Articles and Information Important to Our Catholic Faith
From the USCCB... (07/2015)
In
light of the recent Supreme Court Decision legalizing "gay marriage", it
is most appropriate and necessary that we pray in defense of marriage.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops offers the following prayer...
Prayer in Defense of Marriage
God our Father, we give you thanks
for the gift of marriage: the bond of life and love,
and the font of the family.
The love of husband and wife enriches your Church with children,
fills the world with a multitude of spiritual fruitfulness and service,
and is the sign of the love of your Son, Jesus Christ, for his Church.
fills the world with a multitude of spiritual fruitfulness and service,
and is the sign of the love of your Son, Jesus Christ, for his Church.
The grace of Jesus flowed forth at Cana at the
request of the Blessed Mother. May your Son,
through the intercession of Mary, pour out upon us
a new measure of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
as we join with all people of good will
to promote and protect the unique beauty of marriage.
request of the Blessed Mother. May your Son,
through the intercession of Mary, pour out upon us
a new measure of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
as we join with all people of good will
to promote and protect the unique beauty of marriage.
May your Holy Spirit enlighten our society
to treasure the heroic love of husband and wife,
and guide our leaders to sustain and protect
the singular place of mothers and fathers
in the lives of their children.
to treasure the heroic love of husband and wife,
and guide our leaders to sustain and protect
the singular place of mothers and fathers
in the lives of their children.
Father, we ask that our prayers
be joined to those of the Virgin Mary,
that your Word may transform our service
so as to safeguard the incomparable splendor of marriage.
be joined to those of the Virgin Mary,
that your Word may transform our service
so as to safeguard the incomparable splendor of marriage.
We ask all these things through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
Saints Joachim and Anne, pray for us.
From the USCCB... (06/2015)
Fortnight for Freedom: Freedom to Bear WitnesJune, 2015
"Keeping the spirit of the Gospel means that Catholic institutions are to bear witness in love to the full truth about the human person by providing social, charitable, and educational services in a manner that fully reflects the God-given dignity of the human person." - Archbishop William E. Lori, Chairman, Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty, on the "Freedom to Bear Witness". . .
The Fortnight for Freedom: Freedom to Bear Witness will take place from June 21 to July 4, 2015, a time when our liturgical calendar celebrates a series of great martyrs who remained faithful in the face of persecution by political power—St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher, St. John the Baptist, SS. Peter and Paul, and the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome. The theme of this year's Fortnight will focus on the "freedom to bear witness" to the truth of the Gospel.
From the USCCB... (03/2015)
Bishops Call for Prayer Amidst 'Stark Reality' of Religious Persecution, ViolenceMarch 10, 2015
WASHINGTON—People of all faiths are called to pray for victims of religious persecution and violence and work to protect the marginalized and persecuted around the world, according to a statement of the Administrative Committee of the U.S. bishops, approved March 10. The bishops said Lent is a time for prayerfully reflecting on suffering.
"Let us use this season to unite with our suffering brothers and sisters and pray for them and with them in a special way," they said. "With hope, let us pray for the day when we can all share in the joy and lasting peace of Christ's resurrection."
The Administrative Committee is chaired by Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The committee consists of the elected chairs of the 16 standing committees, the elected representatives of 15 geographic regions, the chairman of Catholic Relief Services and the elected officers of USCCB.
Full text of the statement follows:
STATEMENT ON RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION
ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE
UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS
March 10, 2015
Upon learning of the death of 21 Coptic Christians at the hands of ISIL terrorists, Pope Francis called their murder a "testimony which cries out to be heard." On behalf of America's Catholic Bishops, we pause to listen and invite people of all faiths to join us in prayer for those facing the stark reality of religious persecution in the Middle East and elsewhere. The testimony of those 21 brave and courageous martyrs does not stand alone as thousands of families – Christian and other religions – find themselves fleeing from horrific violence.
We urge all people of goodwill to work toward protections of the marginalized and persecuted.In union with the local Churches and the Holy See, we call upon our nation to: work with the international community to intervene and protect the rights of religious minorities and civilians within the framework of international and humanitarian law; address political and economic exclusion that are exploited by extremists; and increase humanitarian and development assistance.
Lent is a season to meditate upon the Cross and unite ourselves even more closely with Christ's suffering. Let us use this season to unite with our suffering brothers and sisters and pray for them and with them in a special way. With hope, let us pray for the day when we can all share in the joy and lasting peace of Christ's resurrection.
From the USCCB... (09/2014)
Abortion in the Affordable Care Act: Responses to Administration Claims
On September 15 the Government Accountability Office (GAO), an independent,
nonpartisan investigative agency of the federal government, issued a report on serious
abortion–related problems in health plans under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In
response a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sent a
statement and “background” to journalists covering the GAO’s startling findings. Here
are HHS’s claims with responses.
STATEMENT from HHS:
“CMS will work with stakeholders, including states and issuers, so they fully understand and
comply with the federal law prohibiting the use of federal funds for abortions.”
Response: This federal law, the ACA, authorizes use of federal funds for health plans
covering abortion on demand – the GAO identified over a thousand such plans. In some
states, every plan on the exchange -- including federally subsidized plans -- covers such
abortions, and everyone enrolled in those plans is required by the ACA to help fund those
abortions. Some of the problems are created by that law; tighter compliance with the law
won’t solve those problems.
ON BACKGROUND, attributable to an HHS official
“Let’s be clear: No Federal funds, including administrative funds, are permitted to cover
abortions or administer plans that cover abortions, except in the case of rape, incest, or when
the life of the woman is endangered.”
Response: This is misleading in two ways. First, once an insurer decides to cover elective
abortions, it is required by the ACA to make every enrollee pay a surcharge to fund
abortions. No opt-out is provided. ACA, Sec. 1303 (b)(2(i). While this is not Federal tax
funding, it is Federally mandated funding of abortion. Second, Federal tax funds subsidize
health plans that cover abortion, and in many states are used to establish and administer
the health exchanges offering these plans.
“This has been Federal law since the 1980s and nothing has changed. It is the same for the
Federal Employee Health Benefits Program and for anyone who gets health insurance through
the Marketplaces, including Members of Congress and their staff.”
Response: This is simply untrue. The policy of the Hyde amendment, FEHBP, and other
longstanding laws prohibits Federal tax funding of a health plan that covers elective
abortions. The ACA would have followed that policy if Congress had included the House’s
Stupak amendment, or the Senate’s Nelson/Hatch/Casey amendment. Instead, ACA ended
up providing Federal tax subsidies for plans covering elective abortions, authorizing
exactly what these other laws forbid. Members of Congress and their staff now come
under the ACA, so they are governed by an abortion policy opposite to that of FEHBP: All
other Federal employees in Washington D.C. choose among a wide array of plans, none of
which have elective abortions; Members of Congress must choose among the plans on the
ACA’s Washington DC exchange, 92% of which (103 out of 112) have been found to
include elective abortion. In short, 92% is not the “same” as zero.
“The law requires issuers to collect separate payments from consumers with health insurance
plans that cover abortion services for which the use of federal funds are prohibited. It does not
specify a method that issuers must use to comply with the separate payment requirement.”
Response: In fact the law forbids the “method” that would make the term “separate
payment” meaningful to enrollees: Separate billing. The ACA says health plans and
exchanges can provide information “only with respect to the total amount of the combined
payments” for abortion coverage plus all other items. ACA, Sec. 1303 (b)(3)(B). So
“separate” doesn’t mean separate. This problem was widely misrepresented or ignored
when the law was debated and passed. It is easy to see why insurers may think the ACA
allows and even requires them to hide the abortion payment.
“To help ensure compliance with the policy, CMS will provide additional guidance in the
coming days.”
Response: If the guidance ensures “compliance” with the provisions cited above (which
differ from misleading claims by supporters), little will be remedied.
“As is the case with many provisions in the Affordable Care Act, states and state insurance
commissioners have an important role in enforcing the law.”
Response: The GAO showed that many are unaware of this role, and for four years HHS
seems to have done little to inform them of it. For example, a number of insurance
commissioners and insurers seem unaware that they were supposed to enforce protocols for
“segregated” accounts to keep abortion funds separate from Federal funds. Sec. 1303
(b)(2)(E). If that is true, even direct use of Federal funds for abortion procedures
themselves is not being prevented.
“GAO has stated that this audit was NOT designed to assess CMS’ oversight of compliance with
federal requirements. This was beyond the scope of the engagement.”
Response:While that was not the purpose of the study, GAO could not help finding evidence that this oversight has been shoddy to nonexistent depending on the issue.
“From the GAO Report ‘Because we selected these issuers as part of a nonprobability sample,
the information we report regarding the scope of non-excepted abortion services and premium-
and billing-related information is not generalizable to all QHPs offered under an exchange.’ –
GAO, pg 17.”
Response:This is hardly a defense. What was found was bad enough, even as a sample. Other plans might be worse.
9/18/14
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