Totalitarianism Update: New Hampshire

Last Wednesday we reported that Sweden has banned homeschooling. Think it can't happen here? Think again.

From the Alliance Defense Fund comes this story:

NH court orders home-schooled child into government-run school
ADF-allied attorney files motion to reconsider and hold off decision in case involving 10-year-old girl

LACONIA, N.H. — An Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney filed motions with a New Hampshire court Monday asking it to reconsider and stay its decision to order a 10-year-old home-schooled girl into a government-run school in Meredith.

Although the marital master making recommendations to the court agreed the child is “well liked, social and interactive with her peers, academically promising, and intellectually at or superior to grade level” and that “it is clear that the home schooling...has more than kept up with the academic requirements of the...public school system,” he nonetheless proposed that the Christian girl be ordered into a government-run school after considering “the impact of [her religious] beliefs on her interaction with others.” The court approved the order.

“Parents have a fundamental right to make educational choices for their children. In this case specifically, the court is illegitimately altering a method of education that the court itself admits is working,” said ADF-allied attorney John Anthony Simmons of Hampton. “The court is essentially saying that the evidence shows that, socially and academically, this girl is doing great, but her religious beliefs are a bit too sincerely held and must be sifted, tested by, and mixed among other worldviews. This is a step too far for any court to take.”

The parents of the child divorced in 1999. The mother has home-schooled their daughter since first grade with curriculum that meets all state review standards. In addition to home schooling, the girl attends supplemental public school classes and has also been involved in a variety of extra-curricular sports activities.

In the process of renegotiating the terms of a parenting plan for the girl, the guardian ad litem involved in the case concluded, according to the court order, that the girl “appeared to reflect her mother’s rigidity on questions of faith” and that the girl’s interests “would be best served by exposure to a public school setting” and “different points of view at a time when she must begin to critically evaluate multiple systems of belief...in order to select, as a young adult, which of those systems will best suit her own needs.”

Marital Master Michael Garner reasoned that the girl’s “vigorous defense of her religious beliefs to [her] counselor suggests strongly that she has not had the opportunity to seriously consider any other point of view” and then recommended that the girl be ordered to enroll in a government school instead of being home-schooled. Judge Lucinda V. Sadler approved the recommendation and issued the order on July 14.

“The New Hampshire Supreme Court itself has specifically declared, ‘Home education is an enduring American tradition and right...,’” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Mike Johnson. “There is clearly and without question no legitimate legal basis for the court’s decision, and we trust it will reconsider its conclusions.”

Simmons filed his motions and supporting brief in the case In the Matter of Kurowski and Kurowski (Voydatch) with the Family Division of the Judicial Court for Belknap County in Laconia.

h/t "What's Wrong With the World."

Apologies

Dear Fr. Malloy:
I’m writing, in response to your message, to apologize for the extremely poor use of words reflected in the recent posting of our Prayer of the Faithful resource as it relates to the petition regarding Senator Edward Kennedy. Upon reflection, the editors who adapted and wrote the prayer recognize their poor judgment.

As a source text they drew from “Prayers on the Inauguration of a Public Official” found in the Book of Blessings. This was a poor choice as a source text. The source prayer, as originally intended, intentionally reflects a future hope; it is not intended as a reflection on the quality of the life of a person or persons. This was not considered enough when adapted. As adapted for the Prayer of the Faithful, the text inappropriately presents a sense of support for the positions and actions taken by the late Senator by those who wrote it or pray it. I know it was not the intention of the editors to support the Senator’s positions, but upon reading the petition, as it was originally written, support can be inferred. I apologize for our failure in judgment and poor selection of words used in the prayer. I pray that we do better in the future.

The text of the prayer has been amended and it now reads:
“For all our beloved dead, especially (particular parish intentions), and for Senator Edward M. Kennedy, that they may find their eternal reward in the arms of God. We pray:”

I appreciate your feedback and concern.

Sincerely,
John
-----------------------------------------
John A. Thomas
Director
Liturgy Training Publications
3949 S. Racine Avenue
Chicago, IL 60609
jthomas@ltp.org
Phone (773) 579-4900, ext. 3557
FAX 773-579-4929
www.LTP.org

Let Us Pray for Senator Kennedy

Following the passing of Senator Edward Kennedy last week, Liturgical Training Publications, an agency of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, sent suggested Prayers of the Faithful for August 30.

This updated prayers of the faithful include: "For those who have given their lives to service to their country, promoting values of peace, justice, equality, and liberty; especially, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, that he may find his eternal reward in the arms of God...We pray."

To pray for Senator Kennedy as one who promoted peace, justice, equality, and liberty, ignoring the 49 million+ babies killed through legalized abortion, would be simply to pray a lie at Mass. Senator Kennedy’s pro-abortion voting record is well known. He voted against the ban partial birth abortion. He voted against the ban on human cloning. He voted to expand embryonic stem-cell research. The list could be extended. He has a 100% rating from the National Abortion Rights Action League. (cfr California Catholic Daily)

Pray for Ted Kennedy, but not for one who promoted values of peace, justice, equality, and liberty!

JP II: So Good to Remember!

Brad Miner has a good column today over at "The Catholic Thing."

"Head Chef in the Cafeteria" is about the career and death of Senator Ted Kennedy. Miner fondly remembers John Paul the Great's visit to Nicaragua in 1983, and how he responded to the liberation theologian/priest/Sandanista Minister of Culture, Ernesto Cardenal, when Cardenal attempted to kiss his ring:

Time magazine reported:

"When Ernesto Cardenal Martinez, a Roman Catholic priest who also serves as Minister of Culture in Nicaragua's Marxist government, knelt to receive the Pope's blessing, John Paul wagged his finger in Cardenal's face and chided him, "You must straighten out your position with the church."

Miner closes his column with:

"It’s a pleasant image made painful by my inability to recall any American Catholic priest, bishop, archbishop, or cardinal ever publicly scolding Ted Kennedy.

That said, may he rest in peace."

Hillary Clinton on Sex-Selective Abortions

Excellent expose of the "pro-choice" position's incompatiblity with reason over at "The Curt Jester." The post is called:

"But why is she against it?"

Jeff starts by quoting a Life News article:

"Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently told the New York Times that she opposes sex-selection abortions and is working to do more the combat them."

Jeff then says:

"As you would expect the NYT does not have a follow up question in regards to sex-selection abortion. No question as to how if abortion is a "right" then how does doing it because of the sex of the child then make it a problem....Does the women have a so-called choice just as long as the reason is not sex-selection?"

The combox is good, too:

"Imagine the leaders of these sex-selecting countries retorting, "Every woman a planned and wanted woman."

Two Orders, Two Videos

Quite a contrast between this video of the Dominican Sisters of Mary and the video just issued by the Jesuit California Province. The Dominican Sisters are growing like wildfire. In the video by the California Jesuits there is an acceptance that that will not happen.

Domincan Sisters:



California Jesuits (caution: 23 minutes):



Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney

"Every seventy-two seconds an African-American baby dies in the womb of his or her mother."

That is the message from pro-life hero Walter Hoye. Pastor Hoye was interviewed today in the California Catholic Daily.

Pastor Hoye has started the Cyrenian Project to reach out to African-American churches on the issue of abortion and how it affects the black community. How necessary that effort is! The project is named after Simon of Cyrene, who helped Christ carry his cross on Calvary.

On January 22, 2010, Pastor Hoye will lead the "3rd Annual Standing Up 4 Life" Walk in Oakland. The 2010 walk will spotlight "The Impact Of Abortion In The Minority Community!"

You can learn more at Pastor Hoye's website, here

What a great gift our African-American pastors are to the pro-life movement!

Totalitarianism Update: Why to Keep Government the Heck Out of Health Care

Venezuela:

Venezuela Bans Religious Education

"A clause in recently-passed Venezuelan education legislation backed by President Hugo Chávez has banned religious instruction in all private and public schools. “We’ll see how we will manage to carry forward education,” said Cardinal Jorge Liberato Urosa Savino of Caracas. “We are going to ask God to help all Catholics, principally those educational institutions belonging to the Church and community parishes.”

Sweden:

Sweden Bans Homeschooling

"The Swedish Association for Home Education (ROHUS) is asking for support from the international community to stop an attempt by the Swedish government to outlaw homeschooling. The new legislation argues that because a child's education should be "comprehensive and objective" it must be "designed so that all pupils can participate, regardless of what religious or philosophical" views of parents or children...

The government's explanation of the draft law says, "there is no need for the law to offer the possibility of homeschooling because of religious or philosophical reasons in the family."

Wisconsin:

Wisconsin compels parishes, dioceses to provide contraceptive coverage.

"The bishops of Wisconsin have reacted angrily to a new state mandate that compels health insurance providers to include contraceptive coverage in their insurance plans.
“This mandate will compel Catholic dioceses, parishes, and other agencies that buy health insurance to pay for a medical service that Catholic teaching holds to be gravely immoral,” the bishops write. “Only dioceses or agencies that are self insured, such as La Crosse and Superior, are not covered by this mandate. As Catholic teachers and pastors, we strongly object to this blatant insensitivity to our moral values and legal rights …

This mandate violates not just our religious values, but also our constitutional rights.”

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney

The California Society of Community Organizers...

formerly known as the Society of Jesus have a new video. I guess the idea is....well, I don't exactly know what the idea is. Because if its about vocations, they seem pretty comfortable with the lack thereof.

One interesting thing is the number of references to PICO, the nationwide Alinskyite "Community Organizers" federation founded by Jesuit priest John Baumann. You can watch the video here:



This is funny, too. The screenshot below of a lone priest in a collar appears while a lady is saying that Jesuits "...have to be coaxed and pulled along a little bit..." into collaboration. (I don't know about that!)

It's about 8:30 into this penitential experience. I had to do a double take. For a second I thought it was Fr. Fessio!

It's not him (that's him below at left, of course).


But it's funny that when they talk about "needing to be coaxed and pulled along" they just happen to pick a Fessio-lookalike (dressed like a priest and everything!) as the graphic.

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney

The New Missal

“Understandable, dignified and accurate”
Committee on Divine Worship Introduces Roman Missal Formation Website

News release from U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Aug. 21, 2009 WASHINGTON, D.C.

-- A new Website from the U.S. Conference of Catholic will educate Catholics about the forthcoming English translation of the new Roman Missal. The site, www.usccb.org/romanmissal, launched August 21, includes background material on the process of development of liturgical texts, sample texts from the Missal, a glossary of terms and answers to frequently asked questions. Content will be added regularly over the next several months. The bishop’s Committee on Divine Worship hopes the site will be a central resource for those preparing to implement the new text.

“In the years since Vatican II we have learned a lot about the use of the vernacular in the liturgy and the new texts reflect this new understanding,” said Bishop Arthur Serratelli of Paterson, NJ, in a welcome-to-the-site video. “The new texts are understandable, dignified and accurate,” said Bishop Serratelli, who chairs the Committee on Divine Worship. “They not only strive to make the meaning of the text accessible for the listener, but they also strive to unearth the biblical and theological richness of the Latin text.

” After more than five years of consultation, study and reflection, the bishops are expected to conclude their review and approval of the final portion of the translated texts at the end of this year. Final approval (recognitio) of the text from the Holy See for the complete translation will be the last step before the publication of the texts for use in the liturgy. Bishop Serratelli sees this time of waiting as an opportunity to learn and prepare. “We have a great opportunity during this period not only to learn about the changes, not only to learn about the revised texts, but also to deepen our own understanding of the Liturgy itself,” he said. “We encourage priests, deacons, religious, liturgical ministers, all the faithful to avail themselves of the information that we are making available.”? In May 2002, the Vatican published the Latin text of the Third Edition on the Missale Romanum. Since 2003, the bishops of the English-speaking world have been working to prepare an English translation of the Roman Missal.

For more information, Click Here. For examples of the changes, Click Here.

Do-It-Yourself "Year of the Priest" Film Festival

The good folks over at "Korrektiv" have come up with a list of movies you can watch each week throughout the "Year of the Priest." It begins with "San Francisco" where Spencer Tracy plays Father Mullin and runs chronologically through "Gran Torino" where Christopher Carley plays Father Janovich.

What a great idea for any parish!

h/t Mark Shea

Bishop Gets it on Health Care Reform

Finally, a comprehensive letter from a bishop about the dangers of Obamacare.

An excellent letter from the Most Reverend Walker Nickless, Bishop of Sioux City

HEALTH CARE REFORM

The current national debate about health care reform should concern all of us. There is much at stake in this political struggle, and also much confusion and inaccurate information being thrown around. My brother bishops have described some clear “goal-posts” to mark out what is acceptable reform, and what must be rejected. First and most important, the Church will not accept any legislation that mandates coverage, public or private, for abortion, euthanasia, or embryonic stem-cell research. We refuse to be made complicit in these evils, which frankly contradict what “health care” should mean. We refuse to allow our own parish, school, and diocesan health insurance plans to be forced to include these evils. As a corollary of this, we insist equally on adequate protection of individual rights of conscience for patients and health care providers not to be made complicit in these evils. A so-called reform that imposes these evils on us would be far worse than keeping the health care system we now have.

Second, the Catholic Church does not teach that “health care” as such, without distinction, is a natural right. The “natural right” of health care is the divine bounty of food, water, and air without which all of us quickly die. This bounty comes from God directly. None of us own it, and none of us can morally withhold it from others. The remainder of health care is a political, not a natural, right, because it comes from our human efforts, creativity, and compassion. As a political right, health care should be apportioned according to need, not ability to pay or to benefit from the care. We reject the rationing of care. Those who are sickest should get the most care, regardless of age, status, or wealth. But how to do this is not self-evident. The decisions that we must collectively make about how to administer health care therefore fall under “prudential judgment.”

Third, in that category of prudential judgment, the Catholic Church does not teach that government should directly provide health care. Unlike a prudential concern like national defense, for which government monopolization is objectively good – it both limits violence overall and prevents the obvious abuses to which private armies are susceptible – health care should not be subject to federal monopolization. Preserving patient choice (through a flourishing private sector) is the only way to prevent a health care monopoly from denying care arbitrarily, as we learned from HMOs in the recent past. While a government monopoly would not be motivated by profit, it would be motivated by such bureaucratic standards as quotas and defined “best procedures,” which are equally beyond the influence of most citizens. The proper role of the government is to regulate the private sector, in order to foster healthy competition and to curtail abuses. Therefore any legislation that undermines the viability of the private sector is suspect. Private, religious hospitals and nursing homes, in particular, should be protected, because these are the ones most vigorously offering actual health care to the poorest of the poor.

The best way in practice to approach this balance of public and private roles is to spread the risks and costs of health care over the largest number of people. This is the principle underlying Medicaid and Medicare taxes, for example. But this principle assumes that the pool of taxable workers is sufficiently large, compared to those who draw the benefits, to be reasonably inexpensive and just. This assumption is at root a pro-life assumption! Indeed, we were a culture of life when such programs began. Only if we again foster a culture of life can we perpetuate the economic justice of taxing workers to pay health care for the poor. Without a growing population of youth, our growing population of retirees is outstripping our distribution systems. In a culture of death such as we have now, taxation to redistribute costs of medical care becomes both unjust and unsustainable.

Fourth, preventative care is a moral obligation of the individual to God and to his or her family and loved ones, not a right to be demanded from society. The gift of life comes only from God; to spurn that gift by seriously mistreating our own health is morally wrong. The most effective preventative care for most people is essentially free – good diet, moderate exercise, and sufficient sleep. But pre-natal and neo-natal care are examples of preventative care requiring medical expertise, and therefore cost; and this sort of care should be made available to all as far as possible.

Within these limits, the Church has been advocating for decades that health care be made more accessible to all, especially to the poor. Will the current health care reform proposals achieve these goals?

The current House reform bill, HR 3200, does not meet the first or the fourth standard. As Cardinal Justin Rigali has written for the USCCB Secretariat of Pro-life Activities, this bill circumvents the Hyde amendment (which prohibits federal funds from being used to pay for abortions) by drawing funding from new sources not covered by the Hyde amendment, and by creatively manipulating how federal funds covered by the Hyde amendment are accounted. It also provides a “public insurance option” without adequate limits, so that smaller employers especially will have a financial incentive to push all their employees into this public insurance. This will effectively prevent those employees from choosing any private insurance plans. This will saddle the working classes with additional taxes for inefficient and immoral entitlements. The Senate bill, HELP, is better than the House bill, as I understand it. It subsidizes care for the poor, rather than tending to monopolize care. But, it designates the limit of four times federal poverty level for the public insurance option, which still includes more than half of all workers. This would impinge on the vitality of the private sector. It also does not meet the first standard of explicitly excluding mandatory abortion coverage.

I encourage all of you to make you voice heard to our representatives in Congress. Tell them what they need to hear from us: no health care reform is better than the wrong sort of health care reform. Insist that they not permit themselves to be railroaded into the current too-costly and pro-abortion health care proposals. Insist on their support for proposals that respect the life and dignity of every human person, especially the unborn. And above all, pray for them, and for our country.

h/t American Papist

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney