The case of Terri Schiavo, the severely brain-damaged Florida woman at the heart of a fierce battle between her husband and her parents over whether or not her feeding tube should be removed, effectively causing her death by starvation, has long attracted attention from Catholics, pro-life and anti-euthanasia activists, advocates for the disabled, and Florida governor Jeb Bush. In the past several weeks, as the case progresses rapidly, it’s drawn the intense scrutiny of the Catholic and religious blogosphere as well, at new sites such as BlogsforTerri, and from veteran St. Bloggers like Irish Elk and Open Book. Schiavo’s husband Michael claims that his wife, who has been in a vegetative state for 15 years, would not want to be kept alive by artificial means, and he has fought to remove her feeding tube in a years-long legal battle. Her parents counter that Terri is a practicing Catholic who would obey the pope’s decree that people in vegetative states must be fed, and that, moreover, their daughter shows signs of responsiveness that indicate she could one day recover. Yesterday, the controversy came to a point, as an appeals court ruled that Michael Schiavo could order the feeding tube removed, and an hour later, a circuit court judge issued an emergency stay blocking the removal until at least 5 p.m. today.