In this week’s edition:

• The UK Parliament has passed bill legalizing assisted suicide

• Spiritual abuse may become a formalized crime

• Fr. Martin & lawyers respond to incident reports

• and more!

British Parliament passes bill to legalize assisted suicide by 55 votes

Summary: The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill would allow terminally ill adults to ask for and receive assistance in self-euthanizing. The bill must complete passage in the Houses of Commons and Lords before taking effect.

Details:

• The bill would allow a person who might be reasonably expected to die within 6 months to elect to end his or her own life.

• A qualifying terminal illness as defined by the bill is “an inevitably progressive illness, disease or medical condition which cannot be reversed by treatment.”

• Two doctors and a judge must approve the request before the procedure may take place.

• An inter-faith group of religious leaders have expressed their opposition to the bill, saying “a ‘right to die’ could all too easily end in feeling you have a duty to die.”

• The bill must pass three more stages in the House of Commons, five in the House of Lords, and two final stages (including royal assent) before it becomes law.

Why we care: Though the process is far from over, the alacrity with which the bill has advanced is alarming; unfortunately it isn’t surprising given the way we’ve seen Great Britain go in recent years. This and many other moral evils that have become law over the last half-century or so seem to come from a misdirected sense of mercy. Of course nobody wants to see their loved ones suffer, and it seems we allow animals to suffer less than we do humans; how is that just? How is it just that a woman who suffered rape must bear a constant reminder of her pain? We know, of course, that these are shallow emotional appeals, but we think it important to remember that these evils likely stem from good intentions. How can the Church encourage these instincts while directing them towards morality and righteousness? A question above our pay-grade for certain, but one we think is worth answering.

“Spiritual abuse” may become a separate, formalized crime under Canon Law

Summary: Such violations are currently only an aggravation, though the DDF has seen a need for a separate and better-defined law on the subject.

Details:

• A note from Cardinal Fernandez acknowledges that “false mysticism” is not a distinct crime but is a term often used in cases of abuse.

• He also quotes new DDF norms which says that using such false mysticism “…as a means of or a pretext for exerting control over people or carrying out abuses is to be considered of particular moral gravity.”

• Cardinal Fernandez concludes by proposing that the Dicasteries for Legislative Texts and Doctrine of the Faith work on a proposal for a crime of “spiritual abuse”.

• In May, the cardinal had said the Church “must explain well what the crime is, but not use the term ‘false mysticism.’”

Why we care: To be perfectly honest it is quite surprising that there is no separate delict for spiritual abuse; perhaps a canon lawyer can reach out and let us know how these crimes might be charged under the current law. At face value this seems like a good and necessary change given the manifold cases of spiritual abuse we’ve seen - perhaps most notably the case of Fr. Rupnik. The Pillar published a great piece on this story, noting the difficulties and complexities of making and enforcing such a change to Canon Law. Again, a topic above our pay-grade, but this is change that we see as welcome and necessary if done properly.

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Attorney for Fr. Martins respond to initial reports, allegations of impropriety

Summary: The attorney claimed no wrongdoing by the priest/podcaster/exorcist, saying initial reports were calumnious.

Details:

• Attorney Marcella Burke said in a statement that Fr. Martins simply touched a girl’s hair while joking about his own baldness in front of an audience.

• Ms. Burke noted that teachers, clergy, parish staff, and volunteers were all present at the event.

• She also said there is no sign of an ongoing investigation, adding that “…Father Martins has engaged in no form of wrongdoing, criminal or otherwise, and any suggestion of any wrongdoing is pure speculation.”

• The Pillar - whose coverage Fr. Martins’ attorneys have called defamatory - has noted discrepancies between the priest’s side of the story and that of the parish/diocese.

Why we care: There are two diametrically opposed aspects at hand here. On the one hand, it’s unfortunate that abuse has become so commonplace that Safe Environment becomes necessary or - as one priest put it - he becomes nervous when a child wants to run up and hug him. On the other hand, as The Pillar explainer on the spiritual abuse story above notes, such abuse is often insidious, occurring in the public eye as though nothing were wrong. How do we balance these two? How do we know whether a situation is innocent or nefarious? We’d argue that it’s better to err on the side of caution without letting “believe all victims” turn into “condemn all accused”. We think Fr. Martins’ order has done the right thing by suspending him for the moment, and we trust that the truth will come to light while hoping that nothing foul is in fact afoot. What are your thoughts? We’d love to hear them, and you can always chime in in the comments or by responding directly to this email.

Other Stories

• At home…

  • Marquette quells attempts to unionize, citing religious exemption

  • Missouri judge upholds ban on “sex-change” procedures for minors

  • WI school officials fired over safe environment violations

• …and abroad…

  • Another Muslim extremist group is terrorizing Nigeria; local Catholic priests express concern. 

  • Local Indigenous groups call for peace after murder of Mexican priest

  • The Vatican website was down on Nov 19 - security experts say it shows how vulnerable the Vatican is in cyberspace.

  • CRS says Gaza has been without aid for over 40 days

• Pro-life news:

  • Emails reveal Planned Parenthood’s negotiations to donate aborted fetuses for research.

  • Pro-choice advocates continue to try to use women’s deaths to denounce abortion bans.

  • New CDC report shows number of abortions, abortion rate, and abortion ratio decreased 2-3% over the course of 2022, which notably included the Dobbs decision.

  • 112 members of Congress ask Government Accountability Office to investigate federal funding of abortion providers.

• In memoriam: Fr. Oleghe - Nigeria’s oldest priest - died at the age of 104. May he rest in peace.

Quote of the Week

What’s going on:

• Don’t forget to put your shoes out on the evening of December 5th!

• December 8 is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The fast has been transferred to Monday, Dec. 9 but the obligation still stands.

• Notable/interesting feast days:

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