This is not a Catholic Issue
Southern Baptists
CLICK HERE for full article
Lutheran Church Missouri Synod
the Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison, president of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), says the church remains “deeply concerned.” The LCMS strongly objects to birth control that can work post-conception to cause the death of a developing child CLICK HERE for video
Jewish groups
If tikkun olam is to retain any meaning, it must mean what it has always meant: Judaism as a faith is expressed in actions benefitting all of society, not just Jews. It must be defended by these same liberal Jews and liberal denominations against this redefinition by the Obama administration. CLICK HERE for full article
Heritage Foundation panel
Panel of women from an array of faiths and backgrounds at Heritage Foundation forum answer questions about the mandate. Washington State conscience case is discussed. A college student wonders if she will loose her scholarship if her religious based college is fined for not complying. CLICK HERE for video
National Association of Evangelicals
“Freedom of conscience is a sacred gift from God, not a grant from the state,” said Galen Carey, NAE Vice President for Government Relations. “No government has the right to compel its citizens to violate their conscience. The HHS rules trample on our most cherished freedoms and set a dangerous precedent.” CLICK HERE for full article
Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion. This freedom is transgressed when a religious institution is required to pay for “contraceptive services” including abortion-inducing drugs and sterilization services that directly violate their religious convictions. Providing such services should not be regarded as mandated medical care. CLICK HERE for full article
Reformed Theological Seminary
This is not a Catholic issue only. It is not a contraception issue. It is a religious liberty issue. It is an American issue. Phoenix Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted was spot-on when he preached, “we cannot, we will not, comply with this unjust law. Our parents and grandparents did not come to these shores to help build (America) ... Or to have the posterity stripped of their God given rights…” This Presbyterian says, “Amen,” to that Catholic bishop. CLICK HERE for full article
Does HHS really represent women?
DON'T CLAIM TO SPEAK FOR ALL WOMEN
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT OBAMA, SECRETARY SEBELIUS AND MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
We are women who support the competing voice offered by Catholic institutions on matters of sex, marriage and family life. Most of us are Catholic, but some are not. We are Democrats, Republicans and Independents. Many, at some point in our careers, have worked for a Catholic institution. We are proud to have been part of the religious mission of that school, or hospital, or social service organization. We are proud to have been associated not only with the work Catholic institutions perform in the community – particularly for the most vulnerable -- but also with the shared sense of purpose found among colleagues who chose their job because, in a religious institution, a job is always also a vocation.
Those currently invoking "women's health" in an attempt to shout down anyone who disagrees with forcing religious institutions or individuals to violate deeply held beliefs are more than a little mistaken, and more than a little dishonest. Even setting aside their simplistic equation of "costless" birth control with "equality," note that they have never responded to the large body of scholarly research indicating that many forms of contraception have serious side effects, or that some forms act at some times to destroy embryos, or that government contraceptive programs inevitably change the sex, dating and marriage markets in ways that lead to more empty sex, more non-marital births and more abortions. It is women who suffer disproportionately when these things happen.
No one speaks for all women on these issues. Those who purport to do so are simply attempting to deflect attention from the serious religious liberty issues currently at stake. Each of us, Catholic or not, is proud to stand with the Catholic Church and its rich, life-affirming teachings on sex, marriage and family life. We call on President Obama and our Representatives in Congress to allow religious institutions and individuals to continue to witness to their faiths in all their fullness.
CLICK HERE to see the LENGTHY list of signers and to sign also.
