Has the CWL lost its Catholic relevance? (News in Brief).

Ottawa -- The executive of the Catholic Women's League of Canada, with a reported membership of 103,000 (down from 120,000 a few years ago), is once again on the cutting edge of absurdity. Remember its support of the year 2000 World March of Women in which it sided with radical feminists and pro-abortionists whose demands included "quality publicly-funded abortion services" and lesbian rights? (See year 2000 C.L issues: June p. 7-8; July/Aug. p.8-9; Sept. p.12-13; Dec. p.8-9, 2002, and various Letters to the Editor and News in Brief items). A recent controversy involving same-sex unions would indicate that the CWL executive has learned nothing from the earlier episode.

On February 11, 2003, Miss Rita Curley, speaking as the Christian Family Life Convenor of the CWL at St. Ignatius Martyr Parish in Ottawa, presented a brief to the Justice Committee on samesex unions. Her presentation on marriage was respectful and according to the teachings of the Catholic Church; namely that marriage could never include same-sex practitioners.

Subsequently, Miss Curley wrote a letter to the Otawa Citizen commenting on an article in its Feb. 12 issue, in which an infuriated Svend Robinson called on fellow MPs to take action against "hatred spewed" toward homosexuals by those making presentations to the Commons Committee. One must remember that Robinson considers any opposition as "hatred." In her letter, which was published in the Citizen on Feb. 21, 2003, Miss Curley reported that following her presentation on Feb. 11, an in-camera (i.e., private) meeting requested by Svend Robinson concluded that, although her viewpoint disagreed with his, it saw no hatred in her presentation. She says: "I see Svend Robinson as a fine person, but I don't like his lifestyle."

So why does the CWL come into the story? Well, Miss Curley, in her letter, stated that she did not speak for the National Executive of the CWL: "I expect them to do their own presentation." But the CWL national president, Marie Cameron of Calgary, without consulting Miss Curley and four days before Curley's letter in the newspaper, had her own letter printed in the Ottawa Citizen (Feb. 17/03). She stated that Rita Curley did not represent the views of the CWL.

Now, Miss Curley had never pretended to speak for the league executive, but given the Catholic stance of her views, one would have expected that the CWL would be in agreement with the Curley presentation.

After writing that it accepted the definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others, Cameron then wrote: "The letter (i.e., the one that the CWL executive had written to all members of parliament on Jan. 28), recommended 'that the government explore other options for people living in alternative arrangements," a position that "retains tradition while respecting the rights and dignities of persons."

Comment:

What exactly is the CWL re-commending for same-sex activists that respects "tradition" and the "dignity of persons?" Perhaps it is time for the CWL membership to again take its executive to task, and try to determine what the members of this executive believe and are reporting as CWL policy.

The Church's policy was expressed most recently in the Jan. 17/03 Doctrinal Note (as quoted at top of column two).

As a footnote, one should know that Miss Rita Curley, on the recommendation of the Honorable Senator Anne Cools, was rewarded with the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002, for having made a significant contribution to Canada, her community and her fellow Canadians. We say: multos annos, Rita Curley.