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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:
A religious sister who was on a Catholic hospital panel that approved a direct abortion has excommunicated herself, the Diocese of Phoenix announced yesterday. While one of the hospital’s doctors has defended the sister, a Catholic ethicist says direct abortion is a “crime” against the unborn child who is killed.

The abortion took place late last year at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix. The mother was 11 weeks pregnant and was seriously ill with pulmonary hypertension, a condition worsened by pregnancy, according to the Washington Post.

An ethics committee which included doctors and hospital administrator Sr. Margaret McBride ruled that the abortion was necessary. Sr. McBride has been reassigned from her job as vice president of the hospital.

The Catholic News Agency spoke with Dr. John Haas, president of the Philadelphia-based National Catholic Bioethics Center, who related that many physicians have told him that one “almost never” encounters a situation in modern medicine in which a life would have to be sacrificed to safe another. he explained there are always interventions possible to treat underlying illnesses or pathology that the mother is suffering, but one cannot justify or directly take the life of an innocent child.

I’ll be back with more after this.
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Story 2:
As controversy swirls around the Archdiocese of Boston's decision to undermine a pastor who denied enrollment in a Catholic elementary school to a lesbian couple's child, Dale O'Leary, a noted Catholic author and international lecturer, is defending the Catholic Church's right to protect what she calls “the best interests of all the children.” O'Leary argues that the Catholic Church cannot and will not compromise on Church teachings or “hide the truth.” Because of this, she notes, an awkward and potentially harmful situation for same-sex couples seeking admission for their children in Catholic schools may emerge.

Story 3:
In response to an openly homosexual woman being named a bishop in the Episcopal Church last Saturday, Anglican leaders from around the world decried the action as gravely wrong, with some adding that the move has “hurt and alienated” many within the Episcopal community.

This recent move by the Episcopal church in the U.S. has caused tremendous controversy within the global Anglican church, prompting Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams to issue a statement of caution when the announcement of Glasspool's selection was first made last year.

Story 4:
In an interview with L’Osservatore Romano, Italian physician Renato Buzzonetti, recounted his relationship and experiences with John Paul II as his personal physician from 1978 until his death. Among other things, he recalled details about the May 13, 1981 assassination attempt on the late Pope and his willingness to embrace suffering in the last moments of his life. Despite all of the pain, the doctor said, the Holy Father “never asked for sedatives, not even in his final stages.

Story 5:
On Sunday, the Holy Father was greeted by a crowd of 200 thousand in St. Peter’s Square for the Regina Coeli. Officials credited the enormous response up to a great love of the Pope and his commitment to ridding the Catholic Church of sin. After leading the Marian prayer from the window of his apartment above the crowd, the Holy Father told the faithful that we must quote "be strongly rooted in God, solid in the good, in love and in service to combat the sin within the Church and in the rest of the world” unquote.

This is Catholic Information News.

Story 6:
BP America, a subsidiary of the petroleum giant whose underwater well is leaking millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, has announced a combined $1 million donation to Catholic Charities in Louisiana to support emergency food assistance and financial aid for families affected by the environmental disaster. The Archdiocese of New Orleans said that the Catholic Church has been active in relief efforts through its Catholic Charities organization. Catholic Charities co-president Jim Kelly reported that the agency had committed a minimum of $300,000 in resources before BP’s offer.

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