Follow-up on the closing of the Pro-Life Clinic...

A anonymous reader sent me the following earlier yesterday:

This is a response to the closing of the only Catholic Prolife Center in the Archdiocese from a parish priest when he was asked about the closing of The Birthing and Care Center in College Park.

" The Birthing and Care Program was established right next to an abortion clinic in College Park. That abortion clinic has now closed. Some might say it was due to the prayer and efforts of those at the Birthing and Care Center. Evidently, many would come in and wait in a long line outside the abortion clinic in front of the door to the Birthing and Care office. The women had to pass The Birthing and Care office as they went through and many came in and used the services of that program. An altar was set up immediately adjacent to the wall of the abortion clinic. Masses were often offered there by Bishops Holley and Gonzalez. In addition, 52 babies were saved in the past year or two since this began. Now that the abortion clinic is no longer there, the Archdiocese is going to do something a little different. We’ll use the monies from that program to enable each parish to have people able to deal with abortion issues. The struggle of the Birthing and Care Center in College Park was that it only served a few parishes: St. Mark, Holy Redeemer and St. Jerome and the University of MD. Now the money that was used for the Center (@ $100,000 for rent) will be used to help train people who can be advocates in each parish, providing the same kind of guidance and leadership to individuals across the Archdiocese who need assistance. That program is just being implemented. We haven’t been visited yet (but we will be soon) to design our own efforts to meet this need."

Late yesterday, I was forwarded the the following email from one of my regular readers (and an all around nice guy):

Hello all,

Please be careful about spreading this type of news! The Birthing and Care Program is actually still in existence, but under a new name and at a different location. They are now called The Sanctuary for Life and they are in Hyattsville, MD. Their phone number is 301-853-5453. As far as I know, they are still offering their prenatal program to women who qualify. We just received a letter from them last week of their change of location.

Cynthia Gilday
Pregnancy Center Director
Northwest Center


So, it may have been moved and maybe the mission will change a bit. That is good. But, this raises other questions for me.

First, when conducting a reverse phone lookup, the phone number of the center is unlisted. Odd if you ask me. Wouldn't you want it listed?

Second, you would have thought that this would have been published in the Catholic Standard. But there is no mention of it. Possibly they are waiting for all of the plans to be put into place? But why hide it.

Third, is the center going to continue to do what it does and also branch out, as the first email indicates?

As I mentioned yesterday, I wrote to the Archdiocese hoping to get an answer, and I still hope to get an answer.

So, let me say this: If someone from the Archdiocese could respond, I will post your response exactly as written. I would love to hear from you on this.

I am really hoping that this is just an issue of poor communication and some poor planning. And nothing more.

You know, if you had the program outside of a clinic, maybe the Archdiocese should re-establish the office next to the abortion clinic on Georgia Avenue?

Have a great weekend.

Good News...and some Bad News

There is some good news and bad news in the Archdiocese of Washington DC.

Some good news from the Washington comPost:

They tried to live by the ascetic rules Jesus laid out for his 12 disciples: "Take nothing for the journey -- no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic."

After trekking along more than 300 miles of dusty Virginia country roads and suburban highways, six Franciscan friars reached Washington on Tuesday, having seen it all during an offbeat modern-day quest for God.

For six weeks, the brothers walked from Roanoke with only their brown robes, sandals and a belief in the kindness of strangers to feed and shelter them.

The sight of six men in flowing habits, trudging single file on the side of the road, prompted many to pull over and talk, even confess. People on their way to work described their loneliness. College students wanted help figuring out what to do with their lives. Children, mistaking them for the Shaolin monks in movies, ran up to ask the friars if they knew how to beat up bullies.

To read more about these Franciscan's, click here.

Unfortunately, some bad news.

The Knights of Columbus in the DC area have suffered with the destruction by fire of the Bishop Patrick J. Byrne Council No. 3877 hall, said Prince George’s County fire. Fire officials estimated the damage to be about $1 million. The cause and origin of the fire are under investigation.

Here is the video of the fire taken by the Prince George's Fire Department:

Pro-Life Center Closed...Where to next?

One of my readers wrote the following to me:

Some very distressing news, the Archdiocese closed their ONLY ProLife Center. Yes, Birthing and Care Center of College Park was closed on July 1. The remaining staff was moved to the Archdiocene Pstoral Center in Hyattsville. This is hardly a replacement for the convience, warmth and excellence of the College Park location. This is a terrible blow for Prolife advocates and the Side Walk Counselors. There is no longer an accessable Catholic Walk-In Center that offers birthing and care alternatives to conter act the Abortion propaganda machine.Project Rachel(post-abortion counseling) was also at this Center, which was a wonderful combination of services. Project Rachel has also been moved to the Hyattsville location. Supposedly the Archdiocese wants to move these program to individual parishes. But, really? We had a Center with professionals who performed outstanding, confidental services to a very needy population. Birthing and Care Center, RIP. And I bet you didn't see this in the Catholic Standard.

This was the first that I have heard of this and therefore, I did write to the Archdiocese of Washington DC (communications@adw.org) asking for a comment. As of this writing, I have not recieved any reply. Should I receive one, I will keep you posted.

Catholic Standard - Weekly Update

Well folks, it is that time (although late) with our review of the Catholic Standard (July 23rd Edition).

We start off with a Catholic News Story (CNS) on the Pope's injuries.

Then we follow-up with a story about the nominee for Surgeon General. It seems that there is some "speculation about abortion view."

No. It can't be. An Obama nominee who is Catholic and is pro-abortion? It seems to surprise CNS. Let's see, there is Joe Biden, Obama's Press Secretary, Sotomayor, and the list goes on.

What planet is CNS living on? They must have drunk the Obama Kook-Aid once too often. If they were not pro-abortion, NARAL, Planned Parenthood and the rest of them would be yelling and screaming. But you know why they are not, because they know that the Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama would only appoint pro-abortion politicians.

Fire the lot of the current CNS group. What a waste!

And what is worse, Sr. Keehan head of the Catholic Health Assn. To me, they are willing to sell their souls for health rationing for all.

We then move on the Opportunity Scholarships and we learn that the US House of Reps., voted last week to keep the program going only for those currently in it. No new funding. Now, I bet if you looked at who voted to limit it, it would be the Democratic Party.

Yet, we do not hear a word from the social justice crowd. Where are they by the way? For all of their talk about education, it is just that -- talk.

We move on to stories about how young teens are doing good things at Encounter the Gospel of Life and how young adults are involved in Christ in the City, at St. Patrick's in DC.

The House of Representatives also passed a bill allowing for locally tax-funded abortions in DC. Gee, I wonder which party supported that one. Do you really think that the DC Council will vote not fund them, even though 41% of all pregnancies are aborted.

We have another story on how pro-lifers who oppose abortion as part of the President's health rationing plan. With the Fr. Reese's, Sr. Keehan's, Joe "insert foot in mouth" Biden (and they talked about Dan Quayle), and Dr. Regina Benjamin's who needs enemies.

Finally, we have a CNS story on Walter Cronkite. Can anyone tell me why he was "the most trusted man in America"? Who gave him that name? He certainly did not deserve it in my opinion, esp. knowing what we now know about the media.

It reminds me of Howard Stern. Do you know how he became "The King of All Media?" He started to call himself that and slowly but surely, as his radio ratings increased, the media started to use that phrase. Reminds me a lot about Cronkite.

As always, if you don't get the Standard, pick one up in your parish. Remember, they are required to carry it -- whether they like it or no.

Today in the Archdiocese of Washington DC History...

Our Lady of Hope Chapel at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

More in McNamara's Blog.

Hat Tip to Deacon's Bench.

Mr. Obama/Mr. Biden - PLEASE RESIGN NOW!

With all of the STUPID things that both of them (esp. Biden) have done and said, I think that it is high time that we begin the call loud and clear:

RESIGN NOW!

Do I need to say anything else?

Pick up the message and spread it loud and clear.

Carroll Chapel Update

Last year, the Carroll Chapel (located by Old St. John the Evangelist - Forest Glen Road) was damaged when a tree fell on it.

A few weeks ago, a buddy of mine (thanks Melvin), let me know that it is being rebuilt. I finally got there the other night. Here are some photos:

Can this be true?

A reader forwarded this to me. I do not know if it is true or not, but I thought I would share it with you...

Did Donald Wuerl cooperate with the Archdiocese of Boston and permit known pedophiles to enter or remain in the Pittsburgh Diocese? If so, were other pedophiles admitted to Serra Catholic High School and other Catholic institutions? Was it Headmaster Sysol’s job to keep an eye on Brother Ghastin and possibly other pedophile clergy from Boston? Knowing what we know now about the Archdiocese of Boston clergy abuse scandal, anything is possible.

For more, click here.

Update (5:50pm):

One of my regular readers sent me a comment but I do not believe I can post all of it. So, I am posting only the first paragraph. If he/she give permission to post all, I will. I agree with these comments completely because in many instances, our bishops were lead to believe that if you took them out of the situation, they would change. We have now learned the lesson the hard way that moving only causes widespread damage:

Very sad story. One thing that I would like to see investigated and brought to light is that the psychologists and psychiatrists at the institutions that were dealing with these offending priests (most cases were not pedophilia because the victims were post-pubescent) recommended that the offenders were given positions of trust in order to rebuild their self-esteem. Yes, it was the recommendation of the mental health professionals that resulted in the quiet shuffling of abusers. Unfortunately, when the Archdiocese of Washington wanted to show these records during the abuse trials a few years ago, the hospitals immediately sent their army of lawyers and the records were kept sealed under doctor-patient confidentiality rules. In the end, those who were ultimately responsible for the cover up, were left scott free. This is the case in Washington and I don't know the details on Boston or Pittsburgh but I would not be surprised if they are similar.

Rush Limbaugh mentions DC Opportunity Scholarship Program

For those of you who support the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program, it was mentioned on Rush Limbaugh's show yesterday at apx. 12:40pm - 12:45pm.

It was mentioned in the context the Dept. of Agriculture was spending stimulus money and it was a do as I say, not as I do administration. Rush brought up the fact that the Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama can send his children to an exclusive private school (Sidwell Friends) but he killed a program for minority students.

I wonder if Rush was reading my blog. (I doubt it, but it would be nice.)

On a side note, I would like to thank everyone who reads this blog. We have reached the 25,000 mark. Thanks!

Kill 'em before the are born, and rush them to meet their Maker.

"We know we spend a huge amount of money that last year of life. More and more people are gonna say, I don't want people poking tubes, and, you know, uh, doing all sorts of...stuff. The most important thing we can do on end-of-life care right now: to encourage people to look at hospices as a...legitimate option."

The Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama (last week)

So, he talks about reducing the number of abortions (but actually does not mean it) and now, in order to pay for his health care plan, he is encouraging those in the last year or so of their lives to go die.

So, he does whatever he can to kill off those who are not born and those who are in their last years of their lives.

I wonder if he will encourage his mother-in-law (who by the way is living on the taxpayer dime) to do the same when it is time.

I wonder if the Catholics in the Archdiocese who voted for him, will encourage their parents (and all elderly) who are at the end of their lives, to go to a hospice? Will you encourage them to die earlier?

Is this the change you voted for?

CNS and the Catholic Standard - Sloppy Journalism Again!

The Catholic News Service (CNS) in does the Catholic press and readership a world of disservice by writing stories which are not fully researched. The Catholic Standard, as part of the package that they purchase from CNS, uses their stories without even doing their own investigation.

Case in point: Dr. Regina Benjamin the nominee for Surgeon General.

CNS goes through the regular bio of her. However, there is no mention that:

In December 1996, Benjamin apparently spoke in favor of a vote by the AMA's governing body to "urge medical schools to expand their curriculum" to teach "more about abortion."

She appeared to have supported teaching doctors about abortions in an interview with the Associated Press.

"We are adopting a policy that medical school curriculum provide the legal, ethical, and psychological principles associated with abortion so students can learn all the factors involved," she said.At the time, the AMA voted to reaffirm its policy position favoring abortion, saying the "termination of pregnancy is a medical matter between the patient and physician, subject to the physician's clinical judgment, the patient's informed consent and the availability of appropriate facilities."

Benjamin is also on the board of directors of Physicians for Human Rights, an organization which has spoken out against illegal abortions in many nations across the world. The group has relied on disputed statistics on maternal deaths from abortions to call for legalization.

The group also called on President Bush not to expand the Mexico City Policy, which President Obama overturned in January, that stops sending taxpayer dollars to groups that promote and perform abortions in other nations.

And it asked President Bush to ratify the CEDAW treaty that does not include abortion promotion but has been used by the United Nations to pressure numerous countries to legal abortion or expand abortions further.

(from LifeNews.com)

Until yesterday, when CNS posted an article on this based on the above.

But to add insult to injury, she is also on the Board of the Catholic Health Association.

What the heck is going on here?

A Board member of CHA who supports and encourages the legalization (and funding) of abortion? What the heck is she doing on the Board? What does that really say about CHA? When the CHA President (a religious) praises this pick (and other things the Most Merciful has done in the past), it really makes you wonder where we they are headed. (And if they think that they won't be required to provide abortions & contraception in the future, you just wait. The CHA president will probably say that the greater evil is not to provide healthcare, therefore, we must accept this little evil.)

It is time for the USCCB to really look at CNS and possibly fire not only the writer of the article but also revamp the whole vetting process that takes place when CNS publishes a story.

The Catholic Standard should not just routinely accept whatever garbage CNS puts their way. They do a great disservice to the Catholic community in this Archdiocese by not telling the whole truth.

On a separate note, so much for the Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama's plan to reduce aborition.

He is dividing and conquering the Catholic faithful one at a time and the liberal Catholics are just sucking it up.

Tip of the Hat to the Curt Jester for posting the LifeNews information on the Deacon's Bench.

DC Misses Payment to Charter Schools...

From the Washington comPost:

The District missed a $103 million payment due to its 60 charter schools this morning, triggering serious cash flow problems for many of the publicly funded, independently operated schools and raising new questions about D.C. government's ability to meet its commitments as revenue declines.

The delay means that some schools will not be able to meet their payroll.
Charter school operators, who serve about 25,000 District school children on 90 campuses, were informed by Jeremy Williams, business oversight manager for the D.C. Public Charter School Board, that uncertainty surrounding tax revenue means their payment will be later and smaller than anticipated.

This of course will affect the Charter schools, converted from Catholic Schools. This will also affect the parishes that are leasing the schools to the Charter program.

This was an issue which I wrote about last November.

VOTF Closing Down? We should be so lucky!

According to an article in the Washington comPost:


Leaders of Voice of the Faithful sent out a fundraising letter Monday to members saying it is "at the crossroads of financial survival" and needs $60,000 by the end of this month.

Casey said that after meeting in an emergency session on July 9, the board decided it was faced with two choices: either cease operations or make an emergency appeal to members. He said the board is hoping to raise $60,000 by the end of this month to pay operating expenses for July and August.

In August, the group plans to send a new strategic plan to members that it hopes will renew interest in the group and raise additional money for it.

One of the problems with groups such as VOTF, is that it was set up as a one-issue organization. However, as time has passed, the scandal abated and action taken, they have attempted to morph themselves into a group that has advocated a more radical change in the Church - a dissenting organization. I (and others) have written extensively about them. In addition, they have aligned themselves with other dissenting groups, such as CORPUS.

I mean, look at their 2009 Conference speakers: Sr. Joan Chittister and Fr. Thomas Reese. If you are looking for a radical change in the Church, then you have found the right group.

So, if they disappear, it will not be a loss for the Church.

Faith of American Hispanics have Changed...

The Barna Group conducted a series of telephone interviews among nine nationwide random samples of adults. In the course of the 9,232 interviews conducted, each respondent was asked if they considered themselves to be Hispanic. These surveys were conducted between January 2007 and November 2008. In total, there were 1,195 adults in the Hispanic category.

There are some interesting findings in the survey:

- Alignment with the Catholic church (down by 25 percentage points)

- Being a born again Christian (up by 17 percentage points)

There are many other findings, but to read them all go here.


This has some serious implications for the Archdiocese of Washington DC, which has spent a huge amount of money and effort on the Hispanic community, because they see them (Hispanics) as the hope for the next 40 or 50 years of the Catholic Church in DC.

Whether or not their efforts will pay off, may not be seen for many years. But the indications that I get is that they are not.

The Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama's plan to reduce abortions.

When the Most Merciful met Pope Benedict, he spoke about reducing the number of abortions. Yep, he has a plan and the man who can carry it out.

John Holden recently appointed as the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Assistant to the President for Science and Technology, and Co-Chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology has some very interesting ideas:



Women could be forced to abort their pregnancies, whether they wanted to or not;

The population at large could be sterilized by infertility drugs intentionally put into the nation's drinking water or in food;



Single mothers and teen mothers should have their babies seized from them against their will and given away to other couples to raise;

People who "contribute to social deterioration" (i.e. undesirables) "can be required by law to exercise reproductive responsibility" -- in other words, be compelled to have abortions or be sterilized.



For more on this, go here.

For those who voted for Obama, are you satisfied yet? Still happy you voted for a man who is willing to appoint a Josef Mengele protege?



Tip of the Hat to The Curt Jester for this!

Catholic Standard - Weekly Update

Had a restful vacation. No television and no 'net access.

Here is a summary of The Catholic Standard (Archdiocese of Washington DC) this week.

The cover story as you can expect is on the encyclical of Pope Benedict entitled Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth). There are also a number of related stories. I have not had the chance to read them, but I hope to do so shortly.

Well, I missed the meeting of His Holiness Pope Benedict and the Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama. Yes, the Standard covers this via CNS and that makes me wonder about how accurate it really is, considering some of their previous stories.

There is also a review of the meeting with religious writers. I remember when the story first broke, it was to be Catholic journalists but I guess it cannot be since America and the National Catholic Reporter were there.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) seems to be kow-towing to the Most Merciful's plan to fund embryonic stem-cell research. We know that this method has not produced any results but damn it, he intends to go thru with it. NIH asked for comments and over 30,000 of them were against it but because they "were not responsive to the question at hand" they were thrown out. The question was "how to fund" not "should we fund." I guess the NIH really doesn't care what you think, just like the Most Merciful.

For a president who keeps taking about reducing abortions, he seems to have no problem including a line for federal funding of abortions in DC. I guess you not only kill them when they are in the womb, those who do survive can be considered dead, since he is also killing DC Opportunity Scholarships.

Learn about the importance of having a Catholic wedding in the Marriage Matters section.

There is a story about Archbishop-designate DiNoia returning to DC for his Episcopal ordination. He is to be the secretary for the Congregation of Divine Worship and the Sacraments.

SOME held their 40th anniversary inaugural concert on July 1st. It is a good organization that helps many. There is an interesting quote about the number of homeless people over the last 30 years -- it seems that the number has stayed the same. I guess all those who claimed that it increased under both George Bush's lied. But what else do you expect.

There are also some articles on Fr. L. Branch (Navy Chaplin), Fr. King (Georgetown U) and Karl Malden.

As always, if you don't get the Standard, pick one up in your parish. Remember, they are required to carry it -- whether they like it or no.

Happy Fourth of July

As we celebrate the fourth of July, and begin to roll out those "lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer" (as Nat King Cole sings), let us each thank God that he has given us the chance to live in the greatest country on the Earth. It may not be perfect but few run away from it, and many do whatever they can to get here.

On a side note, I will be taking a couple of days off for vacation with a couple of million other folks.

Remember to get to Mass and say a couple of prayers for those in our Armed Services, and esp. our Military Chaplains.

The Catholic Church's Fifth Column

Deacon Keith Fournier of Catholic Online, has written a interesting piece on the Catholic Church's Fifth Column.

I use the phrase “fifth column” in reference to people within our Church, fellow Catholics. These folks have rejected the teaching of the Church in an area of moral truth and, rather than honestly admit it and seek to change themselves so that they can properly inform their conscience and give a religious submission of intellect and will,(which is our obligation as faithful Catholics), they now attempt to confuse the faithful. However, they go even further.

They engage in a covert operation intended to undermine the Church. This is done in several ways. Sometimes it is through a kind of slow drip of dissent. Other times through a concerted campaign which overtly opposes the ‘Magisterium’ , the teaching office of the Catholic Church, though still containing its rebellion and opposition within the family of the Church. Still other times it goes beyond all propriety by overtly rejecting the clear teaching of the Church. Then, using a public forum, they intentionally try to hurt the Church and cause a scandal. It is to the last group that I now address this article.

Almost every week brings another instance (sometimes repeated) of this type of activity in the Archdiocese of Washington DC, such as the regular meetings of Voice of the Faithful at Holy Trinity, the DC City Council members (who are "practicing Catholics") who voted to recognize gay marriage or Knights of Columbus who support the Most Merciful, Lord High Barack Obama.

Do you know of a Catholic institution (or maybe a priest of nun) in the Archdiocese of Washington that would fit the Fifth Column profile? Here is your chance to let everyone know.

Send me an email (awashingtondccatholic@gmail.com) and the reason why (just a couple of sentences -- not a research paper). If it is not just some rant and rave, dripping with hate, it may get published over the course of the next few weeks.

Please note, that I may wish to ask some further questions, so if there is an email address at which I can contact you at, that would be best.

Voce Italiana drunk on the Fr. Jenkins' Kool-Aid

My friend gave me the latest copy of Voce Italiana. Voce, as my friend commonly calls it, is a“An Italian American Gazette of the Greater Washington DC Area" published by Holy Rosary Church. Holy Rosary is what some refer to as a national or ethnic parish, since it caters to members of one particular ethnic group, in this case, Italians and Italian-Americans. However, as with any of these parishes (and I find nothing wrong with them), anyone is welcome.

As you know, I have blogged about them before.

Well, it seems that the editors of Voce have had a couple of glasses of the Fr. Jenkins' Kool-Aid, instead of a couple of good glasses of Italian wine. Although maybe they had a little too much wine first, and it lead to them to their clouded thinking.

In their editorial section, they decided to piggy back on an article from America Magazine. Right then and there, you know we were in for some subversive thinking Voce backs the idea that it is okay for Catholic schools (ie, Notre Dame) to give awards to non-Catholics, even when they differ in fundamental aspects of faith. Second, Catholics can come to different conclusions regarding matters of faith and it is okay.

Now, if you wish come to different conclusions on how to assist the poor (some say government, some say individual efforts), that is one thing. However, on such issues as abortion and stem cell use, give me a break.

Once again, we ask what is Fr. Tomasi (the Editor-in-Chief) of Voce Italiana thinking. He is a Catholic priest. This is published by a Catholic Church. No amount of side stepping can change that. And, where is the Archdiocese of Washington DC on this? Will they do anything? Probably not.