US Catholics dismayed by Obama administration ruling

Catholic Herald ^ | Saturday, 21 January 2012 | Nancy Frazier OBrien

[narses]

Catholics in the United States have reacted with dismay after the Obama administration turned down repeated requests from Catholic bishops, hospitals, schools and charitable organisations to revise its religious exemption to the requirement that all health plans cover contraceptives and sterilisation free of charge.

Instead, Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services, announced yesterday that non-profit groups that do not provide contraceptive coverage because of their religious beliefs will get an additional year “to adapt to this new rule”.

“This decision was made after very careful consideration, including the important concerns some have raised about religious liberty,” Mrs Sebelius said. “I believe this proposal strikes the appropriate balance between respecting religious freedom and increasing access to important preventive services.”

But Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan of New York, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), said the Obama administration had “drawn an unprecedented line in the sand” with the decision.

“The Catholic bishops are committed to working with our fellow Americans to reform the law and change this unjust regulation,” he added. “We will continue to study all the implications of this troubling decision.”

Mrs Sebelius announced the mandate and a narrow religious exemption to it on August 1, 2011. Under the plan, after August 1 this year, new or significantly altered health plans will be required to provide all Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptives, including some that can cause abortions, without co-pays or deductibles as part of preventive health care for women.

The only religious organisations exempt from the requirement would be those meeting four specific criteria: “(1) has the inculcation of religious values as its purpose; (2) primarily employs persons who share its religious tenets; (3) primarily serves persons who share its religious tenets; and (4) is a non-profit organisation” under specific sections of the Internal Revenue Code.

Those sections “refer to churches, their integrated auxiliaries, and conventions or associations of churches, as well as to the exclusively religious activities of any religious orders”, according to a footnote to the interim final rule.

Catholic groups, including the USCCB, the Catholic Health Association and Catholic Charities USA, called that exemption too narrow, saying it would require Catholic groups to stop all services to those who were not Catholic and would inappropriately involve the government in decisions about whether an organisation is “religious enough” to be exempted.

Mrs Sebelius’s announcement prompted an outcry from Catholic leaders and a sigh of relief from groups such as Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America, which had opposed any moves to weaken the contraceptive mandate or strengthen the religious exemption.

In a video posted on the USCCB website, Cardinal-designate Dolan said the decision put the Obama administration “on the wrong side of the Constitution” and should be rescinded.

“In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences,” the cardinal-designate said in a separate statement. “To force American citizens to choose between violating their consciences and forgoing their health care is literally unconscionable. It is as much an attack on access to health care as on religious freedom. Historically this represents a challenge and a compromise of our religious liberty.”

Franciscan Sister Jane Marie Klein, who chairs the board at Franciscan Alliance, a system of 13 Catholic hospitals, characterised the decision as “nothing else than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights”.

Sister Carol Keehan, a Daughter of Charity who is president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association, said the announcement was a “missed opportunity to be clear on appropriate conscience protection”.

“The challenge that these regulations posed for many groups remains unresolved,” she said. “This indicates the need for an effective national conversation on the appropriate conscience protections in our pluralistic country, which has always respected the role of religions.”

Fr Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA, said he was “extremely disappointed” that the administration chose to ignore calls from religious institutions to broaden the exemption.

“With the existing restrictive definition in this mandate, the ministry of Jesus Christ himself would not be considered a religious entity,” he said.

“Just as the identity of Catholic Charities is firmly rooted in the teaching of its Church, the identity of this nation includes a mandated respect of religious beliefs,” Fr Snyder added. “It is this long-standing history that gave us hope that as a religious institution we would be granted the freedom to remain faithful to our beliefs while also being committed to providing access to quality health care for our 70,000 employees and their families across the country.”

In This Article

Archbishop Timothy Dolan, Kathleen Sebelius, Obama administration, US Conference of Catholic Bishops, US Department of Health and Human Services, USCCB

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• EndGame

  Surprise surprise, Obama and his merry band of treacherous Catholic allies have stabbed the USCCB in the back after all their (shameful) support of the Democratic Party over the years. It’s not called the party of death for nothing, not just regarding it’s abortion and culture efforts but regarding the debasement of the US constitution and liberty. Obama is now acting more and more like the despot and dictator his voting record and Chicago history suggested he could be.
  People seem to have no idea how close both the US and Europe is to cultural/political/economic collapse, and takeover by a tiny elite.
  We get the politicians we deserve, and ultimately the world we deserve. We have traded God and his laws for shopping and entertainment, sex and self indulgence. Without a COMPLETE and very public return the God and his laws, coupled with sincere penance we shall soon reap the whirlwind our sins have sown……..

[aposiopetic]

There’s always hope....

[ConfidentConservative]

Ok Catholics, time to get behind Newt Gingrich and get this Muslim, Christian hater OUT!

[aposiopetic]

The USCCB has no direct authority over priests, as I understand. What one bishop or another may or may not have done is a different matter.

[ConfidentConservative]

Good Question,

I remember going to my church one time and having a pastor from Africa, very Godly man, ask “Why does this wonderful country kill your babies.” You could have heard a pin drop it was so quiet!

[Katarina]

LOL bet they wish they had not voted for Obama now.

“dismayed”...that’s it just dismayed. Not very strong feelings to be only dismayed.

[conservativehistorian]

Too many of the US bishops are liberal democrats in cassocks who still adhere to Joseph Benardin’s foolish ‘seamless garment’ mantra.

Yesterday at the March for Life mass as the cathedral, our bishop falsely proclaimed that both political parties are equally antagonistic to the rights of the unborn. I nearly choked.

[livius]

Sister Carol Keehan, a Daughter of Charity who is president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association, said the announcement was a “missed opportunity to be clear on appropriate conscience protection”.

Good ol' Sister Carol was one of Bambi's chief Catholic supporters. And now she appears to be surprised by his latest move? Gimme a break.

Bishops need to start doing some excommunicating. It's way overdue.

[rabidralph]

Thanks for the background.

[Clintonfatigued]

Everyone I know regardless of their church attendance is dismayed by the Obama Administration.

[Ax]

It would be a real slap in the face to the current administration if B-XVI were personally to excommunicate one of Hussein’s lackeys.

[italianquaker]

They are not catholics

[Sun]

Good bye religious liberty. Good bye the America we used to know.

[SkyPilot]

Obama wins back Catholic vote

The International Herald Tribune quoted several religious experts saying that the swing in the Catholic vote in this year's election may be one of the more significant political developments, despite the emphasis that Democrats have put on attracting evangelical voters. Although Kerry is Catholic, he won only 47 percent of Catholic voters, while Bush drew 52 percent. That represented a reversal from 2000 when Gore won 50 percent of Catholics and Bush won 47 percent. On Tuesday, Catholics, who accounted for about a quarter of the electorate, supported Obama, at 54 percent, over McCain, at 45 percent. Pope Benedict has also sent a personal note to incoming US President Barack Obama saying that he will be praying for God's blessings on the American people and their new president. The pope's spokesman says Obama will get the message later today when it's relayed through the US ambassador to the vatican, NBC Online reports. Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi said the the message calls Obama's victory a historic occasion, and offers warm wishes to Obama, his wife and family.

[FlyingEagle]

Just disobey the communists. Simple. Just don’t.

[musicman]

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[Gamecock]

Why should the Roman Catholics care?

Didn't they vote for him by a margin of 54-45%?

This is almost the exact opposite of the Protestant/Evangelical vote.

Shouldn't really surprise anyone since so many pro-abortion pols come from predominantly Catholic regions of the country. (The Kennedy Dynasty comes to mind)

The Catholics get exactly who/what they vote for.

[jmacusa]

Is Obama asking the Saracens in America to go along with this too? Just asking.

[Gumdrop]

I’m a Catholic and I can testify that Catholics who still vote for Democrats are either indoctrinated Dems from birth - or - they only pay attention to the candidates about one week before the election. Frequently they also do not attend church as often either.

Faithful Catholics are the ones who not only go to church regularly, but are active in the pro-life movement, in prayer groups, and in teaching the children their Christian faith. They are mostly all voting GOP by now.

Have you ever tried to speak to anyone who is not into politics about current events? Try telling a Catholic who is not current on civic affairs about the Obama administration’s forcing of Christians to pay for abortions, etc, and they will look at you like you are crazy, - like (????) you are not telling the truth. This is much like the Germans who did not truly comprehend the evils of Hitler’s Nazi regime. They wefre not all bad people, but they were complicit in their ignorance of the evil around them.

People have a responsibility to follow the actions of their government and resist evil whenever they can.

[Monorprise]

So Christians are yet again faced with the a Choice. Abandon their faith or face Goverment persecution.

Let us hope that we have the moral fortitude to hold fast to our faith and endure whatever persecution the lawless federal Goverment try’s to throw at us. Let us prove to God and to ourselfs the level of our commitment.

[Gamecock]

Dr Eckleburg to Post 36 Stat. Dr Eckleburg to 36.