Servants of the Lord & the Virgin of Matará
Catholic Culture
Sacred Property: Our Religious Liberty
This web-article on religious liberty intends to share online resources with our readers and to invite everyone to become educated on the importance of preserving religious liberty in our country.
Catholics and non-Catholics alike need to understand the issues surrounding the controversial HHS Mandate. Many of these videos, texts, and websites respond and explain the lawsuits filed on May 21, 2012 by Catholic dioceses and institutions across the country. We invite you to join in prayer for our nation and for our Church, as well as to share these links with others.
“Conscience is the most sacred of all property; other property depending in part on positive law, the exercise of that, being natural and unalienable right.”
— James Madison. Property, 1792
Short Videos
The Archdiocese of Washington has released two short videos about the impact of the HHS Mandate and the reasons for the recent lawsuits. They eloquently express principles shared by all those concerned for religious freedom and protection of consciences.
“Preserve Religious Liberty” (3:31 mins)
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the Archbishop of Washington, explains the reason for the recent lawsuits.
“Our Religious Freedom” (4:51 mins)
Jane Belford, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Washington, further exposes how the current HHS Mandate would deny Catholics the free exercise of our religion.
Websites
www.PreserveReligiousFreedom.org
Sponsored by the Archdiocese of Washington, this website is dedicated to providing resources and updated information about the events surrounding the lawsuits to protect religious freedom
USCCB
Learn about this outreach of the US Bishops to unite all Catholics to pray for and celebrate the great gift of our religious freedom.
dccathcon.org/
Official site for the Archdiocese of Washington’s “DC Catholic Conference”, an event that encourages active participation by Catholics in the public square.
Selected Texts from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Individual Bishops on This Topic
“Our First and Most Cherished Liberty: A Statement on Religious Liberty” (PDF, 98 KB, 13 pages) from the Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty of the USCCB
We are Catholics. We are Americans. We are proud to be both, grateful for the gift of faith which is ours as Christian disciples, and grateful for the gift of liberty which is ours as American citizens. To be Catholic and American should mean not having to choose one over the other. Our allegiances are distinct, but they need not be contradictory, and should instead be complementary. That is the teaching of our Catholic faith, which obliges us to work together with fellow citizens for the common good of all who live in this land. That is the vision of our founding and our Constitution, which guarantees citizens of all religious faiths the right to contribute to our common life together…
“Twelve Things Everyone Should Know about the Contraceptive Mandate” (PDF, 98 KB, 13 pages) from the Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty of the USCCB
“The Parable of the Kosher Deli” (PDF, 27.4KB, 3 pages) the testimony of Bishop William Lori on behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops before the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, United States House of Representatives, February 16, 2012. See the video of the live testimony given by Bishop Lori (7:45).
