BALTIMORE — Catholic Relief Services has announced revisions to an HIV prevention document because of its “inappropriate information” about condoms and their use.
“Despite the mistakes, at no point did CRS purchase or distribute condoms. We are revising the document to ensure that it meets our standards, as approved by the USCCB [U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops],” Michael Hill, a senior writer with the relief agency, told Catholic News Agency Sept. 5.
Hill said the 179-page document was written in 2009 by outside consultants for a Vietnam program that aimed to halt the spread of HIV among intravenous drug users.“CRS staff prescribed revisions to the document that were not carried out by the external consultant in the final, posted document,” he said. This meant that five sentences in the document referred to condom use among couples where one person is HIV-positive and the other is HIV-negative.
The agency announced the revisions on Aug. 31 in response to a report from LifeSite News.
The relief agency, which is overseen by the U.S. bishops, has 5,000 employees working to help more than 100 million people across the world address poverty, hunger, drought, disease and other emergencies.
LifeSite News has also reported on several of the agency’s employees who have records of past employment with agencies that support legal abortion or distribute abortion drugs and condoms.
One reported case also involves an employee’s assault on pro-life demonstrators.
Charisse Glassman, a legislative assistant with Catholic Relief Services-Haiti, was charged with assault last year after she drove her car into a female pro-life demonstrator in a crowd at the national March for Life in January 2011. Court records say Glassman allegedly laughed several times during the incident.
In response to the questions raised about employees, Hill stated that Catholic Relief Services’ employees “all are expected to follow Church teachings and doctrines” in their work for the agency.
The agency also aims to hire “the best-qualified people for jobs.”
“In many cases, that requires that an employee be Catholic, but in many it does not,” he said.
Potential employees are informed about the agency’s Catholic identity and are asked about their commitment to the agency’s “faith-based mission.” All job postings also note “fundamental” Catholic teachings.
“If someone has previously worked at an employer with policies that are not in agreement with Catholic teachings, we do not assume that the applicant shares those views,” Hill said. “We do ask about their commitment to Catholic teachings to ensure they are a good fit for CRS.”
Hill said the agency does not investigate employees’ outside activities, but it expects employees to “conduct themselves with integrity to CRS’ values and its fidelity to Church teachings.”
In July, Catholic Relief Services responded to concerns about its funding of CARE, an international humanitarian organization that provides relief to the needy in developing nations but also offers contraception and early abortion-inducing drugs. Catholic Relief Services said the funding was carefully restricted to morally acceptable purposes and was reviewed by a Catholic bioethicist.
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There is a very serious problem with Michael Hill’s claim.
According to the article, “Hill said the 179-page document was written in 2009 by outside consultants for a Vietnam program that aimed to halt the spread of HIV among intravenous drug users.“CRS staff prescribed revisions to the document that were not carried out by the external consultant in the final, posted document.”
But over at Societas Restituo, they have a copy of the actual document in question, and it said that the document was written by a consultant AND CRS staff, and then handed over to CRS HQ for review, who then handed it over to CRS Vietnam for final revisions. This doesn’t sound a whole lot like it was “written by outside consultants” to me.
Does CRS mean to say that some of the people they hire are either not Catholic or good Catholics? They seem to imply that other good people aren’t available for these jobs. Trying to run over a pro-lifer and then laughing about it is “over the top”. There are other Catholic organizations that help people overseas and I am donating to them rather then the CRS for the above reasons, such as “Food for the Poor” that doesn’t have this reputation. CRS needs a complete overhaul.
Please see this link, which goes into greater detail and provides the actual documents that CRS has pulled, proving that it was CRS itself (at the highest levels) that approved these condom-promoting pamphlets:
http://societasrestituo.org/2012/09/06/new-evidence-multiple-crs-documents-promote-condoms/
After 50 years of being ‘nice’ to Catholics in positions of authority who don’t promote or personally follow Catholic teachings, it is time for our Bishops to do some house cleaning. This kind of thing is coming out every day. These are the people teaching our children, teaching our RCIA classes, administering our parish and diocese offices, and our Bishops in an effort to be kind to them, continue to allow these things to happen. I am among those that have been spiritually harmed by these types of ‘Catholics’ in name only. I wandered away from the Church for 30 years with the guidance of ‘blind guides’ (as the Bible calls them). I don’t think Judas was still considered an apostle after his act against God, and neither should these folks be allowed to continue to work in administrative positions if they can’t promote Church teachings.
Let us all pray that God guide our Bishops to make the hard decisions necessary clean out those that promote Satan’s desires. I know that this seams a bit tough but we are in a war against Satan and his influence, but we just don’t seem to know it.
Something else to keep in mind as we read about this is that for two thousand years, these types of institutions such as Parishes, Hospitals, Orphanages, etc were run by simple Priests, Brothers, and Nuns with no professional administrative training, yet God blessed their efforts and history teaches us that they created the modern university system, hospital system, etc.
Why do we think now that we must hire non Catholic experts to run our Catholic institutions. How can we expect God to bless their efforts?
I will not be contributing to CRS or the CCHD anymore. Not until I see that the USCCB is serious about upholding Catholic teachings, is cleaning house and excommunicating people like Kathleen Sebelius, Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi, Caroline Kennedy, John Kerry, Dick Durbin, etc. Helping the poor does not mean we have to promote the Culture of Death’s ideas.
Isn’t this the third (at least) controversy to spring up with CRS in the last year? While I’ve been a supporter of their work for the last 10 years, I think it is time to send my money elsewhere. It pains me to say that, because I’d like to support a group headed by our bishops, but what else has been going on at CRS? I’ve heard Al Kresta talk about crosscatholic.org. I think that’s where my monthly support will go now.
I sent CRS back their form asking for a donation and said I would do it when they clean house. Meantime I am donating directly to missionaries such as Bishop Gassis and Aid to the Poor (a Catholic charity under the Holy Father). I get asked for donations from them all the time. I will not donate to CRS & Campaign for Human Developmen.
This is exactly like what has happened to Girl Scouts of the USA. Parents trust long-standing organizations that they think will uphold traditional family values. Like Catholic Relief Services, Girl Scouts claims to raise money for the disadvantaged, but who knows how the money is really spent? Families are unaware that money they raise for GSUSA by selling cookies with their daughters goes to one of the largest pro-abortion lobbying forces at the United Nations—World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts—that equates Global Climate Change with Population Control (abortion, contraception access for children without parental consent). See it for yourself… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxbOdZVnJOE&feature=share
CRS needs to make changes, not excuses, if they want our money.
Sign this petition and let them know exactly that:
http://www.change.org/petitions/catholic-relief-services-crs-stop-empowering-groups-who-promote-grave-sins
Sign this petition to help CRS understand that no faithfulness = no money from the faithful.
http://www.change.org/petitions/catholic-relief-services-crs-stop-empowering-groups-who-promote-grave-sins
Many years ago when we last updated our will, we added CRS to those who would receive a bequest. We also contributed annually.
When we heard rumors about CRS “affiliations,” we held off changing because Cardinal Dolan assured us CRS had changed.
These recent revelations are the last straw.
I’m researching truly authentically CATHOLIC international aid organization with wise stewardship (less than 5% admin-fundraising expenses). I think I found one in Cross Catholic Outreach. My next stop is http://www.charitynavigator.org to research their fed income tax return.
I hate to say it but at 65 yrs old, we cannot be too careful who gets our accumulated assets. Wanting the recipients to be *both* Catholic and authentic should not be too much to ask.
We’re too close to the day when Jesus will ask who got our “stuff.”
Not a penny.
I have not contributed to Catholic Charities in my local diocese for years as well as CCHD. I have contributed especially in times of disaster to Catholic Relief Services. However, it is apparent that the USCCB has not learned from the mistakes of Catholic Charities, CCHD, and the letting go of Catholic hospitals to groups such as Dignity. The need for advancing the social agenda community organizing in the flavor of Alinsky appears to be viral in the cooperate outlook of the USCCB. It is time for a drastic change because these alignments are harmful to the faithful in the New Evangelization.
I called CRS and cancelled my monthly donation because of the CARE organization getting over $5M from CRS. There is NO way CARE can tell me they are NOT using those monies for their assistance in giving out contraceptives & abortion-inducing drugs. ANY organization that kills babies is not to be trusted whatsoever (ie Planned Parenthood). CRS is seriously in trouble for any future donations from truly faithful Catholics.
This is a heads up - DO NOT sign Michael Elohim petition - this link is part of change.org and takes you to other petitions to get Obama elected. I’d say that this guy is an insider for getting BO re-elected.
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