c. 2008 Religion News Service

Egan angry that Giuliani took Communion at papal Mass

(RNS) Cardinal Edward Egan of New York says he wants to meet with former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani after Giuliani broke their “understanding” and took Communion at a papal Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Egan said Monday (April 28) that he had a tacit agreement with Giuliani that “he was not to receive the Eucharist because of his well-known support of abortion.”

“I deeply regret that Mr. Giuliani received the Eucharist during the papal visit here in New York, and I will be seeking a meeting with him to insist that he abide by our understanding.”

Sunny Mindel, a spokeswoman for Giuliani, told The New York Times that Giuliani considers his faith “a deeply personal matter and should remain confidential.”

The fact that Giuliani received the church’s highest sacrament in front of Pope Benedict XVI and Egan, and that several high-ranking Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, reportedly received Communion during the pope’s Mass in Washington, has angered some conservative Catholics.

Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington has tried to avoid public confrontations over Communion with Catholic politicians who support abortion rights, and said he’s relying on local bishops to discuss the matter with those elected officials.

“The decision concerning the refusal of Holy Communion to an individual can best be made by the bishop in the person’s home diocese with whom he or she presumably is in conversation,” said Susan Gibbs, a spokeswoman for Wuerl. “Archbishop Wuerl respects the role of the local bishop as each bishop grapples with this decision.”

The Rev. Frank Pavone, a New York priest who is national director of the group Priests for Life, said Giuliani can’t insist that his faith is simply a private matter.

“The Catholic faith is not simply about one’s private and confidential relationship with God,” Pavone said. “It’s public, as evidenced by the fact that Mr. Giuliani received Communion in public.”

_ Kevin Eckstrom

Wis. couple charged after death of daughter

(RNS) A Wisconsin mother and father have been charged with second-degree reckless homicide after their 11-year-old daughter died of untreated diabetes when they prayed for her but did not take her to a doctor.

Dale and Leilani Neumann of Weston, Wis., were charged Monday (April 28) in the March 23 death of their daughter, Madeline Neumann, the Associated Press reported. They face 25 years each in prison if convicted.

“It was very surprising, shocking that she wasn’t allowed medical intervention,’ said Jill Falstad, district attorney of Marathon County, Wis. “Her death could have been prevented.”

Although friends and family had urged the couple to get medical assistance for their daughter, her mother didn’t consider it because she thought the child was under a “spiritual attack” and the father called the illness “a test of faith,” said the criminal complaint.

Madeline, who was called Kara by her parents, died on Easter Sunday in their rural home. Her parents were told her body would be taken the next day to Madison for an autopsy.

“They responded, `You won’t need to that. She will be alive by then,”’ the medical examiner wrote in a report.

The parents did not immediately return messages from the AP.

_ Adelle M. Banks

Muslims, Jews, atheists cite concerns about National Day of Prayer

(RNS) A Muslim advocacy group is partnering with a Jewish online organization that has called for “inclusive” observances of the National Day of Prayer on Thursday (May 1).

“Contact your governor and other elected representatives to ask them to make sure any National Prayer Day event they sponsor or attend is inclusive and representative of our nation’s religious diversity,” reads an “action alert” from the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Jews on First has questioned the application process for coordinators affiliated with the National Day of Prayer Task Force, headed by Shirley Dobson, wife of Focus on the Family founder James Dobson.

The Jewish group said the prayer day, signed into law by President Harry Truman in 1952, has been “hijacked” by the task force, which seeks coordinators who agree with a statement of faith declaring that the Bible is the “inerrant Word of the Living God.”

“We should carry out the original intent of the National Day of Prayer instituted by President Truman, to encourage Americans of all faiths to take part in spiritual events that bring our nation together,” said CAIR National Director Tahra Goraya.

In a separate but related move, atheists who say they are fed up with the National Day of Prayer are proposing an alternative annual activity: “National Gift of Life Day,” a chance to offer blood instead of blessings.

“We know that prayer does not work, but medical science does,” says Kenneth Bronstein, president of the New York City Atheists, which will hold its blood drive on Thursday at the Citigroup Center in midtown Manhattan.

Michael Calhoun, a spokesman for Dobson’s Task Force, declined to comment on the protests, but said the event was based on America’s constitutional rights of freedom of speech and religion.

“We just hope everybody across the country will unite together in prayer for our communities, our leaders and our nation,” he said.

_ Adelle M. Banks and Nicole Neroulias

Quote of the Day: Republican strategist Ed Rollins

(RNS) “I feel sorry for Obama. This guy Wright is like a piece of gum on the bottom of your shoe. You can’t get rid of it.”

_ Republican strategist Ed Rollins, quoted in USA Today talking about presidential candidate Barack Obama’s former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

KRE/RB END RNS