Obama's Freedom Deficit

Obama’s Freedom Deficit In pursuit of the truth - www.cinopsbegoneblogspot.com - Thurs. April 26, 2012 Excerpts from “Obama’s Freedom Deficit” by O. Carter Snead in “First Things” - Mar./12 “In a time of economic crisis and human suffering, the administration has imposed barriers on faith-based institutions that feed the hungry, clothe the naked, heal the sick, and educate the young… It is not just the freedom of the religious that hangs in the balance, but the welfare of the needy and the strength of our civic fabric. “During the first years of the Obama administration, the federal government has dramatically turned against religious liberty, prompting Timothy Cardinal Dolan, archbishop of New York, to observe that “never before have we faced this kind of challenge in our ability to engage in the public square as a people of faith and as a service provider.” “The administration has ignored the concerns of religious (and nonreligious) citizens by conscripting taxpayer dollars to support organizations whose work involves the destruction of unborn human life and by electing obstacles to the charitable work of religious bodies. “In November 2009, President Barack Obama, and shortly there-after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, abandoned the phrase “freedom of religion” when discussing administration priorities in favor of “freedom of worship.”… “It began on his third day in office, President Obama restored funding to organizations overseas that provide abortions and moved to reinstate funding to the United Nations Population Fund, which supports China’s one-child policy, a program that involves coerced abortion. Three months after his inauguration, he authorized federal funding for stem-cell research that relies on and creates future incentives for the destruction of living embryos… “In July 2009, the administration’s Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reversed its own conclusion and accused Belmont Abbey College, a Catholic liberal arts college, of violating federal employment laws against “gender discrimination” because it refused, on religious grounds, to pay for artificial birth control in its employee health plan. “The health-care reform bill that President Obama signed into law in March, 2010 lacked long-standing restrictions on abortion funding and failed to include sufficiently robust conscience protections for pro-life heath-care providers… “The Obama administration’s HHS altered the grant process for the National Human Trafficking Assistance Program to favor applicants who offer referrals to “family planning services” and abortions… “On January 20, 2012, (CINOP) Kathleen Sebelius issued a statement that the Obama administration would not modify its contraceptive mandate in response to the concerns raised by religious institutions. It would, however, allow religious entities an additional year to make arrangements for compliance. [A threat with arrogance:]… “As Baltimore William Cardinal Keeler once stated, “We don’t educate [poor students in the inner city of Baltimore] because they are Catholic. We educate them because we are Catholic.” The work of Catholic hospitals, social service agencies, and universities is a form of evangelization - of bearing witness to the love of Christ.”… [We can start today with the public witness for our FAITH beginning in October.] George H. Kubeck