Timothy Cardinal Dolan is leading a huge lawsuit against President Barack Obama‘s administration under the guise of First Amendment “religious liberty” over Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius‘ decision to ensure contraception services are available free of charge for all women. The President amended the mandate after religious organizations objected early this year, but Cardinal Dolan and others have been using this issue to attack the President unrelentlessly.
A Catholics-only coalition comprised of 43Â dioceses, hospitals, church agencies, schools, and other religious-owned and/or operated but “public” entities are joining together but filing twelve separate lawsuits against members of the Obama administration, including HHS Secretary Sebelius, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, and Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis.
“We have tried negotiation with the Administration and legislation with the Congress – and we’ll keep at it – but there’s still no fix,” a statement by Cardinal Dolan says on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) website. The USCCB is the representative of the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S., and Cardinal Timothy Dolan is its president.
“Time is running out, and our valuable ministries and fundamental rights hang in the balance, so we have to resort to the courts now. Though the Conference is not a party to the lawsuits, we applaud this courageous action by so many individual dioceses, charities, hospitals and schools across the nation, in coordination with the law firm of Jones Day. It is also a compelling display of the unity of the Church in defense of religious liberty. It’s also a great show of the diversity of the Church’s ministries that serve the common good and that are jeopardized by the mandate – ministries to the poor, the sick, and the uneducated, to people of any faith or no faith at all.â€
Cardinal Dolan has been working tirelessly on many projects, the least of which seem to be related to “the poor, the sick, and the uneducated, to people of any faith or no faith at all.â€
In fact, Dolan has been on a huge anti-gay marriage mission, even before his elevation to Cardinal, at the direct insistence of Pope Benedict XVI.
Note: While the USCCB is not party to the lawsuit, Cardinal Dolan is, in his capacity as head of the Archdiocese of New York.
Related:
Catholic Bishops Defunding Non-Profits Who Voice Support For Gay Marriage
Congressman: Contraception Not About Science, It’s About “Religious Beliefâ€
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Cardinal Dolan and Co. Lawsuit
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