Rightly or wrongly, Catholic clerics are rarely far from the firing line.
Two weeks ago, Cardinal Ouellet said that abortion in the case of rape was wrong. That triggered predictable stories that talked about the ensuing “firestorm of virulent reaction” against the Church, even though Cardinal Ouellet was simply repeating Catholic moral teaching and not proposing an amendment to the Criminal Code of Canada.
Charles Lewis’ article here is an insight beyond the surface story to a look at what the Catholic Church is proposing in terms of proactive solutions to Canada’s abortion rates.
I am launching an appeal with my Ottawa colleague [Archbishop Prendergast] for an awareness campaign and [for] more programs providing assistance for women in distress in Canada,” Cardinal Ouellet said. “There is a great scarcity of information, support and financial assistance to enable pregnant women to make an informed choice.”
So what can we expect? More of these types of programs. The Gabriel Project outreach is in its earliest stages in Nova Scotia though it’s already running throughout the US, and we can expect to see more of these laypeople-run/church-supported programs pop up across this country in the near future. They’re an opportunity for the church to be proactive and to get laypeople, even non-Catholics, involved in the process.
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Hmmm…something about the Gabriel project is pushing me off my butt and toward the phone. Maybe we can start something like this in NB as well…?
Heather, here’s an already formed program in San Francisco, just to give you an idea of what The Gabriel Project template is like.
http://sfgabrielproject.wordpress.com/
Let me know if you’d like more information.
Campaign Life Coalition has a petition in support of Cardinal Ouellet.
http://www.campaignlifecoalition.com/index.php?p=Hot+News&id=10
I would definitely like more info!! I’d like to bring this up in our parish…my first baby-step into real activism… eek! 🙂
Heather, I’ve passed along your email (from your blog) to CLC Nova Scotia’s president. He is the best person to talk to in terms of getting things started. Congratulations on even thinking about a program! First step? Check! 🙂
Dear Friends,
I am the Program Coordinator for The Gabriel Project of Archdiocese of San Francisco and would be happy to correspond with anyone interested in this wonderful ministry.
I would also be happy to send a Catholic Diocese representative an abridged DVD of the Gabriel Project Conference we held in September of 2009.
If you visit our website (http://sfgabrielproject.wordpress.com), you will find my contact info. The DVD contains the following content and is about an hour long.
1) Program Introduction
2) Gabriel Project Overview
3) History
4) Parish Level Administration
5) Diocesan Level Administration
6) Mom and Baby
May God bless your pro-life works,
Fredi D’Alessio