• Vatican backs bishops In discussing
VATICAN CITY (NC- - U.S. and Western European bishops have "reaffirmed the responsibil ity and the moral authority of the church concerning problems of war and peace," including nu clear weapons policies, said a Vatican communique issued after a two-day meeting of Vatican officials and delegations repre senting bishops of the United States, France, West Germany,
Great Britain, Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands. Cardinal-designate Joseph Ber nardin of Chicago, head of the U.S. bishops' committee prepar ing a pastoral on the moral as pects of nuclear policy; Arch bishop John R. Roach of St. Paul-Minneapolis, president of the' National Conference of Cath olic Bishops; Msgr. Daniel F. Hoye, NCCB general secretary;
and Father J. Bryan Hehir, NCCB staff adviser to the war and peace committee, represented the U.S. bishops at the Vatican meeting. Its purpose was to discuss the proposed U.S. pastoral, said the Vatican, which organized the ses sion earlier this month. "In the face of the threats of the present time to life, to basic human values and to the sur
vival of peoples, it seemed nec essary for the episcopal confer ences which are especially in volved, though in different ways, in the problems of nuclear arma· ment to act in concert in order to be informed about the realities experienced in different coun tries and to examine them in fidelity to the tradition of the church and the teaching of Pope John Paul II," said the Vatican.
FALL RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS
t eanc 0 VOL. 27, NO. .4
It called the meeting an "in formal consultation" and said it was "an expression of episco pal collegiality." Topics discuss ed inclu~ed the use of nuclear weapons, the morality of deter rence, the political context of the arms race and the values at stake in the current political situation. Such dialogue is needed "to Turn to Page Six
FAll RIVER, MASS., FRIDAY, JANUARY 28, 1983
'Bloody decade'
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WASHINGTON (NC) - "Dec ade II begins today," March for Life President Nellie J. Gray told thousands of pro-lifers in Wash ington to mark the 10th anniver sary of the Supreme Court deci sion which struck down restric tive state abortion laws. Pro lifers condemned the past 10 years as a bloody decade which cost the llves of at least 12 mil lion unborn babies. Each year since 1973 abortion opponents from across the coun try have flooded to the capital on Jan. 22 to protest the court's decision. Police estimated 26,000 people came for last Saturday's march, but Miss Gray said the number was much higher. Amid snow flurries, busloads of people marched behind signs and banners representing Kan sas, Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, In diana, Ohio, ,Pennsylvania, Mas sachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Marchers flew in from Texas, California and Washington. The signs told an ecumenical story - "Lutherans for Life," "Presbyterians for Life," "Bap tists for Life," "Episcopalians for Life" - as well as the names of, Catholic parishes and Knights of Columbus chapters. Born-again Christians handed out leaflets urging prayer. One group of marchers carried a child-size casket, another car ried a statue of Mary covered with red roses. Some marchers carried rosaries, others waved red and white balloons. The march began at the Ellipse, a park behind the White House, where pro-lifers heard a message from President Reagan saying that "the time for action is now." Groups of teen-agers repre senting youth leagues and schools attende~ the march, including 38 young people from Murrayville, Pa., wllo wore red sashes that said Thanks, Mom, for not having an abortion." Sherry Halula, secretary of the
Hutchinson, Kan., Right to Life, said pro-lifers need to pray more and to fast. "We've tried educa tion and politics. The 'only one who's going to get it done is God," she said. Gregory Loken, director of the advocacy program of Father Bruce Ritter's Covenant House in New York City, stood under a Covenant House sign which said "Choose Life." "The pro-life movement has been faulted for not being willing to bear the responsibility" of un wanted children once they are born, Loken said. "That's what Covenant House is doing - try ing to meet that responsibility. We deal with them after they're born. Many of the kids we deal with are mistreated, unwanted." Covenant House works with about 8,000 young people a year, he said, including many pregnant teen-agers and unwed mothers. For many marchers from Mid western and Western states the march was a few hours of walk ing sandwiched between long bus rides. Some arrived in Washing ton Jan. 21 to take part in lobby ing efforts and to attend a vigil supper, some stayed for the Jan. 22 evening Rose Dinner, but few had time for sightseeing. At the Ellipse, Rep. Lindy Boggs (D-La.) praised the efforts of young pro-lifers. "You will be the ones who will lead us," she sa~d. "Thank you so much for being who you are and what you are." Gov. J. Joseph Garrahy of Rhode Island, a Democrat, told the crowd they all "are commit ted to the proposition" that prQ tection of life "is and should be our most important priority." American anti-abortion politi cal figures were joined on the podium by a Japanese supporter, Sen. Masakuni Murakami, a member of Japan's Liberal Dem ocratic Party, whose remarks were translated by a. colleague. "Let's make the Uriited States Turn to Page Six
CARDINAL-DESIGNATE Joseph Bernardin and other U.S. Catholic Conference representatives meet in Vatican's Old Synod Hall to discuss the upcoming war and peace pastoral of the U.S. bishops with Vatican officials and members of the Euro pean hierarchy. (See story this page.) From left, in front row seats, Msgr. Daniel Hoye (back to camera), USCC general secretary; Archbishop Bernardin, pastoral com mittee chairman; Father J. Bryan Hehir, usce Justice and Peace Office director; Archbishop John Roach, USCC president. (NC. UPI Photo)
Canon law code promulgated
VATICAN CITY (NC) - In a 10-minute ·ceremony Jan. 25 in the Vatican's Consistory Hall, Pope John Paul signed a decree promulgating the church's new Code of Canon Law. At a press conference announ cing the promulgation, a Vatican official said the revised code would take effect Nov. 27 and one of its key aims is to expand the role of the laity especially in
areas where there is a severe shortage of priests. The date of the signing, Jan. 25, marked the 24th anniversary of the announcement by Pope John XXIII that an updated ver· sion of the church's laws would be drafted and that he would convene the Second Vatican Council. The new code, replacing the present one issued in 1917, gov
erns the administrative life of the church and codifies the re forms of church law and practice developed during the Second Vatican Council, held from 1962 65. Present with the pope at the signing ceremony were about 25 Vatican officials, chiefly those representing the commission which drafted the revision, inTurn to Page Sixteen