Faith & Parish

WASHINGTON -- As Catholics look toward Nov. 27, when the new edition of the Roman Missal goes into use in the United States, there is no lack of resources to help them prepare for the new sound and feel of the liturgy.

Dozens of books and brochures have been published or are in the works, along with many DVDS and audiotapes aimed at specific audiences -- from priests to teens to elementary school students.

WASHINGTON
The Knights of Columbus is buying the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington and will turn it into a shrine to the late pope and a museum of American Catholicism, Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson announced Aug. 2 at the opening session of the Knights’ 129th annual convention in Denver.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As the nation's capital, Washington has been visited by millions since its official founding July 16, 1790.

With sites such as the Washington Monument, White House, the Capitol, Library of Congress, the National Archives, Smithsonian museums, and countless monuments and cultural happenings, tourists from across the world come to Washington for a taste of U.S. history.

Lesser known perhaps, but no less fascinating, are the Catholic historical sites around the city that attract pilgrims.

Catholicism in the U.S. was born in the Washington region, and the area still plays a vital part in the U.S. Catholic Church. The District of Columbia is home to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, seminaries, religious houses of prayer, and three prominent Catholic universities -- The Catholic University of America, Georgetown University and Trinity Washington University.

WASHINGTON -- A U.S. cardinal expressed strong opposition July 19 to a recommendation that all health plans be required to cover any contraceptives approved by the Food and Drug Administration without a patient co-payment under the new health reform law.

Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston said the recommendation from an Institute of Medicine panel showed that "there is an ideology at work ... that goes beyond any objective assessment of the health needs of women and children."

The institute's Committee on Preventive Services for Women made public July 19 its list of recommendations to the Department of Health and Human Services, which is charged with deciding which health services will be mandated under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

In addition to recommending screenings for gestational diabetes and HIV, breast-feeding support and supplies and counseling for domestic violence, the 16-member panel said all women of reproductive age should have access to "the full range of Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures and patient education and counseling."

WASHINGTON -- Two Catholic bishops praised an Illinois judge's ruling late July 12 that the state's termination of its contracts with Catholic agencies providing foster care and adoption services risks causing "irreparable injury" to the nearly 2,000 children involved.

Bishop Daniel R. Jenky of Peoria, Ill., said he was encouraged by Sangamon County Circuit Judge John Schmidt's "recognition today of the grave harm that would result if Catholic Charities was forced out of its long-standing mission of serving children in foster care and adoption."

Bishop Thomas J. Paprocki of Springfield said he was grateful "for the sake of the children in our Catholic Charities foster care program" that the services will be allowed to continue.

Schmidt issued a temporary injunction allowing Catholic Charities agencies in the dioceses of Peoria, Springfield, Joliet and Belleville to continue providing state-funded foster care and adoption services, despite July 8 letters to each agency from Erwin McEwen, director of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, effectively canceling those contracts as of June 30.