The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports passage of House Bill 1257, a measure that would require websites containing material harmful to minors to implement age verification procedures to prevent access by those under the age of 18. The Church teaches that pornography “does grave injury to the dignity of its Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports House Bill 1150, which would allow local governments to exercise control over the presence and operation of commercial medical marijuana establishments within their jurisdictions. The Church teaches, “The use of drugs inflicts very grave damage on human health and life. Their use, except on Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference opposes passage of Senate Bill 192, a bill that would double the amount of money that can be spent on a video lottery machine game, from two dollars to four dollars, and increase the award amount per bet from $1,000 to $2,000. While games of Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports passage of Senate Bill 109, legislation that proposes a provisional repeal of the death penalty. In his landmark encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), St. Pope John Paul II explained the Church’s teaching on criminal punishments: “Public authority must redress the violation of Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports House Concurrent Resolution 6008, a measure that expresses the legislature’s opposition to an initiated measure that would add a “right to abortion” to the state constitution of South Dakota. HCR 6008 recognizes that the right to life is the “most basic and fundamental right”, Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports Senate Bill 72, a measure to raise the cap on South Dakota’s tax-credit K-12 scholarship program to $5 million. The program is currently capped at $3.5 million. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council taught, “Parents who have the primary and inalienable right and Read more…
Instructions for downloading inserts: For Mac users: 1) Click on the link 2) Under the “File” pull-down menu at top of screen, click on “Save Page As” For PC users: 1.) Click on the link 2.) Right-click the image and click “Save Image As” Bulletin Insert 1 Bulletin Insert 2 Read more…
Statement of the Bishops of South Dakota on the Anniversary of the Overturning of Roe v. Wade
South Dakota’s 2023 legislative session marked the first time that state lawmakers had gathered since the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its June 24, 2022 decision in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade and restored to the states the ability to set their own public policy on abortion. Host Michael Pauley is joined by Dale Bartscher, the Executive Director of South Dakota Right to Life, for a discussion on how state lawmakers responded to the Dobbs decision, and how South Dakota’s pro-life community is responding to a citizen-initiated amendment that proposes to create an unlimited right to abortion in the state constitution.
During the 2023 legislative session, South Dakota lawmakers introduced five different bills that sought to regulate the spread of obscenity, especially by limiting the access of minors to harmful materials. Despite a growing public awareness of the harms caused by obscene material and programs, not one of the anti-obscenity bills made it through the legislature. Michael Pauley is joined by Norman Woods of the South Dakota Family Heritage Alliance to discuss the debate surrounding obscenity laws, the role of the courts and their interpretation of the First Amendment, and the surprising involvement of South Dakota’s public-school establishment in opposing anti-obscenity legislation.
In the year 2000 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the drug mifepristone (also known as RU-486 or Mifeprex) as part of a regimen for chemically induced abortions. But on April 7, 2023—late on Good Friday—a federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction that suspended the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, pending a trial on the merits of the case. The preliminary injunction was partially reversed on appeal, but the judge’s opinion in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA casts a spotlight on the damage that mifepristone has caused to women and their preborn children. Host Michael Pauley is joined by Adam Schwend of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America to discuss the implications of the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine case, regarded by many legal experts as the most important abortion-related litigation since the Dobbs decision.
In 2022 voters rejected a measure to legalize recreational marijuana in South Dakota. Yet in the 2023 session of the state legislature, a dozen bills were introduced related to marijuana, and in 2024 yet another ballot measure on marijuana is likely to come before voters. Why is this issue still so unsettled? To answer this question, host Michael Pauley is joined by Jim Kinyon, the Chairman of Protecting South Dakota Kids, and the Executive Director of Catholic Social Services in Rapid City. Jim and Mike discuss the ambitions of the marijuana industry in South Dakota, some troubling aspects of the state’s “medical marijuana” program, and why Catholics should care deeply about the effects that marijuana has on our society.
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports passage of HB 1116, which would prohibit the use of any state funding or state resources, including public school district resources, for promoting or hosting content that is lewd and lascivious. The bill defines “lewd and lascivious” as including obscene live conduct that appeals Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference opposes House Joint Resolution 5006, which seeks to amend the state constitution to permit mobile sports betting throughout the state. The Catholic Church does not understand games of chance to be inherently wrong in every instance. However, very serious concerns arise in the context of Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports passage of HB 1129, which would establish certain safeguards in South Dakota’s medical marijuana program to protect patient safety and prevent abuses. The use of marijuana for medical purposes was legalized when voters approved Initiated Measure 26 in 2020. The Church teaches, “The use Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports passage of SCR 602, a legislative resolution that affirms support for the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the high court’s 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade and its creation of a national entitlement to abortion. Regarding Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference opposes passage of SB 117, a bill that would double the amount of money that can be spent on a video lottery machine game, from two dollars to four dollars, and increase the award amount per bet from $1,000 to $2,500. While games of chance Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference supports passage of SB 75, which modifies existing laws related to parental support for a child born out of wedlock. SB 75 provides that both the father and mother are jointly responsible for paying the expenses related to pregnancy or prenatal care for the child, Read more…
The South Dakota Catholic Conference opposes passage of SB 57, which would limit the ability of students receiving alternative instruction (e.g., homeschooled students) to participate in school district activities such as athletics and fine arts. SB 57 would reverse a key component of SB 177, a 2021 enactment supported by Read more…
Host Michael Pauley is joined by Dr. Alfonso Oliva, a physician specializing in plastic and reconstructive surgery, and a member of the Executive Board of the Catholic Medical Association. Dr. Oliva and Michael discuss the various controversies surrounding the use of drugs and surgeries as “treatment” for persons experiencing gender dysphoria. What are the purported benefits of such procedures, and what are the known complications? Dr. Oliva shares his thoughts concerning the rapid rise in cases of reported gender dysphoria among adolescent females, and the growing trend of administering drugs and performing so-called “gender reassignment” surgeries upon minors in the United States.