Religious freedom under attack in all levels of government

Published: June 16, 2012

By Bishop Anthony B. Taylor

Bishop Anthony B. Taylor

Freedom of religion is far more than merely freedom of worship. Religious liberty is the freedom to live according to the dictates of our conscience every hour of every day, and not just one hour on Sunday. The Catholic Church teaches that religious liberty is a basic human right and so civil law must never "require what conscience forbids or forbid what conscience requires." This freedom to follow the dictates of our conscience is presently under attack by federal, state and city governments. Let me give you briefly four current examples.

The contraceptive mandate of the Department of Health and Human Services obligates almost all institutions nationwide to include artificial contraception, sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs in our health insurance plans, in violation of our beliefs. These "preventive services" are readily available already and not covering them would not deny access to them to anyone. The issue is whether the government should force us to pay for these immoral practices and thereby make us participants in actions that violate our religious beliefs. Plus this mandate accords no respect whatsoever to the consciences of Catholic employers in non-religious enterprises who cannot in good conscience pay for--and provide -- these "services" for their employees. Worse, though the mandate provides a narrow exception for certain religious institutions, is not willing to make any exception whatsoever for religious individuals--as if you could have a religion without also having believers! Moreover, our government has even taken upon itself the prerogative of deciding whether Catholic hospitals and schools are religious enough to merit protection of their religious liberty--which is a God given right, unalienable and intrinsic to the human person and thus not within the competence of any human government to deny. This cannot stand! This mandate seeks to require what conscience forbids.

Immigration: Religious liberty is under attack from the right as well as from the left. For instance, several states have passed laws making it a felony of "harboring" and "aiding and abetting" to offer assistance to undocumented immigrants--including Oklahoma prior to my coming to Arkansas as bishop. A felony for offering charity, even though unauthorized entry is only a misdemeanor and unauthorized presence only a civil infraction. The new Alabama law goes even further, making it illegal for priests to offer sacraments to undocumented immigrants, invite them to Mass, offer them counseling or take them to the hospital. Such laws forbid us to do what conscience requires.

Foster care and adoption services: Religious liberty is under attack not only on the federal and state level, but also by city governments. For instance Boston, San Francisco, the District of Columbia, as well as the state of Illinois have driven local Catholic Charities out of providing adoption and foster care services -- by revoking their licenses or ending their government contracts -- because they were unwilling to place children with same-sex couples or unmarried cohabitating couples. This too cannot stand! They seek to require us to do what conscience forbids!

Humanitarian services: Despite years of excellent performance administering contracts for victims of human trafficking, the federal government changed its specifications to require the USCCB Migration and Refugee services to provide or refer for contraceptive and abortion services in violation of Catholic teaching. We should not be disqualified from a government contract based on religious belief. This too cannot stand.

Freedom of religion is more than merely freedom of worship. It is the freedom to live according to the dictates of our conscience every hour of every day, and not just one hour on Sunday. Civil law must never "require what conscience forbids or forbid what conscience requires."

Bishop Anthony B. Taylor made these comments during the Stand Up for Religious Freedom rally June 8 in Little Rock.