'Catholic Voices' Reaches America Just in Time for a Full-Blown First Amendment Battle

National Catholic Register ^ | 5/25/12 | JOAN FRAWLEY DESMOND

[neverdem]

Launched in Britain, apologetics-training program seeks to give Catholics the skills to spread the faith while disarming opponents.

WASHINGTON — Media coverage of the Health and Human Services “contraception mandate” debate has intensified demand for appealing arguments that win minds and hearts, yet effective spokesmen and women for Catholic teaching are in short supply, giving an edge to those who spin the bishops’ position as a “war on women.”

Enter Austen Ivereigh, a British Catholic journalist, community organizer and onetime spokesman for Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, the now-retired archbishop of Westminster. Troubled by the British bishops’ struggle to counter partisan attacks on Church policy dealing with AIDS and condoms, same-sex “marriage” and abortion, Ivereigh developed a plan to help ordinary believers defend countercultural truths in media interviews.

With the backing of Church leaders, he established the Catholic Voices training program. His immediate goal was to reset his countrymen’s negative view of the Catholic Church, just in time for Pope Benedict XVI’s 2010 visit to Great Britain. By the time the Pope headed back to Rome, the Catholic Voices team had participated in more than 100 media interviews, helping to make the trip an unexpected success.

Now, Catholic Voices has “crossed the pond,” holding its first training program on U.S. soil, in the Diocese of Arlington, Va.  

Ivereigh is also rolling out the U.S. edition of his training manual that explains his recipe for Catholic apologetics in our 24/7 news cycle.

Published by Our Sunday Visitor, How to Defend the Faith Without Raising Your Voice includes chapters on debate strategy for tough social issues and savvy tactics for responding to hostile interviews by “reframing” the issue to shed...

[neverdem]

This "First Amendment Battle" is a hill to take or die on, IMHO.

Providence has six nominal Catholics on our Supreme Court. Kennedy is a libertarian. They usually frown on mandates. Sotomayor's liberal history makes her problematic. I'd much rather prefer a 6 - 3 decision rejecting this abomination, Obamanation, whatever, if it gets there. If all of Obamacare is rejected, it may be a moot question, IMHO.

[neverdem]

Ping

[GOP Poet]

i would love to attend this

[taildragger]

Sotomayor's liberal history makes her problematic

My hope is, with her questioning, her Catholic background, and perhaps the tutelage of Jusice Thomas, she swings the decision to 6 -3. It is a gut feel at this point, I hope I am right.

[ELS]

bttt

[narses]

+

Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:

Add me / Remove me

Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of general interest.

[EBH]

Sent this video out to my patriots email list and posted it to my facebook page.

Test of Fire: Election 2012

I had one person really get upset with me about it. Happens to be a next door neighbor so the 'confrontation' was face to face. It was a very interesting 'discussion' until I asked them two questions...

Are you Catholic? Yes

Please explain to me why I should pay for your sinful indiscretions? Why should any Christian, not just the Church, be forced to pay for an insurance that enables sin?

The silence was deafening.

You see, I did not mince words, I simply stated it for the Truth that it is. The government is forcing all Christians to sin and live in sin, in order to receive healthcare.

The "Catholic" neighbor walked away...how shall I say it? Rebuked.

[Sun]

“Why should any Christian, not just the Church, be forced to pay for an insurance that enables sin?”

And to add insult to injury, while there is a co-pay for life-saving drugs, including diabetes and chemothereapy, the HHS mandates a no co-pay for contraceptives. Why does HHS feel that one drug should be free, but not another drug, including a treatment for diabetes or cancer?

[Sun]

fyi, Cardinal Wurl was on Fox New Sunday free tv today, which is good, because more Americans had the opportunity to hear the truth.

[Salvation]

88

With the backing of Church leaders, he established the Catholic Voices training program. His immediate goal was to reset his countrymen’s negative view of the Catholic Church, just in time for Pope Benedict XVI’s 2010 visit to Great Britain. By the time the Pope headed back to Rome, the Catholic Voices team had participated in more than 100 media interviews, helping to make the trip an unexpected success.

This would be very welcome in the U. S. as we head into the elections.