DOCSLIB.ORG

Evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights BILLS (12-13) 147 Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill: Evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights 1. The Joint Committee on Human Rights (‘the Committee’) has decided to undertake a period of oral evidence gathering in order to scrutinise the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill (‘the Bill’) prior to its Report stage in the House of Commons. I have been invited by the Committee to present evidence regarding the Bill and its human rights implications to inform its analysis. I am grateful to the Committee for this opportunity. 2. I am a legal academic and a practicing barrister. I have been Professor of Human Rights and Equality Law at Queen’s University, Belfast since 2011, having previously been Professor of Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford. I am also William W Cook Global Law Professor at the University of Michigan Law School. I am a member of Gray’s Inn and a member of Blackstone Chambers. 3. My recent legal practice has involved representing clients as Junior Counsel in several cases in the domestic courts and before the European Court of Human Rights (‘ECtHR’) involving the relationship between judicial review, domestic equality law, the Human Rights Act 1998, European Union law, and the European Convention on Human Rights (‘ECHR’). I am Junior Counsel in Ladele v United Kingdom before the ECtHR. 4. I am currently instructed by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales (‘CBCEW’) to advise on human rights issues that arise under the Bill, in the form reported to the House of Commons by the Public Bill Committee, and to suggest appropriate amendments to meet any human rights concerns. 5. The CBCEW is the permanent assembly of Catholic Bishops and Personal Ordinaries in England and Wales. The membership of the Conference comprises the Archbishops, Bishops and Auxiliary Bishops of the twenty-two Dioceses within England and Wales, the Bishop of the Forces (Military Ordinariate), the Apostolic Exarch of the Ukrainian Church in Great Britain, the Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, and the Apostolic Prefect of the Falkland Islands. Its interest in the Bill relates among other issues to the potential impact of the Bill on freedom of religion. 6. I was instructed to provide written advice to the CBCEW concerning the effect of the Bill on the religious freedoms of the Catholic Church, Church-related institutions and bodies, and individuals, as well as issues of religious discrimination that may arise. With the permission of the CBCEW, I attach the written advice I was have given to the CBCEW. I would be grateful if the Committee would regard this Appendix as an integral part of my evidence to the Committee. 7. Whilst the opposition of the Catholic Church to the principle of the Bill (that the definition of ‘marriage’ in civil law should be extended to include ‘same- sex marriage’) is well known, the House of Commons has, by a majority, now accepted this principle. I was instructed to address concerns over the human rights implications of the Bill for the Catholic Church as it is currently drafted, rather than to suggest amendments that would question the principle of the Bill. 8. As a guide to the issues that the Committee is seeking to scrutinise, the BILLS (12-13) 147 Committee referred me to its 20 March 2013 letter to the Minister regarding the Bill. Of the issues identified in this letter as being of interest to the Committee, my advice to the CBCEW is particularly relevant to the first and second of these, that is to ‘the protection for religious organisations and individual ministers’, and to the ‘potential implications of the Bill in relation to the rights to manifest one’s religion or beliefs and to freedom of expression.’ I have no instructions concerning, and do not wish at this time to comment on, the other major issues identified by the Committee. 9. The issues raised by the Committee’s letter under the heading of ‘the protection for religious organisations and individual ministers’ are addressed in paragraphs 27 to 104 of my advice regarding the religious freedom not to solemnize same-sex marriages. As the Committee will see, I consider that this issue raises questions under the Human Rights Act 1998, Article 9 ECHR (freedom of religion), and Article 14 ECHR (freedom from religious discrimination) read with Article 9. 10. My advice is that the protection from ‘compulsion’ in Clause 2(1) and 2(2) is unclear and the ‘locks’ provided are insufficiently robust. Without further amendments, religious organisations will be at risk of unfavourable treatment by public authorities, and other legal action (such as judicial review) if they decide not to opt-in to providing same sex marriages. This risk is particularly acute given that (as will often be the case) marriages conducted in Catholic Churches also constitute valid civil marriages for legal purposes. 11. The issues raised by the Committee’s letter under the heading of the ‘potential implications of the Bill in relation to the rights to manifest one’s religion or beliefs and to freedom of expression’ are addressed in the remainder of the advice. They overlap, to some extent, the issue of protection for religious organisations. There are three principal human rights issues identified: (a) Religious freedom in education: This raises issues under Article 9 and Article 2 of Protocol 1 (right to education in accordance with the religious preferences of parents). My advice is that unless protections for faith schools are built into the Bill, these schools may be required to promote or endorse same sex marriage by reason of current and/or future guidance from the Secretary of State. This issue arises because the change in the definition of marriage will effectively amend the Secretary of State’s powers in this respect. (See further paras 105 to 112 of my advice.) (b) Registrars and conscientious objection: This raises issues under Article 14 ECHR, and (separately) EU Directive 2000/78 EC, read with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. My advice is that registrars who have a conscientious objection, based on a genuine religious or other belief, that only opposite sex couples can marry, should, on human rights grounds, be able to remain as registrars without being required to conduct same sex marriages to which they object, provided this protection is proportionate, that is provided it only operates as long as there are enough registrars in the area to cope with the demand for same sex marriage, thus providing a balanced way of protecting both the rights and freedoms of registrars and those of same sex couples. (See further paras 113 to 131 of my advice.) (c) Freedom of expression of those who oppose same sex marriage: This raises issues under Articles 10 ECHR (freedom of expression) by itself, BILLS (12-13) 147 and read with Article 14, and Article 9. My advice is that, in order to ensure the appropriate degree of protection of freedom of expression, individuals should be protected from actions for unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010, and from the threat of criminal sanctions under the Public Order Act when discussing or criticizing same sex marriage in a reasonable and proportionate way. (See further paras 132 to 141 of my advice.) 12. There are three cross cutting issues that are also considered in my advice that I should draw to the Committee’s attention. These cross cutting issues are relevant to each of the areas of concern identified above. (a) The first is that there is a common underlying issue of legal principle that binds together the disparate issues discussed above: how far should those who oppose same sex marriage on the grounds of religious or other beliefs be effectively removed from taking part in, or be silenced when engaging in, activities in the public sphere? My advice is that, taken as a whole, there is a significant risk that the effect of the Bill may be to reduce rather than enhance the religious ‘pluralism’ of the public sphere that the ECtHR considers the foundation of a democratic society. (See further paras 7 to 17 of my advice.) (b) The second cross cutting issue relates to the positive obligations on the United Kingdom arising from the ECHR to ensure that others (including private parties) do not abridge the rights that flow from this commitment to religious pluralism in the public sphere. States have a positive obligation to ensure that third parties do not abridge the rights of religious organisations and to take practical measures of protection required to protect such organisations. In that context, the Government’s commitment, in the Impact Assessment that accompanied the publication of the Bill, to ‘ensure that protections are in place for religious bodies who do not want to perform same-sex marriages, not just from successful legal claims, but from the threat of litigation’ (emphasis added) takes on an added importance. (See further paras 142 to 146 of my advice.) (c) The third cross cutting issue concerns the assessment of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. My advice is that the current interpretation of Article 9 by the ECtHR provides considerably less protection, and that the Court’s jurisprudence regarding Article 14’s prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation is considerably more advanced, than the Government admits, with significant implications for the areas of concern identified above. (See further paras 18 to 26 of my advice.) 13. I look forward to the opportunity to discuss these issues further with the Committee in the oral evidence session to which I have been invited, and to answer any questions or clarify any issues arising from my advice that members of the Committee wish to raise at that time.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Preamble. His Excellency. Most Reverend Dom. Carlos Duarte
    Preamble. His Excellency. Most Reverend Dom. Carlos Duarte Costa was consecrated as the Roman Catholic Diocesan Bishop of Botucatu in Brazil on December !" #$%&" until certain views he expressed about the treatment of the Brazil’s poor, by both the civil (overnment and the Roman Catholic Church in Brazil caused his removal from the Diocese of Botucatu. His Excellency was subsequently named as punishment as *itular bishop of Maurensi by the late Pope Pius +, of the Roman Catholic Church in #$-.. His Excellency, Most Reverend /ord Carlos Duarte Costa had been a strong advocate in the #$-0s for the reform of the Roman Catholic Church" he challenged many of the 1ey issues such as • Divorce" • challenged mandatory celibacy for the clergy, and publicly stated his contempt re(arding. 2*his is not a theological point" but a disciplinary one 3 Even at this moment in time in an interview with 4ermany's Die 6eit magazine the current Bishop of Rome" Pope Francis is considering allowing married priests as was in the old time including lets not forget married bishops and we could quote many Bishops" Cardinals and Popes over the centurys prior to 8atican ,, who was married. • abuses of papal power, including the concept of Papal ,nfallibility, which the bishop considered a mis(uided and false dogma. His Excellency President 4et9lio Dornelles 8argas as1ed the Holy :ee of Rome for the removal of His Excellency Most Reverend Dom. Carlos Duarte Costa from the Diocese of Botucatu. *he 8atican could not do this directly. 1 | P a g e *herefore the Apostolic Nuncio to Brazil entered into an agreement with the :ecretary of the Diocese of Botucatu to obtain the resi(nation of His Excellency, Most Reverend /ord.
    [Show full text]
  • 201112 Notification
    Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham N O T I F I C A T I O N PLENARY INDULGENCE GRANTED TO MARK THE TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE PERSONAL ORDINARIATE OF OUR LADY OF WALSINGHAM Friday 15 January 2021 marks the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (Decree, 15 January 2011: AAS 103 [2011] 129-133). To mark the forthcoming anniversary year, the Ordinary, the Reverend Monsignor Keith Newton, P.A., requested that a Plenary Indulgence be granted by the Major Penitentiary, H. E. Mauro Cardinal Piacenza. This has been graciously conceded by the Apostolic See, and communicated to the Ordinary by the Apostolic Penitentiary. Therefore, from Friday 15 January 2021 until Saturday 1 January 2022, any member of the Christian faithful who attends Mass celebrated according to Divine Worship: The Missal, or who participates in the public celebration of the Divine Office according to the forthcoming edition of Divine Worship: Daily Office, may attain the aforementioned Plenary Indulgence under the usual conditions, namely: 1. Sacramental Confession; 2. Reception of Holy Communion; 3. Prayer for the intention of the Holy Father, by the recitation of at least the Lord’s Prayer and one Hail Mary. In addition the sick, and all those who are physically unable to participate, may equally benefit from the gift of the Plenary Indulgence, offering their suffering to the Lord or devoutly carrying out acts of piety. Details of the public celebration of the Mass and Divine Office according to Divine Worship may be found on the website of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham: http://ordinariate.org.uk.
    [Show full text]
  • Exarch Josif I (1840-1915) (Real Name Lazar Yovchev) Is a Distinguished Bulgarian Orthodox Cleric
    Exarch Josif I (1840-1915) (real name Lazar Yovchev) is a distinguished Bulgarian Orthodox cleric. He was Bishop of Vidin, Metropolitan of the Lovech Diocese and Bulgarian Exarch – Head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. Lazar Yovchev was born on the 5 of May 1840 in the enlightened town of Kalopher at the foot of the Balkan mountain. Studious and curious student during the primary school, he later became a teaching assistant of Botio Petkov, well known teacher in Kalopher and abroad. Supported by affuent Kalopher citizens living in Tzarigrad (Istanbul) he continued his studies in the Grand People’s School in Fener (in Turkish - Fener Rum Erkek Lisesi) and later in the French College (Tzarigrad). With the fnancial help of the Kalopher community he enrolled in 1864 in the prestigious Literary Faculty of the Sorbonne University (Paris). After three years study there he transferred to the Law School of the same university, which he graduated with a Bachelor degree and license to practice law. After six years in France, Lazar Yovchev returns to Tzarigrad and works at the Central Court of Commerce. In the same time he is active in political journalism and translation. He became a Board Member of the Macedonian Bulgarian Union (Makedonska Bylgarska Drujina). He was also invited to become a Secretary of the Joined Exarchate Council (Smesen Exarchiiski Syvet). Thanks to respect and popularity and without a formal ecclesiastical education, in 1872 the newly ordained monk becomes Coadjutor of the Exarch (equal to a Bishop reverence) under the monk name Yossif. In the next 3-4 years Bishop Yossif actively participates in the organization of the newly independent Bulgarian Church, travels the Bulgarian lands, meets representatives of the Great Powers, owing to his excellence in French, but mostly because of his ability to negotiate and persuade.
    [Show full text]
  • Xerox University Microfilms
    INFORMATION TO USERS This material was produced from a microfilm copy o f the original document. While the most advai peed technological meant to photograph and reproduce this document have been useJ the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the original submitted. The followini explanation o f techniques is provided to help you understand markings or pattei“ims which may appear on this reproduction. 1. The sign or “ target" for pages apparently lacking from die document phoiographed is “Missing Page(s)". If it was possible to obtain the missing page(s) or section, they are spliced into the film along with adjacent pages. This| may have necessitated cutting thru an image and duplicating adjacent pages to insure you complete continuity. 2. Wheji an image on the film is obliterated with a large round black mark, it is ar indication that the photographer suspected that the copy may have mo1vad during exposure and thus cause a blurred image. You will find a good image of the page in the adjacent frame. 3. Wheh a map, drawing or chart, etc., was part of the material being photographed the photographer followed a definite method in 'sectioning" the material. It is customary to begin photoing at the upper left hand corner of a large sheet and to continue photoing from left to righj in equal sections with a small overlap. If necessary, sectioning is continued again - beginning below the first row and continuing on until com alete. 4. The majority of users indicate that the textual content is of greatest value, ho we ver, a somewhat higher quality reproduction could be made from "ph btographs" if essential to the understanding of the dissertation.
    [Show full text]
  • Advent 2018 to Christmastide 2019
    ORDO for the Celebration of Mass according to Divine Worship: The Missal and the Recitation of the Divine Office for the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter in the United States of America and Canada Advent 2018 to Christmastide 2019 According to the Particular Calendar approved for the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter, coordinated with the National Calendars of the United States and Canada issued by authority of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops CONTENTS Particular Notes on the Liturgical Year of 2018-2019 for the Ordinariate 3 General Notes, Norms, & Explanations 4 Abbreviations & Symbols 7 Ordo: 2 December 2018 to 31 December 2019 9 Appendices: 1. Abbreviations of the Books of the Bible A-1 2. Table of Liturgical Days according to their order of precedence A-2 3. Special Days in the Life of the Ordinariate and its Communities A-4 4. Occasions when Mass texts of the day may be replaced A-5 5. Necrology A-6 N the worship and service of Almighty God, which Christ and His Apostles Ihave left to us, we are vouchsafed means, both moral and mystical, of approaching God, and gradually learning to bear the sight of Him. We approach, and in spite of the darkness, our hands, or our head, or our brow, or our lips become, as it were, sensible of the contact of something more than earthly. We know not where we are, but we have been bathing in water, and a voice tells us that it is blood.
    [Show full text]
  • St. Thomas More Parish
    St. Thomas More Parish A Roman Catholic Parish of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter Holy Sacrifice of the Mass SOLEMNITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI June 13 & 14, 2020 5 p.m. | 10 a.m. | 7 p.m. St. Joseph Catholic Church, Scranton, Pennsylvania Decade of the Rosary / Silent Devotion Pew booklet p. 35, 36 Announcements Organ Prelude THE INTRODUCTORY RITES The People stand Organ Processional Introit , chanted by the Cantor as the Priest censes the Altar Cibaviteos plainsong He fed them with the finest wheat flour, alleluia, and with honey from the rock hath he satisfied them, alleluia, alleluia. Sing we merrily unto God our helper: Make a cheerful noise unto the God of Jacob. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. He fed them… Sign of the Cross & Collect for Purity Priest In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. People Amen. Almighty God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen . The Summary of the Law , proclaimed by the Priest Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ saith: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
    [Show full text]
  • Church of the Incarnation & the Catholic Church
    Church of the Incarnation & the Catholic Church September 2012 On September 16, 2012, 140 members of the former Anglican Cathedral of the Incarnation, in College Park, are being received into the Catholic Church as part of a new national structure called the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter. What is the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter? The Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter was established by the Vatican on January 1, 2012 in response to repeated requests by former Anglican groups and clergy seeking to become Catholic. The ordinariate provides a way for Anglican parishes and groups to enter the Catholic Church in "corporate reunion"; that is, as a group and not simply as individuals. They retain their Anglican liturgical heritage and traditions while being fully Catholic. The U.S. ordinariate includes the United States and Canada. It is equivalent to a diocese, but national in scope, and is led by Rev. Monsignor Jeffrey N. Steenson. A Catholic priest, he is the former Episcopal Bishop of Rio Grande; is based in Houston, Texas; and is a full member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. As of September 2012, 22 former Anglican or Episcopal priests had been ordained Catholic priests for the ordinariate, and 20 parishes or groups had been received into the Catholic Church. More are in the process of joining. Background In November 2009, in response to repeated and persistent inquiries from Anglican groups worldwide who were seeking to become Catholic, Pope Benedict XVI issued an apostolic constitution called Anglicanorum coetibus (pronounced Anglican-orum chay-tee-boose).
    [Show full text]
  • The Communists and the Bulgarian . Orthodox
    . The Communists and the Bulgarian .Orthodox Church, 1944-48: The Rise and Fall of Exarch Stefan SPAS T.RAIKIN For a long time before the communist takeover in Bulgaria on 9 Sep­ tember 1944, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the Communist Party had been in a state of open hostility. The Bulgarian communists held firmly to the Marxist view that religion is the opium ofthe people. They carried on agitation at every level to discredit religion and the Church-. Intellectuals were told that to hold any religious beliefs is to regress to superstition. For the peasants and working classes, the priest was reduced to an object of ridicule for his laziness and immorality, illustrated with many degrading stories. This campaign, waged largely by young men who had. received some education in provincial towns, was conducted primarily in village taverns and on street corners where peasant youth congregated in the absence of any other social outlets, and was highly successful. To this challenge the Church could not find an adequate response. The mutually exclusive philosophical positions of Church and communism deprived both Church and Party of any point of contact. They remained total strangers, completely opposed to each other. The Communist Party never tried to infiltrate the Church or to create its own following there. Unlike the Orthodox Church in Yugoslavia, where numerous priests found themselves in the partisan groups of Marshal Tito, the Bulgarian Church was conspicuously absent from the "Fatherland Front" organised by the communists as a front to take over the country in 1944. The Church was part of the political and social order in the country, and was dependent upon this order for its survival.
    [Show full text]
  • The Missal Frequently Asked Questions
    Introducing Divine Worship: The Missal Frequently Asked Questions 1 What is Divine Worship: The Missal ? Any priest incardinated in such a Personal Ordinariate may also publicly celebrate the Mass according to Divine Worship outside the parishes of the Ordinariate with the permission of the rector/pastor of the corresponding Divine Worship is the liturgical provision for the celebration of Mass and church or parish. Priests of the Ordinariate may always celebrate Mass the Sacraments for use by the Personal Ordinariates established under the without a congregation according to Divine Worship. Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum coetibus. As such, it gives expression to and preserves for Catholic worship the worthy Anglican liturgical In cases of pastoral necessity or in the absence of a priest incardinated in patrimony, understood as that which has nourished the Catholic faith an Ordinariate, any Catholic priest in good standing may celebrate the throughout the history of the Anglican tradition and prompted aspirations Holy Eucharist according to Divine Worship for members of the Ordinariate towards ecclesial unity. who request it. For example, since the parishes of the Ordinariate are often spread out over a large geographic territory, the pastor of an Ordinariate parish may ask a priest at a nearby diocesan parish to fill in during illness or Is the liturgical provision for the Ordinariates its own proper vacation leave. 2 Rite? 6 Can any priest concelebrate Mass according to Divine Worship? No. The Anglican liturgical tradition draws on the English monastic tradition and develops entirely out of the context of the Roman Rite. The Yes. Any Catholic priest may concelebrate Mass according to Divine Worship.
    [Show full text]
  • Newsletter the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross Vol 1 No 2 2 April 2020 Passiontide
    Newsletter The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross Vol 1 No 2 2 April 2020 Passiontide The Ordinary’s Message We are not yet two weeks into the effective shut- down of group gatherings as a result of the current COVID-19 pandemic. In some ways it seems even longer than just that; however, we should be prepared for a much longer “new normal” with perhaps even stricter levels of isolation and/or Inside This Issue confinement that may persist for months. Page 2 But even as some might be beginning to experience feelings of cabin From the Philippines fever, have we noticed a few blessings? There is much less traffic Page 4 and the noise associated with it; in particular, far fewer airline flights, “Signs of Hope” a reprint from so many of which fly directly over us here in Homebush as they NCR (EWTN) arrive or leave the Sydney airport. And yet, the sound of silence, Page 7 much as it can be helpful to times of prayer, contemplation and Let’s get our patrons correct meditation, can also border on eerie. We live adjacent to a small, but normally well-used park, at the end of which is a day-care facility. I Page 8 miss the hum and noise of the cheerful laughter and yes, shouting, of Prayer for the Suffering children at play. Happily, while humanity is on a pandemically imposed “hold” the natural world continues as ever. The novelty for my wife and I, of the varied sounds of the sub-tropical birds, so much louder than the temperate zone birds of Canada, tell us that, while we humans effectively are holding our breath, the buzz of life otherwise continues.
    [Show full text]
  • The Establishment in England and Wales of a Personal Ordinariate for Groups of Faithful and Their Clergy from the Anglican Comm
    EMBARGOED UNTIL 12.00 NOON TUESDAY 11 JANUARY 2011 A Statement from the General Secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales THE ESTABLISHMENT IN ENGLAND AND WALES OF A PERSONAL ORDINARIATE FOR GROUPS OF FAITHFUL AND THEIR CLERGY FROM THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION ENTERING INTO FULL COMMUNION WITH THE CATHOLIC CHURCH Introduction On or before 15 January 2011, it is expected that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith will publish a Decree which will formally establish a ‘Personal Ordinariate’ in England and Wales (from here on referred to as ‘the Ordinariate’) for groups of Anglican faithful and their clergy who wish to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church. The establishment of this Ordinariate will be the first fruit of the Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum coetibus, issued by Pope Benedict XVI on 4 November 2009. The Constitution and the Complementary Norms published by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith provide the essential norms which will enable members of the Ordinariate to preserve within the Catholic Church those elements of Anglican ecclesial prayer, liturgy and pastoral practice (patrimony) that are concordant with Catholic teaching and which have nurtured and nourished their Christian faith and life. In time, it is expected that further Ordinariates will be established in other parts of the world to meet the desire of those Anglican communities who in a similar way seek to be united in communion with the Successor of St Peter. As a new structure within the Catholic Church, there will be many ‘frequently asked questions’ about the Ordinariate.
    [Show full text]
  • Retirement Fund for Priests Second Collection at All Ordinariate Parishes & Parochial Communities, Dec
    They sacrificed to open our path to the fullness of faith. Can you give back to those who left behind all that they had to bring us into the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church? Please support the Retirement Fund for Priests Second Collection at all Ordinariate Parishes & Parochial Communities, Dec. 1 & 2, 2018 The Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter ordinariate.net/supportpriests “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.” – Saint Ambrose Support the Retirement Fund for Priests Second Collection at all Ordinariate Parishes & Parochial Communities December 1 & 2, 2018 As the Ordinariate escalates in growth, it has the urgent task to help its pioneering Catholic priests prepare to live their retirement years in dignity, free of anxiety about their means of support. HOW WILL THE ORDINARIATE USE MY the beginning of the calendar year in which they HOW WILL THE ORDINARIATE TAKE UP GIFT TO THE RETIREMENT FUND FOR celebrate their 70th birthday. Priests who wish THIS COLLECTION IN 2018? PRIESTS? to continue ministerial service beyond their 70th Your local Ordinariate parish or parochial Bishop Steven J. Lopes has made it a priority to birthday may request to the bishop a continuation community will host a special collection the provide financial stability and future security for our of active priestly ministry; they will draw their weekend of Dec. 1 and 2, 2018. priests in active ministry. To accomplish this task, he pension after their formal retirement from ministry. established the Ordinariate’s Retirement Fund for Priests younger than 70 may request retirement IN THE UNITED STATES Priests in 2016.
    [Show full text]