The statue of the patron saint of St. Francis de Sales Parish in Sherman Oaks has been vandalized three times total in September and August. The vandalism in the photograph is being investigated as a “hate crime” by local police, according to the church's pastor. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Michael Wakefield

CNA Staff, Oct 8, 2024 / 14:30 pm (CNA).

A Los Angeles Catholic church has been vandalized four times in the past two months.  

St. Francis de Sales in Sherman Oaks was damaged from graffiti and arson attacks on four occasions, beginning in August and continuing through September, said Father Michael Wakefield, the parish’s pastor. 

On Aug. 7, the parish’s beloved statue of St. Francis de Sales — the patron saint of the parish — was vandalized with yellow paint. The statue stands in front of the main doors of the church in the San Fernando Valley. 

Just over a week later, on Aug. 16, a window at the rectory where Wakefield lives was set on fire. The bottom-right corner of the window was set on fire, and the fire burned through the inside, scorching the interior venetian blinds, Wakefield recounted. 

“Fortunately, the fire burned out before any additional damage was caused,” he told CNA. 

Just over a month later, on Sept. 20, the St. Francis de Sales statue was vandalized a second time. “The ... letters ‘chomo’ are slang for ‘child molester,’” Wakefield explained. This vandalism is being treated as a “hate crime” by local police, he said.

A week later, on Sept. 8, the statue was vandalized a third time with black spray paint, though nothing was written on it. 

“Our maintenance person has cleaned the statue twice and is in the process of cleaning it a third time,” Wakefield said.

Wakefield notified the LAPD Van Nuys Division each time and said the parish plans to install additional security cameras this week. 

“Officers arrived and took my statement and completed a report leaving us the incident number,” he said. “The fire of the rectory window triggered a visit from the police officers as well as arson investigators.”  

“It is dispiriting and unnerving,” Wakefield said when asked for his reaction to the events. “Our churches are places of peace where God’s love is proclaimed.”

“I feel sad for the person or persons who are in such torment to do such acts,” he continued. “Our religious images, whether in marble or plaster or wood, point to the holy person each represents. Therefore an attack on a religious image is an act of desecration.” 

“But, we go forward confident of the intercession of the all-holy Mother of God and of St. Francis de Sales,” he noted. “God’s love is always more powerful than anything the human can produce.”  

A local report noted that there have been many cases of vandalism in the area in recent months, including arson, window-smashing, and break-ins at local businesses, according to KTLA 5.

The City of Los Angeles Public Record Reports did not respond to a request for police reports by the time of publication. 

Cardinals-elect Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, SVD; Archbishop Jaime Spengler, OFM; and Archbishop Ignace Bessi Dogbohe discuss the contributions of the Church outside Europe during a Synod on Synodality press briefing on Oct. 8, 2024. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

Vatican City, Oct 8, 2024 / 14:00 pm (CNA).

Cardinals-designate from three continents said Tuesday the Church in the global south has a lot of nonmaterial gifts to share with the West, including the richness of priestly vocations and a joy-filled faith.

“When the Holy Father is talking about peripheries, I think the peripheries are moving. ... Maybe the peripheries are moving towards Europe,” Tokyo’s Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, SVD, said in response to a question from CNA during a press briefing on the Synod on Synodality on Oct. 8.

The Japanese bishop’s comments on the contributions of the Church outside Europe were echoed by Archbishop Ignace Bessi Dogbo of Korhogo, Ivory Coast, and Archbishop Jaime Spengler, OFM, of Porto Alegre, Brazil, who also participated in the press briefing. 

All three men are participants in the synod and will be made cardinals at a consistory on Dec. 8, as announced by Pope Francis on Sunday.

The cardinal-designate from the Ivory Coast, Dogbo, said the Synod on Synodality discussed the theme of the exchange of gifts on Tuesday morning.

“We who come from African dioceses, we can say that they seem to be poor from a material standpoint, but spiritually these dioceses are so rich. And faith is lived with joy,” he said. “And this is something we must share with the universal Church.”

He also mentioned the great grace of many priestly vocations in the Church in Africa.

Kikuchi of Tokyo also pointed out the large number of vocations to the priesthood coming from countries in Asia, though he remarked that Japan is unfortunately not included in this.

“There is a point in [the synodal assembly] in which we discussed the exchange of gifts from one Church to the other — those who have and those who don’t have. Formerly it was understood as rich Churches, those who have money and resources, who support the poor countries like in Asia and Africa,” Kikuchi said. 

With more priestly vocations coming from Asian and African countries, however, “the exchange of gifts is changing ... from the developing countries to the developed countries,” he said.

Spengler, president of the Brazilian bishops’ conference and president of the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM) since 2023, said Brazil and other Latin American countries are celebrating the anniversary of the arrival of immigrants from Germany, Italy, and other countries to the continent.

“Somehow [these immigrants] promoted a process of evangelization in Latin America in a historical context other than our own, and they did this so well,” he said. “Today, if we have a Christian tradition that is strong and lively [in Latin America] we owe it to immigrants.”

The archbishop said the immigrants were brave to leave their own countries and cross the ocean, in some cases more than 200 years ago, to a continent where there was little at the time. But most importantly, he added, they brought the Catholic faith with them.

He said today’s challenge for the Church in traditionally Christian countries is understanding how to present the faith to the next generation.

Bishop Yao Shun of Jining and Bishop Yang Yongqiang of Zhouchun (right) of the People’s Republic of China at the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican in October 2023. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Oct 8, 2024 / 13:30 pm (CNA).

The Synod on Synodality, meant to be a moment of encounter and dialogue for the global Church, has provided a venue for Catholic bishops from mainland China and Taiwan to meet together.

Bishop Norbert Pu is Taiwan’s first Indigenous bishop. He is a member of the Tsou community and has translated liturgical texts into the Tsou language. The 66-year-old bishop of Chiayi is a delegate in the nearly monthlong synod assembly as a representative of the Chinese Regional Bishops’ Conference of Taiwan.

In an interview with CNA, Pu said he is most looking forward to getting to know the different bishops, cardinals, and synod delegates from other parts of the world gathered at the Vatican for the second session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of Bishops.

Pu noted that he had already met with the two bishops from mainland China taking part in the synod and plans to meet with them again.

“It’s very important to dialogue with them, to respect each other. I think it’s good … not only for the Chinese, for the whole Church,” the Taiwanese bishop said.

Bishop Antonio Yao Shun of Jining, the first bishop consecrated in China under the terms of the Sino-Vatican agreement, represented the Church in China at the synod assembly in October 2023 along with Chinese Archbishop Joseph Yang Yongqiang before the two suddenly departed early without explanation. 

Yao has said that many of the participants in last year’s synod assembly “showed interest in the development of the Church in China, eager to know more and to pray for us.”

The synod also provided an opportunity for the bishops from the People’s Republic of China to spend time with the bishop of Hong Kong, Cardinal Stephen Chow. 

During last year’s synod assembly, the cardinal and the two bishops even took a brief trip together to Naples where they offered Mass at the Chiesa della Sacra Famiglia dei Cinesi (Church of the Holy Family of the Chinese), a church built in 1732 as part of an institute founded by Pope Clement XII to train Chinese seminarians and teach missionaries the Chinese language to help with the evangelization of China.

A new synod delegate from China

For this year’s assembly, Yao has been replaced by Chinese Bishop Vincent Zhan Silu of Mindong diocese in China’s southern Fujian province.

Zhan Silu, 63, was formerly excommunicated for having been ordained a bishop without a papal mandate in Beijing in 2000. His excommunication was lifted in 2018 when the Vatican signed a historic provisional agreement with the Chinese government on the appointment of bishops.

When Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich was asked why Yao had been replaced by Zhan Silu, the relator general of the synod replied: “The Secretariat of State communicated the names to us, but we have no other information on the matter,” according to Asia News.

Without Yao, Archbishop Yang, 54, is the synod veteran among the two Chinese bishops. Since participating in last year’s synod assembly, Yang has been transferred to the Archdiocese of Hangzhou, a move that took place “within the framework of dialogue” of the provisional agreement with China, according to the Vatican. The change elevated him to the rank of archbishop.

Yang was ordained a bishop with Vatican approval in 2010 and served as the bishop of Zhoucun in mainland China’s Shandong Province from 2013 to June 2024. 

He participated in the 2023 National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, a political advisory body that is part of the Chinese Communist Party’s united front system, where it was decided that the Catholic Church should integrate its thought with the party and unite more closely to Xi Jinping, according to the official website of the Catholic Patriotic Association.

Zhan Silu and Yang are among the 368 voting delegates taking part in the second synod assembly at the Vatican Oct. 2–27.

The synod is taking place amid the ongoing dialogue between Beijing and Rome on the appointment of bishops. The Vatican has yet to announce if it renewed its provisional agreement with China, which is expected to have been renewed this fall for the third time since it was first signed in 2018.

Vatican-Taiwan relations

During the first week of the assembly, some synod delegates took a break from the day’s meetings to join in the celebration of Taiwan’s 113th National Day at a reception organized by the Embassy of the Republic of China to the Holy See just down the street from St. Peter’s Basilica.

Vatican City State is the only remaining country in Europe that recognizes Taiwan as a country.

The Holy See has had formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, formally called the Republic of China (ROC), since 1942, while the Church does not have official diplomatic relations with the mainland People’s Republic of China (PRC).

The island of Taiwan, fewer than 110 miles off the coast of China and home to a population of more than 23 million people, has maintained a vibrant democracy with robust civil liberties despite increased pressure from Beijing regarding the island’s status.

Unlike mainland China — where images of Christ and the Virgin Mary have been replaced with images of President Xi Jinping, according to a report released last week — Catholics in Taiwan enjoy religious freedom, which is enshrined in its constitution.

More than 10,000 people attended the National Eucharistic Congress in Taiwan last weekend, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Pope Francis sent a message to the congress, writing that he hoped it would “arouse in the hearts of the Christian faithful a true worship and love of the Eucharist.” The congress in the Diocese of Kaohsiung was the fifth Eucharistic congress held in Taiwan since 2011.

Bishop Pu told CNA that the congress presented an opportunity to let more people in Taiwan know about the Eucharist and its central importance to the Catholic faith.

“We hope we can always maintain this formal and good relationship with the Vatican. Because for Taiwan, this is very important. We hope that the world will see this because Taiwan is a democratic and free country, respected by other nations,” Pu said.

Cardinal Philip Neri Ferrão, the president of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), launches the migrant portal on Sept. 27, 2024, in Bangalore, India. / Credit: CCBI Migrant Commission

Bangalore, India, Oct 8, 2024 / 10:50 am (CNA).

India’s bishops recently launched a digital tool to help support the country’s hundreds of millions of migrants, hoping to address what one bishop calls the “serious concern” of migrant well-being. 

The digital portal was launched on Sept. 27 in Bangalore by the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) ahead of the Vatican’s 110th World Day of Migrants and Refugees on Sept. 29.

The digital portal, CCBI said in a press release, has been linked to the CatholicConnectIn platform of the Indian Church “to assist migrants moving for work, education, or other reasons of displacement. This initiative aligns with the vision of Pope Francis, who advocates for welcoming, protecting, promoting, and integrating migrants and refugees.”

Archbishop Victor Henry Thakur, who heads the CCBI Commission for Migrants as well as the  Archdiocese of Raipur, told CNA: “Migration is a reality and the Church has the duty to accompany migrants.”

“Dismissing migration as a problem, some argue that migration should be stopped,” the prelate said. “When people struggle for survival and jobs, they move to greener places for better opportunities. The constitution also gives them the right to move.”

Immigrants are estimated to be nearly one-third of India’s 1.44 billion people.

Migrant care “became a serious concern for the Church [in India] from early 2000,” Thakur said. “It is a challenging task for us to connect our social service wings at the diocesan level to reach out to as many migrants as possible.”

“India, home to one of the world’s largest diasporas, has over 450 million internal migrants,” the CCBI said in announcing the portal. “They often face challenges related to displacement, exploitation, and access to basic services.” 

“In response, the Catholic Church is stepping up efforts to assist migrants, refugees, internally displaced persons, unaccompanied minors, and victims of human trafficking.”

“The portal will serve as a vital resource, allowing migrants to register and access Church services regardless of their location,” the bishops said. “Dioceses and parishes across India will support the initiative by helping migrants register, while trained volunteers from migrant communities will extend aid to those in distress.”

Father Jaison Vadassery, the secretary of the bishops’ Commission for Migrants, told CNA that “the service is open to all, regardless of caste, creed, or religion. The portal will enable the Church to accompany migrants in a more meaningful way. The platform will help migrants enroll in government schemes and provide assistance during emergencies, such as securing health care or education for their children.”

Vadassery said the commission has a lot of technical work to do to link the digital portal to a multilingual website that will connect all the country’s dioceses so that migrants can seek support from anywhere. 

“Our goal is to provide migrants a window to register and access Church services regardless of their location by helping them integrate into their host communities while remaining connected to their cultural and religious roots,” the priest said.

“A team of computer experts are setting up faultless networking while our regional coordinators are supervising surveys at the diocesan level,”  he added. 

“We have already conducted surveys among migrants in the Agra, Meerut, and Delhi Dioceses. In Delhi alone, we interviewed 400 migrants. Getting information is difficult as they are suspicious about fraudsters,” Sister Rani Punnasseril, a nun with the Sisters of the Holy Cross and the coordinator of  the migrant commission for the northern region, told CNA.

“Several teams are now engaged in conducting surveys among the migrants,” she said.

St. Elie and St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Catholic Cathedral in Beirut. / Credit: Jari Kurittu, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Oct 8, 2024 / 09:00 am (CNA).

The Middle East edged closer to large-scale crisis this week as Iran launched a volley of missile attacks on Israel and Israel continued its bombardment of southern Lebanon. 

For a Middle Eastern nation, Lebanon has a large and influential Christian population. The latest figures show that Lebanon remains about 70% Muslim and about 30% Christian, according to a 2022 international religious freedom report by the U.S. Department of State — a far higher percentage of Christians than its neighbors. 

Christianity in Lebanon traces its roots to the dawn of Christianity itself — in fact, Christ himself visited Lebanon. The Bible mentions the ancient pagan trading towns of Tyre and Sidon, both of which still exist today as major cities in southern Lebanon, dozens of times.  

Just a couple of years ago, Lebanon was one of the most peaceful nations in the Middle East and — despite some serious domestic problems that can’t be overlooked — a model for other countries in the region for how Christians and Muslims can coexist in the same country in relative peace. 

Of the Muslims in Lebanon, they are split about evenly between Sunni and Shiites. Hezbollah, the political party and militant group that has been in the news, is Shia and deeply aligned with Iran, which is also majority-Shia.

Who are Lebanon’s Christians? 

The majority — over half — of Lebanon’s Christians belong to the Maronite Church, an Eastern Catholic rite in full communion with the pope. There are about 3.5 million Maronites worldwide. 

St. Maron, the Church’s namesake, was a Syriac-speaking hermit who is believed to have died in the early fifth century. Later on in the mid-fifth century, Maron’s disciples established a monastery named after him that thrived for many years until the Muslim conquest of the region, which led the Maronites to move their monastery from present-day Syria to the mountains of Lebanon.

Enduring persecution by various groups over the centuries, the Maronites retained a strong relationship with the popes. The Maronite College in Rome was founded by Gregory XIII in 1584. 

Gaining influence within Lebanon and abroad, Maronite emigrants began leaving the country in the mid-19th century, bringing their religion with them. 

Other Christian groups present in Lebanon, according to the U.S. State Department, include Greek Catholics (Melkites), Armenian Orthodox, Armenian Catholics, Syriac Orthodox, Syriac Catholics, Assyrians, Chaldean Catholics, Copts, Protestants (including Presbyterians, Baptists, and Seventh-day Adventists), and Roman Catholics.

After a long civil war from 1975 to 1990, Lebanon gained a reputation for being one of the most peaceful and prosperous nations in the Middle East. In later years, however, Lebanon’s people began suffering from a nationwide financial crisis. 

Then came the August 2020 Beirut port explosion, one of the largest nonnuclear, man-made explosions in human history, which took place at Beirut’s vital port caused by a stockpile of dangerous chemicals that had sat at the port for years amid negligence and corruption. 

Most of the neighborhoods of Beirut destroyed in the explosion were majority-Christian, which exacerbated an exodus of Christians from the country.

In addition, the country’s Muslim population has been massively bolstered since 2011 by an influx of mostly-Muslim refugees from neighboring Syria, fleeing that country’s brutal civil war. According to the U.N. refugee agency, Lebanon has taken in at least 1.5 million Syrian refugees — a massive number for such a small country and one of the highest proportions of any country in the world. 

St. Charbel Maklouf

St. Charbel is perhaps the best-known Maronite saint, other than St. Maron himself, lending his name to Maronite churches across the world. 

He was born Yussef Antoun Makhlouf to a humble Lebanese family in 1828, the youngest of five children. As a boy, he spent a great deal of time outdoors in the fields and pastures near his village, contemplating God amid the inspiring views of Lebanon’s valleys and mountains.

His family wanted him to get married, but the young man had other ideas. He trekked on foot to the Monastery of St. Maron, where he took his monastic vows in 1853. After studying for the priesthood, he was ordained and returned to the monastery where he would humbly serve for the next 19 years. He showed great devotion to the life of prayer, manual work, and contemplative silence.

In 1875, he was granted permission to live in solitude at a nearby hermitage. He spent the next 23 years there, until his death.

St. Charbel was deeply devoted to God’s presence in the Eucharist. On Dec. 16, 1898, Charbel suffered a stroke while celebrating the Maronite Divine Liturgy (the Maronite equivalent of the Mass).

He died on Christmas Eve of that year, and Pope Paul VI canonized him in 1977.

The former monastery and nearby hermitage where St. Charbel lived out his last days is located in Annaya, an hour north of Beirut and in the hills nine miles inland from the coast. It remains a place of pilgrimage for Christians and Muslims alike, who come seeking miraculous healings. 

Since 1950, when St. Charbel’s tomb was first opened, the shrine has archived some 29,000 medically-verified healings.

What’s the latest in Lebanon?

ACI Mena, CNA’s Arabic-language news partner in the Middle East, has been reporting on the plight of Christians in Lebanon. In late September, it reported that the Keserwan district of Mount Lebanon, known as the heart of the Christian community due to its large Maronite population and the presence of important religious sites like the Maronite Patriarchate and the Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon, has been subject to Israeli airstrikes targeting a Hezbollah official.

Aid to the Church in Need reported in December that about 90% of those living in southern Lebanon’s Christian villages have fled their homes amid the rocket strikes between Israel and Hezbollah. 

The situation in Lebanon is evolving and changing every day. A Sept. 26 report from the agency noted that amid the Israeli attacks, “Christian towns remain far from direct bombardment, even if they have their share of shrapnel.”

However, Christian cities and towns across Lebanon are now crowded with people displaced from the southern villages. Beirut and its suburbs are seeing some Christian families move to their summer homes in rural areas. 

A Maronite priest, Father Marwan Ghanem, personally witnessed the recent Israeli pager attack that killed and wounded hundreds of Hezbollah operatives and told ACI Mena about the experience. 

Ghanem said after the coordinated explosions happened he stopped to help three wounded people. He said he did not consider whether they were Muslim or Christian but rather recognized “the face of the wounded Christ on the road.” In such dire circumstances, he said, there is no distinction between a Christian and a Muslim but rather everyone is human, created in the image of God.

Bishop Mark Seitz of the Diocese of El Paso, Texas, speaks at the “Responding to Changing Realities at the U.S. Border and Beyond” conference, hosted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and The Catholic University of America. / Credit: Photo courtesy of The Catholic University of America

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 8, 2024 / 08:00 am (CNA).

The U.S. bishops issued a statement praising the Biden administration’s decision last week to expand the U.S. refugee resettlement program and commended the role of Catholic organizations in partnering with the government to resettle refugees.

President Joe Biden signed the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2025 on Sept. 30, setting the refugee admissions target at 125,000. This comes after the administration has made several changes and expansions to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) and resettled over 100,000 refugees into the U.S. in 2023, the highest number since 1994.

A “refugee” is defined under U.S. law as a person who is “unable or unwilling” to return to his or her country because of “persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.”

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is one of 10 “national resettlement agencies” that partner with USRAP to take in and assist these refugees.

The bishops said that dioceses and local Catholic Charities agencies “play an essential role in helping refugees to integrate successfully into their new communities.”

Bishop Mark Seitz, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Migration Committee, applauded Catholic organizations’ contributions to the refugee resettlement program, saying that “from lifesaving protection for refugee families to the economic renewal they offer receiving communities, this is part of what it means to ‘love thy neighbor.’”

“My brother bishops and I could not be more grateful for the witness of faithful Catholics across our country who have, for many decades now, committed themselves to accompanying refugees as a visible sign of Christ’s love in the world.”

Seitz thanked the Biden administration for its efforts to “reassert and grow our nation’s proud tradition of welcoming refugees” as well as the “bipartisan support of Congress,” which he said “has played a vital role in the success of the resettlement program since its inception.”

“Resettling 100,000 refugees is a significant achievement, given the all-time low number seen in 2021 and some of the challenges facing American communities at this time, including a nationwide shortage of affordable housing,” Seitz said. “Guided by the Gospel and faithful to our national values, the U.S. Catholic community will continue doing its part to carry this endeavor forward.”

After being established through the bipartisan Refugee Act of 1980, USRAP has generally enjoyed wide support across the political spectrum.

While he has been sharply critical of many of the Biden administration’s immigration policies, Andrew Arthur, a former immigration judge and policy expert at the Center for Immigration Studies, told CNA that “of all the things that the Biden-Harris administration is doing to facilitate the entry of people who don’t have visas to come to the United States, this is far and away the least objectionable.”

He said that though 125,000 is “high compared to prior years” it is still “well within” the limits set by the law.

Arthur emphasized that the refugee resettlement program differs greatly from the U.S. asylum system.

“We know from past experience that individuals who make asylum claims generally never follow through on them,” he said. “But when you’re talking about refugees, those are individuals who have already been adjudicated. They’ve already been determined to be refugees before they’re brought here. They’ve already been vetted abroad before they come here. So, the danger that they pose to national security is lower; it’s not zero, but it is lower.”

The Supreme Court of the state of Georgia is housed at the Nathan Deal Judicial Center in Atlanta. / Credit: Harrison Keely, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Oct 7, 2024 / 19:15 pm (CNA).

The Georgia Supreme Court reinstated on Monday the state’s heartbeat law, a six-week limit on abortion known as the “LIFE Act,” after a trial court judge overturned it last week. 

The state Supreme Court in a 6 to 1 majority reinstated the heartbeat law pending ongoing litigation surrounding the law. Last week, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr requested a stay of the rule blocking the heartbeat law, pending appeal.

A six-week abortion limit is often called a heartbeat law, named because it protects unborn babies after fetal cardiac activity is detectable. The order went into effect at 5 p.m. on Oct. 7 in Georgia, protecting unborn babies if they have a detectable heartbeat. 

Claire Bartlett, executive director of the pro-life advocacy group Georgia Life Alliance, told CNA that she expects the Georgia Supreme Court “to fully uphold the LIFE Act.”

“From the very beginning, the LIFE Act sought to strike a careful balance of recognizing the difficult circumstances women find themselves in with the basic right to life of a unique, living unborn child,” Bartlett said. 

A trial court ruling on Sept. 30 overturned the heartbeat law on the grounds of liberty and privacy in the Georgia Constitution. 

Carr promptly appealed the decision in a legal motion on Wednesday, saying in the motion that “there is nothing legally private about ending the life of an unborn child.” Carr filed the emergency petition for supersedeas in the ongoing case, The State of Georgia v. SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. The state Supreme Court is reinstating the law as the appeal is ongoing. 

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled last week that the state’s constitutional right to liberty included decisions about abortion. 

In a 26-page ruling, McBurney said the six-week law and any pre-viability abortion restrictions are arbitrary and unconstitutional. He said the state could only restrict abortion after viability — usually at about 23 or 24 weeks. Any restrictions before that violate a women’s right to liberty and privacy, McBurney said.

The definition of liberty, he wrote, includes “the power of a woman to control her own body, to decide what happens to it and in it, and to reject state interference with her health care choices.”

“When Judge McBurney issued his opinion and order last Friday, his ruling was not based in reality, much less law,” Bartlett said.

The Georgia Catholic bishops of Savannah and Atlanta called the heartbeat law’s overturn a “terrible step backwards” in a statement shared with CNA last week. 

“Yesterday’s ruling to overturn Georgia’s abortion ban represents a terrible step backwards in our never-ending efforts to recognize and respect the inherent dignity of every life,” the bishops said in a joint statement. “How many tiny lives will be extinguished while lawyers appeal and lawmakers debate?”

The Archdiocese of Atlanta declined to comment further but noted in a statement last week that it “remain[s] committed to helping mothers and fathers facing crisis pregnancies as well as their precious babies.”

“We will advocate for laws to protect those in the margins. We can foster a culture of life in our families and communities. We can demonstrate how sacred each life is in the eyes of God,” the bishops said. 

In the state Supreme Court dissenting opinion, Justice John Ellington argued that “the state should not be in the business of enforcing laws that have been determined to violate fundamental rights guaranteed to millions of individuals under the Georgia Constitution.”

The Living Infants Fairness and Equality (LIFE) Act was initially passed in 2019, but McBurney blocked it, citing Roe v. Wade. After Roe v. Wade’s overturn, the Georgia Supreme Court overruled the decision, allowing the law to take effect in 2022. 

False claims about Georgia abortion law

The Georgia abortion law recently came under fire from Democrat presidential candidate and current vice president Kamala Harris, who promulgated a false claim that the Georgia abortion law had caused the death of two women, Amber Thurman, 28, and Candi Miller, 41.

The left-leaning news outlet ProPublica published several stories blaming the LIFE Act for their deaths. The two women died from infections caused by complications after taking abortion pills. 

The deaths of Thurman and Miller were “tragic,” Bartlett noted, and Georgia law was not to blame.

“In the case of Amber Thurman, her twin babies had already died due to the abortion pills she obtained out of state. She did not have pre- or post-medical care until she became fatally infected,” she said. “Her sad and tragic death had everything to do with lack of proper medical attention, not Georgia’s law.” 

“In the case of Candi Miller, medical protections had been removed by the Biden-Harris administration in their effort to proliferate abortion pill access,” Bartlett continued, noting that Miller had ordered the pills “online from an overseas provider.” 

In response to the dangers surrounding chemical abortions, Bartlett said that “we have a responsibility to pass protective legislation such as the Women’s Health and Safety Act, which restores the protections the Biden-Harris administration removed.” 

These protections, she said, include “requiring a woman to see a medical provider in person for a complete medical history and a physical assessment to determine any risks” as well as requiring that abortions “only be performed by licensed physicians.” 

“We take a ‘Love Them Both’ approach” to these issues, Bartlett said. 

Bartlett noted that the LIFE Act “is a careful balance of protecting the basic human rights of an unborn child while meeting society where it is culturally.”

“The law protects the child once his or her heartbeat is detectable, which can be as early as four and a half weeks. The law protects the woman by offering exceptions for life of the mother’s medical emergency, rape, incest, or if the unborn child is deemed ‘incompatible with life,’” she said. “Under no circumstance under the law is treatment for a miscarriage, stillbirth, or ectopic pregnancy considered an abortion.”

Sherry Colvin (left) and her daughter Gabriela were among the attendees at the "Remembering October 7th" rally held in front of the U.S. Capitol on Oct. 7, 2024. / Credit: Madalaine Elhabbal/CNA

Washington D.C., Oct 7, 2024 / 18:45 pm (CNA).

Hundreds gathered at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in support of Israel and in remembrance of the victims and hostages on the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel.

The event, “Remembering October 7th,” was sponsored by the Philos Project, a Christian nonprofit organization that advocates for pluralism and Israel’s peaceful existence in the Middle East, and included remarks from speakers across various faith backgrounds. 

Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts addressed Christians and fellow Catholics in particular during his remarks, calling on them to “stand up and be vocal and courageous” against antisemitism. 

“As a serious Roman Catholic, I can tell you that in our institutions, we’ve not been vocal enough about this,” Roberts said, appealing to fellow Christians in an impassioned speech for the Oct. 7 memorial event sponsored by the Philos Project in remembrance of Israeli victims and hostages. 

Referencing Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered at the Washington Monument in 1963, Roberts told those gathered at the event: “We know that speech to be about bringing an end to segregation in this country. But I would argue in 2024 that also includes once and for all ending in this country and around the world the scourge of antisemitism.”

In an interview with CNA at the event, Roberts stressed that antisemitism “never ends with the Jews.” Even if that were the case, the public policy leader told CNA, Christians would still be called to stand in solidarity with them. 

However, he continued, “next on the list will be those of us who are faithful Catholics.” 

“It is really important for people of all faiths ... to express their solidarity not just with Israel and all people of Jewish faith around the world,” he told CNA, “but for all Americans and free people to say this hatred and this violence has to come to an end.”

On Oct. 7, Hamas militants killed over 1,400 Israelis, took 250 hostages — of which only 101 are still alive — and committed acts of sexual violence against Israeli women, according to reports. Israel has since faced international criticism due to the rising number of civilian casualties in Gaza, currently estimated to be nearly 42,000 by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, since launching its counteroffensive. 

Following news of the escalation between Israel and Iran’s proxies in Lebanon last week, as CNA reported, Pope Francis called on Christians all over the world to observe a “day of prayer and fasting” on Oct. 7. 

Addressing how Christians ought to approach the conflict, Roberts told CNA that they must remember, “first and foremost, that all life is precious.” Drawing on Catholic teaching on just war theory, Roberts told CNA he believed the Israeli response to be “very careful” and “very proportionate. Lastly, Roberts emphasized that for peace to exist, Hamas must “cease to exist.” 

“We have to understand as Americans and Roman Catholics living in the United States that all of these assaults on Israel are assaults on Western civilization, [that] they are assaults on our faith,” he stated, adding: “We, first and foremost, have to have the courage to stand up and say, ‘We have to bring this to an end.’”

On a practical level, Roberts explained to CNA that for American policymakers on both sides of the aisle to help facilitate the end of the war, it is “vital” to end funding mechanisms for Hamas and Hezbollah at home and abroad. Roberts drew on this point during his speech as well, telling the crowd they should be asking policymakers and all of those running for office in November where they stand regarding Israel. “Otherwise,” he said, “we’re not going to end antisemitism.”

In his interview with CNA, Roberts expanded on this point further with respect to his own Catholic beliefs, saying that to him, “the contrast between the two sides couldn’t be clearer.”

“I see this as a Roman Catholic guy,” he said. “There’s one side broadly defined as the conservative movement that understands that this cause isn’t just about the state of Israel. It isn’t even just about people of Jewish faith, although both of those are certainly worthy of being in solidarity with. This is about freedom, and it’s about Western civilization, about all of our faith.”

“The other side, the radical left on its best day, speaks out of both sides of its mouth, but is really beholden to the funding interests of Hamas and Hezbollah,” he added. “Hopefully, what people see is the contrast that exists, and they vote their conscience.” 

Ohio senator and vice presidential hopeful JD Vance also made an appearance at the event.

“I know that in this crowd, some of us are Christians, some of us are Jews, and some of us are people even of no faith,” he told the crowd. “But we are united in the basic commonsense principle that we want the good guys to win and we want the bad guys to lose.” 

“What happened on October the 7th was disgraceful, and we have to make sure it never happens again,” Vance added.

U.S. Supreme Court. / Credit: PT Hamilton/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 7, 2024 / 18:00 pm (CNA).

The Supreme Court on Monday denied an appeal by the Biden administration to compel emergency room doctors in Texas to perform abortions.

The decision leaves in place a January ruling by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Becerra v. State of Texas. The 5th Circuit Court ruled that the administration’s attempt to use the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) to mandate abortions as necessary, stabilizing treatment “goes beyond” the intent of the law.

In its ruling, the 5th Circuit said that EMTALA “does not mandate medical treatments, let alone abortion care, nor does it preempt Texas law.”

This is the latest development in the administration’s attempt to use EMTALA to mandate abortions as necessary treatment.

The administration has been arguing in court that EMTALA includes abortion as part of the mandated emergency care hospitals must provide. Under this reading of EMTALA, any hospital with an emergency department that refused to perform abortions would risk losing its federal funding.

Matt Bowman, senior counsel at the Alliance Defending Freedom, a law firm involved in the case, applauded the Supreme Court decision, saying that “federal bureaucrats have no business compelling doctors or hospitals to end unborn lives.”

“Every state allows doctors to do whatever is necessary to preserve the life of a mother. But elective abortion is not lifesaving care — it ends the life of the unborn child — and the government has no authority to force doctors to perform these dangerous procedures,” Bowman said. “We are pleased that the Supreme Court decided the 5th Circuit’s ruling should stand, allowing emergency rooms to fulfill their primary function — saving lives.”

Dr. Ingrid Skop, an OB-GYN who practices in Texas and serves as director of medical affairs at the Charlotte Lozier Institute, also praised the decision.

“As a board-certified OB-GYN practicing in Texas for over 30 years, I have been privileged to care for both pregnant mothers and their unborn babies. I have delivered over 5,000 babies over the course of my career, and after Texas passed its law protecting unborn life, my care remained unchanged,” Skop said.

She also noted that “the laws of every state allow physicians to intervene to protect a woman’s life in a pregnancy emergency.”

This follows another decision by the Supreme Court issued in June that upheld a ruling in a similar case, Moyle v. Idaho. That decision allowed the federal government to compel emergency room doctors in Idaho to perform abortions.

Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a debate at the CBS Broadcast Center on Oct. 1, 2024, in New York City. / Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

CNA Staff, Oct 7, 2024 / 17:30 pm (CNA).

Since Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris picked him as her running mate, vice presidential candidate Tim Walz has faced challenges from Republicans, pro-life advocates, and the media to defend his extreme positions on abortion. 

As governor of Minnesota, Walz has signed several far-reaching abortion laws that have significantly expanded abortion in that state, including legislation that enshrines abortion without restrictions up to the point of birth in the state constitution.

Nevertheless, Walz has skirted the issue and refused to say that he signed legislation that allows abortion through all nine months of pregnancy.

What has Walz said?

In the vice presidential debate with Sen. JD Vance this month, the moderator asked Walz to answer “yes or no” whether he supports abortion through the ninth month of pregnancy.

“Former President Trump said in the last debate that you believe abortion ‘in the ninth month is absolutely fine.’ Yes or no? Is that what you support?” Walz was asked.

Walz dodged the question, saying: “That’s not what the bill says.” 

“In Minnesota, what we did was restore Roe v. Wade,” he said. 

Minnesota law goes further than Roe, however. Before it was overturned, Roe v. Wade legalized abortion throughout the entire United States, until roughly the end of the second trimester.

And in a recent Fox News interview Walz was pressed further on the matter by anchor Shannon Bream, who noted that there is “no ban or limit on abortion in Minnesota based on how far along in a pregnancy you are.” 

Walz again appeared to dodge the question. 

“Look, the vice president and I have been clear. The restoration of Roe v. Wade is what we’re asking for,” he said. When Bream pointed out that Minnesota law goes well beyond Roe v. Wade, Walz said: “The law is very clear. It does not change that. That has been debunked on every occasion.”

What does Minnesota law say? 

Though Walz appears eager to avoid discussing the details of the law he signed, Minnesota law does in fact allow for abortion through all nine months of pregnancy, with no restrictions whatsoever, and that legislation to guarantee this “right” was signed by Walz himself. 

The state’s Protect Reproductive Options Act, signed by Walz in January 2023, establishes that, in Minnesota, “every individual who becomes pregnant has a fundamental right to continue the pregnancy and give birth, or obtain an abortion, and to make autonomous decisions about how to exercise this fundamental right.” The measure imposes no restrictions on abortion at any stage and enshrines that “right” in the state constitution.

Both pro-life and pro-abortion advocates agree that there are no restrictions on abortion in Minnesota. The group Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life (MCCL) says on its website that the law signed by Walz imposes “no limitations [on abortion] at any stage in pregnancy,” 

The website AbortionFinder, meanwhile, states that abortion “is legal throughout pregnancy in Minnesota” and that there is “no ban or limit on abortion in Minnesota based on how far along in pregnancy you are.”

MCCL co-executive director Cathy Blaeser told CNA on Monday that Minnesota is in a state of “abortion free-for-all.”

“We have a law that allows for abortion through all nine months of pregnancy with no protections for women or children at any gestational age,” she said. 

Asked if Minnesota’s law goes beyond Roe v. Wade as the Fox News host claimed, Blaeser said: “Yes.” 

“Initially, Roe v. Wade provided for a ‘trimester’ structure, even though in practice it allowed for abortion throughout nine months of pregnancy,” she said. “But it allowed states to put in protections with gestational age.” 

“But Minnesota currently would not allow for that,” she said, pointing out that women can obtain abortions in the state “for any reason and for no reason.”

Blaeser further pointed out that Minnesota law offers “no parameters to protect minor girls under the age of 18, and no protections for parents to be notified if their minor daughters get an abortion.” 

On its website, AbortionFinder also states that “parental involvement is not required in Minnesota” and that underage girls “can consent to an abortion and do not have to notify a parent to get an abortion in Minnesota.”

Asked about Walz’s appearing to dodge questions related to Minnesota’s abortion laws, Blaeser told CNA: “He’s actively lying. He’s not telling the truth about what the law does in this state.”

“He is trying to avoid answering those questions simply because he knows the American people do not support abortion on demand through all nine months of pregnancy,” she said.