CHURCHES MUST PAY BIRTH CONTROL: COURT

Associated Press ^ | 10/20/06

[presidio9]

Catholic and other religious social service groups must provide contraceptive coverage to their employees even if they consider contraception a sin, according to yesterday's ruling by the state's highest court.

The 6-0 decision by the state Court of Appeals hinged on defining Catholic Charities and the other nine religious groups suing the state to be social service agencies, rather than only operating as churches.

The organizations "believe contraception to be sinful," the decision states. "We must weigh against [their] interests in adhering to the tenets of their faith the state's substantial interest in fostering equality between the sexes, and in providing women with better health care."

The New York Catholic Conference is considering an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

"We think this has never really been about contraception, we think it was to target the church and open the door for coverage of abortion," said Dennis Poust, spokesman for the Catholic conference.

The court said the fact that the organizations hire employees outside their faith is a critical factor and they deserve the rights sought under the law.

"That ought to be offensive to anyone of faith," Poust said.

"I think it reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of Catholicism, which teaches that to be saved, Catholics must perform works of mercy," Poust said. "Faith alone is not enough . . . and the way the church performs its works of mercy is through its Catholic Charities, its schools and its hospitals -

[BlackElk]

Have the employees sign paperwork expressing their individual objection to any provision for birth control or abortion or transexual operations or whatever in their medical insurance policies. Send those who won't sign to search elsewhere for employment.

[BlackElk]

No vouchers because it would be Church money paying directly for immorality. Giving the employees money instead of vouchers recognizes their God-given free will to be vrtuous or to sin without implicating the Church directly.

[sit-rep]

Wouldn't this be a separation issue?

[ELS]

You're welcome. Those weren't the only threads about it, either. I just did a quick search on "muslim" and "alcohol."

[BlackElk]

First of all, there is the little matter that IUDs and the "pill" are abortifacient which will be noted when Spitzer and the legislature of the People's Demonratic Republic of New York enact new legislation requiring abortion coverage.

Second, limiting family size is not competitive in purpose with opposing abortion and opposing artificial birth control. Planned Barrenhood has much of the world bamboozled on the importance of "limiting" family size. The Catholic Church disagrees (except for NFP) and, under the First Amendment has a right to act on that disagreement.

We have had the late New York Archdiocese Auxiliary Bishop Austin Vaughan repeatedly jailed under Cuomo for abortion mill Rescues. Nothing makes our bishops more Catholic than being jailed by secular humanist tyrants/enemies of the Church and coming out of jail, as Bishop Vaughan did, saying that Mario Cuomo had better repent or he was going "straight to hell." Edward Cardinal Egan would sharply escalate his reputation by going to jail and issuing Letters from Attica. He will reach 75 soon anyway. There is in Pueblo, Colorado or in some federal prison (for praying the rosary in an Omaha abortion mill, no less), a lion of a 75-year-old priest, Fr. Norman Weslin, formerly a Colonel in the Airborne before he became a priest. Make him Cardinal/Archbishop of New York and he will go directly to jail by whatever pro-life means possible and Elliot Spitzer will resign and flee the country before he breaks Weslin. By that time New York Catholics will be marching on Albany with pitchforks, torches, coffins, shovels and a thoroughly effective and just agenda.

[BlackElk]

See #185, third paragraph: We got a guy: Fr. Norman Weslin. He was born for this moment.

[Dodgers fan]

I believe the Jewish Orthodox group Agudath Israel also sued for the same reason.

[Dodgers fan]

I am not a Catholic, but I believe that using birth control is not considered a mortal sin. Am I wrong??????

[Dodgers fan]

REligious organizations will stop having contracts with the city and state of New York. And many people will suffer.

[MaxMax]

Keep religion out of Government, "Yet" lets keep
government in Religion.

/Sigh

[Dodgers fan]

Anybody who wants contraception in New York State can walk into the deli and buy it. It is on the shelves near the lotto cards and phone cards.

[Tax-chick]

The use of contraception is a "grave matter," which is the objective, externally-observable one of the three factors involved in identifying "mortal sin."

The other two factors are full knowledge of the nature of the sin, and full consent of the will. These, obviously, cannot be observed, except by God.

[jmcenanly]

Time lines... 2008 -- Force all Catholic Institutions (social services, hospitals) to provide contraception.

2012 -- Force all Catholic institutions to cover surgical abortion.

2014 -- Dismantle the Catholic Mass itself...Make faulty claims of the environmental hazards of incense, and Municipal Smoking Bans Dont think it's coming!?...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4026537.stm Church air is 'threat to health' Candles can generate pollutants Air inside churches may be a bigger health risk than that beside major roads, research suggests. Church air was found to be considerably higher in carcinogenic polycyclic hydrocarbons than air beside roads traveled by 45,000 vehicles daily. It also had levels of tiny solid pollutants (PM10s) up to 20 times the European limits. The study, by Maastricht University, The Netherlands, is published in the European Respiratory Journal. This discovery is very worrying Dr Theo de Kok The researchers say that December, with churches lighting up candles for Christmas, could be an especially dangerous month for the lungs. It is now believed that respiratory health is increasingly at risk from so-called "indoor pollution" in the home, workplace and other enclosed spaces. The Dutch team set out to examine the air quality in churches, as they are often poorly ventilated, with candles burning all day, and frequent use of incense. Both could, in principle, be expected to have some harmful effects.

What kind of world would these people have us live in?

[xzins]

I pray he lives as long as did Moses.

[Frank Sheed]

Catholic hospitals could simply choose to turn away all emergency calls on a certain Friday night to the local secular hospitals. The same is true for parochial schools: each child could register for the local public school on August 1st.

The issue here is that the implications of these actions are not considered by imperial courts because they do not have to deal with the consequences of their imbecilic and atheistic actions. The Catholic schools and hospitals provide a service to all comers--as Christ commanded--provided their religious views are respected. We render to Caesar what is Caesar and to God what is God's. They--the new "priests" wearing black judicial robes--will not brook that concept; it supercedes their earthly authority and that is unacceptable to them.

F

[right-wingin_It]

What kind of world would these people have us live in?

http://www.flawijn.be/wp-content/thx1138.jpg

At least we know how end of the story will turn out...that is, when the "sheep are separated from the goats." Pretty comforting ;)

[armydoc]

I think it reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of Catholicism, which teaches that to be saved, Catholics must perform works of mercy

I sure hope I don't come up one work short! Better get out there and earn my salvation!

/sarc

[Running On Empty]

"When I was hungry you gave me to eat, when I was thirsty you gave me to drink, when I was in prison you visited me......come, enter into the kingdom of my Father"

Are these not "works" of grace and faith through love?

"When I was hungry, you did not give me to eat, when I was thirsty you did not give me to drink, when I was in prison you did not visit me.....depart from Me"

[traviskicks]

these churches would do better to keep the lord's work from being perverted by government money in the first place.

[GoLightly]

Stepping in here. Unless there's been a change made since I went through this, the non-Catholic is not agreeing to raise the children Roman Catholic. The Church is not claiming to have any real authority over that partner. The Roman Catholic agrees to raise future children in the Church & the partner agrees not to interfere.

presidio9, you fail to take into account good faith. As long as either partner enters into the union with innocent intent regarding the faith the future children are going to be raised to follow, it is a marriage. The Church acted in good faith & assumes the Roman Catholic partner is doing so as well.

Let's say both partners were Roman Catholic & they were married by the Church. They fail to raise their children as Roman Catholic. The way the Church sees this marriage would be exactly the same as the one you've tried to say isn't a marriage. Unless or until there is an annulment, it's a marriage.