Canadian Catholic Hospital to Grant Award to Anti-Catholic Abortion Promoter

By John-Henry Westen

WINNIPEG, November 10, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Winnipeg's Catholic St.
Boniface Hospital is set to present an award to anti-Catholic Stephen
Lewis, one of the most notorious abortion pushers in Canadian history.
Lewis was, in this month's issue of the Canadian national pro-life
newspaper "The Interim", listed in the top ten persons "who have most
helped lead the moral assault on Canada." Furthermore, Lewis has been
one of the most outspoken critics of the Catholic Church, particularly
in its promotion of abstinence in the fight against AIDS.

Nevertheless, St. Boniface Hospital & Research Foundation has announced
that Lewis, along with two others, will be the recipient of its 2005
International Award. The prestigious award which has in the past been
awarded to Mother Teresa, Pope John Paul II and Sir Edmund Hillary, is
being awarded to Lewis due to his "work in the fight against HIV/AIDS in
Africa", according to a hospital press release. (see the release here:
(http://www.sbgh.mb.ca/campus_sbgh/NewsItems/News_Current.html#June272005 )

The International Award will be presented to Lewis at the International
Award Gala Dinner on November 30, 2005 at the Winnipeg Convention
Centre. The pro-life group Campaign Life Coalition (CLC) will be on
hand to picket the event.

Maria Slykerman, President of Campaign Life Coalition Manitoba told
LifeSiteNews.com that she has tried since September to have the hospital
reconsider its decision but they have not even responded to her concerns.

In a letter to the hospital dated September 29, Slykerman said that CLC
was "deeply concerned" about the choice of Lewis and explained the
inappropriateness of the selection. Slykerman concluded her letter, "It
is our prayer that the Holy Spirit will guide you to redress this most
unthinkable decision."

Lewis' stance in support of abortion is well documented. In 1965, as an
Ontario MPP, Lewis became the first politician in Canada to introduce a
bill to legalize abortion. In 1971, as the Ontario NDP leader, he
promised to promote abortion access "as requested" and said he would
challenge the federal government to remove abortion from the Criminal
Code - a move the Toronto Star described as "the closest any party
leader has come to agreeing to 'abortion on demand'."

At the same time, Lewis worked to ensure that abortion on demand would
be an indispensable element in the NDP party platform. He wrote that, "a
woman's right to control her own body is an integral part of her fight
to control her own life. Therefore, she must be able to choose whether
or not she wants to bear a child."

In July of 2000, while working at the United Nations, Lewis alleged that
the Catholic Church was complicit in the Rwandan genocide. (see the
LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2000/jul/000710a.html )

Slykerman also voiced her concerns to local Archbishop Emilius Goulet.
Archbishop Goulet responded to Slykerman last month in a letter, noting
that although he was a member of the board of the hospital, "I was not
aware that Mr. Lewis had been chosen as a co-recipient." The bishop
noted further that "I was not personally consulted on this matter." He
said the objections were "very valid" and encouraged CLC to make known
its arguments to those responsible for the award.

To respectfully express your concerns:
St. Boniface General Hospital
409 Taché Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba R2H 2A6
(204) 233-8563
email: sbghweb@sbgh.mb.ca

St. Boniface Hospital & Research Foundation
409 Taché Avenue, Room D1003
Winnipeg, MB R2H 2A6
Phone: 204-237-2067
Fax: 204-231-0041
Email: info@saintboniface.ca

Catholic Health Association of Manitoba
information@cham.mb.ca

To respectfully contact Bishop Goulet
Mgr Émilius Goulet, p.s.s.
Archdiocese of St Boniface
151 de la Cathédrale Avenue
Saint Boniface, Manitoba
R2H 0H6

(204) 237-9851

E-mail: egoulet@archsaintboniface.ca

United Methodist Church Remains Orthodox?

Earlier this week, the United Methodist Judicial Council destroyed Elizabeth Shroud’s hopes of returning to fulltime ministry as an outed lesbian.

The highest court in the United Methodist Church yesterday defrocked a lesbian minister in Philadelphia and reinstated a Virginia pastor who had been suspended for denying a gay man membership in his congregation.

The nine-member Judicial Council also rejected a declaration by Methodists in the Pacific Northwest that there is a "difference of opinion among faithful Christians regarding sexual orientation and practice.”  The court said the declaration was a "historical statement without prescriptive force" and had no bearing on church laws.  Source

Given recent scandals in the Episcopal Church, these rulings show a commitment to orthodox Christianity by the Methodist Church although the "don't ask, don't tell" policy of the United Methodist Church regarding homosexual clergy needs to be reconsidered.  Do not interpret my statements as bashing homosexuals, but active homosexuality, and the promotion of such behavior is again biblical standards.  Although such statements offend some, we must remember the Bible was written for our edification and "is useful for teaching, reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”  (2 Tim. 3: 16, 17 NRSV)  Contrary to modern thought process, Christianity is not a 'feel good' religion.  Christianity means being different and often hearing something we do not want to hear or that appears cruel, because adherence to Christian teachings is for our edification and the welfare of our immortal souls.

A bit of Catholic/Supreme Court Humor

"Top ten changes a Catholic Majority would make to the Supreme Court": (courtesy of Benedict Blog and hat tip to Southern Appeal):

10) Meat-less Fridays all year round in the Supreme Court cafeteria;

9) Oral arguments in Latin ;

8) The bones of Chief Justice Marshall will be disinterred and placed in a glass coffin in the center of the Supreme Court bench;

7) Collections between each session of oral argument;

6) Supreme Court windows replaced with stained glass;

5) On close votes, the Justices will consult a statue of St. Thomas More. If the statue weeps, they affirm; if no tears, then they reverse.

4) Incense at the start of each session;

3) Supreme Court opinions will be deemed infallible and unreviewable by any earthly authority [ Ed. - Sorry - that does not appear to be a change at all ]

2) Catechism of the Catholic Church will now be "persuasive authority" ;

And, the number one change which a Catholic majority would make to the Supreme Court . . .

1) Wednesday night bingo!