Washington D.C., Nov 1, 2017 / 11:53 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Catholic and pro-life groups are welcoming the Senate's confirmation on Tuesday of Amy Coney Barrett to the US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit. Barrett had faced hostile questions about her Catholic faith during her confirmation hearing. “Amy Coney Barrett will make an excellent judge and we welcome her confirmation despite unprecedented and unconstitutional attacks on her faith,” Ashley McGuire, senior fellow with The Catholic Association, said Oct. 31. “Catholics were alarmed by the anti-Catholic bigotry on display from Democrats during her hearings, but her confirmation is a testament to the enduring constitutional principle that there can be no religious test for office.” President Trump's nominee was confirmed by a 55-43 vote, largely along party lines. Barrett, a professor at Notre Dame Law School, was pointedly questioned by Democratic senators on the Judiciary Committee in September on how her Catholic faith would influence her decisions as a judge on cases of abortion and same-sex marriage. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), ranking member of the committee, told Barrett outright that her Catholic beliefs were concerning, as they may influence her decisions as a judge on abortion rights. “I think in your case, professor, when you read your speeches, the conclusion one draws is that the dogma lives loudly within you. And that’s of concern,” Feinstein stated. Reacting to Barrett's confirmation, Americans United for Life said it is “especially encouraged,” and added that her scholarship has “demonstrated her dedication to preserving the originalist legacy of her former boss, the late Justice Antonin Scalia.” Pro-life group the Susan B. Anthony List also welcomed the confirmation, calling it “a victory for the pro-life movement as well as for the fundamental freedom of all Americans to live out their faith in the public square.” SBA List's president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, added that “We thank President Trump for keeping his promise to nominate judges who will respect the Constitution and not impose a pro-abortion agenda from the bench. We also thank Leader McConnell and Senator Grassley for their commitment to getting these excellent judges confirmed.” During her confirmation hearings Barrett repeatedly said that as a judge, she would uphold the law of the land and would not let her religious beliefs inappropriately alter her judicial decisions. She told Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) that “it's never appropriate for a judge to impose that judge’s personal convictions, whether they derive from faith or anywhere else, on the law.” In 1998, Barrett co-authored an article in the Marquette Law Review with then-Notre Dame law professor John Garvey, now president of The Catholic University of America. The article focused on Catholic judges in death penalty cases. Catholic judges, if their consciences oppose the administering of the death penalty, should, in accordance with federal law, recuse themselves from capital cases where a jury recommends a death sentence, Garvey and Barrett wrote. They should also recuse themselves from cases without a jury where they have the option of granting a death sentence, they wrote. During her confirmation hearing Barrett said she continues to uphold “that if there is ever a conflict between a judge’s personal conviction and that judge’s duty under the rule of law, that it is never, ever permissible for that judge to follow their personal convictions in the decision of a case rather than what the law requires.” Barrett has twice been honored as “Distinguished Professor of the Year” at Notre Dame, and had clerked for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. The Senate also confirmed, on Nov. 1, the confirmation of Joan Larsen to the US Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, by a 60-38 vote. Larsen is also a former clerk for Scalia, and her confirmation was also welcomed by SBA List. Read more

Washington D.C., Oct 31, 2017 / 07:30 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- With House lawmakers set to release their tax reform bill on November 1, one U.S. bishop has laid out moral principles encouraging Congress to care for the poor, families, and the common good. "You are urged to recognize the critical obligation of creating a just framework aimed at the economic security of all people, especially the least of these," wrote Bishop Frank J. Dewane of Venice, Florida in a letter addressed to Congress. The letter outlines moral principles to be considered alongside the "Unified Framework for Fixing Our Broken Tax Code,” the Trump administration's template for rewriting and simplifying federal taxes. “Care for the poor” is first among the bishop’s principles, which also include avoiding cuts to poverty programs to finance the tax reform. Bishop Dewane, who serves as chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, cited the U.S. bishops’ commitment to evaluating the tax system in terms of its impact on the poor. He emphasised that the burden of tax reform should not fall upon those struggling to meet their daily needs. One possible impact of the proposed tax changes could be a reduction in charitable giving, Dewane warned. Although the simplification of the tax code in the “Unified Framework” retains tax incentives for charitable contributions, the elimination of the estate tax and increase in the overall standard deduction could reduce incentives to give, leaving the poor vulnerable, he said. While particularly concerned about the reform’s potential impact on the poor, Dewane’s letter affirmed that some proposed tax changes in the “Unified Framework” could be instrumental in strengthening and encouraging families. An increase in the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit could be of particular benefit to families, especially if the “marriage penalty” in the existing tax credit is removed, he said. The pending overhaul of the current tax system, if passed, is likely to leave a lasting impact on U.S. tax revenues and public spending for years to come. The U.S. bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development seeks to ensure that these changes secure a positive future for the poor and for families, DeWane said. Quoting the “Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church,” Bishop Dewane’s letter reminded lawmakers that “the goal to be sought is public financing that is itself capable of becoming an instrument of development and solidarity.”   Read more

Rapid City, S.D., Oct 31, 2017 / 06:57 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Lakota medicine man turned Catholic catechist Nicholas Black Elk has begun the path to potential canonization with a Mass in South Dakota opening his cause for sainthood. “From a very young age, there was an openness to the Spirit of God in his life,” Bishop Robert Gruss of Rapid City, S.D. said at an Oct. 21 Mass. “God used a personal invitation from a Jesuit priest to lead this child of God, Black Elk, down a new path to becoming this great disciple in the Catholic faith for the Lakota people.” The Mass, which opened Black Elk's cause for canonization, was celebrated at Holy Rosary Church near Pine Ridge, S.D. Family members of Black Elk were in attendance. “For 50 years, Black Elk lived this mission in leading others to Christ,” said the bishop, crediting his love for God and Sacred Scripture for motivating him to become a catechist. In that role, he brought hundreds of people to the Catholic faith. The bishop cited Black Elk's own words from his missionary letter: “I spoke mainly on Jesus – when he was on earth, the teachings and his sufferings. I myself, do a lot of these things. I suffer, and I try to teach my people the things that I wanted them to learn.” If Black Elk is canonized, he will be the first official saint from the Diocese of Rapid City, according to his biography on the diocese website. He was born sometime between 1858 and 1866. Like many of his ancestors, he served as a medicine man, which combined the roles of medical doctor, spiritual adviser and counselor. Despite the promises of the Great Sioux Treaty of 1868, gold-seeking settlers and prospectors began moving into Dakota Territory in 1874. This led to the Great Sioux War of 1876-77. Black Elk was at the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876. The following year, he joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, which toured Europe, including a performance before Queen Victoria. Black Elk continued to tour the continent with another Wild West show, encountering the cultures of England, France, Germany and Italy. He learned to speak some English and returned to the U.S. in 1889. In 1890, he was injured at the Wounded Knee Massacre, where a bullet grazed his thigh. Two years later, he married Katie War Bonnet. They had three children. After she converted to Catholicism, all three children were baptized. The year after she died, Black Elk converted to Catholicism and was baptized on Dec. 6, 1904, the Feast of St. Nicholas. He took Nicholas as his baptismal name because he admired the saint's generosity. He married again in 1905. His second wife, Anna Brings White, was a widow with two children. They had three children together and she passed away in 1941. The practice in the Diocese of Rapid City was for Jesuit priests to select Lakota Catholic men to teach the faith as catechists. They taught the faith, prayed and prepared converts in the Lakota language, traveling by foot or by horseback until automobiles became available. Black Elk became a catechist in 1907, chosen for his enthusiasm and his excellent memory for learning Scripture and Church teaching. His work brought more than 400 people into the Catholic Church. The medicine man became prominent through “Black Elk Speaks,” John G. Neihart's biographical work. The work covers his Lakota upbringing, though not his adulthood as a Christian. Black Elk passed away Aug. 19, 1950 at Pine Ridge. Bishop Gruss reflected on the possible saint's life. “He embraced the mission to which he had been called – to help others live in the balance of the Lakota and Catholic culture leading to a deeper life in Jesus,” the bishop continued. “He melded whatever he could from his Lakota culture into his Christian life. This enculturation can always reveal something of the true nature and holiness of God.” “He challenged people to renew themselves, to seek this life that Christ offers them,” he said. “Of course, Christ’s work is never done,” said the bishop, adding that all Christians have been called into the missionary field. “Our baptism leads us there. Like Black Elk, if we are docile to the Lord’s will, devoting our lives to Him, we will be out working for His Kingdom of mercy, love, and peace.” Bishop Gruss stressed the need to continue to gather more information and testimony about the life of Black Elk and to pray that his cause merits advancement. Bill White of Porcupine, S.D., is the diocesan postulator for the cause. He is an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe on the Pine Ridge Reservation. White is being assisted by Fr. Joe Daoust, S.J., of Pine Ridge. Deacon Ben Black Bear from St. Francis Mission is translating some of Black Elk's writings from the Lakota language to English, the diocese said.   Read more

New York City, N.Y., Oct 31, 2017 / 04:11 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, has called New Yorkers to unity, prayer, and mutual respect after at least eight people were killed and 12 were injured in an act of terroris... Read more