News Briefs

Commentary: Quitting old paths – The Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church

March 9, 2018 CNA Daily News 1

Denver, Colo., Mar 9, 2018 / 10:46 am (CNA).- The Jesuit theologian Henri de Lubac once noted a correspondence between the Reformation’s criticism of Mary and its criticisms of the Church. That correlation is in some sense logical – you can’t have Mary without the Church, nor the Church without Mary. They exist in such an intimate and mutual relationship that one cannot be fully understood without the other. And we see clearly enough in our present day what happens when they are separated: Mary, elevated in excess, loses her humanity and begins to appear as a quasi-fourth-person of the Trinity; and the Church, reduced in excess, loses her divine foundation and appears as an exclusively male-run institution.

This is far from the vision of the early Church, where Mary and the Church were viewed together in a single reality – the New Eve. Jesus Christ, the New Adam and the true spiritual father of mankind, fittingly chose a New Eve to be his helpmate and the true spiritual mother of mankind. This New Eve has two forms: the personal form of Mary and the collective form of the Church. But Mary precedes, being the Church in seed-form before Pentecost.  She alone was given the singular grace of her Immaculate Conception in order to take on the unique role as the Mother of God. She stands at the foot of the Cross as the Church, but also more than the Church; for she personally participates in her Son’s redemption and his foundation of the Church.

At Pentecost, Mary’s mediating maternity becomes the heart of the Church, permeating it with an all-encompassing Marian character. Mary is the Church’s mother, and in her, the Church is mother. For this reason, we can marvelously say – through Mary’s divine motherhood, the Church gives birth to Christ sacramentally in the Eucharist and spiritually in souls!

This beautiful vision of Mary and the Church was largely lost to modern man until the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). There, the treatise of Mary was placed within that of the Church, restoring the ancient relationship (cf. Lumen gentium, Ch. 8). But with that came a tragic turn. After the council, Mary’s identity seemed to dissolved into the Church, and Mariology went into a kind of post-conciliar winter.  The modern Catholic sentiment towards Mary changed – now, some thought, we were “rid” of the shame of our bizarre medieval fixation. Now, some claimed she was finally “one of us” – relatable, authentic, truly in the Church.  

But Pope Paul VI, with prophetic intuition, saw through those theological illusions and countered them by declaring that “the Blessed Virgin Mary is the Mother of the Church” (Paul VI, Address at the conclusion of the third session of Vatican II, 21 November 1964). If Mary is the Mother of Christ, and the Church is the Body of Christ, then Mary is the Mother of the Church. He knew, as did his successors, that the defense of Mary’s dignity is intimately tied to the preservation of the faith’s integrity.  

Last Saturday, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis had decreed a new liturgical memorial. Beginning this year, on the Monday after Pentecost, the Church will universally celebrate Mary as the Mother of the Church. By this, the Church is not merely encouraging Marian piety. The Church is inviting us to see more deeply the Marian character of the Church’s maternity.

St. Leo the Great formulated this fifteen centuries ago on Christmas: the birthday of the Head is the birthday of the body (Sermon 26, De Nativitate). Meditating on the unique Christian mystery of the Incarnation reveals the pattern of all divinization – re-birth in the order of grace. And birth always requires a mother. To celebrate liturgically Mary as the Mother of the Church is to weave into an organic unity the cross, the Eucharist and maternity. Only through them, St. Leo said, does one “quit the old paths of his original nature and pass into a new man.”

And in our age of self-reliance and neo-pelagianism, perhaps we would do well to quit another old path: that of Marian minimalism, and pass into the newness of this feast, celebrating with joy and filial love, Mary, Mother of the Church.

 

Father John Nepil is a priest of the Archdiocese of Denver. His opinions do not necessarily reflect the editorial perspective of Catholic News Agency.

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Dialogue must serve truth, Catholic leader says in response to women’s conference

March 9, 2018 CNA Daily News 1

Vatican City, Mar 9, 2018 / 09:55 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A women’s conference in Rome this week called for changes in Church teaching that organizers say would promote equality, but the head of a Catholic women’s organization cautioned that true equality must adhere to truth.

First held in 2014, the “Voices of Faith” conference has taken place annually on March 8 in honor of International Women’s Day. The title for this year’s event was “Why Women Matter.”

The event is known to annually include at least a few speakers who oppose Catholic teaching on key topics such as homosexuality and women’s ordination. This year, however, a dissenting tone was much more prominent among conference presenters.

Past events have featured also positive stories about women and the Church, such as a testimony last year from a Rwandan genocide refugee who received an education with the help of Salesian missionaries.

This year’s event, in contrast, focused heavily on a push to change Church teaching, with not a single speaker defending Church doctrine and practice.

Former president of Ireland Mary McAleese, herself a Catholic, delivered a keynote speech accusing the Church of maintaining a misogynistic attitude, saying Church leaders are trying to drown women out due to fear.

“We are here to shout, to bring down our Church’s walls of misogyny,” she said, and, referring to the Church hierarchy, added that “I hope that all the hearing aids are turned up today!”

McAleese, who has previously advocated publicly for same-sex marriage and women’s ordination to the priesthood, argued that “misogyny and homophobia” have been present since the Church’s establishment and have “kept Christ out and bigotry in.”

The Catholic Church “lags noticeably behind” other nations in the advancement of women and uprooting of discrimination, she said, calling this “a disgrace” for an organization “that claims to be created by God.”

Although new jobs and positions have opened up to members of the laity, both women and men, since the Second Vatican Council, McAleese said that “these have simply marginally increased the visibility of women in subordinate roles, including in the Curia,” and have “added nothing to their decision-making power or their voice.”

Ultimately, she said, not allowing women to be ordained to the priesthood, “has locked women out of any significant role in the Church’s leadership, doctrinal development and authority structure since these have historically been reserved to or filtered through ordained men.”

Other speakers took up similar topics, focusing on exclusion and calling the Church to change its teaching on homosexuality.

However Mary Rice Hasson, fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington D.C., warned that events such as the Voices of Faith conference do not effectively foster dialogue if they openly reject Church teaching.

“Dialogue and accompaniment have to be a walk towards the truth, in confidence that living in the truth is what brings happiness,” she told CNA.

Hasson, who was not affiliated with the conference, stressed that women should certainly discuss differences and try to understand points of conflict. But she cautioned that true constructive dialogue about women’s role in the Church “needs to take the Church’s teaching as its starting point.”

McAleese also complained that no cardinals or members of the curia were attending the event, despite a social media campaign by Voices of the Faith calling on them to do so.

“No Church leader bothers to turn up not just because we do not matter, but because their priestly formation prepares them to resist treating us as full equals,” she said.

In past years, a few Vatican officials have attending the Voices of Faith panel. This year’s event, however, drew controversy over some of the speakers.

The event has traditionally taken place inside the Vatican’s Casina Pio IV, headquarters of the Pontifical Academy for Sciences. This year, however, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Vatican dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, objected to two of the speakers: McAleese and Ssenfuka Juanita Warry, a LGBT advocate in Uganda.

The event required the cardinal’s approval in order to take place at Casina Pio V. Rather than adjusting their roster of speakers, Voices of Faith opted for a change of venue, and held the gathering at the headquarters of the Jesuit Curia in Rome rather than the Casina, which is located inside Vatican City State.

At the March 1 launch of the book “A Pope Francis Lexicon,” edited by Vatican journalists Cindy Wooden and Josh McElwee, Cardinal Farrell responded to a question about the dispute, saying events held within the Vatican are “presumed to be sponsored by the pope” and people assume that the pope “is in agreement with everything that is said.”

Farrell said that when he found out what the conference was about, “it was not appropriate for me to continue to sponsor such an event.”

In comments to CNA, Hasson said the Church is not just a human institution, but a supernatural gift, meaning its teachings “are true.”

“Unfortunately, the question of women’s ordination hijacked the conversation about women and the Church for decades,” she said. “It’s time to move past that.”

Similarly, Hasson said the Church’s teachings on marriage and sexuality will not change, “so agitation for change in those areas is counterproductive and is more likely to confuse people or give scandal.”

Hasson is also director of the Catholic Women’s Forum, an international network of women dedicated to amplifying the role women both in the Church and in society in support of Church teaching.

“Women are already contributing to the Church’s evangelical mission in significant ways – and have for centuries,” she said, but acknowledged that there is a need for women to be included in more high-level conversations, “because the Church needs our insights and gifts in order to accomplish its mission.”

In her opinion, Hasson said Voices of Faith “is, in part, a well-intentioned effort” to acknowledge both the gifts of women and the valuable role they play in the Church. She pointed to how previous events have drawn attention to the work women have done to assist the poor and marginalized.

Where Voices of Faith fails to serve the Church well, she said, “is in its support of advocacy agendas, proposed by women who dissent from the Church’s teaching.”

She pointed to the presence of McAlesse at this year’s conference as well as the inclusion of Sr. Simone Campbell, known for her involvement in the “Nuns on the Bus,” who works in legal advocacy for the poor yet supports the legalization of abortion, contraception and has pushed for women’s ordination.

Hasson said the organization’s demand for power is also problematic, since, as Pope Francis has emphasized, “participation is not a question of power but of service.”

She said she does not find it helpful “to measure women’s participation in the institutional Church by corporate measures,” such as keeping a tally of the number of women in leadership roles and how many of them have power and authority.

At the same time, Hasson said it is good “to open the Church’s consultative structure to make room for women,” but to do so in ways that recognize the unique needs of mothers.

Addressing the argument made by Voices of Faith conference participants that young women are leaving the Church in droves because they can’t find adequate leadership opportunities, Hasson said she doesn’t buy it.

“Women, especially young women, are leaving because they have not been brought into relationship with the Lord,” she said. “Their hearts are not converted, they don’t know the faith and don’t see the Church as a supernatural gift from God to help us live better and more fully human lives.”

“A woman who loves God doesn’t leave the Church because she doesn’t see a career path for herself in the Church.”

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Vatican confirms papal visit to Baltic nations in September

March 9, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Vatican City, Mar 9, 2018 / 04:12 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Rumors of a papal visit to the Baltic states this year have been going around for months, however, the Vatican confirmed the news Friday, announcing that Pope Francis will visit Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in September.

According to the March 9 communique, the Pope will travel to the three nations from Sept. 22-25, visiting the cities of Vilnius and Kaunas in Lithuania, Riga and Aglona in Latvia and Tallinn in Estonia.

The logo and motto for the visits were released along with the dates of the trip. Currently there is no official program for the visit, however, it is expected to be published shortly.

Francis’ September visit marks the first papal trip to the countries in a quarter of a century. He will be the second pope to travel to the Baltic states, exactly 25 years after St. Pope John Paul II, who visited the three countries in September 1993.

The theme for his visit to Lithuania is “Christ Jesus – Our Hope.” The motto for his visit to Lativia is “Show Thyself a Mother” in honor of the Virgin Mary, and the theme for Estonia is “Wake up, my heart!”

Each of the countries is predominantly Christian, with a mix of Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox populations, meaning that Francis’ visit, in keeping with his style, will likely have a strong ecumenical focus.

Both Estonia and Latvia have large Lutheran and Orthodox populations. Lithuania, on the other hand, is overwhelmingly Catholic, influenced largely by its historical connection to Poland.

More than 75 percent of the nearly 3 million people in Lithuania are Catholic, while Orthodox Christians make up about 4 percent of the population.

Latvia and Estonia, though historically Lutheran, have become increasingly non-religious. In Latvia, Lutheranism still accounts for about 34 percent of the population of just under 2 million and Catholics make up 25 percent, primarily in the eastern portion of the country. The third largest church in the nation is the Latvian Orthodox Church.

In Estonia, around 54 percent of the population of 1.3 million identify as non-religious. The Eastern Orthodox church accounts for about 16 percent and Lutheranism for almost 10 percent.

Francis’ visit also holds historical significance for the three countries, as the trip will take place during the centenary year of their establishment as independent states.

Until 1917, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania formed part of the Russian empire. They gained independence in 1918, and remained independent until 1940, when they became part of the Soviet Union and endured Nazi domination from 1940-1944.

After their years under Nazi control, they were returned to the Soviet Union in 1945, and regained democratic independence in 1991. They have been members of the European Union since 2004.

St. John Paul II had a special fondness for Lithuania in particular, and shortly after his election famously declared that “half of my heart is in Lithuania.”

The Lithuanian capital of Vilnius is also linked to the image of Divine Mercy, as it was the city in which St. Faustina Kowalska received the visions of Jesus requesting the painting of the Divine Mercy image, and is where the original Divine Mercy image is located, to which John Paul II had a special devotion.

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ACLU’s ‘petty lawsuit’ won’t help foster children, families tell court

March 8, 2018 CNA Daily News 1

Detroit, Mich., Mar 8, 2018 / 05:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A lawsuit threatening a Catholic adoption service is political maneuvering that will do nothing to help children in need of loving homes, families and supporters told a federal court in Michigan during oral arguments this week.

In their latest dispute against a religious entity, Dumont v. Lyon, the ACLU sued in September in order to prevent Michigan from working with faith-based adoption agencies that hold traditional views about marriage, including St. Vincent Catholic Charities.

A 2015 law, which was passed with the backing of the Michigan Catholic Conference, prevents state-funded adoption and foster agencies from being forced to place children in violation of their beliefs. The law protects them from civil action and from threats to their public funding. When the law was passed, about 25 percent of Michigan’s adoption and foster agencies were faith-based.

Shamber Flore, a young woman who was adopted through the foster care program at St. Vincent’s, said that children in foster care need more access to families with loving homes, and that the ACLU’s lawsuit endangers that access.

“I grew up exposed to prostitution, poverty and drugs, but thankfully and fortunately my story didn’t end there,” Flore said in a statement. “I have had the privilege of having my story rewritten and I know this wouldn’t have been possible without the help and aid of St. Vincent.”

The government cannot find foster homes for every child in need, Flore added, and therefore must rely on private agencies like St. Vincent’s to fill in the gaps.

“I am both hurt and confused as to why the ACLU would want to shut down an organization like St. Vincent that only brings good to the greater community,” she said.

“(Foster children) deserve more people, more agencies, more open hearts to fill the shortage of families willing to care for kids like myself. If the ACLU has its way, there will be less helping hands, less homes and ultimately less hope for foster kids, and we can’t let the ACLU take that away.”

The ACLU’s new lawsuit will do nothing to actually help the increasing number of foster children in need of safe and loving homes, said Melissa Buck, a mother who adopted five special needs children with St. Vincent’s.

“This is a petty, needless lawsuit that prioritizes scoring cheap political points at the expense of children,” Buck said in a statement.

“St. Vincent didn’t just save the lives of our children, they’ve accompanied us in the joy of giving them new ones,” Buck noted.

“This is important work. It is also very difficult work. If the ACLU wins their lawsuit, all of this will be taken away…and it would hurt many other families just like mine,” she said.

According to data compiled by Child Trends, more than 600 foster children age out of the foster care system each year in Michigan without ever having been adopted. Studies show that children who age out of foster care without a family are less likely to graduate high school, attend college, or find employment than those who are adopted.

Despite the shortage of available foster families, St. Vincent Catholic Charities found more new foster families than almost 90 percent of other agencies within its service district, according to Becket, the law firm representing the agency.

“St. Vincent particularly excels at finding homes for hard to place children like kids with special needs, larger sibling groups, or older children,” Stephanie Barclay, legal counsel with Becket, said in a statement.

“Despite this heroic and important work, the ACLU sued the state of Michigan to forbid the state from relying on adoption agencies like St. Vincent solely because of its religious beliefs about marriage. But St. Vincent’s beliefs have never prevented a child from being placed in a home,” Barclay said.

This case is not the first time that Catholic Charities has come under fire for reserving adoptions to a mother and a father. In 2006, Catholic Charities of Boston was forced to shut down its adoption services because of a state law barring “sexual orientation discrimination.”

The same year, Catholic Charities of San Francisco was forced to close for similar reasons.

In 2010, after a law redefining marriage, the Washington, D.C. branch of Catholic Charities was forced to close its foster care and adoption services for holding the belief that children should be placed with a married mother and father.

In 2011, Catholic Charities affiliates in Illinois were forced to close after a new requirement stipulated that state money could only go to adoption services that offered those services to same-sex couples.

In the past, gay couples working with other agencies have been able to adopt foster children that were in the care of St. Vincent’s in Michigan, and the ACLU’s clients in Dumont v. Lyon could have done the same, Barclay noted. The clients also live closer to four different adoption agencies other than St. Vincent’s.

“Instead…the ACLU has gone out of its way to target St. Vincent and to try to shut down their programs,” Barclay said.

“Based on today’s hearing, we’re hopeful that the court will listen to the stories of the foster families and children before it who will bear the brunt of the ACLU’s petty lawsuit.”

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Iceland bishop voices concern over proposed circumcision ban

March 8, 2018 CNA Daily News 2

Reykjavik, Iceland, Mar 8, 2018 / 11:19 am (CNA/EWTN News).- As Iceland’s parliament continues to consider a bill that would bar circumcision for non-medical reasons, the head of the country’s Catholic diocese has expressed concerns over religious persecution.

“To us it looks like this can be an opportunity for those who are interested in this matter to misuse the subject of circumcision in an attempt to persecute individuals for their religion,” said Bishop David Tencer of Reykjavik, according to RUV, Iceland’s public broadcaster.

Circumcision is a religious ritual in both Judaism and Islam. Jewish boys are circumcised eight days after birth, while Muslim practices vary widely.

The proposed bill states that “Anyone who…causes damage to the body or health of a child or a woman by…removing sexual organs shall be imprisoned for up to 6 years.”

Female genital mutilation has been banned in Iceland since 2005.

The bill was introduced by Silja Dogg Gunnarsdóttir of the Progressive Party of Iceland, who said, “We are talking about children’s rights, not about freedom of belief. Everyone has the right to believe in what they want, but the rights of children come above the right to believe.”

A recent poll suggests that 50 percent of Icelanders support the ban, 37 percent oppose it, and 13 percent have no opinion.

The health risks and benefits of circumcision have been a topic of debate for several years in some European countries, although none have banned the practice outright.

Iceland, which has a population of around 334,000, has a small Muslim population of less than 1,500, and an even smaller Jewish population of fewer than 250.

Agnes Sigurðardóttir, the Lutheran Bishop of Iceland, has warned that “the danger that arises, if this bill becomes law, is that Judaism and Islam will become criminalised religions. We must avoid all such forms of extremism.”

Yair Melchior, chief rabbi of Denmark, and and Yoav Melchior, rabbi of Oslo, have commented that “There is no country in the world now that bans circumcision. This sets a dangerous precedent that may affect other countries.”

Ahmad Seddeeq, an imam at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Iceland, said that circumcision “is something that touches our religion and I believe that this is… a contravention [of] religious freedom.”

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