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west hawaii today | wednesday, september 2, 2015
Pope: Some women feel they had no other option
in having abortion; stresses merciful approach
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is applying his vision
of a merciful church to women who have had abortions,
easing their path toward forgiveness and saying he
realizes some felt they had no choice but to make “this
agonizing and painful decision.”
In a letter published Tuesday by the Holy See, Francis
said he was allowing all rank-and-file priests to grant
absolution during the Holy Year of Mercy he has pro-
claimed, which runs Dec. 8, 2015 until Nov. 20, 2016.
The Roman Catholic Church views abortion as such a
grave sin that it put the matter of granting forgiveness
for an abortion in the hands of a bishop, who could
either hear the woman’s confession himself or delegate
that to a priest who is expert in such situations.
Now, Francis is making it possible for women to
bypass this formalized process in the approaching spe-
cial Year of Mercy while putting the stress on “contrite”
hearts.
In a statement after the pope’s letter, the Vatican
made clear that “forgiveness of the sin of abortion does
not condone abortion nor minimize its grave effects. The
newness is clearly Pope Francis’ pastoral approach.”
US, global stocks fall sharply on more signs
of weakness in China’s economy
NEW YORK — Stocks plunged again Tuesday, con-
tinuing a rocky ride for Wall Street, after an economic
report out of China rekindled fears that the world’s sec-
ond-largest economy is slowing more than previously
anticipated.
The sell-off adds to what has been a difficult few
weeks for U.S. and international markets. U.S. stocks
just closed out their worst month in more than three
years. Tuesday’s drop also dashed hopes that, after
some relatively calm trading Friday and Monday, the
stock market’s wild swings were coming to an end.
Stocks started the day sharply lower and never recov-
ered, with the Dow Jones industrial average falling as
much as 548 points. No part of the market was spared.
All 10 sectors of the Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell
more than 2 percent. Just three stocks in the S&P 500
closed higher.
“Monday’s relatively peaceful markets are a distant
memory as Chinese data and shares sparked another
severe … reaction from the developed world,” said John
Briggs, head of fixed income strategy at RBS.
In Alaska wilderness, Obama stares down melting
glacier to sound alarm on climate change
SEWARD, Alaska — President Barack Obama stared
down a melting glacier in Alaska on Tuesday in a dra-
matic use of his presidential pulpit to sound the alarm
on climate change.
From a distance, Exit Glacier appears as a river of
white and blue flowing down through the mountains
toward lower terrain. In fact, it’s just the opposite. The
2-mile-long chock of solid ice has been retreating at a
faster and faster pace in recent years - more than 800
feet since 2008, satellite tracking shows.
Obama trekked up to the glacier with photographers
in tow in a carefully choreographed excursion aimed at
calling attention to the ways human activity is degrading
cherished natural wonders. The visit to Kenai Fjords
National Park, where the glacier is located, formed the
apex of Obama’s three-day tour of Alaska, his most con-
certed campaign yet on climate change.
The president, dressed for the elements in a rugged
coat and sunglasses, observed how signposts along the
hike recorded where the glacier once stood and now
only dry land remains.
Police in northern Illinois hunt for 3 suspects
with dogs, helicopters after officer shot dead
FOX LAKE, Ill. — Police in helicopters, with dogs and
armed with rifles were conducting a massive manhunt
in northern Illinois on Tuesday after an officer was fatally
shot while pursuing a group of men.
An emotional Fox LakeMayor Donny Schmit described
the slain officer, Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz, as a per-
sonal friend, a three-decade member of the department
and a father of four sons.
“We lost a family member,” Schmit said of the 52-year-
old officer known around town as “GI Joe.” ”His com-
mitment to the people of this community has been
unmatched and will be dearly missed.”
Authorities said Gliniewicz radioed in to tell dispatch-
ers he was chasing three men on foot in the village of
Fox Lake, 55 miles north of Chicago. Communication
with him was lost soon after, said Lake County Sheriff’s
Office spokesman Sgt. Christopher Covelli.
“His backup arrived shortly thereafter and found him
injured with a gunshot wound,” Covelli said. “The officer
has succumbed to his injuries and passed away.”
By wire sources
in brief
Kentucky clerk, citing God,
defies courts on gay marriage
MOREHEAD, Ky. —
Invoking “God’s authori-
ty,” a county clerk denied
marriage licenses to gay
couples again Tuesday in
direct defiance of the fed-
eral courts, and vowed
not to resign, even under
the pressure of steep
fines or jail.
“It is not a light issue
for me,” Rowan County
Clerk Kim Davis said
later through her law-
yers. “It is a heaven or
hell decision.”
April Miller and Karen
Roberts, tailed by tele-
vision cameras and rival
activists, were there
when the doors opened
Tuesday morning, hours
after the Supreme Court
rejected the clerk’s last-
ditch request for a delay.
They hoped Davis
would accept that her
fight was lost and issue
the licenses, ending the
months-long controversy
that has divided Rowan
County, where the seat of
Morehead is considered
a progressive haven in
Appalachian Kentucky.
Instead, Davis once
again turned them away.
On their way out, Miller
and Roberts passed
David Ermold and David
Moore, 17 years a couple.
“Denied again,” Roberts
whispered in Moore’s ear.
Ermold said he almost
wept. They demanded
to talk to Davis, who
emerged briefly on
the other side of the
counter.
“We’re not leaving
until we have a license,”
Ermold told her.
“Then you’re going to
have a long day,” Davis
replied.
Davis, an Apostolic
Christian, stopped issu-
ing all marriage licens-
es in June rather than
comply with the Supreme
Court’s legalization of gay
marriage nationwide.
Gay and straight cou-
ples sued, saying she
should fulfill her duties
as an elected official
despite her personal reli-
gious faith. U.S. District
Judge David Bunning
ordered her to issue the
licenses, an appeals court
affirmed that order, and
the Supreme Court on
Monday refused to inter-
vene, leaving her no legal
option to refuse.
And yet, she did.
“Stand firm,” Davis’
supporters chanted as a
tense standoff erupted in
the lobby.
“Do your job,” marriage
equality activists shouted
back.
Davis retreated into
her inner office, closed
the door and shut the
blinds. The sheriff moved
everyone outside, where
demonstrators lined up
to shout and sing at each
other.
Davis knows she faces
stiff fines or even jail if
the judge finds her in
contempt, her lawyer
said. Her supporters
compared her Tuesday to
the Biblical figures Paul
and Silas, imprisoned for
their faith and rescued
by God.
But the couples’ law-
yers asked that she not be
sent to jail, and instead be
fined, since she current-
ly collects her salary —
$80,000 a year — while
failing to perform her
duties. They asked the
judge to “impose finan-
cial penalties sufficiently
serious and increasingly
onerous” to “compel her
immediate compliance
without delay.”
Bunning ordered Davis
and her six deputy clerks
to appear before him
Thursday morning at
the federal courthouse in
Ashland.
Davis also faces a
potential state charge
of official misconduct,
a misdemeanor meant
for public servants who
refuse to perform their
duties. Kentucky Attorney
General Jack Conway, now
running as the Democratic
nominee for governor, is
studying a complaint filed
by a couple she turned
away, and will decide
whether to appoint a spe-
cial prosecutor.
Davis said she never
imagined this day would
come.
“I have no animosity
toward anyone and har-
bor no ill will. To me this
has never been a gay or
lesbian issue. It is about
marriage and God’s
word,” her statement said.
Her critics mock this
moral stand, noting that
Davis is on her fourth
husband after being
divorced three times.
Joe
Davis,
who
described himself as “an
old redneck hillbilly,”
came by to check on his
wife Tuesday. It’s been an
ordeal, he said. She got
death threats and they’ve
had to change their phone
number. He pointed to
the people calling for gay
rights on the courthouse
lawn.
“They want us to accept
their beliefs and their
ways,” he said. “But they
won’t accept our beliefs
and our ways.”
Mat Staver founded
the Liberty Counsel, a
Christian law firm that
represents Davis. He said
she had been a sinner
until she went to church
four years ago when her
mother-in-law died. She
was born again after the
preacher read a Bible
passage about how for-
giveness grows from the
grace of God, he said.
“She’s made some mis-
takes,” he said. “She’s
regretful and sorrowful.
That life she led before
is not the life she lives
now. She asked for and
received forgiveness and
grace. That’s why she has
such a strong conscience.”
Davis served as her
mother’s deputy for 27
years before she was
elected as a Democrat to
succeed her in November.
Davis’ own son is on the
staff. As an elected offi-
cial, she can be removed
only if the Legislature
impeaches her, which is
unlikely in a deeply con-
servative state.
Davis’
support-
ers blame Gov. Steve
Beshear, who ordered
resistant clerks to issue
licenses or resign. The
Kentucky County Clerk’s
Association has proposed
legislation to make mar-
riage licensing a func-
tion of state government,
relieving clerks of the
burden.
Beshear said again
Tuesday that the Supreme
Court has settled the case
and that he won’t call a
special session to change
a law that 117 of the
state’s 120 county clerks
are obeying.
Kentucky’s Republican
nominee for governor,
Matt Bevin, said Tuesday
that he supports Davis’
“willingness to stand for
her First Amendment
rights,” and if elected,
would have people down-
load marriage licenses
on the Internet to file
at clerk’s offices just like
other documents.
Conway,
h i s
Democratic opponent,
has said he supports a
new state law that would
protect clerks who do
not want to issue mar-
riage licenses to same-sex
couples.
Outside the court-
house, dozens of Davis’
supporters stood in a
circle, singing “Amazing
Grace” and “Onward
Christian Soldiers.”
“She’s standing for
God’s word and we’re
standing with her,” said
Flavis McKinney.
On the other side of the
courthouse lawn, others
held signs reading “Hate
is not a family value”
and sang repurposed
Christian songs: “Jesus
loves the little children,
all the children of the
world. Gay or straight or
black or white, they are
precious in his sight.”
Will Smith Jr. and
James Yates emerged
from the courthouse red-
eyed and shaking, too
upset to talk about being
rejected again. They held
hands and rushed around
the protesters to reach
their car.
But Moore and Ermold
joined the rainbow-clad
throng. They swayed and
sang, pledging to come
back again and again
until Davis relents.
“I feel sad, I feel angry,
I feel devastated,” Ermold
said. “I feel humiliated
on such a national level
that I can’t comprehend
it. I cannot comprehend
it right now.”
Sheriff Matt Sparks
tried to keep everyone
civilized as he stood
between the two sides.
By CLAIRE GALOFARO
The Associated Press
Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, right, talks with
David Moore following her office’s refusal to
issue marriage licenses at the Rowan County
Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday.
Timothy D.
Easley/
The Associated Press
