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Catholics Join in Clean-up of Vandalized Jewish Cemetery
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 St. Louis Catholics joined Vice President Mike Pence, Missouri Governor Eric Greitens, and others in a cleaning up a historic Jewish Cemetery in University City this week. Vandals toppled more than two dozen grave stones and damaged 200 more. Jews, Christians, Muslims and others denounced the vandalism and warned of the need to resist anti-Semitism in all its forms. See this St. Louis Review report. |
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Missouri House Committee Approves Bill Preempting Abortion Sanctuary Cities
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This week, the Missouri House Children and Families Committee voted 7-3 "Do Pass" HB 174, sponsored by Rep. Tila Hubrecht (R-Dexter), that would prevent local municipalities from passing ordinances forcing local citizens to participate, directly or indirectly, in abortion.
HB 174 was filed earlier in the legislative session to protect pregnancy resource centers and maternity homes from onerous local laws requiring pro-life agencies to refer patients for abortion, or offer counseling on abortion, among other things.
However, when the City of St. Louis Board of Aldermen passed local ordinance BB 203, which purports to make St. Louis an "abortion sanctuary" by prohibiting discrimination based upon a person's "reproductive health decisions," including abortion, HB 174 was amended. As amended, HB 174 would outlaw any local ordinance that requires employers or landlords to hire persons that wish to promote abortion, provide insurance coverage for abortion, or to lease space to an abortion clinic, or anyone associated with the abortion industry.
HB 174 now moves to the whole Missouri House for consideration. The Missouri Catholic Conference will be following and reporting on the developing story in the weeks to come; you can check for the latest updates on our website. Stay tuned! |
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Watered-down Prescription Drug Registry Bill Gets First Round Approval in Senate
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 This week the Missouri Senate gave first round approval to a prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) that advocates say won't work to stop doctor shopping for painkillers. SB 74 is sponsored by Senator Rob Schaaf (R-St. Joseph), who for the past five legislative sessions has simply opposed PDMP bills.
This year, sensing gaining support for a PDMP, Schaaf offered his own bill. Instead of direct access to the registry, doctors and pharmacists would have to submit the name of the person to the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, which would grant access only if the person was determined to be a potential abuser. See this St. Louis Post-Dispatch article for more about the Senate action.
The Missouri Catholic Conference (MCC) supports creation of an effective PDMP, as is proposed in other bills, including SB 314, sponsored by Senator Dave Schatz (R-Sullivan) and HCS of HBs 68 and 90, sponsored by Rep. Holly Rehder (R-Sikeston). The Rehder bill should soon be on the House floor for debate. Similar bills have passed the House by large margins in past sessions. A final showdown on PMDP is likely to come later if the Senate debates the Rehder bill.
This week in a Facebook live Q&A, Governor Greitens also expressed his support for a PDMP. You can read more about his comments in this Kansas City Star editorial piece. Stay tuned for more.
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Strong Funding Proposed for ATA, Show-Me Healthy Babies
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 Budget committees of the Missouri Senate and House are developing funding proposals for the fiscal year 2018 state budget. The process formally begins in the House where the budget bills are filed by the House Budget Chair, which at this time is State Representative Scott Fitzpatrick (R-Shell Knob). Of particular interest to the Missouri Catholic Conference are funding levels for the Alternatives to Abortion (ATA) program and Show-Me Healthy Babies.
As introduced, HB 11 proposes $6.4 million for ATA, which allows pregnancy resource centers to offer ultra-sounds, referrals for prenatal care, new-born and infant care, and job training and placement. Meanwhile, over $25 million is recommended for Show-Me Healthy Babies, which provides additional funding for prenatal care and related services. ATA funding is found in Section 11.120, while Show-Me Healthy Babies is proposed in Section 11.560. |
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Senate Committee Hears Bill to Ban Shackling
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 This week the Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee heard a bill that would ban shackling for women offenders in later term pregnancy and postpartum. SB 180, sponsored by Sen. Jamilah Nasheed (D-St. Louis), was written in response to a lawsuit in Missouri in which a female offender delivered a stillborn baby after being in preterm labor for days and transported hours in shackles. In addition to banning restraints, except under "extraordinary" circumstances, the bill requires the Department of Corrections to develop protocols for the transportation and treatment of pregnant and postpartum women.
The MCC joined a host of other organizations including Campaign Life Missouri, the March of Dimes and the ACLU in supporting the bill. The committee took no action on the bill. |
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New Catholic High School Taking Shape in Lee's Summit
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 The first new Catholic high school the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph has built in 50 years will welcome its first group of students in the fall of 2017. St. Michael the Archangel High School in Lee's Summit is expected to have around 350 9th-12th grade students in its first year. Its full student capacity is around 550, but the school already has plans in place to expand to be able to house up to 750 students. Read more about this exciting project in this Kansas City Star article. |
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Seven Earthlike Planets Discovered
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 Is there life on other planets? That question may be answered in the next several years. Astronomers have discovered seven earth-like planets that circle a tiny star about 39 light years away. The planets are at the right distance from the star to possibly sustain life. In 2018, after the launch of a new telescope, scientists will be able to learn more about the atmospheres of these planets. See this article from Science magazine for more.
Seen from space, it's much easier to realize how beautiful but fragile our Earth is. Here is a transcript of a 2011 conversation between astronauts of the International Space Station and Pope Benedict XVI. |
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Earlier this month Pope Francis met with members of the