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Contents © 2002
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.

NEWS
MARCH 2002

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SACRAMENTO BEE TAKING BIG HEAT FOR EDITORIAL CARTOON. On January 28, the Sacramento Bee ran a Palm Beach Post cartoon in which the Church is portrayed as an organization that does not offer forgiveness for the sin of abortion, but makes an exception for pedophiles. The paper ran a half-page of letters from area Catholics outraged by the slander on January 31. Auxiliary Bishop of Sacramento Richard Garcia is encouraging Catholics who receive the Sacramento Bee to cancel their subscriptions.


HOMOSEXUAL MARRIAGE -- CIVIL UNION BILL YANKED BY AUTHOR. Assemblyman Paul Koretz (D-West Hollywood) pulled his assembly bill 1338 from consideration on January 14. Koretz did not say why he was not pursuing the bill, but numerous organizations were planning a state-wide ad blitz over the issue reminding Californians that 60% of voters made their preference known against same-sex marriages at the ballot box in 2000. Most incumbent legislators who are inclined to vote on the measure find their seats more secure after redistricting and would probably not have been swayed by the ad blitz. However, it is likely that Governor Davis did not want the bill to arrive on his desk in an election year. Koretz has pledged he will bring the bill back before he finishes his career in the assembly.

Also in the assembly, assemblyman Dennis Mountjoy's (R-Monrovia) bill to ban the promotion of homosexuality in public schools was easily killed in the assembly education committee on January 16 by a vote of 4 "ayes" to 8 "noes." Mountjoy's office produced a comprehensive binder for committee members containing examples of homosexual practices promoted in "diversity" and "tolerance" programs in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Among the practices children in Los Angles public schools learn about are "licking," and "fisting." Approved materials also direct children to homosexual porn on the Internet. Despite the LAUSD logo on the materials, the lobbyist for the district said she did not know if the if the material was approved.


CHOOSE LIFE LICENSE PLATES. Senator Ray Haynes (R-Riverside) has reintroduced his "Choose Life" license plate bill. Senate bill 1291 would require the department of motor vehicles to design and make available for issuance the plates, which would contain the words, "Choose Life." The bill would also create a special fund collected from the sale of the plates for use by counties for expenditures toward preventing abortion and supporting adoption. Last year, senate committee members voted the measure down because they said there was not enough demand for special-interest plates. E-mails for senators are senator.lastname@sen.ca.gov.


DROLESKEY LECTURE AT USF. On January 26th Saint Ignatius Parish Respect Life Committee hosted a lecture by Thomas Droleskey called "Christ in the Voting Booth." The lecture was held at the University of San Francisco. Droleskey's believes that Christians are responsible to defend Christ in all facets of life. Furthermore, it is the duty of Catholics, in particular, to seek and support political candidates that represent Christ and defends His Church. Droleskey commented quite exclusively on abortion, its evils and its place in politics. "In aborting" Droleskey understands, "you are mistreating the body of Christ." As Christ chose to become man through the natural birthing process, it is wrong to destroy a human in the womb. It follows then that when Catholics go into the voting polls, they should consciously make a political decision defending Christ and life. "Abortion is always wrong," Droleskey said, so that if we consciously vote for a politician who supports abortion, such that we as Catholics are committing blasphemy against the Church.

"Dr. Droleskey had an interesting point of view," said Jasmine Pomeroy, the San Francisco Archdiocesean Respect Life Coordinator. "He understood abortion as the mistreatment of the Body of Christ. This is not something that is heard very often in the pro-life Movement."

San Francisco Catholic Michael Manley agreed: "If people focused on Christ in the voting booth, the life issues would see a dramatic change in all respects. There would be an immediate impact in relationships, marriages, and general care for all human life.

Life would take precedence over everything including the economy, national debt, political affairs, etc."

Nello Prato, a member of the Respect Life Committee of the Saint Ignatius Parish, thought Droleskey was effective. "People have been calling to obtain Dr. Droleskey's books and email. He kept the audience riveted and on the edge of their seats," Prato said.

If you are interested in finding out more about Dr. Thomas Droleskey or the Saint Ignatius Parish Respect Life Committee please call (415) 422-4200 or attend their Holy Hour every First Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at Saint Ignatius Church.


VATICAN'S PROCEDURE ON SEXUAL ABUSE. Pope John Paul II, last May, issued motu proprio (by his own authority) new rules governing cases of sexual abuse of minors by priests. A summary of the new rules were sent to bishops and heads of religious orders last June, but news of the rules was released by Catholic News Service on December 4. So far the rules themselves have not been released even to bishops, who have only received the summary, written by Cardinal Josef Ratzinger, head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The rules state the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome final authority in judging sexual abuse cases. The Congregation will be able to decide whether a priest abuse case will be tried by a local tribunal or by the congregation itself in Rome. All tribunals will be staffed only by priests and their procedures will be secret. A statute of limitations bars all accusations made more than ten years after an alleged victim's eighteenth birthday. The court's highest possible penalty is expulsion from the priesthood.

The new rules look to balance the claims of both alleged victims and accused priests. On the one hand, wrote Cardinal Ratzinger, if a bishop hears "even a hint" of pedophilia, "he must open an investigation and inform the Congregation." This is to prevent pedophilia cases from being swept under the carpet. On the other hand, to protect accused priests from summary defrocking by their bishops, the Congregation can decide to hear the case in Rome. Said a canon lawyer to the National Catholic Reporter, "The Congregation for the Clergy has received numerous complaints from priests who have been systematically denied procedural rights after an accusation, even one they have denied."


AFTER YEARS OF WORK AND DEBATE, the new English Sacramentary, it appears, is dead. The Sacramentary (book of prayers for Mass), a revision of the 1974 Missale Romanum, done by the International Commission for English in the Liturgy (ICEL), contained not only a translation and revision of about 2,000 Latin texts, but added about 300 new prayers in English. Both the new prayers and the non-literal translations from the Latin utilized "inclusive language" that avoided gender-specific language. The Sacramentary also introduced simplified introductory rites. From 1992 to 1997, the United States bishops approved the different parts of the new Sacramentary. In 1997, the entire text was submitted to the Vatican for approval.

The Vatican's publication, last year, of Liturgiam authenticam, which established new norms for the translation of liturgical texts, nixed the chances for approval of ICEL's Sacramentary. Though the Holy See has made no formal statement rejecting the Sacramentary, Father James Moroney, chief of staff of the United States bishops liturgy committee, told Catholic News Service on November 21 that, because of Liturgiam authenticam it "would be a waste of printers' ink" to put out the Sacramentary. ICEL will have to work out a new translation of the Missale Romanum more in keeping with the new norms.

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