RELIGION HEADLINES – SAT 8-15-26

(SRN NEWS)  Lawmakers in Massachusetts have passed legislation that will give doctors the final say on whether an abortion should be allowed late in pregnancy.  Under current Massachusetts law, abortion is legal for the first 24 weeks of pregnancy.  It is allowed after that only if a physician says it is necessary to preserve the life, physical or mental health of the mother.  The new law would remove those requirements, giving the doctor carte blanche.  Pro-life advocates point out that this would allow abortion right up until birth — even on healthy babies.  They also say late term abortions are more complex and risky for women. 

(  )  Pope Leo will meet with survivors of clergy abuse during a four-day trip to France next month that will include a visit to UNESCO headquarters, a meeting with French bishops in Lourdes (LORDS) and an interreligious meeting in the border city of Metz.  The pope met with six abuse survivors during his recent trip to Spain, where the Catholic hierarchy has only recently begun reckoning with its legacy of abuse and cover-up after long dismissing the severity of the scandal.  In France, a 2021 report estimated 330,000 children had been sexually abused over 70 years by church personnel.  The pontiff’s visit is set for September 25th. 

(  )  Australians will now be asked to reveal their so-called sexual orientation and whether they identify as a different gender in the latest census that occurs every five years.  The 66-question census is the first under a center-left Labor Party government since 2011.  The current government decided to allow the LGBT questions after having dropped them temporarily two years ago as divisive.  The answer options for sexual orientation are straight, gay or lesbian, bisexual, don’t know, prefer not to answer or a term of the respondent’s choice that can be written in a designated blank space.  The gender and sexual orientation questions are optional. 

(  )  More and more, important social issues are being decided by state residents at the ballot box.  In November, voters in almost every state will have the opportunity to amend the language of their state constitution.  Abortion and transgenderism are frequently the object of referendums, and this fall will be no exception.  In recent years, around 100 amendments have been voted on in each cycle.  Most of them are proposed by state legislatures, but some are proposed through the voter initiative process.  Meanwhile, in Michigan, voters will be asked in November to allow a convention in 2027 to completely rewrite the state constitution. 

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