Excerpted from the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici of His Holiness John Paul II: On the Vocation and the Mission of the Lay Faithful in the Church and in the World [Emphasis added] 37. To rediscover and make others rediscover the inviolable dignity of every human person makes up an essential task, in a certain sense,…
By The Most Reverend Glen John Provost, D.D. Bishop of Lake Charles A serious responsibility of a bishop is to insure the purity of teaching in areas of faith and morals (cf. I Timothy 4:16). These teachings must be in conformity with the universal and historic teachings found in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition and…
In his address to the UN, the Holy Father spoke about the role and proper understanding of human rights. Below are several passages taken from his address which elaborate the concept of human rights as promoting human freedom, the connection between human rights and common good, as well as the responsibility to protect life and the…
NEW YORK (zenit.org) — Though not a single U.N. human rights treaty mentions abortion, treaty bodies have pressured 93 nations 122 times to legalize abortion in the last decade, says the executive vice president of a lobbying group. “Though not a single U.N. human rights treaty mentions abortion, treaty bodies have pressured 93 nations 122…
Many pastors and other Catholic leaders encourage their immigrant flock to participate in labor unions. Catholic thinking does not buy the argument that freedom and happiness automatically accrue as individuals pursue their own interest. Catholicism finds that people experience true freedom through participation in the family and other mediating structures, including unions. The labor movement,…
Irish Office Opts Out of Controversial Policy DUBLIN, Ireland, August 17, 2007 (zenit.org) — Ireland’s branch of Amnesty International will not promote the organization’s new policy of allowing abortion in cases of rape, incest, or threats to the mother’s life. Noeleen Hartigan, director at Ireland’s Amnesty International office, confirmed that the Irish branch is opting…
Many times Catholics of good faith and good will, starting with the same understanding of their moral obligations, may legitimately arrive at very different conclusions and advocate divergent alternative solutions to given social concerns. Catholics for the Common Good avoids getting involved in these kinds of issues, since they offer no possibility for united Catholic…
The Common Good of Children Takes Precedence in Debate on Family and Marriage ROME (zenit.com) — Focusing on the rights of children could resolve some of the ideological debates surrounding the family, said a professor and ex-diplomat from Norway. Janne Haaland Matlary explained her position today at the opening session of the congress focusing on…
Abortion providers target black and Hispanic neighborhoods By Edith Black In 1963 I stood before the Lincoln Memorial and heard the Reverend Martin Luther King tell the nation about his dream. I have a dream, he said, that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: we…