c. 2008 Religion News Service
Vatican says baptisms must invoke traditional Trinity
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Baptisms performed in the name of a gender-neutral Trinity are not true baptisms, the Catholic Church’s highest doctrinal authority decreed on Friday (Feb. 29).
A statement by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, explicitly approved by Pope Benedict XVI, declared any baptism performed “in the name of the Creator, and of the Redeemer, and of the Sanctifier” or “in the name of the Creator, and of the Liberator, and of the Sustainer” to be invalid.
Anyone so baptized must receive the sacrament in the traditional “forma absoluta” (using the traditional “in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”), the Congregation stated.
In an official commentary appearing in the Saturday (March 1) edition of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, Cardinal Urbano Navarrete wrote that a person baptized using the rejected formula is incapable of receiving any other sacrament, including marriage.
The decree did not mention specific countries, but it is evidently directed at the English-speaking world. The original Latin version of the statement and all five official translations released by the Vatican quoted the objectionable words in English.
In another official commentary, also appearing in L’Osservatore Romano, the Rev. Antonio Miralles warned that any non-Catholic Christian denomination that adopts such language “takes a great leap backwards on the ecumenical path, distancing itself enormously from the desired goal of full communion, which Jesus Christ wills.”
In 2006, the Presbyterian Church (USA) voted to “receive,” but not necessarily accept, a theological paper that encouraged study of various alternative names for the Trinity, including “Mother, Child and Womb” and “Rock, Redeemer, Friend.”
_ Francis X. Rocca
Study links subprime crisis to hunger
WASHINGTON (RNS) The poorest counties in the U.S. are among the hardest hit by the subprime mortgage crisis, according to a study released Wednesday (Feb. 27) by the Christian anti-hunger advocacy group Bread for the World.
The report, titled “Home Ownership, Subprime Loans and Poverty,” found a strong correlation between poverty rates and percentages of mortgages that are subprime.
In eight of the country’s 15 poorest counties, which have poverty rates exceeding 40 percent, the percentage of homeowners holding subprime mortgages is even higher _ up to 60 percent, according to the study. Data in the study were compiled from a variety of sources, including the Corporation for Enterprise Development and the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council.
The Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, said the inequity reflects an ignorance of the biblical condemnation against usury.
“The principle underlying the biblical warning against usury was that financial contracts, as important as they are, are still less important than basic human needs,” he said. “If you were lending money to a really poor person, you couldn’t take his coat as security for the loan.”
Denunciations of usury _ disproportionately high interest rates _ are found throughout the Bible, including Exodus 22:25, which states, “If you lend money to any of my people who are poor among you, you shall not be like a moneylender to him; you shall not charge him interest.”
Bread for the World contends that the continuing effects of the subprime mortgage crisis and hunger are interrelated, since victims of high-risk mortgage lending often limit their food purchases because they are saddled with increasing payments.
“Since you can’t cut back on mortgage payments or renegotiate the price of gas, the only place where you can save money is food,” said study author Todd Post.
_ Matthew Streib
UpDATE: Mayor says God will stay in mission statement
HUDSONVILLE, Mich. (RNS) The mayor of this small city in western Michigan said the City Commission will continue to “strive to serve God,” despite an atheist group’s demand that the phrase be removed from the city’s mission statement.
“We are not creating a church; we are not asking anybody to only accept what we have in that mission statement,” Mayor Don Van Doeselaar said Tuesday (Feb. 26).
“If there are those that disagree, we are fine with that. It’s a statement that reflects the community.”
The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, which asked the city to remove the phrase, said it might consider legal action.
It “is not the business of a city in our secular republic to `strive to serve God,”’ the group wrote in a letter to the city earlier this month. “A city should have no religious beliefs.”
Van Doeselaar said he consulted with City Attorney Dick Wendt, who determined the city was within its rights. The mayor said he also talked by telephone with the six other commission members, and all agreed to keep the phrase.
“We feel that we are not violating the principles of the separation of church and state,” the mayor said.
Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, disputed Van Doeselaar’s arguments, saying the original Pledge of Allegiance and the country’s first currency did not include those references.
“He’s relying on Johnny-come-lately additions to our country that do not reflect our heritage,” she said. “It’s a godless Constitution; that was our founders’ intent, and he (the mayor) took an oath to uphold it.”
_ Ken Kolker
United Methodists join anti-torture campaign
WASHINGTON (RNS) The United Methodist Church’s social policy office is circulating a petition that tells President Bush, a fellow church member, that torture is immoral and ineffective.
The petition cites the Methodists’ Book of Discipline, which says, “The mistreatment or torture of persons by governments for any purpose violates Christian teaching and must be condemned and/or opposed by Christians and churches wherever and whenever it occurs.”
The Methodists’ General Board of Church and Society was one of 10 groups that sent a letter to Bush urging him to sign the Intelligence Authorization bill, which would effectively ban the CIA from using waterboarding or other interrogation techniques that many consider torture.
President Bush has threatened to veto the bill, but more than 1,600 signers of the petition are urging him to sign it. Bush has frequently butted heads with Methodist leaders, especially over their opposition to the war in Iraq.
Meanwhile, leaders of four other groups have asked to meet with Bush as he decides whether to veto the bill. A joint letter brought together the National Council of Churches, the Islamic Society of North America, the Union for Reform Judaism and the president of evangelical Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, Calif.
“Our Scriptures couldn’t be clearer in their condemnation of cruelty and abuse,” said the Rev. Michael Kinnamon, head of the NCC. “The letter we have sent sums it up very succinctly: Torture is an intrinsic evil.”
_ Brittani Hamm
Prominent Muslim seminary condemns terrorism
CHENNAI, India (RNS) An influential group of Muslim theologians at a prominent Islamic seminary in northern India have denounced terrorism, saying it is goes against the teachings of Islam.
The denouncement came during the All India Anti-Terrorism Conference in the state of Uttar Pradesh, home to the 150-year-old Darul Uloom Deoband Islamic seminary.
Opening the conference, the seminary’s vice chancellor, Maulana Margoobur Rahman, called terrorism a thoughtless act that is “un-Islamic” and prohibited by the Quran.
“Islam preaches the tenets of peace, justice and brotherhood. There is no place for terror and violence in Islam,” Rahamn said in his address, which was read by a deputy. “Allah will never have mercy on those elements who think they are serving the faith by perpetrating violence.”
Seminary officials, who have issued more than 700,000 fatwas (religious edicts) over the years, cautioned that the latest declaration was not a fatwa. The seminary, however, is recognized as a renowned religious and academic center with influence over the Islamic world, especially in South and Southeast Asia.
_ Achal Narayanan
Rabbis declare victory for kosher airline snacks
(RNS) Six months after asking the eight major U.S. airlines to provide kosher food in flight, the Orthodox Union, the arm of Orthodox Jewish congregations in North America, has claimed success.
“Several of the airlines that initially were hesitant came around to at least provide some kosher-certified snacks for the kosher travelers,” said Rabbi Eliyahu Safran, vice president of communications and marketing of OU Kosher, which says it certifies the majority of all kosher products.
Safran would not specify which carriers had been reluctant _ just that kosher products are now available on American, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, Northwest, Southwest, United and US Airways.
The O.U. contacted the airlines as they gradually stopped offering complimentary meals on domestic flights, which kosher travelers could request in advance, in favor of snacks and other menu items for purchase.
Half of the airlines contacted added new kosher-certified snacks, while others reported that they already offered several choices, Safran said.
Safran stressed the range of popular brands that are already kosher-certified, from Oreos to Ritz crackers and airlines weren’t forced to seek out products “on a back street in Brooklyn.”
_ Rachel Pomerance
New U.S. ambassador meets with Pope
VATICAN CITY (RNS) In a meeting with the new U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, Pope Benedict XVI called on the United States to pursue international cooperation through the United Nations, and to oppose abortion, euthanasia and same-sex marriage.
Benedict made his remarks on Friday (Feb. 29) as he formally accepted the credentials of Mary Ann Glendon as Washington’s new envoy to the Vatican.
The pope praised America for setting an “example of uniting people of good will, regardless of race, nationality or creed, in a shared vision and a disciplined pursuit of the common good,” and for its humanitarian efforts against disease and poverty.
Urging the United States to pursue peace in the Middle East and the “reduction and elimination of nuclear weapons,” Benedict told Glendon that the “resolution of these and similar problems calls for trust in, and commitment to, the work of international bodies such as the United Nations.”
The statement has particular resonance since, in 2003, the Vatican opposed the Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq without an explicit U.N. mandate.
Benedict also spoke of the “American people’s historic appreciation of the role of religion in shaping public discourse,” which he said was reflected in efforts to protect “God’s gift of life from conception to natural death” and to safeguard the “institution of marriage, acknowledged as a stable union between a man and a woman.”
Glendon, 69, is a Harvard Law School professor and prominent conservative commentator, is a well-known opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage. In 2004, Pope John Paul II named her as the first woman to head the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, a Vatican thinktank.
_ Francis X. Rocca
Bush’s conservative liaison resigns after plagiarism charge
WASHINGTON (RNS) Tim Goeglein, a key liaison between the White House and conservative Christians, resigned Friday (Feb. 29) after plagiarism charges surfaced against him, the White House announced.
In a blog earlier that day, Nancy Nall, a former columnist for The News-Sentinel in Fort Wayne, Ind., noted similarities between a recent Goeglein column in that paper and a writer for the Dartmouth Review.
In a statement Friday, the White House announced that President Bush had accepted Goeglein’s resignation.
“Today, Tim accepted responsibility for the columns published under his name in his local newspaper, and has apologized for not upholding the standards expected by the president,” the White House said. “The president was disappointed to learn of the matter, and he was saddened for Tim and his family. He has long appreciated Tim’s service, and he knows him to be a good person who is committed to his country.”
The News-Sentinel investigated the matter and found that Goeglein has plagiarized 20 of 38 columns the paper published under his name since 2000. The newspaper said he once used Pope John Paul II’s words as his own.
“We truly apologize to you for this breach of trust in the accuracy and honesty of what you read in this newspaper,” Kerry Hubartt, editor of The News-Sentinel, wrote to readers.
The newspaper said Goeglein also apologized. “Please know how deeply sorry I am,” he wrote to Editorial Page Editor Leo Morris, the paper reported.
_ Adelle M. Banks
Sikhs opt out of papal meeting because of dagger dispute
WASHINGTON (RNS) The World Sikh Council-America Region said its members will not attend an interfaith gathering with Pope Benedict XVI next month because the Secret Service will not allow their ceremonial daggers.
The interreligious meeting is scheduled for April 17, during Benedict’s inaugural U.S. trip as pope, and will be held at the John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington.
Despite a cooperative effort with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, who asked the Secret Service to provide security for the papal visit, Sikhs could not obtain permission to carry kirpans, or small ceremonial daggers, to the meeting.
The kirpan, which means “bringer of mercy,” is one five articles of faith required of formally initiated Sikhs, according to the World Sikh Council-America Region. It symbolizes a dedication to fighting injustice and oppression.
“We have to respect the sanctity of the kirpan, especially in such interreligious gatherings,” said Anahat Kaur, secretary general of the Sikh council’s American arm. “We cannot undermine the rights and freedom of religion in the name of security.”
_ Daniel Burke
Canadian court sides with breakaway parishes
TORONTO (RNS) A Canadian court has ruled in favor of two conservative congregations that broke away from the Anglican Church of Canada, stating they have exclusive use of their church buildings _ at least for now.
A judge in Hamilton, Ontario, granted the interim order on Friday (Feb. 29) that allows the two breakaway churches to hold Sunday services without having to share the facilities with members who wish to remain with the national church.
The decision means that at least until next Sunday (March 9), services at St. George’s church in Lowville and St. Hilda’s in Oakville are under the auspices of the Anglican Network in Canada, a traditionalist group.
The breakaway group opposes the decision last November by the Niagara diocese to adopt the so-called local option that allows clergy “whose conscience permits” to bless gay marriages.
To date, 10 Canadian parishes have voted to join the Anglican Network, and an additional 15 have placed themselves under the jurisdiction of the conservative Anglican Province of the Southern Cone in South America.
“It seems to us only fair and equitable that the diocese be able to have access,” diocese lawyer John Page told the court. “Can’t Christians and Anglicans share? We’re prepared to share. We’re not asserting any entitlements.”
_ Ron Csillag
Former solicitor general to represent UCC in IRS probe
(RNS) The United Church of Christ has retained a former U.S. solicitor general to represent the church during an Internal Revenue Service investigation of its political activities.
Seth P. Waxman, who represented the U.S. government before the Supreme Court from 1997 to 2001, will lead a team of attorneys working on behalf of the 1.2 million-member denomination, according to the UCC.
The IRS is investigating the Cleveland-based denomination because of a speech given by church member and presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama at a UCC event last summer. If the church is found guilty of improper politicking on Obama’s behalf, its tax-exempt status could be jeopardized.
“I am confident that, when the IRS learns all the relevant facts, it will conclude that the General Synod of the United Church of Christ did not come close to conducting political campaign activity at its 2007 gathering,” said Waxman, a partner at WilmerHale in Washington.
WilmerHale will handle the UCC case pro bono, the denomination said, and church officials are no longer soliciting donations to the “UCC Legal Fund,” which raised almost $60,000 in less than a week, according to the church.
_ Daniel Burke
Archbishops support blasphemy laws but won’t fight repeal
LONDON (RNS) The Church of England’s two top archbishops say they have “serious reservations” about government moves to repeal Britain’s blasphemy laws but said the church “is not going to oppose abolition now.”
The stance taken by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and Archbishop of York John Sentamu was laid out in a joint letter sent to Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
A proposal to repeal the ancient statutes against blasphemy is contained in an amendment to a justice bill now before the House of Lords, the upper chamber of Britain’s Parliament.
The archbishops said they had “serious reservations about the wisdom of legislating at this moment” and suggested that “it is not clear that there is a pressing need for repeal.”
Nevertheless, their letter said, “having signaled for more than 20 years that the blasphemy laws could, in the right context, be abolished, the Church is not going to oppose abolition now, provided we can be assured that provisions are in place to afford the necessary protection to individuals and to society.”
_ Al Webb
St. Patrick’s feast will come early for some
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (RNS) This year more than ever, Catholics should remember St. Patrick was a man of faith, not the patron saint of partying.
So says Bishop Walter Hurley, head of the Grand Rapids Catholic Diocese, when it comes to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day on Monday, March 17.
Because the feast day falls during Holy Week for the first time since 1940, Hurley says parishes should observe Masses and festivities in Patrick’s honor the preceding Friday.
“The church believes that Holy Week and the sacred events of Holy Week are far more important than the celebration of any saint’s day,” Hurley said. “If you wish to celebrate the feast of St. Patrick, which you don’t have to do, we would ask you to celebrate on the 14th.”
The bishop, however, is granting a dispensation that day from the abstinence from meat expected of Catholics during Fridays in Lent, according to the diocese Web site.
Elsewhere around the country, bishops have asked that St. Patrick’s Day celebrations be moved from Holy Week. In Savannah, Ga., which attracts more than half a million revelers for St. Patrick’s Day, official celebrations have been moved to Friday, March 14. But in Columbus, Ohio, the local Shamrock Club is sticking to March 17, against the local bishop’s wishes.
“It’s not a sin to celebrate your Irish culture,” Mark Dempsey, the Shamrock Club’s president, told the Associated Press. “Actually, you’re born Irish first, and then you’re baptized Catholic.”
_ Charles Honey and Kevin Eckstrom
Quote of the Day: Bishop Domenico D’Ambrosio
(RNS) “Padre Pio’s fingernails are as if he had just had a manicure.”
_ Bishop Domenico D’Ambrosio, the Vatican envoy appointed to oversee the exhumation of Padre Pio, a wildly popular Italian saint whose remains will be on public display to mark the 40th anniversary of his death. D’Ambrosio was quoted by the Associated Press.
END RNS
