EWTN’s Michael Warsaw honored for evangelization in media

Washington D.C., Dec 11, 2017 / 11:23 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A federal court has denied relief to the Archdiocese of Washington, in its request for an injunction that would have allowed it to run metro ads encouraging riders to discover the true meaning … […]

Anna Del Duca (right) and her daughter, Frances, traveled from Pittsburgh to attend a pro-life rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 1, 2021, in conjunction with oral arguments for the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization abortion case. / Katie Yoder/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 4, 2021 / 04:00 am (CNA).

Three legal experts are expressing optimism for a pro-life victory in the U.S. Supreme Court case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case that directly challenges Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that legalized abortion nationside.

“I am hopeful that the court will take the opportunity in Dobbs to correct the grievous error of Roe v. Wade, and get the court out of our nation’s abortion politics,” Carrie Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network, told CNA after the Supreme Court heard arguments on Dec. 1.

The case involves a Mississippi law restricting most abortions after 15 weeks and centers on the question of “Whether all pre-viability prohibitions on elective abortions are unconstitutional,” or whether states can ban abortion before a fetus can survive outside the womb. 

In Roe v. Wade, the court ruled that states could not ban abortion before viability, which the court determined to be 24 to 28 weeks into pregnancy. In 1992, the court largely upheld Roe in Planned Parenthood v. Casey. If Roe is overturned — one possible outcome of the Dobbs case — abortion law would be left up to each individual state. 

“Today the court did a great job articulating its constitutional role: not to pick winners and losers on divisive issues like abortion, but to remain ‘scrupulously neutral,’ as Justice Kavanaugh said,” Severino tweeted just hours after the arguments. “The way it works out will look different in different states, but the Court should let the people decide.”

Although the arguments were held in December, the Supreme Court generally releases decisions in high-profile cases, such as this one, at the end of its term in June. 

“I am very encouraged by oral argument and the prospect of a favorable decision this summer, but we should keep up our prayers for the justices,” legal scholar Erika Bachiochi told CNA.

Bachiochi serves as a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and a senior fellow at the Abigail Adams Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she founded and directs the Wollstonecraft Project.

She identified one part of the oral arguments that she found surprising.

“Although I suppose shouldn’t have been, I was surprised by Justice Sotomayer’s naked pro-abortion rhetoric, especially with regard to her question concerning the ‘religious’ source of a 15-week abortion ban,” she said. “Does she really not know the science of fetal development?” 

During the oral argument, Justice Sonia Sotomayor questioned Scott G. Stewart, the solicitor general of Mississippi.

“How is your interest anything but a religious view?” she asked. “The issue of when life begins has been hotly debated by philosophers since the beginning of time. It’s still debated in religions.”

She added, “So, when you say this is the only right that takes away from the state the ability to protect a life, that’s a religious view, isn’t it — because it assumes that a fetus’ life at — when? You’re not drawing — you’re — when do you suggest we begin that life? Putting it aside from religion.”

In anticipation of the oral argument, the Charlotte Lozier Institute, the research arm of the Susan B. Anthony List, documented information about 15-week-old unborn babies, who can, among other things, already exhibit whether they prefer sucking their right or left thumb.

Earlier this year, Bachiochi, together with law professors Teresa Collett and Helen Alvaré, filed an amicus brief representing 240 women scholars and professionals and various pro-life organizations in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

In a piece published by the National Catholic Register, Alvaré, a professor of law at the Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University, found the oral argument “promising for the pro-life cause.”

But, she added, “it would be impossible to cram into the few minutes of an oral argument all the reason, facts, principles, analyses — and hopes — of 50 years of pro-life argumentation,” she wrote. “There was no time to call out abortion advocates’ lies, more lies, and made-up statistics. No time to show that women have not depended upon abortion for their dignity and freedom, but that the opposite is true. No time to detail the miraculous, the beautiful humanity of the unborn.” 

“Based strictly upon the oral arguments, it is clear that Justices Sotomayor, Breyer and Kagan will vote to uphold abortion rights,” she said. “It is more difficult to pronounce where the remaining Justices might fall, but their comments were largely promising.”

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Holy Spirit stained glass in St. Peter’s Basilica. / Credit: Alexey Gotovskyi/CNA

CNA Staff, Mar 9, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A novena is a traditional form of Catholic prayer lasting nine days. Typically, novenas focus on asking God for a specific intention and many are prayed through a saint’s intercession. Novenas are a beautiful way to grow in prayer and nurture your spiritual life. 

Here are eight of the most popular novenas: 

Novena to the Holy Spirit 

Also known as the Pentecost Novena, this was the first novena ever prayed by Jesus’ disciples and the Blessed Virgin Mary after Jesus ascended into heaven. Catholics pray this novena during the nine days that fall between the feast of the Ascension and the feast of Pentecost. The novena asks for the Holy Spirit’s seven gifts: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.

Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was started by St. Margaret Mary Alacoque after experiencing apparitions of Jesus to spread this devotion. It is also said that St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio) prayed the Sacred Heart novena prayer every day. The Sacred Heart Novena is traditionally prayed during the nine days leading up to the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which is always 19 days after Pentecost.

Novena of Divine Mercy

The Divine Mercy Novena was given to St. Faustina Kowalska by Jesus. He told the Polish nun that the novena was to start on Good Friday and gave her an intention to pray for on each day. The novena consists of praying a Divine Mercy Chaplet followed by the daily prayer intentions. While this novena can be prayed during any time of the year, it is recommended to begin on Good Friday in preparation for the feast of Divine Mercy, which is celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. 

Novena to the Holy Family

The Holy Family Novena is typically prayed during the nine days leading up to the feast of the Holy Family, which is celebrated on the Sunday after Christmas, and encourages the faithful to meditate and reflect on the Holy Family so that we can model our own families after them. It also serves as a great way to grow closer with your family and strengthen your relationships through prayer.

Christmas novena

The Christmas novena starts on Dec. 16 and ends on Christmas Eve. It includes a daily Scripture reading, a meditation, an antiphon, the Magnificat, intercessions, and a closing prayer. Father Charles Vachetta is credited with writing the novena in 1721 in hopes of inspiring his parishioners with the coming of Christ during Advent.

Surrender Novena

In the Surrender Novena, the faithful focus on letting go of their own will for their lives and strive to live their lives according to God’s will for them and place complete trust in him. The novena comes from Father Dolindo Ruotolo, who is a servant of God and candidate for beatification. We can pray this novena whenever we are struggling to let go of worries or doubts and need the Lord to take care of things. 

Mother Teresa’s emergency novena

Have you ever found yourself in need of an answer but don’t have the time for prayers of petition for multiple days in a row? St. Teresa of Calcutta would turn to the Blessed Virgin Mary in these cases and pray her “Flying Novena.” The quick novena consists of saying 10 Memorares — a centuries-old prayer asking for the intercession of the Blessed Mother. 

The 54-Day Novena

The 54-Day Novena originated in the late 19th century in Naples, Italy, after a young girl suffering from what was thought to be an incurable illness called on the Blessed Virgin Mary for help. The Blessed Mother appeared to the young girl and told her she would be healed if she prayed three novenas. The young girl was miraculously healed. The Blessed Mother appeared once more to the young girl and this time added that those who want their requests granted should pray three novenas in petition and three novenas in thanksgiving. 

Therefore, the first 27 days of this novena consist of a rosary said each day in petition followed by another 27 days consisting of a daily rosary said in thanksgiving, whether or not your request has been granted. This novena can be prayed anytime, however, and many choose to begin or end the novena on a Marian feast day.

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