LifeZine No. 531: 11th Oct 07
'Right to Life of the Unborn Child is an Absolute'
In their joint statement for Ireland’s "Day for Life 2007", the Irish Catholic bishops said that “you cannot have a true Christian compassion if the right to life of the unborn child is not recognised as an absolute". According to their statement, "The Christian principle of respect for human life at every stage of its existence is firm, clear and continuous.” It continued, "Pope John Paul II consistently called for the creation of what he termed 'a culture of life and a civilisation of love' in society today. On this, the Day for Life for 2007 we, the Irish bishops, renew that call. We do so in the face of so much violence and death in our society at present.” "Almost daily, in the media and on the streets, we are faced with murder, suicide, calls for the liberalisation of our laws to accommodate abortion and, occasionally, for the provision of legislation to enable euthanasia. We have, we fear, a crisis in our culture with regard to the age old appreciation that human life is sacred.” Details: CLICK TO READ MORE.....
Irish Bishops Advise School to Close Amnesty Branch
A Belfast school in the Catholic diocese of Down and Connor has been advised to close down its Amnesty International branch. This follows Amnesty's recently announced pro-abortion stance. A spokesman for Ireland's Catholic bishops has confirmed to “The Irish Times” that the Belfast school sought advice on its Amnesty group and was told it should be disbanded. He said, "an inquiry did come from a school principal, on behalf of the teacher who is in charge of the school Amnesty group, asking for guidance on the future of the Amnesty group in the school. The advice to the school is that it would be inappropriate for the school branch to continue in existence in the context of Amnesty International's new position regarding abortion." Details: CLICK TO READ MORE.....
Amnesty Should Retain its Neutral Position on Abortion
A leading Catholic peace campaigner in Britain and member of Amnesty International has spoken out against the organisation's new policy of abortion advocacy. Mr Bruce Kent said, "Unborn children also have human rights." He particularly criticised Amnesty for placing its religious support groups in a difficult position. He also called for Amnesty to allow its supporters the option of saying that they do not want their money to be used to promote abortion. The Guardian. CLICK TO READ MORE.....
Croatian Archbishop Poses Challenge for EU
The European Union (EU) must protect the right to life from conception, according to the Catholic Archbishop of Zadar, Croatia. Speaking at a meeting about his country's role in a united Europe, Dr Ivan Prenza also said that the EU should protect families from legislative attacks. Pro-life spokesman Dr Mario Živkovi, director of the Family Centre, Zagreb, also at the meeting, said, "Croatia's values are not only religious. We also bring ethical values to Europe and these are universal values which carry with them both rights and obligations, especially the right to life from conception and the rights of the family founded on marriage between a man and a woman." Dr Michael Weninger of Austria, adviser on religious affairs to Mr José Manuel Barroso, the EU's president, also addressed the conference, which was organised by the Croatian government. ELN. END.
Declaration on The Human Rights of the Unborn
The Catholic Church in Mexico has signed a declaration stating that the unborn have the right to be recognised and treated as human individuals. The “Declaration of Human Rights of the Unborn”, which is the work of more than 100 specialists in law, bioethics, medicine and education, will be presented to the Mexican Congress in support of a proposed amendment to the constitution. CNA. END.
Knights of Columbus Pass Resolution on Pro-Abortion Politicians
A US-based Catholic lay organisation has resolved to prohibit pro-abortion politicians from attending its events. The Knights of Columbus made the decision at their 125th annual convention which was held in the second week of August in Nashville, Tennessee. They resolved to "reaffirm our long-standing policy of not inviting to any Knights of Columbus event, persons, especially public officials or candidates for public office, who do not support the legal protection of unborn children, or who advocate the legalisation of assisted suicide or euthanasia." The Knights affirmed they would support alternatives to abortion, including adoption, as well as projects that provided spiritual support to women suffering from traumatic after effects of abortion. LifeSiteNews.net. CLICK TO READ MORE.....