Faith of the Fathers Report

Thursday, July 31, 2014

NEPAL Nepal, Christians alone rush to aid of flood victims - Asia News

The following excerpts are from AsiaNews.it:

Kathmandu (AsiaNews) - In less than 24 hours dozens of people have been killed and tens of thousands displaced by the floods that have hit Nepal. For the moment only the Church, its institutions and some NGOs are working to rescue the affected people. As every year, the population denounce, the government inaction has led to a lack of prevention and emergency measures.

Floods have swamped the western part of the country. The most affected districts include Doti, Mahakali, Kailali, Kanchanpur, Bardia, Dang, Banke, Siraha, Saptari and Nawalparasi, but 40 other districts reported a variety of problems.

Minister of Information and government spokesman, Minendra Rijal, said: "We are aware of the problem and we are trying to do our best with limited resources. The government is grateful that several organizations, Christian and non, are helping the affected population".

According to the Central Disaster Management Office at least 10 thousand homes were damaged, 100 thousand people have been displaced and hundreds more are in need of aid.

Pom Bahadur Pun, who has been displaced from Jajarkot, says: "We risk our lives but the government is not doing enough to save us. We lost everything, but we want to save our lives." At the same time, however, he adds, "we are very grateful for the help and prayers of the Christians".

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Ground Zero cross can stay at 9/11 museum, appeals court rules - The Washington Post

The following excerpts are from The Washington Post:

NEW YORK — A cross-shaped beam from the wreckage of the World Trade Center can remain on display in the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum at Ground Zero, a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, dismissing a lawsuit brought by atheists.

American Atheists filed a federal suit in 2012 claiming the 17-foot display at the museum built with a mix of public and private funds was unconstitutional. The group said its members suffered from both physical and emotional damages from the presence of the beamed cross, resulting in headaches, indigestion and mental pain.

The atheist group filed an appeal after a lower court dismissed the lawsuit, shifting the focus from the cross to asking for an added plaque that would say something like “atheists died, too.”

An observer would understand that the cross was also an inclusive symbol for any persons seeking hope and comfort in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, federal Judge Reena Raggi wrote in the court’s decision.

“Such an observer would not understand the effect of displaying an artifact with such an inclusive past in a Museum devoted to the history of the September 11 attacks to be the divisive one of promoting religion over nonreligion,” she wrote. “Nor would he think the primary effect of displaying The Cross at Ground Zero to be conveying a message to atheists that they are somehow disfavored ‘outsiders,’ while religious believers are favored ‘insiders,’ in the political community.”

Monday, July 28, 2014

European Court: Gay Marriage is not a Human Right

The following excerpts are from C-FAM (Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute)::

NEW YORK, July 25 (C-FAM) The highest human rights court in Europe shattered hopes that it would judicially impose same-sex marriage when it told a male to female transsexual and his wife that a civil union should be good enough for them.

European human rights law does not require countries to “grant access to marriage to same-sex couples,” according to a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in a case that tests the remote boundaries of possibility in law and fact.

The parties to the litigation and supporters of same-sex marriage acknowledge the result was predictable. Nevertheless the judgment has a devastating effect on gay rights in Europe, dashing hopes that same-sex “marriage” can become a reality there. The facts of the case are distinctive.

Heli Hämäläinen of Finland had a sex change operation in 2009 to appear anatomically as a woman, despite having fathered a child with his wife of over 10 years in 2002. Before the operation, he tried to change his legal identity from male to female without success.

He sued before the European court when he was told that it would not be possible so long as he remained married, because Finland does not allow persons of the same sex to marry each other. Hämäläinen and his spouse insist that their religious beliefs prevent them from seeking a divorce and that civil unions do not give them the same benefits as marriage in Finnish law.

The European court was unequivocal. It not only said that European human rights law does not contemplate same-sex marriage, it said that civil unions are good enough for same-sex couples.

The court confirmed that the protection of the traditional institution of marriage is a valid state interest—implicitly endorsing the view that relations between persons of the same sex are not identical to marriage between a man and a woman, and may be treated differently in law.