tagged articles with: moral

The Marriage Debate: the nature of things

A proposal to change this truth about marriage in civil law is less a threat to religion than it is an affront to human reason and the common good of society. It means we are all to pretend to accept something we know is physically impossible. The Legislature might just as well repeal the law of gravity.” 

Same-sex marriage could threaten religious freedom in England.

More than 1,000 priests have signed a letter voicing alarm that same-sex marriage could threaten religious freedom in a way last seen during “centuries of persecution” of Roman Catholics in England.

Christians without compromises

In an article for the 'Financial Times' Benedict XVI presents Christmas as a time to engage with the world. This infant, born in an obscure and far-flung corner of the Empire, was to offer the world a far greater peace, truly universal in scope and transcending all limitations of space and time.

Archbishops: It is not too late to stop this shambolic Bill

The Church in England and Wales has criticised Government plans to push ahead with same-sex marriage next year, after the Culture Secretary announced a timetable for the historic change. In a statement released on Tuesday Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster and Archbishop Peter Smith of Southwark said: “The Government has chosen to ignore the views of over 600,000 people who signed a petition calling for the current definition of marriage to stay.

Confession: a sacrament in decline

Catholics of my generation, brought up in the faith before the Second Vatican Council, often went to confession weekly, and never less than monthly, as did our parents and grandparents. Today, the majority of Catholics in many parts of the world have stopped going to confession regularly.

Justin Welby’s social conscience

One of the things we know about the next Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is that he doesn’t like bankers. Another is that he has given a good deal of thought to the question of social sin. A third is that he has been profoundly influenced by the social teaching of a nineteenth century pope, Leo XIII, as expressed in his 1891 encyclical, Rerum Novarum.

Too Few Capitalists or Too Much Capitalism?

Legal and tax norms are perverted to serve this small class, a class which uses the media to distract the public from real issues by an absurd concentration on movie stars and sports figures.

French Catholic Church pro-marriage prayer provokes gay rights row

Roman Catholic congregations in churches across France prayed for traditional marriage on Wednesday, provoking accusations of homophobia from gay rights groups as Paris prepares to legalize same-sex matrimony.

Swiss bishops against the logic of financial markets

In a pastoral letter the bishops encourage the community to follow the simple but fundamental advice that “money is at the service of man and man is not a slave of money”. Money, the prelates say in particular, “is not made to be increased by itself. It is not an end in itself”.

Korea: Thousands protest against abortion

Participants urged the government to abolish Article 14 of the Mother and Child Health Act, which was passed in 1973, saying the clause encourages women to have abortions. According to Article 14, abortion can be performed in cases of pregnancy by rape or incest, certain kinds of genetic, mental, or physical conditions, or danger to the mother’s health. 

A Crack in our pitcher

There's a much-quoted line from Leonard Cohen that suggests that the place where we are broken is also the place where our redemption starts: There is a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in.

Cardinal O'Brien accuses David Cameron of 'immoral' tax stance

"They should change their policy and implement the Robin Hood tax immediately so that the banks and financial institutions start paying their fair share to help those hit hardest by this crisis." The cardinal was speaking in support of a campaign by the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF). The aid agency estimates a tax of 0.05% on major financial transactions, such as the trading of stocks, bonds and derivatives, would raise £20bn each year in the UK alone.

Unexpected Papal Correction stuns radical nuns

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the largest organization of Catholic nuns in the US, has been singled out for promoting "feminist themes incompatible with the Catholic faith." Archbishop will oversee the reform of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. 

Caritas must remember its justice role

There was some surprise in Justice and Peace circles recently at the sight of a job advertisement for the post of director of Caritas (Westminster) with a salary of £45,000 to £50,000 per annum. The post holder will "lead the Caritas work within the diocese with the aim of enabling the Catholic community of Westminster to respond appropriately to those experiencing poverty and social exclusion." 

Note Concerning the Results of the Apostolic Visit to Ireland

Each religious institute is invited to design a three-year programme for focusing anew on the founding charism and on the fundamental sources, developing adequate means for revitalising individual communities in the areas of prayer, community life and apostolic mission. The institutes are invited to develop a collaborative ministerial outreach towards those who suffer the consequences of abuse.

Church leaders ready to fight for traditional marriage

Catholic leader Cardinal Keith O'Brien clashes with David Cameron on same-sex marriage plans

The Catholic Church is on a collision course with David Cameron as one of its most senior figures issues an outspoken attack on the Government over its plans to legalise gay marriage. Cardinal Keith O’Brien, the leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, says the proposals to allow same-sex unions are “madness” and a “grotesque subversion of a universally accepted human right”.

Our Lady of Lourdes - To emerge from the shadows - The World Day of the Sick

The World Day of the Sick serves to refocus everyone's  attention on a single fact: illness exists. Unfortunately Western society has such confused ideas on this that the real definition of the word “health” is still being argued about.

Anglican Archbishop says “Cameron is a dictator if he says yes to gay marriage”

In March the British government will start an in depth consultation on gay marriage and PM David Cameron has already declared he wants it to be an important part of his mandate. But now it is not just the Catholic Church protesting to the English government against gay marriage. The Anglican Archbishop of York John Sentamu also warned David Cameron: “Do not legalize gay marriage.”

Major victory for life in Europe: ‘Euthanasia must always be prohibited’

Yesterday, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a non-binding resolution stating: “Euthanasia, in the sense of the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit, must always be prohibited.”

Benefit cap - A tale of two moralities

The opponents to Benefit Cap, led by the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, argued that it was immoral to punish families simply because they had more children. Losing a job was bad enough but then losing your home was unacceptable. 

Working with the Muslims at the UN.

 On the negotiating floor, I approached a Muslim ambassador and said, “This session is going all night long and its going to be very tough going. And when it gets really hard, I want you to know that right over there,” and I pointed to a section of raised seats off to the side, “twenty Christians will be praying for you.” That night this man was a tiger in defense of unborn children.

‘The “Catholic” model of an economic market is one that services the common good’

Behind the headlines, after the disastrous Brussels summit two weeks ago, were fundamental disagreements about economic theory between the British position and the rest. These  differences can be traced back to theological disagreements between Catholics and Protestants at the time of the Reformation.

Archbishop says cuts are hitting the vulnerable the hardest

Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster has said in a speech to MPs, peers and charity workers that Government cuts are “already being felt disproportionally by the most vulnerable”. It is the closest a Catholic bishop in England and Wales has come to criticising the Coalition’s austerity measures.

A place to talk - Crisis at the cathedral

St Paul’s Cathedral has faced turmoil with the resignation of three staff, including its canon chancellor and dean, over the encampment of anti-capitalism protesters around it. The dispute has raised further questions about the role of the cathedral and its relationship with the City

New Jersey nurses face job loss for refusing to assist abortions

Twelve nurses in New Jersey have filed a lawsuit against a local government hospital for being told they would lose their jobs if they refuse to perform abortions. The case shows evidence of “a systematic attack on the right of pro-life professionals to engage in their careers without being forced to violate their fundamental moral and religious beliefs,” Matt Bowman, attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, told CNA.

A Catholic Call to Abolish the Death Penalty in USA

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops stated that “the sanction of death, when it is not necessary to protect society, violates respect for human life and dignity… We have other ways to punish criminals and protect society.” In earlier eras, Roman Catholic tradition acknowledged the necessity of capital punishment, in rare cases, to protect citizens from threats to the common good. In recent times, with more secure prison facilities that give us the means to offer such protection without executions, our church leaders have affirmed the need to eradicate the death penalty.

Dale Farm travellers lose High Court eviction appeal. Bishops pleads for Essex travellers

 The Bishop of Brentwood Thomas McMahon has pleaded with Basildon Council to reach a last-minute agreement with hundreds of travellers just hours before the deadline passed for them to leave England's largest illegal campsite. Bishop McMahon, and the Anglican Bishop of Chelmsford, Stephen Cottrell, offered to mediate between the local authority and around 240 traveller families at Dale Farm in Crays Hill, Essex, who had been given until midnight tonight to leave or face eviction.

Morality of the profit motive

 The Holy See has identified a new public enemy – the speculator. In remarks to delegates at the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, Pope Benedict referred to the way food had become a commodity that was now traded without regard to the needs of the world’s hungry people.