This week LifeSiteNews.com published a recently unearthed letter which was sent to bishops with a pre-release copy of the encyclical. The letter, dated July 19, 1968, is signed by the late Amleto Giovanni Cardinal Cicognani, who was then the Vatican Secretary of State.

The outright defiance of many priests and even bishops to Pope Paul VI's encyclical-- which restated and reinforced the Church's long-time opposition to artificial birth control-- is even graver in light of the carefully worded letter the bishops received specifically pointing to the urgent need for unity on the matter.

The letter begins: 'When directing me to transmit to Your Excellency the enclosed document, publication of which is imminent, His Holiness strongly recommended that I draw your attention to its importance, and to the necessity of a concerted effort on the part of the entire Catholic Episcopate.'

In the letter the Pope can be seen to plead for the world's bishops to stand with him on the matter, which is described as 'one of the most delicate questions of Catholic morals.'

Regarding the Pope, the letter says, 'And now He turns to His Brothers, the Bishops of the Catholic world, asking them to stand beside Him more firmly than ever in this circumstance, and to help Him present this delicate point of the Church's teaching to the Christian people, to explain and justify its profound reasons.'

The letter adds, 'The Pope counts upon the attachment of His Brothers in the Episcopate to the Chair of Peter, upon their love for the Church, upon their concern for the true good of souls.'

Beyond the disunity amongst many of the hierarchy over the encyclical, the most glaring failure of the Catholic episcopate was an unwillingness to transmit the teaching to the Catholic faithful. Yet in the letter a specific request to do so was made of the bishops.

'Finally,' concluded the letter, 'it is necessary that both in the confessional and in the pulpit, in the press and by other means of social communication, every necessary pastoral effort be made that no ambiguity exists among the faithful or in public opinion concerning the Church's position in this serious matter.'

In many cases the Catholic hierarchy has completely ignored this instruction, with the result that many, if not a large majority, of today's Catholics have not been instructed on the Church's long-time teaching on the grave immorality and practical negative consequences of the use of artificial contraception. However, with the 40th anniversary of Humanae Vitae this past Friday, has increased hopes that a renewed effort will finally begin to instruct Catholics in the true teaching and benefits of the encyclical. [CWNews] 1469.1

 

Bressanone

Benedict XVI is returning to the mountainous region of Trentino-Alto Adige in northern Italy for two weeks of vacation in the city of Bressanone, where he had often vacationed prior to his election to the papacy.

Until August 11, the Pope will lodge in his usual room in the seminary of Bressanone, a city of 20,000 inhabitants in the province of Bolzano. He has vacationed in Bressanone more than 10 times over the course of his life.

The Holy Father will stay in the bishop's apartment, where a piano has been placed so that he can dedicate himself to one of his preferred activities.

During this period, the Pontiff is scheduled to hold just two public meetings: the praying of the midday Angelus on Aug. 3 and 10.

Benedict XVI plans on enjoying the company of his older brother, Monsignor Georg Ratzinger, a priest and musician, who was a choir director at the cathedral of Regensburg, Germany.

The vacation will also provide the Pope an opportunity to make progress on documents and books that he is writing. It is rumored that he will use the time to work on a third encyclical and the second part of his book, 'Jesus of Nazareth.'

When he was prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger had long conversations with the journalist Vittorio Messori at the seminary of Bressanone, which became the best-selling book The Ratzinger Report.'

During a stay at the seminary in 2000, the cardinal also wrote part of his book 'Jesus of Nazareth,' which he published after his election to the pontificate. [Zenit] 1469.2

 

The Traditional Anglican Communion

The Holy See is following with 'serious attention' the request from the Traditional Anglican Communion for 'full, corporate, sacramental union' with Rome.

This was affirmed by the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Levada, in a July 5 letter to the primate of the Anglican group, Archbishop John Hepworth.

The letter was written before the beginning of the Lambeth Conference, the once-a-decade gathering of Anglican leaders that is under way in England through Aug. 4. The Lambeth Conference is facing unprecedented controversy, and some bishops boycotted it altogether.

The conflict within the Communion has arisen over debate about the possibility of ordaining homosexual bishops and blessing homosexual marriages. A synod decision this summer to pave the way for the episcopal ordination of women has further alienated some Anglican leaders, many of whom were in disagreement with the Communion's decision to ordain women as priests.

According to Cardinal Levada's letter, 'over the course of the past year, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has studied the proposals which you presented on behalf of the House of Bishops of the Traditional Anglican Communion during your visit to the offices of this dicastery on Oct. 9, 2007.'

'As the summer months approach, I wish to assure you the serious attention which the congregation gives to the prospect of corporate unity raised in that letter,' the cardinal added.

The Traditional Anglican Communion states that its aim is 'to recall Anglicanism to its heritage, to heal divisions caused by departures from the faith, and to build a vibrant church for the future based on powerful local leadership.' By some counts, it has about 400,000 faithful. If the request for 'corporate union' is deemed possible, it would imply the entrance of entire parish communities into communion with Rome.

Cardinal Levada acknowledged that 'the situation within the Anglican Communion in general has become markedly more complex' since the Traditional Anglican Communion's request was originally made.

He affirmed that 'as soon as the congregation is in position to respond more definitely concerning the proposals you have sent, we will inform you.'

The Anglican primate received the letter via the apostolic nuncio in Australia last Friday.

He immediately made public a note expressing his gratitude for the Vatican message.

'It is a letter of warmth and encouragement,' he said. 'I have responded, expressing my gratitude on behalf of 'my brother bishops,' reaffirming our determination to achieve the unity for which Jesus prayed with such intensity at the Last Supper, no matter what the personal cost this might mean in our discipleship.'

'This letter should encourage our entire Communion, and those friends who have been assisting us,' Archbishop Hepworth added. 'It should also spur us to renewed prayer for the Holy Father, for Cardinal Levada and his staff at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and for all our clergy and people as we move to ever closer communion in Christ with the Holy See.' [Zenit] 1469.3

 

World Youth Day 08

The Pope spoke this week of his recent trip to Australia to preside at the 23rd World Youth Day where, he said, he had had the opportunity 'to encounter the youthful face of the Church'. He also recalled how people - using 'a beautiful expression that encapsulates the essence of these international Days established by John Paul II' - had described the participants as 'young pilgrims of the world'.

'These meetings', the Holy Father explained, 'represent stages of a great pilgrimage across the planet to show how faith in Christ makes us all children of the one Father Who is in heaven, and builders of a civilisation of love'.

What characterised the meeting in Sydney, he went on, 'was an awareness of the central role of the Holy Spirit, a leading player in the life of the Church and of Christians'. The Pope went on to recall how, during the days leading up to the closing Mass, bishops from all over the world had presented catecheses in the churches of Sydney, 'moments of reflection and of prayer, indispensable in order to ensure the event left not only outward traces but a profound interior impression on people's consciences.

'The evening vigil in the heart of the city, under the Southern Cross', the Pope added, 'was a choral invocation of the Holy Spirit', while during the Eucharistic celebration of Sunday 20 July, he had 'invited everyone present to renew their baptismal promises

'Thus', he went on, 'this World Day became a new Pentecost, from which the mission of young people started out afresh, called to be apostles of their peers like so many saints and blesseds' such as 'Blessed Piergiorgio Frassati whose relics, placed in Sydney cathedral, were venerated by a constant pilgrimage of young people. All young men and woman are called to follow their example and share the personal experience of Jesus which changes the lives of His 'friends' with the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God's love'.

Benedict XVI concluded by thanking the WYD organisers and everyone who had prayed for the success of the event. Finally, he invoked the protection of Mary for his own forthcoming period of vacation.

After praying the Angelus, Benedict XVI addressed some remarks to participants in the general assembly of the 'Focolari' Movement, who have just elected as their president Maria Voce, a former collaborator of the late Chiara Lubich, and as co-president Giancarlo Faletti, joint head of the Focolari in Rome.

'As I express my happiness at the election of the new leaders', said the Pope, 'I encourage you all, dear brothers and sisters, to continue joyfully and courageously along the path of the spiritual heritage of Chiara Lubich, as enshrined in your Statues, increasing communion in families, in communities and in all areas of society'.

The Holy Father then addressed greetings to people currently on holiday, expressing the hope that 'they may spend days of serenity and of beneficial physical and spiritual relaxation. However, I do not forget those who are unable to enjoy a period of rest and vacation: I am thinking of the sick in hospital and rest homes, of prisoners, of the elderly, of those who are alone, and of everyone who spends the summer in the heat of the city. To each of them I give assurances of my closeness and a mention in my prayers'. [Vatican Information Service] 1469.4

 

 

 

United Nations

 

WTO talks

Vatican's representatives at World Trade Organization (WTO) talks has warned that the failure to reach an agreement on agricultural trade will be felt primarily by poor nations.

'The consequences of the failure of the Doha trade round negotiations, have to be squarely faced by the international community,' said Archbishop Silvano Tomasi. 'Now the poor countries will have some difficulties.'

The archbishop said that the failure to reach an agreement on measures to aid farmers in poor countries will be felt most strongly by needy African nations.

Wealthy nations can afford to postpone talks, Archbishop Tomasi said, after the latest round of negotiations failed to produce an agreement. 'But in the meantime it is the poor people who can barely survive on the cultivation of these products who will suffer the consequences of this failure more directly.' [CWNews] 1469.5

 

Europe

 

 

Irish abortion lobby

A suit brought by an Irish abortion lobby group to demand that the Republic of Ireland drop its legal protections for unborn children will be heard in the European Court of Human Rights. The Ireland Family Planning Association (IFPA) has been told this week by the Court that the case, first launched three years ago, will go ahead.

The action in the European Court was brought by the IFPA, a member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, as only one aspect of a larger legal and lobbying attack on Ireland's constitutional protections for unborn children.

An IFPA spokesman said, 'We hope the case will advance quickly through the court, ultimately making a strong recommendation to the Government to reform Irish laws and the current status quo on abortion.'

The IFPA believes that a ruling from the European Court will force Dublin lawmakers to change laws, enshrined in the constitution, recognising the rights of the unborn to life. The Court has asked the Irish government to submit 'observations' in the case.

The Eighth Amendment of Ireland's Constitution Act was approved by referendum in September 1983 and signed into law in October the same year. It 'acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right.'

The recent defeat by an Irish referendum of the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union's attempt at reviving its failed 2005 Constitution, was driven in part by warnings from the pro-life community that the EU laws would be used as a lever to abolish Irish protections for the unborn. The European Court is known to be strongly sympathetic to the abortion movement and has recently issued a ruling to Poland to attempt to force that country to comply with the movement's demands to legalise abortion.

IFPA lawyers intend to argue before the court that Ireland's restrictions on abortion put the 'health and welfare' of the women at risk. In the US and elsewhere, the open-ended concept of abortion for a woman's 'health' has allowed the term to be interpreted so broadly as to have created de facto abortion on demand.

The three women IFPA is using to promote the case, identified only as A, B and C, represent what the abortion industry considers its broad based approach to 'abortion rights.' All three went outside the country, to the neighbouring UK, to abort their children, an increasingly common practice among Irish woman, given the UK's nearly restriction-free abortion law.

One woman suffered an ectopic pregnancy, a condition that is typically fatal to both mother and child. However, the removal of the child in the case of ectopic pregnancy (thereby saving the life at least of the mother) is not regarded by pro-life advocates as an abortion, but rather a legitimately life-saving procedure, one consequence of which is the death of the unborn child.

The second woman sought an abortion because she had undergone chemotherapy while pregnant. Doctors routinely recommend abortion in such situations, but many women have undergone chemotherapy with no detriment to their unborn children. The third, whose other children had been removed from her care by social services, declared simply that she could not 'cope' with another child.

Ireland's strong protections for the unborn have been under a constant barrage of attack from international abortion and population control groups since its passage in 1983. A previous attempt by Irish abortion lobbyists to bring a case to the European Court failed in 2006 when the Court rejected the lawsuit brought by a woman identified as 'D', who made exactly the same complaint - that she had to travel to Britain to abort her child. [LifeSiteNews] 1469.6

 

International news

 

 

 

China  US resolution on human rights abuse

Yesterday, by a vote of 419 to 1, the US House approved House Resolution 1370, introduced by Congressman Howard Berman, which calls on the Government of China to end human rights abuses to ensure that the 2008 Olympic Games take place in an atmosphere honoring Olympic traditions. An amendment, addressing China's brutally enforced one-child policy, was earlier proposed by Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ), passed by a voice vote and was included in the final resolution passed today.

Recognizing the omission of the one-child policy in the original resolution, Rep.Smith offered the amendment in the Foreign Affairs Committee to strengthen the resolution. He stated, 'My amendment seeks to bring some additional focus on the barbaric, cruel and hideous crime of China's coercive population control program.' The Smith amendment calling on 'the Government of the People's Republic of China to abandon its coercive population control policy which includes forced abortion and involuntary sterilization,' was adopted by voice vote in the Committee.

In a statement relased today, Congressman Smith listed and thoroughly condemned the massive human rights violations of the Chinese communist regime. He stated, 'For so many brave Chinese men and women, for the Tibetans, many of them Buddhist monks and nuns, for members of Falun Gong, Chinese Christians, Uighur Muslims, democracy and labor activists, and others, this has been a terrible summer not in spite of, but precisely because of the Olympic Games.'

'In recent months, the Chinese Government has been filling its jails, watching, intimidating, house arresting and warning all known dissidents,' said Smith who had his own trip to China disrupted earlier this month when several human rights lawyers were detained by the Chinese police when they attempted to meet with Smith and Rep. Frank Wolf.

'Tragically, but predictably, the Olympics have been the occasion of a massive crackdown designed to silence and put beyond reach all those Chinese whose views differ from the government line,' said Smith.

The well known pro-life congressman's harshest words were focused on the Chinese government's one-child policy. 'China's coercive population control program has imposed unspeakable violence, pain and humiliation on hundreds of millions of Chinese women, many of whom suffer lifelong depression as a consequence. Massively violated by the state, it is no wonder more women commit suicide in China than anywhere else in the world,' said Smith who held more than 25 hearings on human rights abuses in China as chairman of House human rights committees.

'As a direct result of the government's one child policy, tens of millions of girls are missing today-dead due to sex selection abortions-creating a huge gender disparity. The lost girls of China is gendercide. With its heavy reliance on forced abortion, involuntary sterilization and ruinous fines for illegal children, the policy, in effect since 1979, constitutes one of the greatest continuous crimes against humanity in human history,' he said.

Smith concluded, 'we need to robustly combat it (the one child policy), and impress upon the Chinese government that they must abandon their coercive population control policy.'

Congressman Mike Pence expressed strong support for Smith's amendment during the debate and thanked him 'for his strong moral leadership on this issue.' Pence stated, 'In the committee we heard the most horrific stories of these so-called family planning technical service workers literally breaking into homes, dragging women in the ninth month of pregnancy off to clinics, forcing abortions on them and in one case after another, going to horrific means to ensure that the newly born child's life had been completely snuffed out.'

Pence concluded that the passage of the resolution ensured 'that here in the United States of

America the people of this country will say with one voice 'we believe in freedom and we believe in life and we reject the policy of forced abortion in China and urge them to do likewise at this time.' [LifeSiteNews] 1469.7

 

India  Population-control bill

A new population-control bill drafted by the Law Reforms Commission of India's southern Kerala state has proposed several harsh measures to punish large families.

The Kerala Family Planning and Control Bill has recommended a fine for families having a 3rd child. The legislation would deny access to free education and free treatment in government hospitals for families with more than 2 children.

Apart from this, the Commission-- headed by a federal supreme court judge-- has recommended punishment for those encourage couples to have more children in the name of religion, caste, or other grounds.

The draft legislation is being proposed at a time when leaders of the Catholic Church in Kerela-- the Indian state with the largest Catholic population-- have been urging the faithful to be generous in having more children. The ratio of Christians in Kerela has been declining steadily in recent decades-- from 25 to 19 of the state's 35 million people. [CWNews] 1469.8

 

Italy  Doctors' death-by-starvation appeal

Twenty-five doctors are appealing to Italian courts for the life of a 37-year-old woman who has come to be known as Italy's Terri Schiavo.

Eluana Englaro was condemned to death by starvation by a Milan court earlier this month. The decision was a new development in a near 10-year court battle waged by her father, who seeks to deny her hydration and nourishment.

Englaro entered what is sometimes called the permanent vegetative state after a car accident in 1992.

Milan's attorney general requested time to lodge a possible appeal against the preceding judicial decision.

Several associations and movements, including some that are Catholic, have offered to take over Englaro's care.

The case is similar to that of Terri Schiavo, a brain-damaged woman who died in Florida after her husband won a legal battle to have her feeding tube removed. It took her 13 days to die of dehydration and starvation.

Voices from the scientific world have affirmed that the court's decision in Englaro's case is not to deprive the woman of special treatments, but rather of the fundamental right of every human being to eat and drink.

Some of Italy's leading neurologists sent a letter to the attorney general requesting that the woman's life be saved.

The signatories explain: 'A patient in vegetative state does not need a machine to continue living. She is not connected to any socket.

'She is not a person in coma, or a terminal patient, but a severely handicapped person in need of special basic care, as occurs in many other situations of serious injuries to parts of the brain that limit the capacity of communication and self-sustenance.

'A patient's nutrition and hydration, even if assisted, cannot be confused with medical treatment; they have always constituted the fundamental elements of care, precisely because they are indispensable for every human being, whether healthy or sick. The tube through which nourishment is received does not alter this elementary truth; rather, it can be compared to a prosthesis or any other type of aid.'

A person

From the anthropological point of view, the neurologists confirm that 'the patient in a vegetative state is not a vegetable, but a human person.'

'From the neurological point of view,' they continued, 'the patient in a vegetative state is not [in a state of] brain death, as his or her brain, in a more or less imperfect way, has never stopped functioning; he or she breathes spontaneously, continues to produce hormones that govern many of his or her functions, digests, and assimilates nutrients.'

The doctors also took issue with the diagnosis of permanent vegetative state: 'Despite the fact that the possibilities for recovery are ever less with the passage of time from a cerebral accident, today the concept of permanent vegetative state must be regarded as surmounted and cases have been documented, though they are rare, of partial recovery of contact with the outside world, even after a very long period of time. Hence, it is absurd to speak about the certainty of irreversibility.'

In virtue of these considerations, the neurologists stated that 'the decision on the Englaro case does not represent an intervention to put an end to therapeutic aggression or inadequate treatments, but the intention to introduce in our legislation through the judiciary, the absolute power of self-determination on the part of the patient -- or in this case -- of those who represent or believe they represent her, to the point of opting for death, when it is considered that life is unworthy of being lived.'

Finally, the neurologists regard as 'inhuman the manner proposed to put an end to the patient's life, via fast and thirst, with a slow agony that will lead to death through a slow devastation of the whole organism.' [Zenit] 1469.9

 

Myanmar  'Our Way of the Cross'

Archbishop of Yangon Charles Bo has circulated a letter describing the situation in Myanmar as the country continues to recover from cyclone Nargis. While returning refugees are happy to be home, he said, they are pained by the loss of life and the damage done to houses, schools, and places of worship. 'We do hope our way of the Cross is over,' one returnee said.

The archbishop recounted the state of the Catholic rescue mission deep in Ei Ma in the Diocese of Pathein. He related that the parish priest Father Andrew Soe Win died during the cyclone there, and that refugees are returning in a 'slow trickle.'

'Their church is gone and their pastor was buried,' the archbishop said, reporting the words of one returned refugee:

'Our altar around which we used to come as a village community is gone. And our Priest who used to tell us so many good things is gone. We were refugees, we begged for our bread in the last months. We do hope our way of the Cross is over. We are happy to be back where our homes used to be.'

Archbishop Bo said that spiritual rehabilitation remains a challenge, but Myanmar Catholics feel that they are 'breaking bread with the broken people of Myanmar.'

'On the altar of suffering, with tears in their eyes, men and women sought fellowship in refugee camps and broken churches,' he continued.The archbishop said using the 'generous assistance' from the universal Church and the Caritas charity network, Myanmar Catholics have reached out to hundreds of refugees. 'To all of you who responded with magnificent generosity, the people of Myanmar owe a debt of gratitude,' he wrote.

He said spiritual healing, the rebuilding of houses and the recovery of livelihoods are now major challenges, but the NGOs that helped Myanmar are decreasing efforts as media attention lessens.

Despite these developments, Archbishop Bo said, ordinary life is reasserting itself.

'Farmers have returned to the fields, mothers are busy sending their children back to school, and in the fields the seeds are once again sprouting, fighting the dark days of cyclone Nargis,' he said. 'The human spirit fights back in every field.' [CNA] 1469.10

 

Paraguay  Incoming president laicised

In an unprecedented concession, the Vatican has agreed to laicise the incoming president of Paraguay, a former Catholic bishop.

Fernando Lugo Mendez, who won the presidency handily in April elections, has been granted lay status 'because his clerical status is incompatible with serving as president,' announced Archbishop Orlando Antonini, the apostolic nuncio in Paraguay. The laicization was authorized by Pope Benedict XVI.

A former Divine Word missionary, Lugo was named Bishop of San Pedro, Paraguay in 1994. He resigned that post in 2005, citing health issues. He is now 58 years old and his health appears to be fine.

In 2006, when he began his drive for the presidency, Lugo said that he wished to resign his status as a bishop. Later he said that he had also resigned from the priesthood-- a move that was deemed necessary to comply with the constitution of Paraguay, which bars clerics from political office.

The Vatican, however, had consistently refused to recognize Lugo's 'resignation,' pointing out that ordination to the priesthood of episcopacy is irreversible. In February 2007, Bishop Lugo was suspended a divinis because of his refusal to comply with Vatican policy barring priests from partisan political campaigns.

In announcing Lugo's laicization, the nuncio acknowledged that Church leaders had done their best to persuade the sometime bishop to abandon his political plans, 'right up to the last day of the campaign.' But now, he said, because the majority of Paraguay's voters had chosen Lugo, the Pope granted him lay status to avoid a further conflict.

Immediately after the April election, some observers had suggested that the Vatican could take further disciplinary action against Lugo, possibly including excommunication. Archbishop Antonini assured reporters that Lugo remains a Catholic, although not an active priest.

Lugo will assume office as Paraguay's president on August 15. [CWNews] 1469.11

 

Philippines  Archbishop enters not guilty plea

A Filipino archbishop entered a not guilty plea at his arraignment on libel charges on July 19.

Archbishop Oscar Cruz of Lingayen-Dagupan said that he will fight the libel charge, and does not intend to issue an apology for remarks that prompted the legal charge.

The libel complaint was filed in 2004 by employees of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), after Archbishop Cruz wrote a column in which he said that a number of PAGCOR staff members were improperly assigned to act as 'guest-relations officers' at a birthday party for Miguel Arroyo, the husband of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

The libel charge was dismissed in 2005 but reinstated this year. Archbishop Cruz has charged that the government is using the complaint to penalize him for his outspoken opposition to legal gambling.

The criminal case will be heard in a Manila court in September. [CWNews] 1469.12

 

Philippines  Humanae Vitae anniversary

A Mass and vigil was held on Friday at the University of Santo Tomas to mark the 40th anniversary of the encyclical letter of Pope John Paul VI on human life, Humanae Vitae. One goal of the rally was to pressure lawmakers into abandoning the proposed Reproductive Health and Population Development Act, which has passed the committee level in the Philippine House of Representatives.

The Act would create a new agency called the Commission on Population (POPCOM) which would 'encourage' families to have only two children, and promote the use of a variety of abortifacient drugs, including the IUD and the pill.

In a massive gathering of pro-life supporters, leaders from the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), members of the Christian charismatic group El Shaddai, politicians, personalities, students, professionals and laborers massed at the university parade grounds to the peel of hundreds of church bells throughout the city.

'This will express the Catholics' firm belief in life and their commitment to stand up for life,' Manila Auxiliary Bishop Bernardino Cortez said.

The prayer rally carried the theme 'Biyaya ng Buhay, Biyaya ng Pamilya (Blessing of Life, Blessing of the Family),' and was aimed at convincing lawmakers, especially those still undecided on what stance to take regarding the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, that it was unnecessary and would harm Philippine society in the long run.

Archbishop Paciano Aniceto of San Fernando said, 'We pray that they change their minds. They are also trying to weigh matters. The first-termers, for example, they don't have much lawmaking experience and they are not really aware of the backgrounds and certain issues in Congress, like this [RH bill]. This is destroying the family, which is the foundation of all government and civilization.'

Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, said there was hope that legislators would not let the bill pass the House after the prayer rally.

'I hope they don't rush it. There's still a chance that they will have a change of heart,' he said.

In his homily, Archbishop Lagdameo called for a 'change in attitude' in society and stressed the Church's stand against contraceptives.

'We need a change of attitude. The attitude of 'what is mine is mine absolutely and I can do with it as I wish,' or the belief that 'my money entitles me to consume or control on my own terms as much as my money will buy' is not permissible anymore,' he said.

'We in the Catholic Church...advocate only natural family planning methods as the only morally acceptable way of practicing responsible parenthood.'

He said the Church does not forbid the advocacy of the increase or decrease of population provided that the religious beliefs of the couple on sexual and family morality are respected, and warned that the family as an institution is being threatened by the Reproductive Health bill.

'The subtle attacks on family and conjugal morality through legislations that promote artificial methods of birth control are couched in attractive but deceptive terminologies like Reproductive Health Care, population management, anti-discrimination of women and children, reproductive rights and patients' rights,' he said.

The Archbishop said that poverty is not caused by overpopulation but by misuse of public funds.

'If all the money that goes to graft and corruption of government or is used for the wrong reasons were spent for our increasingly poor population, we will have indeed both population and true progress, a population that is the resource and object of development,' he said.

'If only government would be really pro-poor, there would be less and less poor people,' the prelate added.

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales told married couples that if they conduct themselves with discipline and self-control, they would be 'in possession of true values of life.'

'If there is discipline in the marital bed, then there is discipline in the streets, there is discipline in schools, there is discipline in the government,' Archbishop Rosales proclaimed.

He then compared the act of ending the life of an unborn child to King Herod's order to slaughter the infants of Bethlehem after Christ was born.

'Wherever this happens, in the clinics, health centers, or hospitals, ending the life of a child inside a mother's womb is a repeat of Herod's massacre of the innocents … and a Herod could be your neighbor,' he said.

Pat Buckley of the European Life Network and a pro-life lobbyist at the UN and the Human Rights Council in Geneva, said of the Philippines Reproductive Health bill: 'The act not only sets the scene for the introduction of abortion, it is also aimed at substantially reducing the population by various means including abortifacient birth control and sterilisation.'