Poll: Americans more pro-life but still don't grasp how far Roe goes
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Thirty-three years after Roe v. Wade, most Americans still do not understand the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in nearly all circumstances, according to poll results released April 25 in Washington. Although 65 percent of respondents to a recent survey said they were very familiar or somewhat familiar with Roe v. Wade, only 29 percent were able to select the most accurate description of the decision from among four options, said Karen Smith of the polling company at a Washington press conference. Most respondents -- a total of 50 percent -- chose an incorrect description, saying Roe made abortion legal only in the first trimester (18 percent), only in limited circumstances (17 percent) or only in the first and second trimester (15 percent). Another 15 percent said they did not know, while 1 percent each said the correct description of Roe was "other" or "all of the above," 3 percent said "none of the above" and 2 percent refused to answer. The margin of error for the national poll, conducted by telephone April 13-14 among 1,000 adult Americans, was plus or minus 3.1 percent.
Interreligious peace gathering in U.S. marks 20 years since Assisi
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Themes of prayer, peace, justice, love, dialogue and care for the poor intermingled as representatives of world religions gathered at Georgetown University in Washington April 26 for the 2006 International Prayer for Peace. It marked the 20th anniversary of the first such gathering, convened by Pope John Paul II in 1986 in Assisi, Italy, and it was the first time the yearly interreligious prayer and dialogue meeting was held in the United States. Religious leaders of Christians, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, Shintoists and Sikhs were among the more than 500 participants. Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick of the Washington Archdiocese, one of the co-sponsors of the two-day gathering, told the group that by coming together they were fulfilling Pope John Paul's dream "that we would pray together for peace." "Religion and Cultures: The Courage of Dialogue" was the overall theme of the two-day gathering, co-sponsored by Georgetown University, the Washington Archdiocese, The Catholic University of America and the Rome-based Sant'Egidio Community.
Speaker says those coping with grief need to 'breathe in God's love'
ATLANTA (CNS) -- Sometimes it's hard to remember to breathe, especially when one is grieving. It is during those times that Lorene Hanley Duquin finds the "breathing prayer" especially helpful. Duquin, the author of several books about grieving, taught the breathing prayer to those who attended her workshop, "What to Do When Bad Things Happen," at the National Catholic Educational Association convention April 19. The workshop was part of a convocation of the National Association of Parish Catechetical Directors that was held during the NCEA's annual convention. Duquin encouraged workshop participants to stand and perform the breathing prayer. "Take a deep breath in, and breathe in God's love," she instructed. "Now breathe out all your tension. Take another breath in, breathing in God's love and now breathing out all your fear ... sadness ... anger and frustration." The workshop was full of parish religious educators and Catholic school staff members. Both groups were anxious to know more about how to help those who are dealing with loss, be it from death, divorce or job loss.
Workshop highlights service projects to help poor in U.S.
ATLANTA (CNS) -- Though the poverty outside the United States can be staggering, organizers of Joseph's Apprentices, a service opportunity at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth, Mass., believe there's no place like home. At a workshop during the National Catholic Educational Association convention in Atlanta, Bishop Stang guidance director Kathleen Ruginis and the school's campus minister, Jean Revil, spoke about their highly successful service program. Held each year during spring break, Joseph's Apprentices provides students with an opportunity for prayer, service and fellowship in their own backyard. Wanting a service opportunity for their students and considering a foreign mission trip, organizers at Bishop Stang realized there were people who could be served closer to home. North Dartmouth sits between a town with residents who make a living in the textile industry, and another town whose economy is based mainly on fishing. Both towns were economically depressed. They created Joseph's Apprentices, a three-day service retreat experience, during which faculty and teens come together to serve the poor and elderly, while living in community for meals, sleep and prayer.
Deadline June 9 for Christophers' video contest for college students
NEW YORK (CNS) -- Entries are due by June 9 for the Christophers' 19th annual video contest for college students, which awards more than $6,000 in cash prizes. The competition challenges students to interpret the theme "One Person Can Make a Difference" in a short film of five minutes or less. Past winners have used a variety of styles and genres, including drama, comedy, documentary, news format, music video and animation. Dennis W. Heaney, president of the Christophers, said the contest "is our positive way to encourage the idealism and enthusiasm of the talented young people who participate." More information is available by writing to: College Video Contest, The Christophers, 12 E. 48th St., New York, NY 10017; by calling the youth department at: (212) 759-4050; or on the Web at:
www.christophers.org/contests.html.
WORLD
Bishops' spokesman: U.S. church must show it will protect children
ROME (CNS) -- The only real way to move beyond the crisis created by the sexual abuse scandal is to demonstrate continually that the Catholic Church is committed to protecting children, said the spokesman for the U.S. bishops' conference. Msgr. Francis J. Maniscalco, director of communications for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, discussed media coverage of the crisis and the reputation of the church in an April 27 talk at a seminar for church communications officers. The April 27-29 conference was sponsored by the Opus Dei-run University of the Holy Cross in Rome. Msgr. Maniscalco was asked to discuss the church in the United States after the crisis. He said the crisis could be considered a thing of the past if one focused mainly on the "hailstorm of negative publicity" given to the church and the polls that expressed great dissatisfaction with the leadership of the U.S. bishops. "The negative publicity of 2002, when the spotlight was on some heinous conduct by clergy, has not succeeded in shredding the reputation of the priesthood, although without significant action taken at the time, it may have come close to doing so," he said.
Moral mandates designed to help people, not limit them, says pope
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Ten Commandments and other biblical moral mandates are not designed to limit human freedom, but to help people behave in ways that will lead to their full freedom and happiness, Pope Benedict XVI said. The pope met April 27 with members of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, which is continuing its work on a document about the relationship between the Bible and morality. "The law of God does not diminish or, even less, eliminate human freedom, but on the contrary guarantees and promotes it" because freedom reaches its perfection when it is exercised in accordance with the intent of God, who created human beings and gave them free will, the pope said. Many people today, he said, think that the only way to reach happiness and fulfillment is by relying own their own reason and pursuing their own desires. "This erroneous conviction is based on a presumed conflict between human freedom and every form of law," he said.
Vatican official says post-Vatican II liturgy could be perfected
ROME (CNS) -- Liturgical changes implemented after the Second Vatican Council could be perfected, said the new secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments. No one is in favor of making changes for the sake of change or even for nostalgia, said Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don, the secretary, during an April 27 discussion about the direction the priest faces during Mass. The discussion coincided with the publication of the Italian translation of Father Uwe Michael Lang's book, "Turning Towards the Lord: Orientation in Liturgical Prayer." The book previously was published in English by Ignatius Press; the text includes a foreword written in 2003 by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. The cardinal, who has since become pope, said that the Second Vatican Council did not mention the direction the priest faces and the post-conciliar documents only recommended that priests be able to celebrate facing the people.
PEOPLE
Middleman convicted in 2005 murder of U.S.-born nun in Brazil
SAO PAULO, Brazil (CNS) -- It took less than one day for five men and two women to convict Amair Feijoli da Cunha of hiring two gunmen to murder U.S.-born Sister Dorothy Stang on a deserted dirt road in Brazil's Amazon region. Da Cunha, known as Tato, was sentenced to 27 years in prison for the Feb. 12, 2005, murder, but due to a plea bargain arrangement with prosecutors, the middleman will only spend 18 years in jail. The verdict was celebrated by more than 200 peasants who had waited for hours outside the courthouse in Belem. The peasants had traveled thousands of miles from the little town of Anapu, where Sister Dorothy, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, fought for the rights of landless Brazilians. Inside the courtroom, Sister Dorothy's family members and human right activists also celebrated the ruling.
Vermont's Bishop Angell suffers mild stroke but is recovering well
BURLINGTON, Vt. (CNS) -- Bishop Kenneth A. Angell, retired head of the Diocese of Burlington, is recovering well from a mild stroke, Bishop Salvatore R. Matano of Burlington said in an April 26 statement. "Medical evaluation of his condition ... brings to us a bright and hopeful prognosis of a full recovery for Bishop Angell," said Bishop Matano. Bishop Angell, 75, was admitted to the Fletcher Allen Unit of the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont April 23 "following a mild cerebral vascular event," the statement said. He was transferred April 26 to the Fanny Allen Campus of Fletcher Allen Health Care "for a period of physical rehabilitation," it added. Bishop Angell retired last November. He had headed the diocese since 1992.
Former NCCW official, longtime civil rights activist, dies at 78
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (CNS) -- A funeral Mass was celebrated April 25 at Holy Family Church in Waukegan for Margaret C. "Peggy" Roach, a former official of the National Council of Catholic Women whose work in civil rights led President Lyndon B. Johnson to give her one of the pens he used to sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964. When President Richard M. Nixon replaced Holy Cross Father Theodore Hesburgh, president of the University of Notre Dame, as chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights because of his criticism of the Nixon administration's civil rights record, Roach gave the pen to Father Hesburgh. Roach, 78, died of cancer April 20 at the Waukegan home she shared with her sisters, Helen and Jane Roach. Following the funeral Mass at Holy Family, she was buried at All Saints Cemetery in Des Plaines, Ill. A memorial Mass for Roach was to be celebrated April 28 at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago.
'Da Vinci Code' author says novel overcomes religious 'apathy'
PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (CNS) -- The author of the "The Da Vinci Code" said his best-selling novel goes beyond its "commercial value" to discuss "big ideas" about the role of religion in history. The book also has sparked lively debate and dialogue on Christianity, overcoming the "apathy" that can envelop religion and people of faith, said Dan Brown. His novel, which has been criticized for its treatment of Catholic figures and institutions, has been turned into a movie, which is scheduled to be released nationwide May 19. "Religion is a work in progress. We learn by our mistakes," he said April 23 on the New Hampshire Public Radio program "Writers on a New England Stage." The program was broadcast from Portsmouth but was made available on the radio station's Web site. A main plot element in the novel is that Jesus and Mary Magdalene had children and their descendants live in secret today. Important clues to this are hidden in the paintings of Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci. The novel has sold more than 40 million copies worldwide.
