this date in history

By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Mar 07, 2006

For those who are curious (like myself), here are a few CWN headlines from this date in past years:

Last year: Pope John Paul II made a brief appearance at the window of his room in the Gemelli hospital, and Vatican officials disclosed that the Pope was hoping to return to the Vatican in time for Holy Week. The president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace issued a plea for the life of Terri Schiavo, saying: "How can anyone who claims to speak of the promotion and protection of rights-- of human life-- remain silent?"

2003: Cardinal Pio Laghi, having traveled to Washington, DC, as a personal legate from Pope John Paul in a last-minute effort to prevent war in Iraq, said that he was still had some hope for peace after a talk with President Bush.

2000: Vatican officials explained a penitential service at which Pope John Paul II would ask pardon for the faults of the Catholic past. Cardinal Ratzinger explained the Pope's call for "purification of memory."

1996: A US federal court in Washington ruled that the Constitution protects a "right to die" for those who are terminally ill.