Along with its assessment of the state of religious freedom in the United States and around the world, one interesting facet of the document is its acknowledgment of the breadth of its audience. This is an issue that touches all faiths:
In insisting that our liberties as Americans be respected, we know as bishops that what our Holy Father said is true. This work belongs to "an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-à-vis the dominant culture."
The bishops explicitly lay out for various demographic segmenst how they can make a difference on this issue.
To everyday Catholics engaging in political life:
As bishops we seek to bring the light of the Gospel to our public life, but the work of politics is properly that of committed and courageous lay Catholics. We exhort them to be both engaged and articulate in insisting that as Catholics and as Americans we do not have to choose between the two. There is an urgent need for the lay faithful, in cooperation with Christians, Jews, and others, to impress upon our elected representatives the importance of continued protection of religious liberty in a free society.
To officeholders:
We address a particular word to those holding public office. It is your noble task to govern for the common good. It does not serve the common good to treat the good works of religious believers as a threat to our common life; to the contrary, they are essential to its proper functioning. It is also your task to protect and defend those fundamental liberties guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. This ought not to be a partisan issue. The Constitution is not for Democrats or Republicans or Independents. It is for all of us, and a great nonpartisan effort should be led by our elected representatives to ensure that it remains so.
To Catholics in health care and other social services:
We recognize that a special responsibility belongs to those Catholics who are responsible for our impressive array of hospitals, clinics, universities, colleges, schools, adoption agencies, overseas development projects, and social service agencies that provide assistance to the poor, the hungry, immigrants, and those faced with crisis pregnancies. You do the work that the Gospel mandates that we do. It is you who may be forced to choose between the good works we do by faith, and fidelity to that faith itself. We encourage you to hold firm, to stand fast, and to insist upon what belongs to you by right as Catholics and Americans. Our country deserves the best we have to offer, including our resistance to violations of our first freedom.
To priests:
To our priests, especially those who have responsibility for parishes, university chaplaincies, and high schools, we ask for a catechesis on religious liberty suited to the souls in your care. As bishops we can provide guidance to assist you, but the courage and zeal for this task cannot be obtained from another—it must be rooted in your own concern for your flock and nourished by the graces you received at your ordination.
To writers, bloggers and other creative types:
Catechesis on religious liberty is not the work of priests alone. The Catholic Church in America is blessed with an immense number of writers, producers, artists, publishers, filmmakers, and bloggers employing all the means of communications—both old and new media—to expound and teach the faith. They too have a critical role in this great struggle for religious liberty. We call upon them to use their skills and talents in defense of our first freedom.
To their brother bishops:
Finally to our brother bishops, let us exhort each other with fraternal charity to be bold, clear, and insistent in warning against threats to the rights of our people. Let us attempt to be the "conscience of the state," to use Rev. King's words. In the aftermath of the decision on contraceptive and sterilization mandates, many spoke out forcefully. As one example, the words of one of our most senior brothers, Cardinal Roger Mahony, thirty-five years a bishop and recently retired after twenty-five years as archbishop of Los Angeles, provide a model for us here: "I cannot imagine a more direct and frontal attack on freedom of conscience than this ruling today. This decision must be fought against with all the energies the Catholic community can muster."
And so there it is, one body, many parts, all with a part to play.
One thing the article did not point out is that Freedom of Religion has actually been under attack since the first Supreme Court decision in 1947 that addressed a portion of this overall issue. Subsequent decisions concerning prayer, religious symbols, relgious documents and so forth being exhibited or practced in the public arena. During those previous encroachments we all, not just Catholics, have been silent. Our silence has given encouragement, aid, support and comfort to the "enemy." The HHS mandate is merely the latest and most direct restriction on Religious Liberty by the Executive Branch of the government.
ReplyDeletePeople fail to understand that any incursion on a Constitutionally guaranteed liberty endangers all other freedoms. In our apathy and comlacency we have engaged in appeasement of government with respect to many of the liberties we have come to take for granted.
People also appear unaware that the Constitution is not an incorruptible, eternal document. Rather, it merely ink on paper and written by man. As such, it is only as good as those who honor and respect it. The more it is dishonored, disrespected, ignored, circumvented or denied, the less force it will have. Many in our nations history have crossed the line in violating the Constitution. Ususally, however, hose have been minor. This administration, more than any previous one, has made it a practice and a matter of curse to violate the Constitution AND the oaths of office to which every member of the administration, from the president on down, has sworn. The HHS mandate is merely one of the more serious and purposeful transgressions and the most importnat so far.
The USCCB needs to reach out to other ecclesal groups and communities, inviting and encouraging them to join with us in the Fortnight for Freedom in late June. Spokespersons should also get into the public limelight on national television and radio, both conservative and where possibe liberal, to publicize the protest and encurage all who love freedom to participate. For, if we lose this freedom, there is no telling what will be next. Because, as Bishop Jenky of the Peoria, Illinois diocese has suggested, Mr. Obama is taking plays right out of the Nazi and Communist playbooks.