NEWSBRIEFS: Pope prays for disaster victims in Philippines, China, Iran

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI asked Catholics around the world to pray and offer material assistance to flood victims in the Philippines and China and to people affected by an earthquake in northwestern Iran. The natural disasters have caused death and injury and left thousands of people homeless, the pope said Aug. 12 after reciting the Angelus in the courtyard of the papal summer villa in Castel Gandolfo. "I ask you to join me in prayer for those who lost their lives and for all the people so harshly tried by such devastating calamities. May these brothers and sisters of ours not lack our solidarity and support," the pope said. Flooding caused by days of torrential rains forced more than a quarter million people from their homes in parts of Manila and provinces surrounding the Philippine capital. The government said Aug. 7 that at least 50 percent of metropolitan Manila was under water, displacing an estimated 270,000 people. News reports Aug. 13 said more than 90 people had lost their lives and more rain was expected. In China, Typhoon Haikui brought heavy rains and flooding to Jiangxi province in the eastern part of the country. Tens of thousands of people have been displaced. In Iran, two strong earthquakes struck Aug. 11, leaving at least 300 people dead and 2,000 injured. The quakes destroyed entire villages in the northwest. In his main Angelus address, Pope Benedict spoke about the Sunday Gospel reading in which Jesus tells the people, "I am the bread that came down from heaven."



Judge rules Hawaii laws against same-sex marriage not unconstitutional
HONOLULU (CNS) — U.S. District Court Judge Alan Kay in an Aug. 8 ruling said Hawaii's laws banning same-sex marriage "are not unconstitutional" and he threw out a lawsuit that had argued otherwise. The Hawaii Family Forum, a Christian educational organization, had intervened in the case to defend Hawaii's marriage statutes, and its attorney, Jim Hochberg, said he was pleased Kay "agreed with every argument," except one, "made on behalf of" the forum. Three people had filed a lawsuit, supported by Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie, asking the court to declare unconstitutional the 1998 constitutional amendment that gave the state Legislature the power to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman, and the state law that subsequently did that. They argued that the amendment and the law violated due process and equal protection under the law. Kay disagreed, however, saying any restructuring of "the traditional institution of marriage" should be done through the Legislature or by the people by amending the constitution and "not through judicial legislation that would inappropriately pre-empt democratic deliberation." He said the state could conclude that it has addressed the same sex marriage issue over the years "with caution," first when the Legislature established reciprocal-beneficiary relationships 15 years ago, and last year when it legalized civil unions. "To suddenly constitutionalize the issue would short-circuit the legislative actions," he said.

Vatican magistrates order trial for papal assistant accused of theft
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Vatican magistrates have formally indicted Pope Benedict XVI's personal assistant, Paolo Gabriele, on charges of aggravated theft and have indicted a computer technician from the Vatican Secretariat of State on minor charges of aiding Gabriele after he stole Vatican correspondence. The publication Aug. 13 of the decision of Piero Bonnet, the Vatican's investigating judge, included for the first time the naming of a second suspect, Claudio Sciarpelleti, the Secretariat of State employee. Vatican police found an envelope from Gabriele in Sciarpelleti's desk and arrested him, according to the documents explaining Bonnet's judgment. While the computer expert gave "contrasting versions of the facts" to investigators, in the end it was determined that there was enough evidence to bring him to trial on a charge of aiding and abetting Gabriele after the fact. The Vatican magistrates did not set a date for the trial or trials, but Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said it would not be set before Sept. 20 because the Vatican court is in recess Aug. 14-Sept. 20. Father Lombardi said the charge against Sciarpelleti carries a "very light" sentence, which is unlikely to include any jail time. Pope Benedict could have intervened at any time to stop the investigation and legal process and he still has the option of clearing the two laymen without a trial.

Bishop: Unions are essential in renewal of 'broken economy'
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Labor unions and other worker associations are necessary to help propel workers and their families out of poverty amid a "broken economy," said the chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development. "Economic renewal that places working people and their families at the center of economic life cannot take place without effective unions," declared Bishop Stephen Blaire of Stockton. "This renewal requires business, religious, labor and civic organizations to work together to help working people defend their dignity, claim their rights, and have a voice in the workplace and broader economy. Everyone and every institution has a role to play in building a more just economy," which "serves the person rather than the other way around." Bishop Blaire made his remarks in the annual Labor Day statement issued by the committee he heads. Dated Sept. 3, this year's observance of the federal Labor Day holiday, the statement, "Placing Work and Workers at the Center of Economic Life," released Aug. 13, looks at economic issues through church teaching.

Catholic swimmer makes Michigan parish proud with five Olympic medals
CANTON, Mich. (CNS) — After all of the St. John Neumann parishioners who wished to sign an autograph book had written their messages of "good luck" and "Go USA!" the book was packed up with the Schmitt family and headed to London. Olympic swimmer Allison Schmitt, a 22-year-old parishioner of St. John Neumann Church in Canton, received the book when her family arrived and couldn't believe the support she was getting. "She's just so appreciative of the support she's received from the parish, from the community," said Gail Schmitt, Allison's mother. "Just being able to share the happiness, joy and hard work with everybody is really important to her and she was really touched by it." Allison Schmitt, who could not be reached for comment, won three gold medals, a silver and a bronze in this year's 2012 Summer Olympics, and St. John Neumann is abuzz about its Olympic gold medalist. The swimmer returned home Aug. 13. "

Nellie Gray, March for Life founder and emcee, dies at 86
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Nellie Gray, who started the annual March for Life parade to protest the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide, died Aug. 13 at age 86 from natural causes. She was found dead in her home in Washington's Capitol Hill neighborhood by a March for Life staffer. The March for Life has grown into one of the signature events of the pro-life movement. After the first march in 1974, Gray, a Texas native, established the March for Life Education & Defense Fund to sustain it. Each year in her remarks, Gray exhorted pro-lifers to promote and adhere to a series of "life principles" that would eliminate abortion and enhance life, to which she said there should be "no exception! No compromise!” Gene Ruane, an administrative assistant with the March for Life, told Catholic News Service Aug. 14 that leadership of the organization would be assumed by Terrence Scanlon, who has been its vice president "since the beginning." Funeral information was not immediately available. Gray was a member of St. Mary, Mother of God Parish in Washington.

In Philippines and U.S., Catholics prepare to welcome new teen saint
MANILA, Philippines (CNS) — Catholics in the Philippines and the U.S. are preparing to celebrate the Oct. 21 canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, a teen catechist killed in Guam in the 17th century. Witness accounts in the records of Jesuit missionaries show Blessed Pedro died trying to protect his mentor, Jesuit Father Diego Jose Luis San Vitores, a missionary who was also killed in the attack. Two Chamorro chiefs pursued the missionaries when they learned Father San Vitores had baptized a chief's daughter without his consent. Blessed Pedro, a native of Cebu province in the Philippines, "was the first to be attacked in the assault," explained Msgr. Ildebrando Leyson of the Cebu Archdiocese. "And they marveled how he was so skillful in evading the darts of the spears ... until finally he was hit in the chest. He fell and the other assassin split his skull." In Seattle, Deacon Fred Cordova of Immaculate Conception Church, born to Filipino parents and was raised in the United States, helped found the Blessed Pedro Calungsod Guild in 2005. He said he thinks of Blessed Pedro as a friend, and the guild founders thought that, in the spirit of friendship, his impending sainthood would be a good way to bring Filipino-American Catholics together and help them feel at home in their adopted culture.

Nationwide Crossroads walks conclude with pro-life rally in Washington
WASHINGTON (CNS) — They crossed 2,000 miles of mountains and prairie, sun and sleet, city and country to spread the Catholic Church's pro-life message. "They" were mostly college-age volunteers who walked from coast to coast in four separate groups, protesting at abortion clinics along the way, before arriving in Washington for a rally Aug. 11. The walk was challenging at times, volunteers Matt Rochefort and Stephanie Culy told Catholic News Service in an interview a day before the rally. Rochefort's group braved wildlife, including a bear sighting at night. Meanwhile, Culy's group trekked up the Cascade Mountains to cross Washington state, but they remained dedicated to their mission. "We were climbing 1,600 feet in five miles, and it was windy and raining," said Culy, but any adversity they faced was worth it to take a stand against "the culture of death. This is the kind of culture we're working against. I thought of Christ walking to Golgotha. That image really stuck to me," she said. Rochefort believed the clinic protests were effective. "Not many people engaged us — most people didn't know what pro-life is. I think a lot of the problem is the ignorance of abortion," said Rochefort. "But we don't use graphic pictures or signs. We try to be a peaceful presence. We were very enthusiastic after the first mile in Santa Monica, and this teenager, his name was Gabe and I will never forget, walks up to this group of us in pro-life shirts and begins to argue with us. It was just so amazing; he really cared about the women. I think it took a lot of courage for Gabe. We prayed for him for the rest of the walk, and I really believe he'll turn around" and see that abortion is wrong, Rochefort said.