Oakland Diocese Watch

2009-05-30T15:01:00.000-07:00

PREPARING VIOLENT YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS FOR RELEASE TO THE PUBLIC: a bill which has passed theCalifornia state Senate and is now awaiting hearings in the State Assembly. SB 399 by Sen. Leland Yee, (D-San Francisco).

The California Catholic Conference is recommending a YES vote to the legislators on SB 399, Juvenile Justice; Sentencing. This bill should be vigorously opposed.

Below is an analysis of SB 399, a bill by San Francisco Democrat Leland Yee. formerly a psychiatrist.

Existing Law: Penal Code Section 1170 concerning life sentences for violent crimes for juveniles who are now adults.

What This Proposition Does:

For prisoners who have served at least ten years of a life sentence for violent crimes beginning as a juvenile and who are now adults, prisoner may petition for a recall or reconsideration of their life sentence based on certain criteria and be allowed to be released if found to be in conformity with the criteria.

Fiscal Impact:

Fiscal impact appears to be removed from the currently amended bill. However when analysed by the Senate Appropriations Committee it was placed on a suspense file indicating an unknown cost factor exceeding the limit of $250,000.

Arguments in Support:

There are now 55 non-profit, religious,, ethnic minority, quasi legal, psychiological and counseling groups in support of this bill. Their argument concerns the posibility that when as a juvenile their brain development, education and socialization opportunities were insufficient to allow them the abillity to properly judge their actions; or they might have been an accomplice to the violent crime, or they might have been improperly convicted of a crime they did not commit.

It is felt that this type of a hearing would be less costly than a Habeas Corpus hearing so it could reduce some of the court costs and, of course, if the prisoner were let out of prison it would reduce the burden to the state for that prisoner's care.

Arguments Against:

There are 5 agencies in opposition. the Ca. District Attorney Assn, Ca. Police Officers Association, Ca. Police Chiefs Assn, Crime Victims Assn, Crime Victims United. They all state that they believe the law as it is currently administered is quite proper. They further believe that the "certain criteria" mentioned in the bill which the prisoners would have to meet are flimsy and extremely easy to meet.

Also, though the fiscal question has been removed from the amended versions of the bill there is still the question of the unknown costs to the state for hearings of an unknown number of qualifyiing prisoners listed variously as anywhere from 152 to upwards of 300 plus. Estimates of costs to the courts are: each case would require at least a 2 hour hearing at the cost of $1,000.00. The number of petitions to be heard is unknown, the potential exists for a huge backlog of cases and heavy workload. The bill requires that the petition for rehearing be held within 90 days of filing.

Comments/Concerns/Suggestions/Contact:

This bill does not address any requirements upon release of a former Juvenile now adult for any follow-up accountability on the part of the (former) prisoner to stay out of trouble, have a job, receive local community counseling or any such follow up. Only by checking on other, possibly related, bills does one get any sense of what might happen with these early release prisoners.

This bill is authored by Senate Leland Yee, formerly a practicing psychologist. His findings and position on releasing prisoners is reflected in the current fad amongst some psychiatrists and psychologists about brain development and improper socialization skills in a chil'd early years, i.e. it is society's fault or the educational department or the parents fault that the person fell into illegal activity.

Several other bills, when taken into consideration, show the potential for an as yet undetermined cost to local communities for early release or no imprisonment of offenders who are mandated to participate in all the community services available, given job skills and priorities for jobs in the trades.

Further, when thinking about the situation of a juvenile who was in the company of adults at the time of the violent crimes or who, as described in the bill, have no prior record of crimes this bill could, conceiably allow the early release of persons such as the case of the male juvenile who assisted the adult in a freeway shooting spree that terrorized Maryland Neighbors for several weeks, or, the case of the two Los Angeles area brothers who killed their parents. The brothers claimed that they had been badly abused by their parents but the court found that the boys wanted their inheritance now.

Supporters:

Fifty-five organizations are in support including the ACLU, Church Impact (a huge group of quasi religious, non-profit groups advocating social change), the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, The California Catholic Conference of Bishops which included this as one of their 3 bills in a recent lobby day at the capitol, various branches of Community organizer groups which affiliate with the ACLU and ACORN. Everyone of these groups dependent upon the tax funding for a percentage of their income.

Opponents:

Ca. District Attorneys Association, Ca. Peace Officers Association-(prison guards), Ca. Associationo of Police Chiefs, Crime Victims Association and Çrime Victims United.

2008-11-15T11:37:00.000-08:00

Abortion opponents protest U.S. bishops' 'support' for Obama
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0805752.htm

By Chaz Muth
Catholic News Service

BALTIMORE (CNS) -- Several pro-life groups held a candlelight vigil Nov. 11 near the Baltimore hotel where the U.S. bishops were conducting their fall general assembly, protesting statements made by some Catholic leaders who called the victorious campaign of President-elect Barack Obama a step forward in stamping out racism.

About 25 candle-holding activists braved the cold night air along Baltimore's waterfront to tell the bishops that Obama's support for legal abortion was more critical than any other qualities he might bring to the presidency.

They also called on the bishops to use their political clout in an effort to outlaw abortion in the U.S., shut down Planned Parenthood and rid all American schools of sex education.

Armed with a portable altar, an amplified podium, musical instruments and religious symbols, members of the American Life League, the Catholic Media Coalition, STOP Planned Parenthood, Maryland Right to Life and the Baltimore-based Defend Life also pushed for the bishops to punish Catholic lawmakers who support legal abortion by refusing them Communion or through excommunication.

"Barack Obama is the most pro-abortion candidate to ever run for the presidency, yet 54 percent of Catholics voted for him," said Jim Sedlak, vice president of the American Life League. "The bishops have said they will try and work with him. Archbishop (Donald W.) Wuerl (of Washington) said he wouldn't seek to deny (Vice President-elect Joseph) Biden Eucharist. Is it any wonder why 54 percent of the Catholic congregation felt like it was OK to vote for Barack Obama?"

Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, president of the U.S. Catholic bishops, sent letters of congratulations to Obama on his "historic election" Nov. 4 as the first black man to win the White House.

[NOTE: Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, existing eternally, of the One True Triune God, sitting at the Right Hand of the Father, did not "congratulate unrepentant sinners," but rather told them to "Go and sin no more!" Christ made it very clear that an act of contrition is worthless without a firm purpose of amendment! Moreover, I recall that Jesus Christ had more to say about the consequences of grave sin than any other New Testament figure. Accordingly, how can those who are supposed to be acting as an alter Christus (another Christ) unconditionally send letters of congratulations to someone whose resume is the complete support of the entirety of a culture-of-ETERNAL-death. Obama does not deserve congratulations from the Catholic Church for being the most pro-baby killing politician in the history of US politics to the extreme of seeing nothing wrong with killing children outside of the womb via his non support on FOUR, repeat, FOUR, occasions of Born Alive Infact Protection Acts designed to save babies who miraculously survived their botched abortions. Obama deserves condemnation from Holy Mother Church for seeing nothing wrong with allowing these babies to be left to die alone in hospital closets. If that would have happened, i.e., if we would have had a majority of Catholic bishops in more than name only resulting in a majority of Catholic voters in more than name only, Obama NEVER WOULD HAVE HAD A CHANCE OF BEING ELECTED!

Jesus Christ never congratulated the devil and his disciples. It is recorded that Jesus Christ did the following.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Gospel According to Saint Matthew, Chapter 4

1 Then Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert, to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards he was hungry. 3 And the tempter coming said to him: If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. 4 Who answered and said: It is written, Not in bread alone doth man live, but in every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. 5 Then the devil took him up into the holy city, and set him upon the pinnacle of the temple,

6 And said to him: If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down, for it is written: That he hath given his angels charge over thee, and in their hands shall they bear thee up, lest perhaps thou dash thy foot against a stone. 7 Jesus said to him: It is written again: Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 8 Again the devil took him up into a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, 9 And said to him: All these will I give thee, if falling down thou wilt adore me. 10 Then Jesus saith to him: Begone, Satan: for it is written, The Lord thy God shalt thou adore, and him only shalt thou serve.

No congratulations are owed to the first Marxist Socialist, who sees nothing wrong with Stalinist tactics in silencing all opposition, being elected to the Presidency of the United States, regardless of whether he's black, yellow, red, or polka-dot. Rather, sympathy is in order for America, and a world that America influences, which will suffer the consequences due to the devil being firmly in control of the soon to be shrinking "free world."

God help us all, and before all of this is over, we all will be down on our knees begging for God's help! - Gary L. Morella]

Inside their hotel, during a lengthy discussion Nov. 11 on what an Obama administration and a Democratic-dominated Congress might mean to the U.S. Catholic Church's pro-life cause, several bishops expressed fears that potential legislation and executive orders may relax federal policies related to abortion and embryonic stem-cell research.

Cardinal George said the church's position on abortion is clear, that it is evil and all Catholics should voice their opposition to it.

However, Archbishop George H. Niederauer of San Francisco said there is no unilateral rule that forbids U.S. Catholic politicians who vote in favor of legal abortion measures from receiving Communion, and said the decision of who should or shouldn't receive the Eucharist should be "left up to the pastoral sensitivity, to the individual bishop" of each diocese.

[NOTE: Niederauer has already shown his true colors many times over. His statement above shows a callous disregard for the committing of sacrilege on the part of pro-baby killing heretical apostates masquerading as Catholic. "There is no unilateral rule...." What about the only reason for the Catholic Church's existence, Niederauer, i.e., getting souls to Heaven, not to hell? That's about as straightforward a rule as you can get in accord with Christ's words at the end of Matthew's Gospel to convert the world to the Church that He founded upon Peter the Rock for salvation's sake! But Niederauer has proven to be one of the aforementioned apostates wearing masks. How else can his actions in the following links be explained?

Incredible Scandal as San Francisco Archbishop Niederauer's Apology Covers for Sodomy at MHR Parish
http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/g/l/glm7/m263.htm

Chronicles of a Shameless Archbishop
http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/g/l/glm7/m266.htm

You and your ilk are not fooling any Catholics in more than name only, Niederauer! They've caught your act too many times! We pray for your conversion to the one true faith. Barring that, we pray for the removal of you, and all those like you from positions of authority, in particular from the episcopate, who are destroying the Church from within. We do that for the sake of the souls of all concerned, not the least of which are your own! For your information, Niederauer, you have no credibility Those who have eyes to see, ears to hear, and are still capable of rational thought, i.e., right reason in accord with the Teaching Magisterium of Holy Mother Church on faith and morals, can easily discern wolves from sheep. And you and your ilk, Mr. Niederauer, are a member of the former group! - Gary L. Morella]

Sedlak told those participating in the protest that thousands of Catholics are confused because they witness politicians who support legal abortion going to Mass and receiving the Eucharist on a regular basis.

"This is in direct conflict with canon law," he said. "These politicians are guilty of the gravest of sins -- facilitating the death of innocent children -- and yet so many present themselves for Communion week after week. It's causing scandal and confusion in the church and this must cease."

During a press conference Nov. 11, Cardinal George said there is much debate about this particular canon, because some argue that a Catholic politician may only be guilty of formal cooperation in evil if he promotes the killing of innocent life and not by merely voting to keep the abortion procedure legal.

Jack Ames, president of Defend Life, called the bishops' choice of a venue for their fall assembly disrespectful because the hotel borders Baltimore's Little Italy neighborhood where "two Catholic pro-abortion members of Congress" -- Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and Democratic U.S. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski of Maryland -- grew up.

Ames also took the opportunity to point out that Maryland's Catholic Gov. Martin O'Malley is an advocate of legal abortion and that he, Pelosi and Mikulski regularly receive Communion.

Marie Hahnenberg, a researcher for STOP Planned Parenthood, also urged the bishops to use their influence to close down Planned Parenthood clinics nationwide.

Hahnenberg said Planned Parenthood routinely counsels its clients to have abortions and promotes teaching sex education to kindergartners in an effort to "turn them into future clients."

A smaller group of protesters organized by Operation Rescue founder Randall Terry also gathered in front of the bishop's Baltimore venue Nov. 9-10.

END

2008-10-30T10:35:00.000-07:00

The Systemic Wars:
CCHD funded Change Agents

By Stephanie Block

The Catholic Campaign for Human Development [CCHD] uses a diagram with two footprints to explain its work. One footprint says “Direct Services” and lists good works such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and sheltering the homeless. The other footprint is labeled “Social Change” and lists, among other things, legislative networking, advocacy, and community organizing. “You need both to walk,” the diagram explains [CCHD, “Poverty and FaithJustice,” 1998, p. 20].
The distinction between direct services and “systemic” issues – the changing of problematic social structures – isn’t difficult to understand. One can translate through a pro-life illustration: We see a frightened woman about to enter an abortion clinic. She is threatening to “terminate her pregnancy” because she needs many practical things: diapers, rent money, a friend to talk to, and a place to stay. Those are the goods and services the prolife community offers her. They are celled “direct services,” that is, they respond directly to the immediate needs of this suffering human being.
Prolife people are also interested in “social change,” however. The problem isn’t only one woman’s moral choices. She has come to the abortion clinic because the society she lives in tells her that this is the right thing for her to do. It’s legal, for one thing. Her boyfriend and her girlfriends and perhaps even her minister have assured her that she’s making a responsible decision. In such a climate, pro-life activists must work not only to offer each troubled young mother an option to abortion but to help the people around her understand that the life of the pre-born child is precious. So long as there is a culture of death, the numbers of women seeking abortions will be high.
How do pro-lifers work to change this prevailing culture? They do several things.
Pro-lifers work legislatively – that is, they attempt to change bad laws and work for life-sustaining legislation, eyeing the day when there will be a Human Life Amendment to the Constitution protecting a human person from the moment of conception to the moment of his natural, God-ordained death.
They also work educationally – that is, by attempting to teach people about the horror of abortion, the humanity of the fetus, the practical options to a mother in difficult circumstances, and the beauty of chastity.
Lastly, and most significantly, they work spiritually – that is, with the prayerful and humble certainty that injustice is a fact of life unless every heart is turned toward God. Irresponsible personal behavior must be changed before the society at large will change.
That’s the ideal battle plan against abortion. It includes a response to the individual’s immediate needs and it works for social change. It’s a two-pronged, common sense approach to a complex problem.
Now, apply the same principles to another issue: poverty. Just as there is a community of people who are pouring out their hearts and goods to “stop abortion,” there is a community of people who want to “end poverty.” This is not only a good thing, it’s what those who follow in the footsteps of Jesus are called to do. Therefore, it’s not surprising that Christians have an impressive history of direct services to the poor.
Like pro-lifers, people who work to help the poor recognize that there are problems in the fabric of society that tend to exacerbate poverty. Irresponsible personal behavior or unfortunate circumstances such as ill health may be causes of poverty but it, too, may be rooted in societal structures – take the epidemic of divorce, for example. Any attempt to address poverty that fails to recognize societal structures imprisoning even responsible people in crushing situations will fail.
Added to which, there is certainly ignorance among some people who are materially comfortable about the problems the poor face. Like pro-life issues, poverty is complex and calls for both direct services and a gamut of legislative, educational, and spiritual responses.
Therefore, a Catholic examines the Catholic Campaign for Human Development collection, which purports to “help the poor,” and wants to know how it accomplishes its mission. He does not ask this because he believes the Church should stick to direct service and eschew “social change” but because he needs to know that the changes proposed by CCHD grantees are something Catholics ought to be supporting. Are they commensurate with Church teaching?
What do CCHD grantees seek to change? How do they seek to change it? These questions aren’t academic. Catholics pour a lot of money into the CCHD.
Saying one simply wants to “change” is too vague an ambition. Libertarian, free-market capitalists and the card-carrying communists both believe their economic system will help the poor, and they work hard to change present structures to resemble the ideals of their own philosophies. Both have potential benefits for the poor; both have historically wronged the poor in unspeakably horrible ways. Neither adequately reflects the Catholic position.
So again, one asks, what is the change CCHD promotes and how does it seek to bring about that change?

How?

The “how” it seeks to bring about “social change” is easy to answer. CCHD was created in 1970 primarily as a funding mechanism for community organizing projects in its incipient “Crusade Against Poverty.” Writing in 1989, Sanford Horwitt claimed:

As for the Roman Catholic Church, its commitment [to Alinsky-style community organizing, particularly the Industrial Areas Foundation] both in principle and funding is stronger than ever. Except within certain religious and activist circles, it is not widely known that the Church’s Campaign for Human Development expends most of its $8 million annual budget in grants to community organizing and related grassroots empowerment efforts. And many recipients of CHD largess are IAF-directed projects.[i]

These Alinskyian faith-based organizations are “seeded” with money so they can proliferate in parishes around the country. They, in turn, educate people in member congregations to engage in “civic discourse,” to understand how the game of politics is played - as they understand it - and to develop the courage to confront public leaders in issues of concern to their communities.
It sounds good, so far. The problem with Alinsky-style organizations is that, however well-intentioned their organizers and leaders may be, Alinsky’s philosophical understanding of what it takes to engage in civic discourse is extremely unethical. Specifically, Alinsky taught that the ends justify the means and that “truth” is decided by consensus.
From Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals we learn:

· “The third rule of the ethics of means and ends is that...the end justifies almost any means.”

· “The seventh rule of the ethics of means and ends is that generally success or failure is a mighty determinant of ethics....There can be no such thing as a successful traitor, for if one succeeds, he becomes a founding father.”

· “The tenth rule of the ethics of means and ends is that you do what you can with what you have and clothe it with moral garments....Moral rationalization is indispensable at all times of action whether to justify the selection or the use of ends or means....All effective actions require the passport of morality.”

Elsewhere in his primer for radicals, Alinsky writes:

Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it....By this I mean that in a complex...society it becomes increasingly difficult to single out who is to blame for a particular evil....One of the criteria for picking the target is the target’s vulnerability...as you zero in and freeze your target and carry out your attack, all the “others” come out of the woodwork very soon...the other important point in the choosing of a target is that it must be a personification, not something general and abstract...Many liberals, during our attack on the then-school superintendent, pointing out that he wasn’t 100% devil, he was a regular churchgoer, he was a good family man, and he was generous in his contributions to charity. Can you imagine in the arena of conflict charging that so-and-so is a racist bastard and then diluting the impact of the attack with qualifying remarks...this becomes political idiocy.

The “target” in question here, of course, is a fellow human being who has been unjustly demonized.
The contemporary IAF, far from repudiating Alinsky, has built upon his work: Mary Beth Rogers, in her book Cold Anger, writes:

All participants in the Industrial Areas Foundation national training programs are given a reprint of a 1933 article by John H. Randall, Jr. titled ‘The Importance of Being Unprincipled’...The thesis is that because politics is nothing but the ‘practical method of compromise,’ only two kinds of people can afford the luxury of acting on principle...everyone else who wants to be effective in politics has to learn to be ‘unprincipled’ enough to compromise in order to see their principles succeed.” (FN p. 214)

Then, there is the problem of Alinsky’s relationship to “truth.” Alinsky wrote: “An organizer working for change...does not have a fixed truth – truth to him is relative and changing.” So how does a community decide what values it will use to do business? Are those “other people” – the principled ones – welcome in the community or not? Truth by consensus is as problematic as an ethics that justifies its means by its ends.
Yet the contemporary IAF is confident of its philosophical base to produce good: “Ernie Cortes, a key figure in network [SW Regional Director of the IAF], pointed out, the IAF methodology bears resemblance [to the] ‘critical method’ of Karl Popper, philosopher of science, who argued for a view of ‘truth’ not as a positive assertion, but as theories formulated out of practice and aimed at problem solving that had not yet been refuted.” [Harry Boyte, Commonwealth: A Return to Citizen Politics] Karl Popper coined the term “open society,” which refers to a form of social organization in which “nobody has a monopoly on the truth.”
From where, then, are ethical principles to come? If they are not fixed in the nature of things – if they are not simply true but are to be determined through a process of collaborative inquiry – anyone with an agenda can easily manipulate the outcome.
These twin problems of ethics and truth make Alinskyian organizations such as the IAF a dangerous CCHD grantee, because people subjected to IAF training are being taught a way of looking at the world, or at least, a way of looking at politics, that contradicts Catholic social justice teaching, Catholic ethics, and the natural law.
And yet, over a third of CCHD money is spent on Alinskyian organizing. Thanks in part to its CCHD grants, the IAF has tripled its presence around the United States in the last decade – and much of that presence is in Catholic parishes. Do these Alinskyian organizations do no good? Of course they do, but it isn’t enough to do good works. Legitimate social justice activism must be predicated on the truth, understanding that although some Church teachings may not be popular (consider the reception of Humanae Vitae), justice can only be accomplished when moral laws that govern the human spirit are obeyed.
That said, the “works” performed by Alinskyian community organizations often are quite controversial. For example, a close look at the major CCHD-funded Alinskyian organizations’ – IAF, PICO, Gamaliel, ACORN, and DART – educational policies reveals a support for education “reform” that has often resulted in deeper academic failure. That failure pales beside the moral failure of the Church to its people who have been trained in Machiavellian politics with the Church’s blessing, but it’s a practical consequence of a faulty philosophy.

What?

That’s how the CCHD seeks to bring about systemic change, but the “what” part of the question remains to be answered: what is the change CCHD-funded Alinskyian organizations promote?
The IAF has waged a long-standing battle to fight the perception that it is “Communist.” Saul Alinsky, who had no compunction - up to a point - about working with Communists, was investigated by the FBI in 1940 - 1941 and found innocent of any remarks or actions against the United States government, or in favor of any foreign government.
Yet a problem remains. The IAF undeniably holds liberationist – Christian socialist –positions. It has enjoyed a long-standing relationship with the liberation theology hub of North America, the Mexican American Cultural Center (MACC) of San Antonio, which was used by the Texas IAF as a training institute to educate the clergy and civilians on ‘social justice’ issues. The lead organizer of the San Antonio IAF local (and later Southwest Regional Director of the IAF) was an instructor at MACC, whose own founder and director was Alinskyian trained.
Besides eschewing absolute or objective truth, the IAF, like Marxist organizations, has adopted the concept of “class analysis,” uses the techniques of “popular education” (conscientization), and seeks to change the values of participants, replacing them with the values of the organizer. In an organization grounded in much of the same worldview as Marxism, and using many of the same techniques to recruit and organize people, it’s hardly surprising that the IAF also has many of Marxism’s goals.
The function of the Industrial Areas Foundation and similar Alinsky-style organizing networks is to establish the community base for comprehensive federal structures. Empowerment Zone economic revitalization packages, school-to-work schemes, and Nehemiah Housing Developments all have two common features. They each deliver a medley of services: health care, childcare, housing, social services and education reform packages, financed with federal money. Their other feature is that the reception of this federal assistance is contingent upon community-based institutions – like the IAF, Gamaliel, PICO, ACORN, or DART – to coordinate and presumably “humanize” deliverance of these funds.
Such a highly controlled educational, health, welfare and economic system is, in short, a socialized system. CCHD-funded Alinsky organizations seek to eventually draw member institutions into what they call the “third way” of governance – that is, community-based service provision.
It doesn’t happen immediately. Newly established community organizations need to be trained to civic action and consensus-building. Local leadership must be tested. Religious institutions, useful for their “social capital” (in organizing parlance), networking, and wealth must have their vision bent to work toward a worldly kingdom rather than Christ’s. That’s accomplished in small, non-threatening steps.
But older, established organizations demonstrate the bigger picture. Baltimore’s IAF local, BUILD, has been around since the 60s and has received many years of CCHD grants. BUILD is an actor in a federally funded “neighborhood transformation” project whose efforts include providing total health care to all residents, expansion of job opportunities, monetary assistance toward the rehabilitation of old housing, and the construction of new housing. BUILD works with ACORN and the Democratic Socialists of America to promote “living wage” legislation. These are important social changes.
But the deeper changes are in the religious understanding of people involved with BUILD. A prayer service conducted by the organization illustrates how the Christian message is distorted and used by the IAF: “Somehow the Kingdom will come on the earth. BUILD, if you are a mighty people, if you are a noble people, if you are a great people, there’s forests out there. There’s land to be filled. There’s work to be done. Won't you be counted in the army of the Lord?” [Harry Boyte, Commonwealth: A Return to Citizen Politics, (New York: The Free Press, 1989), chapter 7, “Repairing the Commons,” p. 114].
This is not systemic change toward a more just society, but systemic change of a profoundly ideological order.
So we look again at CCHD’s diagram of the two footprints. Where are those feet taking us? And do we really want to contribute to the journey?
Maybe not.

[i] Sanford Horwitt, Let Them Call Me Rebel, (New York: Vintage Books, 1989) p 586. David Finks confirms this by saying “The largest single contributor to these citizen organizations over the last decade has been the CHD “ (The Radical Vision of Saul Alinsky, p 271) and Rael Jean and Erich Isaac write, “The Catholic Church has also been a major contributor to the utopians through its Campaign for Human Development...The largest grants have gone to community-organizing projects of the Alinsky school: the largest single recipient has been the Industrial Areas Foundation...” (The Coercive Utopians, p 210).

__,_._,___

2008-09-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

CATHOLIC CAMPAIGN - FOR HUMAN DEVELOPMENT?
Guest editorial by Stephanie Block

The Next fundraising campaign for the CCHD will be coming around to a church near you very soon. Here is some information on where that money goes and who is ends up helping that might be of interest before you donate.

Electing an Organizer

Behind Obama, there’s the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development

Whether or not Barak Obama becomes the nest president of the United States, the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) bears responsibility for raising this community organizer to his current national prominence. Through CCHD funding, he received a Machiavellian practicum. Through CCHD-funded organizations, Catholics sponsored his education – not at Harvard but in the Chicago streets. Thanks to CCHD grants, this convicted pro-abort has been backed by Catholics every step of his short, meteoric rise.
They aren’t the only ones using the religious institution of their preference for political ends, of course, but the CCHD has been in business since 1970, pouring millions into Alinskyian organizing.

Alinskyian organizations – that’s what Barak Obama studied and practiced, and those are the people with whom he worked. According to David Moberg: “He collaborated with United Power for Action and Justice (UPAJ), a metropolitan Chicago faith-based organization formed in 1997 by the IAF [Alinsky’s Industrial Areas Foundation], to expand children’s health insurance in Illinois. For its part, UPAJ gave Obama a prominent platform to address its multiracial, metropolitan membership during his 2004 bid for the U.S. Senate. William McNary, co-director of Citizen Action/Illinois, a coalition of labor, community and citizen groups, says, ‘Barack was not just willing to meet with community-based groups, not only to be a good vote for us, but he also strategized with us to help move our position forward.’” (Moberg, “Obama’s Third Way,” Shelterforce Online, Issue #149, Spring 2007)

But see, this kind of work doesn’t come cheap. People don’ t just “get” organized – they have to “be” organized. An Alinskyian organizer has to find progressive pastors and persuade them to give a percentage of congregational tithing to his organizational work. He has to hold house meetings and trainings. He has to develop a progressive “presence” in the local political arena, targeting his member congregations. He needs a salary …and the religious institutions infiltrated by Alinskyites are “selling” poverty to pay it.

Oh, the CCHD does give a little money to support economic self-help projects run by the poor. These projects are the CCHD’s “window dressing.” They don’t much of the CCHD pie, but they do get the bulk of its promotional attention.

The real money goes, instead, into organizations that promote social change. CCHD’s founding resolution states that its primary funding will be for social projects “aimed at eliminating the very causes of poverty.” To clarify what “social projectsE2 the CCHD thinks will “eliminate poverty”, one has to look at what it funds.

A good percentage of these Catholic grants fund Alinsky-style, broad-based community organizations – including organizations Obama trained under and worked for – to restructure society along a socialist model. Alinskyian community organizations want to be the mediators of government, education, job training, job placement, healthcare, housing, and social services.
And if that isn’t enough of a bitter pill, these organizations network with other progressives who fight against any limitation of abortion “rights” or homosexual “rights.” Like Obama.
So, whether or not Barak Obama becomes the nest president of the United States, the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) bears a portion of the responsibility. Consider that when the collection plate comes around this year.

2008-09-23T16:44:00.000-07:00

2008-09-22T15:53:00.000-07:00

Obama As 'Big Brother'
Critic says plan would herd 'American youth into government-funded re-education camps'
Posted: September 06, 2008
11:45 pm Eastern

© 2008 WorldNetDaily

Sen. Barack Obama
The tax-funded Chicago organization cited as a probable model for programs to integrate youth into the social and political world under an Obama tenure in the White House is the epitome of "Big Brother" that shovels impressionable youth through a course of brainwashing, according to critics.

The organization is called Public Allies and Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama was a founding member of the board of directors in 1992. He later resigned and his wife became executive director of the group.

According to an editorial in Investor's Business Daily, Obama plans to use the non-profit, which is funded partly by the federal government and is featured on Obama's campaign website, as the model for a national service corps, called the "Universal Voluntary Public Service."

WND reported earlier when Obama asserted in a Colorado Springs speech that the U.S. needs a "civilian national security force" that would be as powerful, strong and well-funded as the half-trillion dollar Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force.

In the July 2 speech in Colorado Springs, Obama insisted the U.S. "cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we've set."

He continued, "We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded."

"Big Brother had nothing on the Obamas," said IBD. "They plan to herd American youth into government-funded re-education camps where they'll be brainwashed into thinking America is a racist, oppressive place in need of 'social change.'"

The organization itself doesn't seem that alarming. It describes itself as serving communities "while developing better leaders for tomorrow." Young adults are placed in "community leadership" posts with various agencies and given weekly "training." They get $1,800 plus health and child care.

But IBD warns the real mission is something else.

That, the editorial said, "is to radicalize American youth and use them to bring about 'social change' through threats, pressure, tensions and confrontation – the tactics used by the father of community organizing, Saul 'The Red' Alinsky."

Dr. Jerome Corsi, a WND columnist and the author of the No. 1 New York Times best-seller "The Obama Nation," agreed. He said the overall intent of the program is much the same as the goals of William Ayers, an Obama acquaintance who spent the 1970s and 1980s as an unrepentant radical, during his various programs regarding public education.

"Remember, Obama has followed Saul Alinsky's ultimate advice," Corsi explained. "Saul Alinsky said radicals like Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman could not organize a picnic. Alinsky told his radicals to cut their hair, buy business suits and run for public office," he said.

"Ayers and Obama are both aimed at producing radical socialist change from within – working today to radicalize our institutions, instead of bombing them. Alinsky considered this approach to be much smarter because it was more likely to produce lasting 'change' and less likely to produce a backlash. In other words, the Alinsky-trained radical could apply more easily the Machiavellian technique of lying by denying they were pursuing radical goals if they appeared to be members in good standing of the establishment they were trying merely to 'change,'" he said.

IBD cited statistics from Public Allies itself, in which it boasted, "our alumni are more than twice as likely as 18-34 year olds to … engage in protest activities." The organization explains it already has dispatched 2,200 community organizers to agitate for "justice" and "equality" in Chicago, Cincinnati, Los Angeles and other cities.

"I get to practice being an activist," and get paid for it, Cincinnati recruit Amy Vincent said, according to IBD.

The organization boasts more than two-thirds of its recruits are "people of color," and 15 percent of "LGBT." When they're not out protesting, IBD said, "they're staffing AIDS clinics, handing out condoms, bailing criminals out of jail and helping illegal aliens and the homeless obtain food stamps and other welfare."

The Allies' own website confirms it has volunteers working for Planned Parenthood, LGBT centers and Boys & Girls Clubs.

Obama has encouraged individuals to shun the "money culture."

"If you commit to serving your community," he pledged in Denver while accepting the Democratic nomination for president, "we will make sure you can afford a college education."

The IBD said the sales pitch is finding supportive listeners among today's youth.

"I may spend the rest of my life trying to create social movement," it quotes Brian Coovert, of the Cincinnati Allies chapter saying. "There is always going to be work to do. Until we have a perfect country, I'll have a job."

IBD said taxpayers already fund half of Public Allies' expenses through President Clinton's AmeriCorps, and Obama wants to fully fund it and expand it into a national program that some see costing $500 billion.

The organization notes that it is a non-partisan organization so it does not endorse candidates. However, it has a lengthy description of the involvement by the Obamas with the organization.

"Under Michelle’s leadership, Public Allies Chicago pioneered many elements of Public Allies' program model. To identify and develop the next generation of Chicago leaders, she recruited young people from housing projects and youth centers as well colleges and universities. Her emphasis on indigenous leadership and belief that all people have potential to lead became a core value of our leadership philosophy. When she left, Public Allies Chicago had a cash reserve, a committed board, a talented young staff, and a network of diverse, talented young leaders in Chicago who continue to serve the community today. Michelle was also a pioneer in the social entrepreneur movement –leaders who create new approaches and organizations to provide new solutions to social problems," the organization said.

"Michelle was an amazing leader and role model for all of us. As a very young staff in the early years, we all emulated Michelle's incredible combination of professionalism, compassion, critical thinking and commitment to her community. For all of her immense talents, she was also one of the most down-to-earth, inclusive, and authentic leaders I’ve ever worked with. She really did believe that everyone could contribute to their communities and that leaders come from all backgrounds and all parts of the community. The Chicago program she pioneered really created the template we all work from today. We are proud of our colleague and wish her well," wrote Paul Schmitz, CEO of Public Allies.

2008-09-08T18:29:00.001-07:00

ELECTING AN ORGANIZER

Behind Obama, there’s the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development

By Stephanie Block

Whether or not Barak Obama becomes the nest president of the United States, the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) bears responsibility for raising this community organizer to his current national prominence. Through CCHD funding, he received a Machiavellian practicum. Through CCHD-funded organizations, Catholics sponsored his education – not at Harvard but in the Chicago streets. Thanks to CCHD grants, this convicted pro-abort has been backed by Catholics every step of his short, meteoric rise.

They aren’t the only ones using the religious institution of their preference for political ends, of course, but the CCHD has been in business since 1970, pouring millions into Alinskyian organizing.

Alinskyian organizations – that’s what Barak Obama studied and practiced, and those are the people with whom he worked. According to David Moberg: “He collaborated with United Power for Action and Justice (UPAJ), a metropolitan Chicago faith-based organization formed in 1997 by the IAF [Alinsky’s Industrial Areas Foundation], to expand children’s health insurance in Illinois. For its part, UPAJ gave Obama a prominent platform to address its multiracial, metropolitan membership during his 2004 bid for the U.S. Senate. William McNary, co-director of Citizen Action/Illinois, a coalition of labor, community and citizen groups, says, ‘Barack was not just willing to meet with community-based groups, not only to be a good vote for us, but he also strategized with us to help move our position forward.’” (Moberg, “Obama’s Third Way,” Shelterforce Online, Issue #149, Spring 2007)

But see, this kind of work doesn’t come cheap. People don’ t just “get” organized – they have to “be” organized. An Alinskyian organizer has to find progressive pastors and persuade them to give a percentage of congregational tithing to his organizational work. He has to hold house meetings and trainings. He has to develop a progressive “presence” in the local political arena, targeting his member congregations. He needs a salary …and the religious institutions infiltrated by Alinskyites are “selling” poverty to pay it.

Oh, the CCHD does give a little money to support economic self-help projects run by the poor. These projects are the CCHD’s “window dressing.” They don’t much of the CCHD pie, but they do get the bulk of its promotional attention.

The real money goes, instead, into organizations that promote social change. CCHD’s founding resolution states that its primary funding will be for social projects “aimed at eliminating the very causes of poverty.” To clarify what “social projectsE2 the CCHD thinks will “eliminate poverty”, one has to look at what it funds.

A good percentage of these Catholic grants fund Alinsky-style, broad-based community organizations – including organizations Obama trained under and worked for – to restructure society along a socialist model. Alinskyian community organizations want to be the mediators of government, education, job training, job placement, healthcare, housing, and social services.
And if that isn’t enough of a bitter pill, these organizations network with other progressives who fight against any limitation of abortion “rights” or homosexual “rights.” Like Obama.
So, whether or not Barak Obama becomes the nest president of the United States, the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) bears a portion of the responsibility. Consider that when the collection plate comes around this year.

2008-04-03T13:18:00.000-07:00

Below is an example of a booklet of Prayers that mothers are encouraged to say for their children and grandchildren. The booklet and program which can be found on the internet by googling mothers prayers, is one sure way to fight the evil and worldly seduction that roams the earth to draw our families into sin.

The churches haven't preached the Catholic faith from the pulpit for several decades - at least two generations ago, the schools are forbidden to discuss abstinence, the Catholic Conference states that abortion is now accepted in our society. OUr prayers, directly beseeching Our Blessed Mother and her Son, Jesus the Lord, is our last and best resort to save our children for heaven

Mothers Prayers

Lord Jesus, we come before you as mothers, wanting you to bless our children, and all children throughout the world.

We thank you for our children - they are a precious gift to us. Help us, always to remember this, especially when they are in difficulties

Lord, they live in a troubled world - a world that does not always acknowledge you, - a world that may sometimes cause them to be laughed at if they admit to belief in you.

Help them to be strong, Lord. Helps us to know that you are always with us - sharing in the joys and in the sorrows, joining us in the laughter and weeping with us in the pain.

Please give us all the graces we need, to fulfil your plans for our lives and for our duties in our families. You are Almighty God. You can change things.

So we turn to you in faith and love knowing that you will answer our prayers. Lord let us always remember how much you love us and our children and how you urge us to come to you with our problems.

Amen

2007-11-25T15:49:00.000-08:00

SANCTUARY HERE. BABIES NEED NOT APPLY.

The Oakland, California. Catholic Diocese has long been a sanctuary for homosexual priests. Take for instance Father Michael Galvan who has now left the priesthood for the second time to follow his heart’s desire. Take also, Michael Manfield, who was employed for a couple of years by St. Francis of Assisi parish to direct the teen religion program. He was a recognized leader of a large homosexual conference hosted by Holy Names University in Oakland.

The latest priest given protection and promotion is Father Padraig Greene, arrested in a men’s bathroom for lewd and indecent exposure near a children’s playground in the late 90’s while serving as assistant pastor at Christ The King Parish in Pleasant Hill.

He returned to the diocese five years ago when Bishop John Cummins was still in charge, as an assistant pastor at St. Augustine’s in Pleasanton. St. Augustine’s or rather the Catholic Community of St. Augustine’s in Pleasanton has been under the direction of that fine upstanding Catholic, Fr. Dan Danielson.

Danielson has now retired and current Bishop Allan Vigneron has raised Greene to the Pastor’s position. He has even gone to the unusual lengths of having a statement of support for Greene’s appointment published in the Catholic Voice.

The statement declares, in part:

“Repentant and desiring to put his life back in order, Father Greene spent several months dealing with this dark moment through extensive therapy and a program of spiritual renewal at a center in St. Louis.”

Checking with the Pleasanton Police Department indicates that they are aware of Fr. Greene especially following a public demonstration outside the church by SNAP members.
A spokesperson for the police department said that Fr. Greene is not considered to be one who must register as a sex offender.

Well, that’s good.

The Bishop’s statement concludes with this declaration:

“The Diocese of Oakland holds as one of the highest concerns the protection and safety of children and all parishioners, and is confidence in the ministry Father Green will continue to bring to the people of Pleasanton.”

The Diocese has had to pay out the usual millions of dollars for lawsuits brought by victims of sexual abuse instigated by other priests in the Diocese. So much for high regard for the safety of children.

The diocese is also becoming a sanctuary for illegal aliens. Following the belligerent disregard for the law of our country displayed on a PBS presentation by Cardinal Mahoney of the Los Angeles diocese, certain priests and parishes in our diocese are well on their way to becoming sanctuaries for illegal aliens flaunting our Country’s laws on immigration.

This New Sanctuary Movement establishing itself in Contra Costa County has ties to an organization called Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Committee - CCISCO. This is a pseudo religious group patterned after the infamous Industrial Areas Foundation of Saul Alinsky.

Father Hugo Hernandez, current pastor of St. Francis of Assisi parish in Concord, Ca.. has been quoted in the Contra Costa Times, as opposing the actions of the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) who have been rounding up illegals at job sites and Richmond, Ca. parishes which are also pastored by Mexican priests.

Father Hernandez was appointed earlier this year as parish administrator for St. Francis. Born in Mexico and highly educated and trained in foreign languages he assisted in parishes in foreign countries before coming to the Oakland Diocese and to St. Francis. The parish boundries, much of which are in Concord contain a large segment of Latino people. However this community has not been merged with the long time parishioners of St. Francis. While they both worship in the same church, the Masses for the Latino community are in Spanish.

Fr. Hernandez is referred to as a member of this new sanctuary movement in the November 19, 2007, Catholic Voice in an article entitled East Bay churches form New Sanctuary Movement to advocate for immigrant families facing deportation.

An interesting sidelight is that this Voice article is actually taken from a generic article with almost the same name and published in the East Bay Daily News last June, 2007. Further, the San Jose Mercury News published a very similar article depicting the sad plight of a family here illegally and threatened with deportation. Apparently some one person is furnishing the generic news into which comments are being placed to make it appear that the story is local.
Fr. Hernandez appears to be echoing the sentiments of the East Bay Sanctuary Movement (mentioned below) when he says:

“We all know that we have to follow the laws, but we do not agree with the way that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency is applying them.”

Fr. Hernandez is not an American Citizen. Most likely he is in the states with a green card issues by the Diocese. What gives him the right, or the Diocese the right, to condone his statements about what is right or wrong about the laws of the United States?

The same Catholic Voice of November 19, 2007-page 6, contains a page of local charities and their wish lists for Christmas donations. One of those groups is the East Bay Sanctuary Covenant www.eastbaysanctuary.org. One of its services is listed as: Defensive asylum assistance to asylum seekers being held in INS detention facilities. The charity is under the direction of a Sister Maureen Duignan.

The online site lists work with Haitian poor in their own country as well as immigrants residing here. A few months ago a Missionary priest spoke at all the St. Francis Masses asking for donations to help the Haitian poor. He stood at the door after mass collecting the donations. The amount collected did not go through the parish records, but went directly to this priest. I now wonder if it actually went to this Berkeley group instead of to the impoverished residents of Haiti?

In their December, 2004, newsletter called Exodus, Sister Maureen, (a Franciscan) is being honored for her 20 years of working with EBSC. She thanks everyone for honoring her dedication to the cause of refugees and says:

“What a gift it is to be instrumental in changing unjust laws that force the exile underground. Being honored by you as a board and as a community was indeed overwhelming. My response is a prayer of Thanksgiving for all of you who continue to shelter our fragile brother and sister refugees in so many different ways, you who are indeed peacemakers.”

In another article in this edition of their newspaper Sister Maureen quotes ousted Haitian President Jean Betrand Aristide. Further links to the East Bay Sanctuary Asylum traces an extremely aggressive and restive international movement of labor groups. www.haitiaction.net.

All of the above information is provided in order to make the point that this Diocese has done nothing to provide sanctuary and protection to the preborn babies of this diocese who are at the mercy of Planned Parenthood.

The privately funded non profits that give support and assistance to pregnant mothers such as Mary’s House or Birthright or Casa Vincentia receive almost nothing in funds from the diocese and little in the way of publicity. Certainly no priest of which this writer is aware has given any consistent time and attention in homilies to opposing abortion - which can be said to be a law of the land - like they do to supporting illegal aliens.

Only one priest in the Oakland Diocese has ever given most of his time, attention and money to the cause of protecting preborn human life and he has been exiled from the diocese. This is truly the Silence of the little lambs of God.

2007-07-25T10:45:00.000-07:00

The New Sanctuary Movement
part 5

The Faith in Public Life Agenda

By Stephanie Block

[Note: The sanctuary movement reported here is active in the Oakland Diocese through the PICO/CCISCO organization which operates throughout Alameda and Contra Costa parishes]

OK, so if protecting vulnerable human babies from butchering and upholding traditional moral restrictions on marriage is too “conservative” – too “exclusive” – for the religious voices of the Faith in Public Life coalition, what are the glorious social justice campaigns that float their collective coalition boat?
You’re not ready for the answer just yet – unless you are already familiar with the Sanctuary Movement of the 1980s, in which case, you’re excused from reading this preliminary section and may skip ahead to “The New Sanctuary Movement.”
For those of you, however, who missed the old Sanctuary Movement, it fancied itself a sort of “underground railroad,” created to help smuggle Salvadorans, Nicaraguans, and Guatemalans into the United States in defiance of federal immigration laws. Often, these political refugees had engaged in Marxist activism in their home countries and were fleeing “right-wing” retaliation. Those fleeing Sandinista atrocities, on the other hand, were not considered suitable for Sanctuary aid. In the words of one spokesman, helping those who did not oppose US foreign policy would have been “unbiblical, a-historical pietism aimed at ministering to timeless refugees who are without concrete historical, political, moral claims on our lives.” [Mary Ann Corley]
About 500 congregations from various denominations, including some Roman Catholic parishes, protected the refugees from prosecution by offering them “sanctuary” inside church buildings. Another
1,000 congregations supported the principles of the Sanctuary Movement, providing practical assistance to the refugees and advancing their political cause, namely to endUS assistance to the Marxist-contras in Central America, whether the contras were government or popular forces.
The Sanctuary Movement folded after the Soviet Union collapsed and Nicaraguan elections of 1990 ended its Sandinista dictatorship. The movement’s leadership, however, has continued its efforts to influence American politics and foreign policy.

Jim Wallis and Sojourners

Take Jim Wallis and his Sojourners Magazine…please.
In 1984, they co-created the Witness for Peace Tours to generate pro-Sandinista (Marxist) support in the United States. Delegates were taken to Nicaragua and treated to staged “pep rallies,” supposedly demonstrating popular enthusiasm for the Sandinistas.
Meanwhile, back home, the magazine wrote glowing articles about liberation theology’s inroads into the spiritual life of Latin Americans, portrayed the US military and US Latin American foreign policy as “anti-Christ,” and claimed that US economic assistance went exclusively to countries that repress and torture their citizens. By contrast, one researcher observed that, as of 1983, Sojourners had not criticized one Marxist country for human rights violations.
Twenty years later, Jim Wallis and Sojourners are among the primary initiators and coordinators of Faith in Public Life – dedicated to assuring the secular world that pro-life and traditional moral values are not associated with mainstream religion.

The New Sanctuary Movement

Instead, Faith in Public Life’s May 2007 Impact Report announced that it was helping “two great new groups, Christians for Comprehensive Immigration Reformand The New Sanctuary Movement, with media outreach.”
The New Sanctuary Movement’s goals are similar to the old. It seeks to “publicly provide hospitality and protection to a limited number of immigrant families whose cases clearly reveal the contradictions and moral injustice of our current immigration system while working to support legislation that would change their situation.” By “moral injustice” means, in this case, threatened deportation of families whose children were born in the United States and are therefore American citizens. [Interfaith Worker Justice, Faith Works, May 2007]
Publicity from the New Sanctuary Movement’s website describes it like this:

On January 29, 2007 representatives from 18 cities, 12 religious traditions and 7 denominational and interdenominational organizations joined together to listen to the experience of immigrant families fighting deportation, and to strategize how to protect parents and children from being torn apart until there is just comprehensive immigration reform. [www.newsanctuarymovement.org]

There’s disingenuousness about describing this as “injustice,” as nothing in deportation law separates parents from their children although the situation may well be painful and difficult.
Nor is the rhetoric of “keeping families together” – and thereby putting a poignant face to the deportation threat – really the US immigration policy the New Sanctuary Movement seeks to change.

The Full Agenda

So, what is the full agenda? To understand that requires knowing about the New Sanctuary Movement’s “coordinating members.” Supposedly, there are three of them but in reality, the New Sanctuary Movement is a project of Interfaith Worker Justice (IWJ), a national network of groups heavily associated with Faith in Public Life. IWJ’s founder and executive director, Kim Bobo, is a Faith in Public Lifespokesman. Faith in Public Life’s Special Assistant to the Executive Director was IWJ intern. At least two dozen IWJ chapters are Faith in Public Life members. It’s a close-knit network.
IWJ not only wants to prevent “families from being torn apart,” but:
- seeks an immediate moratorium on community and work site raids by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
- seeks decriminalizing the violation of immigration laws.
- seeks affording undocumented workers the same rights and privileges as legal immigrants.
- seeks to spread the idea that the immigration problem is caused by unjust USforeign policies.

Another New Sanctuary Movement “coordinating member” is Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice-California. However, Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice-California is just an IWJ chapter and a Faith in Public Lifemember...and, of course, it supports the same goals of its parent organizations.
The last “coordinating member” of the New Sanctuary Movement is the New YorkSanctuary Coalition/ Asociación Tepayac. This organization “organizes immigrant families to address community issues and advocate for their rights” and itsfounding director, Father Juan Carlos Ruiz, sits on the advisory board of the liberationist Mexican American Cultural Center (MACC) in San Antonio, Texas. To the above agenda of “rights,” Asociación Tepayac
- seeks to give non-citizen, undocumented workers voting privileges,
- opposes any enforcement of federal, civil immigration laws by state and local police,
- opposes any registration or deportation of undocumented workers, and
- seeks free access to higher education for undocumented workers.

So, together with abortion and homosexual “rights,” put world citizen “rights” on the list of Faith in Public Life “social justice” issues paid for by your Catholic Campaign for Human Development dollars.
Sort of takes one’s breath away, doesn’t it?

2007-01-22T19:28:00.000-08:00

Today we are providing you with a thought provoking article presented here with the permission of the publisher of the New Mexico Pepper Newsletter. Pepper is an affiliate of the Catholic Media Coalition.

Faith in Public Life

New political organization fights traditional morality

By Stephanie Block

If you place any faith in God, the following may interest you. Faith in Public Life, the name of a fledgling coalition, is a double entendre: it could mean taking one’s spiritual and moral values out into the public arena. Or, it could mean that one’s faith – one’s hopes and dreams – rests in the domain of public life.
In the latter view, one really needs very little faith in God. Religious institutions are understood primarily as social goods, as places for community building and the nurturing of social skills. As such, they are useful tools in the political struggle for power and influence. Such a view doesn’t disallow for the spiritual dimension of religion but relegates it to a strictly “private” place.
Within the new organization, Faith in Public Life, one will no doubt find people from both camps. The organization itself, however, understands its mission in the second sense. Its website (www.faithinpubliclife.org) explains that its founding was sparked by the 2004 elections to support what it calls the “social justice faith movement” and develop “increased and effective collaboration, coordination, and communication on the national, state and local level.” It says:

We have faith in public life. In other words, we have faith in the positive and significant role that faith should play in public life, and we have faith that public life will support justice and the common good. We believe the positive role for faith in public life is fulfilled when: (1) religious voices for justice and the common good impact public discourse and policies; and (2) those who use religion as a tool of division and exclusion do not dominate public debate. We also believe faithful contributions to public life should not, and need not, violate America’s central tenet of separation of church and state.

What, then, does Faith in Public Life understand by the “social justice faith movement?”
Faith in Public Life first explains what the movement isn’t: it isn’t addressing what it dubs the “Religious Right’s” issues of abortion and homosexuality. Faith in Public Life issues, by contrast, are “social and economic justice.”
Now, one might think we’re talking compatible and complimentary concerns, as if the politics of the right is exclusively concerned with the protection of vulnerable human life while the politics of the left is concerned about a high standard of living for all. If that were the case, right and left are allies – not enemies. Both would be working toward the common good.
Faith in Public Life is clear that this is not the case. To take the issue of homosexuality: of the 2470 organizations around the US with an affiliation to Faith in Public Life, 150 have “gay rights” as a primary policy focus. Thirty-seven of those are Roman Catholic dissident factions - Call to Action groups - many of which are Dignity chapters that have changing the Roman Catholic Church’s moral teachings about homosexuality as their express ambition.
Thus, the Catholic Church and Faith in Public Life are working at cross purposes. Advocates of same-sex marriage and other public policy legislation that would make homosexuality a protected lifestyle are at utter odds with a religious faith that teaches homosexuality is a sin.
The Catholic Church is not the only target of these change agents. Similar clusters of homosexual advocates target other faiths. For example, there are four, local Integrity groups affiliated with Faith in Public Life. Integrity operates in mainline Protestant denominations much the same way Dignity operates in the Catholic Church.
In the case of abortion, Call to Action has promoted “reproductive choice” and “family planning” since its inception in the 70s. Its presence and the presence of other groups (see, for example, the public affairs policy of Faith in Public Life member National Council of Jewish Women – Austin chapter) who have, as their political agenda, those particular issues as their defining characteristic means that Faith in Public Life also is supportive of abortion and contraception. While the Church teaches that abortion is murder, Faith in Public Life is coordinating a national collaboration to assure, among other things, that pro-abortion politicians are elected. In an Orwellian bit of newspeak, the “right” to legally murder one’s unborn children is “social and economic justice.” “Social justice” used to mean a social awareness of, and care for, the poor and vulnerable - within the boundaries of justice, rendering to each man his due because of his dignity as a man, in the image and likeness of God. The current misuse of the term isn't simply ambiguous. It’s a thought-terminating cliché: just tell Catholics that a certain position, no matter how vile, is demanded by “social justice” and who dares oppose it?
The most ironic aspect of this is that Catholics, with a clear and deliberate mandate to fight the secular culture of death, are assisting many of the Faith in Public Life organizations through its so-called anti-poverty collection, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. Among Faith in Public Life are hundreds of Alinsky-style, broad-based community organizations and their networks, which receive millions of dollars annually from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development.
The Catholics aren’t the only pawns. Other religions have their own funds: the Jewish Fund for Justice, America’s Domestic Hunger Program of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Presbyterian Church USA’s One Great Hour of Sharing Fund, the Unitarian Universalist Veatch Program, the Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church, to name a few. Together, they are supporting many of the organizations that make up Faith in Public Life.
The magnitude of this networking of leftwing organizations, in the name of religion, is difficult to comprehend. The names are legion and they mutate faster than bacteria. An organization like Faith in Public Life, however, gives the observer some insight into what has been constructed through the resources of churches, synagogues, and mosques - and the end toward which they strive.

2006-12-17T14:41:00.000-08:00

WHO IS IN CHARGE OF THE OAKLAND DIOCESE?

by Diane Lily

A Catholic in the Diocese of Oakland would have good cause to wonder who’s minding the store these days. One wonders if Bishop Alan Vigneron holds any position of authority or respect from his priests?
It would seem that priests, in this diocese anyway, have the ability to say “NO” to the Bishop when asked to take on a new assignment. Rumor has it that the bishop recently had to beg seven priests to assume the pastorship of a parish long without a priest in Brentwood before a sense of obedience descended upon candidate number eight. One gets the feeling that if there is such a thing as a priests union with the bishop as an antagonist who

Fr. Brian Joyce

must negotiate then what of the priest’s vow of obedience to God’s laws? Is all that a negotiable contract, too?

The latest edition of the Catholic Voice (12-11-06) might give us a clue as to what authority at least some of our priests are adhering.

CONVERSATION ON HOPE?
Father Brian Joyce, Pastor of Christ The King Parish in Pleasant Hill is listed as teaming up with cosmologist Brian Swimme, in January, to “hold a conversation” on the subject of creation spirituality and an emerging religious globalism at San Damiano in Danville. San Damiano now the home of religious liberal, Fr. Tom Bonacci, has been the center of new age religious activism and promotion for some time now.

Fr. Joyce, briefly the focus of a minor personal sexual scandal accusation a while back was able to clear his reputation with a gift of oratory that would make Daniel Webster (and the devil) proud.

Joyce who considers himself a point man for the avant garde in religion, is joining up with an associate of Matthew Fox of Creation Spirituality fame.
The talk to be presented on January 12, 2007, is billed as presenting a “hope filled conversation.” An examination of Swimme’s writings will show that it is not a God filled hope but a cleverly disguised pitch for a one world universe in which hope will be achieved through government control of humanity.
Does the bishop know or care that one of his priests is infecting the church community with a new age religion virus? Who needs to fear the third world terrorists when we have suave, sophisticated priests to do the work of the new age change agents? Global warming and the highly touted but dubious claims of a world threatened by pollution and calling for a new evaluation of man’s obligations to nature is becoming a powerful weapon in the God-less battle to conquer humanity.

Swimme has been appearing around the country. He spoke recently at the Academy of the Holy Cross in the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. His topic there was “Eco-Spirituality and the Story of the Universe.”
The following is a brief excerpt from the home page of Brian Swimme’s Center for the Story of the Universe.
WHAT IS THE NEW COSMOLOGY?
Brian Swimme http://www.brianswimme.org

“In 1543 Copernicus announced to a startled Europe that the Earth was not stationary, but was sailing rapidly through space as it spun around the Sun. This was difficult news to take in all at once, but over time the Europeans reinvented their entire civilization in light of this strange new fact about the Universe. The fundamental institutions of the medieval world, including the monarchies, the church, the feudal economic system, and the medieval sense of self, melted away as a radically different civilization was constructed.”

WHO IS BRIAN SWIMME?
Brian Swimme received his Ph.D. (1978) from the University of Oregon in gravitational dynamics. His research focuses on the evolutionary dynamics of the universe, the relationship between scientific cosmology and more traditional religious visions, the cultural implications of the new evolutionary epic, and the role of humanity in the unfolding story of Earth and cosmos. In 1998 he founded the international Epic of Evolution Society, a forum for artists, scientists, ecofeminists, ecologists, religious thinkers and educators interested in the new story. He is the author of The Hidden Heart of the Cosmos (Orbis, 1996), Manifesto for a Global Civilization (with Matthew Fox) (Bear and Company, 1983), The Universe is a Green Dragon (Bear and Company, 1984) and The Universe Story (Harper, 1992) which is a culmination of a ten-year collaboration with cultural historian Thomas Berry.
http://www.earthlight.org/mfoxontberry.html
Brian's media work includes the video series, Canticle to the Cosmos and The Hidden Heart of the Cosmos.
Read the following article by him to see how “out there” he is: http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC12/Swimme.htm
_______________
FATHER JOSE LEON HONORED.

Here we present another example of a parish priest dancing to a different drummer. The December 11th Voice edition, page 14, carried a report of Union City’s Our Lady of the Rosary Pastor, Fr. Jose Leon, receiving an award and recognition for being a co-founder of a very secular special interest organization, Congregations Organizing for Renewal - COR. COR is an affiliate of the Pacific Institute for Community Organizing - PICO. (social activism is a world of alphabet soup).

Father Leon, along with the Rev. Drew Nettinga of neighboring San Lorenzo, have spent the last 10 years organizing their parishes to be lobbyists for governmental services and funding. The article puts it this way:

“During the past decade COR’s hundreds of grassroots volunteers have been improving health access for low-income people, increasing neighborhood safety, strengthening public schools and bringing affordable housing to communities across southern Alameda County.”

The article continues: “In Hayward and San Lorenzo, for example, parents urged public school district officials to implement a parent-teacher home visitation program to build stronger relationships between parents and teachers with the goal of helping children.” I would ask: helping them do what?

Their lobbying has also resulted in in an increased presence of community health clinics and low-cost health insurance programs.

The article concludes by saying that Fr. Leon has been pastor of OR for 21 years. I would ask the bishop: why hasn’t he been moved in all these years?

Someone reading this news report might thing that what this pastor and his volunteer lobbyists have done is a good thing. However, one needs to further ask if Fathers Leon and Nettinga and all the other priests in this diocese working with PICO have brought God into this picture or if they are really acting as government agents bringing the faithful into a condition of bondage to the government?
Home visitation programs are, in reality, invasive anti family efforts to interject governmental supervision into families supplanting family authority. Parent/teacher compacts (AB 50, Nell soto, (D), Parent/Teacher Involvement Program). This bill, with variations, submitted to the state legislature every year by Soto, seeks to expand the agents authorized to make home visits. This bill has failed passage every year. However, when local activists like Fr.Leon, arrange for contracts between local schools and parents it circumvents the failed state legislation achieving the desired results anyway.

Expanding community based clinics and low-cost health insurance means, in actuality, that the priests have greased the skids for Planned Parenthood and their ideological partners within the state Health Department to bring abortion and contraceptives to the wives, daughters and single women of the diocese. We, the Catholic taxpayers are shouldering the cost of aborting our sisters in Christ and killing their babies.

Catholic priests ini the diocese of Oakland are doing the work of the devil and receiving kudos for in the Catholic press. All this is swirling around the bishop who seems remain oblivious while he writes euphorically about the “great good news that Christ our God has saved us.” Well, according to fathers Leon, Nettinga, Bonacci, Floors and others, it is the government bureaucracy that is saving us.

There is much more about which to comment in this December 12 edition of the Catholic Voice, but it will have to wait while I get on my knees and beg God to forgive us for our trespasses because we know not what we do.

2006-10-22T16:50:00.000-07:00

THE CATHEDRAL OF LIGHT OR THE CHURCH OF DARKNESS?

The Diocese of Oakland embarked on a grand plan to raise funds to build a new cathedral following the loss of the Saint Francis de Sales church which had been the cathedral and official residence of the Bishop.

Prior to Bishop Cummins retirement plans were announced to build a church that would be named The Cathedral of Christ the Light. The name was inspired, so we are told, by the encyclical entitled Lumen Gentium by Pope John Paul ll. This Cathedral has been the center of much controversy since the plans were introduced due to the enormous expense involved - reportedly $131 million. To alleviate some of the controversy then Bishop Cummins promised to obtain a majority of funds from the corporate world, not the parishioners or the church collection plate.

However, the diocese has spent a huge sum of money on court costs and payments to those who were abused by priests and, apparently the diocese has also loaned a considerable amount to the building of the Cathedral.

We parishioners are now being urged to contribute to this monument to the ego of Bishop John Cummins.

My Missalette, the Magnificat for the month of October contains a reflection on the Sunday Gospel for October 21st. That gospel, from St. Mark, Chapter 10. has Jesus chastising his apostles for their desire to be “great among” the people. The apostles James and John had asked Jesus to be sure and place them at His right and left when He came into his kingdom.

The reflection, written by Father Vincent Nagle, focuses on what it means to be a Missionary. It tells a story of two people; one a priest who raised a lot of money to build a beautiful church to which he assumed the people would be drawn. The other person, a simple “religious sister” had no money, but she had a devotion to God and that devotion drew people to follow her example and come to Jesus.

The priest ran out of money for his church and so the beautiful stained glass windows that he bought were stored in a basement. The people whom the Nun had gathered shone forth the radiance of God’s love.

Arguments opposing the building of our new cathedral focus on protesting that the money invested in the cathedral could have/should have gone to feed and clothe the poor. Perhaps so, but Jesus also said the poor we will always have with us. So, rather than just providing for the secular needs of the financially poor I suggest that the money that the Bishop was able to raise (and, I’m assuming that our current Bishop Allen Vigneron is also raising funds) should have gone to “feeding” the spiritually poor members of our diocese. The schools could have been built up. The text books improved. The training for priests and the preaching of the true gospel of salvation should have been brought to the people. That might not have cost as much money as wood, and steel and glass, but it would have provided much more sustenance for the souls that cry out for God’s help. Mass often seems like it’s more Protestant than Catholic, more entertainment that worship

As it is our parishes are being taken over by pseudo religious groups who are preaching a religion of government control. They want to replace God with the state. What will our expensive Cathedral do to save our souls?

2006-10-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

HOW CATHOLIC IS THE CATHOLIC VOICE?

I LIke to do puzzles. I like those picture puzzles in which you compare one picture to another and try to pick out all the ways in which the picture has been altered. The Oakland Diocese official newspaper, the Catholic Voice is like that picture puzzle. The September 18, 2006, edition provides lots of opportunities to “find” all the changes to the fundamental teachings and doctrines of Catholicism.

UNCHANGING TRADITION.
A contributor to the Reader’s Forum asks a very good question, the same one, in fact, that provided our incentive to start this blog. The lady asked “I hope the Catholic Voice will soon include an actual Catholic Voice in the “Reader’s Forum.

Many times writers who are either vincibly or invincibly ignorant of our faith make some startling statements. For instance one letter writer challenges the church’s position on married clergy, making it appear that it is merely a whim of the most recent Pope. In fact, there are approximately nine (9) references in the Bible to celibacy. One such reference is Matthew 19:12 which says in part, “Some men are incapable of sexual activity from birth; some have been deliberately made so and some there are who have freely renounced sex for the sake of God’s reign. Let him accept this teaching who can.”(taken from the New American Bible). I believe the relevant word here is “freely.”

(Note: the person writing this letter favoring a married clergy has a son who is a priest. Perhaps this parent is wishing he could have grandchildren.)

The problem is that so often letters appear that question our faith and our faith practices, but these letters stand alone, unchallenged by any authoritative voice. This could lead one to assume that the writer is correct. It has the potential to create confusion and doubt in the faithful who, not too infrequently, are poorly educated in the faith.

A very good guide to keep by your chair and refer to when reading the Voice is a two page (front and back of one sheet) reference sheet published by San Juan Catholic Seminars www.catholicapologists.com. For $2.95 it is a great help to staying the course.

SOCIAL JUSTICE AND GLOBAL SOLIDARITY.

John 10:16 declares that there shall be one fold and one shepherd, but it doesn’t say that there should be a one world government.

The September 18 Voice published a notice of a “gathering on social justice ministry at Sacred Heart Church in Oakland. The speakers were Gina Hens-Piazza, professor of Biblical Studies at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, Joe Hastings, of Catholic Relief Services speaking on Integrating Global Solidarity into Parish Life and Carolyn Krantz, pastoral associate of St. Peter Martyr Parish, Pittsburg, providing an “Examination of Community Organizing Principles.” The meeting was sponsored by the Diocesan Social Justice Committee. Aren’t words interesting? Gathering sounds so innocuous and genteel while meeting or seminar as terms sound so official and instructive.

The three speakers all represent a parallel aspect of the UN’s one world vision. This is not Catholic teaching. This is one sided public policy advocacy dressed up as religion.

Ms Hens-Piazza who appears to be well known and respected in religious circles seems to focus on the role of women in the bible, the “second level” of support she called it. In the old testament, according to Hens-Piazza, the elders of the communities were drawn to women who were prophetesses, for guidance. This strongly suggests that Ms Hens-Piazza uses her knowledge and teaching authority to promote feminism ala the DaVinci code.

Carolyn Krantz’s topic of community organizing exposes the direct connection to political activity disguised as parish social justice work. Community organizing is the special bailiwick of the statewide PICO - Pacific Institute for Community Organizing, and it’s Diocesan counterpart - CCISCO - Contra Costa Interfaith Sponsoring Community Organization. These groups have invaded many of the churches disguised as having a religious agenda, but in reality, organizing to promote government programs and train young people to be community activists for very left leaning Progressive politics.
PICO/CCISCO is not an individual membership organization. It’s members only consist of whole churches or organizations receiving some of its funding from the member organizations. Is your parish supporting this subversive group?

It doesn’t matter if you call it Global Solidarity, Social Justice or Liberation Theology the words are merely a distraction while transforming the minds of the faithful into promoters and co-creators of a one world secular government. The United Nations is globalization’s foremost advocate. For globalization to occur it is necessary to create a world in which every government is dissolved, state and national boundaries disappear and everyone submits to one secular authority. Christ is now free to appear in his new role as deliverer of all human services to his “newly transformed” people.

Here it is, stated by a Jesuit Priest.

A Jesuit Priest who had spent many years in El Salvador following the deaths of several Jesuit Priests at the hands of the government militia, described Solidarity in a talk to a meeting at John Carroll University in 1999. Here is one quote from that talk:

“This situation leads me to suggest that we will have to make this new century the Century of International Solidarity. The powerful of the world are extending their power through globalized markets and communications. The response from those who hope to advance the cause of humanity can only be to globalize solidarity, that is, to globalize the practice of love. It is not clear at this point just how to organize more humane societies in this new century or how to get from here to there. But one thing is certain. There will be no new societies unless we have new human beings capable of identifying with the cause of the world’s majorities. In the Ignatian spirit of tantum/quantum rather than the consumer spirit, we will need to take advantage of the new technology--internet, e-mail and discount air fares--and make them channels of love and service instead of their opposites. But above all, we need to concern ourselves with the formation of new human beings.”

In the religious context, at least in the Oakland Diocese, this goal is promoted by the Diocesan Social Justice Committee. I sometimes wonder if the Social Justice types confuse the church doctrine of being one, universal and Catholic with a one world government mentality. At the very least a viewing of the Social Justice web site conveys the message that it is a centralized secular government that Jesus came into the world to create as the source of all providence.

AROUND THE DIOCESE.

To further illustrate how our Diocese is being turned into a very humanized (as opposed to spiritual) community, the paper notes that an Al Gore movie on Global Warming, entitled “An Inconvenient Truth” is scheduled for showing at a number of churches both Catholic and Protestant. It is hosted by a group calling itself California Interfaith Power and Light - CIPL.
In another section of the paper there is a notice about a lecture at a place called the (sic) Sacrada Sacred Arts (actually The web site titles it as Sagrada). The lecture is entitled Learn about Breema. See “A demonstration of Breema Bodywork.”
The use of the words Power and Light in the CIPL name I believe are not just a cute little take off on PG&E. This is an undercutting of the understanding of God as the source of all “Light” and “Power.” And, the Breema therapy is another example of “The Magdalene cult.” This is another very subtle insinuation of the prominence of Mary Magdalene rather than Mary the Mother of God as co-Redeemer. Neither of these events belong in a Catholic newspaper much less in a Catholic Church.
________________________________
ACORN
Here is another example of strange bedfellows.

Here is how ACORN, which receives funding from the yearly Catholic Campaign for Human Development and, at one time was a favorite organization of former (soon to be Mayor of Oakland) Senator Ron Dellums, an avowed socialists, sees itself.

“ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, is the nation's largest community organization of low- and moderate-income families, working together for social justice and stronger communities. Since 1970, ACORN has grown to more than 175,000 member families, organized in 850 neighborhood chapters in 75 cities across the U.S. and in cities in Canada, the Dominican Republic and Peru.” This is also a membership of organizations not individuals, however, they automatically assume, like PICO, that they have the authority to speak for you and me if our church or organization has obtained membership. Do you really want an acknowledged socialist organization representing you in the halls of Congress and the Sacramento Legislature?

This notice about ACORN and its voter registration activities is instructive of how they work.

“ An advocacy group that registered more than a million voters two years
ago is facing new reports of voter fraud and sloppy work just weeks before
crucial midterm elections.
Philadelphia's municipal voter registration office has rejected about
3,000 cards submitted by ACORN -- the Association of Community Organizations
for Reform Now -- since April because of missing information or invalid
addresses, the Associated Press reports.
Denver County election officials forwarded about 200 cards to the
secretary of state's office after finding similar handwriting on signatures.
In Ohio, election officials in three of the state's largest counties
have cited problems with hundreds of voter-registration cards. ACORN is
accused of submitting cards with nonexistent addresses, forged signatures
and, in one case, for someone who died seven years ago.
"In my opinion, there's a lot of words but little action in terms of
fixing the problem," said Matt Damschroder, elections board director in
Franklin County, Ohio.
ACORN, which has about 220,000 members nationally, dispatches workers
and volunteers to impoverished neighborhoods, gas stations, courthouses and
other places to sign up new voters. ACORN recruits new voters in heavily
Democratic poor and minority neighborhoods. (emphasis added)

We do applaud Bishop Allen Vigneron in his recent attempt to organize a Diocese wide Eucharistic Assembly dedicated to prayer and Good Works. The Bishop understands recognizes that the source of all accomplishments is Our Lord. The world will become a better place person by person as each of us submits our will and our efforts to His leadership. It is a very small beginning and only a handful of participants so far. The Secular humanists who have been allowed to run amok amongst us for so long as well organized and entrenched. Prayer, vigilance and devotion to Mary can resolve all that.

2006-08-28T13:19:00.000-07:00

Vatican speaks out against new way of making stem cells

VATICAN CITY — A Vatican official criticized a new method of making stem cells that does not require the destruction of embryos, calling it a "manipulation" that did not address the church's ethical concerns.

Monsignor Elio Sgreccia, the Vatican's top official on bioethical questions, said in an interview with Vatican Radio on Saturday that the method of making stem cells devised by scientists at Advanced Cell Technology Inc. in Alameda, Calif., remains an in-vitro form of reproduction, which the church opposes.

"That, from a point of view that is not only Catholic, but from a point of view of bioethic reasons, is a negative factor," said Sgreccia, who heads the Pontifical Academy for Life.

Church teaching holds that in-vitro fertilization is morally wrong because it replaces the conjugal union between husband and wife and often results in the destruction of embryos. Artificial insemination for married couples is allowable if it "facilitates" the sex act but does not replace it. The church condemns all forms of experimentation on human embryos.

Advanced Cell's method "doesn't solve the ethical problems," Sgreccia said.

The new method — described online Wednesday in the British journal Nature — works by taking an embryo at a very early stage of development and removing a single cell, which could then spawn an embryonic-stem-cell line. With only one cell removed, the rest of the embryo retains its full potential for development.

But Sgreccia said the new method does not address what he said was the fact that even the single cell removed in the new approach could theoretically grow into a full-fledged human.

Embryos' right to life
The current method of creating stem cells involves the destruction of embryos after about five days of development, when they consist of about 100 cells. Stem cells are important because of their potential to transform into any type of human tissue, perhaps leading to new treatments for a series of illnesses. The church says the embryos deserve the same right to life as fetuses, children and adults.
http://www.azstarnet.com/news/143855

2006-08-27T20:22:00.000-07:00

A RESPONSE FROM A DISGRUNTLED READER

We have received a response to our April 26, 2006, article on “Carondelet Students Tackle Consumerism.” Our correspondent, Maureen O’Leary Wanket, was mentioned in that article as having been prominent in establishing a series of seminars on campus entitled the Fontbonne Forum.

It appears that she believes our article has done her an injustice. However, through her position as a “devout Catholic and educator” she appears willing to forgive us our trespasses while praying for our enlightenment. (See her letter at the end of this response).

Ms Wanket states that while she had nothing to do with the particular Fontbonne Forum topic on Consumerism, she was one of the founders of the Forum and is still in touch with those currently directing the Forum. So, one might say that she still has some influence and input into the ongoing agenda.

I might suggest that before reading any further one might want to go back and read the latest posted article on this web site about the secular as versus the Catholic media. I do believe much of what Archbishop Amato states in regard to the duties of the Catholic media also apply to the teaching profession within the contest of Catholic education.

If I may be permitted to very briefly generalize subject: he chided the Catholic media for, often times, providing open ended reports, rather than instructing in the Catholic faith, which could lead one to believe that they could accept whatever conclusion they wanted. He spoke, further, about the impropriety of providing pro and con debates on some very basic subjects as though everything was merely a difference of opinion and that every opinion was a “good” as long as one acted on the information.

That is what I see as so pernicious to Catholic education in general these days and to the Fontbonne Forum type of “whole child” development . Ms Wanket and by extension, Carondelet, apparently believes as do the public school educators, that it is the responsibility of the school to address and improve the physical, mental and social development of the child. Wonder where the parents and the church come in?

Ms Wanket says that she gave a talk about the importance of avoiding war in 2003, but was this just her own political special interests? Was this talk of hers based on the Catholic teaching of the “Just War” Theory? Was there anyone at the school, her department head, the Principal, someone, who could preview what she said to insure that it reflected Catholic teaching?

Was there anyone at that 2003 forum who could speak to the Just War Theory? Is Ms Wanket not only a superbly educated teacher, but a scholarly student of war as well? What were her credentials to address young, impressionable students with a one sided presentation on war? Was she given special insight into the ramifications of war by the President, the Speaker of the House, the head of the War Department?

I wanted to learn a little more about Ms Wanket and what her philosophy of teaching might be. I googled her name and found it associated with an education organization entitled Association for the Supervision of Curriculum and Development - ASCD. . I recommend doing an in-depth reading of this site to better understand what influences are affecting educational instruction these days.

For someone who sees herself as an “educated and observant Catholic” she appears to be more persuaded by the secular fads in education rather than the wisdom of the Bible and the encyclicals on social issues.

Ms Wanket may well have adopted as her own, the Mission Statement of this ASCD organization which is:

“Schools can not achieve their primary mission of education if students and staff are not healthy and fit physically, mentally and socially.”

The ASCD is funded, at least in part, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, so prominent in using the schools to develop health clinics and global and international models of education to create the internationally aware student trained to accept his/her place in the global world of the future.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation promotes a project entitled First Amendment Schools Project. It states that “The purpose of education is that the students become productive and valuable citizens of a democratic society." Sorry, Ms Wanket, but those are usually the code words for socialism. Pure democracy leads to socialism.

Projects like the Fontbonne Forum give youth the belief that they are as proficient in and capable of addressing the world’s economic and social agendas as those who are elected to office, In some cases perhaps they see themselves as more capable because they have been trained to be more compassionate than others.

Wanket and others like the current director of the Fontbonne Forum seem to delight in ripping away the veil of innocence protecting our youth before they have had a thorough grounding in adult understanding and training in moral values and basic human principles.

The object is to make the student dissatisfied with life in America under a Democracy within a Republic by taking them out of their familiar surroundings, filling their heads with mindless drivel about the unfortunate and immoral way in which capitalism and those who head up the political and business communities mistreat and prey on less fortunate people. They end up by turning these students toward the government as the sole provider of protection and justice for the oppressed demoralizing their Catholic faith and turning them into unbelievers.

Educators are not alone in this work of undermining our youth. Our Catholic Voice Newspaper is constantly filled with articles about the work done by groups such as the Contra Costa Interfaith Sponsoring Committee - CCISCO - and its parent organization PICO - Pacific Institute for Community Organizing. These groups take the children of low income or immigrant families, feed their disenchantment and bitterness, train them to believe that the government bureaucrat is their best hope for a bright future and turn them into community activists ready and willing to force more government interventions down our throats.

PS: It should be noted that the hosts of this web site have a background in Catholic education, in the fields of Teaching and Social Work with special emphasis on Counseling and Political Science.

___________________________

Here is Ms Wanket's letter in full:

Hello there! You got your facts wrong, I'm afraid. My name is Maureen O'Leary Wanket and you mention my name in connection with the consumerism Fontbonne Forum at Carondelet High School. The truth is that I am currently a teacher at Loretto High School at Sacramento. I haven't taught at Carondelet since 2005, and I had nothing to do with the consumerism Fontbonne. I was one of the founders of the original Fontbonne Forum three years ago, though. I gave a talk about the importance of avoiding war in 2003. You might be interested in knowing that during that forum we gave equal time to opposing viewpoints who thought going to war against Iraq was a fine idea. I did not attend the latest Fontbonne Forum regarding consumerism, so I don't have any authority to speak on it. I do know the organizers of that activity personally, however, and I can assure you that they are not now, nor have ever been Communist. They (and I) do tend to rally in defense of the poor, and on behalf of peace, however, but what can you expect from a group of observant and educated Catholics? Also, thanks for reading my article in Teacher magazine. I like to make an effort to reach disaffected youth as well as those who are already as enthusiastic as I am about reading. As a devout Catholic and educator, I look to the Gospel of Christ for guidance on helping everyone, not just those who are already saved.

Thanks for calling me into the discussion. I'm adding you to my prayer list.

In Christ, Maureen O'Leary Wanket

Maureenow@hotmail.com

2006-08-17T19:29:00.000-07:00

Catholic media should seek and transmit the truth

Catholic media needs to be different from secular news

Archbishop Angelo Amato, Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) said in an interview, published this week, that the Catholic media needs to be different from secular news and should seek and transmit the truth of the faith.

In an interview with Polish Catholic weekly “Niedziela”, the Archbishop said that the secular media often chooses to transmit manipulations of the Church’s teaching rather than what it is truly saying. “The media do not publish the whole texts of the Magisterium. The problem is that as a rule they choose (certain) points, often secondary, that can cause polemics or scandals,” the Archbishop said. “One should admit that we very often have the impression that we are living in some artificial virtual reality that is created by media workers and various opinion-forming people.”

However, the Archbishop said, “The Gospel is not a creation of human mind but God's message concerning the reality of man and the universe.” Therefore, Catholic media has a duty to report the whole of the teaching of the Magisterium of the Church, in order to express the truth revealed through it.

Amato said a good example of the partial reporting of the secular media was the coverage of the 2003 CDF document, Dominus Iesus. Rather than focusing on the main theme of the document, which was “the salvific universality of Christ and the Church,” Amato said, “they stressed the ecumenical statements and arguments in order to polemicize against it. Instead of presenting the whole document, the headlines and first articles in international press showed it in alarming tones, stressing that it meant the end of ecumenism and interreligious dialogue and using the stereotyped statements 'closing up', 'return of pre-conciliar theology' or 'anti-ecumenism'.”

“In a word, the presentation of a church document should not be treated as a media event accompanied by sensational and scandalous elements, but as an important event in the Church, an occasion to form, evangelize and catechize people.” And it is the job of the Catholic media to strike the balance.

“We can make a conclusion that on the one hand contemporary media are characterized by certain superficiality and on the other hand they can exert powerful influence. And it is true that the more superficial the media are the more powerful their influence is,” the archbishop said.

While Catholic media should focus on current news items, Amato said, “information about the Church should be reliable, immediate, correct, convincing and positive…Catholic media should be characterized by the attitude of seeking and transmitting the truth and thus being differentiated from secular media, which give news in a polemical way, often resorting to the form of dialogue, which actually serves to make news a relative topic.”

Furthermore, the archbishop said, “Catholic press should not uncritically discuss the subjects of secular media, investigating artificially created 'religious events'.”

Catholic media should remain true to their name and report stories so as to create doubts in the minds of believers, as regards Magisterial teachings. By leaving arguments open-ended in the same way that the secular media does, “there is an impression that the commands of the Magisterium are only opinions which one can agree with or not,” Amato reasoned

In answer to the question of how the Catholic media can, “contribute to continuous formation of the faithful,” Archbishop Amato said they must rely upon the richness of the Catholic tradition as well as the documents themselves to give arguments that will aid Catholics in refuting negative and groundless judgments of the Church. “In order to contribute to the formation of the faithful, Catholic media must be creative, on a highly cultured level, and above all, sensitive to education in faith. The Christian tradition is two thousand years old, so we have at our disposal a large number of works (the Fathers of the Church, great theologians of each epoch, saints, works of various schools of spirituality and liturgical traditions, art), which should be proposed to readers.”

“The Christian civilization is not a museum to visit and admire but a continuous vivid reality, which inspires and supports and which has to be appreciated today,” Amato concluded.

source: ACI
http://www.cancaonova.net/channels/news/materia.php?id=16256

2006-06-16T14:49:00.000-07:00

WHO NEEDS DAVINCI WHEN WE HAVE CATHOLIC CHARITIES?

By Diane Lily

“The....tendency in modern charity, if we are correctly observing contemporary movement, is towards greater organization, even to the extent of making it one of the big business concerns of the country. The bread-basket stage, the penny-in-a-tin-cup stage, the hand-out stage, have given way to the bureau and the scientific giving stage. Statistics are replacing sympathy, and social workers are replacing emotions.”
- Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, Old Errors and New Labels, 1950.

Who needs the fictional DaVinci Code thriller when we have the real thing in our midst?

The DaVinci Code author declares that his story line is factual. The book’s protagonist tells a story about a religious world full of intrigue. He depicts perfectly normal groups who are in fact engaged in solid Catholic action as sinister “change agents” within the church.

All the while this real life entity, Catholic Charities, has been worming its way into the hearts, minds and checkbooks of the faithful while absolutely working as “change agents” before the United Nations and the federal and state governments to install what would amount to a secular humanist welfare state system of governance. And, all of it is based on a twisted interpretation of the Good Samaritan as the first community-minded social activist.

Catholic Charities, having the support and confidence of the Church higher authorities, has an ability to reach the faithful in the pews that is not granted to secular or government entities.

In tandem with other quasi faith-based groups, they are infiltrating the churches, training our youth to be community activists, especially using the newly-arrived Latino community to advocate before local and state governments for more and expanded tax funded programs. Catholic Charities has changed the meaning of Mark 12:13-17, regarding rendering unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s and unto God that which is God’s. God is being replaced by the State Department of Social Services.

It’s not necessary to delve into musty old records to discover the inner workings of Catholic Charities. They are readily available to the online researcher. The one problem, though, is that the agenda they espouse is, as in the Dan Brown story, in code. To understand the code it is not only necessary to read what they say, but observe what they do and with whom they do it to get a true picture of the mission and goals of Catholic Charities USA.

I recently came across a City Journal article by Brian C. Anderson entitled How Catholic Charities Lost It’s Soul.”1 The premise of this six-page article is that we all understand that “religious values can uplift the poor. Too bad Catholic Charities USA has lost confidence in the power of these values and has embraced the welfare-state faith.” Reading this article may help you begin to translate Catholic Charities code.

To understand the mission and positioning of Catholic Charities today, it is necessary to examine its forerunner, Caritas Internationalis, and its mission statement.

Catholic Charities began in 1910 in New York as the USA branch of Caritas Internationalis. Caritas was formed in 1897, originally as a loose association of priests and social activists in Freiburg, Germany, performing local works of charity for the community and the faithful. They branched out to Switzerland in 1901.

According to the Caritas web site, beginning in 1948, under the support and guidance of Msgr. Montini, who became Pope Paul VI, the Vatican assigned Caritas Internationalis as its official representative to the United Nations. At the same time, Catholic Charities moved into every diocese across the United States to eventually become the diocesan public policy advocacy arm of the church before government bodies. While Catholic Charities may take its orders from its Alexandria, Virginia headquarters, it closely adheres to the mission and goals as set down by its original founder - Caritas. Caritas Internationalis is headquartered in Palazzo San Calisto, Vatican City.

Here is a quote from Caritas own web site:

Global Advocate in the New Century: A turning point in Caritas's history came in the early 1960s, with the release in 1965 of Vatican II. In addition to sweeping reforms within the Catholic Church itself, Vatican II also called for Catholic aid efforts—led by Caritas Internationalis—to adopt a new and broader global focus. As a result, Caritas's relief operations no longer targeted especially the world's Catholic and Christian populations, but instead sought to extend its efforts toward the world's poor and needy, regardless of religion or other affiliation.2

Though Archbishop Sheen didn’t name names, he was acting as a prophet when he made the observation he did in 1950. He was, apparently, trying to warn the faithful that charitable works of mercy had joined with big politics and big business. Today. Catholic Charities has taken a lead position in forming partnerships or joining in coalitions with other non-profit activist and advocacy groups, many of whose philosophies and missions were and still are totally opposed to religious values.

The one uniting factor among all these groups is the goal of expanding their own organizational agendas, assuming major oversight of individual personal lives, and merging the church’s mission of charity with government regulation.

During those formative years from 1910 and up until about 1960, according to the Anderson article, when the philosophy of Catholic Charities began to change, it sought to “change bad habits and dysfunctional values remaking those habits and values through religious faith and moral instruction.” Here we have shades of the Bowery Boys movies: “He ain't’ heavy, Father, he’s my brother.”

However, the Anderson report continues, in the tumultuous years of the 1960s, “Catholic Charities rejected its long-standing emphasis on personal responsibility and self-reliance and began to blame capitalist society rather than individual behavior for poverty and crime. It now looked to the welfare state to solve all social problems.” This is basically the theme of Liberation Theology.

I am reminded of the Epistle reading for Pentecost Sunday, Genesis 11:7, about the Tower of Babel. In that story God, was so disappointed about the way people were living and thinking that after seeing the city and tower that the men had built he declared: “Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what another says.”

Today, however, it is not God who is confusing the language. It is the human wordsmiths, the public relations experts, the legislators, and the bureaucrats - both religious and secular – who are causing the confusion. One must read between the lines to understand and translate the code.

The Mission Statement of Catholic Charities USA is a good example of the code:

Our Mission: Mission is the purpose for which an organization exists; it is the reason why and how services are given. The origin of mission for Catholic Charities agencies is found in the Judeo-Christian tradition of Sacred Scripture, Catholic social teaching, and the tradition of the Catholic Church itself.

To participate in the mission of a Catholic Charities agency is to act with compassionate love and engage in the ongoing work of bringing to completion the kingdom of God in our midst.

The mission of Catholic Charities is to provide services to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same.

It flows nicely, but does it tell you anything? No and it’s not meant to. Words upon which to focus are: “origin of mission.” Why not current mission? Or, how about “Catholic Social Teaching?” That teaching has changed dramatically over the last several decades, as I have just described. Does it mean the encyclicals as originally written or as some progressive social activists’ have interpreted them?

Does advocating for social justice mean urging the faithful to lobby for the largest expansion of the welfare state in 65 years by extending medical and social services to illegal aliens, as reported in Human Events for June 5, 2006? Take a look at your own diocese’s Social Justice Commission as I have of mine, and see the legislation they are supporting for government services for illegal aliens.3 Then think back on their mission statement. There is no mention of spiritual salvation in that mission statement, only material salvation by the government.

In my diocese, Catholic Charities of the East Bay (CCEB), which covers Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, has signed on to a government grant program that they have titled the Care Collaborative (meaning they work with other agencies). It assists youth in foster care to maintain their state paid MediCal past the age of 18. The local Contra Costa county Grand Jury has just completed an investigation of the foster care situation and found it appalling. Those foster children who reach age 18 and must leave foster care often end up homeless. Their schooling has been interrupted so often that they have few worthwhile job skills, but they do have the protection of MediCal (California’s version of MediCaid) up to age 21 and they do have the services of a county provided Independent Living Skills program to train them for entry into the adult world. This is an inch-long Band-Aid on a foot-long wound.

What is Catholic Charities actually doing? It is coating its “mission” with a faint veneer of Catholicism while joining forces with faith based, nationwide organizations such as the Pacific Institute for Community Organizing (PICO). PICO was started by a Jesuit who was trained by the socialist-leaning Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF), under the direction of Saul Alinsky. The IAF got its start organizing the workers in the Chicago Stockyards of the 1930s. The main effort of the IAF has been to turn churchgoers and citizens into advocates for government delivered “social justice,” which means tax-funded government assistance that creates a continual dependency upon welfare and community service organizations. For a complete understanding of PICO and it’s parent organization the IAF, please read “Building Democracy: faith-based community organizing today,” by Mark R. Warren.4

Why, one should ask, does a religious body need a public policy arm? What is the advantage to one’s eternal salvation for the church to have formed a liaison with the government? Or, is it a mutually advantageous union? Catholic Charities gets more funding and expanded list of clients as it takes over delivery of government services. In exchange, the government gets more people into their programs from areas that have heretofore been inaccessible. The faithful get to continue thinking that they are supporting Catholic works of mercy.

To further one’s understanding of diocesan social concerns, one should next visit the Oakland Diocese Social Justice Committee web site.5 There one will find the usual array of liberal-left, tax-and-spend state and federal programs such as universal healthcare coverage, including coverage for illegal immigrants (exposing them to government provided family planning and abortion services as required by MediCaid and Title X), affordable housing (tax funded housing for government-approved people, supported by higher housing costs for everyone else), minimum wage laws (the cornerstone of progressive unions, especially the Service Employees International that loves to picket Catholic hospitals), and a whole host of legislative proposals dear to the hearts of the progressive (liberal) Democrat Party agenda. This supports the Catholic Charities Mission Statement that talks about providing services with “compassionate love,” which they have confused with government giveaway programs. This works right in with Caritas’ efforts, as stated in their Mission and Principles statements, to “break down” the barriers to access to public services. What it meant by “barriers” is moral resistance to bringing more of the faithful into the hands of big daddy government. In this strategy, they are similar to Planned Parenthood (with whom California Catholic Charities has often joined in supporting family planning legislation). When Planned Parenthood insertsi the phrase “breaking down barriers” in legislation it supports, it usually means blocking parents from protesting another usurpation of parental rights.

We now return to Caritas and its Mission Statement. It is divided into two segments. The first are its Guiding Values, which stress the dignity of the human person and in which they say that they are agents for change. There one learns that an “option for the poor,” or promoting the “rights” of the poor means more government assistance. One also learns that there is to be a “universal destination of earth’s goods,” meaning a redistribution of the earth’s goods from those who have to those who supposedly have not. Barriers to such redistribution are considered “sinful.” “Solidarity” is defined as associating with other non-governmental organizations, unlike traditional Catholic understanding of being in union with God for the sake of one’s salvation. The last Guiding Value of Caritas is “stewardship,” defined here as being in union with the whole of creation, which one can take to mean anything at all.

These “values” are all expressed in such a way as to be “barrier breakers.” The tactic here is to present any opposition as sinful, selfish, and greedy, humiliating an oppositional person into compliance – or at least into ineffective marginalization.

The second segment of their Mission Statement lists 10 Principles, all of which are worth reading, (one of which I just mentioned in a preceding paragraph). I will focus on two that I believe are core code words: “subsidiarity” and “partnership.”

Here is Caritas’ definition of subsidiarity: “The principle of subsidiarity is one of the foundations of the Caritas Confederation. We will respect the principle of local autonomy for all activities at the local level while, at the same time, helping the whole Confederation to work together effectively and harmoniously in the pursuit of our common mission.”

And, their definition of partnership: “Caritas seeks to work on the basis of partnership, which should underline all relations between member organizations. Partnership implies a long-term commitment to agreed objectives, based on shared values, strategies and information.”

Since the Church is a non-profit, 501(C)3 (IRS definition) organization it can educate the faithful regarding the tenets of the church on issues affecting the people, but it is legally limited in the use of its authority of advocating or campaigning for governmental public policies or politicians. [It’s prohibited from using more than 5-20% (depending on how you define terms) of its resources for political campaigning. It can advocate and influence public policy all it wants] If it is going to take a leading role in becoming a change agent, as I am suggesting that they are, it needs secondary organizations to carry on the majority of that work. In other words, it needs the right hand to claim ignorance of what the left hand is doing. The church has to rely on advocacy organizations such as Catholic Charities. And, Catholic Charities, to be effective, assumes that it must merge its voice with secular groups working to bring about a new world order. It works to bring about that new order by training naive individuals within the church to which they have been given access, to act as their lobbyists and activists before state and federal governments. In other words, they are upset that God isn’t bringing us heaven on earth – so the government can and should do that.

I have mentioned PICO. There is also La Unida de la Raza (the One Race). La Raza was created within the boundary of the Oakland Diocese also during the 1960s era with the blessings of Catholic Charities Board members, to be the outreach to the Latino community to provide government funded health care, social counseling, community training and advocacy.

Catholic Charities, La Raza and PICO receive funding from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. They all also receive millions of tax dollars for their “service” programs. LaRaza has just received a $750,000 grant from the California Health Facilities Financing Agency - CHFFA. PICO has been featured in several of the last editions of the Oakland Diocean newspaper, The Catholic Voice, for its services to the community in turning our youth into community activists. Several of these groups and several members of parishes up and down the state have been bussed to Sacramento to lobby for immigration, health care, and affordable housing.

La Raza, which operates community health clinic services and takes MediCal patients, lists family planning as one of its main services. Their website states that they follow the Liberation Theology philosophy of Paulo Freire, “echoing the humanist Marx.”

I conclude with one more quote from the Brian Anderson article, How Catholic Charities Lost Its Soul:

As both leading presidential candidates, Vice President Gore and Governor Bush, seek to extend “Charitable Choice,” the provision of the 1996 federal welfare-reform law that allows faith-based institutions to receive government funding to serve the needy without veiling their religious character, some conservative critics worry that government funds might make other faith-based institutions more like Catholic Charities—more secular and less concerned with saving souls. But this argument assumes that it was government funding that corrupted Catholic Charities. In fact, Catholic Charities officials already sincerely believed that government entitlements are the best way to help the needy when they began accepting government funding. There's no reason to think that effective faith-based institutions, once receiving government money under charitable choice, would lose their way. As Richard John Neuhaus has argued, it’s up to those who run faith-based programs to ensure that they preserve their religious integrity under charitable choice. “There are millions of people, especially the poor,” Neuhaus says, “who would greatly benefit by programs aimed not simply at ‘delivering services’ but at transforming lives.”

“Marxism held that ‘religion is the opium of the people.’ Today, this may mean politics is the heroin of religion.”6

HYPERLINK "http://www.city-journal.org/html/10_1_how_catholic_charities.html" * www.city-journal.org/html/10_1_how_catholic_charities.html
business.enotes.com/company-histories/caritas-internationalis/global-advocate-new-century

Catholic Charities of the East Bay: HYPERLINK "http://www.cceb.org/public_policy.php" * www.cceb.org/public_policy.php

HYPERLINK "http://www.nhi.org/online/issues/115/Warren.html" * www.nhi.org/online/issues/115/Warren.html

HYPERLINK "http://www.oakdiocese.org/pastoral/SocialJustice" * www.oakdiocese.org/pastoral/SocialJustice

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, Those Mysterious Priests, 1974.

2006-06-13T13:34:00.000-07:00

Mexicans, the newest welfare sub culture

The continual coverage of the Congressional fight over allowing immigrants - legal and illegal - into the US; as well as the focus on businessmen who would hire these illegals at substandard wages, while important, is diverting our attention from another bureaucracy also interested in building their empires on the backs of these immigrants.

The non-governmental agencies - NGOs - are actively pursuing these people (they don’t care if they are legal or illegal) and signing them up for tax funded social services as fast as they can. In our own county so-called faith based entities, such as Catholic Charities of the East Bay, Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization - CCISCO - and the Campaign for Human Development all of which claim association with the church when it suits them, along with the Jewish Family & Children’s Services of the East Bay - http://www.jfcs-eastbay.org - to name a few, are partnering with schools and secular non-profits, government agencies, health care agencies and legislators to expand their spheres of influence grabbing their share of the latest entitlement funding program while piously proclaiming that their mission of compassion and quest for social justice requires this massive outreach to a helpless, dependent presumably poverty-stricken community.

Do you ever wonder why we pour millions of tax and charitable dollars into agencies to help the poor and nothing ever seems to get better?

A few decades back Planned Parenthood engaged the assistance of some respected black clergy using them as a wedge to gain acceptence and respectability in the black community. That worked so well that now, it seems, the government has copied the idea. President Bush and others have encouraged the development of so-called “faith based partnering” with government agencies using them as a wedge to gain access to the faithful.

The Diocese of Oakland Social Justice web site reads like a left wing advocacy group http://members.aol.com/oyministry/page3.html. dealing in immigration, housing, health care just like any county governmental office.

CCISCO which is a branch of a statewide community activist training and organizing group called Pacific Institute for Community Organizing - PICO has an aggressive training program located in Richmond and East County to train and organize youth into lobbying groups to gain expanded government coverage.

A recent email alert from Eagle Forum, (May 26,2006 Amnesty: let your voice be heard) in discussing the immigrant situation stated this thought clearly:
“In addition, (to allowing the current group of illegals to stay in the country) the Senate bill would admit 66 million new foreigners over the next 20 years, put them on a path to citizenship, and load them onto our entitlement benefit programs. They would also have the privilege of bringing in their relatives, which could double or triple the 66 million.”

Make no mistake about it these people are viewed as the vehicle to expanded government authority in all arenas of life. Few will escape the welfare dependency, victimization mentality.

Do I feel sorry for all these people, yes? But I also feel sorry for all of us because we will all be demeaned by this misuse of our brothers and sisters.

2006-04-26T20:11:00.000-07:00

Carondelet high students tackle consumerism as issue of faith.

The Catholic Voice, propaganda organ for the Diocese of Oakland, reported in it’s April 17, 2006, edition on a recent debate regarding consumerism that took place amongst students at Carondelet High School in Concord, California.

It was presented as a part of an annual Forum initiatived at the school four years ago named after Mother St. John Fontbonne,
who ”re-organized the Sisters of St. Joseph after the FrenchRevolution.”

The debate was tailored, according to the Voice article: “so as
to nudge the 400-plus students to examine consumerism in light of Catholicism during a lively two hour session on the Concord Campus.”

Parents take note: that’s two hours, presumably, in which they were not learning Math, English or Science.

These young people actually are being indoctrinated to embrace Egalitarianism. James Twitchell Professor at the University of Florida has termed this camoflouged anti-consumerist advocacy as “Marxism-Lite.” This training leads to “Central planning or an eventual totalitarian society.”

This Fontbonne Forum was begun through the auspices of the Carondelet Campus Ministry program under the direction of Andrew Hodges. Rather than imparting solid Catholic teaching to students the entire agenda of this campus program reads like a leaf out of the progressive wing of the Democrat Party.

The Campus Ministry Program at Carondelet is under the direction of Andrew Hodges.
Its title of Ministry is misleading. It does not minister to the students faith needs nor show the students how to lead a Catholic life. On the contrary it is a training program for social activism masquerading as a ministry.

While Mr. Hodges led a group of 40 students in the January West Coast Walk For Life he also escorted students to a pro illegal immigration lobby day in Sacramento and organized a trip to Georgia for a few students to participate in the annual protest at the government School of the Americas, Other activities included Amnesty International events, working at St. Anthony’s Dining Room in San Francisco among the homosexuals and prostitutes and sleeping with the homeless in Salinas while bemoaning the conditions of the “poor” abused farm workers ala Cesar Chavez.

Mr. Hodges is not instilling a biblical love of supporting one’s neighbors. He is training the next generation of socialists.

Other Carondelet teachers involved in this Fontbonne Forum include Maureen Wanket, formerly a teacher at Loretto High School in Sacramento. She describes herself as an author and teacher and positions herself as a social dissident inspired, as a defiant teenager, by the book “Catcher In the Rye.” She apparently sees her calling as an author and teacher directed towards creating this same disaffection toward social norms in today’s youth.

The Voice article highlights the amateur work of a Carondelet student who filmed the Forum participants’ speeches along with the Georgia vigil activities and then wove them into a short documentary. The documentary on consumerism featured an interview with Brian Joyce, Pastor of Christ the King church in Pleasant Hill. An interesting choice since it is reported that his favorite department store is Nordstrom’s.

One of the most egregious elements in this Forum was the display of a desecrated American flag, as reported in the Voice article:

When students and faculty entered the auditorium, they came face to face with a large American flag decorated with corporate logos instead of stars. They received handouts of provocative quotes and questions for conversation starters.

Any teacher or youth leader desiring to build up a sense of moral ethics and honor would not do so by tearing down our American flag. Parents should seriously question the ethics behind this program. It appears that the Principal of Carondelet has hired teachers more interested in indoctrinating the students into a campaign of denigrating America than in learning to think for themselves through educating the intellect.

Not once in this whole article was there any reference to Catholic teaching or morals. A quote from three of the students summing up the Forum’s message tells it all. The students said: “Consumerism doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Individuals have choices and can opt for making choice that are both socially and environmentally good.” This is a dead giveaway that this is nothing more than strident politics.

2006-04-05T19:00:00.000-07:00

OAKLAND DIOCESE REMAINS SILENT ON ISSUE OF HOMOSEXUAL PARTNERS ADOPTING.

San Francisco's Hateful Anti-Catholic Resolution Prompts Lawsuit

ANN ARBOR, MI, April 4, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A virulently anti-Catholic resolution (see coverage http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/mar/06032203.html ) unanimously passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors has prompted a federal lawsuit by the Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Board resolution condemned Catholic moral teaching on homosexuality and urged the Archbishop of San Francisco and Catholic Charities of San Francisco to defy Church directives prohibiting gay adoptions

The lawsuit, brought on behalf of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights and two San Francisco Catholic citizens, challenges the anti-Catholic resolution as a "startling attack by government officials on the Catholic Church, Catholic moral teaching and beliefs, and those who adhere to the tenets of the Catholic faith, in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution."

The March 21, 2006 resolution alludes to the Vatican as a foreign country meddling in the affairs of the City and describes the Church's moral teaching and beliefs as "insulting to all San Franciscans," "hateful," "insulting and callous," "defamatory," "absolutely unacceptable," "insensitive[] and ignoran[t]." The resolution calls on the local Archbishop to "defy" the Church's teachings and describes Cardinal William Joseph Levada, the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is responsible for safeguarding the doctrine on the faith and morals of the Church throughout the Catholic world, as "unqualified" to lead.

According to Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, "The demagoguery and virulent words of this resolution are reminiscent of the anti- Catholic bigotry of the Ku Klux Klan and the Know Nothings, which marred our Nation's earlier history. San Francisco may as well have put up signs at the City limits: 'Faithful Catholics Not Welcomed."

Catholic doctrine proclaims that allowing children to be adopted by homosexuals would actually mean doing violence to these children, in the sense that their condition of dependency would be used to place them in an environment that is not conducive to their full human development. Therefore, such policies are considered gravely immoral and Catholic organizations must not place children for adoption in homosexual households.

The lawsuit claims that the First Amendment "forbids an official purpose to disapprove of a particular religion, religious beliefs, or of religion in general." The lawsuit states that this "anti-Catholic resolution sends a clear message to Plaintiffs and others who are faithful adherents to the Catholic faith that they are outsiders, not full members of the political community and an accompanying message that those who oppose Catholic religious beliefs, particularly with regard to homosexual unions and adoptions by homosexual partners, are insiders, favored members of the political community."

Robert Muise, the Law Center attorney handling this matter, commented, "Our constitution forbids hostility toward any religion. In total disregard for the Constitution, homosexual activists in positions of authority in San Francisco are abusing their authority as government officials and misusing the instruments of government to attack the Catholic Church. This egregious abuse of power is an outrage and a clear violation of the First Amendment."

2006-03-21T12:18:00.000-08:00

About USCCB

Statement on Responsibilities of Catholics in Public Life

March 10, 2006
Cardinal William H. Keeler
Chairman, USCCB Committee on Pro Life Activities

Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick
Chairman, USCCB Task Force on Catholic Bishops and Catholic Politicians

Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio
Chairman, USCCB Committee on Domestic Policy

A recent public statement by 55 Catholic and Democratic members of the House of Representatives offers an opportunity to address several important points about the responsibilities of Catholics in public life.

We welcome this and other efforts that seek to examine how Catholic legislators bring together their faith and their policy choices. As the Catholic bishops of the United States said in our June 2004 statement, “Catholics in Political Life”:
We need to do more to persuade all people that human life is precious and human dignity must be defended. This requires more effective dialogue and engagement with all public officials, especially Catholic public officials. We welcome conversation initiated by political leaders themselves.

Therefore, we welcome the Representatives’ recognition that Catholics in public life must act seriously and responsibly on many important moral issues. Our faith has an integral unity that calls Catholics to defend human life and human dignity whenever they are threatened. A priority for the poor, the protection of family life, the pursuit of justice and the promotion of peace are fundamental priorities of the Catholic moral tradition which cannot be ignored or neglected. We encourage and will continue to work with those in both parties who seek to act on these essential principles in defense of the poor and vulnerable.

At the same time, we also need to reaffirm the Catholic Church’s constant teaching that abortion is a grave violation of the most fundamental human right – the right to life that is inherent in all human beings, and that grounds every other right we possess. Pope John Paul II’s apostolic exhortation on the vocation and mission of the laity, Christifideles Laici, which the Representatives’ statement cites, declares:
The inviolability of the person which is a reflection of the absolute inviolability of God fínds its primary and fundamental expression in the inviolability of human life. Above all, the common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights -- for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to culture -- is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic and fundamental right and the condition for all other personal rights, is not defended with maximum determination…. The human being is entitled to such rights, in every phase of development, from conception until natural death; and in every condition, whether healthy or sick, whole or handicapped, rich or poor (# 38).
While it is always necessary to work to reduce the number of abortions by providing alternatives and help to vulnerable parents and children, Catholic teaching calls all Catholics to work actively to restrain, restrict and bring to an end the destruction of unborn human life.

As the Church carries out its central responsibility to teach clearly and help form consciences, and as Catholic legislators seek to act in accord with their own consciences, it is essential to remember that conscience must be consistent with fundamental moral principles. As members of the Church, all Catholics are obliged to shape our consciences in accord with the moral teaching of the Church.

As bishops, we too are bound by our own consciences to teach faithfully and to recommit ourselves to continued reflection and discussion on how Catholic faith and public service can work together to promote human life and dignity and advance the common good. Through dialogue, especially the irreplaceable dialogue between Catholic political leaders and their own bishops, we hope to promote a better understanding of how the Church’s teaching on human life and dignity challenges us all.

Editor’s Comments.

The March 6th edition of the Catholic Voice published a letter signed by 55 Catholic and Democrat Party members of Congress, dated FEbruary 28. This letter entitled Statement of Principles”notified the US Conference of Catholic Bishops that though they, the Congress members, acknowledged the “moral leadership” of the Catholic church, they did not want to ”see Catholic Faith defined solely by a ‘one-issue, very narrow right wing agenda.” They were referring to the issue of abortion.

This is, apparently, a follow up letter to a more strident one issued in May of 2004 in which 48 Catholic Democrats protested the Bishops threats to deny Communion to dissenting politicians.

This latest Statement of Principles letter, sounding more like a statement of politics as usual carried a release date of February 28, but, in reality it was circulated around Congress late last year and only released at this date. If it was truly a statement of principle then there would have been some Catholic Republican names on it as well. Certain Republican members of Congress who happen to be Catholic also support abortion or abortion funding with taxpayer dollars but they do not claim a special privilege from the church in doing so. This seems to be yet further evidence that the Democrat Party owes greater allegiance to Planned Parenthood and Population Control practice than they do even to their church. Perhaps the “religion” of eugenics is a greater calling for these people than their professed faith.

What is published above is the Bishops latest so-called response which we, the Oakland Diocese Watch editors, find to be completely worthless. Rather than carrying through with their 2004 threat to refuse communion, this letter indicates an even further retreat from
standing firm on the commandment Thou shalt not kill

“Therefore, we welcome the Representatives’ recognition that Catholics in public life must act seriously and responsibly on many important moral issues.” What the Bishops don’t seem to recognize is that our faith has been publicly denigrated by these so-called Catholic Democrats.

Every California Democrat member of Congress who signed this letter has received a 100% approval rating from the political action arm of Planned Parenthood including at least one from within the Oakland Diocese, George Miller of Martinez. This man has traded for years every election time on his Catholic faith. It’s about time our Bishop called him in for a chat and just maybe it’s time that our Bishop carried through on the promise to refuse communion to those politicians who would bring shame and scandal to our faith.

2006-03-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

IMMIGRATION REFORM - A CATHOLIC PERSPECTIVE

Or, The Good Samaritan as Immigration Reform Lobbyist

by Diane Lily.

People are being encouraged to chose sides on the hot button issue of immigration. The issue rarely addresses facts. instead appeals are made to our emotions or our fears. Interfaith groups including the US Conference of Catholic Bishops challenge the faithful to accept all immigrants regardless of country of origin. They intimate that we are prejudiced if we set limits and penalties on those who according to the Bishops statement only want to live, work, raise a family, get education and health care in the freedom and security of the US since they, presumably, can’t get that in their own countries.

In October of 2005, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops joined 174 other politically activist Catholic, Jewish, Protestant and non profit groups in an interfaith statement entitled Strangers No longer calling for a massive overhaul of immigration laws and regulations. The objective is creation of a new “Comprehensive Immigration Reform” program which will “establish a safe and humane immigration system consistent with our values. Our diverse faith traditions teach us to welcome our brother and sisters with love and compassion.” It depicts the illegal immigrant as only desiring to “come out of the shadows” and be recognized as lawful permanent residents who after six years will have the opportunity to become “United States Citizens.”

the use of two words in this statement should alert us to the true nature of the goals of their version of reform - comprehensive and humane. Comprehensive in regard to legislation always indicates a massive new government program and funding including the whole array of social services and humane indicates a large and generous give away program with no questions asked based on some nebulous understanding of compassion.

The February 20, 2006, edition of the Catholic Voice published a thinly veiled obviously professionally done article carrying the byline of Mary Doyle, social justice resource specialist for the Diocese of Oakland, entitled immigration reform - a Catholic perspective.

Following an opening couple of paragraphs intended to rub your sympathies raw by comparing an illegal clinging to the outside of a train with the figure of the crucified Christ, the article quickly becomes a
flat out promotion for federal legislation, S.1033, sponsored by Arizona Senator John McCain,(R), and Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy, (D). The bill and the Interfaith statement were both issued around the same time so it’s hard to say which came first. The bill is closely patterned on the demands of the interfaith statement incorporating previously failed foreign Agriculture worker language creating a guest worker program (Title lll).

This legislation entitled Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act, has an identical House bill, HR 2330, cosponsored by Cong. Nancy Pelosi,(D-San Francisco). It would create several new layers of commissions and advisory groups comprised of government appointees, representatives from the unions, community organizations, religious and educational groups creating public/private partnerships to advise the government on the care and feeding of these guest workers while delivering an expanded array of social services and work related training programs to those who have entered our country illegally,

The interfaith statement supporting Comprehensive Immigration Reform, published October 18, 2005, entitled “Strangers No More.” is co-signed by 175 different religious, social, health and service groups and individuals including some aggressive street activist types such as the Gamaliel National Clergy Caucus Leadership council closely allied with the PICO groups within our two counties of Alameda and Contra Costa. It calls for the following reforms to encourage “hard-working immigrants to “come out of the shadows.” presumably into which they were thrust by our harsh, inhumane immigration laws by:

1 Legalization of the undocumented regardless of country of origin.
2. Speeding up family reunification for entire families.
3. Creation of a temporary worker program with appropriate worker protections
4. Restoration of due process protections for immigrants.
5. Partnerships for Prosperity. Bilateral international programs and policies which impact the root causes of migration.

the article neglects to inform the reader that there are at least three other immigration bills in congress awaiting action, HR 4437, which already passed the House awaiting Senate action (vehemently opposed by the Catholic Conference) and another bill by Arlen Specter (R-Pa) that has no bill number or title as of yet but which also creates a very generous guest worker program.

The article also fails to inform the reader that there is a very strong and legitimate sentiment within our country of opposition to furthering the cause of illegal aliens numbers usa”

Cardinal Roger Mahoney has made headlines recently by stating publicly that he intends to defy any laws restricting aiding illegals already in this country and he encourages others to do the same. Section 1106 Volunteers at the end of the legislation states that:

It is not a violation of clauses (ii), (iii), or (iv) of subparagraph (A) for a religious denomination described in section 101(a)(27)(C)(i) or an affiliated religious organization described in section 101(a)(27)(C)(ii)(III), or their agents or officers, to encourage, invite, call, allow, or enable an alien, who is already present in the United States in violation of law to carry on the violation described in section 101(a)(27)(C)(ii)(I), as a volunteer who is not compensated as an employee, notwithstanding the provision of room, board, travel, and other basic living expenses.

Apparently Cardinal Mahoney believes that he is above the law and Senators Kennedy and McCain are encouraging him in this regard. Why is it that in the eyes of so-called social do gooders it is okay to defy the law when it comes to expansion of governmental programs and funding and not good when it comes to limiting government involvement and funding such as in parental consent legislation or abortion funding?

2006-02-09T11:18:00.000-08:00

BIAS IN THE CATHOLIC MEDIA

By Diane Lily

We know that there is bias in the secular media against the Pro Life position. Are we aware of that bias in the religious media also?

The photograph on the left appeared on the front page of the February 6, 2006, edition of the Catholic Voice with a brief caption identifying it as depicting the Second Annual Walk for Life West Coast held in San FRancisco, January 21, 2006.

The photograph on the right was one of many appearing on the web site of the West Coast Walk for Life west coast walk for life

The photo on the left makes the event look like a small chaotic group of disorganized rabble. The Catholic Voice failed to provide the faithful of the Oakland Diocese with an accurate report on one of the major pro life events of the entire state of California.

The Walk for Life web site photos clearly show a cohesive, focused, enthusiastic and disciplined crowd. Many of the photos show the large number of Stanford Students for LIfe and other youth groups representing the hope, future and strength of the pro life movement in California.

The Catholic Voice photo caption provides desultory reference to “many carrying signs proclaiming ‘Abortion Hurts Women’” with no attempt to inform the reader of the significance of the thousands of marchers who carried that sign or what it meant.

The people who developed that sign represent a determined group of women who have experienced the pain and suffering of abortion and have formed a large, growing and vocal group who say that they are “silent no more.” These women are speaking in the legislatures, on the media, about the destructive nature of abortion and how they regret their abortion. It is not just now they regret their abortion. It is the ongoing, never ending feeling of sadness over the fact that they allowed themselves to be seduced into destroying their own child.

The March was attended by a large number of both diocesan and Order Priests as well.
Father Joseph Fessio, SJ, formerly of Ignatius Institute in San Francisco and now residing in Florida as a Director of Ave Maria Institute, attended the Walk in order to present an award to Mr. Jim Holman of San Diego. The Gianna Mola Award is for outstanding service to the Catholic and Pro Life Community. Neither the award nor the honoree were mentioned in the Voice. Mr. Holman is the force behind the Parents Right to Know Initiative which will once again be on the statewide ballot this November.
The Voice and Officials at the Chancery have resisted requests for support of this initiative.

OAKLAND DIOCESE ISSUES PINK SLIPS.
Also on the front page of the Voice is an article about the Chancery office issuing pink slips to 17 full and part time employees to free up funds required by of court decision to pay off the victims of Priestly abuse. According to Monica Clark, Voice Editor, no one on the Voice was let go because “funding comes from sources outside the Central Services budget.” Other departments retaining their full complement of employees are: diocesan School Department, Catholic cemeteries, Catholic Charities and the Cathedral project.

It has been known for some time that Catholic Charities considers itself independent of the local Bishop’s authority, but now, perhaps we see that the “official diocesan newspaper”
also operates outside the Bishop’s authority. This could lead one to believe that the Voice is little more than a secular newspaper masquerading as an official diocesan paper.

Two face possible jail time for civil disobedience.
Beginning on page 7 of the February 6th Voice, considerable space is given to reporting on two people living within the boundaries of the diocese who face jail time for trespassing on federal property at Fort Benning, Georgia. This is the site of the formerly named School of the Americas. Due to all the negative publicity about this training center the name has been changed to Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation.

This is a popular site for annual demonstrations against war. It is apparently becoming an annual event for antiwar demonstrators in this diocese in memory of Father Bill O’Donnell. Fr. Bill, recently deceased, former Pastor of St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Berkeley, was jailed frequently for his protests at the School. The claim has been that the purpose of this place is the training of south American terrorists by American military personnel who then return home and terrorize and slaughter their own people. Never once has the Voice acknowledged the many times that Fr. Bill also picketed local abortion clinics.

Whether the objective of the training that foreign military personnel receive at this Ft. Benning, Ga, site is intended to be used against the indigenous population in the foreign countries is not the point of it’s being mentioned here.

The title of this article is Bias in the Catholic Media. For thirty-three years pro life people have been arrested and jailed while protesting the slaughter of the preborn by abortion in our own country by medical personnel trained in our own university hospitals, . Many of those jailed have been and still are residents within the boundaries of the Oakland Diocese. At least one of those residents is a Catholic Priest.

Never during all these years has the diocese or the Voice shown any interest in or support for these brave defenders of human life. It is a serious imbalance of injustice that must be rectified. Forty million pre born babies have died since 1973 while their killers, the doctors and clinic employees are protected by law from any civil or criminal penalty. The Voice has remained silent, seemingly oblivious to this attack on innocent human life.

We know that Bishop Allen Vigneron is pro life. We ask him to provide pro life leadership to the faithful of this diocese through the newspaper, through directives to his priests to speak the truth about the sin of abortion and to invite those Catholics who have submitted to abortion to seek confession a nd forgiveness
.

We ask the Bishop to exercise his authority in regard to the instruction of students in sex education programs in the Catholic schools. What students are getting now is basic Planned Parenthood indoctrination.

The faithful starve for the nourishment of their souls and the enlightenment of their minds while the Voice and the pulpits distribute platitudes and scoldings.

(Ed. note 2-20-06. The Catholic Voice for February 7, 2005, carried, on page 7, a more extensive but equally uninformative photo and words report on both the national March for Life in Washington, D.C. and the First Annual Walk for Life West Coast held in San Francisco. The front page of that edition featured an above the fold report on "Remembering the Victims of Violence" referring to gang related murders in Oakland and a "Kids walk Lake Merritt to help kids hurt by tsunami in Indonesia" report.

Eighty-eight persons died in Oakland in 2005 in gang related deaths. SEveral thousand babies died in Oakland's abortion mills during that time, but no one at the chancery mourned those deaths. 250 "kids, parents, teachers and friends" marched in recognition of the thousands of deaths in the tsunami, but 6000 to 10,000 marched in San Francisco for the babies and all they got was page 7 coverage.

2006-01-26T16:24:00.000-08:00

A Critical Look at the Catholic Voice - The
Newspaper for Diocese of Oakland, California

By Diane Lily

This first presentation will provide an overview of specific articles found in several of the latest editions of the Voice. It is coverage of this nature that has brought us to the point of using the Internet to provide a more balanced and, hopefully in-depth analysis of information found in the Catholic Voice.

A diocesan newspaper basically has two functions. One is to inform
parishioners about events taking place such as the Knights of Columbus
Crab Feed. The second is to enable the bishop to teach his flock,
either directly or through articles written by others.

It is this second function that is our focus.

Rather than teaching
his flock about the truths of our faith, such as authentic social
justice, he is allowing the paper to be used for the propagation of unauthentic [you could substitute heterodox for unauthentic, you call] positions.

For instance a letter to the editor in the January 9 edition of the
Voice challenging the Bishops support for opposition to the death
penalty was countered with a response from the Voice editor Monica
Clark. However, a letter to the editor in the January 23 edition
entitled “Abortion Exceptions” from a man declaring his strong pro-life
position and support for “Life Begins at Conception” legislation,
nevertheless defends the right to kill a preborn for the mother’s
health exceptions as reasonable and compassionate.

What a perfect opportunity to inform all the Voice readers of the
falsity of that opinion. But the editor is silent. Perhaps the editor
is assuming that some other reader will submit a letter countering this
argument. I hope someone does. But what a teaching opportunity from the
authority of the Bishop and it isn’t taken.

Bart Advertising

In the same January 9 edition page 3 carries an article written by
staff writer, Barbara Erickson, entitled “BART riders see pro-life
message.” The article reports on a campaign funded by “Friends of
Respect Life Ministry” to place Ads on BART trains questioning “Have we
gone too far?”

The articles continues with the information that the Ad campaign was
designed by the USCCB and was first displayed on buses in the
Metropolitan Washington, D.C. area last January.

This is a wonderful program and is getting positive responses from
pregnant women. But, though the reporter presents it as a Diocesan
activity the diocese didn’t fund it. The head of the Respect Life
Ministry, Monika Rodman, had to beg parishioners for money.

If you think that that is okay, then think about this. Go online to href=www.oakdiocese.org>Oakland Diocese and type in “affordable
housing” on their internal search engine. There you see a massive,
diocese funded Social Justice
Committee agenda endorsing every government social program available.
Then type in Respect Life and see what comes up.

The newspaper is attempting to make it appear that the Diocese is
actively defending and promoting respect for life of the preborn. Why
are they doing that? Because it’s January and the 33rd Anniversary of Roe
v Wade has arrived.

Recognition needs to be given to our new Bishop, Allen
Vigneron, for supporting Ms. Rodman’s program and he was one of three
presiders at the San Francisco Cathedral for the Pro Life Mass on
January 21. We might suggest though that
next year he also takes the time to participate in the 2.5 mile Walk
For Life that followed the Mass.

Catholic Campaign For Human Development

Once a year the church conducts a fundraising program for the Catholic
Campaign for Human Development - CCHD - ostensibly to raise funds from
parishioners for community service programs to help the poor and
downtrodden.

Our diocese is no different. The November 7 and 21, 2005, editions
carried articles about fourteen local (Alameda and Contra Costa County)
community organizations awarded a total of $210,000 in Campaign for
Human Development funds, they are:

Asian Pacific Environmental Network, Casa de Esperanza, Centro Legal de
la Raza, Community Recovery Services, Interfaith Coalition for
Immigrant Rights, National Council on Crime and Delinquency, United
Seniors of Oakland and Alameda County plus five units within PICO -
Pacific Institute for Community Organizing - which
received the majority of the funding.

In actuality not one cent went to
helping the poor. The money goes to middle class “advocacy” groups to
push political and social programs, some downright harmful to the poor
and antithetical to our faith.

More about these funded programs next month…

2006-01-02T14:07:00.000-08:00

OPENING STATEMENTS FOR ODW BLOG

TITLE 1V INSTRUMENTS OF SOCIAL COMMUNICATION.

Canon Law 823, paragraph 1.
“In order for the integrity of the truths of the faith and morals to be preserved, the pastors of the Church have the duty and the right to be vigilant lest harm be done to the faith or morals of the Christian faithful through writings or the use of the intstruments of social communication; they likewise have the duty and the right to demand that writings to be published by the Christian faithful which touch upon faith or morals be submittedto their judgment; they also have the duty and right to denounce writings which harm correct faith or good morals. (Code of Canon Law Latin-English Editon. Canon Law Society of America, 1984)

WHAT IS AN INSTRUMENT OF SOCIAL COMMUNICATION?
(Excerpted from the Code of Canon Law; A text and commentary c ommissioned by the Canon Law Society of America; Study Edition, 1985.)
“The use of the media in the service of the Church’s teaching office and on the prior censorship of books.”
This also pertains to the use of the diocesan publication (in this case the Diocesan newspaper, the Catholic Voice) which is deemed to be the Bishop’s official channel of communication with the faithfful.

Cannon 822 explains.
Paragraph 1. “The pastors of the Church, employinig a right which belongs to the Church in fulfilling its responsibility, are to endeavor to make use of the instruments of sociall communication.
Paragraph 2. These same pastors are to see to it that the faithful are taught that they are bound in duty to cooperate so that the use of the instruments of social communication is animated with a human and Christian spirit.
Paragraph 3. All the Christian faithful are to be concerned about furnishing assistance in this pastoral activity in such a way that the Church effectively fulfills its responsibility through such instruments; this is especially true for those who in any way have a role in the regulation or use of these instruments.”

HOW DO THESE CODES APPLY TO THIS BLOG?
Cannon 822 encourages the use of the media for the good purposes of the Church and of humankind.in using the various avenues of media communication to educate the faithful on the Church’s mission of teaching.

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO THE OAKLAND DIOCESE?
It has become overwhelmingly clear that the official newspaper of the Oakland Diocese, The Catholic Voice, under the guise of official church teaching, has been put into the service of the political left through the publication of groups and their activities and representing them as respected and official Church agendas.

Each month we will feature background information on some issue presented in the Voice, providing the reader with further details on the connections, activites and goals of groups appearing in the Voice.

2005-12-05T12:52:00.000-08:00

This site is dedicated to the Holy Family with St. Joseph as the special patron. The purpose of this site is to review and monitor
organizations, events and personalities reported in the "Catholic Voice," the official publication of the Catholic Diocese headquartered
in Oakland, California.

The Holy Family continues to be an inspiration for us all.

The Vatican