Lawmakers in Kentucky and New Hampshire are debating whether to end the priest-penitent privilege as it currently exists in law. Currently, both states respect the confidential nature of the confessional by allowing priests and other clergymen an exemption from mandated reporting laws. But the legislative bodies of Kentucky and New Hampshire may decide to end this [...]
On January 30, D.C. Superior Court Judge Mildred M. Edwards convicted three Catholic homosexual activists for unlawful entry and then refused to sentence them. Her decision not to sentence them was based on her expressed sympathy for the activists. The three were arrested on November 12 for an illegal protest they held in a D.C. hotel. [...]
William A. Donohue It was Jesus who said that “whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.” Nothing nuanced about that. But do Americans believe this [...]
By Joseph A. P. De Feo Justice Felix Frankfurter wrote, “A phrase begins life as a literary expression; its felicity leads to its lazy repetition; and repetition soon establishes it as a legal formula, undiscriminatingly used to express different and sometimes contradictory ideas.” The foregoing lines represent an apt condensation of Professor Daniel L. Dreisbach’s thesis [...]
In his State of the Union address, President George W. Bush made the case that religious organizations ought to be allowed to participate in federal efforts aimed at combating drug abuse. Specifically, President Bush proposed that Congress provide vouchers to addicts that could be used to pay for services in any drug treatment center they choose, [...]
On January 21, the six Democratic contenders for the presidency appeared at a NARAL Pro-Choice America event celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade. The following day, the actual anniversary date of the abortion ruling, NARAL president Kate Michelman and Planned Parenthood president Gloria Feldt held a press conference in [...]
Outside the New York area, he is not well known. But few New Yorkers don’t know who Jimmy Breslin is. He is generally regarded as New York’s premier saloon journalist; he now writes for Newsday, a Long Island newspaper. He is also roaring mad at the Catholic Church and not just because of the scandal: he’s [...]
In January, Thomas Duane, a gay state senator from New York, declared that all Catholic priests should be barred from leading a prayer in the legislature. Duane became angry when Albany Bishop Howard Hubbard delivered the legislative session’s opening prayer on January 8. Duane sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno demanding that no [...]
On February 10, a lawyer with three suits against the Albany Diocese asked the presiding judge to recuse himself because he is a practicing Catholic. Attorney John Aretakis made the request of State Supreme Court Justice Joseph Teresi, but the judge refused. When Aretakis commented that Teresi often goes to weekday Mass and is a “deeply [...]
The Mummers Parade on New Year’s Day is a Philadelphia tradition. Because of poor weather, this year’s parade was moved to January 4. What made it really unique, though, was the news that this year’s march would include an anti-Catholic skit. But after much protest the offensive skit was dropped. Public complaints were made by the [...]
