News and events
Recent
News stories (on Home
Page) pertaining to excommunication, abortion, and canonical discipline.
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Pro-abortion members of the
U.S. Congress
Canon Law and
related action
A
petition (March,
2001) to the pope was being circulated. It requests that the Pope direct
bishops to excommunicate obstinate public supporters of abortion. Feedback
pending (Feb., 2004).
Open letter (Dec. 30,
1998) from Monsignor Edward Kavanagh, a Sacramento, CA parish priest
declaring: "It is clear that Gray Davis, by promoting what
the Pope has called the 'Culture of Death' and demanding taxpayers' money
for abortions, has brought on himself automatic excommunication from the
Catholic Church."
On Tuesday, November 3, 1998, Californians elected Gray Davis (a man who
speaks of himself as a life-long Catholic) to be their next Governor. Davis
may be the most extreme pro-abortion Governor in California history; he
appointed Susan Kennedy, former head of the California Abortion Rights
Action League (CARAL), to direct his cabinet.
Bishop Bruskewitz
announced potential excommunication of members of dissenting organizations,
including ones that advocate abortion, on March 19, 1996 in
the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska. Article from Catholic
World Report, May, 1996.
Commentary
on Bishop Bruskewitz excommunications by Charles M. Wilson of the St.
Joseph Foundation, a non-profit organization that assists people with
canon law cases. Article in Christifidelis magazine.
1991
petition to the Pope: a 1991
petition to the Holy Father requesting that he sanction prominent United States Catholic
politicians who enable, support or condone the horrible evil of abortion; drafted by
attorney Dan Lynch and delivered to Rome by a group of pro-life Catholics, including one
priest.
Saint Stanislaus Committee Report
(1989) - The Saint Stanislaus Committee was an ad hoc
group of Catholics formed in 1989, who endorsed this document, which asserts that bishops
should admonish Catholics who are public promoters of abortion; those who refuse to recant
should be publicly excommunicated. The document was circulated to various Catholic
publications with the intent of attracting favorable notice from bishops: unfortunately,
it attracted little notice.
The committee took its name from Saint
Stanislaus, an 11th century bishop in Poland
who excommunicated the king for the killing of innocents, when other prelates refused to
act. He was executed for his faithfulness.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church and
Canon Law: sections relevant to abortion and excommunication.
Code of Canon Law
(1983)
Catholic Encylopedia entry
on Canon Law
Catholic Encylopedia entry
on Excommunication
Ex
corde ecclesiae: link to the papal document designed to restore Catholic
teaching within Catholic colleges.
Statements by Catholic Bishops
An article in the Calgary Sun
(2-25-2001) by Canadian Bishop Fred Henry denounces the
scandalous position of two pro-abortion "Catholic" politicians: "Seeking to imply adherence to church teaching but inability or
unwillingness to allow their personal moral convictions to influence
their behaviors, they have repeatedly resorted to: 'I'm opposed to
abortion, but I cannot force my morality on others.' Such statements
are inherently problematic.
"It's like saying, 'I'm opposed to child abuse but I cannot force my
morality on others.' That's utter nonsense!"
Letter (Sept. 21,
2000) from the late Bishop McHugh excluding abortion advocates from any
public activity within his diocese of Rockville Center, NY.
Living the
Gospel of Life (November 1998) by the U.S. Bishops: "As bishops, we have
the responsibility to call Americans to conversion, including political leaders, and
especially those publicly identified as Catholic. ...As chief teachers in the Church, we
must therefore explain, persuade, correct and admonish those in leadership positions who
contradict the Gospel of life through their actions and policies."
A
Pastoral Letter on Abortion and Excommunication by The Most Reverend Rene H.
Gracida, D.D., Bishop of Corpus Christi, Texas, September 8, 1990 - "Recent weeks
have seen a considerable amount of public debate in our area about the teaching and
practices of the Catholic Church. This debate was occasioned, in large part, by the public
disclosure of my decision to formalize the automatic excommunication of two members of the
Catholic Church because of their proximate cooperation with the destruction of innocent
life in the womb."
Contact
information on U.S. Bishops via the NCCB.
Articles
Catholic
Activism -- Is it worth it? The Wanderer (March 15,
2001): "At a dinner with 325
attendees paying $125 a piece to hear a pro-abort speaker, 1000 pro-life
protesters showed up for the peaceful prayer rally outside in the rain,
lining the roadway into the Casino with hand signs and quiet prayer.
Television crews from throughout central Pennsylvania covered the
peaceful event, and attendance outstripped the organizers' wildest
expectations." An encouraging report on Catholic activism in the
face of scandal and their productive opposition to Pennsylvania's Catholic
Governor Tom Ridge.
An article in the Calgary Sun
(2-25-2001) by Canadian Bishop Fred Henry denounces the
scandalous position of two pro-abortion "Catholic" politicians:
"
Seeking to imply adherence to church teaching but inability or
unwillingness to allow their personal moral convictions to influence
their behaviours, they have repeatedly resorted to: 'I'm opposed to
abortion,' but I cannot force my morality on others.' Such statements
are inherently problematic.
"
It's like saying, 'I'm opposed to child abuse but I cannot force my
morality on others.' That's utter nonsense!"
The
national magazine Catholic Insight called on Canada's
Catholic bishops to excommunicate federal Health Minister Allan Rock from
the Catholic Church, because of his support of abortion.--Calgary
Herald, February 26, 2001.
Cuthbert's Choice - Essay in November
2000 Catholic World Report by "Diogenes": "What I do not
understand is the comparative ease with which American political leaders today convince
Catholic bishops to mute their public criticism of immoral public policies."
Bishop Bruskewitz
announced potential excommunication of members of dissenting organizations,
including ones that advocate abortion, on March 19, 1996 in
the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska. Article from Catholic
World Report, May, 1996.
Commentary
on Bishop Bruskewitz excommunications by Charles M. Wilson of the St.
Joseph Foundation, a non-profit organization that assists people with
canon law cases. Article in Christifidelis magazine.
Of Quislings and
Kisslings: foot soldiers in the Culture of Death
by Joseph R. Stanton, MD; originally was delivered at The Catholic Action League of
Massachusetts John Boyle O’Reilly Lecture, Sheraton Tara Hotel, Braintree,
Massachusetts, December 5, 1996.
Zygotes and embryos are people by
Rev. Anthony Zimmerman, STD, a retired professor of Moral Theology, Nanzan University,
Nagoya, Japan. Fr. Zimmerman: "Canon 1398 rules that those who do abortions
march themselves out of the door of the Catholic Church. It reads: 'A person who actually
procures an abortion occurs a latae sententiae excommunication.' The
thrust of this writing is that the Church should now extend Canon 1398 to traffickers in
human zygotes and embryos."
His latest two books published by University Press of
America are: Evolution and the Sin in Eden and The Primeval Revelation in Myths
and in Genesis.
The Battle for the Catholic
Campus: John Paul II vs. The American Catholic College System by Msgr. George
A. Kelly. An article on Ex Corde Ecclesiae.
Pro-abortion members of the
U.S. Congress
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