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Contents © 2001
by Jim Holman.
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NEWS
DECEMBER 2001

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SWEENY STEPPING DOWN AT OUR LADY OF PEACE. Many Northern California Catholics are in shock having learned that Monsignor John Sweeny, long-time pastor of Our Lady of Peace parish in Santa Clara, has been asked to step down by June 2002. The 77-year-old native of San Francisco has served at the church since 1969 and through the years has transformed it into a unique citadel of orthodoxy, with a devotion to Our Lady. One parishioner who drives long distances to attend services there expressed the concerns of many when she said, "Where will we go now?" Like others, she has been drawn to Our Lady of Peace by its Masses offered with reverence, its perpetual adoration, Fatima services, the availability of confessions on a daily basis, and orthodox sermons. And parishioners say that what is lacking at Our Lady of Peace has been a strong magnet for its church-goers through the years. There are no Eucharistic ministers, lay liturgists, altar girls, hand shaking, talking before Mass, or New Age devotions. Altar rails and kneelers are still in place and Marian hymns have not been forgotten. The parish rolls number about 1,700 but weekend Masses attract over 3,500 people. It is one of the few places where a Latin Mass is offered at least once a week.

Bishop Patrick McGrath said that no successor to Monsignor Sweeny has been named and it will probably be sometime next year before a selection is made. He said, "It could be a pastor from another parish or a priest who has never been a pastor before." The bishop pointed out that Monsignor Sweeny had submitted his request for retirement required of all pastors at age 75 two years ago -- and now, at age 77, he should realize that it may be "in his best interests" to be relieved of some of the strain and heavy burdens of running a big parish. "There are a number of retired priests in residence at St. Joseph's in Cupertino and this may appeal to Monsignor Sweeny where he could come and go as he wishes," he added. Asked if Our Lady of Peace could continue the Latin Mass and perpetual adoration that has drawn the faithful through the years, Bishop McGrath said, "I have no problem with the continuance of these devotions. It's a wonderful parish and I know it will remain so." Located in the heart of Silicon Valley's bustling commercial area and high-rise hotels, the parish boundaries of Our Lady of Peace contain relatively few residential areas. All of its Masses are filled with men, women, and children from Northern and Central California.

Father Paul Marx, leader in the pro-life movement now in retirement in Minnesota, said recently, "I have traveled to more than 85 countries around the world and I have never seen a parish like Our Lady of Peace in Santa Clara. It is one of a kind and I will never forget the hospitality and kindness shown me there whenever I came to speak and raise funds for Human Life International."

Friends and parishioners showed strong emotions about the announcement from the diocese. One San Jose lady suggested, "They should make him a pastor emeritus and let him live at Our Lady of Peace. They probably feel that he couldn't help himself but get involved in the running of the parish, and that would be a cross for the new pastor. [And] since Monsignor Sweeny's parents died in their upper eighties, it could be a cross that lasts a long time."

A long-time friend of Sweeny's from Palo Alto has a different view. He said, "I have advised him to stay out of Our Lady of Peace since he would not be happy to witness the 'wreckovation' that is certain to follow. Look for a liberal successor to Monsignor Sweeny. Expect the only Latin Mass in the diocese to go with the present pastor. I would expect the changes to come gradually but steadily." Another parishioner feels that the new Pilgrimage Hall and Family Learning Center should renamed in honor of Monsignor Sweeny, who raised the money for it and saw its completion. The Catholic bookstore in the building is one of the largest and most complete in the area. One letter writer to the diocese pointed out that the Holy Father is older than Monsignor Sweeny and has much greater responsibilities.

Mary Arnold, of Pleasanton, says visiting the shrine for the first time is like going through a time warp, especially if one is from a modern parish. "I was surprised the first time I visited Our Lady of Peace parish for the Fatima pilgrimage (held on the 13th of each month, May through October -- the same dates when Our Lady appeared to the children in Portugal). "Down the aisle of the packed church came first the Virgin carried shoulder high on a bier of fresh flowers, then a bevy of reverent little girls dressed as angels and then 'the three children' -- Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco -- outfitted in peasant clothes and scarves. The Knights of Columbus in plumed hats, made a sword salute at the consecration. Mass was followed by a candlelight rosary procession on the verdant lawns surrounding the huge statue, and then benediction was said, taking me back to the days when benediction was a dramatic, solemn and ceremonious Eucharistic celebration. Here was all the pageantry and unapologetic fervor that the Church displayed a few decades ago."

The pro-life movement has had a supporter in Monsignor Sweeny who regularly turns over collections to organizations like Human Life International and a San Jose crisis pregnancy center. He has allowed speakers who talk on behalf of the sanctity of life and he leads prayer vigils at local abortion mills, participates in annual life chains, and regularly speaks-out for the unborn. When he arrived at Our Lady of Peace in the late sixties, the church was $500,000 in debt. Now it has a new rectory and pilgrimage hall and has money in the bank. Monsignor Sweeny says he has one wish for his flock. "I will do anything I can to help people get out of sin and get to Heaven."


SACRAMENTO DIOCESE CANCELS ENVIRO CONFERENCE. The diocese of Sacramento called off a one-day conference scheduled for October 13, 2001 entitled "Care for God's Creation: A Conference for the Meeting of Minds." The conference was to be held at UC Davis, focusing on how nature "reflects the glory of God" including speakers Carl Pope, the executive director of the Sierra Club; John Haught, professor of theology at Georgetown University, and Sally Bingham, environmental minister at Grace Episcopal Cathedral in San Francisco. Redding businessman and longtime parishioner of the Sacramento diocese, Don Chapman, wrote a three-page letter to the bishop on behalf of a delegation from the Redding area, which pointed out that the conference excluded participants who were pro-timber and pro-farming. The letter alerted the bishop to the possibility of protesters at the conference, as well as the effects that the event would have on the publicized campaign the diocese launched to raise $50 million for a variety of projects. Father James Murphy, spokesman for the Sacramento diocese, denied in a Sacramento Bee article that the fundraising campaign influenced the decision to postpone the event.


PRO-ABORTION CATHOLIC PELOSI COULD BE HOUSE SPEAKER. Representative Nancy Pelosi became the minority whip of the U.S. house of representatives on October 10 in a contested 118-95 vote. Pelosi, who represents the 8th congressional district of San Francisco, is the first woman and the first Californian to ascend to the position in the 212-year history of the house. The whip is one of the most powerful leaders on Capitol Hill, and puts Pelosi on a track that could eventually result her ascendancy to speaker of the house. The 61-year-old Democrat and married mother-of-five will be officially responsible for counting votes, but will also direct the policy of the Democratic party. Although supporters speak of her commitment to ending human rights abuses in China and her work to cure AIDS, she is also known as a long-time friend of Planned Parenthood and the National Organization of Women. Of the former, Pelosi maintains her 100% rating for her voting record on reproductive issues such as global family planning and abortion. When challenged about her abortion stance in 1999, Pelosi remained adamant that she is a 'good Catholic', and still attends Mass at St. Vincent De Paul in the Marina district. When asked by a reporter if a good Catholic can advocate abortion, Pelosi responded, "Yes."


USF PROFESSOR VERSUS BERKELEY STUDENTS ON ABORTION. Speaking to a crowded Wheeler auditorium at Cal Berkeley on October 15, Dr. Raymond Dennehey participated in a philosophical talk on the issue of abortion. The course, offered in the health and medical apprenticeship program at UC Berkeley, has invited Dennehy to speak on the subject for the last 29 consecutive semesters. An unnamed assistant in the class said that despite a Bay Area-wide search to find someone to present the pro-abortion side, as soon as they found out Dennehy was involved, they immediately declined. Given this, Dennehy's main task then became to challenge the assembled students on the status of the fetus in the womb. He asserted that if the fetus is not in fact a human being, then there is no need to justify abortion through arguments involving rape, incest, or inconvenience. However, he wondered, if it is a human, how can we as a nation kill thousands of babies a day through this legal procedure? He also talked about a 1993 Supreme Court case (People v. Davis) which concluded that if a 3rd party kills an unborn baby (the fetus), the killer can be charged with murder. This case was decided based on the deliberate murder of a baby from a 7-month pregnant woman who claimed life was taken along with the attempt on her life. The responses in the crowd varied from claims that his gender disqualified Dennehey from the discussion to one student, who appeared to be inebriated, asked Dennehy if he had seen the movie Gladiator, then asked if he ought to adopt Dennehy's viewpoints on abortion. When students argued that poor, disadvantaged women should not be victimized by having to bear an unwanted baby, Dennehy asserted that in the case of rape and an uncaring male population, "women are the second victim in an abortion. By getting abortions, women are playing the man's came; [Men like] nothing better than having the bonus without the onus."

The unnamed assistant went on to explain Dennehy's enduring popularity, acknowledging that he is consistently the best received lecturer the class invites. She said, "He's one of the ones we can count on to speak regularly. He presents his side of the issue rationally and he makes a good argument to the students. He's not one of those pro-life activists. He's not necessarily advocating any legislation. He's an educator and it's his philosophy." Asked how students take in Dennehy and his message, she said, "I think there's a general feeling of resentment as well as a feeling of respect." As for Dennehy, he maintains that in a debate situation, the object should never be on winning. "Never go in to win. Go in to give witness to the truth as you know it. Going in to win puts you in the same position as the Soviets. It becomes a matter of expediency. That's different." Dennehy received a letter shortly after the debate from the program that thanked him and indicated that they would be in contact about future speaking engagements in the class.


SANTA CLARA COUNTY TURNS AGAINST DEATH PENALTY. Santa Clara County became the second California county to ask Governor Gray Davis to halt all executions. The county's board of supervisors passed the non-binding resolution 4-1 on October 30th. The city and county of San Francisco has approved a similar resolution, as have the cities of Oakland, Berkeley and Santa Cruz. The supervisors are requesting that all executions stop until studies on fairness in sentencing and the risk of executing innocent people are completed.


OAKLAND ABORTION INCINERATOR TAGGED BY STATE. The San Francisco Chronicle reported on November 1 that Integrated Environmental System's medical waste incinerator in Oakland has agreed to pay nearly $1 million in fines to the State of California for leaving hundreds of barrels of waste untreated last summer. The Oakland incinerator was shut down for a month in June after inspectors discovered 1,500 barrels that were more than a week old. State law mandates that medical waste -- including syringes, gauze and other discarded materials treated within a week of its collection.

The Oakland incinerator on East Oakland's High Street is the largest commercial medical waste incinerator in the country and the only one in Northern California. According to a study by the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation, "The sources of dioxins clearly migrate from somewhere ... but where they come from has not been known until now. The dubious honor of the Oakland incinerator -- the only commercial medical waste incinerator in the state -- is that we supply dioxins to anywhere the weather patterns carry these pollutants."

A call to the Oakland incinerator parent company in May [see June Faith], Integrated Environmental Systems confirmed that they do accept medical wastes from abortion clinics. One employee said, "Yes, oh sure" when asked if the facility handled medical wastes, including fetuses, from abortion clinics. Another employee said, "I'm pretty sure that they do [pick up fetuses from abortion clinics], they pick up everything else."


BIG COURT WIN FOR OPERATION RESCUE. The Fourth District Court of Appeal, by unanimous decision, reversed a $440,000 judgment against Operation Rescue of California, which had been awarded to group of abortionists led by Dr. Jack Dym in June 1999. The reversal also entitles Operation Rescue to collect nearly $3000 in court costs in a judgment against Dym and the others. Operation Rescue was sued for picketing clinics and dispensing pro-life leaflets.

Representing Operation Rescue, attorney Richard Vattuone was able to convince the appeals court that the trial judge denied the pro-lifers their constitutional right to a jury trial and limited the scope of the trial. "There were two trials. At the first trial, my client was not present. We then got a judgment against us and our name was on it. I argued Operation Rescue could not have a judgment with their name on it when they were not at the trial and didn't have an attorney there. The judge just said, 'No. I'm going to deem that they were present.' This was like a default judgment, and we appealed that. That was four years ago, and we won that. That was trial number one. The court of appeals then sent it back to be tried again with Operation Rescue. That's when we had the second trial where the judge simply tried to rubber stamp the first judgment again. He said, 'You're not going to have a jury trial, you're not going to get to try all the issues, you're not going to get to cross-examine the doctors on damages and liability.' That was when (opposing attorney) James McElroy was making his pitch. The appeals court actually said that his arguments were not based on law or any meaningful arguments, yet the trial court judge bought it."

Recognizing that judges are susceptible to political pressures, Vattuone said, "That's why the appeals court didn't hammer the trial court judge. They could have said that he was way out of line. They didn't criticize him one bit, but instead criticized McElroy and the plaintiffs."

Dym's lawsuit claimed that Operation Rescue had inflicted "emotional distress" on his clients. "I thought it was bogus. They said it was trespassing and infliction of emotional distress. If a place is open to the public, that's a pretty shaky case of trespassing!" The "emotional distress" was allegedly caused by leaflets that called abortionists murderers.

"Since the first judgment was entered, Operation Rescue of California has stopped doing business. And, since then, McElroy has been trying to get money from other organizations, saying that they are in fact related to Operation Rescue. He had a $440,000 judgment and no one to collect it from. He was going after anyone who had anything to do with the pro-life movement to collect this judgment. I assume now that the judgment has been thrown out for the second time that he will stop that activity.

An unnamed source disclosed that McElroy will not appeal the decision.

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