Bishops studying initial White House movement on religious liberty
Friday, February 10, 2012
2:55 PM
New opportunity to dialogue with executive branch
Too soon to tell whether and how much improvement on core concerns
Commitment to religious liberty for all means legislation still necessary
Washington, DC - The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) sees initial opportunities in preserving the principle of religious freedom after President Obama’s announcement today. But the Conference continues to express concerns. “While there may be an openness to respond to some of our concerns, we reserve judgment on the details until we have them,” said Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, president of USCCB.
“The past three weeks have witnessed a remarkable unity of Americans from all religions or none at all worried about the erosion of religious freedom and governmental intrusion into issues of faith and morals,” he said.
“Today’s decision to revise how individuals obtain services that are morally objectionable to religious entities and people of faith is a first step in the right direction,” Cardinal-designate Dolan said. “We hope to work with the Administration to guarantee that Americans’ consciences and our religious freedom are not harmed by these regulations.”
Church community hosting soup dinner
Friday, February 10, 2012
12:09 PM
St. Boniface Church, Seneca, will host a hometown soup dinner Sunday February 19 beginning at noon.
The parishioners will be servuing Beef stew, knoephla soup, oyster stew, homemade bread, pies and cheesecake.
There will alos be a silent auction and bingo.
The event will be at the church.
A free will offering will be taken abnd accepted.
Everyone is welcome for good food, fun and fellowship.
Christian unity summit brings together leaders from several ecumenical organizations
Thursday, February 09, 2012
3:07 PM
Washington, DC - At the invitation of Cardinal William Keeler, archbishop emeritus of Baltimore, a “Christian Unity Summit” took place on January 10-11, bringing together 27 church leaders from African American, Catholic, Evangelical, Historic Protestant, Orthodox and Pentecostal perspectives who participate in four ecumenical organizations: Christian Churches Together in the USA (CCT), Churches Uniting in Christ (CUIC), the National Council of Churches of Christ (NCCC), and the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE).
The two day meeting, which took place at the Center for Continuing Formation at St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, Maryland, was conceived of by Michael Kinnamon (NCCC) and Dick Hamm (CCT), in recognition of the need for a broader conversation than is possible at present within the individual organizations.
Representatives of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) included Bishop Denis Madden, auxiliary bishop of Baltimore and chairman of the Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs; Father Brian Bransfield, associate general secretary; Oblate of Saint Francis De Sales Father John Crossin, executive director of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs (SEIA), and Paulist Father Ronald G. Roberson, associate director of SEIA. USCCB has participated in Christian Churches Together in the USA since 2004.
The summit offered an opportunity for religious leaders from various Christian traditions to come together to discuss the future of the Christian unity movement in the United States at a time when the churches are facing a new context, to learn more about the traditions represented, and to discuss the functions, goals and challenges of the four unity organizations.
The group identified common challenges that affect the Christian unity landscape and point to the need for ongoing dialogue across traditions and organizations.
Among these challenges are reduced financial resources in many communions and organizations, a post-Christian secular environment, intensified interfaith engagements, and both continuing and new challenges regarding poverty, racism, the environment and religious freedom.
The dialogue revolved around questions such as how can the churches be faithful to Jesus’ prayer “that they may all be one” and how can the Christian unity organizations work in a more collaborative and less competitive way in the new context. There was a particular focus on highlighting ways in which the CCT and the NCCC are working in collaborative and complementary ways.
Though the group has no official standing or authority, the participants included leaders from each of the four organizations. It is hoped that the summit’s report will stimulate further reflection on Christian unity structures in the United States and help to bridge longstanding differences. The group plans to meet again in January 2013 to gauge progress and to continue the dialogue.
Catholic bishops denounce as "grave injustice" appeals court ruling striking down California marriage law
Thursday, February 09, 2012
2:10 PM
Cardinal-designate Dolan and Bishop Cordileone decry court decision
“Marriage deserves better,” Cardinal-designate Dolan says
Marriage protection critical to the flourishing of society, says Bishop Cordileone
Washington, DC - Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, joins the bishops of California in denouncing the February 7 decision of a federal court rejecting the constitutionality of Proposition 8, a voter-approved initiative in California that recognizes marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
“Today’s court ruling is a grave injustice, ignoring the reality that marriage is the union of one man and one woman,” Cardinal-designate Dolan said. “The Constitution of the United States most assuredly does not forbid the protection of the perennial meaning of marriage, one of the cornerstones of society. The people of California deserve better. Our nation deserves better. Marriage deserves better.”
The decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the August 4, 2010 decision of a federal district judge who had ruled Proposition 8 unconstitutional.
“Our society does not operate in an amoral or value-less vacuum,” said Bishop Salvatore Cordileone of Oakland, chairman of the Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage. “To flourish, it must be infused with moral direction that is grounded in the truth. Of course, the true meaning of marriage, like the gift of human life, is ultimately not subject to a vote or court ruling. But in California, as in every other state where marriage has been put to a vote, the people justly upheld the truth of marriage. How tragic for California, for the nation, and especially for children, that this correctly-informed judgment has now been set aside.”
White House misrepresents its own contraceptive mandate
Thursday, February 09, 2012
1:14 PM
Washington, DC - The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued the following response to the February 2 post on the White House blog.
Full text follows:
The Obama administration, to justify its widely criticized mandate for contraception and sterilization coverage in private health plans, has posted a set of false and misleading claims on the White House blog (“Health Reform, Preventive Services, and Religious Institutions,” February 1). In what follows, each White House claim is quoted with a response.
Claim: “Churches are exempt from the new rules: Churches and other houses of worship will be exempt from the requirement to offer insurance that covers contraception.”
Response: This is not entirely true. To be eligible, even churches and houses of worship must show the government that they hire and serve primarily people of their own faith and have the inculcation of religious values as their purpose. Some churches may have service to the broader community as a major focus, for example, by providing direct service to the poor regardless of faith. Such churches would be denied an exemption precisely because their service to the common good is so great. More importantly, the vast array of other religious organizations – schools, hospitals, universities, charitable institutions – will clearly not be exempt.
Claim: “No individual health care provider will be forced to prescribe contraception: The President and this Administration have previously and continue to express strong support for existing conscience protections. For example, no Catholic doctor is forced to write a prescription for contraception.”
Response: It is true that these rules directly apply to employers and insurers, not providers, but this is beside the point: The Administration is forcing individuals and institutions, including religious employers, to sponsor and subsidize what they consider immoral. Less directly, the classification of these drugs and procedures as basic “preventive services” will increase pressures on doctors, nurses and pharmacists to provide them in order to participate in private health plans – and no current federal conscience law prevents that from happening. Finally, because the mandate includes abortifacient drugs, it violates one of the “existing conscience protections” (the Weldon amendment) for which the Administration expresses “strong support.”
Claim: “No individual will be forced to buy or use contraception: This rule only applies to what insurance companies cover. Under this policy, women who want contraception will have access to it through their insurance without paying a co-pay or deductible. But no one will be forced to buy or use contraception.”
Response: The statement that no one will be forced to buy it is false. Women who want contraception will be able to obtain it without co-pay or deductible precisely because women who do not want contraception will be forced to help pay for it through their premiums. This mandate passes costs from those who want the service, to those who object to it.
Claim: “Drugs that cause abortion are not covered by this policy: Drugs like RU486 are not covered by this policy, and nothing about this policy changes the President’s firm commitment to maintaining strict limitations on Federal funding for abortions. No Federal tax dollars are used for elective abortions.”
Response: False. The policy already requires coverage of Ulipristal (HRP 2000 or “Ella”), a drug that is a close analogue to RU-486 (mifepristone) and has the same effects.[i] RU-486 itself is also being tested for possible use as an “emergency contraceptive” – and if the FDA approves it for that purpose, it will automatically be mandated as well.
Claim: “Over half of Americans already live in the 28 States that require insurance companies cover contraception: Several of these States like North Carolina, New York, and California have identical religious employer exemptions. Some States like Colorado, Georgia and Wisconsin have no exemption at all.”
Response: This misleads by ignoring important facts, and some of it is simply false. All the state mandates, even those without religious exemptions, may be avoided by self-insuring prescription drug coverage, by dropping that particular coverage altogether, or by taking refuge in a federal law that pre-empts any state mandates (ERISA). None of these havens is available under the federal mandate. It is also false to claim that North Carolina has an identical exemption. It is broader: It does not require a religious organization to serve primarily people of its own faith, or to fulfill the federal rule’s narrow tax code criterion. Moreover, the North Carolina law, unlike the federal mandate, completely excludes abortifacient drugs like Ella and RU-486 as well as “emergency contraceptives” like Preven.
Claim: “Contraception is used by most women: According to a study by the Guttmacher Institute, most women, including 98 percent of Catholic women, have used contraception.”
Response: This is irrelevant, and it is presented in a misleading way. If a survey found that 98% of people had lied, cheated on their taxes, or had sex outside of marriage, would the government claim it can force everyone to do so? But this claim also mangles the data to create a false impression. The study actually says this is true of 98% of “sexually experienced” women. The more relevant statistic is that the drugs and devices subject to this mandate (sterilization, hormonal prescription contraceptives and IUDs) are used by 69% of those women who are “sexually active” and “do not want to become pregnant.” Surely that is a minority of the general public, yet every man and woman who needs health insurance will have to pay for this coverage. The drugs that the mandate’s supporters say will be most advanced by the new rule, because they have the highest co-pays and deductibles now, are powerful but risky injectable and implantable hormonal contraceptives, now used by perhaps 5% of women. The mandate is intended to change women’s reproductive behavior, not only reflect it.
Claim: “Contraception coverage reduces costs: While the monthly cost of contraception for women ranges from $30 to $50, insurers and experts agree that savings more than offset the cost. The National Business Group on Health estimated that it would cost employers 15 to 17 percent more not to provide contraceptive coverage than to provide such coverage, after accounting for both the direct medical costs of potentially unintended and unhealthy pregnancy and indirect costs such as employee absence and reduced productivity.”
Response: The government is violating our religious freedom to save money? If the claim is true it is hard to say there is a need for a mandate: Secular insurers and employers who don’t object will want to purchase the coverage to save money, and those who object can leave it alone. But this claim also seems to rest on some assumptions: That prescription contraceptives are the only way to avoid “unintended and unhealthy pregnancy,” for example, or that increasing access to contraceptives necessarily produces significant reductions in unintended pregnancies. The latter assumption has been cast into doubt by numerous studies (see http://old.usccb.org/prolife/issues/contraception/contraception-fact-sheet-3-17-11.pdf).
Claim: “The Obama Administration is committed to both respecting religious beliefs and increasing access to important preventive services. And as we move forward, our strong partnerships with religious organizations will continue.”
Response: False. There is no “balance” in the final HHS rule—one side has prevailed entirely, as the mandate and exemption remain entirely unchanged from August 2011, despite many thousands of comments filed since then indicating intense opposition. Indeed, the White House Press Secretary declared on January 31, “I don’t believe there are any constitutional rights issues here,” so little was placed on that side of the scale. The Administration’s stance on religious liberty has also been shown in other ways. Recently it argued before the Supreme Court that religious organizations have no greater right under the First amendment to hire or fire their own ministers than secular organizations have over their leaders– a claim that was unanimously rejected by the Supreme Court as “extreme” and “untenable.” The Administration recently denied a human trafficking grant to a Catholic service provider with high objective scores, and gave part of that grant instead to a provider with not just lower, but failing, objective scores, all because the Catholic provider refused in conscience to compromise the same moral and religious beliefs at issue here. Such action violates not only federal conscience laws, but President Obama’s executive order assuring “faith-based” organizations that they will be able to serve the public in federal programs without compromising their faith.
[i] See A. Tarantal, et al., 54 Contraception 107-115 (1996), at 114 (“studies with mifepristone and HRP 2000 have shown both antiprogestins to have roughly comparable activity in terminating pregnancy when administered during the early stages of gestation”); G. Bernagiano & H. von Hertzen, 375 The Lancet 527-28 (Feb. 13, 2010), at 527 (“Ulipristal has similar biological effects to mifepristone, the antiprogestin used in medical abortion”).
Archbishop Broglio calls on legal community to recognize responsibility to others
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
3:40 PM
Delivers Red Mass homily in Phoenix following return from meetings with Pope Benedict XVI in Rome
Phoenix, AZ - Like Cain, who was indeed his "brother's keeper," American Catholics working in the legal profession have a solemn responsibility for the "pastoral solicitude" of others. That was the message from His Excellency, the Most Reverend Timothy P. Broglio, J.C.D., Archbishop for the Military Services, to lawyers, judges, lawmakers and other public officials gathered Tuesday night for the annual Red Mass at St. Mary's Basilica in Phoenix.
Delivering the homily, Archbishop Broglio said:
"It is our responsibility of the pastoral care for others that dictates an annual celebration for those engaged in the legal profession. While it offers a moment to present a message, it is also an occasion to express sincere pastoral solicitude for all of those who like the allegorical figure of justice stand blindfolded and hold the scales of equality, law, and service to their fellow citizens. How difficult to be impartial! What a challenge to serve the law and to ensure that the laws made respect justice and human dignity! What courage it takes to recognize the distinction between legal and moral!"
Fresh from face-to-face meetings with Pope Benedict XVI last week in Rome, Archbishop Broglio shared the Holy Father's concern about contemporary challenges to the fundamental freedom of religion enshrined in the United States Constitution.
Archbishop Broglio said:
"Few would question that it is in jeopardy. Many openly reduce that fundamental right to a mere freedom of worship. That is not what the Constitution recognizes. It is not enough."
Archbishop Broglio quoted directly from the pontiff's Thursday address to bishops gathered for ad limina visits to the Eternal City:
"'The Church's witness... is of its nature public: she seeks to convince by proposing rational arguments in the public square. The legitimate separation of Church and State cannot be taken to mean that the Church must be silent on certain issues, nor that the State may choose not to engage, or be engaged by, the voices of committed believers in determining the values which will shape the future of the nation.'"
Archbishop Broglio concelebrated the Red Mass with His Excellency, the Most Reverend Thomas J. Olmsted, Bishop of Phoenix. It was Archbishop Broglio's third public appearance since his Sunday return to the U.S. from Rome. In Washington, D.C., he took part in the annual Mass for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on Sunday--the anniversary of the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion--and on Monday, he walked in the annual March for Life along with tens of thousands of other Catholics including many teenagers and young adults.
Archbishop Broglio said:
"It is always an uplifting moment to see so many young people anxious to defend a fundamental right. My second stop is here in Phoenix to pray with you and join Bishop Olmsted in invoking blessings upon your demanding and vital responsibilities. Two events related to each other. Both evidence the service of the Church to authentic justice.'"
"I am reminded of my first year as a seminarian in Rome. An important 19th Century Justice Department building was closed because it was unsafe. It seemed to be sinking into the ground. Yet the Colosseum, Pantheon, and the ruins of the Roman Forum were all still standing and could be visited. It was a good reminder that not everything contemporary is good and that stable foundations are essential.'"
Call to Faithful Citizenship is at heart of 2012 Catholic social ministry gathering
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
1:54 PM
Washington, DC - The challenges of living one’s faith in the public square and protecting the lives and dignity of the poor and vulnerable are the focus of the 2012 Catholic Social Ministry Gathering, which will be February 12-15, at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel.
“Faithful Citizenship: Protecting Human Life and Dignity, Promoting the Common Good,” is the theme of this year’s gathering, and speakers and workshops will explore the social ministry implications of Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, the call to political and civic responsibility published by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and reissued ahead of the 2012 elections.
The assembled Catholic social ministry leaders will also visit representatives of Congress to present proposals and concerns about policies affecting the most vulnerable people in the United States and around the world. The Catholic Social Ministry Gathering is sponsored by USCCB and 14 Catholic partner organizations including Catholic Relief Services (CRS), Catholic Charities USA, Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, Catholic Labor Network, Conference of Major Superiors of Men, National Catholic Rural Life Conference, National Catholic Partnership on Disability and the National Council of Catholic Women.
Among the plenary speakers are Carolyn Woo, the new president and CEO of CRS; Arturo Chavez, president of the Mexican American Catholic College (MACC); John Carr, executive director of Justice, Peace and Human Development for USCCB; as well as Mark Shields and David Brooks from the PBS News Hour.
For more information on the gathering, visit: www.catholicsocialministrygathering.org
For more information on Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, visit: www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/faithful-citizenship/index.cfm
Mitchell parish hosting Soup Sunday event
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
1:45 PM
The Holy Family Parish, Mitchell, altar society will be hosting a Soup Sunday on February 26, 2012 at Holy Family Church, 222 North Kimball, Mitchell.
Serving Chili, Potato/Ham Soup, Broccoli/Cheese Soup, Homemade Bread and Homemade Bars for a free will offering.
Serving will be from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Bingo will also be played.
Bishops decry HHS rule, urge Catholics to stand up for religious liberty and conscience rights in homilies at vigil for life
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
1:37 PM
Washington, DC - Both the president of the U.S. bishops and the bishops’ Pro-Life chairman called on the thousands of Catholics gathered for the National Prayer Vigil for Life to speak out for the protection of conscience rights and religious liberty.
“From a human point of view, we may be tempted to surrender, when our government places conception, pregnancy and birth under the ‘center for disease control,’ when chemically blocking conception or aborting the baby in the womb is considered a ‘right’ to be subsidized by others who abhor it,” said Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) at the vigil’s closing Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
His words referred to the January 20 announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that nearly all employers will be forced to cover drugs and procedures that violate their conscience in their health insurance plans.
“When the ability of feeding, housing, and healing the struggling of the world is curtailed and impeded if one does not also help women abort their babies, one can hardly be faulted for being tempted to the ‘sin against the Holy Spirit’ and just consider all as lost,” Cardinal-designate Dolan said.
Addressing the opening Mass the previous evening, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston and chairman of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities, excoriated the HHS rule.
“Never before in our US History has the Federal Government forced citizens to directly purchase what violates our beliefs. At issue here as our President of the Conference stated it this past Friday, is the survival of a cornerstone constitutionally protected freedom that ensures respect for conscience and religious liberty,” said Cardinal DiNardo.
He cited the January 19 address of Pope Benedict XVI to U.S. bishops visiting Rome, in which the pope said, “it is imperative that the entire Catholic community in the United States come to realize the grave threats to the Church’s public moral witness presented by a radical secularism which finds increasing expression in the political and cultural spheres. The seriousness of these threats needs to be appreciated at every level of ecclesial life.”
Cardinal DiNardo said that the pope had “nailed” the issue in light of the HHS announcement and tied the issue directly to the March for Life. “His calls for courage to counter a reductive secularism which would delegitimize the Church’s participation in public life and debate have targeted the issues we face in our pro-life efforts, to defend those who defend human life and to defend their religious liberty!”
The full text of both homilies is available online: www.usccb.org/about/media-relations/resources/2012-national-prayer-vigil-for-life-homilies.cfm
Thousands pray for end to abortion at national prayer vigil for life
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
10:21 AM
Washington, DC - Over 10,000 worshippers, many of them youth from schools around the nation, gathered in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception to pray for an end to abortion at the Opening Mass of the National Prayer Vigil for Life, Sunday, January 22, the eve of the 2012 March for Life.
January 22 marked the commemmoration of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.
Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston and chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, was the principal celebrant and homilist at the Vigil Mass, concelebrated by fellow cardinals and many of the nation's bishops and priests. Following the Opening Mass, the Vigil continued in the Crypt Church of the Basilica with confessions, a National Rosary for Life, Night Prayer according to the Byzantine Rite, and holy hours led by seminarians from across the country from midnight until 6:00 a.m.
That same evening, The Catholic University of America hosted close to 1,300 pilgrims overnight.
On Monday, January 23, the Basilica hosted Morning Prayer at 6:30 a.m. in the Crypt Church and the Closing Mass at 7:30 a.m. in the Great Upper Church. Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan of New York was the principal celebrant and homilist. At the conclusion of the National Prayer Vigil for Life, participants joined in the national March for Life.
The National Prayer Vigil for Life was co-sponsored by the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and The Catholic University of America.
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