Gibson's Distribution Company Sues for $40 Million

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, June 9 — Icon Distribution, Mel Gibson's movie-distribution company, is suing Regal Entertainment for upwards of $40 million. The company started by the director of The Passion of the Christ says Regal short-changed it on revenues for the movie.

Regal, the nation's largest movie chain, had agreed to pay Icon 55% of receipts from the movie but went back on its promise in May, the Associated Press reported. Instead, it offered only 34%, according to George Hedges, an attorney for Icon.

The lawsuit was filed June 7 in Los Angeles and said Regal owed Icon “in excess” of $40 million.

The Passion of the Christ is No. 7 on the all-time domestic box-office charts, taking in $369.9 million since its Feb. 25 release.

Theology of the Body Makes Its Way Into Culture

THE NEW YORK TIMES, June 7 — More and more theology of the body conferences, retreats, study groups, seminars and lectures are popping up around the country, and one of America's top secular newspapers is taking notice.

The New York Times reported on a recent talk in New Jersey by Christopher West, a writer and lecturer on Pope John Paul II's theology of the body teachings. The article goes on to mention priests and other speakers promoting the Holy Father's writings on love and sexuality.

Father Richard Hogan, a priest from the Diocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis, explained that the body is regarded as the expression of God, so therefore it will never be used as “a thing” whose functions can be altered or manipulated, the Times noted.

While the article noted the Pope's teachings have its critics — such as an ex-priest who teaches at Emory University and Frances Kissling of Catholics for a Free Choice — it ended on a positive note, quoting Peter McFadden, who started a theology of the body study group in New York.

“We just wanted more,” McFadden said. “We wanted a love that's really true and meaningful and deep. Reading the Pope's writings helped me understand what true love is and how to recognize it and how to get it.”

Hawaii Public Schools Teach Abstinence Only

THE HONOLULU ADVERTISER, June 9 — “Try wait!” is what Hawaii public schools are telling teens regarding sex.

A federally financed national program run by Catholic Charities is sending a new message to teens — getting middle and high school students to abstain from sex rather than just teaching them how to be “safe,” the Honolulu Advertiser reported.

Try Wait! teaches only abstinence, with eight lessons that teach kids how and why they should save sex for marriage, including discussions on how various forms of protection can fail.

The federal government has funded hundreds of abstinence-only programs across the nation, provided they do not also teach students about safe-sex practices or relate abstinence to religion, the newspaper noted. Try Wait! has a three-year federal grant and was awarded $750,000 to begin the program this year.

While under the umbrella of Catholic Charities, officials say, the program has no religious base.