Cardinal Wuerl, Mother Teresa, and ObamaCare (Video)

Video message from Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the Archbishop of Washington, DC:



From CNS News:

"Contrary to America's great tradition of religious freedom, embodied in the First Amendment, Catholic institutions will now be forced to act against their conscience and provide coverage for drugs and procedures they believe are morally wrong, simply because they serve people of all faiths or no faith equally," said Cardinal Wuerl.

Mother Teresa founded a hospice in Washington, D.C., where members of her order, the Missionaries of Charity, care for people with advanced AIDS.

The administration’s new regulation includes a “religious” exemption, but that exemption is narrowly drawn and does not extend to Catholic lay persons or to Catholic hospitals, schools or charities.

HHS’s conception of “religious” is so narrow, in fact, said Cardinal Wuerl in his open letter, that even Mother Teresa would not have qualified.

“The First Amendment’s guarantee of religious freedom, however, was not meant to protect merely the right to worship, but also the right to contribute the fruits of our faith to the common good,” said Cardinal Wuerl. “And until now, our government had chosen to honor that guarantee. Never before has the government contested that institutions like Archbishop Carroll High School or Catholic University are religious. Who would? But HHS’s conception of what constitutes the practice of religion is so narrow that even Mother Teresa would not have qualified.”

...On Monday, Cardinal Wuerl announced that the Archdiocese of Washington--along with 42 other Catholic dioceses and organizations (including the Archdiocese of New York and the University of Notre Dame)--is suing the administration in federal court arguing that the HHS regulation is a violation of the First Amendment right to freedom of religion. Twelve different suits are being filed around the country with different combinations of plaintiffs.

I am grateful that Catholic leaders are not rolling over for Obama and the Leftists, like they have so many times in the past.

This time, Catholics are fighting back.

Obama is at war with us. He's attacking our First Amendment rights. He's striking at the very heart of what it means to be an American.

This should bother all Americans, not just Catholics.

It's about freedom.

Obama's oppression will not stand.