Armagh parishes invite people to ‘Come & See’

The Diocesan Pastoral Council in Armagh is encouraging parishes to take part in an initiative to welcome non-practising Catholics back to Mass on the first Sunday of Advent.

The project, which is a Year of Faith initiative, is a diocese-wide campaign, asking regular churchgoers to invite a friend or relative to come to the celebration of Mass, on December 2.

“People who drop out of churchgoing may have simply got out of the habit. They may have moved or had a change in life circumstances and drifted away. Quite often life has become too busy,” said Joseph Purcell, assistant director of the Diocesan Pastoral Centre.

“The concept simple,” he said, “but if it succeeds we hope to develop it as a regular event in the diocese. A number of parishes are already making preparations and we will follow up afterwards to see what kind of impact the initiative has had.”
 
The Diocesan Pastoral Council sent out literature to all parishes at the start of the month which provide suggestions on how to celebrate the day from the celebration of the liturgy to ideas for a social gathering after Mass.

“Whether you are looking for a chapel to call home or just visiting, we all want to know that they are welcome always and especially during Come and See Sunday,” the pamphlet states.
“An idea for after Sunday Mass is to encourage pastoral councils and parishes to think about what they can do to build relations and to create a vibrant church spirit. We could all learn a lot from our church community, and what better occasion to demonstrate the cornerstones of our church coming together after Mass to meet clergy, groups and societies face-to-face.”  

Suggestions for community activities range from “a wee cup of tea (with maybe a bun)” to guest speakers, exhibitions by parish organisation or a showing of the new diocesan vocations DVD.

Charities record increased poverty rates

The Peter McVerry Trust, a charity supporting young homeless people, expects to record an unprecedented 15 percent increase on service users in 2012.

The charity, which will mark its 30th anniversary in 2013, has been working continuously throughout the year to expand its services.

The CEO of Peter McVerry Trust, Pat Doyle, said “the total number of individuals who received support from our services in 2011 was 1,300 however, by October this year we had exceeded that figure”.

According to Mr Doyle, the charity “now expects to work with over 1,500 people by the end of 2012”.

Further pressure on services has also seen Merchants Quay Ireland officially launch its new Open Access Homeless and Drugs Centre this week.  

The new centre has been operating from the Riverbank building since July and has seen increases in the numbers accessing the meals service rising from 5542 meals served in July to 7533 in October 2012, an increase of approximately 51 percent on the same time last year. 

Speaking at the launch Tony Geoghegan, CEO of Merchants Quay Ireland, stated: “We at Merchants Quay Ireland are counting the social cost of the recession everyday as numbers coming to our new centre soar”.

“As the winter bites we expect to see more and more people come through our doors to get in off the streets for a few hours, to warm up, have a cup of tea and a bite to eat,” he said.

According to Dr Seán Healy, Director of Social Justice Ireland, the failure of the Government “to set a target to reduce the numbers of people with jobs who are living in poverty is a major disappointment”.

“There are over 700,000 people at risk of poverty and Government’s failure to set an ambitious target shows a profound failure of leadership,” Dr Healy said.

According to Social Justice Ireland, the latest data published by the Central Statistics Office shows the proportion of Ireland’s population at risk of poverty is now 15.8 pc, up from 14.1 pc in one year. 

NI ‘Bedroom tax’ may increase homelessness

Critics of plans to introduce a ‘bedroom tax’ in Northern Ireland, which will reduce the benefits of those in social housing with empty bedrooms, say the policy will increase homelessness in the region.

From next April, working age households in social housing that are considered to have more bedrooms than they need will have their housing benefit cut by 14 per cent a week for ‘under-occupying’ by one bedroom and 25 per cent for two bedrooms or more.

This will affect 32,000 households in Northern Ireland where social housing is mainly family homes with three bedrooms or more, making it difficult to avoid the penalty.

SDLP social development spokesperson Mark H.Durkan MLA said “People will not be able to afford to live in their homes but nothing is being done by the Government to provide suitable solutions or alternatives.”

Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Fra McCann MLA said the measure “will fundamentally affect people’s right to housing and has the potential to make 1,000’s homeless or destitute”.

The ‘Bedroom Tax’ is one of many issues Cardinal Seán Brady has raised with Minister Nelson McCausland as a matter of concern in relation to the Social Welfare Reform Bill. 

This includes concern about vetting of people that poorer families may feel obliged, for financial reasons, to accept to share accommodation with.

Cardinal Brady plans to meet Welfare Reform Minister Lord Freud in Hillsborough to express his concern about the impact of the proposed reforms and to appeal to him for a special initiative to tackle child poverty in Northern Ireland.

MEP Mitchell attacks EU ‘bigotry’ over Catholic candidate

MEP Gay Mitchell has criticised the “bigotry” evident in the election of a Catholic candidate to the European Union’s health portfolio.

Speaking ahead of a vote on the election of Malta’s Dr Tonio Borg as EU Health Commissioner, Mr Mitchell said he had witnessed clear anti-religious bias from “some elements” within the European Parliament on the issue.

Intrusion 

“The idea that a candidate cannot hold a belief is an outrageous intrusion,” Mr Mitchell said, adding that whether one shared the view of another or not, it was the role of the parliament to defend the right to hold that view.

“Unfortunately there are those who see belief in God as ‘old fashioned,” he said. “That’s something we have to challenge.”

Mr Mitchell, who sat in on the sessions where the candidate was grilled by EU deputies on his views, including those on abortion and homosexuality, said “his track record is what we should judge him on, not his faith”.

Mr Mitchell’s words echoed those of Malta’s Bishop Charles Scicluna, who condemned the anti-Catholic sentiment surrounding Mr Borg.

“The situation is very saddening,” Bishop Scicluna said. “What will they do if the commissioner designate is a Muslim? What will they say about his outlook on life? Be honest, they do not want him simply because he is a Catholic.”

The objections in the Borg case are similar to those voiced against the Catholic Rocco Buttiglione in 2004, when the Italian candidate was forced to withdraw over his views on homosexuality.

Among those who attacked Mr Borg’s nomination were MEP for Ireland East Nessa Childers who said that because of his conservative views “I fear that Dr Borg will not be impartial, and would let his social views influence EU policy.... As his hard-line social views would be in contradiction with the demands of his portfolio, I will be voting against his nomination.”

Holding Anglicanism together (Opinion)

Some years ago in Brighton I sheltered from a storm in the porch of an enormous Anglican church, locally reputed to have been built to the dimensions of Noah’s Ark. 

As I marvelled at how the church interior looked indistinguishable from a Catholic church, a lady whispered that girls wouldn’t normally act as servers there.

“We’re an A, B, and C church,” she said, adding, “It means we don’t have women priests, and we stick to the old traditions.” I asked what A, B, and C stood for, and she explained, “Well, it just means that we stick to the old traditions, really. If it’s not broken, why fix it?”

The following day, Anglican friends at a Cambridge theological college explained that ‘A, B, and C’ were resolutions passed by the Church of England’s General Synod in the aftermath of the 1992 decision that women could be ordained to Anglican ministry. 

The resolutions allowed parochial councils to refuse to have women serve as priests in their parishes and even to request that their pastoral and sacramental care be reserved for a bishop who had never ordained women; parishes whose diocesan bishops had ordained women could seek special ‘flying bishops’ to care for them.

Women clergy

The Church of England’s struggles over women clergy are in a defining phase at the moment, so it seemed apt that the first thing Justin Welby, bishop of Durham, should have posted on Twitter after the Prime Minister’s office announced his selection as the next Archbishop of Canterbury was, “Just heard of protest call to Lambeth at appointment of a woman as ABC. Am spelt Justin, not Justine. No agenda, just a matter of fact.”

That alone signalled that the Eton- and Cambridge-educated erstwhile oil executive would be an archbishop for a soundbite age, possessed of a lightness of touch and a gift for brevity that has often seemed to elude Rowan Williams, whose ruminative and nuanced style has struck many as more suited to academic debate than to ecclesial leadership.

Divisions

Rowan’s time in office has been marked by divisions over women bishops and gay clergy, such that some have characterised the last decade as a disaster for the Church of England. 

This seems unfair; Rowan is clearly a brave, intelligent, and genuinely holy man who has made a point of speaking up for Britain’s most vulnerable and engaging seriously with public opponents of Christianity whilst trying to hold together a fractious and disparate Anglican Communion, despite not having any real executive power.

Justin Welby may have more luck, not least because his background makes it difficult to pigeonhole him as a partisan of any particular Anglican faction. 

An Evangelical by background, Welby worshipped and was a lay leader during the 1980s at Holy Trinity Brompton, mothership of the Alpha Course and totemic headquarters for the most dynamic and youthful movement within the Church of England. 

His spirituality has broadened since then, however, and nowadays his spiritual director is a Benedictine monk, which should give comfort to those Anglicans of an Anglo-Catholic persuasion.

Welby’s Catholic connections shouldn’t give false hope to those who look forward to a restoration of unity between the Church of England and the Catholic Church any time soon, however. 

For the last 20 years, ever since Welby was ordained a deacon, the issue of women priests has been an insuperable obstacle to unity, not merely between Canterbury and Rome, but between the Church of England and the various Orthodox Churches.

Vote

The debate within the Church of England about women clergy has moved on from whether women can be ordained priests to whether they can be ordained bishops, and though the debate has been acrimonious for some time, Welby has been firm in his support for women bishops. 

The General Synod, the Church of England’s parliament, votes this week on whether women should be allowed become bishops, and Welby has unambiguously stated that “I will be voting in favour, and join my voice to many others in urging the synod to go forward with this change.”

Although the measure is widely supported within the Church of England, there is no guarantee that this measure shall pass; resolute opponents of the change are not numerous enough to block the proposals in any of three ‘houses’ – bishops, clergy, or laity – of the synod, but it is quite possible that those who believe the bishops’ proposal utterly unacceptable may be have their numbers bolstered by those who believe it hopelessly inadequate.

Traditionalist

In July the synod rejected legislation which would have given traditionalist parishes significant exemptions from serving under a woman bishop, similar to the current ‘A,B, and C’ arrangement regarding women priests, notably an allowance for traditionalist parishes to request a male bishop who shared their beliefs about the ordination of women. 

The proposal would give women bishops more control in selecting ‘flying bishops’ for parishes in their dioceses, and would limit the obligations they would be obliged to respect.

For traditionalists, this goes too far, imposing a vision of the Church upon them which they feel is theologically unsustainable; for liberals, it doesn’t go nearly far enough, enshrining discrimination in the law of the Church. 

Despite their disagreements, it is all too easy to imagine these groups combining to form the necessary ‘blocking third’ to prevent synod from legislating for this. Should this happen it could be as many as seven years before the issue is voted on again.

Whatever happens, the pragmatic Welby seems prepared for such deep divisions to persist in the Church of England, the Anglican Communion as a whole, and even the general Christian world, saying recently that he did not want Christians to agree with one another, “but to love one another and to demonstrate to the world around us a better way of disagreeing”.

Constructive 

Certainly, Welby seems a man well used to disagreeing in constructive and loving ways. 

After becoming a canon at Coventry Cathedral in 2002, he became co-director of the International Centre for Reconciliation, helping mediate and build peace in war-torn regions around the world, notably in Africa where he once narrowly avoided being kidnapped. 

Negotiation and conflict resolution skills honed in such dramatic environments could prove invaluable in his new job, and his experience in Africa will give him credibility as he tries to hold the Anglican Communion together.

Henry Kissinger is often said to have asked: “Who do I call if I want to call Europe?” It might just be that in Justin Welby, the Pope will know exactly who to call if he wants to call the Anglican Communion.

Angolan Church frets over 'chronic' witchcraft problem

The Roman Catholic Church in Angola on Wednesday demanded new laws to outlaw witchcraft, claiming the practice had reached "chronic" proportions.

"It is affecting more and more followers, it destroys family ties and affects relations among people," said Francisco Viti, the archbishop of the central city of Huambo.

Angola does not have laws against witchcraft, leaving communities to deal with the issue as they see fit. 

Suspected witches have been lynched.

"There is a legal vacuum with regards to witchcraft, which does not constitute a crime -- yet the consequences are killings, violence, libel and slander," said Jose Manuel Imbamba a Church spokesman.

"This is a chronic problem in Angola, but nobody has the courage to confront it," he added.

Many Angolans turn to witch-doctors who are believed to have superior powers to solve health problems and misunderstanding between neighbours or within families, or even make decisions.

The belief is widespread, despite a majority of the people in the former Portuguese colony being Catholic.

Church representatives storm out of education meeting in protest

Church leaders again stormed out of a council meeting as a row over whether safeguarding children should count as an educational matter rumbles on. 

Representatives from the Anglican and Roman Catholic Church are allowed to sit on Sutton Council's children, family and education committee but are only allowed to take part in debates concerning educational matters.

Catholic representative Andrew Theobald and Anglican representative Peter Gowlland have left the last three meetings in protest at not being allowed to take part in debates concerning safeguarding children - the council's responsibility to identify and look after vulnerable young people.

The pair say safeguarding is an educational issue as it involves schools and are supported in this by the head of the Sutton Teachers Association. 

But Councillor David Callaghan, chairman of the committee disagrees.

The impasse continued at the most recent committee meeting on Thursday, November 15, with the pair walking out of the meeting and demanding their departure be minuted as a protest.

As he walked out Mr Theobald said: "We dispute what you're doing - we withdraw under protest. We have a right to be here. As far as we're concerned safeguarding is an education matter." 
 
The pair also disputed how their departure from previous meetings was minuted. In the minutes of the last meeting it says they left "at the close of discussion on education matters". 

Mr Theobald asked that it be changed to say they left the meeting "at this point" to emphasise his view that educational matters continued after they left.

Coun Callaghan refused and said: "The reason you're asked to stand down is because we have reached the end of educational matters, the educational matters have been discussed. The position of the local authority is that the diocese representatives should stand down. I'm not sure there's a huge difference between 'at this point' and 'at the end of educational matters'.  You're asking us to record that you've left the meeting under protest but you've not been asked to join the meeting." 

Sue Smith head of the Sutton Teachers Association, asked Coun Callaghan: "What I'm interested in is your [safeguarding] board. You have school representatives, you have head teachers and from primary schools and secondary schools. I know you have the view that this is nothing to do with education but education is surely part of it." 
 
Coun Callaghan said Mrs Smith remarks were a "misrepresentation" of his view.

Jesus born years earlier than believed, Pope Benedict XVI claims in new book

JESUS was born several years earlier than believed and the Christian calendar is based on a miscalculation, the Pope has claimed.
 

In his book Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives, the pontiff said the mistake was made by a sixth century monk known as Dionysius Exiguus or Dennis the Small, The Telegraph reports.

"The calculation of the beginning of our calendar – based on the birth of Jesus – was made by Dionysius Exiguus, who made a mistake in his calculations by several years," the Pope writes.

"The actual date of Jesus's birth was several years before."

The Pope also makes other controversial claims including that there were no animals present at the birth of Jesus and rejects the argument that Jesus was born in Nazareth rather than Bethlemhem.

Pope's book on Jesus challenges Christmas traditions

It's Christmas, but not as you know it: a new book released by Pope Benedict XVI looks at the early life of Jesus -- and debunks several myths about how the Nativity unfolded.
 

In "Jesus of Nazareth -- The Infancy Narratives," the pope says the Christian calendar is actually based on a blunder by a sixth century monk, who Benedict says was several years off in his calculation of Jesus' birth date.

According to the pope's research, there is also no evidence in the Gospels that the cattle and other animals traditionally pictured gathered around the manger were actually present.

He also debunks the claim that angels sang at the birth, a staple theme of Christmas carols.

The book, which is being published in multiple languages in time for Christmas, is the third in a series by the pontiff. The previous two volumes dealt with Jesus' adult life and his public ministry.

Alessandro Speciale, Vatican correspondent for the Religion News Service, told CNN the pope was not so much aiming to debunk myths as trying to show that the Jesus depicted in the Gospels is a real historical figure, who walked on earth and talked to people like anyone else.

The pope also looks at scholarly studies of the Bible, some of which have indicated for decades that the traditionally accepted birth date for Jesus is wrong, Speciale said.

But while the book points out that the Gospels do not support the presence of animals at Jesus' birth -- a detail apparently added in later centuries -- the pope does not suggest they should be thrown out of the Nativity scene, Speciale said.

"The pope is a traditional man and he doesn't want people at all to change their traditions," Speciale said.

The 176-page volume, which comprises a brief foreword, four chapters and an epilogue, traces Jesus' life up to the age of 12, when, according to the Gospels, he was presented by his parents in the Temple in Jerusalem, the Vatican said.

The initial worldwide print run is more than a million copies, it said, with the book released this week across 50 countries in Italian, German, Croatian, French, English, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish.

In the coming months, the book will be translated into 12 more languages for publication in 72 countries in total, the Vatican added.

The Vatican quotes Anthony Valle, a professor of theology, as saying the pope has been open to scientific inquiry in his own study of Jesus' life.

"The pope is not against the historical critical method at all, in fact, he uses it, he appreciates it," Valle said.

He sees the pope as using "both faith and reason" in his efforts to bring the life of Jesus closer.

Monsignor Philip Whitmore, who translated the book into English, said the pontiff used his writing to explore "the inner meaning of the infancy narratives, showing how they pick up on Old Testament themes and develop them in new and unexpected ways."

"The pope helps us to understand the world where Jesus was born. Caesar brought peace to the Roman Empire, but this tiny child brought something much more wonderful: God's peace, eternal life, an end to sin and death," Whitmore added.

"Anyone who's wondering why Christmas came to be such a great celebration in the West can find the answer right here. The pope explains how the birth of Jesus changed history forever."

Pope urges humanity and rehabilitation for prisoners

Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday called for more humane conditions in Europe's jails and greater emphasis on the re-education and rehabilitation of prisoners.

''A concrete commitment is needed, not just a statement of principle, in order to bring about the offender's effective re-education, which is required both for the sake of his own dignity and with a view to his reintegration into society,'' the pontiff told participants in the 17th Council of Europe Conference of Directors of Prison Administration in Rome. 

''Matters of criminal justice are continually being brought to the attention of the public and of governments, especially at a time when economic and social inequalities and increasing individualism are feeding the roots of criminality,'' he continued. ''There is a tendency, though, to limit the debate to the legislative aspect of the question of crime and punishment or to the judicial process - how best to arrive swiftly at a sentence that corresponds as closely as possible to the true facts. Less attention is given to the way custodial sentences are carried out". 

Though recognising the progress made in recent years, the pope said there was still ''a long way to go''. 

''It is not just a question of releasing sufficient financial resources to make the prison environment more dignified and to ensure more effective means of support and paths of formation for prisoners: a change in mentality is also needed, so as to link the debate regarding respect for the human rights of prisoners with the broader debate concerning the actual implementation of criminal justice,'' he insisted. 

''In order to 'practise justice', it is not enough that those found guilty of crimes be simply punished: it is necessary that in punishing them, everything possible be done to correct and improve them. When this does not happen, justice is not done in an integral sense.'' 

 The pontiff concluded by calling for special attention to be paid to the ''growing number of 'foreign prisoners' whose circumstances are often difficult and precarious''.

Two crowns by famous artist stolen from Argentine church

Two crowns designed by famed Argentine silversmith Juan Carlos Pallarols and crafted with the help of some 600,000 people, including Pope Benedict XVI, were stolen Thursday, church sources said.

The crowns, along with a rosary, were taken from a church sanctuary in San Nicolas, some 245 kilometers (150 miles) northeast of the Argentine capital.

The theft was discovered by the church sexton, Carlos Perez, who told local media he found the glass display case broken and the objects missing early Thursday morning.

Both crowns were made of silver with gold inlays, forged from donated medals, rings, and other jewelry, and blessed by the pope, the Catholic News Agency of Argentina reported.

Some 600,000 Argentines, including President Cristina Kirchner, as well as the pope, took turns with metal hammers to help shape the crowns, the agency added.

Pallarols, 70, is a renowned artist who has made ceremonial staffs for several Argentine presidents as well as numerous official gifts.

Prayer For The Deceased

Our Father….

Hail Mary….

Glory Be….

Eternal light shine upon them, and may their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us (x3)

Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us (x3)

Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel: 

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host -by the Divine Power of God -cast into Hell, Satan and all the Evil Spirits,who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.

Amen

Gemma O’Doherty: Truth about Fr Molloy's murder will rock the State

THE biggest cover-up in the history of the State. 

That is how the brutal murder of Fr Niall Molloy in 1985 was described in the Seanad last week. 

Those words, of Roscommon Labour senator John Kelly, were reiterated this week by veteran murder squad detective Gerry O'Carroll.

A two-year investigation by this newspaper into the priest's killing has exposed a litany of damning evidence and glaring inconsistencies which point to nothing less than a cover-up of staggering proportions, involving several institutions of the State and the Catholic Church.

Even now, almost three decades on, candles still burn for Fr Molloy in the Roscommon village of Castlecoote, where he is remembered as a devoted pastor to his people and a gentleman of the highest order.

A talented horseman, he was in the prime of his life when he was beaten to death in the Offaly mansion of his well-connected friends, Therese and Richard Flynn, shortly after a wedding party in their Clara home.

The priest had gone to the house requesting a large sum of money that was owed to him.

His battered body was left bleeding on the floor for up to six hours before help was called. 

By then, it was too late. 

But three of the country's leading pathologists are certain that his life could have been saved if somebody had phoned 999.

Instead, the local parish priest of Clara, Fr James Deignan, was called to the house. He subsequently said he did not know 999 was an emergency call, and had 'forgotten his glasses' so he could not read the phonebook to call a local doctor.

Shortly before dawn, he went to the local garda barracks and asked Sergeant Kevin Forde if the priest's death could be "kept quiet".

Sgt Forde said it could not, but despite the officer's best efforts on that summer's night, a veil of silence fell over the truth about the priest's murder and its shocking aftermath.

When the full facts are finally brought into the public domain, they will rock the foundations of the State.

After hearing the testimonies of dozens of individuals, this newspaper has uncovered a catalogue of shocking revelations.

Senior Fianna Fail politicians were in the house on the evening of the priest's murder, one of them a well-known household name and close friend of the Flynns.

The original garda investigation was botched and shambolic.

Vital evidence was contaminated, bizarre statements were taken and given and key witnesses were never interviewed.

It has also been established that Fr Molloy was first attacked in the living room of the mansion, but his body was put in the Flynn's master bedroom. 

To this day, gardai have failed to identify blood found on the bannisters of the stairs.

In the immediate aftermath of the murder, two other suspicious deaths took place of people believed to have witnessed the murder and who told friends they could not bear to be around when the truth came out.

THANKS to the courageous work of murdered journalist Veronica Guerin, we also know that Justice Frank Roe corrupted the subsequent trial, hearing the case even though he knew the parties involved. 

After the killing, Richard Flynn was charged with manslaughter, but Roe directed the jury to acquit him after less than four hours. 

It is widely believed that another individual was responsible for the killing.

The State's files on the case have seen their share of drama too. 

The Offaly coroner's one was burnt in a mysterious fire and 'the General' Martin Cahill stole the garda file from the offices of the DPP. 

Among the more alarming allegations, revealed by Veronica Guerin and crime writer Paul Williams, are details of a garda deal done with Cahill and his associate John Traynor in return for the stolen file.

These claims cast a slur on every serving member of An Garda Siochana, not to mention the integrity of the criminal justice system; yet Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan has remained silent when questioned about them.

It is now more than two years since the Irish Independent presented most of its file to An Garda Siochana and Justice Minister Alan Shatter. 

At the time, he was in opposition but he made a pledge to the Molloy family that if he was in government an inquiry would be established in the interests of justice and the truth.

What the family and the public got was a garda examination whose pace has been shamefully slow and nothing less than mystifying on occasion.

It has left the Molloy family utterly disillusioned and many people in the midlands concerned that there is no urgency at all to take a violent killer off our streets or hold those responsible for the subsequent cover-up to account.

For almost two years, the Molloy family have been calling on Minister Shatter to uphold his promise and instigate an independent judicial inquiry to ensure that all of the disturbing allegations surrounding this case can be examined in a neutral forum.

The time is long overdue for him to grant this, not only because justice must be delivered for the family. 

But because the public that the minister serves have a right to know the truth, however shocking it will turn out to be.

Church’s Long-held Moral Codes Are Under Attack (Opinion)

IT IS a well-known aphorism that hard cases make bad law. 

It is even more apposite when applied to moral principles. 

But across a range of issues it is exceptional problems that seem to be driving changes in our social codes.

The death in Galway of Savita Halappanavar, the seriously ill woman whose foetus doctors did not abort, was tragic and unnecessary. 

However, she has been seized upon selectively by pro-choice campaigners as yet another woman to die in the name of religion.

Yet further examination of the case suggests that there is nothing in Irish law that would have prohibited her doctors from acting. It would not even have been defined as abortion as the intent would have been not to kill the foetus, but to save the mother’s life. 

It may be that the culture in Irish hospitals and the approach of their midwifery staffs militate against this option being readily taken. 

But a balanced judgment would suggest that the awful outcome was more due to incompetence or stupidity rather than to the law.

But the pro-abortion lobby invariably uses emotive cases to make its point rather than rely on any fundamental, universal principle. 

Supporters of abortion on demand claim that a woman has total rights over her body. This is surely a narrow, selfish view of women, defining them as in a goldfish bowl isolated from family and society. 

Is it really a principle that can be absolutely adhered to? 

Are men and women who want to buy and sell consenting bodies for sex to be defended?

Away back in 1966 as Maurice Miller, MP for Kelvingrove, prepared to vote for the Abortion Bill, I asked him on what he based his definition of life. 

“Independent survival outside the womb,” was his answer. That immediately seemed nonsense. It still does. First, day-old babies cannot survive independently. 

Secondly, it is a moveable yardstick. Is a person’s right to life dependent on the current state of medical know-how? That’s no principle.

Yet it is a practice which is increasingly enshrined in law. Abortion has an age limit and doctors can allow people to die if they cannot readily find a cure. Take the handling of that very complicated medical issue – a person in a “permanent vegetative state”. 

This syndrome reached the height of its notoriety with the case of Tony Bland, a Hillsborough victim with such severe brain damage that doctors decided that as he failed to respond to any outside stimulus his life should be terminated. 

In 1993, the House of Lords ruled that Bland could be starved and dehydrated to death after an application by his doctors, supported by his parents. 

Glasgow’s Archbishop Thomas Winning, among many others, condemned the court’s decision. To Winning, standing by and watching someone starve contradicted a universal principle that individuals have an unqualified right to nourishment and that other individuals and society have a duty to provide it.

However, it was the expert, though still subjective, opinion of doctors which carried the argument. The parents were saved further distress and the NHS resources. 

As for Bland, the court deemed it not against his best interests to die. 

Is that a sound basis for law? The medical profession clearly thinks it is as it expanded the Bland decision, interpreting it to cover other illnesses such as strokes or severe dementia. 

The courts support this interpretation, holding that withdrawing nutrition does not breach Article 2 of the Human Rights Act 1998, which states: “Everyone’s right to life shall be protected by law. No one shall be deprived of his life intentionally.” There was no breach, the courts found, because withdrawing tube feeding was an “omission” and not an “act”. A jesuitical distinction.

The law still does not allow these patients to be injected lethally. They must be starved to death. How humane! But it is moving towards euthanasia and this might be accelerated in Scotland with Margo MacDonald’s proposal for a law to allow “assisted dying”. 

Those pressing for a modernisation of our social attitudes are quick to cite the individual’s or group’s human or civil rights. 

Yet they are unwilling to recognise that for these rights to have any basis they must derive from an over arching moral code. 

Remove these overriding principles and the individual’s rights are dug in sand. When the two clash, pressure groups throw out the long term code in favour of the individual’s or society’s short term convenience. It becomes a free-for-all.

The Christian churches and other moral authorities are not always right. 

But the Catholic Church, at any rate, has a clear moral stance which dictates its pronouncements. Increasingly, it is vilified for declaring such opinions by groups allegedly dedicated to equality and diversity. 

Freedom of speech, another basic right, is being flattened by hostile intolerants determined that their views shall not be challenged. 

A Christian uses social media to express his mild opposition to gay marriage and is punished, not by the state but by his company. Scotland’s cardinal is insulted as a bigot for warning that society may be adversely affected by changing the definition of marriage. 

The Christian has no guarantee of getting his job back and the vilification of the cardinal comes from an organisation, Stonewall, whose work is part funded by the Scottish government. 

The remarks did cause hurt to individuals. 

But the reaction was disproportionate.

This is a one way street. 

Society, through legislation, the courts, employers and governments – and in the name of equality and the freedom of the individual – is becoming increasingly intolerant of views which challenge the new orthodoxies. 

Religion, specifically targeted, is finding it difficult to rebuff the assaults. However, it is the wrong stronghold to assault. 

The Catholic Church’s resistance to quick-fix solutions to heartbreaking social problems is based on a sometimes harsh morality that defends the individual. 

Better that than a knee jerk reaction to every tear jerk headline.

France asks Russia to review "ostentatious" Paris church

Russia has suspended its bid for a permit to build an Orthodox church with five domes on the Seine riverbank in Paris, the French government said, after the mayor of the world's most visited city labeled the project a showy eyesore.

Ahead of a Paris visit by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, France's culture and foreign ministries said in a joint statement that Moscow had agreed to review the plan, which is close to President Vladimir Putin's heart.

"The Russian Federation has decided a provisional suspension of its request for a construction permit," the statement said. Wary of diplomatic sensitivities, a government official insisted a compromise would be reached.

In Moscow, the Kremlin's property management department said it would study ways to make the planned building "harmoniously fit the surrounding landscape."

The project to build a church and cultural centre in central Paris was endorsed in 2010 by then-President Nicolas Sarkozy but at the time the design was only in an embryonic stage.

The final plans, with five golden domes and a wavy glass roof that would share the skyline with the nearby Eiffel Tower, were described by Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe as "ostentatious" and unsuited to a U.N.-listed world heritage site.

Russia bought the land for the church and cultural center in 2007, a 4,000-square-metre plot less than a kilometer (mile) from the Eiffel Tower and overlooking the Seine.

Paris already has a Russian Orthodox Church, the St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, but this reports to the Patriarch in Constantinople and lies outside the control of Moscow.

Putin has been pushing to increase the Moscow Patriarchy's influence abroad, especially in areas with large expatriate Russian communities.

He viewed the reunification of the New York-based Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR) and Moscow in 2007 as one of his biggest achievements as a Russian leader.

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow came under criticism in Russia after he openly sided with Putin during his recent presidential campaign, calling his rule "a miracle of God".

Public opposition to the church's increasing political engagement culminated in an anti-Putin performance by female punk band Pussy Riot inside the country's main Christ the Saviour cathedral in Moscow. Two band members are now in jail.

With 165 million members, the Russian Orthodox Church is the second largest in Christianity after the 1.3-billion strong Roman Catholic Church.

Its profile has risen both at home and abroad since the end of Soviet communism in 1991.

Priests are not helped by negative polemics Archbishop warns

Priests today are not helped by negative polemics or personal agendas in the face of the many difficulties and challenges they face, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has warned.

In a warm tribute in his homily at a Mass in thanksgiving for the priesthood at the Church of the Holy Child in Dublin’s Larkhill / Whitehall / Santry parish, the Archbishop said that if any group has faced and, “existentially lived through the crisis that the Church is experiencing in Ireland, and have led the path to turning the corner of renewal, it is priests.”

He also acknowledged that being a priest today is following a lonely and unsettling furrow, but said the vast majority of priests know that they have the human and spiritual resources to face those realities.

“Our Church needs priests; our Church needs holy priests; our Church needs priests whose lives are deeply rooted in the word of God and in prayer; our Church needs priests who find fulfilment in what is at the heart of their ministry; our priests need to be encouraged to find new ways of priestly fraternity," Archbishop Martin implored.

The prayerful support of the entire believing community is vital to priests’ identity and ministry he said, and added that priests need to know just how much their ministry is vital to the lives of those they are called to serve.

Speaking after the Mass, Archbishop Martin said he is willing to meet with the Association of Catholic Priests but he questions the Association’s willingness to engage with him.  

“I’ve said that I am more than willing to meet with a representative group of priests in Dublin from the Association of Catholic Priests.  I have made that offer but I haven’t received a reply,” he said.

The Archbishop said that though he has indicated his openness to meeting, the ACP leadership’s reply had been, “ambivalent.”  

He said, “I’ve had dialogue with all sorts of organisations and it is rarely that I meet with such ambivalence to an open offer – unconditional - from me.”

He also ruled out the call by ACP spokesman, Fr Brendan Hoban, for the introduction of viri probati to the priesthood.  

“For the moment, what we have to do is find worthy candidates who are able to live as celibate priests as is the tradition in the Latin rite. I believe that there are candidates there but we are not always necessarily reaching them.”

He added, “Certainly any type of polemics around priesthood does not encourage people to enter the priesthood.”

During the ceremony at the Church of the Holy Child, Archbishop Martin paid tribute to the work of the members of St Joseph’s Young Priests' Society, for their, “continuous prayerful and practical support for vocations and for the ministry of priests.”

At the conclusion of the Mass, he presented a papal Bene Merenti medal to Maureen Keogh, saying, “We thank God for her work, alongside so many other men and women, who gratefully recognise, respect and sustain the unique ministry of priest in today’s world.”

Christians praying for Israel and Gaza

Christians are praying that the fragile peace between Israel and Gaza will be a lasting one.

There were scenes of celebration in Gaza last night after a ceasefire brokered by Egypt brought an end to eight days of fighting that killed 162 Palestinians and five Israelis.

Pope Benedict XVI called upon both sides to "make courageous decisions in favour of peace".

He noted that any dispute between Israel and Gaza would have negative repurcussions throughout the entire Middle East.

"Along with my prayers for the victims and for those who suffer, it is my duty to emphasise once again that hatred and violence are not the solutions to these problems," he said.

The World Evangelical Alliance made an "urgent" appeal to its members to pray for the region.

The general secretary of the World Council of Churches, the Reverend Olav Fykse Tveit, said that the loss of people's lives "in the eyes of God cannot be accepted as a price to be paid for the unresolved political problems and political agendas".

He called for an end to the Israeli blockade on Gaza, but added that the continued rocket attacks by Gaza on Israeli civilians were "reprehensible" and would also have "very negative effects" at a time when Palestinians are seeking international support for their own state.

Social problems require more than charity, says Archbishop

It will take more than compassion and charity to solve the social problems in society, the Archbishop of Wales has said.

Speaking at a thanksgiving service for church groups working on community issues, Dr Barry Morgan said that compassionate acts could end up bandaging rather than solving the problem.

“We have an obligation to do all that we can to meet the needs of those who are marginalised, hungry and alienated but it is not just a matter of individual acts of compassion and charity," he said. "Those are not enough because the Bible talks about justice not charity. Compassion can often just be a remedial act, dealing with symptoms whereas justice deals with causes."
 
The service was joined by representatives of Church Army, Mothers’ Union, St Paul’s Community Development Aberavon, the Trussell Trust, the Provincial Rural Life Adviser and Embrace the Middle East.

The organisations work on a range of issues, including housing, emergency food handouts, community development and prison chaplaincy.

Dr Morgan continued: "When there are people in our society and world who go hungry or live in damp housing or have no homes, then compassion is not enough. We need to do something to make sure that these things do not happen. Again, as one of the early Church fathers, Bishop Irenaeus put it, 'The glory of God is a human being fully alive,' and a human being cannot be fully alive when he is hungry, cold and naked. And, if you and I are to reflect God’s glory we cannot rest until poverty, hunger and injustice have been eradicated. It is part of what it means to believe in Jesus who came that we might have fullness of life in all its aspects.”

The service in Cardiff also saw the launch of "Windows", a book of poetry written by prisoners connected with Parc Prison Chaplaincy.

Lausanne Movement begins search for new leader

The Lausanne Movement has started the process to appoint a new executive chair after current incumbent the Reverend Doug Birdsall was appointed as the new president of the American Bible Society.

Birdsall takes up his new post at the ABS in March next year. 

Lausanne hopes to have his successor in place shortly after the new year to allow for a period of transition.

Over the last eight years, Birdsall has helped the movement make great strides towards its vision of "the whole church taking the whole gospel to the whole world".

He also oversaw the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelisation: Cape Town 2010.
Ram Gidoomal, Chairman of The Lausanne Movement Board of Directors, paid tribute to Birdsall: "Together Doug and the global leadership of Lausanne have established a firm foundation for the movement's continued growth and success to the glory of God."

Commenting on his appointment to the ABS, Birdsall said: "The Third Lausanne Congress: Cape Town 2010 renewed a passion in my heart to eradicate Bible poverty and see God's word spread far and wide."

Gidoomal continued: "As Doug moves into this new role he takes with him the prayers and high esteem of the Lausanne Board and the entire Movement. We ask for your prayers as Lausanne's Leadership Selection Committee seeks the Lord's guidance. We are confident God will provide the right leader to take us into the next decade of effective ministry."

Reverend Billy Graham, founder of The Lausanne Movement, said he was very happy to hear of Birdsall's appointment as the new president of the American Bible Society.

"Under his leadership the Lausanne Movement has been strengthened and revitalised, and I pray that God will continue to use it to call the global Church to a renewed commitment to world evangelisation. May God bless the American Bible Society under Doug's leadership as it explores new ways to bring God's Word to this generation."
Birdsall has had a long history of involvement with the Lausanne Movement, starting in 1987 when he was a participant in the Younger Leaders Conference in Singapore.

He has been a member of the Lausanne Board since 1999, and assumed the chairman and chief executive post in 2004.
ABS Board Chairman Pieter Dearolf said Birdsall's new appointment with the organisation "builds on Doug's 30 years of leadership which have been focused on pointing people to the message of the Bible".

He said: "We are excited to have found someone so well-suited for guiding the ministry into a new century of work around the world."

Blasphemy victim's life still at risk

Rimsha Masih may have gained victory in her blasphemy case but the Christian teenager's life is still in danger, Release International has warned.

The group, which supports persecuted Christians worldwide, said it was delighted that the Pakistan high court judge had thrown her case out this week but added that her life was still at risk from extremists.

In the past, there have been reports of blasphemy cases being overturned only for the accused to be released and face "mob justice" at the hands of radicals.

"Rimsha’s life is still in danger," said Release partners. "There is no future for Rimsha and her family in Pakistan, as we have seen from previous cases. They would have to live in hiding for their security."

Rimsha, who has learning difficulties, was accused in August of burning pages of the Koran.

Chief Justice Iqbal Hameed-ur Rehman threw out the case on Tuesday, citing a lack of witnesses to support the allegation.

A Muslim cleric from Rimsha’s neighbourhood has been charged with blasphemy amid claims that he desecrated the Koran to fabricate evidence against the teenage girl.

Release partners say: "Rimsha has been released from all blasphemy accusations at an early stage because her case received international intention and the media highlighted the truth. Many other blasphemy cases are also false. What Rimsha’s case shows is that blasphemy charges are often registered due to personal enmity and for personal interests."

Release chief executive Paul Robinson welcomed her release.

"The international outcry over this case has cast a much needed spotlight over Pakistan’s unjust blasphemy laws," he said. "But this positive progress has come at a high price for a young girl with learning difficulties, and her family. We hope this development will have a positive effect on the cases of Asia Bibi and Younis Masih, two Christians who are waiting for their appeals against blasphemy convictions to come to court – after years in custody. We also look forward to the Pakistani authorities taking bold and courageous steps to tackle this injustice and reform the blasphemy laws, for the sake of all Pakistani citizens, not just religious minorities."