Cardinal George Says Contraception Laws Will Ruin Catholic Institutions
By Samantha Abernethy in News on Feb 29, 2012 10:00PM
Cardinal Francis George of the Archdiocese of Chicago says the proposed policies on contraception "will make it impossible for Catholic institutions to follow their conscience," forcing them to shut down.
George wrote in his column for Catholic New World, the Archdiocese of Chicago's newspaper, that while Catholics are used to giving things up for Lent, "This year, the Catholic Church in the United States is being told she must “give up” her health care institutions, her universities and many of her social service organizations."
George says that unlike Lent, the Department of Health and Human Services regulations are not "a voluntary penance." George writes:
What will happen if the HHS regulations are not rescinded? A Catholic institution, so far as I can see right now, will have one of four choices: 1) secularize itself, breaking its connection to the church, her moral and social teachings and the oversight of its ministry by the local bishop. This is a form of theft. It means the church will not be permitted to have an institutional voice in public life. 2) Pay exorbitant annual fines to avoid paying for insurance policies that cover abortifacient drugs, artificial contraception and sterilization. This is not economically sustainable. 3) Sell the institution to a non-Catholic group or to a local government. 4) Close down.
George goes on to say this isn't a "reproductive" issue. He conceded that some Catholics do use contraception, and he conceded that there are medical reasons for the use of contraceptive, something Rep. Joe Walsh doesn't understand. But he says, "If it can be shown that a majority of Catholic students cheat on their exams, it is still wrong to cheat on exams."
George said the contraception argument could be "on assisted suicide or any other moral issue that can be used to distract attention from the attack on religious liberty."
If you're sick of listening to men talk about women's reproductive systems, watch the video below. Nick Offerman, Judd Nelson, Tim Meadows and a bunch of funny guys explain why men are in charge of these things.