Five Things To Know on March 21

1. Father John Crossin head of the bishops Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs offers an important insight on criminal justice issues in his blog post on ecumenism on the margins. 

2. Pope Francis in his morning homily reminds people that prayer and humility are needed in a world that can hold out an unrealistic view of self-sufficiency.

3. The USCCB Lenten calendar today points out that destitution is not the same as poverty because destitution is poverty without faith, without support, without hope. The message comes from Pope Francis' message for Lent 12014.

4. Dioceses around the country are now preparing thousands of men and women to enter the Catholic Church on Holy Saturday through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.

5. God loves you.

Ecumenism on the Margins

By Father John Crossin, OSFS

Solidarity with those imprisoned, people who Pope Francis would describe as on the margins, has become an ecumenical priority. When they are incarcerated, human beings made in the image and likeness of God are often forgotten, downgraded, given exorbitant sentences and not offered real opportunities to reform.

These and many other sad conclusions came to me after spending three long and intense days studying mass incarceration at the annual meeting of Christian Churches Together. The 80 delegates of the 40 churches and church organizations that make up this broad-based ecumenical coalition met in Newark, New Jersey in February. As I listened to the depressing data being presented I concluded that the change, which is already in the political winds, should be “fast-tracked.”

The press release of CCT gives the basic conclusions of our study days and lots of startling documentation. The release from the USCCB refers to our own Catholic teaching about respecting the life of prisoners.

One insight that has stayed with me in the weeks since our annual meeting is the importance of family, friends and clergy to those who are incarcerated. Even a single visit by a priest or pastor can have a profound impact. The imprisoned appreciate the love and concern of church leaders. The visits of family and friends, often made difficult by distance and cost, are highly correlated with success after the prison term is over. Relationships count. Personal visits give people hope.

We carry the effects of our past dehumanization of people of color. We must be vigilant to avoid unjust social structures, “structures of sin,” as Blessed John Paul II would say. Our current system impacts the poor, the marginalized and immigrants disproportionately.

For several years now, the member churches of CCT have concerned themselves with poverty. An initial consensus statement on poverty has been followed by related statements on immigration and racism (with a study guide for parishes). One thing that must bring Christians together is love for the poor. By extending their concern to the incarcerated, CCT has found still another avenue for that love.
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Father John Crossin is an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales and head of the U.S. bishops’ Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Activities.

The Presidential/VP Slate, 2013

On November 12, the U.S. bishops -- gathered in Baltimore for their annual fall General Assembly -- will vote for their next president and vice president. The newly elected officers will begin their terms at the conclusion of the meeting (Thursday, November 14), when Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York and Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, complete their respective terms as president and vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Ten candidates are nominated by their brother bishops for the presidency and vice presidency. Following, in alphabetical order, is a breakdown with some vital statistics of this year's slate:

1. Archbishop Gregory Aymond

Archbishop of New Orleans

• Born November 12, 1949
• Ordained a priest of New Orleans May 10, 1975
• Auxiliary bishop of New Orleans, 1997-2000
• Coadjutor bishop of Austin, Texas, 2000-2001
• Bishop of Austin, Texas, 2001-2009

First native of New Orleans to serve as its archbishop. Currently wrapping up a term as chairman of USCCB's Divine Worship Committee, during which time he oversaw the implementation of the new English translation of the Roman Missal. Also serves USCCB Committees on Communications and Domestic Justice and Human Development.

2. Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, OFM Cap.

Archbishop of Philadelphia

• Born September 26, 1944
• Ordained a priest of the Capuchin Franciscan Order, August 29, 1970
• Bishop of Rapid City, South Dakota, 1988-1997
• Archbishop of Denver, 1997-2011

Currently chairs the Subcommittee on Native American Catholics. Serves on the USCCB Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church and as a consultant to the Pro-Life Activities Committee.

3. Bishop Blase J. Cupich

Bishop of Spokane, Washington

• Born March 19, 1949
• Ordained priest of Omaha, Nebraska, August 16, 1975
• Bishop of Rapid City, South Dakota, 1998-2010

Previously served as chairman of the USCCB Committee on Child and Youth Protection (2008-11), overseeing release of John Jay Causes and Context Study. Currently chairs the Subcommittee on the Church in Central and Eastern Europe and is a member of the National Collections Committee.

4. Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo

Archbishop of Galveston-Houston

• Born May 23, 1949
• Ordained priest of Pittsburgh, July 16, 1977
• Coadjutor bishop of Sioux City, Iowa, 1997-1998
• Bishop of Sioux City, Iowa, 1998-2004
• Coadjutor bishop/archbishop of Galveston-Houston, 2004-2006
• Elevated to cardinal, 2007

First cardinal from Texas. Chairman-elect of the bishops' Committee on Divine Worship. Former chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities (2009-2012) and current member of that committee, as well as National Collections Committee and Subcomittee on Health Care Issues. Participated in the March 2013 conclave to elect Pope Francis.

5. Archbishop José H. Gomez

Archbishop of Los Angeles

• Born December 26, 1951
• Ordained priest of Opus Dei, August 15, 1978
• Auxiliary bishop of Denver, 2001-2004
• Archbishop of San Antonio, 2004-2010
• Coadjudutor archbishop of Los Angeles, 2010-2011

Head of the largest diocese in the United States. Member at large of USCCB Executive Committee. Chairman of Committee on Migration. Member of Subcommittee on Divine Worship in Spanish, the Subcommittee on the Church in Latin America and consultant to Committee on International Justice and Peace.

6. Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz

Archbishop of Louisville, Kentucky

• Born August 18, 1946
• Ordained priest of Allentown, Pennsylvania, March 18, 1972
• Bishop of Knoxville, Tennesee, 1999-2007

Vice president of USCCB since 2010. Former chairman of USCCB's then-Ad Hoc Committee on the Defense of Marriage.

7. Archbishop William E. Lori

Archbishop of Baltimore

• Born May 6, 1951
• Ordained priest of Washington, May 14, 1977
• Auxiliary bishop of Washington, 1995-2001
• Bishop of Bridgeport, Connecticut, 2001-2012

Serves as chaplain of the Knights of Columbus. Chairman of the bishops' Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty. Member of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities, the Committee on Budget and Finance and the Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage. Consultant to the Committee on Doctrine.

8. Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr

Archbishop of Cincinnati

• Born June 21, 1948
• Ordained priest of Sioux City, Iowa, July 20, 1974
• Bishop of Duluth, Minnesota, 2001-2008
• Coadjutor archbishop of Cincinnati, 2008-2009

Organizer of World Youth Day Denver in 1993 and served as general secretary of the U.S. bishops from 1995-2001. Chairman of the Committee on National Collections. Member of the Committee on Budget and Finance.

9. Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron

Archbishop of Detroit

• Born October 21, 1948
• Ordained a priest of Detroit, July 26, 1975
• Auxiliary bishop of Detroit, 1996-2003
• Coadjutor bishop of Oakland, California, 2003
• Bishop of Oakland, California, 2003-2009

First Detroit native to head the archdiocese. Member of the Committee on Doctrine and the Subcommittee on the Catechism.

10. Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski

Archbishop of Miami

• Born October 18, 1950
• Ordained priest of Miami, May 15, 1976
• Auxiliary bishop of Miami, 1997-2003
• Coadjutor bishop of Orlando, Florida, 2003-2004
• Bishop of Orlando, 2004-2010

First Miami native to head the archdiocese. Chairman-elect of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development. Member of the Committees on Migration and International Justice and Peace and the Subcommittee on the Church in Latin America. Consultant to the Committee on Pro-Life Activities.

When Your Phone Becomes Your Prayer Book

By Sister Mary Ann Walsh

Many media snickered when the Vatican announced that people who followed the World Youth Day pilgrimage via social media could derive the same spiritual benefits earned by those present in Rio de Janeiro for the international church event. Were they worried that it made a spiritual effort too easy?

Certainly tuning in on social media is a far stretch from the work of Chaucer’s pilgrims of the Canterbury Tales. But from the church’s standpoint, social media allows World Youth Day to include those who could not travel to walk alongside the youth on pilgrimage.

Going social media follows the church’s tradition of keeping up with the communications arts. No surprise here. In the mid-eighties, the Vatican announced people could receive the pope’s Urbi et Orbi (To the city and to the world) apostolic blessing on Christmas and Easter via TV without standing in St. Peter’s Square. Earlier in that century the church moved into the then new medium, radio. Guglielmo Marconi considered the inventor of the new medium, launched Vatican Radio in 1931. The worldwide service now airs in 47 languages. Voice of America went on the air in 1942.

To bring the Gospel into people’s lives, the Church has no choice but to engage with contemporary media. Given what some consider the usual glacial movement of the Holy See – when you’re 2,000 years old, why hurry? – the Church has entered social media with lightning speed. After all, the World Wide Web only took off in the mid-nineties. Facebook was born in 2004; Twitter in 2006.

The church searches for ways to use media for its mission. For those who want a few moments with Scripture, for example, the U.S. bishops accommodate them with daily readings and a meditation on them via www.usccb.org/bible. For those who want to spend more time with daily prayer the Irish Jesuits have Sacred Space at www.sacredspace.ie. Such media aids have replaced the prayer books of a generation or more ago. For many, iphones have become prayer books. One may not find the same religious sensory appeal in holding an iPad as in holding a Bible, but that downside may be offset by the accessibility to Scripture found on the Web.

Church entrepreneurs have developed apps for everything from the rosary to the Divine Office. (Caution: Don’t judge someone looking at his phone before Mass – he may be praying the Liturgy of the Hours, as the Office is called.)

Pope Francis tweets virtually every day with challenging and inspiring messages. USCCB shares them via USCCB Facebook and Twitter accounts. It’s a spiritual boost from the man who is charm the world with his down-to-earth spirituality. It’s also a connection with the Vicar of Christ.

Believers accept the fact that God is everywhere. It shouldn’t surprise us when God shows up in social media.

(CNS Photo/Gretchen Crowe)

Tweet the Pope

By Sister Mary Ann Walsh

With the push of a button, I sent a tweet with #AskPontifex to the pope at @Pontifex, the new Twitter account the Vatican set up for Pope Benedict XVI. It’s nice to go straight to the top. Kudos to the pope who saw that even at 85 years of age, he has to engage in social media.

Pope Benedict speaks many languages, his native German, of course, and Italian, French, English and other tongues too. But the most important language for him may be Digital, the one that reaches every nation in the world.

On Twitter, Pope Benedict will send messages in eight languages: English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, French, Arabic and Italian. His tweets debut December 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, who in an apparition startled the peasant Juan Diego by speaking to him instead of higher ups in mid-16th century Mexico.

When Pope Benedict joins Twitter, he endorses a community that exists on the Web, where people can even discuss matters of the soul. Its anonymity can free people to share deep concerns. It is not always pretty, of course. Recently, for example, on the USCCB Facebook page people debated whether or not there’s a religious obligation to help the poor. Arguments over such a mandate can be a healthy, though sometimes raucous religious exercise. Undoubtedly Pope Benedict will encounter cynicism, but he can handle that. He knows it is important to engage, even at personal cost.

The pope’s web leadership might encourage bishops and others to follow suit. This will be no small accomplishment. Resistance comes from more than the fact that social media is time consuming. It comes from the fact that blogging and the like defy what many have been taught. Priests and bishops, for example, learned early on: “it’s about the message, not you.” Now comes a communications vehicle where they are expected to get more personal. It jars them.

Church leaders also revel in finely nuanced theology. Tweets of 140 characters preclude nuancing. Some who think length equals profundity might pause at truths such as “God loves you,”  “Jesus died for you” and “I am with you always.” They’re short on words, deep in meaning and fit Twitter’s length restrictions.

Some fear the pope and other leaders might lose some mystique when they tweet with the hoi polloi. Yet plain speaking is not irreverent and being with the masses is not beneath a religious leader. After all, God did become man. Scripture proves simple speech can be holy. Think “Let there be light” at creation and Mary’s “Let it be done unto me according to thy word” at the Annunciation. Engaging the crowd means being with God’s children, such as the multitude Jesus addressed on the mountainside.

Social media reaches billions. Its brevity makes it accessible. It’s via the Internet, a new place people gather and that sometimes needs to be redeemed. It is interactive as it beckons web users to engage another, perhaps the antidote to the isolation many people feel today. As he wades into social media waters, the pope will encounter a sometimes cynical cyber-world, but by using Twitter with sincerity, he can elevate the medium. Some may doubt the wisdom of this papal venture, but fear has never stopped Christians from sharing their message through all available means.

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Editor's Note: Got a question for Pope Benedict XVI on Twitter? Use the hashtag #askpontifex to @Pontifex.

 

Catholics and Social Media

By Sister Mary Ann Walsh

            A recent sign of technology in church was a man watching the Olympics on his Smartphone. He may be among those very few Catholics who, the Public Religion Research Institute says, “incorporate technology into their practice of worship.”     

Public Religion’s July 2012 report finds that few Americans use social technology for religion and that Catholics especially lag in this area: while 19 percent of Evangelical Christians reported having posted something about being in church on Facebook, only six percent of mainline Protestants and two percent of Catholics have done so. It added that while a quarter of Evangelicals have downloaded or listened to a sermon on line, just six percent of mainline Protestants and Catholics have done so.

However, there is much proof that Catholics are present in the new media world via blogs, Facebook, Twitter, web pages and other forms of social media.

            The U.S. bishops’ website, www.usccb.org attracts almost 100,000 visitors each day to its site for liturgical readings of the day, www.usccb.org/bible/readings. These visitors see and hear a brief reflection on the readings at www.usccb.org/bible/reflections.

            The bishops’ Facebook page, www.facebook.com/usccb, boasts about 40,000 followers and is growing. Posts on USCCBlog, found at http://usccbmedia.blogspot.com find their way into other corners of the blogosphere, both through church blogs, such as America Magazine’s “In all things…” and blogs in the secular arena, including Huffington Post, Politico, Washington’s Post’s “On Faith” and USA Today’s “Faith & Reason.”

            A recent social media foray is the church’s religious liberty texting campaign. The bishops urge people to text “Freedom” or Libertad” to 377377. Texters can sign up for brief messages about religious freedom, a key issue now.

            Church blogs abound. Gossip blogs offer “inside” information, such as who might become a bishop next. Several blogs feed a liberal or conservative base, and, I fear, stoke church polarization in this election year.

            Some bishops blog. Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson, Arizona, files a “Monday Memo” at www.tucsondiocese.org. Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York often makes news at http://blog.archny.org. Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston lets people know what he’s doing on his travels with www.cardinalseansblog.org. Others, such as Bishop Christopher Coyne, apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, and Bishop Anthony Taylor of Little Rock, Arkansas, post homilies, or at least 140 characters from their homilies, on Facebook or Twitter.

            Catholics who use the Web for spiritual development can go to many sites, including not only the USCCB site but also sites geared to meditation, such as the Irish Jesuits’ http://www.sacred space.ie and Franciscan Father Richard Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque, New Mexico, www.cac.org.

            The church has a long history of wise use of media technology. Once Johannes Gutenberg invented movable type in the mid-15th century, the first book off his printing press was the Bible. Radio became popular in the United States in the early 20^th century, and one of its first shows was “The Catholic Hour,” which ran from 1930-1950, and featured the priest/preacher Fulton Sheen. Television surged into popularity in the fifties and Sheen became an Emmy-Award-winning TV star for his program “Life Is Worth Living,” 1951-1957. The syndicated “Fulton Sheen Program” followed, 1961-1968. Given this history, despite the Public Religion Research Institute data, the Catholic Church won’t lag for long in use of the newest technological means of communication, social media.

From Fortnights to Faith: When Ideas Collide

It's difficult to walk into a parish, visit a diocesan website or even tune into the secular news media without seeing or hearing something about the Fortnight for Freedom, the bishops' two-week (June 21-July 4) campaign of prayer and education on the value of religious liberty.

Garnering less attention in the media right now is the upcoming opening of the Year of Faith, which the Vatican is kicking off globally on October 11 (the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the 20th anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church). The goal of the Year of Faith is to encourage Catholics, active and inactive, to experience a renewed sense of their faith through a personal encounter with Christ (a phenomenon commonly referred to as the New Evangelization).


On the surface, these two initiatives might not bear much resemblance to one another, but recent talks by leading figures in the U.S. Church at two major Catholic gatherings would suggest otherwise.


Addressing the U.S. bishops at their spring general meeting in Atlanta, June 13, John Garvey, president of The Catholic University of America, outlined some of the ideas associated with the Fortnight for Freedom and the general erosion of religious liberty experienced in the United States, such as the HHS mandate, Catholic Charities being driven out of adoption services under same-sex marriage laws, and Catholic social services in general being discriminated against for government contracts for their refusal to provide or endorse contraceptives and abortion.

But then Garvey took it a step further and asked why this is happening. As he sought an answer, Garvey briefly departed from his prepared remarks (around 21:40 in the video below), observing, "This is a really depressing message." Basically, he said, "we protect religious freedom because we think that religion is a good thing," and "Perhaps the reason we see a loss of religious freedom today is that we are turning a corner in our collective view of religion." He cited dwindling-to-nonexistent Mass attendance in Europe and the rise in popularity of combative atheists like Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins as part of the same trend and concluded, "Our society won't care about religious freedom if it doesn't care about God."

(Here's full video of President Garvey's address.)



A week later, June 20, Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput, OFM Cap., tackled the topic of religious liberty in an address to members of the Catholic Press of the United States and Canada, who were gathered in Indianapolis for their annual convention.


Just as Garvey's address raised themes associated with the Year of Faith and New Evangelization— decreased religious observance, greater secularism, etc.—Archbishop Chaput also zeroed  in on Year of Faith themes as underlying causes of the current struggles surrounding religious liberty. He described how the actions (and inaction) of believers themselves create the need for a renewal of faith.


"I think it's fair, in part, to blame Church leaders for a spirit of complacency and inertia, clericalism, even arrogance, and for operating off a model of the Church—often for well-intentioned reasons—rooted in the past and out of touch with reality," he said, adding, "Too many ordinary Catholics have been greedy to lose themselves in America's culture of consumerism and success. Too many have been complicit in the dullness—the acedia—that has seeped into Church life, and the cynicism and resentment that naturally follow it. These problems kill a Christian love of poverty and zeal. They choke off a real life of faith. They create the shadows that hide institutional and personal sins. And they encourage a paralysis that can burrow itself into every heart and every layer of the Church, right down to individual Catholics in the pews. The result is that Philadelphia, like so much of the Church in the rest of our country, is now really mission territory – again; for the second time." Enter the New Evangelization.


This dovetailing of ideas gives the current struggles over religious liberty broader context and deeper meaning. As Catholics speak out in the short term, they can reinforce their message and goals by rekindling their faith for the long term. Catholics who live out their faith with a sense of energy and authenticity provide a more powerful witness to the world, one that makes clear both the loving mercy of God and the saving work of his Church. This will benefit all Catholics, the cause of religious liberty and all of society.

Journey to the Foot of the Cross: Bishop Ricken Offers 10 Things to Remember For Lent

Bishop David L. Ricken of Green Bay, Wisconsin, chairman of the Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), offers “10 Things to Remember for Lent” as the Church prepares to begin the season with Ash Wednesday on February 22:

1. Remember the formula. The Church does a good job capturing certain truths with easy-to-remember lists and formulas: 10 Commandments, 7 sacraments, 3 persons in the Trinity. For Lent, the Church gives us almost a slogan—Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving—as the three things we need to work on during the season.

2. It’s a time of prayer. Lent is essentially an act of prayer spread out over 40 days. As we pray, we go on a journey, one that hopefully brings us closer to Christ and leaves us changed by the encounter with him.

3. It’s a time to fast. With the fasts of Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, meatless Fridays, and our personal disciplines interspersed, Lent is the only time many Catholics these days actually fast. And maybe that’s why it gets all the attention. “What are you giving up for Lent? Hotdogs? Beer? Jelly beans?” It’s almost a game for some of us, but fasting is actually a form of penance, which helps us turn away from sin and toward Christ.

4. It’s a time to work on discipline. The 40 days of Lent are also a good, set time to work on personal discipline in general. Instead of giving something up, it can be doing something positive. “I’m going to exercise more. I’m going to pray more. I’m going to be nicer to my family, friends and coworkers.

5. It’s about dying to yourself. The more serious side of Lenten discipline is that it’s about more than self-control – it’s about finding aspects of yourself that are less than Christ-like and letting them die. The suffering and death of Christ are foremost on our minds during Lent, and we join in these mysteries by suffering, dying with Christ and being resurrected in a purified form.

6. Don’t do too much. It’s tempting to make Lent some ambitious period of personal reinvention, but it’s best to keep it simple and focused. There’s a reason the Church works on these mysteries year after year. We spend our entire lives growing closer to God. Don’t try to cram it all in one Lent. That’s a recipe for failure.

7. Lent reminds us of our weakness. Of course, even when we set simple goals for ourselves during Lent, we still have trouble keeping them. When we fast, we realize we’re all just one meal away from hunger. In both cases, Lent shows us our weakness. This can be painful, but recognizing how helpless we are makes us seek God’s help with renewed urgency and sincerity.

8. Be patient with yourself. When we’re confronted with our own weakness during Lent, the temptation is to get angry and frustrated. “What a bad person I am!” But that’s the wrong lesson. God is calling us to be patient and to see ourselves as he does, with unconditional love.

9. Reach out in charity. As we experience weakness and suffering during Lent, we should be renewed in our compassion for those who are hungry, suffering or otherwise in need. The third part of the Lenten formula is almsgiving. It’s about more than throwing a few extra dollars in the collection plate; it’s about reaching out to others and helping them without question as a way of sharing the experience of God’s unconditional love.

10. Learn to love like Christ. Giving of ourselves in the midst of our suffering and self-denial brings us closer to loving like Christ, who suffered and poured himself out unconditionally on cross for all of us. Lent is a journey through the desert to the foot of the cross on Good Friday, as we seek him out, ask his help, join in his suffering, and learn to love like him.

For more resources for Lent from USCCB, visit: www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/liturgical-resources/lent/.

Six More Things Everyone Should Know About the HHS Mandate

1. The rule that created the uproar has not changed at all, but was finalized as is. Friday evening, after a day of touting meaningful changes in the mandate, HHS issued a regulation finalizing the rule first issued in August 2011, “without change.” So religious employers dedicated to serving people of other faiths are still not exempt as “religious employers.” Indeed, the rule describes them as “non-exempt.”

2. The rule leaves open the possibility that even exempt “religious employers” will be forced to cover sterilization. In its August 2011 comments, USCCB warned that the narrow “religious employer” exemption appeared to provide no relief from the sterilization mandate—only the contraception mandate—and specifically sought clarification. (We also noted that a sterilization mandate exists in only one state, Vermont.) HHS provided no clarification, so the risk remains under the unchanged final rule.

3. The new “accommodation” is not a current rule, but a promise that comes due beyond the point of public accountability. Also on Friday evening, HHS issued regulations describing the intention to develop more regulations that would apply the same mandate differently to “non-exempt, non-profit religious organizations”—the charities, schools, and hospitals that are still left out of the “religious employer” exemption. These policies will be developed over a one-year delay in enforcement, so if they turn out badly, their impact will not be felt until August 2013, well after the election.

4. Even if the promises of “accommodation” are fulfilled entirely, religious charities, schools, and hospitals will still be forced to violate their beliefs. If an employee of these second-class-citizen religious institutions wants coverage of contraception or sterilization, the objecting employer is still forced to pay for it as a part of the employer’s insurance plan. There can be no additional cost to that employee, and the coverage is not a separate policy. By process of elimination, the funds to pay for that coverage must come from the premiums of the employer and fellow employees, even those who object in conscience.

5. The “accommodation” does not even purport to help objecting insurers, for-profit religious employers, secular employers, or individuals. In its August 2011 comments, and many times since, USCCB identified all the stakeholders in the process whose religious freedom is threatened—all employers, insurers, and individuals, not just religious employers. Friday’s actions emphasize that all insurers, including self-insurers, must provide the coverage to any employee who wants it. In turn, all individuals who pay premiums have no escape from subsidizing that coverage. And only employers that are both non-profit and religious may qualify for the “accommodation.”

6. Beware of claims, especially by partisans, that the bishops are partisan. The bishops and their staff read regulations before evaluating them. The bishops did not pick this fight in an election year—others did. Bishops form their positions based on principles—here, religious liberty for all, and the life and dignity of every human person—not polls, personalities, or political parties. Bishops are duty bound to proclaim these principles, in and out of season.

Here are USCCB's first "six things" on the HHS mandate.

Referral is Not the Answer, Rescinding the Mandate Is

By Bishop William Lori

Two short weeks ago, on January 20, the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that virtually all health plans provided by virtually all employers, including those affiliated with the Catholic Church, would now be forced to cover sterilization procedures, abortion inducing drugs, and contraception. Under the Obama Administration’s unprecedented rule, the federal government would force the Church to include these illicit “services” in many of its insurance plans and help cover their cost.

The immediate, popular uproar against this unacceptable infringement by the federal government on religious liberty is absolutely appropriate. For two thousand years, the Church has consistently taught that abortion and contraception are wrongs that strike right at the dignity of the human person. This is not a matter of the mere opinion of a few bishops or theologians. Now, the federal government would force the Church to negotiate with insurance companies for this coverage, to purchase it and pay for actions it considers immoral. The question is not whether or not all Americans agree with the Church’s teaching on these matters. The real question is whether or not the Church—as well as other religious bodies—should have the freedom to proclaim her teaching and to practice it in a nation founded on the right to religious liberty.

In the few days since the release of the HHS rule, protests against the Administration’s infringement on religious liberty have united people of all faiths and people of good will across America. The impact is real. So now there are rumors of a possible “compromise.” If the name of the compromise is referral, it may run something like this: “We won’t make you include these services in your health plans, and you might not even have to pay for them. All you have to do is tell folks where they can go to get them. Just refer them to a local provider, and that should do it.”

Hawaii is used as an example.

In that state, employers are mandated to cover contraception (though not sterilization), and there is a slightly broader religious exemption, but it also imposes certain requirements on those who would claim the exemption: they must provide written notification to employees of other ways they can directly access coverage for, or obtain, such procedures “in an expeditious manner.”

If such a solution were proposed, it would not address the basic problem-- that of the law forcing religious entities into actions they consider immoral. The Church cannot, even reluctantly, provide information, make arrangements for, facilitate, counsel or instruct people on how to obtain these immoral procedures. To do so would be to participate in the violation of the moral law and thus to act against conscience.

And so religious liberty remains front and center. The Church must have the freedom to refuse to cooperate in any way in making these “services” available. It comes down to this: If we provide the means for another to act against the moral law, we ourselves become morally culpable as well. We simply cannot and will not do that. The doctor simply cannot say, “Well, I will not kill your unborn child but let me send you to Dr. Smith who will." Referral under these conditions is simply wrong.

The best solution is this: restore religious liberty by rescinding the mandate.

Bishop Lori is bishop of Bridgeport, Connecticut, and chairman of the USCCB's Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty.

HHS Takes a Vietnam Turn

When Walter Cronkite spoke out against the Vietnam War during a February 1968 broadcast, President Lyndon Johnson reportedly bemoaned, "If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost Middle America."

That quote came to mind during this clip from last night's Hardball with Chris Matthews, in which Matthews gives his take on the HHS rule that would force Catholic hospitals, universities and social services to pay for contraceptives and other procedures contrary to Catholic teaching in their employee health plans.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Partnership for Church Reconstruction in Haiti, fully functional and gaining steam

Today we mark the second anniversary of the earthquake that devastated Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, and other surrounding areas, leaving behind unthinkable destruction and tremendous suffering. As we remember the victims and renew our commitment not to forget the survivors of this tragedy, it is worth noting that the implementation of the Partnership for Church Reconstruction in Haiti (PROCHE) is now fully underway. The first projects are being executed and will be soon followed by others. Momentum is building and we can anticipate much progress in 2012.

Just in the past two months PROCHE’s construction unit office (known as UOC) has processed 50 project applications and submitted 20 of them to PROCHE’s Executive Committee for review and funding recommendation. Of these, ten are currently moving forward with design and eventual construction. In November 2011, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) approved funding for the design phase of three of those projects. Additional projects are now under consideration.

In September 2010, the Church in Haiti and sister churches, as well as donor organizations including the USCCB, agreed to create PROCHE, an entity within the Haitian bishops’ conference that would ensure all construction projects would meet requisite quality requirements. These requirements include seismic and cyclonic design criteria—as well as guarantee accountability of all disbursed funds. A construction unit was to be established with technical and accounting staff, providing PROCHE with the means to accomplish its reconstruction mission.

In November 2011, 14 months after the historic partnership was created, this vision became a reality when the UOC became functional with six technical and support staff working in a fully operational office in Port-au-Prince. This is the result of significant investments made by all the partners involved. But much remains to be done, and all of PROCHE’s partners continue their commitment to making sure that soon the Church in Haiti can see many churches, schools and convents rebuilt. Numerous plans of eventual construction projects are now being finalized so that construction can begin.

When Comparing Apples and Oranges Leads to Lemons

There are lies, damned lies and statistics. So wrote Mark Twain, some say, and that was well before anyone saw the latest Pew Report.

Pew usually does creditable work but the November report from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life makes one pause. In trying to get a handle on advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill, Pew researchers compared apples and oranges and got lemons.

The report is named “Lobbying for the Faithful: Religious Advocacy Groups in Washington, DC,” and that’s where the misconceptions start. The report is less about lobbying than advocacy, and it defines advocacy as broadly as possible. Example: Pew includes work of the bishops’ Office for Film and Broadcasting (OFB) when it speaks of advocacy. OFB reviewers recommend family-friendly movies to people who follow Catholic media. This has nothing to do with congressional activity.

Pew lists the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) as spending more than $26 million on advocacy. It acknowledges that it is speaking about advocacy in broad terms, and not what people generally think of when they think of lobbyists. Whatever Pew meant, its title speaks of “lobbying” for the faithful that may conjure up money changing hands. It makes one think of pro-abortion groups such as Planned Parenthood and NARAL pouring dollars into politicians’ coffers. OpenSecrets.org, for example, says that Planned Parenthood and NARAL stand among “the most generous contributors to federal candidates, parties and committees.” Pew’s use of the word “lobby” led to the Nov. 21 Washington Post headline “Religious lobbying groups multiply on Capitol Hill,” and the Post’s declaration that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops stands among the “biggest spenders.”

Pew acknowledges that its figures for religious advocacy groups, such as USCCB, are imprecise. It got its figures from a USCCB consolidated financial statement that listed all kinds of USCCB activities as “policy activities.” The USCCB may share in the blame for Pew’s skew given its own lack of precision in the statement Pew studied; but “policy” here cannot be equated with “public policy.”

The USCCB does engage in government relations – not in electioneering – and has three full-time staff assigned to the task. None of them hands out money and the cost of their efforts reaches no where near $26 million. The entire cost of salary and benefits for the entire USCCB staff, in Washington, Miami, New York and Rome, is $29 million, somewhat more than the $26 million Pew claims USCCB pours into lobbying/advocacy. If Pew were right there’d be no funds for USCCB’s central efforts in evangelization, liturgy, helping the poor, educating Catholics, doctrine and canon law.

In estimating advocacy expenses, Pew included costs for the Communications Department, including publishing, media relations, digital media, and Catholic News Service. A look at the activities of these offices suggests something beyond lobbying/advocacy.

Publishing, for example, has spent most of this year working on the revised Roman Missal, so the nation’s 17,000 parishes can pray new responses at Mass starting Nov. 27, the First Sunday of Advent. The only lobbying has been to try to get all the clergy on board as they lament changes in what they’ve gotten used since the missal was revised forty years ago.

Digital media, which conveys church teaching through modern means, boasts of some terrific efforts. Its most popular site by far is the Scripture readings page, where people get the day’s Gospel with the click of a mouse. Its only advocacy is asking God for help. Petitioning the Almighty is not lobbying Congress.

Pew says my own Office of Media Relations does advocacy. Perhaps the occasional blog seems like that, but I spend more time writing about new appointments in dioceses, religious education, vocations to priesthood and the plight of nuns whose retirement funds are woefully underfunded.

Catholic News Service (CNS) is no more into lobbying/advocacy than is the Associated Press, NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, or any other news agency. It reports the news, whatever it is, and like any other news agency it does not always cultivate friends. I shout or laugh at a CNS news report the same way I shout or laugh at the evening news and morning paper.

The Pew Report may prompt commentary. Hopefully, people will realize its figures are way out of whack.

The ABC Factor at HHS - Anybody But Catholics

There seems to be a new unwritten reg at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). It’s the ABC Rule, Anybody But Catholics.

It showed up in a letter from HHS’s Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to advise the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Office of Migration and Refugee Services (MRS) that it would not receive a grant to continue its services for victims of human trafficking.

The USCCB program excelled because of its anytime-anywhere approach. It had extraordinary reach, something valued by people who work to free men, women and children from slavery. Because of USCCB’s organizational capacity, MRS could respond immediately. Should an Immigration Enforcement official find a vulnerable child, for example, a call to the MRS program got safe housing immediately. There was not the delay of weeks that one associates with programs that lack such a network.

The program worked well on the ground. but not so well for distant administrators promoting the abortion and contraceptive agenda, who bristle at the fact that in accord with church teaching, USCCB won’t facilitate taking innocent life, sterilization and artificial contraception. MRS anti-trafficking programs ran successfully for six years in harmony with these moral convictions until the American Civil Liberties Union brought suit against the government for not forcing the USCCB program to provide these services as a part of the program. The suit’s outcome is pending, but ORR apparently has made its own decision apart from any judgment of the court. So much for the Administration’s guarantee of conscience protection.

That’s the climate which allowed ORR to dismiss the USCCB proposal and instead award grant money to the United States Committee on Refugees and Immigrants, (USCRI), Heartland and Tapestri. ORR even awarded more money than it said it would in the original proposal.

ORR earmarked most of the money for USCRI. Eskinder Negash, current director of the ORR, had been vice-president and chief operating officer at USCRI before joining ORR in 2009.

The ORR’s request for proposals had stated that agencies receiving the money were to be fully operational ten days after being awarded the grant. That would have been October 10. One wonders how that could have happened since USCRI and Heartland reportedly were posting ads seeking to hire staff just a few days before that date. None of the three organizations has much depth of experience in monitoring and providing services. USCCB staff were given a number to call for a smooth transition for the people served by the anti-trafficking program. Those who called it found no one could answer their questions.

Trafficking of human beings is one of the great modern-day scandals, but at least until now, the U.S. government sought to sincerely address the issue. It asked USCCB for help when regional programs weren’t reaching victims outside the usual hotspots for trafficking. USCCB created an extraordinary program in conjunction with several partners, Christian and secular, including Lutheran Family Services, Jewish Family Services, Salvation Army, YMCA affiliates, domestic violence shelters, World Relief and others. Only one-third of its subcontractors were Catholic-affiliated, but with the USCCB infrastructure they reached virtually everywhere in the USA.

Now ORR seems to have yielded to abortion politics. It has undercut a worthy program, limiting the numbers served, while increasing the time and money it will take to serve them.

Apparently HHS rules about the benefits of experience and cost effectiveness can be waived. So can rules about being fully operational by a certain date. What can’t be waived is the new, albeit unwritten rule of HHS, the ABC rule – Anybody But Catholics.