WE MUST ACT NOW!
WASHINGTON—Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), sharply criticized the decision by the Obama administration in which it “ordered almost every employer and insurer in the country to provide sterilization and contraceptives, including some abortion-inducing drugs, in their health plans.” He made the statement in a web video.

“Never before has the federal government forced individuals and organizations to go out into the marketplace and buy a product that violates their conscience. This shouldn’t happen in a land where free exercise of religion ranks first in the Bill of Rights,” Cardinal-designate Dolan said.

On January 20, Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the Health and Human Services, announced that non-profit employers will have one year to comply with the new rule.

Cardinal-designate Dolan urged Catholics and the public at large to speak out in protest.

“Let your elected leaders know that you want religious liberty and rights of conscience restored and that you want the administration’s contraceptive mandate rescinded,” he said.

Find your U.S. Representative by zip code here.  Contact Senator Cornyn here.  Contact Senator Hutchison here.

The Church considers it her duty to defend in our society as a whole the truths and values in which the very dignity of man is at stake. Accordingly, to mention one particularly important point, we have no right to judge whether an individual is “already a person” or “still a person,” and even less is it up to us to manipulate the human being or even to wish to do so. ~Pope Benedict XVI, Address to the Hon. Reinhard Schweppe, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Holy See, November 7, 2011

A Day of Prayer and Fasting
The U.S. Catholic Bishops have declared Monday, January 23 as a day of prayer and fasting in reparation for the crimes and sins committed against the dignity of human life in the U.S. and to pray for the protection of unborn human life.  Adoration will take place in our chapel from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on January 23 as an opportunity for prayer in the presence of our Eucharistic Lord for a return to a Culture of Life in our country!

Candlelight March
On January 26, 2012 at 7:00 p.m., the annual pro-life Candlelight March will assemble at Northside Baptist Church parking lot and walk to Our Lady of Victory Roman Catholic Cathedral.  Please bring candles or flashlights.  A bus will be available to provide transportation back to the starting location.  You may also go directly to the Cathedral if you are unable to make the walk.  Fr. Tommy Chen, Director of Pro-Life Activities for the Diocese of Victoria in Texas, will be the speaker.

New Semester Begins January 25, 2012.  Kick off the new year right!

Get this for your site

If you or someone you know has been sexually abused by a member of the clergy or other church personnel, you can register a complaint by one of the following means:

• First, call the Department of Family and Protective Services at 1-800-252-5400 or report the abuse online.
• If the person is in immediate danger, call 911.
• Then call the Chancery at (361) 573-0828 and ask to speak with the Bishop or the Chancellor of the Diocese; or
• Call Rev. Gary Janak (979) 543-3770 or Sr. Emilie Eilers, I.W.B.S. (361) 575-7111, Coordinators of Pastoral Care and Outreach; or
• Write to: The Most Rev. David E. Fellhauer, Diocese of Victoria, P. O. Box 4070, Victoria, Texas 77903-4070.  Mark your letter “Personal and Confidential”

We will also help you bring your concerns to church officials outside the diocese if the abuse occurred elsewhere and you now reside in the Diocese of Victoria.

If you are unsure about bringing a complaint or would like further information, please contact: Rev. Gary Janak at (979) 543-3770.

Click here for list of 2012 Contribution Envelopes.