68:, the Fortnight campaign came in the context of an extended effort on the part of the bishops to make religious freedom an issue of public debate, an effort that "has not yet galvanized the Catholic laity and has even further polarized the church's liberal and conservative flanks." As infringements on religious liberty the document cited state statutes that prevented Catholic agencies from serving the immigrant population and denial of funds to Catholic agencies such as adoption agencies because they do not comply with government policy with respect to
197:, a social service advocacy organization, protested outside the Baltimore Mass that launched the campaign. He commented: "We love the church, but we hate the politics. We think that the decision to have a 'Fortnight for Freedom' really is a political attack on President Obama, and it doesn't reflect the moral priorities of Catholics sitting in the pews, who are really more concerned about bread-and-butter issues." A leader of a liberal Catholic group,
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campaign underscored that focus: "On Aug. 1, less than six weeks from now, the Health and Human
Services mandate will go into effect. This will force conscientious private employers to violate their consciences by funding and facilitating through their employee health insurance plans reproductive 'services' that are morally objectionable." The
56:(DOMA) "to actively attacking DOMA's constitutionality". Dolan predicted such actions on the part of the federal government would "precipitate a national conflict between church and state of enormous proportions and to the detriment of both institutions." In a speech to the American bishops during their visit to Rome on January 19, 2012,
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of
Baltimore, chairman of the ad hoc committee, acknowledged that the effort was viewed by many as partisan and exaggerated and had been criticized by some Catholics. He commented: "It is not about parties, candidates or elections, as some others have suggested.... In the face of this resistance, it
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The bishops formed an ad hoc committee on religious freedom that issued a proclamation on April 12, 2012, setting out their themes for two weeks of events and services in defense of religious liberty which they said was "under attack, both at home and abroad." It presented the issue as non-partisan:
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More than 70 of the 195 dioceses in the U.S. scheduled events. A flier distributed to parishes during the
Fortnight campaign included "New York City's push to prevent congregations from holding prayer services in public schools; some states’ termination of contracts with Catholic Charities because
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political scientist on the bishops traditional bi-partisanship: "I think it's without doubt that they are in the process of squandering that special position or role in
American politics. The danger is that they'll be seen as social conservatives in league with a political party whose views on
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described the
Fortnight campaign at its launch: "The campaign focuses on a policy requiring religious institutions to offer birth control and other reproductive health care in employee health plans." Its only quotation from Archbishsop Lori's remarks prepared for the Mass that inaugurated the
201:, said: "I think some of the alarmist rhetoric that some church leaders are using gives the impression that some bishops are quite happy making this part of a Republican campaign." He feared the bishops would be seen as "the Republican Party at prayer", a reference to the phrase used by
103:, that requires employers that provide health care insurance for their employees, including religious and charitable organizations and religiously affiliated hospitals and universities, to include coverage for contraception, sterilization, and other forms of birth control.
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may be tempting to get discouraged, to second-guess the effort, to soft-pedal our message. But instead, these things should prompt us to do exactly the opposite, for they show us how very great is the need for our teaching, both in our culture and even in our own church."
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The
Bishops sought guarantees that would shield them from lawsuits if they refused to make their facilities available on a commercial basis to people or for events, such as the celebration of same-sex marriages, to which the Roman Catholic Church has moral objections.
120:. They reject the idea that the American government can determine which of their activities should be identified as a religious in nature and therefore protected by the guarantee of religious liberty and which of their activities is not.
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185:, John L. Allen contrasted the rhetoric of the Fortnight for Freedom, which described a "war on religion" in America, with countries where religious advocates are "threatened, beaten, imprisoned and even murdered." The head of
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With respect to government attempts to distinguish religious activity from enterprises in which a religious organization is engaged, proponents of the event maintained that religious liberty is a right afforded them by the
64:"The Constitution is not for Democrats or Republicans or Independents. It is for all of us, and a great nonpartisan effort should be led by our elected representatives to ensure that it remains so." According to the
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the organization will not place adoptive children with same-sex couples; and
Catholic organizations’ losing contracts to fight human trafficking because they will not refer victims for abortions or contraception."
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economic issues are not ones that the bishops share.... That doesn't strike me as a particularly good way of protecting the long-term viability of the church as a participant in
American policy debates."
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Despite the bishops' attempt to demonstrate that a series of challenges to religious liberty motivated them, press coverage and public discussion focused on the health benefits controversy. As the
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of
Springfield, Illinois, proposed the name Fortnight for Freedom and the scheduled designed to celebrate the feast days of saints who died for their faith, including
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rights group, called the campaign "election-year political posturing.... It all has to do with their bigger push to be politically powerful again." The head of
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216:–that nearly coincided with the dates of the Fortnight for Freedom. Some American nuns had demonstrated their independence from the bishops by supporting the
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highlighted the need for the
American government to respect the religious "freedom of worship" and "freedom of conscience" amidst "radical secularism".
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set the campaign in the context of the Vatican's censure of U.S. nuns and the priest sex-abuse scandal. It noted some of the bishop's rhetoric–
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and an appeal for the inclusion of a "conscience clause" for religious institutions and religious faithful to practice according to the moral
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said the White House was "strangling" the Church–and the healthcare-related lawsuit against the federal government. It quoted a
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259:"Fight against federal law will undermine marriage, says archbishop"
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311:"Sunday Pope Quote: Fortnight for Freedom edition, June 24, 2012"
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The Nuns on the Bus tour lasted from June 18 to July 2.
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