World Population Awareness

Jesus All About Tolerance

Once again, fear and hatred mask themselves as religion and loudly encourages intolerance in the name of Jesus.

Jesus never mentioned homosexuality or abortion.

Nor did he ever suggest that there was a "right" religion or that the purpose of religion was to judge others and get them to do what we want them to do.

Rather, he taught tolerance for the divinity in all.

He railed against hypocrisy. He realized that the reason we condemn others is to distract ourselves from clearly seeing our own improprieties.

If we sincerely want to heal the woes of humanity, we cannot do it through hatred and intolerance. Our hope lies in our ability to move into acceptance of our own humanity and the humanity of others. Buddha, Lao Tzu, Confucius, Socrates, Gandhi, Jesus and many others all emphasized this simple message. rw

The Muslim world has the world's highest population growth rate (3.5%/year)

The Word on Women - Niger Starts to Tackle Soaring Population - with Help of Imams

Until recently the subject of family planning in Niger was taboo, but commissioner Kristalina Georgieva, the European Union's top humanitarian-aid official, was pleasantly surprised this time to see a project teaching women about contraception and the importance of spacing births.

The local Imam where she visited "was quoting the Koran saying there's a verse that says there has to be time between the birth of children so the children and mother can recover and be strong."

The support of the local religious leaders at the health centre she visited in Bambey, in western Niger, was crucial for bringing down the high rate of population growth, she said. The growth was putting a strain on a country that is among the poorest in the world, that struggles with a harsh climate and is vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

Since independence in 1960, Niger's population has risen from less than 2 million to 15 million plus.

Now there is "remarkable openness to address family planning". "At the level of the president, prime minister, ministers and cabinet there's an openness to discussing family planning. There's an openness that 3.3-percent population growth is not sustainable," she added.

"There are already activities on the ground (for) family planning in a very community-based and respectful manner … The topic is not taboo anymore."

Mothers need to space their children to avoid back-to-back pregnancies which contribute to malnutrition and keep mothers weak. "That's where there is potential to work hand in hand with community leaders and religious leaders. It has to be culturally acceptable to work."

The annual hungry season in Africa's Sahel countries is expected to begin in late February or early March - several months earlier than usual. Aid agencies say between five and nine million people are at risk.

Talking about population growth in relation to food shortages is a sensitive issue, partly because large families are considered important in many cultures, particularly where people rely on their children to help on the land and to support them in old age.

Many argue that the real causes of food shortages are political and economic. Georgieva says a food crisis is looming in the Sahel due to poor rains, bad harvests, food-price hikes and the return of migrants from Libya, among other factors.

But she also argues more generally that it is time for the world to pay more attention to managing population growth in fragile environments. When she visited Kenya last year she realised that in 1963 it had more or less the same population as her own country Bulgaria - well below 10 million. Today Bulgaria is at 7.5 million whereas Kenya's has soared to 40 million.

The populations of other affected countries had also grown five times and this meant that when there were droughts the impact was all the more severe.

For a very readable look at some of the arguments on why population growth is not the cause of famine, take a look at this article published by Al Jazeera: Famine in the Horn of Africa: Malthus beware. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2011/08/20118178844125460.html

Islam and Family Planning

by Asghar Ali Engineer of Mumbai, Islamic scholar

Many people ask if family planning is permissible in Islam, saying the imams and ulama say Qur'an prohibits family planning and quoting a verse which says, "And kill not your children for fear of poverty - We provide for them and for you. Surely the killing of them is a great wrong." (17:31). .... This does not refer to family planning because you can only kill one who exists.

Some people suggest that it refers to the practice of burying the girl child alive when they cannot provide for them, but as Imam Razi suggests, it refers to both male and female children being kept ignorant. Not killing the body but killing the mind which is as bad as killing the body. The word used here is 'awlad' i.e. children which include both male as well as female and not only female.

In fact a large family means children cannot be properly educated by poor parents and hence parents kill them mentally by keeping them ignorant. They cannot even clothe them properly. In such circumstances one cannot have good quality Muslims and better quality is more desirable than mere quantity.

In early days the problem of family planning did not exist. It is a modern problem. Most of the nation states in third world do not have economic means to support a large population, including feeding them, educating them and also providing proper health services. These are basic duties of modern nation states.

The paucity of resources require the adoption of family planning. When Qur'an was being revealed there was neither any properly organized state nor education or health services being provided by any state agency. It is important to note that Qur'an which shows eight ways to spend zakat, does not include education or health which is so essential for the state to provide today. Thus what Imam Razi suggests is not only very correct and also enhances importance of family planning in the modern times as small family can support better education and health services.

Verse 4:3 is usually interpreted: do not marry more than one so that you may not do injustice. But Imam Shafi'I renders it as 'so that you do not have large family'.

In understanding the Qur'an, even very eminent imams and great scholars differed from each other. One should not impose one single meaning of a verse on all Muslims. It could be interpreted differently by different people in their own context and circumstances. Family planning being a modern need one should not reject it out of hand and quote Qur'anic verses out of context.

The Qur'an also suggests that a child be suckled at least for two years and it is well known that as long as mother suckles she would not conceive. Thus indirectly the Qur'an also suggests spacing of a child.

Even in hadith literature we find that the Prophet (PBUH) permitted prevention of conceiving in certain circumstances. When a person asked Prophet for permission for 'azl (coitus interrupts) as he was going for a long journey along with his wife and he did not want his wife to conceive while travelling the Messenger of Allah allowed him. In those days 'azl was the only known method for planning of birth of a child. Today there are several methods available like use of condoms.

Imam Ghazzali, a very eminent theologian and philosopher allows termination of pregnancy if mother's life is in danger and shows several methods for termination. He even allows termination of pregnancy on health grounds or if mother's beauty is in danger provided it is in consultation with her husband.. Some scholars say that verse 23:14 concludes that one can terminate pregnancy up to three months as this verse describes stages of development of sperm planted in mother's womb and it takes three months for life to begin.

However, many ulama oppose termination of pregnancy. Whatever the case one cannot declare family planning as prohibited in Islam as it in no way amounts to killing a child already born.

In Pakistan, Birth Control and Religion Clash

Nearly 4 million babies are born in Pakistan every year, and most are born into poverty. The World Bank says 60% of Pakistanis live on less than $2 a day, according to a new government survey,

Yet clerics in religiously conservative Pakistan tell the Muslim majority that the Quran instructs women to keep bearing as many babies as possible and say that modern family planning is a Western convention that offends Islam.

But a woman can temporarily put off becoming pregnant. The mufti says the Quran encourages mothers to space their pregnancies and to breast-feed their babies for prolonged periods. During that time the man may also use condoms and the rhythm method.

The mufti Zakaria says being poor should in no way limit having babies. Referencing the Quran, he says, "God will provide the resources and no one will starve." The Quran also instructs that children must not be deprived of a proper upbringing. However, in Pakistan 38% of all children under 5 are underweight, and according to government data, malnutrition is widespread among mothers.

The mufti answers: "Every society has its own value system. You should not judge us by yours. Children in the West lead a luxurious life. Earth is their heaven. Our children should not be compared with them," the mufti says. "Muslims don't pay much heed to the mundane pleasures of this world. Our reward will come in the next life."

The mufti adds that the West has taken modern contraception too far by removing the fear of getting pregnant and therefore removing women's sexual inhibitions. In Pakistan, "if a woman's fear is removed," says the mufti, she will stray into bad behavior "and offend God."

70% of married women use no birth control method at all. While the government is ineffectual in promoting family planning, Dr. Yasmin Raashid, a leader in obstetrics and gynecology in Pakistan says if properly followed, the Quran's teachings about spacing pregnancies would automatically mean smaller families. She says more than anything else illiteracy undermines family planning in Pakistan.

"Educated mothers limit their families," she says. "The tragedy in our country has been that the majority of women in Pakistan are not educated." She says educating young girls is the single best policy for reducing the country's high fertility rate and for achieving smaller, healthier families.

In Sri Lanka the literacy rate is 91%. and the fertility rate is 2.3, compared with Pakistan, where it is 3.9. In Pakistan, infant mortality is nearly six times as high as in Sri Lanka - a smaller, poorer country.

"And the only thing that you see different there is that women are educated there," Raashid says. "They know about their rights. They know what has to be done where their children are concerned. They know what to do where their own health is concerned.

In Pakistan, less than 1% of GDP is spent on health care. 12,000 mothers die in childbirth in Pakistan each year. Pakistan must invest in more midwives. Only 25% of women being delivered by skilled birth attendants.

Islamic law prevalent in Pakistan says the soul is deemed to come into the fetus at four months, and so up to four months, abortion may be induced for "good cause." But abortion has become a dangerous form of birth control as women submit themselves to unskilled practitioners. It's the fifth-leading cause of maternal death in Pakistan because of the infections related to incomplete abortions and septic abortions.

On woman the interviewer met said she was already ill and overburdened with seven children. But she's pregnant again. She wants to stop having babies, and told her husband so. But her husband wanted a second daughter.

Iran's Family Planning Success Story

In just one decade Iran dropped its near-record population growth rate to one of the lowest in the developing world.

In 1979 Ayatollah Khomeini assumed leadership in Iran and launched the Islamic revolution. He dismantled the well-established family planning programs and instead advocated large families wanting to increase the ranks of soldiers for Islam in the war against Iraq.

Fertility levels climbed, pushing Iran's annual population growth to 4.2% in the early 1980s, probably the biological maximum. This enormous growth began to burden the economy and the environment, the country's leaders realized that overcrowding, environmental degradation, and unemployment were undermining Iran's future.

In 1989 the government restored its family planning program. In May 1993, a national family planning law was passed, encouraging smaller families. Iran Broadcasting raised awareness of population issues and of the availability of family planning services. 70% of rural households had TV sets. Religious leaders crusaded for smaller families. 15,000 health clinics were established to provide rural populations with health and family planning services.

Iran introduced a variety of contraceptive measures, including vasectomy and sterilization, all free of charge. Couples were required to take a course on modern contraception before receiving a marriage license. In addition Iran launched an effort to raise female literacy, raising it from 25% in 1970 to over 70% in 2000. Female school enrollment increased from 60% to 90%. Women and girls with more schooling are likely to have fewer children.

Family size in Iran dropped from seven children to fewer than three. From 1987 to 1994, Iran cut its population growth rate by half.

The bad news is that in July 2010 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared the country's family planning program ungodly and announced a new pronatalist policy. The government would pay couples to have children, depositing money in each child's bank account until age 18.

Al Jazerra - Much Less Biased Than Fox

Follow the link in the headline for the English version of Al Jazerra. Too bad it is not on American cable.

School's Out for Egypt's Sex Education

In a surprising move, the Egyptian government has decided to scrap all content in the secondary school curriculum relating to sex education, reproductive health and sexually transmitted diseases.

There will be "activities in which the teacher will lead a class discussion on the subject" - a suggestion that is difficult to take seriously since anything remotely related to sex, really - is usually met in Egyptian classrooms with giggles. And teachers were too shy to teach it.

"The coming generation will be lacking basic knowledge in sex, STDs, birth control, hygiene - all thanks to the minister of education." An increasingly religiously conservative society is also to blame.

Even the country's leading medical school at Cairo University does not teach sex education. Ain Shams University medical school students have a "sexology" class - the "anatomical and biological aspects of sex ed, not the social and psychological ones.

While Iran and Tunisia have taken pioneering steps in reaching out to young people to address their needs, the region as a whole lacks the political commitment and institutional capacity to do so. Only Iran, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Bahrain include a reproductive health module in their national school curricula.

In Saudi Arabia, a recent study found that there is a severe need for sex education in the country and that 80% of parents surveyed approved of it. But an Emirati bestselling book on sex education, which has already earned the approval of the Mufti of Dubai, was banned in Saudi Arabia and its author has received death threats from conservatives who accuse her of blasphemy.

In Syria, the United Nations Population Fund feels compelled to reassure people on its website that sex education does not actually encourage sexual activity. Lebanon, often viewed as the most liberal country in the Middle East, had decided in 1997 to teach reproductive health to the 12-14 age group, only to have a presidential decree scrap those chapters from the school curriculum three years later.

A study reported that only 7% of adolescents had learned about sex from their fathers (while 42% of fathers said they discussed the matter with their kids); a 2006 survey by the Pan Arab Project for Family Health reported that, in Algeria, 95% of male respondents and 73% of female respondents had learned about puberty on their own, without professional or family assistance.

Television is potentially a useful source of information. With the airwaves awash with shows featuring clerics of various levels of religious knowledge and taking live telephone questions from the audience, sex and relationship questions have become a staple of the discussions - though unfortunately it is religious clerics and not sexologists who are dispensing advice.

One cable television show, presented by sexologist Dr Heba Kotb, represents the first groundbreaking effort on Arab television to respond to such queries ranging from the simplest to the more complex. A Syrian radio show - Today's Discussion - has reportedly begun to address questions of sex education.

All these programmes preach abstinence and fidelity and premarital sex is not covered by the mainstream educational media The international basic ABC programme - advocating Abstinence, Being Faithful, and using Condoms - finds its effectiveness curtailed when it stops at the first or second letter.

With local campaigns across the region planned to mark World Aids Day on 1 December, it is important to recall that, despite having some of the lowest incidence rates in the world, HIV/Aids is rapidly on the rise, with a 300% increase between 2004 and 2007, compared with 20% globally. This is a terrifying statistic whose only silver lining might be to remind that prevention is better than treatment - and that prevention starts with proper and accurate knowledge. If we want to address this, sex education in schools is the unavoidable first step. rw

Senate Votes to Lift Global Gag Rule

An amendment proposed by Sen. Barbara Boxer authorizes foreign policy programs to ensure that America's foreign policy reflects America's values. It gives poor women around the world control of their lives and their futures. The Global Gag Rule denies U.S. family planning aid to foreign health care providers that use funds to provide legal abortions, provide counseling on legal abortion, or publicly support legal abortion within their countries. The effects have been dramatic. In the developing world, health care providers have been unable to agree to ignore their responsibilities to provide women with information about their legal options. In Kenya, clinics have closed leaving tens of thousands of poor people without services. In Ethiopia, contraceptive supplies have run out, leaving thousands of women at risk for an unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. Rather than preventing abortion, the Global Gag Rule only makes unsafe abortion more likely. rw

U.S.: Reproductive Health: A Win for Freedom

The Republican-controlled Senate voted to repeal the gag rule on international family-planning assistance. The restriction blocks the use of U.S. money by any organization that even mentions the availability of abortion to women. Even if the House of Representatives goes along with the Senate, the president might veto the repeal. rw

Birth Control Fits the Bill in the Philippines

In the case of the Philippines population growth is out of control.

You can argue from superstition, from authority or from fact (science). Where religion is involved many folks in the Philippines are going to appeal to No 2: authority, which winds up being the Pope.

But the Pope doesn't have the right to speak for the Philippines as a whole. Catholics predominate, but there are lots of Muslims, breakaway Christians and mainstream Christians who happen not to be Catholic.

Father Joaquin Bernas, priest and former president of Ateneo de Manila University is supporting the Reproductive Health Bill, despite vituperative denunciations.

The bill, RH4244 or "An Act Providing for a Comprehensive Policy on Responsible Parenthood, Reproductive Health, and Population and Development, and For Other Purposes", establishes means of educating school kids on sex and their choices ahead and provide non-abortive methods of birth control. Governments would ensure the availability of reproductive healthcare services, including family planning and prenatal care.

Most countries would have no problem with this bill. And Catholics almost nowhere else give a hoot what the Pope or church say on birth control.

Now that the president, the most authoritative ex-president and numerous writers and teachers are on board in support of RH4244, things are changing.

But, meantime, one reads arguments attempting to show that more mouths to feed doesn't mean more mouths to feed, but more people to farm the (almost disappearing) soil. Or that the overflow people should move to uninhabited areas in the archipelago, even uninhabited islands. Are there roads into these places? Schools? Hospitals?

Supporters of the bill are being threatened with excommunication. Some proclaim a condom is a "murder weapon".

In 1970, the Philippines and Thailand were about equal in numbers and wealth. Thailand introduced family planning; the Philippines maintained its voodoo attitude. Thailand stabilized not much above the 1970s level and doubled its income relative to the Philippines.

It is funny that Malta just voted to permit divorce while only the Philippines remains. Most of my younger friends grew up not knowing their fathers, who just drifted off to start a new family somewhere else. So much for the status quo protecting the family.

The fact that the president who has proposed this bill is the son of late president Cory Aquino, protégée of Cardinal Sin and dead set against family planning, may be good news enough.

The overall majority popular support for the bill may finally just be enough to give the Congress enough teeth to withstand the clawing of the church and its advocates.

Philippines: Church Leaders Return to Talks, Agree to Sex Ed

At a high-level palace meeting withwith President Aquino, Church officials led by the Manila Archbishop acknowledged that sex education was necessary for teenagers and even for children who are on the eve of puberty aged 11 or 12.

The meeting was part of the continuing dialog with the administration on the controversial reproductive health (RH) bill that the Church strongly opposes.

Church officials suggested that the sex education being proposed by the RH bill should be accompanied by values formation, and that these should be taught in a graduated manner so as not to overwhelm young children. In typical modules the scientific techniques on reproduction were presented but nothing about values, nothing about discipline, and self-control.

Focus group discussions also need to be conducted on the so-called responsible parenthood bill, which is different from the RH bill that is already in the final stages of approval at the House of Representatives. Mr. Aquino told the priests that there would likely still be disagreements between the government and the Catholic leaders on the responsible parenthood bill.

For instance, the use of condoms, artificial contraceptives. It is the role of the state to provide all means of family planning to citizens, especially to the disadvantaged.

There was agreement at the meeting that condoms aren't abortifacients but the Church leaders still had concerns about them being distributed as contraceptives.

Priest Likens Church Pressure Vs RH Bill to the Inquisition

In the Phillipines, where Catholic bishops strongly oppose the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, one of the clergy's leading intellectuals says that attempts of some members of the Church to dissuade the public from supporting the bill is "reminiscent of the Inquisition."

Jesuit priest Fr. Joaquin Bernas, S.J., said a sector of the Church is giving Catholic religion a bad name by trying to impose Catholic beliefs on everyone. One ordinance, for example, requires a doctor's prescription when buying artificial contraception like condoms.

Bernas is a Dean Emeritus of the Ateneo Law School, a law degree holder and a prominent constitutionalist. "When it comes to contraception, the nation divides mainly along religious lines," he said. "The official Catholic teaching is that artificial contraception is immoral. Other religions believe in good faith otherwise." ... "Seeking to impose Catholic belief and practices on non-Catholics and others violates freedom of religion," he said.

Philippines: As RH (Reproductive Health) Moves to Plenary, Women Tell Bishops: 'Respect Our Right to Life'

The Philippines House of Representatives session when the much awaited plenary debate for the highly debated reproductive health bill was set to be delivered was suspended, disappointing a group of women advocates pushing for the passage of House Bill 4244 or the "Responsible Parenthood (RP), Reproductive Health (RH) and Population Development Act of 2011" have appealed to Catholic bishops to respect women's right to life.

The NGO Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines (DSWP) has expressed concern that Catholic bishops have been issuing statements on many issues but never a thing on addressing maternal deaths.

The Bishops are never concerned about "arresting maternal deaths. They say they are against the re-imposition of the death penalty, but seem not to care about the on-going massacre of poor Filipino women," a representative said. The deprivation of life-saving reproductive health services is like a death sentence hanging over the head of poor women.

"Even from a purely utilitarian point of view, this means: less human resource for the nation and more financial assistance needed for the orphaned family. The nation loses if we do nothing and allow the death of 11 mothers every day, due to pregnancy and pregnancy-related complications."

According to the DSWP, an effective Family Planning (FP) program can dramatically reduce maternal deaths by 32%. "This is because FP prevents mistimed, too early, too frequent, and too late pregnancies, and high risk pregnancies that have high probability of having complications."

A Guttmacher Institute study has shown that for every peso spent on FP, the state can save from three to one hundred pesos in addressing pregnancy and childbirth-related problems.

"If bishops are truly against the death penalty, they should be with us in working for the immediate passage of the RH bill into law".

Navigating the Turbulent Waters of Religion and Women's Rights: An Interview with Thoraya Obaid

Thoraya Obaid, a proud Muslim and Saudi Arabian citizen, just completed ten years as Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). In her reflections, she said:

"My father was a devout Muslim who took very seriously the first principle in the Quran which is about learning. He insisted that his daughters get a good education and he never interfered with my life choices.

"It was clear from the day I started at UNFPA that it was the most controversial of the UN agencies. The attacks were strongest during the Bush 43 administration years, but we have been attacked all the time, including by feminist groups that fear that UNFPA has 'sold out'".

The attacks come only from the United States. Recent Republican administrations have withdrawn United States funding from UNFPA, citing the "Kemp Kasten Amendment" which was enacted to ensure that no US money goes to any organizations that participates in the management of coercive population policies.

"The issue is that UNFPA works in China, and China is considered by some in Congress and the US administration (when there is a Republican President), to be subject to the Kemp Kasten Amendment. UNFPA's work in China has been reviewed many times, and always with the conclusion that UNFPA has a positive influence on China's policies. The Bush administration sent a team to China that reached the same conclusion, but that made no difference. Throughout President Bush's tenure, Congress appropriated funds for UNFPA but Bush would not release them. It all was the result of the influence of the religious right.

"Democratic Presidents (Clinton and Obama) release the funding, after deducting the small amounts that would be spent on UNFPA's China program; we are asked to put the funds in a separate account and be held accountable for it."

Thoraya Obaid met several times with the Holy See's representative to the United Nations. They agreed to disagree. It was significant that they opened a channel that would allow them to communicate if times got tough. On the ground, in many parts of the world, we work all the time with the Catholic Church on common agendas such as ending violence against women.

"We are working to build relationships and partnerships with a wide range of groups, including but also going beyond the traditional feminist/reproductive health groups. It is important to broaden the base of understanding and support and find ways to support each other. Some groups still have doubts about UNFPA's commitment and approach and some are uneasy specifically about our effort to work with faith groups, fearing that it signals an erosion in our commitment to human rights. It absolutely does not. Today, over 400 faith based groups form the Global Network of Faith-based Organizations for Population and Development.

"By dealing with cultural values and religious beliefs, we aim to promote human rights, never to accept the status quo or harmful practices but rather to expand the reach of the human rights agenda."

"There are some things that we, UNFPA, cannot address and discuss, while some things women's groups can address less effectively.

"Abortion is the most controversial topic. We, UNFPA, are mandated to consider abortion within the context of public health, but never as a right, as some NGOs do. That is a clear parameter from the ICPD Programme of Action, the famous and much contested clause 8.25 which set out the position towards abortion. It states that abortion should never be a form of family planning and that when family planning services are available and accessible that lowers abortions. Abortion is a national issue to be decided by national laws and legislations. Where it is legal, it should be done under good medical conditions. Some women's groups approach the issue differently, viewing abortion in the context of a woman's right to choose. So, though we have many common interests, we deal with them differently.

"Thus there are areas where we can work together with a wide range of religious leaders and women's groups - violence against women, child marriage, and female genital cutting are among them. On the more controversial issues, we need to give some more space and time and show mutual respect for our differences. rw

U.S.: Religious Voices Support Access to Abortion

Capitol Hill should be a reflection of the needs and values of all Americans -- not just those with the loudest voices or the strongest lobby. Often, religious voices are used to impose or support the most conservative policies, despite the diversity that exists among people of faith.

The Catholic Declaration on Religious Freedom declares "the right of all citizens and religious communities to religious freedom." Though we come from different backgrounds, all of us share the belief that women should have the right to make their own choice about abortion, in particular, and reproductive health choices in general.

These choices are under fire in Congress. Even though Catholics disagree fundamentally with positions that the bishops have taken on these matters, the U.S. bishops have been the greatest obstacle to women exercising these choices.

For Catholics, the preferential option for the poor calls us to protect the least among us. The 'No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act' (S. 906/H.R. 3) would permanently bar any federal money from being spent on abortion, thereby singling out those women who depend upon Medicaid, Medicare, or the Indian Health service, or are in the military or receive healthcare from other federal healthcare programs.

U.S.: Utah May Be One of Fastest-Growing States

The Census Bureau said that Utah's population is expected to increase 56%, or 1.2 million people, between 2000 and 2030. Nevada and Arizona are expected to double in population, and a gain of 80% is projected in Florida and almost 60% in Texas. In Utah at least 70% of the 2.2 million residents are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the church's emphasis is on big families. Utah's fertility rate is 2.56 - the highest in the nation. The state also has the nation's highest average of people per household, 3.13, and the lowest median age, 27.5. Its 65-and-older population has climbed 27% in the past 10 years, and will rise another 28% in the next decade. Retiring baby boomers are moving to Utah, often drawn by the red-rock beauty of the southern part of the state. Benefits include: outdoor activities, five national parks within short driving distance, theater, concerts, a new hospital, and attractive housing prices. New subdivisions astride Utah's Wasatch mountain range are creeping closer to the hills framing the Salt Lake Valley. Florida, California and Texas will account for 46% of the nation's growth between 2000 and 2030, with each gaining more than 12 million residents. The highest population growth - 88 percent - is projected in the South and West, according to the Census. rw

Mormon Reasons for Pill Avoidance

A Monthly Journal of Religion and Public Life included an article on natural family planning by a Mormon physician who does not prescribe contraceptives because of her belief that "the pill could act as an abortifacient" and "any form of contraception had detrimental effects on marriages."

The president of American Life League, Ms. Judie Brown concerning the Educate Bill Gates Web Site at www.billgateseducate.com, a site that is full of misinformation in an attempt to convince Bill Gates not to spend $17 billion on third world family planning and health. American Life League seems to think that family planning cannot be accomplished without abortions and doesn't realize or denies that family planning prevents abortions. Bill Gates says he does not pay for abortions.

Birth-Control Opponents Greenwash Their Message

Opponents of birth control are "going green" these days. "Study after study has shown how the chemicals from the pill discharge into our waterways and wreak havoc on the fish," says the campaign site.

What the "Pill Kills" site doesn't make clear is that the American Life League opposes all contraception of any kind. If the group cared about the environment, it would acknowledge that unplanned births lead to more environmental degradation than the Pill.

The League wants you to protest on June 5, to mourn the anniversary of the 1965 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the right of married couples to use birth control. rw

Evangelical’s Focus on Climate Draws Fire of Christian Right

Leaders of Christian groups have sent a letter urging the National Association of Evangelicals to force its director in Washington to stop speaking out on global warming.

They are not convinced that global warming is human-induced or that human intervention can prevent it. They accuse the director of diverting the evangelical movement from more important issues, like abortion and homosexuality.

This underlines a struggle between conservative Christian leaders, whose priority has long been sexual morality, and challengers who are pushing to expand the evangelical agenda to include issues like climate change and human rights.

The letter says, "that Cizik and others are using the global warming controversy to shift the emphasis away from the great moral issues of our time."

Those issues, are a need to campaign against abortion and same-sex marriage and to promote the teaching of sexual abstinence and morality to our children.

Mr. Cizik has long served as one of the evangelical movement's agenda-setters. He said last year that he experienced a profound “conversion" on the global warming issue after listening to scientists at a retreat. Evangelicals have recently become a significant voice in the chorus on global warming. In interviews, some signers of this latest letter said they were wary of the global warming issue because they associated it with leftists, limits on free enterprise and population control, which they oppose.

What is being done here, is a concerted effort to shift the focus of evangelical Christians to these issues that draw warm and fuzzies from liberal crusaders. rw

India;: Church Steps in to Advocate Safe Sex

With the state reeling under drug use and HIV, a church in Manipur has taken a decision to step in and advocate safe sex, condom use and harm reduction behaviour, a move expected to make HIV interventions reachable for high risk groups. The Evangelist Baptist Convention Church (EBC), has decided to use the pulpit to talk about safe sex, HIV and drug use. The decision has been left to the pastors of individual churches with 15-16 agreeing to talk about HIV every Sunday.

The organisation has so far not been talking about condoms and needle exchange among drug users. Use of condoms and syringes is not permitted, but we have to check on reality. The EBC has introduced a module on HIV training in Grace Bible College for those aspiring to be pastors. Under EBC initiatives, the last Sunday of every November is celebrated as AIDS Awareness Day. The Church caters to spiritual aspects but cannot neglect drugs and HIV. Almost three families out of four are affected by drug use and HIV. The state has been adversely impacted by drug use, ethnic conflict, insurgency and poverty. About 24% of the IDUs (intravenous drug users) and 11.4% female sex workers in Manipur are HIV positive. However, 50-60% of IDUs tested positive for HIV. A high prevalence of HIV in IDUs has led to its spread to the general population through the sexual route. An IDU may have multiple sexual partners. rw

More Than Nine Out of 10 Americans, Men and Women Alike, Have Had Premarital Sex

More than 9 of 10 American men and women have had premarital sex. This is normal behavior for the majority of Americans, and has been for decades.

The study, examining how sexual behavior before marriage has changed over time, was based on interviews with more than 38,000 people in 1982, 1988, 1995 and 2002: 99% had sex by age 44, and 95% had done so before marriage.

Even of those who abstained from sex until 20, four-fifths had had premarital sex by 44.

The likelihood of Americans having sex before marriage has remained stable since the 1950s.

The study found women as likely as men to engage in premarital sex. Among women born between 1950 and 1978, at least 91% had premarital sex by age 30, while among those born in the 1940s, 88% had done so by age 44.

This calls into question the government's funding of abstinence-only- until- marriage programs. It would be more effective to provide young people with the information they need to be safe once they become sexually active.

A conservative group which strongly supports abstinence-only education was skeptical of the findings. "The numbers are too pat."

An organization promoting abstinence-only education contended that increasing numbers of young people were open to remaining chaste until marriage. rw

A Response to ALL's Ms. Brown, David Pimentel, Professor of Agricultural Sciences, Cornell University Writes:

"Certainly, all of us desire freedom to reproduce. However, while we are protecting our freedom to reproduce, we are losing our freedoms from malnutrition, hunger, poverty, pollution, and disease. In addition, we are losing our freedom to enjoy our natural environment. Adding nearly a quarter million people daily to the world's population reduces everyone's freedom -- now and for the generations of the future."

American Life League: USAID Responsible for AIDS Epidemic, AIDS Orphans; Genocide Hidden in AIDS Relief Package

[Can you believe this?] "For the past few decades, funding for condom distribution abroad has fueled the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus," said the American Life League, attacking Clinton's $54 million HIV/AIDS relief program for Africa-a program titled "Leadership and Investment in Fighting an Epidemic," or LIFE.

"AIDS mortality has skyrocketed over the past decade and a half, concomitant with USAID's massive condom distribution campaign. ... by occasioning promiscuity under the false guise of 'safe sex,' condom distribution has created genocide in the name of AIDS relief. .. By USAID's own admission, over one billion condoms have been provided to men, women and adolescents throughout the developing world over the past few decades."

Tennessee Commission Gives Family Planning Contract to Religious Health Group

The Shelby County commission has voted 9 to 4 to take their Title X funding away from Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region and instead give it to Christ Community Health Services, which promises "high-quality health care to the underserved in the context of distinctively Christian service."

At the clinic sermons may accompany health screenings and birth control pickups. One Christ Community patient testified at the commission that,she was told: ‘If only my relationships with people and God were right, I would have fewer health problems.'"

Emergency Contraception will be offered through a "third party," which will delay the amount of time it will take for a woman to get the medication, making it much more likely she will miss the window of the few days that the preventative drug can work. Even though EC is not an abortifacient, it will not be available on site due to "religious objections."

No abortion referrals will be made. Christ Community Health Services' lead physician made it clear that “staffers will not direct patients to abortion clinics or make formal referrals to providers who terminate pregnancies."

Nigeria: State Outlaws Condom Advocacy

It is now illegal to encourage the use of condoms in Nigeria's Anambra State. The state government has also banned the advocacy and distribution of other forms of contraceptives. "Instead of teaching children how to use condoms they should be taught total abstinence," the state commissioner for health, Amobi Ilika said. Many sociologists, family planning and AIDS support groups disagree. More than 3 million people, 3.9% of the adult population, are living with AIDS in Nigeria. The rate is rising by 300,000 people a year, according to a joint UN program.

Condoms are available throughout Nigeria because the federal government, in partnership with family health organisations, has programmes to distribute and sell them.

Many religious groups back condom use, having recognised that abstinence has failed to yield the desired results.

Anambra State has a history of political instability and violence and is now making "a desperate attempt to uphold morals".

Commissioner Ilika also railed against abortion. He said. "All fetuses must be allowed to live no matter the circumstances that led to the pregnancy, even rape."

He added that medical practitioners in the state will face stiff penalties if they are caught carrying out any 'anti-life' activities. "The state government will withdraw the license of any medical personnel who flouts this directive". rw

For All the Debate in Washington, the Battle Over Abortion is Actually in the States, Which Are Imposing More Limits Than Ever. Missouri is a Case Study

Alito's confirmation would not produce the votes sufficient to overturn the Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade decision. Even if Roe is reversed, states will be free to preserve abortion rights, and many almost will. Polls consistently show that most people in the U.S. want abortion to be legal. In a unanimous decision authored by Sandra Day O'Connor, the high court backed away from directly interfering with a New Hampshire law saying a lower court should not have struck down a parental-notification requirement entirely, and ordered the judges to come up with a limited version that would protect the health of girls seeking abortions in emergency situations. The environment here in Missouri is so hostile, with four abortion doctors left in the state the option for a pregnant woman was the Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis, an eight-hour round trip by car and another trip for a follow-up exam that lasted about five minutes. The whole episode cost her a little more than $600. Increasingly, the question of how difficult it is to get an abortion, if you can get one at all, depends on where you live and how much money you have. State legislatures passed 52 new laws restricting abortion and few states were more active than Missouri. Governor Blunt summoned a special session to pass bills that allow civil suits to be brought against anyone who helps a Missouri teen obtain an abortion without a parent's consent and require doctors who perform abortions to have privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the clinic. The Missouri legislature is back in session with a list of bills, including one to protect pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions for morning-after pills, give tax credits to centers that discourage abortions, and require pain relief be given to fetuses that are aborted after 20 weeks. Pollsters say that Americans' views on abortion have shifted relatively little since Roe v. Wade, and that sometimes they are contradictory. In a survey for instance, 65% said they oppose overturning Roe v. Wade, but nearly an identical percentage said they would like to see more legal restrictions. Among the most popular: mandatory waiting periods, parental and spousal notification, and a ban on all late-term abortions. The Guttmacher Institute found that the two most common reasons for an abortion are that "having a baby would dramatically change my life" and "I can't afford a baby now." Most Americans say they think abortion should be illegal in those circumstances. A majority of Americans said they supported abortion only in the case of rape, when the mother's life or health is endangered or when there is a strong chance of serious birth defect. Even before many of the restrictions went into effect, the abortion rate and the overall number of abortions in the U.S. were on the decline. In 2000, the abortion rate was 21.3 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44, down from 29.3 abortions per 1,000 women in 1980 and 1981. Economic growth, better contraception and safe-sex practices probably all contribute to the trend. But a 2004 study found that states that have adopted laws regulating abortion experienced a larger decline than those that have not. Reductions are particularly steep, in states that restricted the use of Medicaid funds to pay for poor women's abortions and those that required pre-abortion counseling about fetal development and abortion risks. Some have different theories. The 24-hour waiting period and the reduction of the numbers of clinics do not reduce abortions. They increase later abortion. A 2000 study in Mississippi found that the percentage of second-trimester abortions increased after the state adopted mandatory counseling and waiting periods. Fully 24% of the St. Louis Planned Parenthood clinic's first-trimester abortions are being done with mifepristone, formerly called RU-486. And finally, there is the so-called morning-after pill. The Planned Parenthood affiliate in St. Louis performed about the same number of abortions in 2004 as in 2003. But in the same time period, the number of morning-after kits they dispensed jumped, to 8,000 from 6,500. Missouri has become the first state to extend its parental-notification law beyond its state line, a move aimed across the Mississippi River at the Hope Clinic, that sits in Granite City, Ill. A recent morning found a waiting room filled with anxious-looking young women, with a few boyfriends, husbands and children. Because Illinois has no parental-notification law, Hope Clinic had been the easiest option for Missouri teens seeking to get an abortion without telling their parents. But the new Missouri law has Hope demanding proof of age of all prospective patients. Thirty-two states require that women receive pre-abortion counseling. In three states, a description of the basic procedure is offered; in three others, women are told that the fetus may feel pain. In Illinois, counseling is not mandatory, but if a fetus is viable, the woman must be offered anesthesia for the fetus. Waiting Twenty-four states that mandate counseling also require that women wait, usually 24 hours, between counseling and an abortion. The Supreme Court last week instructed an appeals court to reconsider a New Hampshire parental notification law that it had struck down. Ohio prohibits a procedure known as dilation and extraction throughout pregnancy. Three other states have outlawed the procedure when there is a viable fetus. Seven other states have blanket bans on "partial-birth" abortion on the books, but a Supreme Court ruling makes these laws unenforceable. rw

U.S.: As Abortion Rate Drops, Use of RU-486 is on Rise

The abortion pill RU-486, on the market since 2000, has become an alternative, making abortion less clinical and more private. RU-486-induced abortions now account for 14% of the total, and more than one in five early abortions are performed by the ninth week of pregnancy.

The pill has helped slow the decline in abortion providers, as more physicians discreetly start to prescribe the pill.

When the Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone in 2000, some predicted it would revolutionize the abortion experience. But the impact has been happening gradually as it slowly and steadily is becoming integrated into the medical system.

Women take the pill in the doctor's office and then go home, where they take another drug, misoprostol, to trigger contractions, causing a miscarriage. Standard abortions cost about $400, the pill can cost the same to about $100 more.

About 150,000 of the 1.2 million abortions in the US in 2006 were done with medication. In some European countries, more than 60% of abortions are performed with the drug.

One doctor in Albuquerque said she does not use the pill at one of her offices but does offer it along with standard abortions at a clinic where she works. At another clinic, she provides only the pill.

Women who want this have really done their homework. They know exactly what the process is and really have made a very conscious decision about their choice. rw

Abortions Down 25% From Peak; but a Study Says More Women Are Choosing Medication, Rather Than Surgery, to End Pregnancies.

The number of abortions in America has plunged to 1.2 million a year, down 25% since peaking in 1990. In the early 1980s, 1 in 3 pregnant women chose abortion, now it is closer to 1 in 5.

Women are gravitating to medication abortions, and expel the embryo in the privacy of their homes. The FDA approved the pills for use through the seventh week of pregnancy.

By 2005, the pills accounted for 13% of all abortions.

The Guttmacher report came to no conclusions about why the abortion landscape had changed. Abortion rights advocates suggested women may be avoiding unwanted pregnancies, thanks in part to the morning-after pill. Activists have pledged to lobby to make all forms of birth control cheaper and more widely accessible. They also plan to push states to require sex-education classes that teach about contraception.

Dwell too much on abortion, and the broader liberal agenda will bog down, said a consultant who developed the strategy. Conservatives, are eager to keep the focus on abortion and contend that the more women learn about the procedure, the less likely they are to choose it. Some of the material is false or misleading, for example, warnings that abortion raises the risk of breast cancer or causes post-traumatic stress disorder. Many of the counseling brochures use photos of fetal development through nine months, though 90% of abortions take place in the first trimester.

Abortion opponents plan to lobby to expand this type of counseling.

Some of the biggest drops in the abortion rate have come in states that do not impose tight restrictions.

The data suggest that the decline in abortions may be due to a shift in women's attitudes. The antiabortion movement should focus on continuing to "change hearts and minds."

The number of abortion clinics nationwide was down 15%,(48). But other health centers and doctors in private practice filled the gap by offering medical abortions.

Abortion clinics have been besieged by protests, but it's harder for protesters to identify a physician in private practice.

Missouri recently required doctors who dispense the abortion pill to turn their offices into full surgical suites. But a judge put the law on hold, pending a legal challenge.

There is little popular support for restricting such abortions.

Most doctors who prescribed the abortion pill work in urban areas, so access to abortion had not improved for rural women.

More than 1 in 4 abortion patients reports traveling at least 50 miles to reach a provider. It was difficult to persuade abortion doctors to share information about their practice because they feared reprisals from protesters. rw

Anglican Church Says Overpopulation May Break Eighth Commandment

Australia's Anglican Church has linked overpopulation to the eighth commandment 'Thou shall not steal'. The governing body of Australia's Anglican Church has released a discussion paper that states "out of care for the whole of creation, particularly the poorest of humanity and the life forms who cannot speak for themselves, it is not responsible to stand by and remain silent [on the issue of overpopulation]."

The paper adds that "unless we take account of the needs of future life on Earth, there is a case that we break the eighth commandment—'thou shall not steal'."

The General Synod recommends that the federal government should no longer encourage population growth with financial incentives, such as the controversial 'baby bonus' whereby the Australian government pays a mother 4,000 Australian dollars every time she has a new baby. The bonus, which was put into effect beginning in 2004, has been linked to Australia's ongoing baby boom, the largest since the 1970s.

"In the context of unsustainable global population growth it is inconsistent and arguably irresponsible to provide financial incentives for population increase," the Australian Anglican Church says.

Currently some 6.8 billion people inhabit the Earth. Scientists estimate that by 2050 that number will rise to 9 billion before leveling out. Environmentalists say that overpopulation is leading to worsening climate change, unsustainable resource use, mass extinction, deforestation, pollution, and food and water shortages. rw

Church Sex Education Program Preaches More Than Abstinence; Our Whole Lives Takes Broader Approach Than Other Faith-based Classes

Our Whole Lives, a product of Unitarian-Universalists and the United Church of Christ, has proved popular at both churches, each has trained more than 1,000 teachers.

Unitarian and United Church of Christ youths will lobby their congressional representatives for more money for comprehensive sex ed programs in public schools.

Our Whole Lives stresses of abstinence, also includes birth control, safe sex practices and sexual orientation.

These are done within the context of a loving, committed relationship. Only one family has ever opted out. In another case, the parents took the materials home and taught the course themselves.

Many say the misinformation that abounds in the schoolyard mandates a pre-emptive approach.

Although 15- to 24-year-olds make up a quarter of the nation's sexually active population, they account for nearly half of all new sexually transmitted infections a year. People are going to develop sexually whether ready for it or not.

One of its goals is to open communication, so that children can chat comfortably with parents about intimate issues.

The state requires schools to give only HIV/AIDS education, once in middle school and once in high school. A 2004 California law calls on schools that do offer broader sex ed to make sure the courses are medically accurate, age-appropriate and free of religious ideology.

In choosing to teach about condoms and contraception, the state passed up millions of dollars the federal government makes available to abstinence-only programs.

More than half of Americans believe that teaching teens how to obtain and use condoms does not rush them into sex. A survey found nearly two-thirds of adults and more than three-quarters of teens calling on faith institutions to do more to help prevent teen pregnancy. rw

The Presbyterian Church

The 202nd General Assembly (1990) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) adopted policy on climate change, which among other things: called upon the United States to take the lead in addressing global warming, urged "firm international agreements for steady and substantial reduction of the gases causing climate change"; recommended that the U. S. government undertake serious measures to increase energy conservation and efficiency and "to accelerate the transition to an economy based upon renewable, safe non-polluting, affordable energy"; and called for assistance, including technology transfers, to help developing countries achieve much needed energy sufficiency while minimizing pollution.

The 210th General Assembly (1998) urged ratification of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to the Framework Convention on Climate Change, which sets specific targets for greenhouse gas reductions; and, in "Hope for a Global Future: Toward Just and Sustainable Human Development" called "for Presbyterians and other Christians to lead the way to a reconceptualization of the 'good life', one that, in accordance with our Christian and Reformed Heritage, is less materialistic and more frugal"; and, recognizing "the formidable problems that substantially reduced consumption ... would pose for an economy geared to growth," called "church members, economists, politicians, and citizens to wrestle with the issues of fashioning economic arrangements that affirm global solidarity and participation by all in sustainable sufficiency".

The 210th General Assembly (1998) reaffirmed existing policies on population and , in view of "the compelling need now for fewer births, "called for "encouragement and support, respect and honor" to be accorded to couples "who choose not to conceive children" as well as to those who choose to conceive.

U.S.: Evangelical Use of Contraception is High, Family Planning Funding Reflects Needs and Desires of Most Women

In refusing to defund Planned Parenthood, US senators voted to protect family planning services that are important to some of the same people who so vehemently oppose abortion: Christians, and Evangelicals in particular, according to a new report by the Guttmacher Institute . The study shows that 99% of all women who have had sex have at one point used a contraceptive method other than natural family planning (such as periodic abstinence, temperature rhythm and cervical mucus tests).

Only 2% of Catholic women use naturally family planning and over 40% of Evangelicals rely on male or female sterilization, a figure higher than that of other religious groups.

This is the breakdown of religious women who are sexually active but do not want to get pregnant and, therefore, use a highly effective method of birth control, such as sterilization, hormonal birth control pills or the IUD : 69% of all denominations, 68% of Catholics, 73% of Mainline Protestants, 74% of Evangelicals.

Among all women who have had sex, 99% have ever used a contraceptive method other than natural family planning. This figure is virtually the same, 98%, among sexually experienced Catholic women.

Guttmacher based religious beliefs on womens admitted attendance to religious services and questions about their religiosity. 83% of women reported a religious affiliation: 48% identified as Protestant, among whom 53% said they are Evangelical and 47% who claim to be Mainline Protestant (including Methodists, Presbyterians and other groups); 25% are Catholic; and 11% identify with another religion such as Buddhism, Islam or Judaism.

Gutthmacher concluded that contraceptive use by Catholics and Evangelicals, including those who frequently attend religious services, is the widespread norm, not the exception. The implications for policymakers are clear: Policies that make contraceptives more affordable and easier to use are not just sound public health policy, they also reflect the needs and desires of the vast majority of American women and their partners, regardless of their religious affiliation.

Opinion: the Elephant in the Room

All this about Global Warming and Climategate (from both sides) seems a bit pitiful while we ignore the elephant in the room.

The Earth's population is increasing inexorably, and this trumps every effort to save resources and the environment. Without population control, the environment is literally doomed.

Catholics are among the biggest offenders, but Pagans, Muslims, and some protestant sects also participate.

I hate anecdotal examples, but here I go with one anyway. I use it because it illustrates in microcosm the problem in much of the world.

One of Ben's and my wards is a Maasai, the star student in a school far from the beaten path on the edge of the Serengeti. The Maasai culture is traditionally pastoral and (in hard times) nomadic, but development and national boundaries have made them more sessile.

They have religious taboos against eating wild animals, bless them! - although killing a lion with a spear has been a rite of passage. But the lion does have a chance. When we visited, the weather had been kind of dry and the cattle were skinny, but people were getting along.

The drought has continued and worsened. The cattle are starving and the people will follow suit. In the old days, the village might have picked up stakes and moved to greener pastures. Or if the famine were widespread, many would have perished, reducing the overpopulation for a generation or two.

We are facing a dilemma. Our ward emailed us recently asking us to support his family in the crisis. How many? Well, there are his mom and dad. And five brothers and sisters. And 24 half-brothers and sisters and five other wives. (Maasai are polygamous. Don't even mention family planning.)

Get the picture? About five kids per mom, a massive generational increase in an already stressed resource base. Some could move to the City ... and do what? Beg?

So. We or the Tanzanian government could provide food to bring them through the current famine. That leaves everyone poised on the edge of the Serengeti, in an area already defoliated and overgrazed.

Or we and the government could ignore the issue. Some would move to Arusha and Dar es Salaam, abandoning their families and culture. Imagine the Amish being forced to move to the slums of Philadelphia and Baltimore. The rest would remain at the traditional homeland, and some would starve.

Wouldn't birth control have been a better solution? Why don't people talk about this?

Steve Parks

U.S. Religions Quietly Launch a Sexual Revolution

A think tank, The Religious Institute, in a a 46-page manifesto on the state of sexuality in religious communities has said that silence should be broken about a host of sexuality issues. The manifesto is titled: "Sexuality and Religion 2020: Goals for the Next Decade."

Goals include improved pastoral care of marital relationships, domestic abuse and infertility, and training for prospective clergy in sexuality-related matters.

According to the manifesto, religious leaders should provide lifelong age-appropriate education for youth and adults and to become more effective advocates for comprehensive sexuality education and sexual and reproductive health in society.

Clergymen who are often first responders in matters of domestic violence and potential (and actual) suicides by young people struggling with sexual identity have usually received little to no training for the job.

The document offers an uncompromised progressive vision that does not seek "common ground" with conservative evangelicals and Catholics.

It calls for full access to reproductive health care, including abortion, marriage equality, full inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in the life of religious communities.

The report as generated only a little media attention but progress is already being made.

The president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary saw it as "evidence of the continued subversion of biblical authority and confessional integrity that characterizes the revolt against orthodoxy in so many churches."

But he acknowledged: "Our pews are filled with people worried about their sexuality, wondering how to understand these things, struggling with same-sex attractions, tempted to stray from their marriages, enticed by Internet pornography and wondering how to bring their sexuality under submission to Christ." And evangelicals "should not avoid its urgency in calling pastors and Christian leaders to teach and preach about sex and sexuality."

The Religious Institute is a national network of more than 5,000 clergy and religious leaders from 50 religious traditions. Its founder Rev. Debra Haffner, is a former executive director of SIECUS (Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States), the nation's leading association of sex educators.

Advances have been made in the last 10 years, with female clergy taking leadership roles in major denominations; a woman is presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church; Lesbian, gay, transgendered and bisexual people gaining acceptance; and marriage equality being recognized by the United Church of Christ, the Union for Reform Judaism, Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association and the Unitarian Universalist Association.

One Church recently announced that clergy will now be required to be "competent" to address matters of sexuality in the lives of their parishioners.

The manifesto said that 75% of progressive clergy had not addressed sex education and 40% had not preached about sexual orientation over a two year period. 70% had never preached on reproductive justice.

Issues that parishoners have where they need the help of clergy are: sexual abuse, marriages breaking up, and infertility.

When matters of sexuality are avoided, it shows up in clergy sex-abuse scandals. "And it's not just the Catholics." When you can't talk about it in your churches, where can you talk about it. Silence contributes to people's alienation and aloneness.

Five mainstream denominations are working on mandatory sexual competence for clergy and 15 denominations on matters that affect everyone. a number of denominations have focused on issues of domestic violence. All would benefit from clergy training and open discussion of matters of sexuality, including the teaching of young people and strategies for keeping children safe from sexual predators.

Dr. Martin Marty, the eminent historian of religion at the University of Chicago compared sexuality to religion. "If you get it right, it's beautiful. But if you get it wrong, it really messes you up."

U.S.: Coercing Women in Crisis

The National Abortion Federation claims that "options counseling" centers exist only: "To keep women from having abortions." They routinely provide women with information and rarely refer women for abortion or birth control.

Although staffed by volunteers, many of these centers masquerade as a doctor's office but their lack of medical personnel does not stop some centers from deceptively advertising an "Ask the Doctor" service.

Among the misinformation spread by some of these clinics is that birth control methods are abortifacients, and that having an abortion is a life-threatening procedure that can lead to breast cancer. The centers have been known to extend the waiting period for pregnancy test results to expose women to their anti-choice or religious propaganda. CPCs often present them with gruesome and graphic images of bloody and dismembered fetuses that have allegedly been aborted as a scare tactic. Many of these centers receive federal funding, and outnumber abortion clinics 2-to-1 in the U.S. rw

Indonesia: Discrimination Over Access to Reproductive Health

Unmarried women have been discriminated against by lawmakers in a health bill with religious overtones. This bill, which precludes them from reproductive health treatments, and which requires a recommendation from a religious panelas a requirement for approving abortions in life-threatening pregnancies or for rape victims - will replace the 1992 Health Law, which does not regulate reproductive health.

"The bill is a step backwards from the current Health Law."

In Jakarta, many sexually active unmarried women have found it difficult to get professional advice about reproductive health without having to face judgmental medical workers.

There is concern that there would be more bureaucratic procedures in hospitals to access reproductive health.

The legislation would increase the psychological trauma rape victims suffer. Especially as the provided period only allows for abortions in the first six weeks of pregnancy, which is basically unrealistic because in this period, women are often not aware of their pregnancy.

In Mahayana teachings, abortion is considered murder.

One woman said: "For me, giving birth to a human without being able to be fully responsible for them is also a sin."

Religious Group Attacks Religion in U.S. Health Care

A coalition of religious leaders took on the Catholic Church, the U.S. Supreme Court and the administration with a plea to take religion out of health care in the US.

Last week's Supreme Court decision outlawing a certain type of abortion demonstrated that religious belief was interfering with personal rights and the U.S. health care system in general.

The group said it planned to submit its proposals to other church groups and lobby Congress and state legislators.

Concerns are being raised in religious communities about the ethics of denying services.

The group also complained about Catholic-owned hospitals that refuse to sterilize women, refuse to let doctors perform abortions and do not provide contraception.

Doctors, pharmacists and nurses are also increasingly refusing to provide essential services on moral or religious grounds. The government is codifying these refusals, through legislation and the recent Supreme Court decision, where five Catholic men decided that they could better determine what was moral and good.

The group includes ordained Protestant ministers, a Jewish activist, an expert on women's reproductive rights and several physicians.

Health care decisions ought to be made freely, based on medical expertise and individual conscience.

Allow doctors to use best medical practices, providing comprehensive counseling on sexual or reproductive health and honor advance directives -- including "do not resuscitate" orders.

Refusal to provide health care would be balanced by alternate service delivery so that no one would be victimized when another exercises his/her conscience. rw