Calls increase for UK to allow Northern Ireland Assembly to legislate on abortion

Father David Waller will become the first bishop Ordinary of the Ordinariate. / Credit: Courtesy photo / Bishop’s Conference of England and Wales

National Catholic Register, Apr 29, 2024 / 18:45 pm (CNA).

The Vatican has announced a new leader of the ordinariate in Great Britain.

Father David Waller, 62, a parish priest and vicar general of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, will replace Monsignor Keith Newton, 72, who is retiring after serving over 13 years as the ordinary of the ecclesiastical structure for former Anglicans.

In a statement, Newton called the Vatican’s April 29 announcement “momentous” given that Waller, who is a celibate, will become the first bishop ordinary of the ordinariate. 

As someone who was already married as an Anglican clergyman before entering the Church through the ordinariate, Newton was not allowed episcopal consecration.

Established by Pope Benedict XVI in 2011 through his 2009 apostolic constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus, the ordinariate is an ecclesiastical structure for Anglicans wishing to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church while retaining their distinctive Anglican patrimony.  

With today’s announcement, the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham becomes the first of three in the world — the others being in the U.S./Canada and Australia — to have had an influence in choosing its leader. 

In keeping with the Anglican emphasis on consultation and in accordance with the Anglicanorum Coetibus, members of the ordinariate’s governing council, made up of ordinariate priests, were able to choose Waller as one of three names they recommended to the Holy See. 

Newton said he believed allowing this faculty, one that is usually left to the apostolic nuncio, “showed the Holy See’s confidence in the ordinariate in the U.K.” 

A former Anglican vicar who served as a pastor, part-time hospital chaplain, and a member of the governing body of the Church of England, Waller was among the first Anglican clergy to be received into the Church following the establishment of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in 2011. 

He was then ordained to the diaconate and the priesthood, has served in two parishes, and was elected chairman of the ordinariate’s governing council. For the past four years he has worked with Newton as vicar general. 

In a statement, Waller said it was “both humbling and a great honor” to have been appointed ordinary. “The past 13 years have been a time of grace and blessing as small and vulnerable communities have grown in confidence, rejoicing to be a full yet distinct part of the Catholic Church,” he added. 

Already well known to members of the ordinariate, he said he was looking forward to serving them in his new role, adding that experience over these past years has taught him “there is nothing to be feared in responding to the Lord and that Jesus does great things with us despite our inadequacies.”

Newton said in a statement that he was “delighted” with Waller’s appointment, adding that he has been “unwaveringly loyal” to the ordinariate and a “great support” to him as vicar general. 

Waller has been “totally been involved in life of the ordinariate and understands it all, and is a good administrator,” Newton told the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner. 

No coercion to step down

Newton stressed that he had chosen to retire while he is still active. 

“I’ve not been forced out in any way, and nobody has told me to retire; it’s totally my own decision,” he said. “It’s a time to pass it on to new hands,” he continued, adding that he and his wife, Gill, “want to enjoy a bit of retirement together.” 

Other prominent priests of the ordinariate also welcomed the news of Waller’s appointment. Father Ed Tomlinson, priest in charge of St. Anselm’s Ordinariate Parish Church in Pembury, Tunbridge Wells, told the Register he was “delighted the ordinariate will have a bishop” and that he wished “Father David the best.” 

Father Benedict Kiely, an ordinariate priest of the same parish who also runs the charity Nasarean.org for persecuted Christians, said: “I will always remain grateful to Msgr. Keith for making the defense of persecuted Christians an important part of the ordinariate, and I’m sure Bishop David will continue that support.”

Newton said the date and place of Waller’s episcopal ordination have yet to be confirmed but that he expected it to take place “towards the end of June.” 

This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, and is reprinted here on CNA with permission.

[…]

Lancaster, England, Mar 6, 2020 / 03:19 pm (CNA).- The Bishop of Lancaster on Thursday issued a decree meant to reduce the risk of coronavirus transmission at Mass, which focused on suspending the sign of peace and the reception of Holy Communion from the chalice.

The March 5 decree, signed by the diocese’s bishop and its chancellor, discouraged, but did not attempt to prohibit, reception of the Host on the tongue.

Bishop Paul Swarbrick introduced seven “pastoral measures” in the diocese effective March 5-21 “to reduce possible transmission” of coronavirus.

The sign of peace, reception from the chalice by the lay faithful, and the use of holy water stoups have been suspended.

“Those who choose to receive the Sacred Host on the tongue should be encouraged to receive on the hand instead. Their doing this represents an act of loving charity to their community. Alternatively, they should be encouraged to make a ‘Spiritual Communion’,” the decree states.

It addes that churches and chapels open for private prayer should remain open, with regular sanitization; ministers should wash and sanitize their hands before and after distributing Holy Communion; and “shared hymnbooks and Mass books should ideally not be used at this time.”

There are 147 confirmed cases of coronavirus in England. There has been one death in the country due to the infection.

Many Churches around the world have issued precautionary guidelines for Masses, or cancelled public Masses entirely, because of the coronavirus outbreak which originated in China late last year.

The new strain of coronavirus causes a respiratory disease, COVID-19, and has a fatality rate of roughly 3%. There have been more than 100,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in at least 81 countries, and more than 3,400 deaths. The vast majority of cases and deaths have been in China.

Like the Diocese of Lancaster, the Archdiocese of Chicago has urged hygienic practices, and it it said that “given the frequency of direct contact with saliva in the distribution of Holy Communion on the tongue, every consideration should be given by each individual to receive Holy Communion reverently in open hands for the time being.”

The Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon said March 2 that “a parish cannot ban the reception of Holy Communion on the tongue, nor may an Ordinary or Extraordinary minister refuse a person requesting Holy Communion on the tongue.”

Its worship office emphasized that ministers of Holy Communion should be “able to distribute Holy Communion without risk of touching the hands or the tongue,” and that “parishioners should also be instructed how to receive Holy Communion properly either on the tongue or in the hand.”

The Portland archdiocese said, “We consulted with two physicians regarding this issue, one of which is a specialist in immunology for the State of Oregon. They agreed that done properly the reception of Holy Communion on the tongue or in the hand pose a more or less equal risk.”

“The risk of touching the tongue and passing the saliva on to others is obviously a danger however the chance of touching someone’s hand is equally probable and one’s hands have a greater exposure to germs.”

The Portland archdiocese referred to Redemptionis sacramentum, the Congregation for Divine Worship’s 2004 instruction on certain matters to be observed or to be avoided regarding the Most Holy Eucharist, which notes that “each of the faithful always has the right to receive Holy Communion on the tongue, at his choice.”

Immediately to Portland’s north, in the Archdiocese of Seattle, Archbishop Paul Etienne issued a differing set of directives in response to coronavirus.

The Northwest Catholic wrote March 3 that Archbishop Etienne “said that holy water should be removed from fonts” and “that Communion hosts should be received only in the hand, not on the tongue.”

On March 4, Bishop Thomas Daly of Spokane encouraged pastors to suspend the sign of peace, and to refrain from distributing the Precious Blood. He added that “this might also provide a catechetical opportunity to remind the faithful that reception of the Sacred Host is indeed reception of the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ.”

The following day, after a meeting “with local health experts, the vicars, school and other diocesan leaders,” Bishop Daly added that clerics should “consider encouraging parishioners to receive Holy Communion in the hand.  Receiving in the hand carries a risk of infection, but there is an increased danger of transmitting this virus through droplets in the mouth.”

Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe issued directives March 3 that directly prohibited the reception of the Eucharist on the tongue.

“During the flu season and given the possibility of being exposed to the coronavirus, ALL communicants are to receive Communion in the hand,” the archbishop said.

The Diocese of Tucson said March 5 that “as receiving Holy Communion on the tongue almost always involves some accidental touch with tongues and lips, Holy Communion should be distributed only in the hand for the immediate future.”

In guidelines updated March 6, the Diocese of Phoenix said that at the current stage of the outbreak, pastors “may implement” voluntary precautions, among which is that they “may invite communicants to receive on the hand,” adding that “reception of Communion on the tongue could inadvertently contaminate the hands of those distributing Communion. However, individual communicants have the right to decide.”

Should the outbreak become worse, pastors would be mandated to “invite communicants to receive on the hand.”

On March 5, Bishop Peter Baldacchino of Las Cruces issued guidelines which said that “it is still left to the discretion of the communicant how they wish to receive the Host. Please note that it may be good to notify them that receiving Holy Communion in the hand and not on the tongue is preferred to limit the exposure of being exposed to the Coronavirus Disease.”

Bishop Baldacchino added that “as the distribution of Holy Communion involves contact with both the mouth and hands, any Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion who feels uncomfortable distributing Communion should be allowed to temporarily step down from ministry.”

Archbishop Leonard Blair of Hartford wrote March 3 to the clerics of his local Church to say that “Communion on the tongue should be strongly discouraged” as a precautionary measure against the spread of coronavirus.

A Feb. 28 memo sent from Archbishop Blair in his capacity as chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship to the US bishops regarded “liturgical celebrations amid public health concerns regarding the spread of the coronavirus.”

The memo offered considerations “meant to be helpful” to bishops “if and when it becomes necessary to take preventative steps with regard to the celebration of the liturgy in your local church.”

The precautionary measures it offered were “suspending the exchange of the sign of peace” and “suspending the distribution of Holy Communion to the faithful via the chalice.”

Prohibiting the reception of Holy Communion on the tongue was not mentioned in the memo.

CNA contacted the USCCB and the archdioceses of Seattle and Santa Fe March 5 to inquire whether an ordinary is able to prohibit the reception of Communion on the tongue, considering that the Congregation for Divine Worship has called this a right that each of the faithful always has. No responses have been forthcoming.

[…]

Washington D.C., Feb 16, 2021 / 04:16 pm (CNA).- Lawmakers in Northern Ireland are seeking to ban abortions in cases of non-lethal fetal abnormality. 

Paul Givan, a member of the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland’s legislative assembly, proposed the Severe Fetal Impairment Abortion (Amendment) Bill on Monday. The bill would remove “severe fetal impairment” as an exception to the country’s abortion laws.

Presently, Northern Ireland’s law allows elective abortions up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. Abortions up to 24 weeks are legal when the mother’s physical or mental health is determined to be at risk. Abortions up until the point of birth are legal in cases of severe fetal impairment or lethal fetal abnormality.

Under the current statute, an unborn child who has been diagnosed with a condition such as Down syndrome or cleft palate can be aborted past the 24-week legal limit.
 

Givan’s bill would still permit late-term abortions in cases of fatal fetal abormality. It is supported by the disability rights group Don’t Screen Us Out.

“The current law tells those with disabilities that they are worth less than other people, their contribution is less valuable, their lives less important, less full,” Givan said in a statement. 

“The idea that Down’s syndrome is some huge problem that should be addressed by abortion is chilling,” he said. “You don’t have to look far to see the full lives those with disabilities lead; they enrich our communities and families.”

Speaking on Good Morning Ulster, Givan said that his bill is “an opportunity for people to come together and fight a prejudicial, discriminatory piece of legislation,” referring to the existing abortion law. 

Laws such as the Disability Act of 1995 have provided “support” for “people with disabilities,” he said – support which should be extended to the unborn.

“I believe that those rights – and these are human rights – ought to be conferred upon people before they are born and that is what this campaign is going to be about,” he said. 

Abortion became legal in Northern Ireland in April, 2020, after the British parliament imposed changes to the region’s abortion and marriage laws and the local devolved legislature failed to block the changes. 

Before March 31, abortion was legally permitted in Northern Ireland only if the mother’s life was at risk or if there was risk of long term or permanent, serious damage to her mental or physical health. The region was not included in the United Kingdom’s Abortion Act of 1967, which legalized abortion.

[…]