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Reactions to Pope John Paul II's Upcoming Beatification

Today, the Vatican confirmed the big news for Catholics in 2011: the beatification of Pope John Paul II, set for May 1 – Divine Mercy Sunday – of this year.

Reactions have been pouring in around the world, as those who cried “Santo Subito” at the great pontiff’s funeral rejoice in this important step toward John Paul’s canonization.

"We are happy that this process came to an end, that what people asked for — ‘Santo Subito’ — was fulfilled," Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz of Krakow said in the AP report.

"I express great joy on behalf of the entire diocese of Krakow — and I think I am also authorized to express this on behalf of all of Poland,” added the cardinal, who served as John Paul’s personal secretary during his 26-year pontificate. 

Another article from AFP highlights the reaction in Poland, John Paul II’s beloved homeland:

"In the history of the Church, there has never been a beatification where the blessed has been known by such a large number of people," observed Father Adam Boniecki, editor-in-chief of the broadsheet Tygodnik Powszechny Catholic weekly where as a cardinal Karol Wojtyla published his poetry under a nom de plume.

… "It's not a surprise, we were expecting this moment," Boniecki, 76, who was also a personal friend of the pope, told AFP. "It was a very short beatification process, especially for the beatification of a pope," he said.

A former classmate of young Wojtyla likewise shared his joy: “It's a great joy, I thank providence for giving me a chance to live alongside someone who will be a saint,” Eugeniusz Mroz told AFP. “It's a great blessing. He was a giant in spirit, heart and intellect.”

Catholics in North America are also giving thanks.

Canada’s Salt and Light TV founder Father Thomas Rosica, CSB, shared a reflection on Salt and Light’s blog:

In the life of Karol Wojytyla, the boy from Wadowice who would grow up to be a priest and Bishop of Krakow, the Bishop of Rome, and a hero for the ages, holiness was contagious.  We have all been touched and changed by it. Pope John Paul II was not only “Holy Father” but “a Father who was and is Holy.” 

… On May 1, 2011, only six years after his return to the Father’s house, the Church will formally confirm what we knew for so long: not simply “Santo Subito” (“Make him a saint quickly) but “Santo Sempre” (Saint always.)

Father Rosica, who directed the 2002 World Youth Day in Toronto, noted that he was in a planning meeting for this year’s World Youth Day in Madrid when news broke of the beatification of the pope who founded the massive, international gatherings of young Catholic adults.

“A thunderous, sustained, standing ovation followed the announcement,” Father Rosica wrote, adding that many attendees around him wept openly at the news.

World Youth Days – a “singular gift” from John Paul’s papacy – were “privileged instruments of the New Evangelization,” Father Rosica said. “They serve to give flesh and blood to the words of Pope Benedict XVI during the Mass to mark the beginning of his Petrine Minsitry in April, 2005: ‘The Church is alive.  The Church is young.’”

Meanwhile, Knights of Columbus head Carl Anderson responded to some observers’ comments that the Church’s beatification of John Paul II turns a blind eye to the clergy abuse scandal that erupted in the final years of his papacy. (The late pope’s praise and approval of the since-disgraced Legionaries of Christ founder Father Marcial Maciel Degollado has also been called into question in recent years).

Yet John Paul II’s beatification is not a "score card on his administration of the Holy See," Anderson explained:

Rather, he said, it's a statement about his personal sanctity since beatification is way of holding up Catholics as models for the faithful.

"Pope John Paul's life is precisely such a model because it was lived beautifully and with love, respect and forgiveness for all," Anderson told the AP in an e-mail. "We saw this in the way he reached out to the poor, the neglected, those of other faiths, even the man who shot him. He did all of this despite being so personally affected by events of the bloodiest century in history."

Indeed, the example of Pope John Paul II’s life as a model of holiness is captured in the official decree of beatification, issued by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints:

John Paul II’s pontificate was an eloquent and clear sign, not only for Catholics, but also for world public opinion, for people of all colour and creed. The world’s reaction to his lifestyle, to the development of his apostolic mission, to the way he bore his suffering, to the decision to continue his Petrine mission to the end as willed by divine Providence, and finally, the reaction to his death […] all this has its solid foundation in the experience of having met with the person who was the Pope. The faithful have felt, have experienced that he is “God’s man”, who really sees the concrete steps and the mechanisms of contemporary world “in God”, in God’s perspective, with the eyes of a mystic who looks up to God only. He was clearly a man of prayer: so much so that it is from the dynamism of his personal union with God, from the permanent listening to what God wants to say in a concrete situation, that the whole of “Pope John Paul II’s activity” flowed.

- Elizabeth Hansen

A new era of civility

“We are a community questioning, struggling, wondering how such violence could happen," said Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson on Jan. 11 while presiding at a public healing service commemorating the victims of the Arizona shooting.

In the midst of tragedy, a grieving nation is looking to its civic and spiritual leaders for consolation, answers and the restoration of a deeply shaken sense of peace and security. And while none can offer an explanation as to why the horrifying event took place, words of consolation are coming in the form of a call to action, urging Americans to embark in a new era of civility.

With hundreds in attendance at the Jan 11th commemorative Mass, Bishop Kicanas said that God wants mankind to “resist evil,” to live with integrity, and to act with “civility and respect,” insisting that it is the responsibility of each individual to ensure that this way of life take shape both in our homes and in public life.

“[W]e can, each in our own way, strive to respect others, speak with civility, try to understand one another and to find healthy ways to resolve our conflicts,” said Bishop Kicanas, adding that the next steps toward healing will be reflecting on what the community can do to ensure this  doesn’t happen again.

Archbishop Timothy Dolan, president of the USCCB, cautioned against drawing any hasty conclusions about the motives of the assailant until such information is released by authorities. He also called for “respect for the life and dignity of every person as we work together for the common good, seeking to address the various social and political issues that face us as a nation.”

In a similar statement, Supreme Knight Carl Anderson of the Knights of Columbus said, “At a time like this, it is tempting to respond with anger, and for some, to attempt to use the tragedy to stoke the fires of division. That would only compound the tragedy.”

He also quoted the late Sen. Robert Kennedy, who observed the following after the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “What we need in the United States is not division ... not violence or lawlessness, but love and wisdom and compassion toward one another.”

Rev. Jim Wallis, founder of Sojourners, issued a plea for people to turn to Scripture and sign the civility pledge Sojourners is promoting “as a starting point for civil discourse,” reports the National Catholic Register.

In a poignant Op-ed for Politico, Rev. Wallis wrote:

Tragedy offers the opportunity to put down our stones and remember shared values and common vision. It offers a chance to unite on things that matter.

"In the coming weeks and months, our country is likely to examine issues of mental health, access to firearms and security for our elected officials. These will be examined from many angles.

But we should also take this as a time to control the violence of our hearts and tongues. The call to civility, which I have made before, is not about watering down beliefs, being “nice” or meek. We can have passionate debate and disagreement without demonizing our opponents or making them enemies.

While the public square has been targeted, our elected officials can still redeem it from the violence that has forced its way in. They can do this through modeling for the country how to work with and relate to people with whom they disagree. Lessening violence in our society isn’t simply the process of stopping conflict but of promoting a more safe, civil and peaceful public square."

To that end, President Barack Obama who, after reading from the Book of Psalms, offered condolences to the victims of the shootings and called on Americans “to draw a lesson from the lives of the fallen and the actions of the heroes, and to usher in a new era of civility in their honor.”  He added:

"If, as has been discussed in recent days, [these lost lives] help usher in more civility in our public discourse, let us remember that it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy — it did not — but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to our challenges as a nation, in a way that would make them proud."

As the country unites in solidarity and reflection in the wake of this tragedy, it is remarkable how this event has propelled such a nation-wide examination of conscience. It remains to be seen how this call to action will take shape in civic discourse.

Michèle Nuzzo-Naglieri

The Catholic Church defends democracy in Venezuela

Venezuela, or “Little Venice,” as it was named by European explorers centuries ago, has many things going for it.  It is a country with a beautiful tropical climate and such natural wonders as Angel Falls. It has been blessed with beautiful people (see Miss Universe 2009, Miss Universe 2008, etc.) and a wealth of natural oil resources.

Unfortunately, the country lacks one indispensible blessing: constitutional, limited government.

Here in the U.S. last Thursday, the members of the new House of Representatives began their proceedings with a reading of the Constitution.  Members from both sides of the aisle, including Majority Leader John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, took turns reading sections of the great document. Though political opponents debate over whether the reading was a stunt or not, no one would deny that the U.S. Constitution is an indispensable limit on government – a guarantee of our freedoms and of democratic self rule. Yet its importance is sometimes easiest to appreciate by observing those countries in which their Constitution has become meaningless.

This week, in fact, the Catholic Church in Venezuela continued to speak without fear against the creeping expanse of totalitarianism in their country and for a return to genuine, constitutional democracy.

Last month, under the pretense of emergency powers due to recent flooding in the country, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s socialist allies in the National Assembly granted him the power to enact laws by decree for a period of 18 months.

The Venezuelan Bishops Conference responded with a pastoral document entitled “Yearning for Union, Justice, Freedom and Peace in Venezuela," in which they accused President Chavez of attempting to impose totalitarian rule on the nation.

"The legislators of the ruling party arbitrarily passed, before leaving office, 25 laws in four weeks, thus ignoring people's vote and granting an enabling law aimed at concentrating more power in the hands of the president,” argued Bishop Diego Padrón, of Cumaná, acting spokesman for the bishops conference. “This unconstitutional action prevents the (new) deputies from fully exercising their duties, thus minimizing their role as legislators." 

The new laws, some Venezuelan Church leaders warn, stink of Cuban political meddling.

“All of these laws or norms are part of the Cuban package, and the Cuban advisors are trying to impose them on Venezuela,” noted Archbishop Roberto Luckert of Coro, Venezuela. “We are going down the same path as the Castro autocracy that has afflicted that poor country for 59 years.” The archbishop fears that the country is headed toward a “constitutional, democratic, dictatorship.”

Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino of Caracas warned this week that land confiscations in the country are being carried out in violation of the Constitution.

“The interests and rights of all people must be reconciled, and the government should do so justly,” the cardinal said.

President Chavez has a long history of abusing power. In his 2006 election, international observers noted “abuse of government resources used to support the Chávez campaign, voter intimidation tactics, and manipulation of the electoral registry.” The same year, he had the official Venezuelan flag doctored to reflect his Marxist leanings.

More recently in 2007, President Chavez shut down a TV network that opposed some of his policies and threatened others.  Last July, he revoked the license of a TV network run by the Archdiocese of Caracas. The new decree powers passed in December will only bolster his control over media as well as universities. 

There are also reports that President Chavez has played an active part in attempting to undermine democratic government in neighboring countries like Colombia by aiding and abetting known South American terrorist and narcotics groups, such as FARC.

Critics have also condemned a law passed in 2009 that provided for students in Venezuela to be indoctrinated with the tenets of socialism, which President Chavez called the “Bolivarian Doctrine.” The law also prohibited the teaching of religious topics during regular schools hours, which provoked strong criticism from Catholic leaders.

Fortunately for Venezuelans and the future of their country, the Catholic Church has not been intimidated or silenced. The Catholic Bishops, even when other institutions seem to falter, have pointedly called out the abuses of the government. Student and youth movements in Venezuela are fighting for a better future as well. As President Chavez’s motives are increasingly revealed for what they are, Venezuelans will once again take back the blessings that are theirs. 

Paul Ciarcia

Is Same-Sex Marriage Coming to Rhode Island?

Throughout the Cold War, the U.S. government made fear of the “Domino Theory” – the spread of communism into neighboring nations – a core tenet of U.S. foreign policy. Today, there can be little doubt that a new domino effect is taking place with regard to same-sex marriage in New England. Already, such unions are legal in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire. This week John Chafee, the incoming governor of Rhode Island, announced that it is time for his state to “catch up to her New England neighbors” and legalize same-sex marriage.

This decision has pitted Chafee and other Rhode Island lawmakers in support of gay marriage in direct confrontation with Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence.

Bishop Tobin, a fearless leader who has challenged prominent politicians in the past, blasted Chafee’s stated intention to pass same-sex marriage legislation. After calling gay marriage “morally wrong and detrimental to the well-being of our state,” the bishop criticized the proposed law’s timing and relevancy during a time of economic crisis:

It is particularly disturbing that our new governor, who has trumpeted his desire to bring our state together in unity, would adopt such a very divisive agenda item as one of his first priorities…. His proposal violates the sincere conscience of many of our citizens and inflames passions on both sides of the issue. … Our state leaders could better serve all Rhode Islanders by working on initiatives that will create jobs and improve the overall economic health of our state.

Indeed, Rhode Island faces a looming budget deficit, an 11.6 percent unemployment rate and an economy that ranks among the nation’s worst. Yet Governor Chafee sees legalizing same-sex marriage as a path to economic recovery.

“The status quo economically is not working,” he said. “Our foundation here in Rhode Island was built on tolerance and acceptance, and this is an area I want to move our state forward on, by building on our strengths of centuries ago. Let’s give marriage equality a chance to grow our state.” 

Chafee’s appeal to Rhode Island’s history would have Roger Williams, the state’s founder, rolling in his proverbial grave. Under Williams’ leadership, the colony passed a series of laws beginning in 1636 that prohibited religious persecution. This made the colony a safe haven for persecuted minorities such as Jews, Baptists and Quakers. Williams would never have envisioned a reversal of the sacrosanct definition of marriage. Furthermore, gay couples in Rhode Island already enjoy domestic partnerships with certain limited legal rights including inheritance rights, funeral rights, property rights, and the right to visit a partner in a hospital or nursing home. That makes the new push for same-sex marriage less about civil rights and more an assault on the age-old definition of marriage.

Interestingly enough, Bishop Tobin’s clash with the governor over same-sex marriage legislation marked the second conflict between the two men during Chafee’s first week in office. In a Thursday column in The Rhode Island Catholic, Bishop Tobin criticized Chafee’s decision to forego a public prayer service prior to his inauguration. The service had been a custom in Rhode Island for some time. However, Chafee cancelled the prayer service in the name of separation of church and state.

It is a sad day when public prayer and adherence to the sacrosanct definition of marriage is deemed intolerant. Governor Chafee may feel he is preserving Rhode Island’s proud history of tolerance, but Bishop Tobin’s moral stance is far closer to the state’s founding ideals. If the nuclear family is the bedrock of society, and prayer keeps families together, then Rhode Island appears to be establishing a shaky foundation for the future. Let us hope Bishop Tobin and other concerned citizens of Rhode Island can help avert the continuing “domino effect” in New England.

- David Naglieri

Haiti, One Year Later

This Wednesday will mark the one-year anniversary of one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern history.  On Jan. 12, 2010, an earthquake shattered the third world nation of Haiti, killing nearly a quarter-million Haitians and leaving millions more homeless in the already impoverished nation.

Since the earthquake, the U.S. government has pledged $2.65 billion toward relief, both for the initial emergency response and ongoing recovery and reconstruction efforts. Likewise, last March, the UN pledged nearly $10 billion in aid.

Despite this and similar aid from countries around the world, things have not gone easily for the people of Haiti. Estimates vary, yet the total costs of the disaster could reach $13 billion. Some monetary aid has been slow to trickle in, or has been misdirected. Some aid has been deliberately delayed due to the political turmoil and disorganization of the country’s government.

Meanwhile, the Haitian people suffer day to day.

"The people of Haiti are tired of misery," Archbishop Louis Kebreau, president of the Haitian Bishops Conference, told Catholic News Service. "They are tired of living in their tents. The people are saying they are not happy. They're frustrated and angry. That provokes violence."

Adding to the nation’s troubles, a cholera outbreak struck last fall. So far, 3,650 people have died, and over 100,000 have been infected.

What’s more, nearly 90 percent of the quake survivors continue to live in dangerous tent camps, while less than 30,000 have been placed in permanent homes. Most of the camp sites are on land of disputed ownership. Adding to the congestion and confusion is the fact that only five percent of the rubble has been cleared away.

Incidents of sexual assault are rampant, and the scores of orphans have become easy prey for those who traffic in child slaves. Officials estimate that 2,000 orphans have been sold as sex slaves by traffickers. "There are a lot of orphans here. Babies with nobody to care for them. It's easy to take them,” one brazen member of the “Cannibal Army gang” – one of many who effectively control the camps – told the media, apparently fearing no reprisal from law enforcement.

On the hopeful side, the Help Haiti Act of 2010 was passed and signed into law in December, allowing certain Haitian orphans now in the United States to more easily obtain green cards and safety. It also is making it easier and faster for adoptive families to gain permanent residency for orphans they take in.

Politically, the nation is also in turmoil. An election held in late November was marred by charges of fraud and is still under investigation by the Organization of American States. The U.S. has yet to officially recognize the results, as 12 of the 19 candidates have moved for the election to be thrown out. So, while the country struggles to recover, political uncertainty remains.

Despite all these hardships, the people of Haiti are not forgotten, and the anniversary will serve as a benchmark to assess progress and how much remains to be done.

The Catholic Church, which saw 70 of its parishes destroyed in the earthquake, has remained focused on bringing Haiti back to life. Last Sunday, after saying the midday Angelus in St. Peter’s square, Pope Benedict added, "I would like to offer a special thought for the people of Haiti, one year after the terrible earthquake, which has unfortunately been followed by a grave cholera epidemic.” The pope also offered a $1.2 million donation to Haitian disaster relief and announced that Cardinal Robert Sarah, head of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, will meet current Haitian President Rene Preval and celebrate Mass on Tuesday in Port-au-Prince.

Likewise, the Knights of Columbus program “Healing Haiti’s Children,” in partnership with Project Medishare, has been successfully outfitting Haitian children gravely injured in the quake with prosthetic limbs. The Knights have committed to helping every child who lost a limb in the quake, as well as providing the years of physical therapy necessary for the children to adjust to their new prosthetics.

The new limbs are already making an impact in the lives of young Haitians. Recently, a group of young Haitian men outfitted with new prosthetic limbs competed in a hard-fought soccer match. They may not have won the game, which extended into overtime, but their pride over their accomplishment was undeniable. 

As the Reuters headline on the amputee soccer team reports, there is indeed resilience and hope in broken Haiti, one year after the devastating earthquake.

- Paul Ciarcia

Tweeting the Modern-Day Martyrs

The ancient text of the “Martyrdom of St. Polycarp” is one of the most enduring accounts of the early Christian martyrs and the devotion that quickly sprang up around them. Copied down and distributed faithfully from scribe to scribe – beginning with St. Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp, who in turn learned of Christianity from St. John the Apostle – the account of the death of the elderly, courageous bishop of Smyrna was meant as an encouragement to the persecuted Christian community.

After all, who can read the following passage without a sense of wonder and admiration for one man’s unwavering faith – or a chill over what the early Christians endured?

Now, as Polycarp was entering into the stadium, there came to him a voice from heaven, saying, Be strong, and show yourself a man, O Polycarp! No one saw who it was that spoke to him; but those of our brethren who were present heard the voice. And as he was brought forward, the tumult became great when they heard that Polycarp was taken. And when he came near, the proconsul asked him whether he was Polycarp. On his confessing that he was, [the proconsul] sought to persuade him to deny [Christ], saying, Have respect to your old age … Swear, and I will set you at liberty, reproach Christ; Polycarp declared, Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He never did me any injury: how then can I blaspheme my King and my Saviour?

Flash forward nearly 2,000 years to the modern-day martyrdoms still occurring in the world, particularly in Asia and the Middle East. In today’s age of social media, cell phone cameras and near-instant news reports of events across the globe, the mourning, devotion and prayers of Christians for their loved ones are just as palpable as in the time of St. Polycarp – though the tools of expressing such reactions are vastly different.

Mariouma Fekry – a beautiful, young Coptic Egyptian whose Facebook profile lists “A Walk to Remember” and Pixar films as her favorite movies – was one of the 32 Christians killed in the New Year’s Eve bombing of a Coptic church in Alexandria. Her last status update – posted hours before the New Year’s liturgy – has been cited in blogs, Tweets and news reports spanning the Internet:

2010 is over…..this year has the best memories of my life….really enjoyed living this year……I hope 2011 is much better…….i hav so many wishes in 2011….hope they come true….plz god stay beside me & help make it all true. :)

Over the past week, more than 2,000 Facebook users have joined a community page in Mariouma’s honor, uploading messages, photos and YouTube videos dedicated to the “Martyr of Alexandria.” And among Egyptian Facebook users – Coptic and Muslim alike – the image of a crescent embracing a cross has become a prevalent profile picture, as have the words “In mourning for Egypt's martyrs" in white Arabic script against a black background.

Rasha Abdallah, head of the communications department at the American University in Cairo, remarked that the Facebook deluge of grief and solidarity after the bombing is unprecedented in Egypt.

“People came together in a way I have not seen before,” Abdallah said, going on to cite one popular Facebook initiative urging Egyptian Muslims to go to Coptic Christmas liturgies on January 6, in order to act as “human shields” for the Christian worshippers and potential targets of another attack. (No attacks were reported, and thousands of Muslims – including the two sons of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak – turned out at Coptic churches). Abdallah added that such sentiments expressed on Facebook and resulting protests reveal “recognition that we have a problem and we need to work on it, on the contrary to the government’s stand.”

Twitter’s stream of posts related to the Alexandria bombing (found by searching #AlexExplosion) is likewise still flooded with minute-by-minute updates – cell phone photos snapped in the chaos following the attack, news articles on the developing political situation in Egypt, and – today’s big item, it seems – information on a silent protest this afternoon along the Nile, in solidarity with the bombing victims and Christian community.

On YouTube, video coverage abounds: memorials to the victims, footage of the funeral services, the explosion itself, and the gruesome aftermath in the church (warning: graphic images).

All in all, today’s technology allows us to put a face to the victims of an event like the Alexandria church bombing, whether for the sake of sparking inter-religious stands of solidarity or tributes from around the world to the latest Christians who have died for the faith. To use one last example – from Iraq this time, following the Oct. 31 massacre in the Syriac Catholic cathedral in Baghdad – the stories of our modern-day martyrs are now strikingly near to us as they relate, in the tradition of “The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp,” the last, courageous words and actions of such humble heroes of the faith. 

The author of “The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp” urged the early Christians to follow in the footsteps of the bishop saint, that “we too may be found in the kingdom of Jesus Christ.” The same could be said of us as we learn of, and remember, our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world.

- Elizabeth Hansen

Taking God Out of Daycare

In response to media reports last spring that some subsidized daycares in Québec were offering Muslim and Jewish programs to toddlers, the province’s government announced plans on Dec. 17 to extend its ban on religious instruction to toddlers attending any one of its 2000 state-subsidized daycares. The National Post’s Graeme Hamilton described the initiative as yet another example of Québec’s “continuing struggle to define where it stands as a secular society.”

As Hamilton outlines in his post, the new policy will make it illegal for daycare workers to teach children aged five and under anything concerning a specific religion. Private daycare centers that currently receive funding from the provincial government will have to ensure that their programs align with the new directive by June, or risk losing their subsidies as well.

"I want the young Quebecers who attend our daycare services to do so in a spirit of openness to others and diversity,” said Family Minister Yolande James as she unveiled the changes in Montreal. Ms. James said daycares will still be allowed to highlight “cultural traditions” rooted in a religious faith. “We will not remove Christmas trees from our daycare centres,” she said. A daycare could also display a crèche depicting the birth of Jesus, an aide to Ms. James said. “The line is drawn when a daycare centre teaches about the birth of Jesus, who is Mary, who is Joseph,” Geneviève Hinse said. “The line is crossed when there is a transmission of religion.”

Some of the most prominent reactions to the announcement included that of Globe and Mail columnist Lysiane Gagnon, who mocked the “radical secularist” initiative, while outlining the obvious issue of sending mixed messages to children by attempting to extract religion from cultural practice. Gagnon’s column also mentioned the intentions of Salam Elmenyawi, president of the Muslim Council of Montreal, “to mount a legal challenge against the policy on the grounds that it violates constitutional protections of religious freedom.” 

In his Dec. 30 column, Father Raymond J. de Souza echoed both Gagnon and Elmenyawi’s views:

“Violations of religious liberty are no laughing matter…It’s secular fundamentalism that the Québec government practises, touched by a totalitarian impulse that brooks no dissent, even from little children who might need help in colouring their religious pictures… So serious is Quebec’s government about imposing its view on all children that, concurrent with the new regulations, it will triple the number of inspectors to enforce them. Quebec will soon have 58 inquisitors dropping in on daycares to ensure compliance…

Totalitarian states have always sought to control the kindergartens and the schools and the youth groups, all the better to ensure that the influence of parents on their own children is attenuated. There is the hard totalitarianism that comes by force of arms. Soft totalitarianism comes by way of subsidies, where first the family is embraced by the state, and only then is it suffocated.”

Jackson Doughart, member of the Canadian Secular Alliance, argues that religious instruction in state-subsidized daycare centers violates the important separation of church and state – a separation he says is integral to developing laws based on “evidence and rational arguments,” not the tenets of major religions. Doughart also believes that religion should be limited to homes and churches “until children are old enough to discuss religion critically.”

Veering from this separation creates, according to Doughart, a slew of logistical problems as the government would be obligated to treat all religious appeals to educate young children equally in order to avoid being discriminatory.

“Providing subsidized religious instruction to toddlers may appear to be benign and inconsequential if only moderate beliefs are taught, but there is no reason to think that this would be the case. Those who do not object to the guidance of young children in diluted Christian beliefs would doubtless be uncomfortable with providing fundamentalist religious instruction at public expense. If moderate Christians can have state-financed daycares, so can Haredi Jews, reactionary Evangelicals, Scientologists and extremist Muslims because there exists no mechanism by which the government can discriminate between moderate and extreme beliefs.”

Doughart also presses that this is not a religious freedom issue as there are no restrictions against families who want to send their children to a daycare that instructs toddlers in a particular faith. He adds that secularism in fact protects religious institutions from state interference in their own internal theological affairs.

However, it’s hard to agree with Doughart when you consider, as Father deSouza points out, what has already begun to happen with Québec daycares. Québec’s massive subsidies for approved daycare spaces are crowding out non-subsidized daycare. It’s only a matter of time before there will be just one form of child care available. What choice will parents have then? And how will the state protect their right to ensure that their young toddlers receive instruction in religion in what is supposed to be an educational environment?

Another key element being ignored is that religious instruction is fundamental to the holistic approach to education. As Father de Souza puts it, “the heart of every culture is its attitude to the big questions of human life and existence,” and these questions begin at a young age. To deny children of all religious instruction is to deny them of the very tools that are fundamental to the development of their faculty of reason, which ought to enable them to approach religion (whether in theory or in practice) from a well-informed perspective.  How can it be viewed as “better” to impose a law ensuring that young children are taught less in daycare?

Québec is treading in very dangerous waters where issues of religious freedom are concerned.

- Michéle Nuzzo-Naglieri

 

Hope-Filled Stories For 2011

With 2011 now upon us, it’s an appropriate time to take a look ahead to the major faith-based events set to take place this year. Two landmark gatherings (one of which is still uncertain) stand out on the Church’s calendar.

For one, recent reports indicate that Pope John Paul II’s long anticipated beatification could soon be green lighted. Also, World Youth Day in Madrid this August will bring together hundreds of thousands of young people and numerous members of the Church’s hierarchy, including Pope Benedict XVI. Both events have the potential to powerfully counteract secular trends in Western society.

This April will mark six years since Pope John Paul II’s death. It is hard to forget the large banners emblazoned with the words “Santo Subito” (“A Saint Right Away”) during the moving papal funeral. It now appears likely that devotees of John Paul will soon have their wish. Andrea Tornielli, the well-respected Vaticanista who covers Vatican affairs for the Italian newspaper Il Giornale, says medical examiners have offered a positive appraisal of a reported miracle involving the late pope’s intercession.

According to Tornielli, medical professionals assigned to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints have produced “a favorable view on the miracle attributed to the intercession of Pope Wojtyla – the healing of a French nun from Parkinson’s – and the documentation in recent days has also passed the scrutiny of theologians.”

The timetable on the beatification now rests in the hands of the clergy members of the Congregation who will vote on the miracle. If approved, Tornielli believes a beatification could be scheduled for as early as the spring. Other observers feel an October 201 date would be more feasible logistically. 

Regardless of the exact date, John Paul’s proposed beatification could not come at a better time for the Church – particularly in Europe, where a steady decline in church attendance, vocations to the priesthood and religious life, and confidence in the institutional organization as a result of the clergy sex abuse scandals has all resulted in many of the faithful being slowly drawn deeper into the “dictatorship of relativism.” During his remarkable 26-year-long papacy, Pope John Paul II understood that one of the best antidotes to secularism is to present authentic role models of faith, moral courage and sanctity. His death was a cathartic experience for Catholics and non-Catholics alike, with upwards of four million pilgrims travelling to Rome to attend the funeral. A beatification in 2011 could draw similar numbers and have a lasting impact on Europeans who are ambivalent about their Christian heritage.

The other much-anticipated event in 2011 is World Youth Day in Madrid. Interest in WYD is peaking, thanks in part to a creative social media marketing campaign, which is connecting young people all over the world and building excitement for the Aug. 16-21 gathering.

Pope Benedict XVI recently addressed young people in Spain in a letter marking the close of the Campostela Holy Year.  Benedict urged the young people to:

… be attracted by Christ, establishing a frank and serene dialogue with Him and asking themselves: Will the Lord be able to rely on me to be His apostle in the world, to be His messenger of love? May your response not be lacking in generosity, nor in the enthusiasm which led St. James to follow his Master with no concern for the sacrifices involved.

To a generation that seeks to avoid self-sacrifice in the name of instant gratification, these words offer a powerful alternative. To a generation increasingly distrustful of organizational hierarchies and traditional notions of morality, Benedict’s message presents a way for young people to understand their faith as an exciting choice filled with surprises and joys, not a burdensome responsibility.
Those ideas will be hammered home before audiences of hundreds of thousands of young people during the week-long festivities encompassing World Youth Day. A potential beatification would represent another similar teaching moment for the Church.

2011 is brimming with hope, and it has hardly begun.

- David Naglieri

 

Top 10 Stories of 2010

The Headline Bistro editorial team offers their take on 2010's top stories for Catholics:

10. Health Care Overhaul

Fewer political debates generated more controversy and division on the national front than health care reform. On March 21, the House voted 219-212 to send the health overhaul legislation to President Obama, who signed it into law on March 23. Republicans were unanimous in opposition, joined by 34 Democrats.

Beginning in the fall of 2009 and continuing into 2010, abortion funding quickly emerged as the top issue driving the political debate on health care. After intense political debate – in which Michigan Democratic Rep. Bart Stupak emerged as the leading figure against the plan’s funding of abortion – the drama came to a head when Stupak’s anti-abortion funding provision failed to be included in the final version of the bill. Further dividing Catholics, the Catholic Health Association defied the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and announced its support of the bill without the Stupak Amendment, saying the legislation already forbade taxpayer funding of abortion coverage. The U.S. bishops, however, while underlining their support of health care reform, firmly stated their opposition to the bill without an explicit ban of abortion funding.  Still, Stupak and a core group of pro-life Democrats would later vote for the legislation, citing a promise by President Obama to sign an executive order banning the federal funding of abortion under the new health care reform law. While the president signed that order on March 24, many pro-lifers criticized the action as not going far enough to ensure that tax dollars will not go toward abortion coverage.