In a March 1 blog entry, Cardinal Dolan said that although the President invited the bishops to "work out the wrinkles" in the mandate that would force Catholic employers to provide insurance coverage for services that violate their religious beliefs, this invitation does not appear to be genuine.
" . . . (T)he White House Press Secretary, for instance, informed the nation that the mandates are a fait accompli (and, embarrassingly for him, commented that we bishops have always opposed Health Care anyway, a charge that is simply scurrilous and insulting). The White House already notified Congress that the dreaded mandates are now published in the Federal Registry 'without change',” the Cardinal wrote.
So much for the highly trumpeted "accommodation."
He adds: "And a recent meeting between staff of the bishops’ conference and the White House staff ended with the President’s people informing us that the broader concerns of religious freedom — that is, revisiting the straight-jacketing mandates, or broadening the maligned exemption—are all off the table. Instead, they advised the bishops’ conference that we should listen to the 'enlightened' voices of accommodation, such as the recent hardly-surprising but terribly unfortunate editorial in America. The White House seems to think we bishops are hopelessly out of touch with our people, and with those whom the White House now has nominated as official Catholic teachers."
He concluded: "So, I don’t know if we’ll get anywhere with the executive branch."
However, Congress offers more hope. Even though Democrats were successful in defeating the Blunt Amendment yesterday, which would have effectively repealed the mandate, other bills are pending that will off the much needed protection of religious freedom as ObamaCare advances into law.
"As is clear from the current debate in the senate, our opponents are marketing this as a 'woman’s health issue',” Dolan writes. "Of course, it cannot be reduced to that. It’s about religious freedom."
He goes on to applaud the recent Hosanna-Tabor ruling in which the Supreme Court unanimously and enthusiastically defended the right of a Church to define its own ministry and services. Calling the ruling a "dramatic rebuff to the administration," he goes on to say that it has gone unheeded by the White House, thus requiring further action.
" . . . (O)ur bishops’ conference and many individual religious entities are working with some top-notch law firms who have told us they feel so strongly about this that they will represent us pro-bono," he wrote.
"So, we have to be realistic and prepare for tough times. Some, like America magazine, want us to cave-in and stop fighting, saying this is simply a policy issue; some want us to close everything down rather than comply . . . some want us to engage in civil disobedience and be fined; some worry that we’ll have to face a decision between two ethically repugnant choices: subsidizing immoral services or no longer offering insurance coverage, a road none of us wants to travel."
After apologizing for his lengthy blog, he says: "You can see how passionately I feel about this. But, from what I sense, you do too. You all have been such an inspiration, and I owe it to you to keep you posted. We need you more than ever! We can’t give up hoping, praying, trying, and working hard."
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