BISHOPS CALL ON FAITHFUL TO TAKE ACTION NOW!!

Call our Congressional Delegation Now and Tell Them We Need Health Care Reform

Passage of a health care reform bill is uncertain, but the need for reform remains a national priority and moral imperative. Health care is a basic human right, yet there are nearly 50 million Americans who do not have access to health care.

Take Action Now! Urge Congress Today to Continue to Work on Genuine Health Care Reform!

Contact your Senators and Representative today (see below for contact information or visit www.house.gov and www.senate.gov). The Capitol switchboard number is 202-224-3121.

Click here for more details.

“Respect for creation is of immense consequence, not least because creation is the beginning and the foundation of all God’s work” - Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI asks:

• Can we remain indifferent before the problems associated with such realities as climate change, desertification, the deterioration and loss of productivity in vast agricultural areas, the pollution of rivers and aquifers, the loss of biodiversity, the increase of natural catastrophes and the deforestation of equatorial and tropical regions?

• Can we disregard the growing phenomenon of “environmental refugees”, people who are forced by the degradation of their natural habitat to forsake it – and often their possessions as well – in order to face the dangers and uncertainties of forced displacement?

• Can we remain impassive in the face of actual and potential conflicts involving access to natural resources?

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Help us Oppose the Excessive Use of Solitary Confinement

Surviving Solitary: A Talk By Former Prisoner Robert King:

On February 10, former prisoner, Robert Hillary King of the Angola 3, will come to Portland to speak about his experiences in solitary confinement in Louisiana. Mr. King was held in solitary confinement in Louisiana for 29 years before being released when a court found him “probably innocent.” Please join us at First Parish in Portland, 425 Congress St., at 7 pm for Mr. King’s talk and a discussion of our work here in Maine.

Solitary Confinement Hearing in Augusta:

The legislature’s Criminal Justice Committee will hear testimony from the public about LD 1611 “An Act to Ensure Humane Treatment for Special Management Prisoners” on Wednesday, February 17. You can sign the petition at www.endsolitary.com

People of Conscience Day of Action (Tuesday, February 23)

Religious leaders from many denominations across the state support our campaign to limit the abuse of solitary confinement in Maine’s State Prison. On February 23, we will join them for a People of Conscience Day of Action. Please join us and recruit people from your parish to come, too. The event takes place from 9 am to noon on Tuesday, February 23, in the Welcome Center at the State House.

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Good Friday Community Leadership Breakfast

The 2010 Good Friday Community Leadership Breakfast will be held on Friday, April 2, 2010 from 7 a.m. to approximately 9:30 a.m. at the Holiday Inn By the Bay in Portland co-hosted by CLIMB - Christian Leaders in Maine Business. Invitees will include Maine’s “Cultural Gatekeepers” – government, business and community leaders.

The 2010 goals will remain the same as in past years:

1. to glorify Jesus Christ on Good Friday
2. to foster an atmosphere of Christian unity
3. to encourage our guests to consider the practical application of our shared Faith in their daily lives.

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March for Life

A group of 50 people from the Diocese of Portland travelled to Washington, DC to join in the March for Life. They were among tens of thousands of people who took part in the rally on the National Mall and then marched to the U.S. Supreme Court. The rally, which began in 1974, is held annually on the anniversary of the Court's Roe v. Wade decision which legalized abortion.

In addition to the rally and march, the group from Maine attended the Vigil Mass for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The Mass was concelebrated by five cardinals, 40 bishops and 350 priests, who were joined by 65 deacons and 550 seminarians.

Although organizers did not release an estimate of the number of participants, they say the crowd "far exceeded" last year's.

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Hands Around the Capitol

"We can't stay quiet any longer."

Approximately 300 people gathered in Augusta on Saturday, January 16, for the annual Hands Around the Capitol rally and march. The event publicly recognizes and mourns the 37th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision of Roe v. Wade.

The day’s events began at 10 a.m. with Catholic Mass celebrated by Most Reverend Richard J. Malone at St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Augusta. It was followed by a rally and then a march to the State House where participants linked hands while the bishop rang the capitol bell 37 times,representing the number of years since the Roe v. Wade decision.

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FMI: Maine Right to Life Committee (207) 782-0101 www.MaineRightToLife.com

The Maine State Legislature began the new session on Wednesday, January 6, with a multi-million dollar shortfall with which to contend. The Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee is charged with reviewing each and every department budget in a public hearing setting and ultimately making recommendations to the full body for ratification.

Maine citizens are welcome to participate in the process by attending the public hearings and, if they so desire, to testify either for or against any of the proposed cuts. The schedule of departments to be reviewed and the hearing dates can be found on the legislative website http://www.maine.gov/legis/.

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