c. 1997 Religion News Service

Appeals court nixes Ohio ban of `partial-birth’ abortions

(RNS) A three-judge federal appeals court panel has struck down Ohio’s first-in-the-nation ban of the late-term abortion procedure opponents refer to as”partial-birth”abortion.

In a 2-1 ruling, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati Tuesday (Nov. 18) upheld a 1995 U.S. District Court decision that said the ban unconstitutionally imposed burdens on a woman’s life, health and right to choose abortion.

The appeals court decision is likely to be appealed further to the U.S. Supreme Court. The High Court has not taken up a case dealing directly with abortion rights since 1992.

The Ohio law banned the controversial late-term abortion procedure unless it was required to save a woman’s life. The procedure involves pulling the fetus partially out of the uterus, feet first, and then killing the fetus by puncturing the skull and suctioning out the brains.

The procedure _ which has become a focus in the national debate over abortion _ is only used in the second half of pregnancy. It is used in less than 1 percent of the 1.5 million abortions performed annually in the United States.

While Ohio was the first state to ban the procedure, at least 12 other state’s have passed similar laws this year alone.

Dr. Martin Haskell and the Women’s Medical Professional Corp., both abortion service providers in the Cincinnati, Dayton and Akron areas, challenged the Ohio ban in a lawsuit.

Opponents of the ban praised the appeals court’s decision. Kathy Helmbock of the Cincinnati chapter of the National Organization for Women called the decision”wise”because the ban was”an unprecedented first step forward by politicians to dictate medical care,”the Associated Press reported.

However, Jane Hoffman, a spokeswoman for Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati, an anti-abortion group, said the appeals court was wrong because it”ignored the consensus of legislators, religious leaders, medical professionals and the American people.” Last year President Clinton vetoed federal legislation that would prohibited the procedure, saying it allowed no exceptions for the mother’s health.

D.C. Southern Baptist group aligns with Progressive National Baptists

(RNS) The District of Columbia Baptist Convention has voted to become the nation’s first regional Southern Baptist body to align itself with the predominantly black Progressive National Baptist Convention (PNBC).

The convention will now be triply aligned because it is already affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA, one of the most racially diverse Protestant denominations in the country.

Many of the Washington D.C.-area convention’s individual congregations are already dually aligned with two of the three Baptist denominations.

About 200 delegates voted overwhelmingly Tuesday (Nov. 18) to affiliate with PNBC. Their action must be approved by two-thirds of the churches represented at the convention’s annual meeting next year for the change to be added to the convention’s constitution. Officials expect the second vote will affirm the first.

The Rev. Jere Allen, executive director-minister of the regional convention, said the convention recently reached the point where more than 50 percent of its churches are predominantly African-American.”We joyfully affirm the new reality that our convention is no longer an all-Anglo convention,”he said.

The Rev. Bennett Smith, PNBC president, said he was pleased with the decision.”It is a body that has made a sincere effort for inclusion of all Baptists, regardless of race, creed or color,”said Smith.”It is a body that should be commended for this historic step that they have taken.” Smith said he was unaware of any other Southern Baptist regional group making similar overtures to his denomination.”Hopefully, it will be the first of many others to come,”he said.

The PNBC does not have to vote on the matter and its board will likely accept the D.C. convention with”common consent”at its winter meeting, Smith said.

The three denominations with which the regional group is connected all emphasize local congregational autonomy, religious freedom and the separation of church and state. The leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention is more conservative theologically than officials at the other two denominations.

Southern Baptists place the greatest emphasis on evangelism, while the other two denominations emphasize both evangelism and social justice issues, Allen said.

Bishop Pilla doing well after heart surgery

(RNS) Bishop Anthony M. Pilla, president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, was reported to be doing well following quadruple heart bypass surgery Tuesday (Nov. 18).

Doctors said Pilla, 65, will be able to return to work within four to six weeks, the Associated Press reported. The four-hour operation was to reroute blood around blockages in his coronary arteries.”I sincerely believe that faith has helped a great deal,”said Dr. Medhi Razavi of the Cleveland Clinic, where the bishop underwent surgery. Razavi said the bishop’s vital signs were excellent and”he followed all commands.” Pilla, who remains in intensive care, has been bishop of Cleveland since 1980. He was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat six years ago. Blocked coronary arteries were found during a checkup this fall.

Pilla serves as chief spokesman for the U.S. Catholic Church.

Wolnek elected president of Conservative Jewish group

(RNS) Stephen S. Wolnek, a 59-year-old businessman from Port Washington, N.Y., has been elected international president of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ).

Wolnek was elected to the two-year post during the group’s biennial convention held Nov. 9-13 in Kiamesha Lake, N.Y. USCJ presidents are customarily elected for a second two-year term upon completion of their first term.

He replaced Alan Ades of New Bedford, Mass.

Wolnek has held a number of positions within USCJ, the congregational arm of Judaism’s middle-of-the-road, 1.5 million-member Conservative movement. His latest post was as USCJ financial secretary.

As president, Wolnek said in a statement, he will work to attract younger Jews not currently affiliated with any of mainstream American Judaism’s four major denominations.

Quote of the Day: Ellen Johnson of American Atheists

(RNS)”American Atheists has always encouraged the public to read both the Old and New Testaments from cover to cover. Many people become atheists after reading the Bible.” _ Ellen Johnson, president of American Atheists, Inc., on why her Austin, Texas-based group supports National Bible Week (Nov. 23-29).

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