t eanc 0 VOL. 37, NO. 12
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Friday, March 26, 1993
FALL RIVER, MASS.
Pope calls for full acceptance of church doctrine VATICAN CITY (CNS) Concluding a week of consultations with a group of U.S. bishops, Pope John Paul II said American Catholics must be encouraged to fully accept church teachings on faith and morals. The greatest service the bishops can give the church right now is to teach the faith unambiguously and thus end "disharmony and confusion" produced by dissenting views, the pope said March 20. The papal speech was the final session for the bishops, most from Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin, who made their "ad limina" visits March 13-20. In talks with the pope and other Vatican officials, they discussed pastoral issues, including the shortage of clergy, priestly celibacy and the need for better catechesis. The visits are required of heads of dioceses every five years. Other U.S. bishops will be making their "ad limina" visits this year, with Bishop Sean O'Malley and other New England bishops scheduled for Sept. 20 to 27. Bishops interviewed unanimously described the sessions as productive and encouraging - particularly their one-on-one meetings with the pope. An important meeting with the Congregation for Clergy dealt with priestly pedophilia. The bishops said Vatican officials made a real effort to understand the difficult legal, moral and psychological aspects of the problem in the United States. In his concluding speech, the Turn to Page 13
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FOCA. advances but opposition grows
FATHER DANIEL L. Freitas, diocesan director of the annual Catholic Charities Appeal stands beside Bishop Sean P. O'Malley as preparations are completed for the CCA kickoff meeting. (Gaudette photo)
Plans finalized for Charities Appeal With the theme "Your Sacrifice Will Assure Our Success," plans have been made for the 1993 Catholic Charities Appeal. Priest directors for the 52nd annual fundraising drive that supports diocesan apostolates serving community needs met recently with Bishop Sea~' P. O'Malley for a planning session. . The bishop, participating in his flTSt Appeal as honorary chairman, said he would be carrying on a tradition of over 50 years, during which the diocese has demonstrated care and concern for all human
life, caring, sharing and giving to all in need, regardless of creed. All were hopeful that it will be possible to surpass last year's Appeal, which garnered $2,220,951.64. Father Daniel L. Freitas, diocesan Appeal director, noted that if a substantial increase is to be realized, greater generosity and sacrifice will be needed on the part of those who have 10ya1ly supported the drive in past years. The area priest directors for the Appeal pointed out that diocesan apostolates will need increased Turn to Page II
WASHINGTON (CNS) - As Catholics continued their campaign of postcards, telegrams and phone calls against the Freedom of Choice Act, a House subcommittee voted to amend the legislation to eliminate all restrictions on abortion. If the bill passes as amended, "the states will be powerless to prevent even third-trimester abortions, and their number will increase," said Douglas Johnson, legislative director for the National Right to Life Committee. "The panel even voted to wipe out all parental notification and parental consent laws." The House Judiciary Subcommittee on civil and constitutional rights made several amendments to the legislation March 18 before sending it to the full Judiciary Committee, which is expected to consider the bill in April. Meanwhile, the National Committee for a Human Life Amendment, a Catholic pro-life organization, continued to count postcards from its National Project Life, which began in January but shows no sign of ending. "We have 12 more bags of mail to count," said Mike Taylor, executive director of the committee, which sponsored the project along with the U.S. bishops' Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities. "And people are still ordering postcards in a major way." The postcards state that passage of FOCA "would be a disastrous mistake for our country because it
mandates abortion on demand as a national policy." FOCA says that "a state may not restrict the right of a woman to choose to terminate a pregnancy - I) before fetal viability; or 2) at any time, if such termination is necessary to protect the life or ,health of a woman." The postcards were distributed in sets of four - one for each of the signers' U.S. senators, one for his or her representative and one to be sent to the National Committee for a Human Life Amendment to track nationwide participation. In the Fall River diocese, said Father Stephen A. Fernandes, diocesan director of the Pro-life Apostolate, 80,000 Catholics, representing 85 percent of the diocese's 111 parishes, returned their postcards. It is not clear how many returned the fourth card, which requested that the sender be placed on the mailing list of the National Committee for a Human Life Amendment. If all did, the total would have been 320,000 individual cards. At least 5 million sets of postcards went out to U.S. dioceses, but getting an accurate count on the number sent to members of Congress has been a major challenge, Taylor said, noting that getting information from some congressional offices qas been difficult. But Taylor's staff has been getting one message loud and clear: "The [congressional] aides think this is Turn to Page II
"Selective reduction" refused
SCOTT AND SANDY Saxton with 2-year-old Kyla, - quint Philip William at Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, who's about to be joined at home by three brothers and two NY. (CNS photos) sisters (left photo); right, neonatologist Dr. Rita Ryan checks ' ..
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (CNS)Sandy Saxton had always hoped to have five or six children but she didn't expect them all at once. The Waterloo, N.Y., resident gave birth to quintuplets - three boys and two girls - at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester Feb. 13. Philip William, Anthony Allen, Zachary James, Maria Elizabeth and Bianca Diana were born nearly two months prematurely and are expected'to remain in the hospital's neonatal unit until mid-April. Mrs. Saxton and her husband, Scott, already have a 2-year-old daughter, Kyla. They will now have an eight-person family living in the three-bedroom house they recently purchased. The quints were conceived after Mrs. Saxton took one dose of a Turn to Page I I
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