Posted on 09/19/2013 6:13:49 AM PDT by rhema
The nation’s Catholic bishops have issued a new document promising not to give up on overturning the controversial birth control-abortion mandate in Obamacare.
Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, in a new letter to bishops nationwide, said the bishops continue to study the legal and moral implications of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate in the Affordable Care Act, and to “develop avenues of response that would both preserve our strong unity and protect our consciences.”
His letter followed the September 10-11 meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Administrative Committee, the top ranking USCCB body outside a plenary session.
The bishops’ “efforts are proceeding apace, and, as you know, include a careful legal and moral analysis of the final rule,” Cardinal Dolan said. Further discussion will take place at the bishops’ fall plenary, Nov. 11-14 in Baltimore.
“We are united in our resolve to continue to defend our right to live by our faith, and our duty to serve the poor, heal the sick, keep our apostolates strong and faithful, and insure our people,” he said.
The bishops and leading pro-life groups oppose the HHS mandate, which requires virtually all employers to facilitate access to sterilization and contraception, as well as drugs and devices that may cause abortion, even if doing so violates deeply-held religious beliefs. Despite serious religious liberty concerns expressed by believers of many faiths, the Administration finalized its mandate with only minor changes. The final rule, Cardinal Dolan said, “still suffers from the same three basic problems”:
“Its narrow definition of ‘religious employer’ reduces religious freedom to the freedom of worship by dividing our community between houses of worship and ministries of service,” “Its second-class treatment of those great ministries – the so-called ‘accommodation’ – leaves them without adequate relief,” and “Its failure to offer any relief to for-profit businesses run by so many of our faithful in the pews.” Cardinal Dolan stressed the bishops’ longstanding advocacy of policies that advance the goal of affordable health care.
“Now we are being burdened because of the same Catholic values that compel us into these ministries,” he said.
Cardinal Dolan emphasized that the members of the Administrative Committee “were unanimous in their resolve to continue our struggle against the HHS Mandate.” He likewise voiced concern regarding the Catholic Health Association’s “hurried acceptance of the accommodation” which he called “untimely and unhelpful.”
“We highly value CHA’s great expertise in their ministry of healing,” Cardinal Dolan said, “but as they have been the first to say, they do not represent the Magisterium of the Church.”
The full letter follows:
September 17, 2013
Year of Faith
My brother bishops,
I write at the request of our brother bishops on the USCCB Administrative Committee, who asked me to update you, as I have now grown accustomed to doing, on the tough and delicate matter of the HHS Mandate, and our ongoing response to it. You won’t be surprised to hear that, at our meeting last week, we spent a great deal of time focused on this matter of major concern to us all.
I have to tell you first that we took the occasion to vent. The Catholic Church in America has long been a leader in providing affordable health care, and in advocating for policies that advance that goal. The bishops on a national level have been at it for almost one hundred years, and our heroic women and men religious have done so even longer. Yet, instead of spending our time, energy, and treasure on increasing access to health care, as we have done for many decades, we’re now forced to spend those resources on determining how to respond to recently enacted government regulations that restrict and burden our religious freedom. Catholics – our parents and grandparents, religious sisters, brothers and priests – were among the first at the table to advance and provide health care, and now we are being burdened because of the same Catholic values that compel us into these ministries! All this in a country that puts religious liberty first on the list of its most cherished freedoms. As I’ve said before, this is a fight that we didn’t ask for, and would rather not be in, but it’s certainly one that we won’t run from.
It might be helpful if we keep in mind our recent history on the HHS mandate and our efforts regarding it. Last February 1, the Administration announced its updated “accommodation.” We immediately said that we needed time to analyze it, but that our initial read indicated that, regrettably, not much had changed, and our objections remained. Nonetheless, we took the administration at its word when it said it would consider our concerns, and after a detailed analysis, our Conference again submitted extensive comments, as invited to do by HHS.
On June 28, we got our answer: despite our grave concerns – concerns we share with believers of many other faiths, and with so many of the 400,000 others who commented on the rule – the “accommodation” was finalized with only minor changes. While the administration gave us a much-needed extra five months to determine how to respond, the final version of the mandate still suffers from the same three basic problems we have highlighted from the start: its narrow definition of “religious employer” reduces religious freedom to the freedom of worship by dividing our community between houses of worship and ministries of service; its second-class treatment of those great ministries—the so-called “accommodation”—leaves them without adequate relief; and its failure to offer any relief at all to for-profit businesses run by so many of our faithful in the pews.
As you know, we are continuing our efforts in Congress and in the courts, and we are confident that our rights under the Constitution and other laws protecting religious freedom will eventually be vindicated. While much remains uncertain, it is plain that the HHS Mandate lessens the ability of our ministries to give full-throated witness to our faith, a central mission of all Catholic apostolates.
At the Administrative Committee meeting, the members were unanimous in their resolve to continue our struggle against the HHS Mandate, and they asked me to convey that firm resolve to you. If there’s any perception that our dedication to this fight is flagging, that’s dead wrong.
That perception may come in part from the Catholic Health Association’s hurried acceptance of the accommodation, which was, I’m afraid, untimely and unhelpful. We highly value CHA’s great expertise in their ministry of healing, but as they have been the first to say, they do not represent the Magisterium of the Church. Even in their document stating that they could live with the “accommodation” they remarked that we bishops, along with others, have wider concerns than they do.
We continue to follow the excellent process established at the meeting of the body of bishops in June, to develop avenues of response that would both preserve our strong unity and protect our consciences. Those efforts are proceeding apace, and as you know, include a careful legal and moral analysis of the final rule. We will then have another opportunity to discuss the rule at our November plenary assembly.
We are united in our resolve to continue to defend our right to live by our faith, and our duty to serve the poor, heal the sick, keep our apostolates strong and faithful, and insure our people. I remain grateful for your continued unity in response to this matter of deep concern to us all. I’ll try my best to keep you posted.
With prayerful best wishes, I am,
Fraternally in Christ,
Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
President
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
good tell the devil he is ridiculous and to folk off
Ping
Kill the Obamacare monster....WWW.DONTFUNDOBAMACARE.COM. Join the 1.5million Americans that have already signed and endorsed this Lee/Cruz defund Obamacare petition!!! Sign and endorse the petition......TODAY!!! Hey....millions of Republican voters....what the heck are you waiting for??? I hear tons of babble from ya all complaining how horrible Obamacare is......where’s your action!!! Time to ur money where ur mouth is!!!
(WWW.DONTFUNDOBAMACARE.COM)
These guys have slept with the democrats for so long, they wouldn’t know how to change masters if they were set free and let off their chains..........
After lying down with dogs (liberal democrats) for decades the bishops discover upon getting up that they have fleas.
Note the emphasis. They're not opposed to Obamacare per se.
You blew your chance. It came in early November, 2012.
Every one of you should have taken to the pulpits at every Mass and instructed the faithful that “it is a MORTAL SIN to cast your vote to re-elect this man”.
Since you didn’t do that, I have no patience for hand-wringing and half-hearted measures.
Kansas Congresswoman reply
Thank you so much for taking the time to contact me regarding attempts by some members of Congress to exempt themselves from the President’s health care law. As your representative in Washington, I want you to know how much I value your thoughts and concerns.
In 1995, Congress passed the Congressional Reform Act of 1995 which applies all federal laws and regulations to Members of Congress. I strongly support this law, and believe Congress must be equally bound by the same laws as the people they represent. Members of Congress have no business drafting legislation and creating laws that they would not choose to abide by as citizens of this country.
This is why I was appalled when it recently came to my attention that leaders on the other side of the aisle in both the House and Senate were advocating behind closed doors to exempt themselves and their staffs from having to participate in the health insurance exchanges created by the President’s health care law. I understand that these lawmakers are likely concerned exchanges will not be able to operate efficiently in time for their 2014 implementation. I, too, am concerned and believe the law should be repealed for all citizens and am strongly opposed to any effort to exempt certain people from a bad law and forcing others to live under it. In an effort to stop this plan in its tracks, I have agreed to cosponsor H.R. 1780, a bill reiterating that the President, members of the House and Senate, and Federal employees, including White House and Capitol Hill staff, must purchase their health insurance through the exchanges for 2014, in accordance with the law of the land.
Since coming to Washington, I have stood for smaller more responsible government. I will continue to do my best to uphold and defend the Constitution. Thank you again for contacting me. Please never hesitate to call, email, or write if you have any issues or concerns on your mind. Also feel free to visit my website at www.lynnjenkins.house.gov where you can see what I have been up to and sign up for my weekly newsletter.
Sincerely,
Lynn Jenkins, CPA
Member of Congress
Good deal. Is she your Rep?
The opponents of Obamacare need to coordinate their efforts.
And the marxists won’t give up until they destroy the church.
Keep up the battle, bishops. If it means you go to jail, so be it!
Once a politician gets elected to a Federal office, they promptly forget about the “Fecal Federal Finger” effect.
Every area of endeavor that the US Federal Government touches with its Fecal Federal Finger always turns to Obamadung, Obama”care” has proven that.
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Here is some more ammo, the next time you contact our sorry Federal Politicians:
GET THE DAMN FEDS OUT OF THE MEDICAL AND INSURANCE PROFESSIONS !!!!!!!!!
WE TAXPAYERS CANNOT AFFORD YOU DAMN PARASITE POLITICIANS !!!
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The best way to fix a broken system is to SHUT IT DOWN, and THEN fix it.
Speaker Newt SHUT DOWN the US Federal Government in the 1990’s and it WORKED!
Clinton then took credit for balanced Federal Budgets, fewer people were in poverty, and all because Newt said NO !
The Liberal Agenda Media and the Democrats boo-hooed to this day, but Newt achieved success.
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The only way to force a spoiled brat to behave is to punish, punish, punish.
The worst punishment that a Democrat, or RINO can imagine is to take away their ability to spend our tax dollars.
The best way to do that is to shutdown the non-essential parts of the US Federal Government, starting with mothballing Air Force One.
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Why not have the true Republicans require a BINDING, updated, “Federal Financial Impact Statement” for 2012-2013 fiscal year, and 2013-2014 f. y. for Obama”care?”
It should take a month or two to complete, allow for a vote to delay Obama”care” for a year, and then show the great financial harm to our Economy that the Statement’s numbers will document.
Wharton, Stanford, Michigan and Princeton could also file their independent Financial Impact Statements to compare to the Office of Budget and the Congressional Budget Office Financial Impact Statements.
As B. Hussein is fond of saying: “We need to get all the facts first.”
There’s a problem here. If you strip off the HHS mandate, would the bishops turn right around and endorse Obamacare for everyone else? Given their embrace of so much of the leftist platform in other things, I suspect that they would be all in favor of Obamacare, if it just harmed other people but stayed off of their turf.
They need to face facts, that socialism is just plain bad and evil, and they cannot soil their left hand supporting it, while keeping their right hand clean of it and claiming purity.
BTTT! Thanks, rhema
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