Commemorations of the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Dachau, near Munich, in 1945 run from April 30 to May 3.

A spokesman for the Polish bishops, Msgr Józef Kloch, said Dachau was the main camp for priests from all over Europe.

More than half the priests imprisoned in Dachau came from Poland, he said.

Dauchau started in 1933 as a camp for political prisoners.

By the end of World War II, more than 200,000 people from all over Europe had been imprisoned there and in its subsidiary camps. Of these, 41,500 were murdered.

Among the prisoners were 2794 priests, with 1773 of these from Poland. Of the Polish priests, 865 lost their lives.

"We want to highlight this as we remember the camp's liberation by the US Army, paying tribute to those who died, as well as to their spiritual achievements in such appalling conditions," Msgr Kloch explained.

About 800 priests and 30 bishops from Poland were expected to attend the commemorations in southern Germany.

Many priests who survived Dachau were harassed as suspected American spies by the secret police when they returned home after the war to Communist-ruled Poland, Mgr Kloch told the US Catholic News Service.

Despite the sufferings of the Polish clergy, their story remained little known.

Mgr Kloch said he was shocked to discover that virtually all of Dachau's buildings had since been demolished.

"Unlike at Auschwitz, where much still remains, there's now hardly any trace of Dachau at all. It's as if history itself has been erased there," he said.

On the final day of the Dachau liberation commemorations, the president of the German bishops' conference, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, will take part in an ecumenical service.

More than 100 survivors of Dachau and its satellite camps will attend the commemorations, as will veterans from the US Seventh Army, which liberated the concentration camp on April 29, 1945.

Sources

• Catholic Herald
• Comite International de Dachau
• Kz-gedenkstaette-dachau
• Sunday Catholic Weekly
• Image: Wikimedia Commons

Already, however, governments had bought the pill for another reason: as a means of thinning the ranks of the poor. To reduce the burden of supporting them the United States government, for example, has funded birth control for those on welfare or near the poverty line ever since 1972.

Today, both agendas are incomplete; if anything, they are more formidable than ever.

Millions of women the world over are raising children on their own; countless others have endured an abortion, suffered a sexually transmitted disease, lost their fertility, developed cancer. Birthrates have plunged — although not as much as desired among the target populations — but welfare spending continues to grow as states replace fathers and breadwinners in an increasing number of homes.

To address these problems the American President has authorised a bold new scheme. From August 1st next year, all contraception and voluntary sterilisations will be free, sort of.

Continue reading "Can contraception make America better?"

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• Image: Kora Organics