The USCCB responds:
“We hope to work with the Administration to guarantee that Americans’ consciences and our religious freedom are not harmed by these regulations.”
My Princes are dumber than rocks..Yeah, deals with the Devil are always successful because the Devil is such a moron.
No, dear friend! They are assessing the game plan to their advantage. Their position is solid and unchanging .. that is good. To support her position, Sebelius indicated that nearly 98% of catholic women have used birth control at some point in time, for medical reasons. In fact, 30+ years ago, my doctor put me on birth control to treat endometriosis. The objective was to eliminate the endometriosis so that I could become pregnant. It didn't work. However, that places me, a non contracepting catholic woman, in Sebelius' statistic. Do you see how cleverly the snake slithers through the grass? Let's be frank and honest. The actual number of young catholic women who take birth control to limit the size of their families, is well below that number. Sebelius is using that statistic to manipulate the POTUS in her direction, by referring to it as medicine.
The bishops are walking through a mine field that include catholic women on both sides of the issue. While they can never condone the use of contraceptives and related drugs, they must navigate the field in a way that does not alienate contracepting women from the Church. Remember, they have until January to formulate a decision on this matter. The ball has been tossed back to their court, by Obama. Rather than make an impulsive decision, they have wisely decided to place this item on their Spring agenda. In the meantime, we have Bill Donohue and a host of other catholics out there to scream 'foul'. As Donohue noted on Fox this afternoon, his insurance provider is Christian Brothers. As a catholic organization, how can they pay for contraceptives that go against their conscience? Besides, with any organization that provides insurance coverage to their employees, the employer is funding all or a portion of that insurance. And now, to compound matters, the insurance companies are also assessing the situation. Who will pay them for this? The issue is far more complex than what we see and deserves time for a proper response.
Next week, Timothy Dolan, President of the USCCB will leave for Rome and his elevation to cardinal. Let's remember him and ALL the bishops in our prayers. God knows they need them.