CCHD Caught promoting Pro-Abortion Groups in Its Version of Stations of the Cross

I just heard about this on the repeat of last night's EWTN's World Over. Fortunately, as Raymond Arroyo reported, the CCHD has already taken them down. But the fact that they wre even up there shows that any claims from the CCHD that they are no longer promoting pro-abortion groups has been proven to be a lie, sad to say. If Reform CCHD Now hadn't reported on this Thursday, the CCHD would still be pushing these groups. Kudos to them for their vigilance. If you haven't signed their petition yet, please follow the link at the end of this post to do so.

Here is the report from CCHD that includes those stations taken directly from the website so you can see what they had been promoting. I am ashamed to say that 1 of the groups is from my beloved state of Iowa. 1 that has helped to do grave damage to my state.:

CCHD and the Stations of the Cross

March 11, 2010
Reform CCHD Now
The Stations of the Cross is an ancient Christian devotion centered on the Passion of Jesus. Its origins date back to the fourth century. As pilgrims headed to the Holy Land, they actually retraced Jesus’ steps from Pontius Pilot’s court to the place of the Crucifixion. Various forms of the Stations of the Cross, different prayers, reflections, and contemplations, have existed throughout the ages. The focus of these prayers has always been on the Passion of Christ and the thoughtful reminder that we are all sinners in need of redemption; that is until this year.

This year, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) released its own version of this ancient devotion. This self-promotion offers a few scriptural passages relevant to each of the 14 Stations of the Cross (Jesus is Condemned to Death, Jesus Takes up His Cross, Jesus Falls the First Time, etc.), which are followed by commercial commentaries on groups receiving grant money from the CCHD. Even the prayers at the end of each station are tainted with these commercial insertions.

But the most horrifying aspect of this “prayerful reflection” is that several of the grantees that are given equal attention as Our Lord in His Dolorous Passion are involved in the promotion of abortion and/or same-sex marriage.

The Second Station – Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition

The second station, which is “Jesus Takes up His Cross,” focuses on the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition. OVEC’s news archive is littered with articles on various progressive agendas, including abortion and same-sex marriage. While linking to articles is not itself an endorsement, the OVEC-inserted commentary on one of the headlines is. Next to the article headline “Democratic Leaders Want party to Move Right on Abortion Choice” is the parenthetical comment from OVEC itself, which says, “Can Democratic Leaders Say ‘Coat hanger’? Oh, who cares, it’s only women.”

But that’s not all. OVEC’s newsletter “Winds of Change” from December 2007 decries candidates against abortion and homosexuality, where it said, “In the past, we have voiced concern that a large fundamentalist church could recruit a dozen members to be candidates against abortion, gays and the like.”

OVEC is also a coalition partner of the West Virginia Citizen Action Group, whose “Action Alert” from March 27, 2009, said:

The conservative movement to legislate morality never quits. This year’s mover is HB 3159, which prohibits Medicaid from offering abortion services to women who qualify for the program. I know this is a hot-button topic and we have members on both sides of this issue. However, this same piece of legislation was enacted over a decade ago and found by our WV Supreme Court to be unconstitutional. http://www.wvfree.org/ is leading the opposition to this one.

And WV-CAG’s mention of WV FREE as the organization fighting to include abortion coverage into Medicaid is not incidental. WV FREE, whose motto reads, “freedom in education, in choice, in access,” calls itself a

[A] reproductive justice organization that works every day for West Virginia familes (sic) to improve education on reproductive options, increase access to affordable birth control, and protect personal decision-making, including decisions about whether or when to have child.

WV Free was promoted by OVEC in a 2007 Action Alert, and a Free Citizen Lobbyist Training seminar sponsored by WV Free was promoted by OVEC in a 2008 Action Alert.

The CCHD’s prayer for the second Station reads, “Jesus, may the work of OVEC inspire us to support the efforts of all whose crosses become heavy due to environmental threats that affect their health and well‐being.” Given OVEC’s overt support for abortion, we fail to see how OVEC can inspire ANY good Catholic with a conscience.

The Third Station – United Workers Association

The third station is “Jesus falls the first time.” The prayer at the end of this CCHD Station of the Cross reads, “Jesus, may the work of the United Workers challenge us to support workers who ask to be treated with dignity and respect.” However, the United Workers Association challenges us to support more than just workers’ dignity. UWA is also a public supporter of same-sex marriage (through its membership in the Equality Maryland coalition) and is also a current member of the pro-abortion health-care reform coalition Health Care for America NOW.

Equality Maryland “works to secure and protect the rights of LGBT Marylanders by promoting legislative initiatives on the state, county and municipal levels.” Equality Maryland’s site lists partner organizations which “oppose any amendment to the Maryland Constitution that would ban civil marriage and its vital protections for same-sex couples.” UWA is on this list, and not by accident. To be included, an organization has to actually sign with Equality Maryland. UWA is still listed as a member of Health Care for America NOW despite the exodus of a number of CCHD grantees back in November after HCAN took a public position in favor of abortion funding in health reform legislation.

The Seventh Station – Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement

The seventh station is “Jesus Falls a Second Time.” The CCHD gives us the following prayer for this station, “Jesus, many of your children still continue to fall. May the work of Iowa CCI help us to stand with all who fall, especially poor and low income people living in rural communities.” However, Iowa CCI is also an active participant of the radically progressive Midwest Social Forum, which promotes homosexual activism.In 2008, Iowa CCI participated and taught at the Midwest Social Forum’s “Organizing Communities Across Boundaries Teach-In.” The stated purpose of this event, according to the Midwest Social forum, was the following:

This weekend-long organizing teach-in will develop collaborative relationships and teach organizing skills, strategies, and tactics needed to break out of the “silos” that segment the social justice movement. The Teach-in is a follow-up to the United States and Midwest Social Forums for Midwest-based grassroots organizations, activists and students. The event seeks to strengthen regional organizing networks and their interconnections and to provide valuable training in certain key aspects of organizing. A primary focus will be on the challenges of building broad-based coalitions across race, gender, class, age, sexual orientation, ability, issues, and other sources of division within the movement. (http://www.mwsocialforum.org/teachin)

Notable among the workshops at this teach-in was “Building a Queer Left in the Midwest.” The syllabus for this workshop states:

Some of the questions we will discuss are: How do we define the region we live in? What are some of the key issues in our region that should be addressed? Of these issues/areas, where do we need to build our analysis? How do we connect LGBT and queer organizing with broader racial and economic justice work? Where can we build coalitions to do multi-issue, multi-racial, multi-classed organizing within and across communities? How do we “get on the map” in terms of an organized queer left movement, one that is not solely rooted in and defined by the coasts. What is our vision for a Queer Left in the Midwest

One has to wonder what building a “queer left in the Midwest” has to do with helping the “poor and low income people living in rural communities.” Whatever the answer, it is clear that CCI’s comfort with such endeavors makes their inclusion questionable at best when being spotlighted with Our Lord on the Cross.

The Eighth Station – People Organized for Westside Renewal

The eighth station of the Cross is “Jesus Speaks to the Women of Jerusalem.” This station would have been a perfect opportunity for the CCHD to point out what Mother Theresa called the “poverty” of abortion. Instead, however, the CCHD chose to highlight a group that is a member of three coalitions that promote abortion and same-sex marriage.

POWER is a member of the group called Mobilize the Immigrant Vote. MIV is a coalition of like-minded organizations who have developed an immigrant voter mobilization strategy which goes far beyond voter registration. For the 2008 California elections, MIV produced a voter’s guide which urged voters to vote against Proposition 4 which required parental notification for minors seeking an abortion. Also included in this voter’s guide is the recommendation to vote against Proposition 8 which would amend the California Constitution to prevent homosexual marriage. In fact, MIV’s very platform (which was created with the knowledge and consent of its member organizations) specifically states:

Provide low-income immigrant women and girls with access to culturally-appropriate information necessary to make informed decisions about their reproductive health and rights. Reproductive health needs to be an integral part of our state’s safety net.

The second pro-abortion and same-sex marriage coalition POWER is a member of is California Partnership (CAP). California Partnership states that it “is a statewide coalition of community-based groups, organizing and advocating for the programs and policies that reduce and end poverty.” Included in its advocacy is a formal, stated position on several ballot initiatives from 2008. As with MIV, CAP formally stood against Prop 4. And against Prop. 8.

And in conjunction with those two coalition memberships, POWER is also a member of the Center for Community Change. As the Reform CCHD Now Coalition has pointed out in several reports (“31 CCHD-Funded Groups Supported, Trained by Pro-Abortion, Homosexual Marriage Activists” http://www.all.org/article.php?id=12362, “Revisiting the Center for Community Change” http://bellarmineveritasministry.org/2010/02/01/revisiting-the-center-for-community-change/), the Center for Community Change is engaged in pro-abortion and pro-same-sex marriage advocacy on several levels.

CCHD’s prayer for this station says, “Jesus, may the work of POWER inspire us to take action that ensures that the rights to adequate nutrition and education are fulfilled for all.” Considering that POWER has no regard for the rights and nutrition of children in danger of being violently torn from their mothers’ wombs, we fail to see how this is appropriate.

The 12th station: New Mexico Acequia Association

The New Mexico Acequia Association has the distinction of being quite possibly the most bizarre organization to be promoted in the middle of a Catholic prayer. Aside from being a member of the pro-abortion “The Health Security for New Mexicans Campaign” and a supporter of the pro-abortion Tewa Women United organization, NMAA helped draft the “Women’s Declaration” in 2007.

The Women’s Declaration is filled with odd spiritual references to “Mother Earth” and other forms of pagan mysticism. For instance, the preamble states, “The earth community stands at a defining moment in time. Injustices, poverty, ignorance, corruption, crime and violence have deepened and our Earth Mother is suffering.” In addition to that the beginning of the declaration makes decidedly non-Catholic theological statements, such as:

Humanity is part of a vast evolving multiverse. Earth is our home and our mother is alive with a unique community of life givers. The life givers are Women. The protection of Women, their vitality and their well-being is the sacred fluid of love.

The 32nd resolution of the declaration states, “32. Be it further resolved that we will support the work of Tewa Women United.” Tewa Women United promotes “reproductive justice”, which is progressive-speak for abortion rights. If there is any doubt about its meaning in regard to “reproductive justice,” it should be noted that Tewa is a member of the radically pro-abortion group Sister Song.

Also, NMAA is a member of the Health Security for New Mexicans Campaign. In the minutes of the State of New Mexico Health Policy Commission meeting of January 14, 2005, the executive director for the Health Security for New Mexicans Campaign called for “family planning” to be covered in the New Mexico Health Security Act.

The prayer offered for the 12th station is, “Jesus, move us, in the example of New Mexico Acequia Association to love, support and strengthen local communities.” Given its devotion to “Mother Earth,” and its promotion of pro-abortion legislation and Tewa Women United, it is highly inappropriate for this group to be highlighted in a devotional prayer intended to remind sinners of their own iniquities, while reflecting on the suffering of Jesus Christ.

In all, this prayer booklet put out by the CCHD is a disgrace to the Catholic Church. It turned a beautiful devotion into a commercial that minimizes Christ and promotes CCHD, while at least one-third of the groups highlighted are completely unworthy of Catholic support. Who wrote this? Who gave it the stamp of approval?

This is yet another reason why the Catholic bishops of the United States must conduct a complete reform of the CCHD.

Sign the Reform CCHD Now petition at http://www.reformcchdnow.com/