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Leaders support Obama’s Middle East effort
WASHINGTON (CNS) -— Saying there is “no greater work than the psalmist’s call to ‘seek peace and pursue it,’” nearly five dozen Christian leaders have pledged their support to President Barack Obama in his effort to end the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict and open a new era of U.S.-Muslim relations.
Sister of Mercy taught in New Orleans, Mississippi
BARLING — Sister Mary Cabrini Fagan, a member of the Sisters of Mercy, died May 24 in Barling. She was 80. (Obituaries)
Sotomayor would be sixth Catholic, first Latina on court
WASHINGTON (CNS) -— President Barack Obama has nominated federal appeals court Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court; if she is confirmed, the New York native of Puerto Rican descent would become the first Hispanic to serve on the high court.
Annulment myths and facts explained; how to get help for yourself
Have you ever heard someone say that the only way you can get a declaration of nullity (annulment) is if you have a lot of money? You may also have been told that if your ex-spouse refuses to cooperate your case can not be completed. Maybe you have heard that if you get divorced you are excommunicated. Has someone ever said that it takes years to get a declaration of nullity? Then, there is the persistent rumor that your children will be illegitimate if your marriage is nullified. Let’s talk about these “myths” and put to rest some of the fears that exist concerning the nullity process. (Seeds of Faith, Understanding our Church)
John Courtney Murray, SJ: An American religious voice
For those of us fortunate enough to live in the United States of America, the ideas of “separation of church and state,” “pluralism,” “religious freedom” and “religious tolerance” are so much a part of our way of thinking that we usually take them for granted and instinctively consider them fundamental to any understanding of “government.” (Seeds of Faith, Our Sacred Treasure)
Retiring cardinal spent years talking about sin, forgiveness
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -— In almost six years dealing with the most sensitive and serious matters of individual conscience, U.S. Cardinal J. Francis Stafford said he has had the “enormous grace” of coming to a deep understanding of how central forgiveness is to the message of the Gospel and the mission and life of the church.
Don’t separate talk of sexual love from God’s love
The Associated Press recently ran a story about a controversy brewing among a community of “Bible-believing” folk in rural Alabama. Many in the town of Good Hope were disturbed by a billboard advertising a series of sermons at the local Daystar Church. The billboard, next to a picture of a bride and groom, read: “Great sex: God’s way.” “It’s really stirred up the people here,” said a town clerk. (Columns)
Definition of being pro-life
It has become increasing clear that the pro-life movement is not united and for us to move forward in changing more hearts we need to first examine ourselves and what we say and do in the name of the cause. (Editorial)
