Cardinal Dolan: President’s Remarks on Marriage "Deeply Saddening"
Earlier in the week, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), issued the following statement:
"President Obama's comments today in support of the redefinition of marriage are deeply saddening. As I stated in my public letter to the President on September 20, 2011, the Catholic Bishops stand ready to affirm every positive measure taken by the President and the Administration to strengthen marriage and the family. However, we cannot be silent in the face of words or actions that would undermine the institution of marriage, the very cornerstone of our society. The people of this country, especially our children, deserve better."
EWTN Presents Catholicism
Starts Sunday, March 4 for 12 weeks
Sundays at 5:00 pm, Wednesdays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 1:30 pm Comcast 229, AT&T 562, Astound 116, Dish 261, DirecTV 370 In Alameda, Comcast 30
Catholicism is a spectacular television series that explains the major teachings of the Catholic Faith. Two years in the making, the program visits past and present sites important to the church and its followers. Father Robert Barron, a priest of the Chicago Archdiocese, produced and narrates the text. Father Barron lectures extensively in the area of faith and culture, and is the founder of Word on Fire, a global ministry.
Bishops Applaud Court Decision
Upholding Religious Liberty
"It's a great day for the First Amendment," said Bishop William E. Lori of Bridgeport, Connecticut, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Liberty.
Bishop Lori spoke January 11, shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court voted unanimously to uphold a church's right to determine who its ministers are and banned government interference in the process. His statement follows.
"The Supreme Court decision marks a victory for religious liberty and the U.S. Constitution. Freedom of Religion is America's First Freedom and the Court has spoken unanimously in favor of it. The Founding Fathers would be proud. Respect for the long-standing 'ministerial exception,' which is grounded in the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment and prevents the government from interfering in the employment relationship between a Church and its ministers," said Bishop Lori.
More on religious liberty can be found at the USCCB web-page. For additional information, contact Carol Hogan, chogan@cacatholic.org.
ACTION ALERT
Call on Congress to make the moral choice: Remind them that poor and vulnerable have a special moral claim to limited funding.
What's the issue? In their FY 2012 budget resolution the House of Representatives cut the international assistance budget by more than one third. While CRS and USCCB do not support the entire international assistance budget, we strongly support the poverty-focused accounts. A cut of the proposed magnitude is likely to devastate povertyfocused efforts and the people who benefit from them. The House budget also disproportionately cuts programs that serve poor people in our own nation. The Senate will soon consider its budget resolution and then the two chambers will have to reconcile their budget blueprints.
What do you want me to do? Contact your members of Congress now, especially members of the Senate and House Appropriations and Budget Committees, and urge them to preserve poverty-focused international assistance in the FY 2012 budget at the President's FY 2012 request level. Tell them that:
- It is morally unacceptable for our nation to balance its budget on the backs of poor people at home and abroad.
- Fiscal responsibility is important for the common good, but it must be achieved in morally responsible ways.
- A just budget framework cannot rely on disproportionate cuts in essential services to poor people. It requires shared sacrifice by all, including raising adequate revenues, eliminating unnecessary military and other spending, and addressing the long-term costs of health insurance and retirement programs fairly.
Take Action Now! Call 1-866-596-7030 for talking points and to be connected to your members' office.
Letter to Congress
In an April 13 letter to the U.S. House of Representatives, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston urged Congress to vote for a resolution to ban federal funding of Planned Parenthood. In the midst of a budget debate involving shared sacrifice and hard choices, Cardinal DiNardo wrote, "Whether to fund the largest abortion network in the country is not one of those hard choices." Read the letter at http://www.usccb.org/prolife/DiNardo-HR1473.pdf.
