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News, of the hour, on the hour, from Catholic Information Radio.
I’m Bryan Douglas in Philadelphia, and at this hour….
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Lead:
Leaders of the U.S. branch of the Traditional Anglican Communion have formally requested to enter into communion with the Catholic Church.

In a statement released from a meeting of the House of Bishops in Orlando, the Church announced quote “We, the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America of the Traditional Anglican Communion have met in Orlando, Florida, together with our Primate and the Reverend Christopher Phillips of the 'Anglican Use' Parish of Our Lady of the Atonement (San Antonio, Texas) and others At this meeting, the decision was made formally to request the implementation of the provisions of the Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum coetibus in the United States of America by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith,” unquote.

The decision follows Pope Benedict's publication of “Anglicanorum coetibus,” which was released last year and addressed measures planned by the Vatican to allow Anglican communities to enter into communion with the Catholic Church.

For this to happen, each diocese will have to meet for an individual synod and eventually come together for a national one. It is believe that although there could be initial resistance among some within the Anglican community, eventually, once things are clarified, unification on the move should not be an issue.

I’ll be back with more after this.
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Story 2:
Pope Benedict has nominated four clergymen from within the Vatican to the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses on Thursday. The new members will work to celebrate and prepare the 50th International Eucharistic Congress, which will take place in Dublin in 2012. Organizers in Ireland describe the upcoming Eucharistic Congress as an international gathering of people which aims to: promote an awareness of the central place of the Eucharist in the life and mission of the Catholic Church, and to help improve understanding and celebration of the liturgy . Congresses take place every four years and offer liturgical and cultural events along with lectures and workshops to the faithful. The theme for the 2012 International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) is “The Eucharist: Communion with Christ and with one another.”

Story 3:
The Obama administration has endorsed a proposal to create a new U.N. “super agency” to advance extremist feminist ideology, the Population Research Institute (PRI) says. The organization warns the agency could engage in “cultural imperialism” in service to radical causes. The proposed agency is supported by a consortium of radical feminist organizations called the Gender Equality Architecture Reform Campaign (GEAR). The proposal came at the New York meeting of the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women. The Obama administration and the European Union immediately seconded the proposal, which appears to have a good chance at passage.

Story 4:
An attorney in Michigan defending a woman charged with smothering her newborn daughter to death has claimed that a judge’s Catholic religion and affiliation with Ave Maria Law School will color his judgment. The lawyer argued the judge’s work at the school was equivalent to attending a Ku Klux Klan meeting while trying a black man. At a Tuesday hearing Judge Timothy Kenny ruled that that the lawyer’s argument that the judge was biased was “not persuasive,” the Detroit Free Press reports.

This is Catholic Information News.

Story 5:
Progress toward the beatification of Pope John Paul II may be delayed, a Polish newspaper reports, because doctors examining a reported miracle have been unable to reach a consensus. A Vatican official told the ANSA news agency that the team of doctors examining the reported miracle had not yet reached a finding, and their report is not expected until after Easter. However the Warsaw newspaper said that the doctors were split on the case. Vatican officials have cautioned, however, against attaching too much significance to the report.

Story 6:
The US bishops' conference will push for the approval of the health-care reform legislation if the current Senate bill is amended to include the pro-life language contained in the version passed by the House. President Obama and the Democrat Party have indicated that they will push for House approval of the Senate bill. The USSCB has signaled that the Senate bill is unacceptable because it allows for abortion subsidies and fails to protect the conscience rights of health-care personnel. A majority of the US voters in a latest poll are not in favor of the bill, which is not mentioned in the USCCB statement.

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And that’s top news of the hour.
I’m Bryan Douglas, CIR NEWS, for Catholic Information Radio.