c. 1998 Religion News Service

Canadian Catholic editor:”positive side effects”to abortion killings

(RNS) The editor of the the British Columbia Catholic, the newspaper of the archdiocese of Vancouver, has written that killing doctors who perform abortions”might have some positive side effects.” The editor, Paul Schratz, made his comments in an editorial on the slaying of Dr. Barnett Slepian on Oct. 23, in Amherst, N.Y.

Schratz cited such”positive”effects as the fact that”fewer doctors are willing to face the stigma, and now the threat of personal harm associated with performing abortions.”It just goes to show that our all-powerful and all-God can bring good from any evil situation,”he added.

While noting the”positive”effects, the editorial also suggested the killing was wrong because”sin produces more sin.” Schratz said the editorial represented his views and not those of vancouver Archbishop Adam Exner, publisher of the paper.

But at least one Catholic priest, the Rev. Jim Roberts, said he found the editor’s remarks”revolting and quite unbelievable,”the Associated Press reported Wednesday (Nov. 4).”The idea of God kind of winking at murder, I find that blasphemous,”Robert said.

In a separate abortion-related incident, Slepian’s widow, Lynne, has returned a bouquet of roses placed at her husband’s office by an anti-abortion leader, the Rev. Robert Schenck, and included a note saying the gesture was not appreciated.”He’s a big hypocrite,”Mrs. Slepian said.”He never would have prayed for Bart. I don’t believe for one moment that he cares one bit about me or my family.”She said Schenck had called her husband”a pig”when he confronted him at a demonstration.

Elsewhere on the abortion front, the state of Wisconsin has been barred from enforcing its ban on a kind of late-term abortion procedure while the state and opponents of the law battle in courts.

In a 3-2 ruling, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals bars enforcement of a law enacted by the Wisconsin legislature in April aiming to outlaw so-called”partial-birth abortions,”in which the fetus is partially delivered and destroyed and then the delivery completed.

The law is being challenged by Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and six physicians.

Australian churchman: ban rocker Marilyn Manson

(RNS) Fred Nile, a prominent conservative Christian leader in Australia, is calling on the Australian government to bar shock rocker Marilyn Manson from entering the country.

Marilyn Manson _ the name of both the lead singer and the band _ is best known for his flamboyant personal appearance in which the cross-dressing singer bends gender identity to androgyny in a more extreme version of such rock acts of the 1970s and 1980s as David Bowie and Alice Cooper.”The whole thing is absolutely sick and evil,”Niles said Oct. 22 of the planned Marilyn Manson visit,”and is far more dangerous to Australians than that Irving bloke.” The last was a reference to British right-wing historian David Irving, a revisionist historian who claims the Holocaust did not take place. He has been barred from entering Australia.

The band is due to perform in Australia and New Zealand in January, Ecumenical News International, the Geneva-based religious news agency reported.

Israel urges 50-year wait before considering Pius XII beatification

(RNS) Israel’s ambassador to the Holy See has urged the Vatican to wait 50 years before moving ahead with any plan to beatify Pope Pius XII, the controversial World War II-era pontiff.”A moratorium should be welcome,”Ambassador Aharon Lopez said Tuesday, arguing a 50-year waiting period would give time for all relevant documents in the Vatican archives to be made public and allow the healing of”wounds still open”from the Holocaust.

Controversy has surrounded the role of Pius XII, pope from 1939-1958, during the war years. Some have accused him of remaining silent about Nazi Holocaust while others, including the current pontiff, John Paul II, have defended him.

The case for possible beatification _ the step before being made a saint _ is under study at the Vatican, but the Vatican has recently denied reports that it had already decided to beatify him in 2000 as the Roman Catholic Church enters its third millennium.

Lopez also acknowledged that beatification was the church’s business and said he was not passing judgment on Pius, the Associated Press reported.

The envoy made his comments at a news conference after deflecting questions about Israel’s reaction to statements made in Jerusalem last week by Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran. Tauran said east Jerusalem was being”illegally occupied”by the Israelis.

Clinton greets Sikhs on anniversary of founder’s birth

(RNS) President Clinton has sent a letter of greeting to Sikhs across the country to mark their celebration of the anniversary of the birth of Guru Nanak, founder of Sikhism.”We are grateful for the teachings of Guru Nanak, which celebrate equality of all in the eyes of God _ a message that strengthens our efforts to build one America,”Clinton said in his statement, issued Nov. 3.”Religious pluralism in our nation is bringing us together in new and powerful ways,”the president continued.”I hope that, as the teachings of Guru Nanak become better known _ particularly his compassion for the poor and recognition of the equality of all women and men _ all Americans will more fully appreciate the contributions of Sikhs to our national life.” Dr. Rajwant Singh, of the Guru Gobind Singh Foundation in Rockville, Md., said it was the second year in a row that Clinton had sent out greetings to mark the anniversary. He views it as a sign of American acceptance of Sikhs.”Finally, we believe that we have arrived in the U.S.,”said Singh.”We have been here for over 90 years and finally our presence is being acknowledged by the political leadership of this land.” Singh said the celebration of the 529th birth-anniversary of Guru Nanak begins today (Nov. 4), the actual birthdate, but will continue through Nov. 15. Festivities include sharing historical passages, singing hymns from Sikh scriptures and sharing a community meal.

Sikhism has about 21 million adherents worldwide, with about 500,000 Sikhs living in the United States. The largest population of Sikhs _ about 14 million _ live in the Indian state of Punjab.

Scottish cardinal calls for making St. Andrew’s Day a national holiday

(RNS) When it meets for the first time next year, Scotland’s new parliament should”act quickly to declare St. Andrew’s Day, 30th of November, a national holiday for all Scots,”says Cardinal Thomas Winning, Archbishop of Glasgow and president of the Scottish bishops’ conference.

In keeping with his call for the feast of Scotland’s patron saint to be a public holiday, the cardinal has already declared it a holiday for archdiocesan office staff.

Making St. Andrew’s Day a public holiday would have wide ecumenical support, Winning added.”All the churches recognize St. Andrew as an apostle and patron, and I think it important that we give back to public holidays some of the religious significance which they seem to have lost in recent years,”he said.

St. Andrew became the patron saint of Scotland during the Middle Ages, after relics of his in the eighth century were brought to what is now the city of St. Andrews, which Scottish kings built up as the country’s religious center and metropolitan see.

The idea of making St Andrew’s Day a public holiday has been welcomed by Scottish politicians of all parties, including Donald Dewar, the Secretary of State for Scotland.

Quote of the day: Human Rights Watch official Jo Becker

(RNS)”No one under the age of 18 should take part in war, whether as part of a national army, an armed opposition group, or a member of a United nations peacekeeping mission.” _ Jo Becker, Children’s Rights Advocacy Director for Human Rights Watch, commenting in a statement on a new United Nations policy establishing 18 as the minimum age for U.N. peacekeepers.

DEA END RNS