Supreme Knight, Carl A. Anderson on Religious Liberty - # 5 of 6

Supreme Knight, Carl A. Anderson on Religious Liberty #5 of 6

In pursuit of the truth - www.cinopsbegonesblogspot.com - Thurs. May 24, 2012

Address to the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, Washington, D.C. - April 19th/12
“During this national prayer breakfast we can make the prayer of St. Thomas More in the Tower of London our own.

“Almighty God, have mercy - on all that bear me evil will,

And would me harm, And their faults and mine together … vouchsafe to amend and redress, Make us saved souls in heaven together, Where we may ever live and love together with Thee and Thy blessed saints … Amen

“As Christians we are called to be witnesses. But to be true witnesses we must preserve our Catholic identity - like St. Thomas More - preserve it especially from the heavy hand of government.

“We are also called to sustain our witness through prayer. How appropriate then that our bishops have called upon us to take up a great fortnight of prayer for religious freedom from the vigil of the Feasts of St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More (June 21st) to July 4th.

“ During the current HHS controversy some have asked, “What kind of Christians would impose such a government mandate on our religious institutions?”

“In December, 1941, with Britain in mortal peril and America reeling after Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill addressed the United States Congress. In that worst of times, he scorned the enemies of freedom and defiantly asked, “What kind of people do they think we are!”

“Today, with the same defiance, we can declare, “What kind of Catholics do they think we are?” Do they really expect us to go gently into that dark night they are preparing for religious liberty in America? Do they not know that people who believe in “one holy catholic and apostolic church” can never agree to compromise our Church by entangling it in intrinsically evil acts?

“Do they not see that faithful Catholics will never accept cynical political strategies of “divide and conquer” to separate us from our bishops? You and I have reason for hope. We have been successful in the past.

“Consider, for example, the national campaign in the 1920s by the Klu Klux Klan to close Catholic Schools . They succeeded in the state of Oregon until the Knights of Columbus and others succeeded in having the law declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. In it landmark decision in Pierce versus Society of Sisters the Court protected the rights of parents - of all denominations - to guide the education and moral upbringing of their children…”

George H. Kubeck - On Monday, forty-three Catholic organizations filed 12 lawsuits in Federal courts in an attempt to resist the Federal government’s intrusion into their various ministries… appealing to the First Amendment and the Federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act.