African Churches Challenged
In a recent parliamentary hearing on abortion, Father Hyacinth Ennis, a spokesperson for the South African Bishops, described the position of South Africa’s Anglican and Methodist Churches as “lamentable.” The Methodist Church favours permitting abortion while the Anglican Church in South Africa voted to “receive for further study” a report which recommends widening the abortion law. The Dutch Reformed Church and the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference have taken a strong view opposing abortion. Abortion is legal in South Africa for rape and incest and when the life of the mother is in danger. In July, a Parliamentary Committee recommended legalizing abortion on demand up to l4 weeks and, under “broadly specified conditions” up to 24 weeks. This recommendation came after consultation with a number of groups which included the churches. Parliament has yet to debate the issue. Fr. Ennis has stated that the African Bishops’ conference will challenge any law which allows abortion on demand. He argued that the Anglican and Methodist decisions were “very unfortunate” and called for a “consistent life ethic – if you knock anything in that fabric – everything else falls apart.”
CCCB Launches New Organization
The Canadian Confernce of Catholic Bishops have officially launched a new organization to deal with issues regarding “Life and Family.” The Catholic Organization For Life and “Life and Family”. The Catholic Organization For Life and Family(COLF) will act as a national resource bringing together people and concerns with life and family matters. The mandate of the organization is to promote respect for life, natural and family family and family life from the perspective of the Catholic Church. COLF will have its headquarters in Ottawa and will have two co-directors. Jennifer Leddy, a CCCB staff lawyer will direct in English and a French co-director is yet to be named. An eight-member board of directors will include two members named by the CCCB, two named by the Knights of Columbus, two well-versed in natural family planning, one knowledgeable in dealing with respect for human life.
OFF THE WIRE
A 1995 Louisiana law that gave judges the power to restrict abortions for minors and to inform their parents has been struck down by Federal Court District Judge Moral Livaudais Jr. Judge Livaudais ruled the law was unconstitutional. Fedearal courts in Montana and South Dakota have also struck down laws that require parental involvement in decisions regarding the abortion of minors. A massive US foreign aid bill has been held up because of a dispute over the funding of foreign “family planning” agencies. Pope John Paul has released the titleof his message for the World Day Of Social Communications to be released on January 24th, 1996. The Pope’s message, “The Media: A modern forum for promting the role of women in society,”will discuss how the media exploits women. The trial date for February 5, 1996. Salvi is chaeged with killing two people and wounding five others in the shooting at two Brookline Mass abortion centers. Mary Tyler Moore, TV and stage actress, has admitted in her autobiography that she tried to assist herdying brother in committing suicide by smashing pain killers into his ice-cream. Moor’s attempt failed and her brother John died three months later. The tax-exempt organization Planned Parenthood of Alberta violated the tax exemption rules by sponsoring political advertisements about de-funding of abortions in Alberta. Protesters can call Revenue Canada
Charities Division free of charge at 1-800-267-2384. Federal Health Minister Diane Marleau , Minister of Health can be reached by phone at 613-957-0200 or by FAX at 613-952-1154.
Dr. Ellen Wiebe has admitted to aborting 450 children with her new experimental drug “procedure” at the University of British Columbia. An organization, Nurses for P.R.I.C.E. (Patient’s Rights Informed Consent Ethiccs), held a public protest recently at the office of Dr. Wiebe. Last year, Ontario’s Trade Ministry gave $250,000 to the National Action Committee on the Status of Women. This year such grants are being challenged by a number of MPPs including Economic Development and Trade Minister Bill Sanderson and Tory MPP Bill Murdoch. Britain’s National Audit Office, parliament’s financial watchdog, revealed November 8 that Britain sent 24 million faulty condoms to Zimbabwe to fight AIDS and had to spend $200,000 destroying and replacing them.
