A report on the June 19 "World News Tonight" led viewers to think that eight women are about to be ordained as Catholic priests in the U.S. The story covered the election of the first female presiding bishop in the Episcopal Church. Then came the following: "Most evangelical denominations and the Catholic Church steadfastly refuse to [...]
In Delaware, House lawmakers approved a bill on June 19 that eliminates the two-year statute of limitations in cases involving the sexual molestation of minors. But this bill only applies to private institutions, such as the Catholic Church. It does not apply equally to the public sector; under a legal concept known as sovereign immunity, public [...]
NYC Council Member Calls on City to End Religious Bias in Public Schools At a June 24 press conference outside New York City Hall, City Council Member Tony Avella announced plans to introduce a resolution calling on the New York City Department of Education to allow a nativity scene or crèche in public schools during the [...]
On June 3, Senator Barack Obama became the first contender for the U.S. presidency to launch a religious outreach website, faith.barackobama.com. On this website, Obama lists the testimonials of three controversial clergymen: Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago; Rev. J. Alfred Smith Sr., senior pastor of Allen [...]
On June 24, "Constantine's Sword," a documentary based on the book by John Carroll, premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival. It is sure to warm the hearts of all anti-Catholic bigots. Carroll is an embittered ex-priest who has spent his adult life railing against the Catholic Church. The film, like the book, treats the public [...]
Many league members contacted us asking for the names of the 18 Catholic Democrats in the U.S. House who criticized Pope Benedict XVI in a May 10 statement for his comments on pro-abortion Catholic politicians' fitness to receive Communion. The members who contacted us were responding to our June Catalyst story, "Catholic Democrats Chide Pope." The 18 Catholic [...]
Realizing they didn't have the votes to win, California lawmakers who wanted to legalize assisted suicide withdrew their bill on June 7. The bill would have allowed doctors to provide a lethal drug dose to patients who have less than six months to live, are mentally competent and have requested the drug; the patients would have [...]
On the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno" on June 18, comedian Robin Williams plugged his newest movie, "License to Wed." In the film, Williams plays a Protestant minister who makes an engaged couple go through a grueling marriage preparatory course. But on Leno's show, Williams went off on Catholic priests, painting them all as pedophiles. Williams [...]
HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher" ran a show on May 18—repeated throughout the same week—in which Maher began with an attack on the late Rev. Jerry Falwell and then devolved into an assault on Catholicism: And it's easy to start a religion! Watch, I'll do it for you: I had a vision last night! A [...]
According to the June 15 New York Sun, Harvard professor Jessica Stern told a New York audience on June 14 that criticism of Muslim clerics for not condemning Muslim violence was unwarranted. "I've heard a lot of bashing of Muslim clerics for not stepping up to the plate and condemning extremist violence," she was quoted as saying. [...]
