A close-up look at the road to the priesthood

By Mary DeTurris Poust

A front-page story in today's Los Angeles Times takes a remarkably positive yet honest look at the sometimes-difficult road to ordination. Through interviews with men studying at the Junipero Serra House of Formation in the Diocese of San Bernardino, California, we get to hear first-hand about some of the struggles and joys of the young men who are following a difficult but fulfilling call to serve God and His people.

From the story:

"Alex Rodarte, 27, of Rialto, left a girlfriend to follow the priesthood. Never especially religious, he began to embrace his faith after his father survived a stroke about five years ago. He started reading children's books about the saints and attending communion classes and Mass. In faith, he found unexpected purpose.

Having finished two years at Serra House, Rodarte is moving to Chicago next month to study philosophy at Loyola, but not without some disquiet about the woman he left behind. He said he still misses her at times, recalling the pain he felt last fall when she told him she had met someone new.

"I know how beautiful a relationship with a woman can be, but I feel privileged that I've been called to celibacy," Rodarte said. "There is something really beautiful about giving up everything I would want to help other people."

To read the full story, click HERE.

How to leave reporters speechless

By Mary DeTurris Poust



Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow, the University of Florida Gators quarterback who once wrote "John 3:16" in his eye black, recently accomplished a rare feat off the football field: He left reporters speechless when, in response to a personal question, the unabashed Christian unflinchingly said that yes, he is saving himself for marriage. The next reporter couldn't even spit out his question, such was the apparent shock of realizing there was a real live football-star virgin in their midst. And the headline he got for that in the South Florida Sun Sentinel: "Spiritual Florida quarterback Tim Tebow admits he’s a virgin." Admits. As if he's pleading guilty to something. As if he has reason to be embarrassed.

“I think you’re stunned right now. You can’t even ask a question. … I was ready for that question, but I don’t think ya’ll were," Tebow said during the press conference.

Head over to GetReligion.org for analysis of the story as well as a look at an "ultra-sympathetic" Sports Illustrated feature on Tebow by clicking HERE. H/T to Ed Mechmann over at Varia.

The slippery slope of assisted suicide

By Mary DeTurris Poust

I held my mother's hand as she took her last breath in our family room in 1988 after a courageous and difficult nine-month battle with colon cancer. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't easy. She was only 47 years old and I'm still not sure what was worse -- the chemo or the cancer. She suffered. We suffered less, but we still suffered as we watched her die. And yet, her death was one of the most powerful experiences of my life, right up there with the birth of my children. To watch as she held on to life, fighting -- literally -- for every breath at the end was spiritual, awesome, sorrowful and life-changing. Even in her suffering, she did not want to leave us, even as we told her she could go.

So when I read about people choosing assisted suicide over a terminal illness, or, even worse, loneliness, I want to cry or scream or both. Renee Schafer Horton has an excellent piece on the frightening progress of the assisted suicide movement over on God Blogging today. Using her own family perspective as a backdrop, she drives home the point that this dangerous attitude -- that we should be able to choose our time of death based on increasingly less tragic circumstances -- has to be shifted before it's too late.

"The debate over health care reform is raging and while nothing new will come too soon, one of the scariest things I heard President Obama say in his discussions of the need for reform was that the elderly and those near the end of life account for “potentially 80 percent” of the total health care bill for the nation. OK, so what? Is my father in law’s life worth less than mine? Less than my son’s? Who gets to choose? And will there be pressure, ever so subtle (one imagines ads on TVs played in all the retirement villages across the country with a pleasant voice cooing about the benefits of no more suffering), for the elderly, the infirm, the disabled, to make life easier on the healthy, the young, the able-bodied by visiting their neighborhood “kill-me-now” center?"

Go read the blog post in its entirety by clicking HERE.

Why conscience protection matters

By Mary DeTurris Poust

For anyone who has ever wondered just how significant conscience protection is for health care workers who might be asked to do something against their religious beliefs, here's a real-life example of a Catholic nurse who alleges she was forced by her employer to participate in a late-term abortion against her will.

Catherina Cenzon-DeCarlo, 35, emigrated to the United States from the Philippines and is the niece of a Filipino bishop. Her employer, Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, apparently knew of her objections to abortion before they hired her. Cenzon-DeCarlo says they asked her during her job interview if she would participate in abortions and she not only said no but put her objections in writing.

From the story in today's New York Post:

"I emigrated to this country in the belief that here religious freedom is sacred," Cenzon-DeCarlo said. "Doctors and nurses shouldn't be forced to abandon their beliefs and participate in abortion in order to keep their jobs."

Cenzon-DeCarlo says she was threatened with "career-ending charges of insubordination and patient abandonment" if she did not participate in the procedure. The next day she filed a grievance with her union. She also says that she has lost overtime shifts since the filing and was recently "cornered" by supervisors who told her if she wants more overtime, she'll need to sign a statement saying she will participate in future abortion procedures.

It will be interesting to see if Mount Sinai loses federal funding if the charges are validated.

Read the full story HERE.

Is nothing sacred? Apparently Not.

I first heard about this video from my friend Bill, a priest of the Diocese of Metuchen, N.J. I then saw it posted on the Facebook page of another friend. You always hear about people who get annoyed when they find out they can't have their Catholic wedding on a beach or in a park. The Church wisely says that such an important step, a sacrament, belongs in a place that will preserve the dignity and sacredness of the event. What you'll see in this video is reminiscent of what most couples do as they enter the reception hall, not the church. Seems even a reverent setting can't infuse some modern-day marriages with the sacredness they deserve. Here's one thing you won't find at a Catholic wedding -- thankfully.

Authentic experience of Catholic health care

Thanks be to God, I've had very little experience with hospitals, Catholic or otherwise. And speaking frankly, I hope not to have much future opportunity, either.

But should God deign otherwise, I pray that the experience is similar to the one my wife and I had for the birth of our first child nearly 11 years ago.

We were living in Rome and I was employed by Vatican Radio, meaning we were covered under the Vatican's (comprehensive) health insurance plan and could look forward to delivery at a private hospital on the Janiculum hill in Rome called Salvator Mundi ("Savior of the World") run by Salvatorian nuns. It is the same facility where Mother Teresa was hospitalized for a few days in 1992.

My wife went into labor at 6:30 a.m. on Sept. 6, 1998. I threw on some clothes and called a taxi. The driver raced us through the sleepy Sunday morning streets.

Once arrived, we took the elevator up to the maternity ward, where we were greeted by a hidebound old Irish nun, Suor Magdalena, who was in charge of the floor.

My wife and I had prepared for this big moment -- our first baby! -- by reading several books on natural childbirth, in which the husband plays a coaching role.

Suor Magdalena adhered to the older school approach -- men should stay out of the way -- and looked disapprovingly down her nose at my engagement in the process.

No matter. We stuck with it. But as the hours went by, and no baby came, we lost our nerve. And the doctor, who finally showed up, was impatient. So he demanded an emergency Caesarean section, citing fetal distress.

I will spare you the details of the operation. Suffice it to say, there were some anesthesiologist mistakes, the relating of which once made one of our dinner guests so queasy that he had to lie down on our couch to recover.

So I was a nervous wreck once our daughter was pulled from my wife. Suor Magdalena insisted I accompany her to my daughter's initial exam, and then let me return to my unconscious wife's side in the operating room.

Minutes later, as my wife was being wheeled to her room, Suor Magdalena pulled me aside.

"Mr. Norton," she said, "you'll be happy to know that I stopped in the chapel on the way to the nursery and held up your daughter to introduce her to Jesus in the tabernacle."

I was stunned almost to tears. Her words brought me back to my senses. (And I was very grateful when she offered me lunch, with wine, at my wife's side.) I knew I was in a Catholic hospital.

In our own country, Catholic health care is at a crossroads. Be sure to read our In Focus (Pages 9-12) and editorial (Page 19) and then let me know what you think.

Top Catholic sites

I just compiled a list of the top 10 visited English-language Catholic sites (excluding universities) according to alexa.com.

Here they are, by 1-10 rank, alexa worldwide ranking, and site:

1 ******12,515 ****** vatican.va
2 ******17,882 ******catholic.net
3 ******21,702 ****** ewtn.com
4 ******25,760******catholic.org
5 ******25,931******catholic.com
6 ******30,992 ******newadvent.org
7 ******33,707******usccb.org
8 ******36,778 ******catholicmatch.com
9 ******43,698******zenit.org
10******58,491******fisheaters.com

True 'adult faith' takes courage

When I saw that Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York was writing about so-called 'recovering Catholics' in his Catholic New York column, To Whom Shall We Go, I had to stop immediately to see what he had to say. This same group, adults who were raised Catholic but are now separated from the Church for one reason or another, has been the focus of talks I give at various catechetical conferences. I call them the "lost generation," those Catholics who came of age after Vatican II and often missed out on the core teachings of the faith. Now as former Catholics they buy into the secular world's version of what the faith of their birth is all about.

Archbishop Dolan writes:

"No, unfortunately, when I hear personalities on the TV or radio, Hollywood stars, newspaper columnists or famous authors remark, 'I used to be Catholic,' or, 'I was raised Catholic,' they then continue, 'But, I'm beyond that now. Thank God I'm now enlightened and liberated from those silly, irrational, superstitious shackles, and now I'm a 'free-thinker', a mature, adult individual.' They might then smirk and remark that they are 'recovering Catholics' who are trying to 'get over' such a dark, oppressive part of their childhood.

"I'm afraid there are a lot of them these days. Recent scholarly religious studies show that one of the largest groups in American society today identifies itself as 'ex-Catholics.' While there is also a glimmer of good news in such studies that most people 'raised' Catholic faithfully remain so, and that some of those who do leave, in fact, do come back, there's still no denying that it's a chilling statistic to read."

The archbishop goes on to note that Pope Benedict XVI has observed that it doesn't take much courage to stand against the Catholic faith in general and the magisterium in particular, since that is what society wants to hear. What takes courage is sticking with the faith even when the world is against you.

"Yep, it hardly takes courage to brag that you 'used to be a Catholic, but have now 'grown up' and are enlightened.' Big deal. Join the crowd. The audience will applaud. The critics will rave about your book. The talk shows will invite you on as a star. You can snicker about the Church and get laughs and cheers," Archbishop Dolan writes.

"I wonder, though, if the really enlightened, mature, liberated, brave, prophetic folks are those who are humbly, joyfully and gratefully confident in their Catholic faith, who are well aware of the Church's struggles and imperfections, but still eager to live it sincerely, and pass it on to their kids and those they love."

Read his full column by clicking HERE.

Forgiving the unforgivable

So many times, as I was reading Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust, by Immaculée Ilibagiza with Steve Erwin, I had to remind myself that the book was not fiction, that it was all horribly, unbelievably true. It is a story of incredible suffering and unshakable faith and unimaginable forgiveness.

Left to Tell is the story of Immaculée's miraculous survival while hiding in a tiny bathroom for 91 days with seven other Tutsi women while Hutu killers called her name just outside the bathroom door as they searched and searched for her for only one reason: to kill her. And not to kill her quickly, but to torture her and make her die the same kind of unspeakable death that almost her entire family and one million Tutsis did during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

This book, however, is not just a chronicle of death and suffering; it is the story of one woman's ability to trust in God even when she had no obvious reason. Each night, when I put this book down before going to sleep, I would close my eyes and see Immaculée in that cramped bathroom -- hungry, afraid, silent but always faithful. Her willingness to stare into the face of the man who killed her family and hunted her down and offer him forgiveness is a lesson in complete and total surrender to God. It is awesome and humbling and a stark reminder of just how radical the Gospel of Jesus is when we don't try to water it down or soften it up.

If you have not yet read this book, you need to get it. Today. Now. Everyone needs to read this book because we need to remember what human beings are capable of when they choose evil over love, easy lies over hard truths.

I recently came across an interview with Immaculee by Tony Rossi of The Christophers. You can read that interview by clicking HERE. Once you get to Tony's blog, The Intersection, you can link to the podcast of Immaculee talking about her experience, her decision to work with orphans, and what led to her book Led By Faith: Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide, which will be released in paperback in September.

Legion of Christ acquires Southern Catholic College

Even though the Legion of Christ is undergoing a Vatican-ordered apostolic visitation because of revelations of its late-founder's double life, it appears not to be putting its activities on hold. It has announced today that it acquired Southern Catholic College in Atlanta, Ga.

From a press release just received from a Legion spokesman:

NEWS: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Legion of Christ, Southern Catholic join in effort
to ensure quality, Catholic higher education
ATLANTA (July 16) – The Legion of Christ and Southern Catholic College (SCC) have agreed to make the college a Legion institution.

“This is a great step for Southern Catholic and, we hope, for Catholic higher education in North America,” said Jeremiah J. Ashcroft, president of SCC. “With the Legion’s experience and leadership, we’ll be able to attract students from across North America and develop programs with institutions around the world. This expanded reach and support greatly enhances our ability to achieve our mission to prepare moral and ethical leaders who will enlighten society and glorify God.”

“We want to build on the great reputation SCC has established,” said Father Scott Reilly, L.C., territorial director for the Legion. “There will be considerable sharing of best practices with our existing institutions. I expect that SCC will experience significant growth in the years ahead, as we can expand the availability of Catholic higher education to students from across North America.”

Southern Catholic College is a co-educational liberal arts college, Georgia’s first and only residential Catholic college. The school provides a learning environment for academic excellence grounded in the Catholic intellectual and moral tradition. SCC was founded in 2000 and has more than 200 students from 25 states on its campus in Dawsonville, GA, an hour north of Atlanta.

The Legion of Christ is a religious congregation of Pontifical right, founded in 1941. Its mission is to extend the Kingdom of Christ in society according to the requirements of Christian justice and charity. The congregation operates in 22 countries and has 800 priests and more than 2600 seminarians worldwide. The Legion operates 15 universities, 50 institutes of higher education and 176 schools.

Life: Imagine the Potential 3

The latest stunning pro-life video from CatholicVote.org. Check it out:

Anti-Catholic 'bigotry' in The New Yorker

I know a lot of religious sisters, women who do incredible work for the poor despite unbelievable obstacles. In fact, I write for several congregations of religious women and am always humbled and awed by their commitment to their ministries and their love for all God's people. Unfortunately, not everyone sees sisters in the same light. Too many people have bought into the Hollywood stereotype instead of getting to know the real women who are making a real difference. "Fun with Nuns," an article by Paul Rudnick in the current issue of The New Yorker, caricatures religious sisters in the worst ways, says Jesuit Father James Martin, who takes the magazine to task for calling nuns "dictatorial, sexually repressed and scary" and for allowing anti-Catholicism to seep into its pages.

In a blog post on "In All Things," Father Martin writes:

"It’s a humor piece, but come on. Does anyone think that any other religious group would be subjected to the same treatment? Can you imagine someone writing, for example, “Rabbis can be dictatorial, sexually repressed and scary”? How about comparing a Muslim woman to a “bat” or a "chimp”? To quote Libby Gelman-Waxner’s signature line, “If you ask me”...no way...

"Mr. Rudnick is a talented and funny writer. His books and screenplays are usually delightful. I’m sure he’s a decent and caring guy, and I’m sure he meant no harm with his piece. But to mock, belittle and, let’s face it, reduce to less than human a class of people for a derisive laugh--no matter what your religious beliefs are or aren't--should be named for what it is: bigotry.

"It’s enough already, if you ask me."

Read Father Martin's full post by clicking HERE.

Times Op-Ed hits the mark on encyclical

Ross Douthat makes some keen -- and accurate -- observations about the pope's new encylical, Caritas Veritate, in an Op-Ed column in The New York Times. Douthat clearly gets it, more so than most of the American secular media, it seems.

"But Benedict’s encyclical is nothing if not political. 'Caritas in Veritate' promotes a vision of economic solidarity rooted in moral conservatism. It links the dignity of labor to the sanctity of marriage. It praises the redistribution of wealth while emphasizing the importance of decentralized governance. It connects the despoiling of the environment to the mass destruction of human embryos.

This is not a message you’re likely to hear in Barack Obama’s next State of the Union, or in the Republican Party’s response. It represents a kind of left-right fusionism with little traction in American politics...

Why should being pro-environment preclude being pro-life? Why can’t Republicans worry about economic inequality, and Democrats consider devolving more power to localities and states? Does opposing the Iraq war mean that you have to endorse an anything-goes approach to bioethics? Does supporting free trade require supporting the death penalty?

These questions, and many others like them, are the kind that a healthy political system would allow voters and politicians to explore.

But for now, at least, you’re more likely to find them being raised in Benedict XVI’s Vatican than in Barack Obama’s Washington."

Well said. Read the full column, "The Audacity of the Pope," by clicking HERE.

Where encyclical critics go wrong

Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical on economic issues Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth) appears to have stirred up a lively discussion, and that's all to the good. This is a long, complex, thought-provoking document with an important message for the Church and for the world. The more discussion it gets, the better.

Thus it's without any wish to choke off the debate that I note two kinds of response to the encyclical that strike me as more or less unhelpful.

One is the claim that on a number of the issues discussed in the document, the pope comes down somewhere to the left of President Barack Obama. The other is the explanation that, where the encyclical says things the commentator doesn't agree with, faceless Vatican bureaucrats rather than the pope are to blame.

Take those remarks one at a time.

To begin with, saying that the pope comes down to the left (or to the right, for that matter) of the American president is embarrassingly parochial. Should the encyclical then be judged in France by situating it left or right of President Sarkozy, in Germany left or right of Chancellor Merkel, in Great Britain left or right of Prime Minister Brown? The pope is not writing here for just one country or one part of the world, and this way of reading him smacks of crass chauvinism.

Moreover, even on its own terms the remark is meaningless. Let's suppose that Pope Benedict and President Obama are more or less in agreement on the analysis of economic issues and more or less in disagreement on the question of legal protection for unborn human life. (As far as I can tell, that is roughly the case.)

The crucial — and remarkably creative — thing about the encyclical nevertheless is the powerful case made by the pope for the inseparability of what he calls "life ethics" and "social ethics." This flows naturally from the emphasis — here and in other documents of the papal magisterium — on integral human development, the development of persons in relation to the totality of human goods, as the fundamental measure of social and economic policy.

To say that the pope is to the left of Obama on some things and to the right on others misses this fundamental point.

But so does the second reaction: blaming things in the encyclical that you don't happen to like on apparatchiks in the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, as if the pope were unaware of what his document says or went along with it under protest.

Consider. Several times in the last year and a half the publication of Caritas in Veritate was said on the record to be imminent and then was postponed. The reason each time was that Pope Benedict wasn't satisfied with the draft and wanted it revised to bring it in line with the facts of the global economic crisis.

Whatever anyone makes of this, it hardly suggests a pope who is disengaged from the writing process and does not know (or doesn't care) what's going on. On the contrary, it makes it clear that Benedict was closely involved in the drafting process and very much in control. The final product, one can safely conclude, says what it says because that's what he wants it to say. Critics need to face up to that instead of blaming apparatchiks.

All of which is simply by way of clearing out some underbrush so that the discussion can proceed. Caritas in Veritate and its author deserve as much.

Being a contemplative in the world

As a laywoman who continually struggles with the idea of trying to live a contemplative life while being very active in the world -- and running around after three children -- I found the following interview to be serious food for thought. It's long, but worth your time.

Here's one snippet:

"The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of order; an undisciplined prayer life, like a life of work and creativity, must include a healthy amount of discipline. The discipline start with a clear act of the commitment: one commits oneself to pray regularly. The best way to do this is to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. In this way one will be praying with the Church. Commit yourself to pray at least Morning or Evening Prayer every day. If you can commit to both it would be even better. Pretty soon and with His help the practice will grow in you. You’ll learn to desire it and will find out that your day would become incomplete without those set prayer times. Use them as your “jumping board” to a deeper prayer life with God in worship, adoration, and petition."

Head over to Vivificat to read the full interview by clicking HERE.

Obama more Catholic than the pope?

Here's something to get you fired up this weekend. A current Newsweek piece by Kathleen Kennedy Townsend claims that President Obama represents American Catholics better than the pope does. That's not hyperbole. That's an actual headline from the article in the July 9 issue.

"In truth, though, Obama's pragmatic approach to divisive policy (his notion that we should acknowledge the good faith underlying opposing viewpoints) and his social-justice agenda reflect the views of American Catholic laity much more closely than those vocal bishops and pro-life activists. When Obama meets the pope tomorrow, they'll politely disagree about reproductive freedoms and homosexuality, but Catholics back home won't care, because they know Obama's on their side. In fact, Obama's agenda is closer to their views than even the pope's."

There's plenty more where that came from. If you want to continue torturing yourself, you can read the full article by clicking HERE.

A gift that keeps on giving

Pope Benedict XVI presented President Obama with an unexpected but perfectly appropriate gift during their meeting today: A copy of Dignitas Personae (The Dignity of a Person). Considering the huge, gaping chasm that exists between the Church's respect for life from conception to natural death and Obama's insistence on broadening and strengthening abortion rights, embyronic stem cell researh and more, I can't think of a better gift than the bioethics document. It certainly beats the lame (and unusable) DVD set Obama gave British Prime Minister Gordon Brown at their first meeting. Click HERE to read Cindy Wooden's post on the gift at CNS blog.

A look at how to die

The Sisters of Saint Joseph in Pittsford, N.Y., are featured in a New York Times story today that looks at how older and ill members of the community are cared for in a hospice-like setting where they die with reverence and without fear. It's a well-done article that not only gives readers a real glimpse at how community life matters for religious sisters -- and maybe for all of us -- as we reach the end of our time on earth, but also manages to look what the Church teaches about end-of-life palliative care that does not unnecessarily and unnaturally extend life.

“We don’t let anyone go alone on the last journey,” Sister Marie said.

Seven priests moved here in old age, paying their own way, as does Father Shannon, who presides over funerals that are more about the celebratory “alleluia” than the glum “De Profundis.” But he has been with the sisters since he entered the priesthood, first as a professor at Nazareth College, founded by the order, and now as their chaplain. He shares with them the security of knowing he will not die among strangers who have nothing in common but age and infirmity.

“This is what our culture, our society, is starved for, to be rich in relationships,” Sister Mary Lou said. “This is what everyone should have.”

Click HERE to read the story.

Taking God on vacation

It's that time of year, when we pack up our families and head off to places unknown -- or places very familiar but far from home. Our family will be heading to the New Jersey shore soon, a favorite vacation spot for us. Unfortunately, for some families, vacation often means taking a break not only from work but from worship as well. But that doesn't have to be the case. You can always find a church and a Mass nearby. Just check out www.masstimes.org for a schedule of Masses no matter what city or country you might be visiting.

We've had our fair share of interesting vacation Mass experiences. On our first trip to North Wildwood, our good friend came down for the day and celebrated Mass for us. That was really special, in particular for our children, who had never experienced Mass in such a personal way. The next year, however, was payback time. We ended up in a gymnasium with the steepest bleachers I'd ever seen -- and they were completely full except for the top row. I stood at the bottom with our youngest, while my husband took the two older kids up to the nosebleed section. I was convinced they were going to topple head over heels during the Our Father. Last year we finally found a beautiful church with an equally beautiful liturgy. We have found our vacation worship home. Don't forget to find yours.

Pope Benedict: Economy requires ethics

Pope Benedict XVI released his long-awaited social encyclical Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth) today, denouncing the rampant greed that led to the current economic crisis and urging the proper use of natural resources, increased aid for poor countries, and an end to outsourcing work to the cheapest bidder.

''The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly -- not any ethics, but an ethics which is people centered,'' the pope wrote.

Click HERE to read the full encyclical. To read today's CNS story on the encyclical, click HERE. Another CNS story focuses on the environmental aspects. Read that one by clicking HERE.

To tweet or not to tweet?

The issue of whether religion and Twitter should mix comes up again in "Lead Us to Tweet, and Forgive the Trespassers," an article that ran in The New York Times this weekend. The ability of anonymous text-messengers to comment, sometimes rudely and crudely, on a religious conversation has led some to feel uncomfortable with the idea of tweeting their faith. But others, including Pope Benedict XVI, are embracing technology by setting up Facebook pages (in the case of B16) and Twitter accounts in an attempt to reach the high-tech masses.

"For Roman Catholics, whose tradition requires every church in the world to follow the same liturgical script on any given Sunday, the main issue is message control. 'It gets messy,' said Joseph Zwilling, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York. 'When people can post comments on your site, things can degenerate unless you are constantly monitoring.'"

Read the full story HERE.

Of Sicily, Cefalu and sunscreen

Head over to Amy Welborn's blog, Via Media, for some wonderful posts about her travels through Sicily this summer. Be sure to catch the photos of the duomo in Cefalu and the prior post labeled "Why Sicily?" Yes, it's about a physical place -- the beautiful Italian countryside -- but it's about an emotional and spiritual place as well -- the landscape of a grief-stricken heart. Beautiful stuff. Go there now by clicking HERE.

Obama & Catholic press: Question 8

How do you plan to restart Israeli-Palestinian negotiations?

Obama repeated his stance that Israeli settlements must stop, and acknowledged that Prime Minister Netanyahu is "under his own set of political restraints."

But he also said the Palestinians have an obligation to "clamp down" on violence.

He said the surrounding Arab states also had a role, by recognizing Israel's legitimacy and its right to security.

"And this is a topic that I'm looking forward to speaking with the Holy Father about, because I think that our position is going to overlap greatly with the position of the government of the Holy See. And I think we can be effective partners in trying to move the parties in a closer direction," he said.

Obama & Catholic press: Question 7

Jacqueline Salmon, Washington Post: Have you chosen a home church?

Obama said no. And he and his wife were considering rotating through a number of different churches in Washington, even though they missed being part of a community.

Obama & Catholic press: Question 6

What do you make of the fact that you are a lightning rod of controversy among U.S. Catholics?

Obama: "There's no doubt that I think responses to my administration mirror tensions within the Church as a whole."

He again cited Cardinal Bernadin as both strongly pro-life but also concerned about poverty, how children were treated, the death penalty and foreign policy.

"And that part of the Catholic tradition is something that continues to inspire me. And I think that there have been times over the last decade or two where that more holistic tradition feels like it's gotten buried under the abortion debate.

"Now, as a non-Catholic, it's not up to me to try to resolve those tensions. As I said, all I can do is to affirm how that other tradition has made me, a non-Catholic, I think reflect on how I can be a better person and has had a powerful influence on my life. And that tells me that it might be a powerful way to move a broader set of values forward in American life generally."

Obama & Catholic press: Question 5

Legion of Christ Father Owen J. Kearns, publisher, National Catholic Register: You have spoken against hostility towards religion. But what about the anti-Catholic remarks of some of your advisors [i.e., faith-based advisory council member Harry Knox calling the pope a "discredited leader" and the Knights of Columbus a "discredited army of oppression"].

Obama said this was the first time he was hearing about Knox's comments, "so it's not a defense of incendiary language. You will recall that my first question I strongly defended the rights of American bishops to engage in some fairly incendiary language when it came to me, right? " [Laughter.]

Father Kearns: "Fair enough."

Obama said he could answer only for those on his payroll, which Knox is not. The president said he wanted to bring together in roundtables disparate groups that "historically have been in conflict," but there was a risk because of the issues generate "great passion."

"For the gay and lesbian community in this country, I think it's clear that they feel victimized in fairly powerful ways and they're often hurt by not just certain teachings of the Catholic Church, but the Christian faith generally. And as a Christian, I'm constantly wrestling with my faith and my solicitude and regard and concern for gays and lesbians," he said.

While he said he opposed "knee-jerk" reactions to religion as intolerant, "I think that those of us who are people of faith also have to examine our own beliefs and wrestle with them and assure ourselves that we're not causing pain to others. And I think any of us, of whatever faith, would have to acknowledge that there have been times where religion has been used in the service of not such good stuff. And it's incumbent upon us to -- at least in my own view -- to engage in some deep reflection and entertain a willingness to question whether we are acting in a way that's consistent with not just church teachings but also what Jesus Christ our Lord called on us to do: Treat others as we would treat ourselves. Be our brother's keepers."

Obama & Catholic press: Question 4

Paul D Baumann, editor, Commonweal magazine: What do you expect to accomplish with the "common ground" group you've organized on the abortion issue?

Obama said the group was preparing a memo that would be delivered to him "soon" which would describe areas of common ground and areas of "irreconcilable differences."

The president said that he expected it to be fairly straightforward to achieve consensus on a strategy of helping young people not get pregnant in the first place, on the importance of adoption as an option, and caring for pregnant women so it is easier for them to support children.

But, he added: "I personally think that combining good sexual and -- or good sex and moral education needs to be combined with contraception in order to prevent unwanted pregnancies. I recognize that contradicts Catholic Church doctrine, so I would not expect someone who feels very strongly about this issue as a matter of religious faith to be able to agree with me on that, but that's my personal view. We may not be able to arrive at perfectly compatible language on that front."

Obama & Catholic press: Question 3

Patricia Zapor, reporter, Catholic News Service: What about the conscience clause for pro-life health care workers?

Obama said he has always been a believer in "robust" conscience clauses, but that he revoked the previous administration's "11th hour" change in provisions precisely because they were done at the last minute.

He said his administration had received "hundreds of thousands" of comments from people on his administration's review of the clauses.

"I can assure all of your readers that when this review is complete there will be a robust conscience clause in place. It may not meet the criteria of every possible critic of our approach, but it certainly will not be weaker than what existed before the changes were made."

Obama & Catholic press: Question 2

Father Drew J. Christiansen, editor-in-chief, America magazine: After your G8 meeting, what will you report to the pope on progress toward helping the world's poor?

In addition to trying to get other wealthy countries to match the U.S. commitment to food security around the world, Obama said, "I think what I'll also want to talk to the Holy Father about is the need to initiate some core reforms not just oversees, but here in this country, that assure basic security for individuals in this country not only poor, but also middle class, who are extremely vulnerable to bankruptcy if they get sick, to flat wages and incomes so that -- are making it more and more difficult for them to live lives of dignity and security. So everything from our health care reform agenda to our approach to education I think is geared towards providing greater opportunity.

"I continue to believe that capitalism is the most effective means of generating wealth, but I think one of the things -- areas where the Catholic Church has always been a powerful moral compass is on questions of distribution and how do we make sure that opportunities are extended to everybody. And the invisible hand of the market does not always assure that everybody is able to have enough to eat and have a roof over their heads, send their kids to college. And we want to make sure that we continue to build a society that is not only wealthy in the aggregate, but is also just."

Obama & Catholic press: Question 1

Joseph A. Feuerherd, publisher, National Catholic Reporter: "Outside of your partisan political opponents -- the Republicans -- there's one group that has also been critical of you in perhaps harsh ways -- a number of American U.S. bishops -- U.S. bishops. Is there a point where if you keep getting hammered by the leaders of the American Catholic Church that you write them off as opposition and try to take another approach?"

Obama: "The American bishops have a profound influence in their communities, in the Church, and beyond. What I will say is that although there have been criticisms leveled at me from some of the bishops, there have been a number of bishops who have been extremely generous and supportive even if they don't agree with me on every issue. So in that sense the American bishops represent a cross-section of opinion just like other groups do."

Obama noted he had met with Chicago Cardinal Francis George, and said part of his motivation for wanting to forge a relationship with the bishops was his fond memories of late Chicago Cardinal Joseph Bernadin, who he cited as an example of a bishop who spoke out forcefully on social justice issues.

"I think there are going to continue to be areas where we have profound agreements and there are going to be some areas where we disagree. That's healthy," he concluded.

Obama's courting of Catholic press

Ahead of his July 10 visit with Pope Benedict XVI in Rome, President Barack Obama met this morning with seven reporters, editors and publishers of the Catholic press, and with a religion writer for the Washington Post.

The president made brief remarks, and then each participant was allowed one question. The encounter lasted 46 minutes, according to an internal White House transcript.

No, Our Sunday Visitor, the nation's most-circulated national Catholic weekly newspaper, was not invited (although our friends at the two other lower-circulation Catholic nationals were). I strenuously protested today to the White House Office for Media Affairs, and received an apology. Hopefully that will translate into future concrete proof of amendment.

American Papist, Thomas Peters, flatteringly suggests we weren't invited because the Obama team was afraid of tough questions. Thanks.

In his opening remarks, Obama said his upcoming meeting with the pope was a "great honor."

"Hopefully coming out of this meeting we will be able to continue to find areas where we can cooperate on everything from Middle East peace to dealing with worldwide poverty, climate change, immigration, a whole host of issues in which the pope has taken extraordinary leadership," he said.

Then he went around the Roosevelt Room table for a question each. Here they are in list form. I'll also post longer on each one, and identify the questioner when the transcript makes it clear; the hyperlink will be active once they're up (momentarily).

1) Some U.S. bishops have "hammered" you. Do you write them off?
2) After your G8 meeting, what will you report to the pope on progress toward helping the world's poor?
3) What about the conscience clause for pro-life health care workers?
4) What do you expect to accomplish with the "common ground" group you've organized on the abortion issue?
5) You have spoken against hostility towards religion. But what about the anti-Catholic remarks of some of your advisors?
6) What do you make of the fact that you are a lightning rod of controversy among U.S. Catholics?
7) Have you chosen a home church?
8) How do you plan to restart Israeli-Palestinian negotiations?

Had you been in the room, what question would you have posed to President Obama?

Obama promises 'robust' conscience clause

In a meeting with eight religion writers at the White House today, President Obama said he favors strong federal protections for health care workers who object to performing some medical procedures on moral grounds, although he admitted that he would roll back President Bush's expansion of such protections.

According to the Washington Post, President Obama "said he is a 'believer in conscience clauses' and that a new policy would 'certainly not be weaker' than what existed before Bush expanded it late in his administration." For the full story, click HERE.

Conscience protections for health care workers have existed in the law for decades. The problem was they were not publicized (so workers didn't even know they had the right to refuse) and they were not enforced. At the end of his administration, President Bush issued regulations, through the Department of Health and Human Services, that required publicizing these rights, and enforcing the laws. So what President Obama is promising is a return to the days when workers did not know they had these rights and when no one was required to enforce them. Not sure how that's "robust."

In other news at the same meeting...CNS, which had a representative at the round table meeting, is reporting that the president said he "continues to be profoundly influenced by the late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of Chicago, whom he came to know when he was a community organizer in a project partially funded by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development." For the full CNS story, click HERE.

In addition to CNS, other publications represented at the White House meeting were the National Catholic Register, National Catholic Reporter, America magazine, Catholic Digest, Commonweal magazine, Vatican Radio, and one secular reporter from The Washington Post also participated.

President Obama will have his first meeting with Pope Benedict XVI on July 10.

Who's your favorite priest from literature?

It might be tough to top the nameless "whiskey priest" from Graham Greene's great novel, "The Power and the Glory," for iconic priests from literature (an exercise to which we were inspired by the Year for Priests).

But go ahead and try. Who's your top pick?

Sisters react to Vatican investigations

News that the Vatican will conduct two investigations of women's religious communities in the United States is making secular headlines, including a front page story in today's New York Times that looks at what the move might mean for American nuns.

One sister featured in the story suggests that women religious should refuse to participate in the Apostolic Visitation and the doctrinal assessment of the Leadership Conference of Religious Women, fearing that the plan is to, among other things, require women religious in the United States to return to community life, "order their schedules around prayer" and work for Catholic organizations. It's somewhat sad that some sisters would feel such a request is so outrageous as to warrant a boycott. I kind of thought that's why women became religious sisters, to dedicate their lives to Christ by working for his Church, centering their lives on prayer, and living in community.

From the New York Times story:

“They think of us as an ecclesiastical work force,” said Sister Sandra M. Schneiders, professor emerita of New Testament and spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, in California. “Whereas we are religious, we’re living the life of total dedication to Christ, and out of that flows a profound concern for the good of all humanity. So our vision of our lives, and their vision of us as a work force, are just not on the same planet.”

Read the full story by clicking HERE.

Women religious have had such a profound impact on the life of the Church in the United States through the generations. Here's hoping the visitation is a source of renewal for them because the Church needs them -- their talents, their dedication, and their prayers.

Pope's first social encyclical due July 7

Pope Benedict XVI's long-awaited first social encyclical, Caritas in Veritate, or "Love in Truth," is expected on July 7.

"The pope said his letter would look at modern problems in the field of promoting development, and he asked for prayers for 'this latest contribution that the church offers humanity in its commitment for sustainable progress in full respect for human dignity and the real needs of all,'" CNS reported today.

The story by Carol Glatz concludes:

"Pope Benedict also said the publication of the document was delayed by the eruption of one of the worst global economic crises in decades. He said he wanted to update what he had drafted so the document would deal thoroughly with the current crisis and offer 'a more adequate response' to the world's financial woes."

For the full CNS story, click HERE.

The USCCB's blog post on the subject says that the English translation of the title will be "Charity in Truth," as opposed to "love." For that story, which predicts that the pope will address the "economy, ecology and personal and corporate ethics," click HERE.