Marriage Unique for a Reason: August 2017 Newsletter

 

 

 

The U.S. Bishops are encouraging Catholics throughout the country to offer their Friday acts of sacrifice and penance for the protection of Life, Marriage, and Religious Liberty. Click here for more information. Talking Point While children can be strong and resilient, it is false to pretend that they are unaffected by their family's structure. Various studies have demonstrated that children suffer from divorce and from lacking a father or a mother. The push for "new family arrangements" overlooks or denies the child's fundamental need for a mother and a father. Catechesis Corner  "God is Holy as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The sublime quality of God, his immense glory, his sanctity is Love. God the Father is the infinite source of Love, the supreme mystery from whom love flows and to whom it returns in the unity of the Trinity. "From this archetype of Trinitarian Love proceeds all of created reality, but in a special way, man created in the image of God as man and woman. God made man in his image, as man-woman, to be fecund with him and like him. Man's vocation to love is inscribed in the very being of man and woman, as persons created for communion." - Marc Cardinal Ouellet, Divine Likeness, p. 109 For news and current events pertaining to marriage, visit the Marriage in the News  page on the For Your Marriage website. Order here! Quick Links Marriage: Unique for a Reason website  USCCB Defense of Marriage Stay Connected    August 2017 Convocation Follow-Up The Convocation for Catholic Leaders in Orlando from July 1-4 was a great opportunity for Catholic leaders to be equipped and re-energized to share the Gospel as missionary disciples. Be sure to check out the videos from the Convocation which include coverage of the talks and other footage. If you attended, don't forget to give us feedback! New Interview Segments Every Friday from June until August 11, MUR has shared new interview segments with people who appeared in the last two videos. The interviews yielded so much good footage that we couldn't possibly use it all!  These interviews cover adult children of divorce, the gift of adoption, third party reproduction, religious freedom, tolerance, and the inaccurate comparison of same-sex relationships to interracial marriage. Love and Responsibility The MUR blog will begin a series on Karol Wojtyla's book Love and Responsibility in August. This book grew out of university lectures that Wojtyla gave as a priest, recognizing the great need young people had to understand the ethical side of love. This mission extended to his papacy, and is the reason that Pope Francis calls St. John Paul II, "The Pope of the Family." Judicial Updates U.S. Supreme Court On July 14, 2017, the Alliance Defending Freedom asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the cases of Arlene's Flowers v. State of Washington and Arlene's Flowers v. Ingersoll. On February 16, the Supreme Court of Washington State unanimously upheld the lower court ruling in Washington v. Arlene's Flowers and Barronelle Stutzman that the florist violated the state's public accommodations non-discrimination law when she refused to do floral arrangements for a longtime customer's same-sex ceremony due to her religious convictions about marriage. Barronelle was ordered to pay fines and legal costs as well as create floral arrangements for same-sex ceremonies as long as she does so for man-woman marriages.  Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit On June 22, 2017, the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed a district judge's ruling that the Mississippi state version of the First Amendment Defense Act (called the "Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act") was unconstitutional, allowing the law to take effect.  Florida In July 2017, "Drew" Adams, 16, and her mother filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for middle Florida against the St. Johns County School Board, alleging Title IX discrimination and of violating then Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment for not allowing her to use the boys' restroom.  State Legislative Updates   Oregon In July, residents of Oregon could amend their drivers' licenses and choose one of three options instead of two: M, F, or X. This follows a ruling from June 2016 that allowed a person to legally identify as "non-binary." There is a bill to do this in California, but it has not passed yet. Legislation in the 115th Congress   The USCCB supports the First Amendment Defense Act and the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act in Congress.  Take Action Now! by visiting this link and urge your representatives to support and co-sponsor this vital legislation. Pope Francis On July 26, 2017, the feast of Ss. Joachim and Anne, parents of the Blessed Mother, Pope Francis reminded the Church of the importance of grandparents to the family, tweeting, "How important grandparents are for family life, for passing on the human and religious heritage so essential for each and every society!" Pope Francis has highlighted the role of grandparents on the feast of Ss. Joachim and Anne for a number of years, most notably at the Angelus at World Youth Day in 2013.  Marriage: Unique for a Reason is an initiative of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). It offers resources to assist with the education and catechesis of Catholics on why marriage is unique and why it should be promoted and protected as the union of one man and one woman. Questions or comments, contact: MarriageUniqueForAReason@usccb.org Copyright © 2016 All Rights Reserved.

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