the Archbishop’s insistence on the inclusion of authentic religious education texts in the Catholic school syllabus in the Victorian Catholic education system. He will bring that same diligence to his work as shepherd in Sydney.

Raising Money for Life

Vitae Corporation, based in Illinois, is offering to help organizations that are dedicated to the culture of life and in need of financial assistance to support their pro-life efforts. Steve Thomas and a small group of other individuals formed the Vitae Corporation in 1996 to develop innovative ways to financially assist groups that affirm life. Vitae Corporation is now working with the Illinois Knights of Columbus, as well as other religious organizations.

One way the Vitae Corporation raises funds is through a new culture of life credit card. Pro-abortion and homosexual-rights groups have been benefiting from such efforts for years. If an organization sponsors a credit card, the bank will pay the organization anywhere from 0.5 percent to one percent of the purchase. Allowing an organization to sponsor specific credit cards decreases the bank’s marketing costs by bringing them memberships.

Vitae Corporation does not encourage the accumulation of debt and receives no funds from interest charges, but rather offers morally conscious consumers who use credit cards an alternative that promotes life. For Vitae Corporation, the success of its organization isn’t the bottom line. It’s promoting the sanctity of human life and changing culture.

For more information, call the Vitae Corporation at (888) 883-LIFE; or visit www.vitaecorp.com. 

 In Support of Marriage

Prior to the last presidential election, three Nebraska bishops, Archbishop Elden Francis Curtiss, Bishop Fabian W. Bruskewitz, and Bishop Lawrence J. McNamara, made the following public statement in support of marriage:

“As teachers, pastors, and citizens, we, the Catholic Bishops of Nebraska, support the proposed amendment to Nebraska’s Constitution regarding marriage.

“Initiative Measure 416 provides the opportunity for Nebraskans to affirm in public policy what has been presumed or taken for granted for generations in all of Western society, here in the United States and in the great state of Nebraska: that marriage is a union of a man and a woman, and holds a unique position in our culture and in our laws.

"In reality, one is either married or unmarried. It is our firm conviction, therefore, that no other relationship between individuals should be defined as a marriage, or treated as the legal equivalent of marriage.

“We urge that the uniqueness of marriage be upheld, retained, and perpetuated. We believe that this end will be served by passage of the proposed constitutional amendment. We call on Catholic Nebraskans and all our fellow citizens to join us in supporting Initiative Measure 416 and voting for it on Election Day.”

The initiative passed overwhelmingly 70 percent in favor and 30 percent opposed, and it is now enshrined in Nebraska’s constitution.

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