the CY2k! Newsletter ==================== Nov. 2......Issue #4 ==================== PUBLISHED BY: Catholic Youth Center ONLINE (http://cyc.faithweb.com/) -=ISSUE #4 - PART 1/2=- The elections are coming up -- do you know who you are voting for? Even if you are not old enough to vote in this Presidential election, we encourage you to pay attention to the elections for various reasons including: 1) You will be informed and knowlegable and more prepared for when you are ready to vote. 2) If you parent's aren't going to vote, you can encourage them to vote... 3) Even if they are voting, talk to them about who they are voting for and why. Give them your perspective.. They maybe about to make a huge mistake. We hope you enjoy this special Presidential Elections issue! We have tried to keep it a bit shorter than previous issues by removing several section temporarily. Enjoy! *************** ***VOTE LIFE*** *************** =CONTENTS:= -==========================================================================- =[PART 1/3]= I....CONTENTS II...NEWS ISSUES III..PRAYER & SPIRITUALITY =[PART 2/3]= I....ELECTION 2000 II...LETTERS TO THE EDITOR III..CONTACT INFO. -==========================================================================- -[=NEWS ISSUES=]- A. CONGRESSMAN QUESTIONS SELECTION OF CHINESE FIRM MAKING RU-486 B. ST. THOMAS MORE NAMED PATRON OF POLITICIANS C. OVER 1,000 TO ATTEND JUBILEE FOR LEGISLATORS -==========================================================================- =CONGRESSMAN QUESTIONS SELECTION OF CHINESE FIRM MAKING RU-486= WASHINGTON, DC, Nov. 2, 00 (CWNews.com) - A senior Republican congressman on Wednesday questioned the Food and Drug Administration about the selection of a Chinese pharmaceutical firm to manufacture the abortifacient RU-486. Rep. Thomas Bliley, chairman of the House Commerce Committee, said in his letter to the FDA that the agency "did not fully explore the background and conduct" of Haulian Pharmaceutical. He said the company, previously known as Shanghai Pharmaceutical Factory 12, was identified by a 1998 California Health Department study as shipping a traditional Chinese medicine that was contaminated with an unapproved drug. Bliley said FDA officials told his staff that the company's past record was not relevant to its contract to manufacture one-half of the abortion drug, mifepristone. But Bliley said what he learned about the company's history "may call into question the integrity" of FDA's approval of mifepristone, which was announced September 28. "I am astonished by FDA's inability, failure, and disinterest in investigating certain information" about the company, Bliley wrote to FDA Commissioner Jane Henney. [reprinted with permission from Catholic World News Services Nov. 2, 2000] [please visit CWNews.com] -==========================================================================- =ST. THOMAS MORE NAMED PATRON OF POLITICIANS= VATICAN, Oct. 31, 00 (CWNews.com) -- Pope John Paul II today formally named St. Thomas More the patron of politicians. With the publication of a 4-page "motu propriu" signed by the Pontiff, the Holy See officially proclaimed what had already been announced: that St. Thomas More-- who was beheaded in 1535 because he opposed the efforts of King Henry VIII to seize control of the Church-- is the patron and model for government officials and political leaders. The formal document traces the life of St. Thomas More, and the reasons why he should be treated as a model. Pope John Paul points out that the request to name St. Thomas More as a patron came from political leaders around the world, including some who are not Catholics. "Even outside the Church, his stature is recognized as a source of inspiration for a political approach that makes the service of the human person its final end," the Pope wrote. The key message of the life of St. Thomas More, the Pope continued, is "the witness to the primacy of truth over power" and "the defense of the rights of conscience." He explained that the English saint "is distinguished by his constant fidelity to the authority of legitimate institutions, precisely because he wished to serve not the purposes of power but the supreme ideal of justice." [reprinted with permission from Catholic World News Services Oct. 31, 2000] [please visit CWNews.com] -==========================================================================- =OVER 1,000 TO ATTEND JUBILEE FOR LEGISLATORS= VATICAN, Oct. 31, 00 (CWNews.com) -- Well over 1,000 political leaders are expected in Rome this weekend for the Jubilee for legislators and political leaders on November 4 and 5. At least 93 countries will be represented for the observance, the Vatican has disclosed. Italian Senator Ombretta Fumagalli told a press conference that 400 of her fellow legislators from the Italian parliament will attend the Jubilee, forming the largest single national group. Among the other legislators who have already registered for the Jubilee events, 77 are from Spain, 43 from Great Britain, and 27 from France. But several countries outside Western Europe will be particularly well represented: Poland with 85, the Czech Republic with 32, and Russia with 21. Only 3 politicians from the United States will attend-- probably because most American politicians face elections just a few days after the event. [reprinted with permission from Catholic World News Services Oct. 31, 2000] [please visit CWNews.com] -==========================================================================- =POPE COMPARES SPORTS, SPIRITUAL LIFE= VATICAN, Oct. 30, 00 (CWNews.com) -- At the Jubilee for athletes on Sunday, October 29, Pope John Paul II said that all Christians should be "athletes for Christ." More than 70,000 people gathered in Rome's Olympic Stadium for a solemn Mass culminating the Jubilee. The Mass was followed by an exhibition soccer game, which the Pope attended. The ceremonies in Olympic Stadium were heavily colored with athletic symbolism. A group of about 50 famous soccer players took places of honor on a temporary stage to greet the Pope when he arrived, to the sounds of the Gospel tune, "When the Saints Come Marching In." Then a replica of the Olympic flame was lit beside the stage, remaining illuminated throughout the ceremony. In his homily, Pope John Paul said that the sporting atmosphere reminded him of his youth, his own days of athletic competition, and the other physical pursuits such as skiing and mountain climbing which he enjoyed well into his adult life. "Involvement in sports takes on a great deal of importance today," the Pontiff said, "because it requires young people to practice some important virtues such as loyalty, perseverance, cooperation, and teamwork." He went on to say that prominent athletes today carry a heavy responsibility, since they have the ability to surpass barriers of race, creed, age, and culture. Athletes, he concluded, can help to promote "the new civilization of love." In order to perform that duty, the Pope pointed out, athletes must perform an "examination of conscience" for the world of sport. While engaging wholeheartedly in competition, he explained, they should weed out the negative factors in the world of athletic competition: violence, exploitation, drug abuse, and other transgressions. Finally, enlarging on the theme of competition, the Pope said that the "logic of sport" is much the same as "the logic of life." By that, he indicated, he meant that "without sacrifice, one cannot achieve important results, and still less can one achieve real satisfaction." So he argued that "every Christian is called to become a true athlete for Christ," giving "faithful and courageous witness to the Gospel." [reprinted with permission from Catholic World News Services Oct. 30, 2000] [please visit CWNews.com] -==========================================================================- -[=PRAYER & SPIRITUALITY=]- A. PRAYER REQUESTS -==========================================================================- =PRAYER REQUESTS= Let us pray... ...for the unborn children who have faced, are facing, and will face death in the womb... ...for the millions of women who, willingly or forcefully, will or have killed their child through abortion... ...for those in power to do something about this horrible crime... ...for America to make a vote for life, not the so-called choice... ...for those Catholics who intend on voting for a candidate who is not Pro-Choice... ...for the President of the United States of America and those candidates that are running that either they keep their Pro-Life stance or they change to a pro-life stance... PLEASE E-MAIL PRAYER REQUESTS TO prayerrequest@cyc.faithweb.com CONTACT: catholicyc@hotmail.com PHONE: (405)744-1464 **END OF PART 1/2**