The Underground -- Episcopal Church supports bill that calls for college for illegals |
- Episcopal Church supports bill that calls for college for illegals
- South Sudan bishop devastated, saddened by mass graves along North-South border
- Pope accepts scandalized Philadelphia archbishop’s resignation
- Not so hot or fresh: Christian students suspended for giving Krispy Kremes with Bible verses
| Episcopal Church supports bill that calls for college for illegals Posted: 19 Jul 2011 05:01 PM PDT
The Episcopal Church expressed recently its support for a measure that will facilitate access to higher education to undocumented youths in the U.S. Bishop David C. Jones of Virginia represented the Episcopal Church at a press conference on July 12 on Capitol Hill to express support for the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors seeks to allow “conditional permanent resident” status to undocumented youth “with good moral character who have lived in the U.S. for at least five years and graduated from high school. Permanent resident status would be available upon completion of two years of higher education or military service,” Episcopal News Service reported. Jones, in a statement to ENS said, “The DREAM Act points to a moral good — access to education. Young people, having graduated from high school and having done no wrong, should not be barred from access to college loans, grants and scholarships simply because of the actions of their parents.” “They are, like their classmates, inheritors of the American Dream. They should not be denied opportunity. The DREAM Act opens the door to that opportunity,” Jones said, according to ENS. Other Christian churches and organizations that support the DREAM Act include the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Synod, and the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference. Other faith organizations and groups also in support of the DREAM Act are the Islamic Society of North America, the American Jewish Committee, and The United Sikhs, among others. The Interfaith Immigration Coalition is also enlisting various churches to participate in The Dream Sabbath, to be held from Sept. 16-Oct. 19. Under Dream Sabbath, churches may request that a student from DREAM Act attend their worship service and share their story. The Episcopal Church decided to support the DREAM Act during its General Convention 2009 through Resolution B006. Alex Baumgarten, who is director of the church’s Office of Government Relations said in a statement, “The DREAM Act would help thousands of youth who came to our country as undocumented to receive legal status, thereby granting untold opportunities on their way to becoming United States citizens.” Some 65,000 undocumented students graduate from U.S. high schools annually. “Withholding legal status from these children not only hurts them, but it deprives America of future generations of dedicated citizens, innovators, entrepreneurs and public servants,” Ana White, the Episcopal Church’s immigration and refugee policy analyst, said in a statement. The DREAM Act is an initiative of assistant senate majority leader Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) and Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada) in the Senate; and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Florida), Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-California) and Howard Berman (D-California) in the House of Representatives. Sources: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79425_129034_ENG_HTM.htm http://www.episcopalchurch.org/newsline_128976_ENG_HTM.htm http://www.interfaithimmigration.org/ |
| South Sudan bishop devastated, saddened by mass graves along North-South border Posted: 19 Jul 2011 05:01 PM PDT
Within a week of South Sudan’s independence, mass graves were discovered in Kadugli, next to an Episcopal Church compound in South Kordofan, a Bishop said. Bishop Andudu Adam Elnail of South Sudan’s Episcopal Diocese of Kadugli called the mass graves “devastating and saddening,” according to Episcopal News Service. The graves were discovered through satellite imagery that was analyzed by Harvard Humanitarian Initiative. It confirmed eyewitness reports that reached Satellite Sentinel Project of systematic murder and mass burials by the Sudan Armed Forces against civilians. Eyewitnesses told of house-to-house searches by the SAF and Government of Sudan allied forces that methodically killed supporters of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement. “Detailed situation reports from UN agencies and other aid providers are severely limited due to the lack of free and unfettered access to Kadugli town,” Charlie Clements, executive director of Harvard Carr Center told SSP. “In the absence of on-the-ground reports from humanitarian actors and journalists, eyewitness reports from those who were in Kadugli town within the past month, combined with satellite imagery analysis, offer the only available means at present of assessing threats to civilians there,” Clements told SSP. Victims of genocide Richard Parkins, director of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of Sudan told ENS that the images show “in graphic and compelling terms the extent to which the Government of Sudan has committed the extermination of civilians in Kadugli and further confirms what many have claimed that the elimination of persons from this area are victims of genocide.” A 19-page report by the UN peacekeeping Mission in Sudan said, “UNMIS Human Rights has received photographs of mangled and mutilated bodies of civilians, some cut into halves, including women and children,” the AFP reported. The report said, “An UNMIS staff member who was detained by SAF at their military facility in Umbattah locality reported during his detention, that he saw… an estimated 150 dead bodies of persons of Nuban descent scattered on the grounds of the military compound,” the AFP reported. Bishop Elnail, in a statement to ENS, urged the U.S. and the international community to monitor the situation and to send a peacekeeping force to the area, “as serious new negotiations have to start to bring freedom and lasting peace for all marginalized people in Sudan.” Elnail, in his statement to ENS, also called for peace and reconciliation, “to stop this state-sponsored ethnic cleansing campaign, and to show the strength and unity that comes from a respect for our diversity.” Sources: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79425_129040_ENG_HTM.htm |
| Pope accepts scandalized Philadelphia archbishop’s resignation Posted: 19 Jul 2011 05:00 PM PDT
Pope Benedict XVI accepted recently the resignation of an Archbishop in Philadelphia who had been accused of covering up a clergy sex abuse scandal that had been ongoing in his diocese for decades. The pope accepted the resignation of Cardinal Justin Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia, because of his age, the Vatican said in a statement. Rigali, 76, submitted his resignation in April, 2010, when he turned 75. Church law requires all archbishops to submit their resignations to the pope when they turn 75. However, it is up to the pope to decide whether or not he will act immediately on it. Rigali faced stiff pressure for some time because of the way he handled complaints of sex abuse by priests. In 2005, a grand jury determined that Rigali had been covering up complaints by parishioners. “We need to get better” In a statement, the Vatican has appointed Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver to succeed Rigali. Chaput, a best-selling author, said on Vatican Radio, “The Church has done a very poor job of passing on the authentic Apostolic faith to its people. We need to get better.” Chaput, 66, is with the Capuchin order of Franciscan Priests. He has led the Archdiocese of Denver since 1997, where he was tasked with overseeing some 550,000 parishioners. It is expected that Chaput will run things in his new post with a firm hand. Last year in April, as Archbishop of Denver, a man told Chaput of alleged sexual abuse by a priest in the 1970s. Within a week, the priest was suspended and the act was reported to the police. Rocco Palmo, who writes the Catholic blog “Whispers in the Loggia” told Philadelphia Daily News that Chaput is “principled” and “fearless,” adding, “It’s going to be a completely different way of doing business here. It’s essentially going to be Philadelphia Catholicism Version 3.0.” Some 21 priests suspected of pedophilia were suspended by Rigali in March. Rigali expressed “sorrow for the sexual abuse of minors committed by members of the Church, and above all, the clergy,” the AFP reported. A grand jury report in 2005 determined that Rigali covered up abuse complaints that were raised against dozens of priests in Philadelphia. The accused priests also remained in active duty. Hands on leader “From what I’ve read and been told, Chaput is a very hands-on leader,” Susam Matthews, writer and publisher of Catholics4change.com told Philadelphia Daily News. “He’s an administrator who takes complete responsibility, and it’s not going to be, ‘Oh, the people under me handled that.’ That’s been Rigali’s style.” |
| Not so hot or fresh: Christian students suspended for giving Krispy Kremes with Bible verses Posted: 19 Jul 2011 04:58 PM PDT
The lawyer of a group of Christian students in New Mexico is asking for a summary judgment against the local school district, which punished the students after they gave donuts to teachers with Bible verses. The Liberty Counsel, in a legal brief, expressed concern that the students would denied their First Amendment rights when school begins in the fall.  A Krispy Kreme doughnut. The legal pleading said, “The case challenges defendants’ denial of plaintiffs’ attempts to distribute various items and religious literature to their friends and classmates during non-instructional time at the two high schools in Roswell.” The Liberty Counsel legal brief said, “Plaintiffs seek to have their constitutional rights restored before the beginning of the next school year, so they may disseminate their messages to fellow classmates in accordance with their First Amendment rights.” The brief stated, “Plaintiffs request that this court grant this motion for summary judgment so that the unconstitutional suppression of free speech will end.” Krispy Kreme donuts The trouble began when students of the Christian group, Relentless in Roswell, decided to express appreciation for their teachers by gifting them with Krispy Kreme donuts which included Bible verses attached. A school principle responded by suspending three of the students. One student was sent home, and two others served four hours detention. The principle also demanded an end to the group’s Christian activities. However, the law suit noted that the gesture was not meant to be antagonizing. In fact, the students decided to purchase Krispy Kreme donuts because they are not easily available in their area. Liberty Counsel said in its legal brief, “Since the closest Krispy Kreme shop was in Texas, some of the group drove almost six hours round trip, stayed overnight, got up at 3:00 a.m., filled their car’s back seat with fresh doughnuts and got back to school on time to deliver the doughnuts.” “Our motives were not rebellious,” Pastor Troy Smothermon of Church on the Move told WorldNetDaily. “If they were, we would have just bought a box of doughnuts down the street. The whole purpose was to encourage those in the school.” “Some teachers are worried about their students giving them bullets, and this school suspends students over a Bible verse,” Mathew Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, said. “It is outrageous that the Roswell school officials are mean to these students solely because they are hostile to their Christian faith.” In the past, the Christian students handed out hot chocolate, candy canes and sandwiches. They also helped in cleaning up the school and handed out rocks with the slogans “U are wonderful,” and “Psalm 139.” The brief also noted that the students distributed abstinence wristbands and the plastic models of babies 12 weeks in utero. In the latter case, it led to a woman changing her mind to commit suicide. The Liberty Counsel brief said, “That morning, one student had decided to take her own life because of her past decision to abort. When she received a model baby with the Scripture, ‘you are fearfully and wonderfully made,’ she cried and prayed with the students and her life was saved, both physically and spiritually with the forgiveness of God.” |
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